Needed: A Few Giant Killers

Needed: A Few Giant Killers

Text: 1st Samuel 17:41-53

Introduction-

Today in the Christian church I believe we face

some giants that are just as real, just as antago-

nistic to our cause, just as threatening to our

existence as did the nation of Israel in the time

of David. They may not seem as real to many pro-

fessing believers today as in David’s time, but,

let me tell you, they are just as formidable as

then. If you had to say what the No. 1 enemy or

giant is that we face today in God’s church, what

would you say? Let’s think about it!

I.I believe that one of the greatest, if not The

Greatest foes that we face in the church of today

is THE GIANT OF COMPROMISE.

The mind set, and the beliefs, and the morals of

the world have entered into the church. Like

Lot, Abraham’s nephew, the church has settled

down in Sodom, and has compromised its convictions

and beliefs. Lot wasn’t pleased with what was

going on in Sodom, he vexed his righteous soul,

the Bible tells us, but he did not challenge or

confront the evil culture either.

Our society condones many things that are not

Christian, and the church of today has learned

to accept that which is unacceptable to God. We

have become like the world, and we’ll never win

the world to Christ like that. God hasn’t changed

His opinion of divorce, or sexual immorality, but

many professing Christians have. Things that once

would have shocked us are now seen as so prevalent

that we refuse to speak out against them, for fear

of offending someone. We’ve learned to look the

other way, ignore, or simply accept the status quo.

We need a Heaven-sent, Holy Ghost Revival to draw

our hearts back to God, but I fear it may never

come, because so many are content settled down in

Sodom. God have mercy on us.

II.A second great giant that we face in the church

of today is THE GIANT OF APATHY.

The first giant that I mentioned helps to create

the second giant-apathy. When people who profess

to know God know that they are doing wrong, and

accept it, rather than confess and forsake it,

then it creates indifference and unconcern about

spiritual matters.

The church of today does not want to be confronted

with the evil that exists within it. It wants to

reach more people, take in more money, and "keep

the peace," rather than declare the unadulterated

Gospel of Christ.

This half-hearted commitment among so many today

would change if the church would repent. Whenever

we start working on a new church year’s teachers

and officers and workers, then we see some of the

evidences of this indifference to the things of

God. Instead of working for God, many now don’t

have the time, because they are so involved in

things of the world, and questionable matters, that

they don’t have time for God. Indifference is

a contagious disease. Stay around it, and you

will soon catch it.

Thank God, not everyone has caught this disease

yet, but it is fastly spreading. The only remedy

for it is for the fire of God to fall on His people.

In the book of Hosea God referred to His people as

"a cake not turned." They were only half-baked.

Have you ever tried to eat a half-baked cake, or

bisquit? Well, the top part might taste pretty

good, but when you hit the bottom part, it is

nothing but a gooey mess that sticks to your tongue!

God wants us hot or cold, not lukewarm.

The masses of people that we encounter today who

are unchurched and do not have time for church are

not openly hostile to the church-they just are

indifferent to it, and ignore it. They don’t

consider it worth the while.

III.Thirdly, another great giant that we face in the churches of today is THE GIANT OF PRIDE AND SELF-

ISHNESS.

Now, this two-headed monster is still around, after

all these years. Pride manisfests itself in many

different ways:

1. There is social pride-feeling that one is

superior to others of a different class or race

2. There is intellectual pride-feeling that one

is superior to others in knowledge

3. There is religious pride-feeling that one has

the only right interpretation of Scripture and

that its denomination is the only way to God

4. There is economic pride-feeling that one is

better because one has more than another materially.

All of these things should not exist in God’s

church, but they do sometimes. Pride stirs up

strife, and division, and jealousy. God hates

such pride, and He resists the proud, but gives

His grace to the humble.

Selfishness is akin to pride. When one thinks