1 Chronicles 11

And David became greater and greater, for Jehovah of Hosts was with him. And these were the chief of the mighty men whom David had, making themselves strong with him in his kingdom, with all Israel to make him king, according to the Word of Jehovah concerning Israel.

(1Ch 11:9-10)

Here we see David, and are told that the Lord was WITH HIM. As a result, he just kept growing… his influence was spreading, his power was building; the Lord was prospering David. As David grew into this position of leadership, we see him surrounded by MIGHTY MEN. These men are honorable, loyal men who had proved themselves and their loyalty to god, the king, and their country on the battle field. The word translated as MIGHTY MEN literally means that they were manly, strong, vigorous, brave, and mighty. Let’s look at these attribute one by one.

MANLY – Not in the John Wayne cowboy kind of way, but in the REAL WAY. To be manly is to be dignified, to not be a boy or a child anymore, but to take on the responsibilities of manhood. Paul said when he became a man he put away childish things. So we see here that the men God used and surrounded David with were MANLY. They had left behind childishness and they were behaving like men.

STRONG – possessing power and endurance, not just strength to attack but strength to stand. These men possessed the strength necessary to withstand the attacks of the enemy, to remain firm, steadfast, and immovable. As believer’s we become strong by building our lives on the rock of God’s Word… then no matter what comes our way, we can stand firm. God doesn’t want people who have a lot of flash and special abilities; he wants people who will STAND FIRM.

VIGOROUS – Literally means full of strength and active force… not lazy, but FULL OF LIFE. God doesn’t want the men and women He is using to be lazy, sitting around doing nothing… He wants us to be full of life… HIS LIFE!

BRAVE – This word means to be full of courage, to possess boldness, and to be unafraid of danger. The man or woman that is truly brave is a person who is aware that God is on their side. We can be men and women who are unafraid if we are men and women FULL OF FAITH.

MIGHTY – It means to possess great strength and great command.

The Lord is looking for us to be spiritual mighty men and women… to be brave, strong, and vigorous. If we want those attributes to be a part of who we are, then we need to be men and women that are developing a relationship with the Lord. David, the mightiest man of the bunch, was growing in strength and power not on his own, but because God was with him.