Get Out from Underneath the Tree

In 1 Samuel 14, we see multiple events taking place within the army of Israel. Both King Saul and his son Jonathan are on a military campaign. Jonathan, it would seem, was very concerned that the army of God had taken a rather long and unnecessary respite. In Verse 1, Jonathan says to his armor bearer, “Come, let us go over to the Philistine garrison that is on the other side.” 

The Scriptures state he specifically did not tell his dad, the king, that he was going to spy on the Philistine camp. Why? The Scriptures do not specifically tell us. I have an idea, and I think verse 2 sheds some light on the answer: “Saul was sitting on the outskirts of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree which is in Migron, and the people who were with him were about six hundred soldiers.” 

So much takes place in this historical account that it’s not possible to cover all the details. However, I would like us to focus on Jonathan; he was the aggressor when it came to expanding the vision and opportunities that came his way. In verses 6-10, we read how he cleverly designed a plan to draw the enemy out and take full advantage of an opportunity. 

In verse 6, he tells the man who bore his armor and was at his side, “Come let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; it may be that the Lord will work for us for nothing restrains the Lord from saving by many or by few.” In other words, let’s do something big for God and not worry about the numbers. Wouldn’t it be great if God’s people, the Church of Christ, would care less about how many people joined our team and just went to work for God? Then let Him “supply our needs according to His riches in glory” (Philippians 4:19). God doesn’t look for the most talented, the wealthiest, or the most educated—He looks for the available. Jonathan and his armorbearer were available. 

In 2 Samuel 23:9, we read that Eleazar, who was one of David’s three mighty men, “defied the Philistines who were gathered there for battle, and the men of Israel had retreated.” Later in the passage, we are told that the Lord brought about a great victory that day. We see here one guy on a mission for his God and his country, and the Lord, through that one man, won a huge victory. Mark Batterson wrote, “If Eleazar had calculated the odds, doing a thorough cost-benefit analysis, he probably would have run away with the rest of the retreaters. Had he taken a poll to see what the average nominal believer thought or what the average voter thought, he would have bolted too.” 

Back to Jonathan and his armor boy. In 1 Samuel 14:7, Jonathan’s assistant told him, “Do all that is in your heart. Go then; here I am with you according to your heart.” Fast forward to verse 23, “So, the Lord saved Israel that day.” Now, there was some serious battle strategy taking place in this chapter, but the first point I wanted to convey in this article was this: A man with a vision was willing to take an epic risk, despite the challenges, so he could experience an epic victory. Nothing has changed for God’s army, the church, today. Jonathan knew that faithfulness was defined as something more than just holding down the fort. He was tired of sitting around with his father and 600 other lazy soldiers. He wanted to act. He wanted to go after the victory and not wait for victory to come to him. He was not going to let his dreams die on the altar of fear. 

That brings me to the second figure in our text: Saul, his father, the king. Remember, while Jonathan is plotting out this strategic campaign and reconnaissance mission, what is his father doing? Look at verse 2 again: “Sitting … under a pomegranate tree.” 

How typical. God’s man, God’s leader, is sitting under a tree, taking it easy. While the enemy contemplates daily how to destroy God’s army, here is the nation’s fearless leader chilling out under a fruit tree. Is it possible this historical event is really a picture of the church today? While the sons of disobedience, the archenemy of the church, the modern-day Philistines, continue to plot against the kingdom of God, we sit idly by while Satan continues to destroy one church, one Christian college, one Christian mission after another. Do our church elders’ meetings resemble Jonathan, the dreamer and vision caster, or King Saul and his six hundred loafers? 

We simply must raise men in the church whose passion is to go to war against the evil one. We must become more aggressive in our church vision and in equipping our people for battle. We see many soldiers in this story camping out, wasting valuable time when they could have joined Jonathan and his trusted compadre. In this way, they would have tasted victory as a team. Churches can no longer get into maintenance mode. This is exactly what Saul was experiencing. People want results; they want to have their faith pushed and their prayer lives exercised. They are looking to their church leaders for just that—leadership! You cannot lead from the back. You cannot lead while chilling out under the pomegranate tree or the church boardroom. Jack Reese, in his book The Blue Hole, writes, “Death comes when our churches go about their business, head down, church as usual.” 

Let’s start dreaming again, begin agonizing for our communities, band together, and operate from a position of advancing, not retreating. Let’s be like Jonathan and operate as soldiers marching to war, fully prepared to engage the enemy. Remember, you can’t win the battle if you’re sitting under the pomegranate tree.