Real Men of Greatness

February 1, 2008 - Real Men of Greatness
by East Orlando Baptist Pastor David Keyes

David of Bethlehem was the greatest king Israel ever had. He had just been named king, but part of the
land was still occupied by their enemies, so he began to build a team around him because God had said
that David should rule the whole land.
So, the Mighty Men were 30 guys who were the elite; the best of the best & leaders of the rest. There
were:
The 3- Like the Fantastic 4 minus Jessica Alba
Here is the record of David's mightiest men:
The first was Jashobeam…, who was commander of the Three—the three greatest warriors among
David's men. He once used his spear to kill three hundred enemy warriors in a single
battle.                                                                                         1 Chron. 11:11 (NLT)
Next in rank among the Three was Eleazar … He was with David in the battle against the Philistines at
Pas-dammim. The battle took place in a field full of barley, and the Israelite army fled. 14But Eleazar
and David held their ground in the middle of the field and beat back the Philistines. So the LORD saved
them by giving them a great victory.                 1 Chron. 11:12-14 (NLT)
Once when David was at the rock near the cave of Adullam, the Philistine army was camped in the
valley of Rephaim. The Three (who were among the Thirty—an elite group among David's fighting
men) went down to meet him there. 16David was staying in the stronghold at the time, and a Philistine
detachment had occupied the town of Bethlehem. 17David remarked longingly to his men, "Oh, how I
would love some of that good water from the well in Bethlehem, the one by the gate." 18So the Three
broke through the Philistine lines, drew some water from the well, and brought it back to
David.                                                 1 Chron. 11:15-18 (NLT)
Then there was Abishai, about whom the Bible says this: Abishai, the brother of Joab, was the leader of
the Thirty. He once used his spear to kill three hundred enemy warriors in a single battle… 21Abishai
was the most famous of the Thirty and was their commander, though he was not one of the Three.
There was also Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant warrior from Kabzeel. He did many heroic deeds,
which included killing two of Moab's mightiest warriors. Another time he chased a lion down into a pit.
Then, despite the snow and slippery ground, he caught the lion and killed it. 23Another time, armed
with only a club, he killed an Egyptian warrior who was seven and a half feet tall and whose spear was
as thick as a weaver's beam. Benaiah wrenched the spear from the Egyptian's hand and killed him with
it. 24These are some of the deeds that made Benaiah as famous as the Three. 25He was more honored
than the other members of the Thirty, though he was not one of the Three. And David made him
commander of his bodyguard.                                                                                 1 Chron. 11:20-26
(NLT)
Benaiah, like most men of that time, was probably around 5 ½’ tall. He went 2 on 1 with 2 of the
nation of Moab’s “mightiest warriors” and killed ‘em both. Then he killed a lion and a 7 ½’ Egyptian
guy!
So let’s put that in basketball terms: Remember a few not too long ago when Nate Robinson, at 5’ 7”,
blocked Yao Ming’s shot? Now imagine that after blocking his shot, Nate went the other way and
immediately threw down this nasty dunk in Yao’s face. Can you imagine that? Well Benaiah was even
more awesome than that. He took the 7 ½’ dude’s spear and did him in with his own weapon!
These mighty men had a great purpose that demanded great exploits but it wasn’t to build up their rep;
rather to make sure that their king would have rule over all of his land. Why? Because that’s what God
had promised & knew it was best for all of them!
They had great courage- how could they face such overwhelming odds? They believed in their leader,
they believed in their cause, and they believed, lastly… that
yourself, you’ll see that on more than one occasion, the Bible says that “God gave them a great victory”.
yourself, you’ll see that on more than one occasion, the Bible says that “God gave them a great victory”.

Last year, when LaDanian Tomlinson broke the NFL’s single season touchdown record, he was asked
about being lifted on the shoulders of his teammates and carried off the field. He responded “Those are
the times you remember when you can’t play football anymore.” Not the record; the shoulder ride. You
see, there are some great things to be accomplished in this world, but Mighty Men do truly memorable
things as part of a TEAM. They are Real Men of Greatness!