David and Goliath

(I found this in one of my old notebooks, and I wanted to pass it on to you. Huh. Another reason you MIGHT want to write things down. J [See my “Bible” blog])      

David and Goliath. It’s one of those “Tale as Old as Time” kind of stories. It’s that story you remember hearing from your kind and gentle Sunday school teacher, who patiently worked you through the Bible, teaching you each story. They answered your questions with ease, and you wondered how they did it so easy. You never wanted it to end… Ok, that’s enough flashback for one day. Moving on!

                While David and Goliath is one of those stories you’ve heard a thousand times, we are going to uncover it again, and see if you can pick up some things you didn’t before, when you were back in Sunday school.

                Let’s look at our characters. First up we have David, the youngest of 3 siblings, young and spunky. Current occupation, shepherd. His only friends are his sheep, and he bravely protects them from the dreaded lions and giant bears. Most like: Hiccup from the How to Train Your Dragon movies. Next up we have Goliath, the, in every sense of the word, GIANT. He is over 7 feet tall. Current occupation, brave soldier of the Philistine army, their secret weapon. Most like: The Hulk from Marvel Studios.

                I think you get the point. Goliath challenged the Israelites. He mocked them, and they were all afraid. He asked them if they would bring forth anyone who could defeat him. He was so sure that NO ONE could defeat him. He was the unbreakable, undefeated, king of the world. He was Goliath. Then you have David. The little boy who wasn’t even supposed to be there! His father had only asked him to bring food to his brothers, who were part of Saul’s army, which should have been fighting the Philistines, instead of running away from them. Anyway, David is there, only because his father sent him. So how did he end up fighting Goliath? Well, once he arrived at the battlefield, he heard Goliath’s challenge. He wasn’t just defying their army, he was defying their GOD. David couldn’t handle it. He went to Saul (who was king at the time) and told him that he would face the giant. But Saul said probably what every one of us would say to him. “You can’t do that! You’re merely a boy.” But what Saul didn’t know was that God can use the smallest package to make the biggest impact. He finally let him go, but he told him to wear his own armor. But it was WAY too heavy for little David! So he went out, with no armor at all, just a little rock and a sling. This didn’t look like a very smart move. I’m sure both armies could agree on one thing. They both knew he was going to die. But when Goliath challenged him, David told him that he came in THE NAME OF THE LORD. Then, I can just see Goliath standing there laughing his heart out! I mean, it really probably was a funny scene. This little Hiccup going against the Hulk. It might be a little amusing. But David meant business. He charged toward Goliath, quickly put the rock in the sling and sent the little stone through the air. It hit Goliath right between the eyes, and he fell over…dead.

                Ok. Yada yada. We’ve heard the story before. But let’s look at the character of these two characters. Let’s look at Goliath. He was the bad guy. He was SO sure of himself. He was, in other words, ARROGANT.

                ARROGANT- Putting your trust in yourself

                How about David. He was the underdog. The one no one thought was going to win. Just an ordinary little shepherd boy. Here’s something about shepherds. While that was one of the lowest jobs you could find in that time period, God obviously thought they were very important. Look at when Jesus was born. Who were the first people to know about his birth? The shepherds! Jesus is even described as a shepherd, and we his sheep! So if David went out against a giant, when no one else would, I would describe him as CONFIDENT.

                CONFIDENT- Putting your trust in God

                David obviously put his trust in God. I mean, what did he say to Goliath? He said he came IN THE NAME OF THE LORD. He KNEW the Lord was with him and that he was going to win. But didn’t I just say that Goliath thought he was going to win? I did. They both thought they were going to win. So wouldn’t that make them both arrogant? Nope. That’s the difference between being confident and arrogant. When you’re arrogant, you’re putting your trust in yourself. You believe in you. You can do it yourself. You are strong enough. This was Goliath’s mindset. David’s mindset was God can do it. God is more powerful than I am. God is strong enough. That is being confident. Actually, it is being confident in God. David put his faith in Him.

Mark 10:27

“With God all things are possible.”

               

Next time you’re facing something, be CONFIDENT and not ARROGANT.

 

I hope this encouraged and inspired you as well as many others.