Not All Warriors are Destined to Fight

1 Chronicles 12:23-37 (ESV)
[23]These are the numbers of the divisions of the armed troops who came to David in Hebron to turn the kingdom of Saul over to him, according to the word of the LORD. [24]The men of Judah bearing shield and spear were 6,800 armed troops. [25]Of the Simeonites, mighty men of valor for war, 7,100. [26]Of the Levites 4,600. [27]The prince Jehoiada, of the house of Aaron, and with him 3,700. [28]Zadok, a young man mighty in valor, and twenty-two commanders from his own fathers' house. [29]Of the Benjaminites, the kinsmen of Saul, 3,000, of whom the majority had to that point kept their allegiance to the house of Saul. [30]Of the Ephraimites 20,800, mighty men of valor, famous men in their fathers' houses. [31]Of the half-tribe of Manasseh 18,000, who were expressly named to come and make David king. [32]Of Issachar, men who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, 200 chiefs, and all their kinsmen under their command. [33]Of Zebulun 50,000 seasoned troops, equipped for battle with all the weapons of war, to help David with singleness of purpose. [34]Of Naphtali 1,000 commanders with whom were 37,000 men armed with shield and spear. [35]Of the Danites 28,600 men equipped for battle. [36]Of Asher 40,000 seasoned troops ready for battle. [37]Of the Reubenites and Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh from beyond the Jordan, 120,000 men armed with all the weapons of war.

Verses 31-33 list two tribes neither of which were named neither for valor nor fighting. Not that they were not warriors, but they had other purposes they had to put before physical battle. I wonder if they felt less important because their purpose was not physical battle. Or did they have “big-heads” because they had a different purpose?

We, who have believed in Jesus, are all on level ground as believers. We have all been equipped for different purposes in the body. “Different” is what Satan likes to pervert so that there is discord among us. Either it is with envy (comes out as a false humility – “everybody else in the church has a more important function than me”) or with pride (“I’m the man because I have this function”). We are all needed in the parts that we are equipped for to make a complete body.

When a jigsaw puzzle is complete you look at the finished picture. You don’t fixate on the corner piece when the puzzle is complete: “It is all because you, Mr. Corner Piece, that this puzzle exists.” Yes, we do look for the corner pieces and straight edges when we put together a puzzle – but if that is all we have, we have an incomplete picture with a hollow inside. If we are missing the piece that is just part of “blue sky” and nothing else, we are still disappointed because the puzzle is not complete. Every piece is important for the puzzle to be complete; EVERY BELIEVER IS IMPORTANT FOR THE BODY TO COMPLETE.

How many of you who have done jigsaw puzzles have put the special glue on top to preserve the integrity of picture? We can do that as believers in the body as well:

Ephesians 4:3 (KJV)
Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

We all have different purposes, let’s not let envy or pride get in the way of completion but seek to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.