They
Must be Giants
Part
1 – David and Goliath
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House
of Faith Church | www.PS127.org | www.TruthDigest.org
INTRODUCTION
Most of us are all familiar with the story
of David & Goliath found in 1
Samuel 17 of the Holy Bible. Today I want to begin a series entitled “They
Must be Giants!”
This is a reference to Numbers 13:33 when the
Israelite's saw the Giants and said they must have looked like grasshoppers to
them, and left in fear. However, you will not find the word “giant” in your NIV Bibles; it has been
left in the original Hebrew tongue, “Nephilim”,
which means giant. Nephilim was the name
of one of the tribes of Canon.
Over the next few weeks we will be
examining how the devil puts giants in our lives not only to try destroy us,
but keep us from God's promises. For us to understand what odds we are up
against, we need to look at the story of David, Goliath and the power of God.
SCRIPTURE
READING
1
Samuel 17:2 – 11
“Saul and the
Israelites assembled and camped in the Valley of Elah and drew up their battle
line to meet the Philistines. 3 The
Philistines occupied one hill and the Israelites another, with the valley
between them.
4 A champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out
of the Philistine camp. He was over nine feet tall. 5 He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor
of bronze weighing five thousand shekels; 6
on his legs he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back.
7 His spear shaft was like a
weaver's rod, and its iron point weighed six hundred shekels. [c] His shield bearer went ahead of him.
8 Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks
of Israel, "Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a
Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him
come down to me. 9 If he is able to
fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill
him, you will become our subjects and serve us." 10 Then the Philistine said, "This day I defy the ranks of
Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other." 11 On hearing the Philistine's words, Saul and all the Israelites
were dismayed and terrified.”
I. BACKGROUND
1.
Goliath
1. 6 Cubits & a
Span (About 3 meters tall) or About 9 feet.
2. I have been asked
many times if I think this is a literal or figurative figure.
3. I feel it is both,
it is Goliath's literal size, but figuratively it represents the spiritual
things that come against us in our lives today.
4.
Robert Wadlow, who died in 1940 was nrealy 9 feet tall. Just over 8’ 11”, and weighed 439 pounds, so
I believe that Goliath was as big as the Bible says.
5. Goliath was the
Palestinian champion and veteran Warrior.
2.
Spiritual
Warfare
1.
Devil
attacks where you are weakest.
2.
He establishes footholds that grow into
strongholds in you life if not dealt with.
3.
He’s methodical in his preparation.
3. The Palestinian
Game Plan
1. Here we see the
same situation. Goliath struck fear into the Israelites. Face to Face no one
would challenge him. This tactic of Goliath's with the one-on-one challenge
drove the Israelites into a state of cowardice.
2. This took place for
40 days, which is the Biblical number for testing
3. God’s people were
tested for 40 days, and fear kept them silent.
4. How many of us stay
silent during our trials? How many of us fear to face the giant that the devil
has placed before us, keeping us from the promises of God in our lives? When
will we stand and realize that the battle is the Lord’s, and we have nothing to
fear!
Nevertheless,
fear was the Israelite's master this day, and Goliath’s taunts continued.
II. THE GIANTS
1. Attacks (wiles of
the Devil)
1.
One thing about the enemies taunts and attacks. When he sees something
working, guess what, he does more of that one thing. Once he finds a weakness
in your defenses, you better believe that all of his forces and attacks are
going to be focused on that one area of your life!
2.
Oh, how the
devil continues this today!
3.
He can cause
us to shrivel up and fear him by challenging us with a one-on-one battle with
him. And we look at this giant, so much bigger than us, and see a seasoned
veteran who knows how to fight.
4.
He appears to
us in our lives as this thing that is so big, we could never defeat it!
1.
Drugs
2.
Alcohol
3.
Sickness
4.
Pornography
5.
Fear
6.
Anger
7.
Bitterness
8.
Greed
9.
Regret
10. Sin
11. Mistakes
12. Poor Choices; and the list goes on and on as he taunts us...
5.
