Living By Faith (Lessn 26) Develping the Language f Faith (Part 3) Ricard Rick Pina Victry Gspel Experience (VGE), Camp Victry, Iraq Wednesday Night, 5:30pm (July 15 th, 2009) Intr: Tnight we cntinue ur series n, Develping the Language f Faith. Last week we learned frm Jairus and the Wman with the Issue f Bld. This week we lk at a familiar stry: David and Gliath (frm 1 st Samuel Chapter 17). N dubt yu have heard abut this stry and hw David had t vercme insurmuntable dds, but what yu may nt knw is the rle that David s wrds played in his victry ver the giant. David and Gliath the War f Wrds: The chapter pens with the Philistines having gathered their frces t war against Israel. The Philistines ccupied ne hill and the Israelites anther, with a valley between them. This was a standff f majr prprtins. The Philistines had a champin in their camp named Gliath. This man was a beast. He was ver nine feet tall, he wre 125 lbs. f brnze armr, a brnze helmet, brnze greaves arund his legs, and he carried a brnze javelin n his back. This was Gladiatr n Sterids! The head f the spear he carried by itself weighed 15 lbs. His shield was s big that he had a shield bearer t carry it fr him. (verses 8-10) Gliath std and shuted t the ranks f Israel, "Why d yu cme ut and line up fr battle? Am I nt a Philistine, and are yu nt the servants f Saul? Chse a man and have him cme dwn t me. If he is able t fight and kill me, we will becme yur subjects; but if I vercme him and kill him, yu will becme ur subjects and serve us." Then the Philistine said, "This day I defy the ranks f Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each ther." Our text says that Saul and his men were s afraid that they culd nt d ANYTHING! They were incapacitated by fear. Gliath brught an entire natin t a standstill with his lk and his wrds. By his wn admissin, he was defying the ranks f Israel. He was calling them ut with his WORDS! (v.16) Fr frty days the Philistine came frward every mrning and evening and tk his stand. They were stuck in place fr 40 days. One man, frm the enemy s camp, by simply speaking wrds, brught an entire natin and natinal army t a standstill! But remember, the enemy s bark is bigger than his bite. 1. The enemy uses wrds f fear against us. 2. Negative wrds create negative images. If the enemy can get yu t SEE yurself defeated in yur wn mind, then yu are already defeated. By ding this he can defeat yu, befre yu ever get started. 3. Wrds f fear can incapacitate, but wrds f faith can empwer. 1
Sme backgrund n David: David was the yungest f eight bys and his three ldest brthers were in Saul s army. David was tending sheep while his brthers were being intimidated by Gliath. He had recently been aninted by Samuel t be the next king f Israel, but David knew that it was nt ging t happen vernight. S what did David d after being aninted? He went right back t tending t his sheep. He was faithful ver his designated task until the Lrd pened anther dr fr him t step thrugh. This is a lessn that we can all learn frm. David s father Jesse prepared fd fr his three ldest sns and asked David t take the fd t them and t check n them. David laded up and set ut early in the mrning. He reached the camp as the army was ging ut t their battle psitins. David left his things with the supply sergeant and ran t the battle-lines t greet his brthers. As he was talking with them, Gliath stepped ut frm his lines and shuted his usual inslence, but this time David heard it. Gliath had been speaking his fear-inspiring threats fr 40 straight days, but this time smene n the Israelite side had the curage t d smething abut it. David heard what the giant said with different ears. He had just been aninted, s he was able t listen within a spiritual cntext. The men heard intimidating wrds against their army, but David heard insulting wrds against his natin and his Gd. David was able t perceive what was really ging n. David lked arund and saw grwn men, men that were suppsed t be sldiers, running frm the giant and his wrds. (verse 26 NIV) David asked the men standing near him, "What will be dne fr the man wh kills