God s Anointed One Conquers December 20, Samuel 17 Matt Rawlings

Transcription

1 1 God s Anointed One Conquers December 20, Samuel 17 Matt Rawlings This morning, we are going to be continuing in our study working through the book of 1 Samuel. Maybe you re thinking, wait a minute, isn t it five days before Christmas? Shouldn t we be hearing a message about Jesus? Well, maybe, but I want us to see our need for Jesus and then to see Jesus through the lens of 1 Samuel. We are going to be reading the well-known account of how David faced Goliath. This is maybe the most well-known story in the Bible after the account of the birth of Jesus. So, turn in your Bibles to 1 Samuel 17. As you do, I want to tell you about a song that came out way back when I was a young boy. Back in 1977, a song by the band Queen came out and it quickly became a top-ten song. It was written for the crowds to sing along to. Since then, the song has been featured in at least 11 major motion pictures and sung by countless sports teams to get hyped up for the game. When Freddie Mercury belted out the lyrics, he sang We are the champions - my friends And we'll keep on fighting Till the end We are the champions We are the champions No time for losers 'Cause we are the champions of the World It is a catchy song. A few of my kids even know it, from watching the movie Chicken Little that came out almost 10 years ago. We all like it because we all want to be the champions. We all have a little bit of a desire to actually be the champions of the world. You see all of us know there are things and situations and circumstances that need to be conquered. There are doubts and fears and problems and anxiety that need to be overcome. There are weaknesses and inadequacies that we want to beat. And we want to be the champions of the world a little don t we? I think that is why we latch on to the story of David and Goliath. We like the idea that the little guy can really overcome the big guy, the giant enemy. We like the idea that we can conquer any obstacle and so we put ourselves in the shoes of David and we are inspired. But that isn t really who we are meant to relate to. It isn t meant to inspire us that we can conquer whatever giant we face if we only believe. It isn t even meant to stir up our confidence like singing the song we are the champions is meant to. And it isn t meant for us to look inside of ourselves and find the hero we are all meant to be. We aren t David in this story. Instead, in this well-known account, we are more like the army of Israel that is slow to defend God s name and that cowers in fear. Like the army of Israel, we often fail to see God and rely on His strength. It is meant to help us see that we need someone to conquer for us. We need a champion to fight our enemies. We need someone to step in and defeat our enemy on our behalf something we could never do ourselves. And we need to see that God is the one who provides His anointed to be our champion and defeat our enemies. The good news in this story is not that we can be a champion but that God provides a champion for His people. Main Idea: God s Anointed One Conquers. 1

2 2 The first three verses set the scene for us. Let s read them together. 1 Samuel 17:1-4 Now the Philistines gathered their armies for battle. And they were gathered at Socoh, which belongs to Judah, and encamped between Socoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim. 2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered, and encamped in the Valley of Elah, and drew up in line of battle against the Philistines. 3 And the Philistines stood on the mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on the mountain on the other side, with a valley between them. So, here we have the Israelites facing their old nemesis, the Philistine army, again. They had been a thorn in the side of God s people for so many years. When Saul, the king of the people s choosing was inaugurated, it seemed like he would deliver God s people from the Philistines and do away with their enemies. But Saul didn t do away with their enemies. And now we will see that Saul, the people s chosen king, the impressive looking one that they thought would deliver them is now cowering in fear. Let s read verses 4-11 together: 4 And there came out from the camp of the Philistines a champion named Goliath of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. 5 He had a helmet of bronze on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze. 6 And he had bronze armor on his legs, and a javelin of bronze slung between his shoulders. 7 The shaft of his spear was like a weaver's beam, and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron. And his shield-bearer went before him. 8 He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, "Why have you come out to draw up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me. 9 If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants and serve us." 10 And the Philistine said, "I defy the ranks of Israel this day. Give me a man, that we may fight together." The author of 1 Samuel spends a considerable amount of time showing us just how imposing and intimidating Goliath was in verses And what we will see in verses that follow is a contrast with David. The author of 1 Samuel in fact sets us this entire narrative as a series of at least four contrasts and the first contrast we see in verses 1-18 is the contrast of 1. An overwhelming enemy and a humble shepherd (1-18) Goliath is a champion that means he is well known and doubtless he had fought many battles and defeated many men. Often, in the ancient near east, an army would have a warrior challenge the warrior of another army, to prove their superiority and Goliath is a champion he had probably overcome many other foes. Not only was he a champion though, he was huge. Verse four describes him as six cubits and a span, which was about 9 and a half feet tall. I was trying to imagine just how big Goliath was and looking up any cases where anyone in recent history reached a height anywhere near this. And I came across an article on the 10 tallest people in history. Today, the tallest man alive is Sultan Kösen he is 8 3, and his extreme height is due to a tumor that affects his pituitary gland and causes a condition called Acromegaly. His growth rate was normal until he turned 10 and then he shot up to six feet tall. In 2010, he underwent surgery to remove the tumor and it was later confirmed that he had stopped growing. Without the surgery, he would have continued to grow and face many health problems later on as a result. I can t imagine how tall he might be if he hadn t had the surgery at 8 3. There is another account of Eduard Beaupre, who was 8 3 and discovered at 17 that he had unusual strength when he tried to and lifted an 800-pound horse onto his shoulders. Later, he was known to lift 2

