1 Samuel 17

Winners and success stories, how often do we study their lives, habits, and choices to open a window to the possibility of implementing something in our lives that will benefit us.

Unfortunately, as the case usually goes, many examples come from a different direction or perspective in which we view life or in the course we want to take.  Therefore, we will glean our lesson from the trusted source of God’s Word.

With that, we will look closely at the old familiar story of David versus Goliath.  At the beginning of this story, the prospective winner has already been determined in the minds of those on both sides who attended that battle, and David is not their choice for a victor.

When Goliath was viewed, the world saw in him what they considered to be the ideal champion.  They took into consideration his height, strength, weapons, and experience at war (1 Samuel 17:4-7, 33) and made what they thought was an accurate determination.

But across the Elah Valley, there was one whose stature and outward appearance weren’t as impressive, at least not to those who had drawn up for the standoff.  He was considered meddlesome and nosy by even his brother (v. 28), too small and inexperienced for the fight.

What they did not consider was the unflinching faith David possessed on the inside.  What they could not see about David was what marked him as a true champion for that time, and ages to come.

David possessed an uncommon confidence. (Vv. 23-32)

What do I mean by uncommon confidence?  It really is as simple as it sounds.  David’s character produced in him the ability to believe, to have an assurance that could not be matched by those around him.  It is what caused him to stand out as someone uniquely special among the thousands gathered.

Taking the scene in perspective, daily the Israelites were challenged in their own faith through the tool named Goliath.  As warriors dotted the landscape, when this massive man appeared, the men of Israel disappeared.

Physically they believed that they were no match to compete and win against this giant.

David, on the other hand, cared not for the man’s size or boast.  His disdain for him was voiced when he said, “Who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” (v. 26). 

There was no flinching or fear in his actions or voice.  He was 100% ready to confront this enemy and be done with him and his army: “And David said to Saul, Let no man’s heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine” (v. 32). 

It takes an uncommon, extraordinary faith to see something or someone so big and choose to not focus on it. 

David saw the same thing those around him saw, but he chose to process what he saw through a different filter: faith.

As the rest cowered in fear, David stepped up and offered to do what no one else, not even the king, was willing to do.

Foolhardy youth?  No. 

The seed of faith planted in him grew greater than any fear this foe hoped to instill.  David knew who he belonged to, and he knew who he served.

Uncommon confidence bypasses the scene before one’s eyes and focuses on Who is really in charge.

David refuses the voice of doubt. (Vv. 33-37)

It is always your choice what you will allow in your hearing and your heart.

Doubt will speak if you give it a voice.  Open the door just a little, and it will consume the whole room.

When David stated his declaration to fight the giant, the very next words he heard were, “Thou art not able…” (v. 33).

Talk about letting the air out of the balloon.  But words such as these people hear all the time.  Even if they don’t present themselves in the same wording, the idea arises to discourage and draw one’s attention to the can’t’s of life: you can’t do this because…, you are not able due to …

These “can’t” phrases can rob you of the hope to push past what you see, and if David had allowed, Saul’s words would have done just that and prohibited his progress against this enemy.

But David refused.  Instead of words of improbability and fear, he leaned on his experience with God, which he already had (vv. 34-37). 

David had been delivered by God through unbelievable situations before when encountering a bear and a lion.  Both animals, I dare say, would even put Goliath to flight had he come upon them.

Ferocious as they were, they, nor Goliath, can outmatch God.  David knew that God was the one who delivered him before, and He believed with his whole heart that He would do it again.

David refuses to fight like others fought. (Vv. 38-46)

Experience is a great teacher and there are things we can learn from the wisdom of others who have fought the battles of this life before us.

But Saul was at a standstill in his faith.  Not only did he lack it in the progression toward Goliath, but also in the way he expected David to fight. 

He wanted David to wear something that wasn’t designed for him.

David wasn’t built like Saul – not in body or belief.  So, he couldn’t fight like Saul would fight.

God has blessed each of us with our own unique style and gifts to carry forth in faith.  God knows each one individually and has blessed each one with individuality.

The way He chooses to work in or through another should not cause us to neglect what He has placed in us.

This is a strong part of the faith lesson.

David could have shrunk back in comparison because he did not fit Saul’s design, but he didn’t.  He worked what God gave him, how God gave it to him.

Comparing our abilities against the line of another’s calling will not only diminish your faith, but it can bring you to a total standstill as it did Saul.