this Philistine and remves this disgrace frm Israel? Wh is this uncircumcised Philistine that he shuld defy the armies f the living Gd?" They tld him f the reward. The reward included: The king s daughter in marriage and Tax-exempt status fr him and his entire family. Can yu see their prblem? Their fcus was n mney; David s fcus was n Gd. Mney was their mtivatr, but Gd was David s mtivatr. I was able t cme t this cnclusin frm their wrds. Remember, Jesus said, Gd peple d gd things because f the gd in their hearts. Bad peple d bad things because f the evil in their hearts. Yur wrds shw what is in yur heart (Luke 6:44,45). Their wrds exhibited what was in their hearts. S what was in David s heart? Was he any different? T find ut, let s lk at his wrds. When David heard the same thing he said, Wh is this uncircumcised Philistine that he shuld defy the armies f the living Gd? See the difference? David immediately identified that Gliath as uncircumcised; meaning that he was nt in cvenant with Gd. David then pinted ut the fact that Gliath was defying nt just Israel, but the armies f the living Gd! This was an insult t Gd and he was ging t d smething abut it. 2
4. What yu receive in yur heart is nrmally what yu repeat. When yu hear smething, yu can either receive it r reject it. If yu receive it, then it will get dwn in yur heart and yu will find yurself eventually repeating it. 5. T develp the language f faith yu must check yur input! If we learn t listen with spiritual ears then we will be better equipped t put the right things in ur heart, t say the right things with ur lips, and t d the right things with ur hands. Garbage in, garbage ut. Gd in, Gd ut! (verses 28-30 MSG) Eliab, his lder brther, heard David fraternizing with the men and lst his temper: "What are yu ding here! Why aren't yu minding yur wn business, tending that scrawny flck f sheep? I knw what yu're up t. Yu've cme dwn here t see the sights, hping fr a ringside seat at a bldy battle!" "What is it with yu?" replied David. "All I did was ask a questin." Ignring his brther, he turned t smene else, asked the same questin, and gt the same answer as befre. I believe Eliab was still upset abut the fact that David was the ne that was picked by the prphet Samuel and nt him. His jealusy turned t anger. David did the right thing and simply ignred his brther s cmment, just like we learned last week that Jesus ignred the bad news abut Jairus daughter being dead. (verses 32 & 33) Master," said David, "dn't give up hpe. I'm ready t g and fight this Philistine." Saul answered David, "Yu can't g and fight this Philistine. Yu're t yung and inexperienced and he's been at this fighting business since befre yu were brn." David finally gt his sht t stand befre the king. He spke the language f faith. David said, Dn't give up hpe. I'm ready t g and fight this Philistine. A 17yr. ld by, tld a sitting king, nt t give up hpe. Why? Because he was n the scene! That s what I call the language f faith! Saul tried t discurage him. Saul reminded David f hw big the situatin was. Saul just flat-ut tld David that he culd nt d it. S what did David d? Did he thrw in the twel? Did he get scared? Did he allw Saul s wrds f discuragement and defeat negatively affect him? N! David never repeated the negative wrds spken t him and David never spke fear, dubt, r unbelief. He had already ignred his brther (fr being negative), nw he had t ignre a king! 6. When yu are prgrammed t live by faith t hear, receive, believe, speak and act by faith yu develp the ability t simply ignre negative cmments. 7. Living by faith is nt living by feelings. If David had allwed his brther s anger r Saul s dubt t stir up negative emtins in his life, he wuld have never defeated Gliath. 8. When smene reminds yu hw big yur situatin is, remind them hw big yur Gd is! 3
