Title: How Big is Your God?_week 11 Date: 4/19/15

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1 Title: How Big is Your God?_week 11 Date: 4/19/15 Text: 1 Samuel Place: Winchester David s story should be one that gives you hope, if you were ever picked last for the kickball team, if you were ever told you wouldn t amount to anything, if you were always being compared to your brother s and sisters, if you were ever judge because of your outward appearance, or if you have ever faced a seemingly impossible situation in your life. How many of us have not been unfairly judged at one time or another. We live in a society obsessed with looks, and that story is not anything new. Those participating in a story discussion group heard Randy Frazee tell about a Hawaiian legend that talks about how a man would have to pay a father in cows to seek his daughter s hand in marriage. Most young women of marrying age would fetch two cows, maybe three. Four or five cows would have been reserved for only the most physically desirable young women. One Islander name Sam Karoo had two daughters. He was afraid one of the daughters would not even fetch a single cow, he resigned himself to the fact that he might have let her get married for no cows. He other daughter on the other and hand was a definite three-cow kind of girl. Imagine his surprise when a suitor came a calling and offered him ten cows, of the one cow daughter. After a two year absence, she returned to the village but no one recognized her. She was beautiful, confident, and poised. As soon as the husband started treating her like ten cow wife, she became one. Sometimes we just need people to see in us something of value and worth, to see beyond our outward appearance. I know in my life there were people who saw a pastor in me and called that out, before I seen it in myself. We learned last week that although Saul was tall and handsome and LOOKED like a great choice for a king, he distorted the character of God by acting in a cruel and greedy way. God replaced him with someone who would more accurately represent his character and plan, but he was the last person people would have picked to be king.

2 Jesse, David s father, did not even summon David when Samuel came to anoint a new king. David s older brother scolded David for leaving his sheep to come and watch the battle with the Philistines. King Saul viewed David as mere boy and not king material. Goliath called David a stick just before David killed him. God saw something different. David was fully engaged in caring for his sheep David protected and rescued his sheep from danger. David, most importantly, was a man after God s own heart. God s criteria in choosing the second king was to find a man after God s own heart; a person with the same priorities that God has; someone who loves people and cares for people. If David would risk his own life to get one of his dad s smelly sheep back, God reasons, To what extent would he go to get one of my people back? God knows that s the kind of king Israel needs, because that represents his heart accurately to the world. David had overcome one huge obstacle in his life, that no one saw any potential in him. Now he faced another huge obstacle, a giant sized kind of obstacle, one named Goliath. How could a young shepherd boy possibly face a giant? What he bring to the fight? No experience, and no sword. It s like that old expression, bringing a knife to a gun fight It seems like he brought nothing, but here is an important truth. Those who God calls and anoints, God prepares. Things had been going on in David s life and if we take a closer look, we can see what God had been doing with David behind the scenes. When David wasn t fighting off bears, and lions, he was singing songs and slinging stones. His love of music served him well with Saul, and slinging stones as we see was a good skill to have. We never know when what we are going through right now is not training for something in our future. So David brought some skill, practice, and experience to the fight, but the most important thing he brought was his faith. David said, You come against me with sword and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands. You ve heard of the battle between David and Goliath. There was no such battle.

3 The battle wasn t David vs. Goliath. It was God vs. Goliath AW Tozer quote The basic trouble with the church today is her unworthy concept of God... Our religion is weak because our God is weak... Christianity at any given time is strong or weak depending on her concept of God. That s a very interesting quote. I heard Kyle Idleman talk about how we put God in a box. Having moved several times I know a little something about boxes. It is so very tempting to use a bigger box because you can put so much into it and it seems more efficient. But over time I realized that I had a favorite sized box when it comes to moving. My preferred box is a box that office paper comes in. It s kind of a medium sized box. It s easy to handle, doesn t get too heavy, you can get a good grip on it. It s a comfortable size box for me. As AW Tozer mentioned about our concept of God, we put God in a medium sized box that is easy enough to handle. Many of us were handed a God box by our family, a church, denomination. We were told by word or example what God could and could not do. I grew up in a traditional, typical United Methodist church and family. The box I was handed said that we should trust God, and pray to God for miracles, but really, when it came right down to it, not to expect God to work in the way we read about in the Bible, and while people had testimonies about miracles, they were to be expected as far and few between. My box tells me that if I m going to a fight with a giant, I had better talk an assault rifle or grenade, I need a bigger stick. David didn t have a problem of defining his God based on what he could control or understand. He didn t have a problem of putting God in a box. Nothing was too big for his God. No matter what size the box is that we put God, it is too small. If your God fits in a box, it s too small. A God that is not big enough to take risks, ask for help, will leave you feeling hopeless, and defeated. Types of boxes God can never use me box after what I ve done We ve never done it that way in this church box God doesn t work that way anymore box I don t have any special gifts or anything to offer box

4 We don t need a bigger box for God, we need no box at all Not me box Giant/battle is too big box How do you know if your God is too small? You God might be too small if you believe God s job is to make your life more comfortable; if you God never asks you to take risks, if you expect God to obey you, if your God is like a genie in a bottle who is supposed to grant your wishes; if you God operates on your calendar and time table; if your God white, American and always votes the party line, you God might be too small, if you ve never been overwhelmed and brought to tears because of God s amazing grace, or the joy you feel, or compassion for others; If you God always aggress with you, your God might be too small if your God is happy spending just one hour a week with you on Sunday morning. If you just see these books of the bible we ve been surveying through he story as just some random, unconnected stories that have nothing to do with your life, then you God is too small. David is a good king, but that s not all there is to his story. As we have been seeing in our journey through the Old Testament, this story carries clues in it, pointing to what is yet to come: God s ultimate plan to redeem everyone. David was from the tribe of Judah, from the city of Bethlehem. The prophets in the Old Testament are going to tell us that the one who provides a way for us to come back into a relationship with God will be from the tribe of Judah, born specifically in the city of Bethlehem, and he will be the king of all kings. In addition, kings in the Old Testament are referred to as the anointed one. When Samuel anointed David with oil (1 Samuel 16), the spirit of the Lord came upon David. As he led Israel in obedience to God s work, he was empowered by the Holy Spirit. He was the anointed one. The Hebrew word for anointed one is messiah. David was the messiah in the lower story of the Old Testament. His reign points us to the Messiah in the upper story, the one who is God incarnate, who we will meet in the New Testament. Review of other stories we have covered that point to Jesus: Jesus is the Passover Lamb (Exodus) Jesus and Joshua mean the same: Savior

5 Jesus is the ultimate deliverer (Judges) Jesus is the Redeemer (Ruth) Our God has a big plan and a big story and you are part of it. God has called you, anointed you, prepared you, for great things. But most importantly, to be a man or woman after God s own heart.