Before Victory Comes Obedience Series

What we have to understand is that David was great NOT because of his exploits on the battle field… The reason David was great because he was willing to trust God and be obedient to Him!

This morning we are going to 1 Sam 17:15-20 to read a short but very simple story that reveals a great hidden truth about David and why God was able to shape him into a great leader… One central truth to David's greatness!

Read passage here…

15…but David kept going back and forth from Saul to tend his father’s flock in Bethlehem. 16Every morning and evening for 40 days the Philistine came forward and took his stand. 17[One day] , Jesse had told his son David, “Take this half-bushel of roasted grain along with these loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry to their camp. 18Also, take these 10 portions of cheese to the field commander. Check on the welfare of your brothers and bring a confirmation from them. 19They are with Saul and all the men of Israel are in the Valley of Elah fighting with the Philistines. 20So David got up early in the morning, left the flock with someone to keep it, loaded up, and set out as Jesse had instructed him.” 1 Sam 17:15-20 (HCSB)

Now I can bet that this is NOT the part of this story that you thought I was going to read… This part of the story is obviously NOT what people think about when it comes to the ‘greatness’ of King David.

However, within these few verses, David’s true character is beginning to be revealed! It is this type of character that God wants from us and looks for in all of us…

In fact in the previous chapter David had been anointed King of Israel by Samuel and when Samuel had doubts about God’s choice of David… we read in 1 Sam 16:7, “…man sees what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart…”

David was a young man of great integrity, a focused work ethic and a desire to be a godly man. So as we look at this story we see it starts off with Jesse, David’s father wanting David to run an errand for him.

Now this errand was really nothing extreme, it was pretty much mundane. Although this errand Jesse asked David to run, on the surface it does not even seem very exciting… and although what Jesse asked David to do was merely a simply, ordinary errand to be done in obedience...

Jesse made a request, David answered his request in obedience, without question. Now as believers, what we must see as believers is that God calls us and chooses to use us the in the simplest of obedience… in fact, God’s call normally comes to us during the everyday and ordinary circumstances of life.

We may not think or believe that God could not use the routine or what we may consider boring things of life to serve Him…

BUT when believers are open to God’s calling in the simple things then we can rest assured that God is going to bring about even greater opportunities for those who are obedient to His call…

In our passage this morning, Jesse, David’s father, has instructed David to take some food to his brothers at the battle front and bring back the latest news…