3 3 900 pound weights in feats of strength. The tallest man as documented in recent history was Robert Wadlow, who was born in By age 8, he was already 6 2: and could carry his father up the steps. He reached a height of 8 11 and was still growing but died from an infection at age 22. He was known as a very friendly and kind giant, which is good because I can t imagine facing an angry man that large. Goliath was 7 taller than Robert Wadlow and he was a champion warrior. He wore a coat of mail that weighed 5,000 shekels of bronze, which is about 126 pounds. The tip of his spear weighed about 15 pounds. He carried a huge javelin slung between his shoulders and his bronze armor gleamed in the sunlight. He mocked them and called for a man to come out and meet him in battle. He was godless and he defied the ranks of the army of Israel. He was huge and intimidating. The reason we can relate to this account is that we too face overwhelming enemies at times. We can face problems and difficulties that are huge and intimidating. We can face trials and circumstances or pain and suffering, whether relational or physical that seem like overwhelming giants, can t we? The reader of 1 Samuel would have been aware of chapter 16, where God told Samuel not to look on the outside and what he saw because God doesn t evaluate that way instead God looks on the heart. But what we see on the outside with Goliath is pretty intimidating isn t it? So, what are we meant to see? How are we meant to react? We will get to that later but for now, in contrast, we read of David, the humble shepherd, in verses 12-18: 12 Now David was the son of an Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah, named Jesse, who had eight sons. In the days of Saul the man was already old and advanced in years. 13 The three oldest sons of Jesse had followed Saul to the battle. And the names of his three sons who went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and next to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah. 14 David was the youngest. The three eldest followed Saul, 15 but David went back and forth from Saul to feed his father's sheep at Bethlehem. 16 For forty days the Philistine came forward and took his stand, morning and evening. 17 And Jesse said to David his son, "Take for your brothers an ephah of this parched grain, and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp to your brothers. 18 Also take these ten cheeses to the commander of their thousand. See if your brothers are well, and bring some token from them. 19 Now Saul and they and all the men of Israel were in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines. 20 And David rose early in the morning and left the sheep with a keeper and took the provisions and went, as Jesse had commanded him. And he came to the encampment as the host was going out to the battle line, shouting the war cry. David was the youngest of 8 sons. But he had already been anointed by Samuel to be the king of Israel. His dad and his brothers had been a part of the ceremony and witnessed David s anointing. But, now his dad, Jesse, is getting old and while David s three oldest brothers are seen as soldiers out to war, David is just an errand boy. So much for his anointing to be king. Now, he is just going back and forth like a messenger boy, between playing music for Saul and feeding his father s sheep. Meanwhile, Jesse sends him to his brothers to carry food to them and to take cheeses to their commander, in order to curry his favor on their behalf. Here, we have the picture of a humble servant. He doesn t appear to be much and he doesn t have some lofty title or important position. It doesn t even appear that anyone is acknowledging or acting like David was ever anointed to be king. Not only is he not recognized as a king he is given menial tasks to do. And he is obediently and faithfully doing what his father told him. He gets up early, he makes arrangements to have someone watch the sheep and he takes the provisions and goes like he was commanded by his father. So, there is this contrast between an experienced and proven enemy, who is bragging and taunting the army and a young, humble shepherd who is carrying out his father s will. 3