And out of our shock at the size of the giant, out
of our fear his taunts create in us, out of the one-on-one challenge he makes,
drawing the line in the sand and commanding from us, “give me your best, and if
you lose, you will surrender to me!”, we forget, like the Israelites forgot,
this isn’t our battle.
2. It’s not our fight
1.
The one
thing the devil does not want you to realize, this isn’t your fight!
2.
Ephesians 6: We battle NOT against flesh and blood, but against powers and
principalities…
3.
Our battle, just as the battle this day between the
Israelites and the Philistines, was spiritual!
4.
Though it may appear that wars take place with
people, the forces behind these wars are spiritual.
5.
For power, authority dominion of land and countries.
3. We Must Walk in the
Spirit
1.
However, the Israelites were walking not in the spirit, but by flesh.
2.
They were going by what they saw, not by what they
believed.
3.
We need to walk in the spirit, and walk not by
sight, but by faith.
4.
Walk with the faith and assurance as a child of God.
III.
DAVID’S LESSON
1. David
1.
Here comes
such a young man named David.
2.
He’s the youngest son of Jesse.
3.
He’s not here this day to fight though, he was sent
on an errand.
4.
David was sent by his father to deliver provisions
for his brothers.
5.
He happened in on a bad situation.
6.
God brings us to these places sometimes.
This giant was not looking for David, but God brought David to him.
2. Spirit Walker
1.
David walked
in the spirit.
2.
How do we know this?
3. Because in the previous chapter we see God had chosen David and he was
anointed with oil by Samuel, which represents God pouring out His Holy Spirit,
and it says in 1 Samuel 16:11 “and the
Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward.”
4.
During this time, Jesus had not died on the Cross
yet, so the Holy Spirit was not sent to all, only a few choice leaders and
priests and prophets to lead the people.
5.
David was chosen by God to lead the people of
Israel, and although God had chosen him and anointed Him with His Holy Spirit,
it would be years before David would actually take the throne.
3. God’s Anointing
1.
There are some of you here right now whom God has anointed.
2.
There are some of you right now who God has chosen
to step up and lead for God.
3.
There are some here today who God has anointed and
blessed with His Holy Spirit to be leaders among men. Perhaps He has called you
to preach. Perhaps He has called you to teach. Perhaps He has called you to
minister to those in need.
4.
And you have not seen this happen yet in your life,
don’t be discouraged. If God has anointed you, and you answer His call, it WILL
come to pass.
4. God’s Preparation
1.
God prepares the way for the anointing He has given.
2.
He is the Good Shepherd and will lead the way for
you to take.
3.
Just as He did for David.
4.
Continue to walk in the Spirit, and be patient for
God’s hand.
5. One Must Stand
1.
David, who
walked by the spirit, heard the Israelite men talking around him and saw how
they feared this giant.
2.
He listened in disbelief.
3.
On one hand you have this uncircumcised philistine,
which during this time, uncircumcised was short for saying they did not have a
relationship with God, and on the other side of the valley you had the Children
of Israel, God’s chosen people, God was with them!
4.
Although the Israelites could not see, David saw
clearly.
5.
We have armies of the living God on one side, and a
bunch of fools who rely on idols on the other! David saw the battle, the task
at hand for what it was.
6.
Why could he see so clearly? Because he was anointed
with the Holy Spirit. Why was he so bold and brave at such a young age? Because
his confidence and strength came from the Lord, who was in him as the Holy
Spirit.
6. True Perspective
1.
David knew the battle was not his, but the Lords. And David knew no one
could defeat the Lord our God.
2.
Goliaths taunts and challenges of a one-on-one was
not going to be man to man, rather mortal against God. Think of Goliaths
description as man sees him;
3.
REALITY—9 foot tall, hundreds of pounds, a trained
killer, a veteran soldier.
4.
Against; The Living God, who made the universe and
everything in it (including Goliath!)
5.
This is perspective.
6.
So why can David see this perspective that everyone
else is missing?
7.
David has lived with the Living God all his life,
and has been anointed with the Holy Spirit.
8.
He has lived in the fields tending sheep and
spending time with God.
9.
He has called on God many times for help when faced
with wild animals, lions and bears, who have threatened his sheep.
