Have you ever heard a sports announcer say, “They are in the zone. They can’t miss.” I often hear that about a basketball player like Caitlin Clark who drains long-range three-point shots over and over and over. “She’s in the zone!” It is a thing of wonder to watch a player in the zone.
In the previous post on 2 Samuel 23:8–39, we met an ancient group of warriors called The Three, and they were most certainly in the zone. In that previous post, I compared The Three to superheroes, but they were not superheroes in the way we think of superheroes. None of them had magical powers or high-tech gadgets. Though The Three are not superheroes, what we read about their victory is supernatural.
Think about their exploits, as described in 2 Samuel 23:8–12. In ancient times, no matter how strong or skilled they were, no matter how battle-hardened, one soldier wielding one weapon would not have a chance against 800. Each of the stories about The Three are stories of one man alone, by themselves, slaying a huge group of enemies. They were in the zone, but these men are not alone.
We know they did not accomplish their victory on their own. True, there were no other soldiers helping them. There was something else. We know this because of a phrase in verses 8–12. It is such an important phrase, the author repeats it, meaning that the author does not want his readers to miss this phrase,
“The Lord brought about a great victory.”
The Lord was with the soldiers. The men were moving with such speed, strength, and precision, that no soldiers could defeat them. That speed, strength and precision no doubt was due in part to their physique, their stamina, their training, their experience. But there was something more. The Lord was with them. And when the Lord was with them, they were able to get in the zone. For The Three, it was God’s power that put them in the zone.
Likewise, you and I need God’s power in our lives to accomplish the mission he has for us. Jesus once taught about this in his famous Vine and Branches teaching in John 15. He said that he is the vine and we are the branches. Then he explained the significance of that,
“Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
In 2 Samuel 23, The Three mighty men were filled with the power of God to have astounding victory. No one should be able to do what they did. One man with a spear should not be able to kill 800 men. But filled with the power of God, everything about the scenario changes.
That’s what Jesus is saying in John 15. When we are filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, we can bear much fruit. I’m guessing you know that Jesus isn’t talking about farming in his Vine and Branches teaching. He is talking about fruit for his Kingdom. What fruit? It is the fruit of changed lives. The fruit is people who do not currently know Jesus, but as God works through us, those people come to know Jesus.
We need to be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, though, for that wonderful work to happen.
Or as Jesus put it, we need to remain in him, abide in him. How do we abide in him? Abide is a word of trust, which is related by different from faith. Yes, we intellectually believe in him, but Jesus didn’t want just believers. He wants followers, people who trust in him, who actually learn to live as he would live if he were you, and then they choose to live that way. That trust is significant, it is sacrificial, it is willing to do and say loving, gracious deeds and words that might make you uncomfortable or feel awkward. To get to the point where the people in your life not only know that you love Jesus, but that you love them, and thus you invite them to be Jesus-followers too.
Being a Jesus-follower is the best possible way to live. Jesus called it abundant life. He said in John 10:10, “I have come that they might have abundant life.” Think about how Jesus wants people to flourish and have a full life. Make it your passion to live and talk in such a way that will invite people to be Jesus-followers.
Engaging Scripture 