4 4 2. Fearful soldiers and an offended boy (11, 21-30) Look back in verse 11, it says, 11 When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid. The current king, Saul, along with all the soldiers in all of Israel were fearful. It seems as though they hadn t gotten the message that Samuel was given to not be impressed by the outside and what he could see, but to remember that God sees what is truly there God sees the heart of men. Instead, Saul and all Israel were dismayed and greatly afraid. All they can see is how big Goliath is. And all they can hear is his taunting. They aren t aware of God. They have seemingly forgotten that God is the One who delivered them from the Philistines before as His ark traveled their country. They seem to have forgotten that God scattered their enemies with a mighty thunder. Saul seems to have forgotten the empowering of the Holy Spirit. Now, they are all cowering in fear. That is us sometimes too, isn t it? We can look on the outside on outside situations or circumstances or relationships and become fearful. We can forget how big God is and at times, people or things or circumstances can seem to be all that we can see. We can just be all-too-aware of the bigness of what we face and be fearful. But, after all, there is good reason to be fearful isn t there? Sometimes giants are very real and we really can t defeat them on our own. Sometimes life really is too big for us, isn t it? If we are honest with ourselves, sometimes our own sin and weakness and the enormity of our problems is all we can see and on our own, there really doesn t seem to be any hope of overcoming. But how does David respond? He is offended isn t he? David hears this battle cry and sees the army lining up as if they were going to do battle. And so, David hears the noise and doesn t run from danger but runs towards the ranks. Let s read verses together: 22 And David left the things in charge of the keeper of the baggage and ran to the ranks and went and greeted his brothers. 23 As he talked with them, behold, the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, came up out of the ranks of the Philistines and spoke the same words as before. And David heard him. 24 All the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were much afraid. 25 And the men of Israel said, "Have you seen this man who has come up? Surely he has come up to defy Israel. And the king will enrich the man who kills him with great riches and will give him his daughter and make his father's house free in Israel." 26 And David said to the men who stood by him, "What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?" 27 And the people answered him in the same way, "So shall it be done to the man who kills him." 28 Now Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke to the men. And Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, "Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your presumption and the evil of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle." 29 And David said, "What have I done now? Was it not but a word?" 30 And he turned away from him toward another, and spoke in the same way, and the people answered him again as before. David goes up to greet his brothers and now, he hears this Goliath, this enemy of God s people mouthing off. Verse 24 tells us that all the men of Israel fled from him and were much afraid. They are saying, Have you seen this man who has come up? They are all looking on the outside and they are afraid. And they tell David about him and tell him about the rewards that will be given to the man who conquers. 4

5 5 But David doesn t seem bothered by his size, as much as he seems offended by the fact that Goliath is an enemy of God and he is reproaching Israel. He doesn t call him a giant he sees him for who he really is and calls him an uncircumcised Philistine he isn t a follower of God. David is incensed he says who in the world is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God? Now, he isn t asking a question here. He is basically saying, Who does that guy think he is!? Who does he think he is to mouth off to God s people and to defy the army of the living God the God who is truly alive and cannot be defied!? David is offended because God s name and His people are being maligned. He is consumed with zeal for God s name and he is offended. So, he carries on like this with a lot of the soldiers apparently and his older brother hears him and isn t impressed. Eliab doesn t recognize David as the king and he doesn t treat his own brother with respect. Instead, Eliab accuses David of having an evil heart as if he could see David s heart but what he didn t see was that David didn t have an evil heart, he was a man after God s own heart. David was demeaned and mistreated by his brother, who should have lead the charge in defending David. But David isn t affected, he is offended, because he is consumed with zeal for God s house, as he later wrote about in Psalm 69. As we read these verses, I am ashamed to admit, that I am more often like the fearful soldiers. I can see difficult circumstances and lose heart. I can become overwhelmed with challenges or when people mock or taunt or belittle and get discouraged and then intimidated and feel like giving up. I can be more aware of what I see and hear and less aware of God. How about you? What do you see? What do you hear more loudly? David was motivated differently though. He saw what God saw and he was offended for the right reason. He wasn t offended personally when his brother maligned him, like I would be. He was offended that God s name and God s army were being maligned and he was offended because reproach was being brought on God s name and no one was doing anything about it. How about you? When people in your school or workplace or in the gym or in the world around us malign and speak badly about God, do you get offended and do you speak up? Or are you tempted more to be fearful or offended when people speak badly about you personally? Are you more aware of your reputation or God s reputation? 3. A feeble king and a faith-filled servant (31-40) Let s read verses together: 31 When the words that David spoke were heard, they repeated them before Saul, and he sent for him. 32 And David said to Saul, "Let no man's heart fail because of him. Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine." 33 And Saul said to David, "You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him, for you are but a youth, and he has been a man of war from his youth." David s words get repeated to Saul and Saul sends for David. And David tells Saul, "Let no man's heart fail because of him. Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine. But look at what Saul says. Saul is still looking on the outside and he is a feeble example of a king. He is not a deliverer - the king chosen by the people because he stood head and shoulders above all the people, the one who is the tallest man around, a proven warrior, who is meant to lead God s people into battle. The one who was looked to, to deliver the people, is the one who isn t doing anything. And he tells David, you can t fight Goliath you are just a youth and he s been training as a soldier ever since he was young. Saul is feeble he doesn t face the enemy and he isn t able to defeat the enemy of God s people, even though they looked 5