10. He was just a teen at this time!
11. And he had seen the way God had protected him and gave him victory over
those wild animals.
12. David looks across the valley at this giant of the philistines, and he
sees just another man who opposes God and who’ll “surly die” for this
opposition in the end.
13. Perspective, it changes the battlefield!
14. God want us to have, and to keep this perspective in life.
15. Reading God’s Word will remind you of these things.
16. Spending time in prayer will build that relationship with the Lord.
17. Like David, remembering the things God has already done in your life will
remind you of how He provides in every situation.
18. This is why it is so important to thank God for blessings each day, so
that you are thankful, but also reminding yourself of all God does for you in
your life.
19. Our praises and thanksgivings and blessings will always outnumber our
concerns and worries, although we may not realize it.
20. Concerns and worries always appear to be so much bigger.
21. They appear this way because we look at our problems and try to have
solutions instead of handing them to the Lord.
22. This makes them seem so much bigger than our praises sometimes.
23. Perspective changes everything.
7. I Will Face Him!
1.
This story went from an Israelite having to face a giant, to a giant
having to face the creator of everything!
2.
This is the perspective we need in our lives so that
we too can be victorious like David, defeating the so called giants in our
lives.
3.
David proclaims “I will fight him.”
4.
We need to decide when enough is enough from the
devil.
5.
We need to realize we do not have to put up with his
garbage!
6.
The disciples were amazed when they found that the
demons had to obey them in the name of Jesus Christ when they rebuked them.
7.
They have no choice in the matter. But we need to know that!
8.
We need to know that when you belong to the Body of
Christ, you are a child of the Living God!
8. Power and Authority
1.
Remember the prodigal son, when he returned to his father, he was given
blessings and benefits of the kingdom were returned to him.
2.
His father gave him a ring, the signet ring that
represented the power and authority of the father’s kingdom. With that ring,
benefits of the father’s kingdom followed the son.
3.
The power and authority was the father’s, but the
son had access to it because it was given to him.
4.
The same goes for us.
5.
All power and authority was given to Jesus Christ by
the Father in heaven (Matthew 28:18),
and we are acting as the Body of Christ, representing the Kingdom of God here
on earth!
6.
This is why we do everything in the name of Jesus
Christ. It’s not by our power or might,
but by the name of Jesus!
7.
THAT is where the power and authority is found!
8.
And we as the Children of the Living God, members of
the Body of Christ, have access to it.
CONCLUSION
When we face our
giants, it is not by our might but the Lord’s, for it is His battle, not ours.
Saul replied to
David, "You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight
him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth."
David replied, “The
LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will
deliver me from the hand of this Philistine."
Confidence in the Lord.
Assurance that
the Lord will CONTINUE to protect and deliver him from evil.
Now this is the
most important part of the story. This is very important.
They put the
king’s armor on David to prepare him for battle. Of course it didn’t fit
because David was just a kid.
Still looking at
the situation from the eyes of men, they think David cannot face this giant,
and they try to prepare David with their man made equipment.
How many times do
we stare at our giants in life and try to resolve things our way or in the ways
of man?
David removed the
armor and went down to the valley to face Goliath with his staff in hand.
1
Samuel 17:41 – 51 Victory was David’s Because of the Lord!
It’s God who
gives the victory.
Not through our
devices, weapons or formulas.
Not through our
plans, or man made vices.
But through the
power of God, in the form of the Holy Spirit.
David did not win
because of His might, but because of the Lord’s.
David did not win
because of the king’s armor, but the Armor of God.
David did not win
because he had superior abilities or weapons, but by the hand of God.
It doesn’t matter
what you face in life, God can defeat it!
You MUST;
1.
Identify your true enemy
2.
Realize the battle is Spiritual
3.
Recognize and acknowledge the battle is NOT yours,
but the Lord's
4.
Continue to walk in the Spirit of God
5.
and STAND against the device Satan is using against
you
6.
Keeping all confidence in the Lord, and not yourself
or the ways of man
To do this, you
MUST turn to Him. You must submit to the
Lord.
You MUST make the
Lord your shepherd, and He will lead you to victory, regardless of what tries
to stand against you!