Devoid of armor not fit for him, David, with stones in his hand, pronounced with faith to the Philistine: “Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied” (v. 45). 

When David stepped on that battlefield, the real weapon he stepped up with was not found in his hand, but in his heart.  It was a faith that Saul and the rest of Israel’s army lacked in their arsenal.

That’s why we can’t compare; it’s always the part of the fight that we cannot see that matters the most: the inside part.

David’s faith takes a stand and believes in God’s deliverance. (Vv. 46-48).

Jesus once spoke in rebuke to the Pharisees, saying, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh” (Matthew 12:34), and Proverbs instructs, “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life” (4:23). 

Those in the camp of the Israelites, their hearts were cowered in fear.  But David’s heart brought him face to face with Goliath.

Unflinchingly, he took a stand, but he didn’t take a stand on his own merit.  He took his stand based on what he believed in his heart about God: He is faithful.

David said, “This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.  And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hands” (Vv. 46-47).

In David’s heart, he knew this was not about him or what he could bring to the fight.  “The battle is the LORD’s!”

Our hearts are considered to be the very center of our being.  And in that center, David made sure God was the center. 

In his life and in his fight, not himself, his circumstances, wants or desires were brought to the forefront.  No, but the Lord God Almighty was his focal point.

Are we moving forward with hesitant steps because God is not the center of our progress?

True faith will always be a heart issue.  With that, he moved forth in complete confidence: “David hastened, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine” (v. 48).

Where others hesitated, David quickened his steps – again, with no backing down.  His heart would not accept decrease, but it seemed at every avenue he traveled in his life, his heart of faith grew more and more because he sought to put God in the center more and more.

David used his personal gifting. (Vv. 49-50)

Earlier we discussed David refusing armor that was not fit for him.  Here, we focus on what is.

David had a unique way that he would face his giant, and it was going to be by using something small and seemingly insignificant.

Many struggle with their individual giftings.  Compared to others, it may not seem big enough, influential enough, or polished enough.  “If I could just _______, I would be able to _______” (you fill in the blank).

Previously I wrote, “There is to be no inferiority complex among God’s people… it doesn’t matter what we think of the size of what we bring because God is the one working behind the scenes; God is the one who works in it to outsize all.  All He asks of us is to step out in faith and work with what He gave us.” (Little Stuff Matters/©Word for Life Says)

Every believer is gifted by God.  But every believer may be gifted differently.  When David stepped out with his little stones, I wondered what the onlookers thought.

To him, it didn’t matter.  What mattered was being himself before God.  This was his design.  This was his gift.  This is what he knew how to do well.

In a world surrounded by trends and social media, it takes bravery to be yourself.  You will never succeed at being anyone but you.

Use what God gave you in faith, no matter how small it appears, and leave the results to Him.

Faith wins. (v. 51)

Little David slew the big giant.  Not because he was smarter or stronger, but because every step he took in the process was a step of faith.

When any questioning arose or doubt was uttered, David continued forth in faith.  He never gave the space of his heart permission to think about or adhere to anything else.

Some of our favorite faith verses remind us that: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1), and “Without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Hebrews 11:6).

Together, these tell us what faith is and what faith does: it goes on and believes God regardless of what is seen or not seen.  And that’s what David did.  He didn’t have faith, which was just talked about.  His faith moved him into action to do something despite how the circumstances appeared.

Father God is in the business of stretching our faith.  Bringing us to places or before situations we may view as strange, unimaginable tasks to conquer.  He has something He wants to fulfill on the other side of that stretching moment but we, like David, must commit to the follow through in faith.

Faith is the access key to everything God wants to do in our lives.

Is your faith being stirred for more today?  What are some hindrances to growing your personal faith?

Walking in faith and choosing to follow God by faith will carry you further than your own plans ever will.

But don’t be surprised if the victory you are anticipating comes in a way that you least expect it.  Often God’s view of how something is or is to be will look much different than our own.

Nevertheless, David felt prompted to move on God’s behalf because of his sold-out relationship with God.  He approached Goliath with an all-in attitude.

Retreating was never an option in his book.  And even though David would go on to face other challenges (such as being on the run from King Saul), he still had space in his heart and repertoire to pen the words that would encourage himself and many hearts through fearsome trials, saying, “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1).

That is faith language at its best.  But remember, David backed his talk up with action.  He lived a life operating with an all-in faith and you can, too.

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