6 6 to him to do so. In fact, he lets Goliath go for forty days, embarrassing God s people and maligning God s name and he doesn t do a thing. That is our experience with the king we choose that isn t God s chosen king. Whenever we are ruled by our idols or our desires, what we look to deliver us never does it only keeps us in bondage. Any king that we choose other than God really can t get us what we need and isn t able to defeat our enemies for us. In contrast to this feeble king though, we see a faith-filled servant. David said, "Let no man's heart fail because of him. Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine." No one else will go, but I will go the anointed King will go and do what no one else will do what no one else can do. The anointed king, who doesn t seem like a king, who no one thinks of as a king, who isn t impressive externally, this one is going to go and do what no one else can. The anointed David is faith-filled Now, his faith isn t in himself it is in God. Look in verses 34-40: 34 But David said to Saul, "Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, 35 I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him. 36 Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God." 37 And David said, "The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine." And Saul said to David, "Go, and the LORD be with you!". 38 Then Saul clothed David with his armor. He put a helmet of bronze on his head and clothed him with a coat of mail, 39 and David strapped his sword over his armor. And he tried in vain to go, for he had not tested them. Then David said to Saul, "I cannot go with these, for I have not tested them." So David put them off. 40 Then he took his staff in his hand and chose five smooth stones from the brook and put them in his shepherd's pouch. His sling was in his hand, and he approached the Philistine. David isn t bragging. Yes, he tells Saul of what he has done but he also knows that it is God who delivered him. David has the utmost confidence and faith in God. And because he is aware of God s enabling and empowering, David steps out in faith. The word used for paw when David says that the LORD delivered him from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear is actually the same word used for Goliath s hand as well. David is saying, God is the one who delivers His servant from the hand of my enemies. And when Saul hears this he says, Go and the Lord be with you. Instead of fighting his own battle he is willing to send a young, inexperienced shepherd boy into battle in his place. And he tries to put his armor on David maybe to take some credit or make it appear like Saul had a part in this or to make David look like Saul but David can t move in Saul s armor. And David has faith in God and doesn t need to trust in man s armor, because he is trusting in God. So, David goes out with his staff and five smooth stones in his shepherd s pouch and he goes and confronts the Philistine. And we all know what happens next. But let s read together in verses 41-50: And the Philistine moved forward and came near to David, with his shield-bearer in front of him. 42 And when the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him, for he was but a youth, ruddy and handsome in appearance. 43 And the Philistine said to David, "Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?" And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44 The Philistine said to David, "Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and to the beasts of the field." 45 Then David said to the Philistine, "You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the LORD will deliver you into my 6

