TITLE: THE GIANT HAS FALLEN
SCRIPTURE: I SAMUEL 17:1-3
US Military Analysts say attacking the enemy’s mind is among the chief strategies many modern armies use in order to catch their adversaries off guard. They say psychological warfare is actually capable of defeating the enemy without even engaging them.
• Interestingly psychological warfare has existed in BIBLICAL TIMES also
• When Goliath challenged the ISRAELI ARMY for 40 days he actually attacked their MINDS
• We know this worked because the Israelites fled before him prior to David stepped forward in faith
Most of the Satanic attacks we encounter are psychological in nature -- Diagnosis of cancer is psychologically more devastating than it is physically. It’s important that we win psychological battles in life before seeking to strike back in the spiritual realm because OUR MIND IS SATAN’S PRIMARY TARGET – OUR MIND IS SATAN’S PLAYGROUND. In today’s message let’s determine how David dealt with Goliath’s psychological attacks. Let’s see what we can learn from it in our Spiritual Journey.
As the mist cleared from the valley, the men on both sides knew the time had come. Before this day was done, many men would die. The soldiers of the Army of Israel checked their weapons, made sure their uniforms were ready, and grabbed a quick bite of bread and cheese. Older soldiers took a swig of wine from the flask and spit it out. They had the hardened look of men who knew what was to come. The younger ones were quiet—all the bragging of the night before was gone.
• They were too scared to tell jokes
• And too ashamed to admit their fear
As they looked across the Elah Valley, they saw on the other side the men whom they would soon meet in battle.
• The Israelites were on one slope
• The Philistines on the other
• In between was a Valley
• In the Valley was a Ravine
• In the ravine was a dry creek bed
• Soon that valley would be a battlefield
Before we go on, it will help to know the Philistines had started this war. Somehow the ragtag Army of Hebrew farmers had defeated them just a few months earlier at the battle of Michmash.
• It had been a stinging, humiliating defeat
• The Philistines meant to pay them back with interest
• Now the day has come
• Indeed the moment has arrived
• The Israelites are ready to do battle
• Each man has a club, a hoe, a spear, a bow and arrow
• Each man is ready to die for his country
• When the word is given, the battle will begin
But the word is not given because a strange thing happens. The Philistines are not coming down the slope. They aren’t coming! And at first, the men of Israel think maybe they’ve won by forfeit.
But before they can celebrate, a sight unfolds before them, the likes of which they have never seen before. Something is moving down the slope.
• Something Big
• Something Huge
• It’s like a Tree maybe or a Mountain
• Whatever it is, it is covered with glittering bronze
• It looks like a Tank only they didn’t have tanks back then
The thing got to the middle ground near the ravine and suddenly a shudder ran through the men of Israel. Somebody declares - It’s a man. The biggest man they’ve ever seen. FIRST SAMUEL describes him in detail.
• He stands six cubits and a span
• That doesn’t mean anything to us but if you convert it to our system of measurement, it means he was 9 feet 9 inches tall
We’re told other interesting things about him. His name, of course, is GOLIATH. He’s clad from head to toe in armor.
• He wore a bronze helmet and a bronze coat of armor that weighed nearly 125 pounds
• He wore bronze shin guards and had a bronze javelin slung over his back
• His spear was like a weaver’s beam, meaning it was a thick shaft of wood, like a small log
• The head of the spear had an iron point weighing 17 pounds
• Ahead of him marched a soldier carrying a shield large enough to protect his entire body
What Goliath proposes is the ancient tradition of single combat.
• A little game of one-on-one
• Winner take all
• One man from your side, one from mine
• He would represent the Philistines and someone would represent the Israelites
• They would fight to the death and the army of the winner would win the entire battle
• This plan saved time and potentially avoided useless bloodshed, but it only worked if someone accepted the challenge
Twice a day Goliath came out to taunt the Israelites and dare them to send someone to fight him. He did this for 40 days!
• Try to grasp how Debilitating and Humiliating this was for Israel
• 80 times this giant had come out and taunted them
• And no one was willing to fight this battle where the odds were so overwhelmingly against them
And so the challenge went unmet. Goliath went back to his camp. But it’s not over, not by a long shot. Goliath came out 40 days straight, twice a day, morning and evening, to challenge the men of Israel.
• Each day it was the same
• No one would answer the challenge
• God’s people were losing the battle before it started
• They were losing the psychological battle in their minds
I am sure we can all relate at some level this morning. Every one of us faces some daunting giants.