(verses 34-37 MSG) David said, "I've been a shepherd, tending sheep fr my father. Whenever a lin r bear came and tk a lamb frm the flck, I'd g after it, knck it dwn, and rescue the lamb. If it turned n me, I'd grab it by the thrat, wring its neck, and kill it. Lin r bear, it made n difference I killed it. And I'll d the same t this Philistine pig wh is taunting the trps f Gd-Alive. Gd, wh delivered me frm the teeth f the lin and the claws f the bear, will deliver me frm this Philistine." Saul said, "G. And Gd help yu!" I lve it when I hear the language f faith! D yu see what David was ding? He was lking back t lk frward. He reminded himself f the faithfulness f Gd. He allwed his past victries t be a platfrm frm which t launch his future successes! He attributed the success t the Lrd f his life. He spke victry by faith. He said what he was ging t d, befre he did it. That s the language f faith! After hearing such testimny all Saul culd say was: G, and the Lrd be with yu. 9. Establishing altars in yur life will help yu build up yur faith when yu need it. Altars are reminders f what Gd has dne fr yu in the past. (verses 41-44 MSG) As the Philistine paced back and frth, his shield bearer in frnt f him, he nticed David. He tk ne lk dwn n him and sneered a mere yungster, apple-cheeked and peach-fuzzed. The Philistine ridiculed David. Am I a dg that yu cme after me with a stick? And he cursed him by his gds. Cme n, said the Philistine. I ll make radkill f yu fr the buzzards. I ll turn yu int a tasty mrsel fr the field mice. What was Gliath ding? He was attempting t intimidate David with his wrds, just like he had dne with Saul and the entire Israeli army fr the past 40 days. The prblem fr him was that David was nt like Saul r anyne else! David was aninted! Then Gliath attempted t curse him by his gds. But David was nt afraid f the curse. Why? Because David was aninted! 10. The enemy will always seek t intimidate yu. But yur cnfidence must be in Gd and yur Gd-given abilities. 11. N curse, hex, vex r spell can wrk against the Hly Spirit! (verses 45-47 MSG) David answered, "Yu cme at me with swrd and spear and battle-ax. I cme at yu in the name f Gd-f-the-Angel-Armies, the Gd f Israel's trps, whm yu curse and mck. This very day Gd is handing yu ver t me. I'm abut t kill yu, cut ff yur head, and serve up yur bdy and the bdies f yur Philistine buddies t the crws and cytes. The whle earth will knw that there's an extrardinary Gd in Israel. And everyne gathered here will learn that Gd desn't save by means f swrd r spear. The battle belngs t Gd he's handing yu t us n a platter!" Mst peple knw that David killed Gliath, but mst peple dn t realize that he killed him with his wrds lng befre he killed him with the swrd! Ntice that David did nt have a swrd, but he SAID that he was ging t cut his head ff! 4
He als said that all the ther Philistines wuld be killed as well. Gliath knew hw t use wrds f fear, but he ran int smene wh knew hw t use wrds faith! David spke the language f faith, and the rest as they say is histry! 12. Speaking the prblem is never ging t change anything. Speak the slutin by faith! Speak Faith-Filled Wrds! 13. There is a cnnectin between what yu say and what yu receive. 14. Wrds alne are nt ging t make things happen. Faith withut wrks is dead. Yur wrds must give birth t crrespnding actin if yu are ging t see a change in yur life. Clsing Cnfessin: Father, I knw that Yu have nt given me the spirit f fear and therefre, I chse nt t perate in it. I filter every wrd I hear thrugh Yur precius Hly Spirit. I discern which wrds t receive and t repeat, and which wrds t reject and t cme up against. I lk at every situatin thrugh the lens f faith and I am determined t speak the language f faith. My determinatin cmes frm the inward cnfidence I have in yu. I am able t verlk and ignre wrds f discuragement and I am able t fcus in n and be fueled by Yur Wrd. I can d all things thrugh Christ! I speak with cnfidence, clarity, and cnvictin. I have a hly bldness that enables me t lk at giants and speak victry! Here I am Father. Send every giant that is causing havc in Yur Kingdm my way, and I declare, by faith, that I will slay them fr Yur Glry! I am ready t fight the gd fight f faith. I will speak Faith-Filled Wrds and then back them up with crrespnding actin s that I can experience all that Yu desire fr me t experience in my life! In Jesus name. Amen! 5