7 7 hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head. And I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, 47 and that all this assembly may know that the LORD saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the LORD's, and he will give you into our hand." 48 When the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine. 49 And David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone and slung it and struck the Philistine on his forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the ground. 50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. There was no sword in the hand of David. So, what do we see here? What are we meant to see? The final scene I think we are meant to see is 4. A Big Enemy Defeated by a Bigger God (vv 41-58) Goliath is this huge, intimidating enemy. But David is not intimidated. How in the world is that? How did David face this big enemy? This big Philistine cursed David by his gods, but David was not intimidated by curses in the name of dead gods. David knew who was on his side was the LORD of hosts, the living God of the armies of Israel. David trusted in God and didn t look on what he saw instead he saw God and was filled with faith. David knows that God is the one who will deliver Goliath into his hand and David steps out in faith trusting in God to bring the victory. And yes, this is a model for all of us to be inspired by but we need to realize that we are the army we are Saul, we are fearful and feeble. We aren t the champions instead, we are the ones who need a champion to go out in our place and fight our battles for us to slay our biggest enemies. And David goes out and proves what he believes when he says, the LORD saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the LORD's, and he will give you into our hand." God s anointed king trusted in God and prevailed. And verse 50 says pointedly there was no sword in the hand of David. God used David to defeat the enemy. His brothers didn t recognize him for who God had sent him to be and instead Eliab said his heart was evil when really he was motivated for the sake of God s name. The king didn t think he could do it he was young and inexperienced. But God used the apparent weakness of David to overcome the biggest enemy and prove that God is an even bigger God and that God s people need God s anointed one to overcome. God s people didn t need the impressive looking guy who was head and shoulders above everyone else. God s people needed God s chosen king to deliver them and set them free. I think that s the lesson for us really. The lesson for us is that God s anointed one conquers. Like the people of Israel desperately needed someone to stand up for them - someone to trust in God and to overcome in God s strength, we need someone to stand up for us and deliver us. Because we can t deliver ourselves Instead of singing we are the champions, our song should probably be closer to the one that a woman named Bonnie Tyler sang back in 1986, called Holding out for a hero. He's gotta be strong And he's gotta be fast And he's gotta be fresh from the fight He's gotta be sure And it's gotta be soon And he's gotta be larger than life 7

8 8 I need a hero You and I aren t in the place of David but we need a David to deliver us. Ultimately, we need the greater Son of David to deliver us. We can t rely on our own strength or our own ability we desperately need a hero. And the good news is that the ultimate hero is exactly who we are meant celebrate at Christmas time. Jesus is the one who is the greater son of David, the one who was motivated with zeal for God s name. The one who spoke up and spoke God s very words. Jesus is the Son of God, who humbled Himself and took on the form of a servant, veiling His glory in human flesh for our sake. Jesus didn t run from the battle He ran into battle head on for our sake. The gospels tell of how Jesus set His face towards Jerusalem, intent on going to die in our place to do what we could not do. To face the enemy of sin and to face the enemy of death and to take on God s wrath and He is victorious over sin and death something none of God s people could ever do. Like David won the victory through his courageous action, so the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus have won the victory for all who love him, who follow him in faith and are identified by faith in Him as His people. Jesus is the one who has finally sealed the victory for God s people. He fulfilled the covenant and was faithful in all He did. In Psalm 2:1-12 David prophesied of his future son and said, Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? 2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his anointed, saying, 3 "Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us." 4 He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. 5 Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, 6 "As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill." 7 I will tell of the decree: The LORD said to me, "You are my Son; today I have begotten you. 8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel." 10 Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. 11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. 12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. The story of David isn t about a little shepherd boy who just believed and overcame. It is a story of God s anointed one who conquers. It is meant to show us that we need someone to rescue us. We need to see that we re like the army our greatest enemy is our doubt and fear and unbelief. Our problem is that we look at things like they did we look on what we see. Our problem is not on the outside though our real problem, the biggest problem we face is our own hearts. We need someone to conquer our sins and doubts and fear and unbelief. We need a better hope than just temporary deliverance from a giant. I need a hero to conquer my selfishness and stubbornness and my fear. We need a hero. Jesus is that hero. He was rejected by his brothers. He didn t look like the Messiah. He wasn t outwardly impressive. But He faced every opponent for us and has overcome them all. He said, in this world, you will have trouble you will face giants but he didn t say, take heart, you can face your giants he said you will have trouble but take heart, I have overcome the world. And like Jesus came in weakness and humility, He conquered in apparent weakness and humility. He conquered the one who has power over death to give us eternal life. If you have placed your faith in the Jesus we celebrate, then God is for us now and nothing can separate us from the love of Christ Jesus. Now, because we are more than conquerors through Him, we can go out and face any opposition, any 8

9 9 trial, any difficulty, any weakness and sin, in His strength and trusting He will deliver us and keep us because He is the king He is the champion and our hero is ruling and reigning over all. And because we are in Him we have nothing to fear Redeeming Grace Church. This transcribed message has been lightly edited and formatted for the Website. No attempt has been made, however, to alter the basic extemporaneous delivery style, or to produce a grammatically accurate, publication-ready manuscript conforming to an established style template. 9