Last Man Standing is the name of an older and fairly violent action movie starring Bruce Willis as an amoral gunfighter in the days of Prohibition. More recently, it was the name of an American television sitcom starring Tim Allen. But the expression “last man standing” or “last person standing” usually refers to the sole survivor of a battle or other destructive event when everybody else has fallen.
The Bible has many stories of such last men standing – individuals who survived dire events and alone accomplished great things in God’s service. Noah, of course, is the first person who comes to mind as the “last man standing” in the story of the great flood (Genesis 6), but as we continue through the Old Testament we read of Joshua and Caleb as being the last men left of the spies who entered the promised land – and even of that whole generation (Numbers 26:65). And we read of the believer Rahab with her house and family – all that literally remained standing after the fall of Jericho (Joshua 6:17).
Later, we read the prophet Elijah was the only man left standing for the true God against the prophets of Baal who had taken control of ancient Israel’s religion. With God’s help Elijah scored a great victory in the climactic showdown with those false prophets (1 Kings 18), but then Elijah was forced to flee to save himself by hiding in a remote cave.
At this point, Elijah was very conscious of being the last man standing. The prophet complained to God: “The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too” (I Kings 19:10). God’s answer to Elijah probably surprised the prophet: “Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel – all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal” (1 Kings 19:18).
Elijah was obviously depressed as he looked at his circumstance, but God spoke to the prophet to assure him that although he might feel like, and appear to be, the last man standing he really was not. There were many not worshiping Baal, and some would continue Elijah’s work (1 Kings 19:16). The same was true of Noah – whose son Shem became the ancestor of Abraham (Genesis 11:10–31), and of Joshua and Caleb who were followed by other strong warriors (Judges 2:16; etc.), and of every Old Testament servant of God who seemed to be the last person standing when circumstances were difficult or dire.
The same was true in the New Testament. At the crucifixion of Jesus, the young apostle John was the only disciple standing at the cross when all the other disciples had fled or were standing far away, at a safe distance (Mark 14:50; John 19:26). John must certainly have felt like the last man standing, but he was not really alone, and soon the other disciples returned and eventually found the courage to do the work they had been given to do.
The truth is, every follower of God feels like the last person standing at times. Perhaps we are the only person in our family, our class, or our workplace, who has come to the truth. Many who are converted to Christianity in cultures where other religions are predominant and antagonistic to the Christian faith feel like the last person or the only person they personally know who is a follower of Christ.
But in all these cases, we are not really the last or the only Christians remaining, of course – and God urges two things of us. First, as with Elijah, God encourages his followers to be aware of his people around the world and to interact with them as much as we can (Hebrews 10:24-25). Beyond this, when we feel like the last ones standing, God simply encourages us to continue to stand. The apostle Paul had much to say about this. “Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ” he wrote to the Christians at Philippi, “Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm”(Philippians 1:27). To those in Corinth he wrote “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith” (1 Corinthians 16:13), and to those in Ephesus: “put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand” (Ephesians 6:13).
Being the last person standing is not just a trait of biblical heroes – it is a goal that, with God’s help, we can all achieve. Jesus himself encouraged us in this when he said “the one who stands firm to the end will be saved” (Matthew 24:13). We do not have to be the last person standing – we just need to keep standing.
* For more on the topic of encouragement, download our free e-book Some Days We Soar here.
