Fairy Tales 3 - Three Billy Goats Gruff Series

I. Introduction

These are the stories we learned as children and perhaps now you are in turn telling the same tales to your children or grandchildren. These stories were told by our teachers or at our bedtime to help us drift off to sleep. These tales taught us morals. However, unknown to many of us they also taught us significant spiritual truths! Let's look at one of these fairytales we know so well and see if we can unwrap a spiritual truth that is in it.

Once upon a time there were three billy goats, who were to go up to the hillside to make themselves fat, and the name of all three was "Gruff."

On the way up was a bridge over a cascading stream they had to cross; and under the bridge lived a great ugly troll, with eyes as big as saucers, and a nose as long as a poker.

So, first of all came the youngest Billy Goat Gruff to cross the bridge.

"Trip, trap, trip, trap! " went the bridge. "Who's that tripping over my bridge?" roared the troll.

"Oh, it is only I, the tiniest Billy Goat Gruff, and I'm going up to the hillside to make myself fat," said the billy goat, with such a small voice.

"Now, I'm coming to gobble you up," said the troll.

"Oh, no! pray don't take me. I'm too little, that I am," said the billy goat. "Wait a bit till the second Billy Goat Gruff comes. He's much bigger." "Well, be off with you," said the troll.

A little while after came the second Billy Goat Gruff to cross the bridge.

Trip, trap, trip, trap, trip, trap, went the bridge. "Who's that tripping over my bridge?" roared the troll.

"Oh, it's the second Billy Goat Gruff, and I'm going up to the hillside to make myself fat," said the billy goat, who hadn't such a small voice.

"Now I'm coming to gobble you up," said the troll.

"Oh, no! Don't take me. Wait a little till the big Billy Goat Gruff comes. He's much bigger." "Very well! Be off with you," said the troll.

But just then up came the big Billy Goat Gruff.

Trip, trap, trip, trap, trip, trap! went the bridge, for the billy goat was so heavy that the bridge creaked and groaned under him.

"Who's that tramping over my bridge?" roared the troll

"It's I! The big Billy Goat Gruff," said the billy goat, who had an ugly hoarse voice of his own. "Now I 'm coming to gobble you up," roared the troll.

Well, come along! I've got two spears, And I'll poke your eyeballs out at your ears; I've got besides two curling-stones, And I'll crush you to bits, body and bones.

That was what the big billy goat said. And then he flew at the troll, and poked his eyes out with his horns, and crushed him to bits, body and bones, and tossed him out into the cascade, and after that he went up to the hillside. There the billy goats got so fat they were scarcely able to walk home again. And if the fat hasn't fallen off them, why, they're still fat; and so, snip, snap, snout. This tale is told out.

First the lessons and then the Scriptural backdrop if you will.

Lesson 1: You must learn to recognize when the battle is bigger than you.

The smaller goats realized they weren't equipped to fend off the troll. Some of you are fighting battles you were never intended to fight by yourself. You are taking on too much. You are shouldering too much weight. You have a part to play but your battle isn't a one-person struggle. Yes, I have taught you that you must participate in your miracle. Yes, I have told you that you have a role to play in your deliverance. There is no doubt that God will train your hands for war. All true. But all of that truth must be applied after and only after we have learned to trust in the One who is able. He doesn't train us to war and then throw us to the troll and leave us all by ourselves. He is with us! Too many of us trust more in our ability with His power than we do the One who has the power. Too many of us fail to defeat the enemy not because we haven't been given power, but rather because we trust our use of that power more than we trust the authority behind the power.

Lesson 2: Big battles are necessary in order for us to have a proper perspective of the One coming after us.

How many of us would no longer allow the enemy to stop us, intimidate us, trip us up, defeat us if we would simply remember Who is with us? Notice if you will that the first two billy goats never responded in fear, they just pointed to the one coming after them.