• It may be a debilitating disease
• Or the looming reality of death
• It could be rebellious children
• A crushing financial load
• A business situation that keeps you awake at night
• An addiction that seems to have you in its grip
• Or hostility from an antagonist
• Be assured this morning we can gain victory over the giants in our own lives
The crisis you face is most likely a spiritual battle also. The first spiritual question in our life that needs to be addressed is -- Am I on God’s side of the fight? It is a question of whether or not you have embraced the one God has provided to make you right with Him.
• That provision is Jesus
• He came so you might experience forgiveness and a vital and daily relationship with Him
• He is the King we are to trust and serve
• We must make sure we are on the correct side of the battle
Once you have dealt with that first issue we must recognize that when we face the giants in our lives it’s not really about - THE DIFFICULT PERSON - THE HATED JOB - THE DECAYING BODY - or anything else. It is really a question of whether or not we believe He is sufficient for your need. You should confront some key questions --
• Will you Fear - or Trust?
• Will you Believe God’s Promise - or Doubt that Promise?
• Will you Trust God’s sufficiency - or will you wallow in your own weakness?
• Will you Proceed in His strength - or rely on your own?
Satan uses our physical senses (EYES and EARS) to escort fear into our minds. We must remember II TIMOTHY 1:7 “FOR GOD HATH NOT GIVEN US THE SPIRIT OF FEAR; BUT OF POWER, AND OF LOVE, AND OF A SOUND MIND.” Satan picks up SOMETHING SMALL AND MAKES IT APPEAR MUCH BIGGER.
• He takes a little problem and magnifies it to cause you to leave the Church
• He takes a little problem and magnifies it and sends you to Divorce Court
• He takes a little problem and magnifies it and makes you quit your Job
• He takes a little problem and magnifies it and makes family member fall out with one another
At such times we need to interpret the situation in terms of God’s Word because His Word helps us to discover the true face of the problem. I like to call it the GRASSHOPPER COMPLEX. You know what that is don’t you?
The Hebrew people had been wandering in the desert 40 years. It must have been awful to wander to-and-fro in the wilderness, with - NO STABILITY - NO PERMANENCE - NO TOWNS - NO HOMES -- NO LAND - TO CALL THEIR OWN. But this phase of their history was about to end. God told Moses the people were soon to occupy their Promised Land - the land of Canaan. So Moses gathered the people together and selected from each tribe one person whose task was to go into Canaan, spy it out and report their findings.
You can imagine the excitement when they came back to camp. There were glowing reports of a land lush and green, full of Figs - Pomegranates - Grapes, which were so plentiful that it took two persons to carry just one cluster! It was a greening, blossoming land, "FLOWING WITH MILK AND HONEY."
When the twelve came back they considered invading the land but when the meeting was Called to Order and the votes were tallied, only two of the twelve wanted to take it. The other ten were afraid, saying, "AND THERE WE SAW GIANTS; AND WE SEEMED TO OURSELVES LIKE GRASSHOPPERS, AND SO WE SEEMED TO THEM.” The ten had a "Grasshopper Complex."
• They judged themselves like that and believed the Canaanites thought of them as grasshoppers, too!
• But that's the way the "grasshopper complex" works
• You not only think lowly of yourself, you believe others think poorly of you, too!
It only takes one giant to stop you as long as you look at life from the human level. Our lens picks up a giant ahead and suddenly he fills the whole screen until the giant is all we can see. At ground level, giants unglue us and we can’t go on.
• The problem is not how big the giant is - it’s how small he makes us feel
• So small that we don’t have a chance
• Giants defeat us not because they’re big but because they make us feel small
• Giants try to firstly beat us psychologically and then the spirit will follow
Do you ever or have you ever felt that way? Do you look around and wonder what it is that you can possibly contribute? We’re not - TALENTED ENOUGH -- IMPORTANT ENOUGH -- ATTRACTIVE ENOUGH to make a difference.
• Churches fall into this same trap
• We look at the more “successful churches” and feel inadequate
• We want to serve God significantly but we feel we lack what we need
• So what do we do?
• We try to copy the programs of the “successful churches” and often fail
• We try to do what other churches do and just aren’t any good at these things
We know the events with DAVID AND GOLIATH, my intent is not to retell the narrative this morning as exciting as it is. You remember when King Saul agreed to send David out to do battle with the Giant. King Saul attempted to put the Kings armour on David. He did not think David was “Good Enough” like he was, he felt David must look like everybody else that goes into battle.
When we look at others and feel we don’t measure up – that we must copy them, we are trying to go into battle in someone else’s armor! Sure, we should learn from others. But God has not called us to serve Him like others. He calls us to serve Him with the unique talents and abilities that we have. We may only have a sling and a few stones compared to those who seem to be armed with tanks and missiles, but that doesn’t mean God can’t use us in great ways. We need to serve Him with what we have.
In order for that to happen, we must understand who we are in the Lord. You need to know who you are in Christ so that you can live your life as God intended and fulfil your destiny. The more you agree with God about your identity in Christ, the more your behavior will begin to reflect your God given identity. I encourage you to learn to see yourself as God sees you. GOD'S OPINION IS THE ONE THAT COUNTS. Accept what God says about you, agree with Him that it is true of you and become the spiritual person you are.
Understanding who you are in Christ will give you a strong foundation to build your life on. Knowing who you are in Jesus is the key to a successful Christian life and a life lived on purpose. Your identity doesn't depend on something you do or have done. Your true identity is who God says you are. Remember when God told the PROPHET SAMUEL to go down to Jessie the Bethlehmites home and anoint a new King because God was done with King Saul?
• Eliab
• Abinadab
• Shammah
• Seven of his sons pass by the Prophet
• The Lord has not chosen these
Samuel asked Jesse if he had any more sons. He responded there is a ruddy boy I have left, he does not do much but keep the sheep. You know the rest of the story. He came into the house from the field and God told the Prophet, “This is He.”
• David’s father did not see much in him
• David’s seven brothers did not see much in him
• Prophet did not see much in him
• King Saul didn’t even see much in the boy
• Matter of fact even Goliath laughed and saw nothing in David
• But David saw something within himself
• David knew who he was in the Lord
When you know who you are in the Lord, the devil has a very difficult time attacking your mind. David is young. He is not filled out yet as a man, but is still growing in height and in stature. We know this to be true because the armor that is given David does not fit, not only because it is Saul’s, but because he swims in it. He was not yet, physically, fully developed.
• From the world’s perspective, David is small, even a runt
• And, by his brothers perspective, David is seen as a nuisance and even obnoxious
• By Saul’s perspective, David is seen as a fool
• David is seen as a boy who doesn’t know what he is talking about
• He is seen as a boy who is naive and whose NAIVETÉ has made him outgrow his britches
• In other words, he is a dreamer
• But Saul won’t deny the boy his dream
• In Saul’s way of thinking, it is better than nothing
David looks at life differently. Israel saw Goliath—that brazen giant—as an immovable object. David saw him from God’s point-of-view. “He’s blocking the way of God. Let’s go get him.” David was no match for Goliath but when that uncircumcised Philistine took on God, he got in over his head. THIS IS NOT BRAGGADOCIO OR BIG TALK. No, it’s entirely different.
• This is a man who sees Goliath from above
• It’s like looking down at Shaquille O’Neal (7’ 1”) from the top of the Sears Tower
• At ground level, you look up at him
• From the top floor, you need binoculars to find him
• It’s all a matter of perspective
• David’s screen was filled with God and therefore everything else was whittled down to proper size
• He saw Goliath but he also saw God
• And that made all the difference
There are some this morning that face prejudice because you are NOT EDUCATED ENOUGH -- DON’T HAVE ENOUGH EXPERIENCE -- OR AREN’T ATTRACTIVE OR TALENTED ENOUGH. David was undeterred. You see, David was not promoting himself - these observations and opinions were irrelevant.
• This was not about David’s strength or ability - it was about the Lord’s strength and ability
• It was not about whether or not David was strong enough to defeat the giant - the question was whether or not the Lord was strong enough to defeat the giant!
Goliath made fun of David.
• Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves
• Cursed David
• Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air and to the beasts of the field
David could have taken it personally and gotten into a war of words. He could have tried to defend himself. This is where we oftentimes make our mistake with the devil. We allow him to distract our mind and begin to have war of words, we will lose that battle every time. DAVID HOWEVER KEPT HIS FOCUS ON GOD.
• David was not Goliath’s opponent -- God was
• David was fighting for the Lord and refused to let anything distract him from that fact
• Once again, it all depends on where we focus
• If we look at the problem we will be discouraged and afraid
• If we focus on the Lord, fear will disappear
David is no match for goliath. It’s not a fair fight. But when you bring God into the equation, everything changes. I love the fact David does not creep up on Goliath; he ran to him! David trusted the Lord so much that he went forward with confidence and enthusiasm. It only took one stone to penetrate the skull of the giant.
--At some point in our lives we will all face giants
--Most of us have some kind of giant we must deal with in our lives right now
--Some of you are battling huge giants
--David’s story reminds us that the key to defeating the giants in our lives is to fight these giants in God’s strength rather than our own
--David showed remarkable faith
--But David was not victorious because he was more qualified than you
--His victory was not because of his qualifications - but because of his confidence in God
--The same God you and I serve today
--Be sure of one thing: this God still slays giants for those who dare to trust Him
