Pick Up Some Extra Stones
by Pastor Jim May
One of the most familiar stories found in the Bible is the story of David and Goliath. It’s a story that all of us learned in our earliest days of Sunday School, and it is still a favorite story told to those in our Nursery and Children’s Church. It is a wonderful story of faith and trust in the power of God to deliver us in times of great distress.
But there is something about that story, a seemingly small detail, that is often overlooked. It is that little detail that I want to dwell upon this morning, for I believe that there is much to learn, even from the smallest events of the Bible.
I’m sure you know the story of David and Goliath. But just in case your memory is short, let me recap it for you quickly.
In the Book of 1 Samuel, Chapter 17 we will find this story. The Philistine Army has formed into a battle line in the area known as the Valley of Elah. In this valley there were hills and hollows and upon these hills we find the camps of two opposing armies, facing off against one another. The Philistines had invaded Isreal and King Saul’s army of Israel was there to stop them, but there was a problem. King Saul had long ago lost his nerve and his faith in God. He sat in his tent in fear and would not face the challenge of the Philistines.
Day after day, for 40 days, the Philistine champion named Goliath stood upon the hill in front of Saul’s army and defied them to fight him. He blasphemed the God of Israel and called Saul and his whole army a bunch of cowards who were afraid to fight.
(Have you ever had the devil bring accusations against you and you knew what he said was the truth? It’s hard to oppose the devil when you know he is lying, but it’s much harder when you know he is right.) Saul didn’t have the courage to fight and he was not only the King of Israel, but he was the tallest man among them, and should have had faith that God was going to win the battle anyway, but he didn’t. He sat in his tent, sticking cotton in his ears so that he wouldn’t hear Goliath as he taunted Israel.
What kind of leader was this Saul that Israel had chosen as king? He was a man that had started out fine but soon lost his way. He was a man that Israel had chosen in spite of the fact that God had said that Israel didn’t need a King because they had God Almighty as their leader and protector. Saul had fallen so far from God that he consulted with witches and mediums, looked for some way that he could “channel” through the powers of darkness to know the future because he could no longer hear from God through the hardness of his heart.
As the armies of Israel camped in front of the Philistines, they felt powerless and fearful in face of such a powerful foe. Then walks in a teenager by the name of David. David had learned to trust God in the fields while he tended the flocks of sheep. God had given him favor and David had already killed a lion and bear with his bare hands. He was not stricken with fear over some man, no matter how big he was because David knew that God was bigger than anything the Devil or man could bring against him.
The news of David’s arrival soon reached Saul and I can just imagine how it must have happened:
Into the tent came running the Captain of King Saul’s guards. “King Saul, King Saul, there is a young man here who has volunteered to fight Goliath, and he is a good-looking, strapping young man.”
Saul was so happy to hear of it that he nearly fell off his throne. “Well, get him in here. I want to see who this brave champion of Israel is.”
When David walked in I can just imagine how Saul’s countenance fell. The wide smile turned into a look of puzzlement. “You are just a kid, how do you expect to fight this giant of the Philistines. He’s over 8 feet tall and looks like a walking tank with body armor that weighs more than any man in Israel. He is going to kill you boy, don’t you know that. You are nothing but a shepherd and he has been trained to fight and kill all of his life. You won’t stand a chance.”
Have you ever had another Christians tell you that you were crazy for thinking the way that you do? How many times has the work of the Lord been hindered because there are those in the church who won’t believe God for anything and then do all they can to throw a wet blanket on the dreams and visions of others?
“Who do you think you are? What makes you believe that you can build a church when so many others have failed? What makes you believe that you can see a great revival when so many others have desired the same thing and never saw it happen? What makes you think that you can do great things? Are you any better than they are?”
“What makes you believe that your family will be saved? What makes you think that you can be healed of cancer, or some other dread disease that has killed so many others?”
No matter what you try to do for the Lord, or what you try to believe that God can and will do for you, there will always be those who think you have crazy faith. If they can’t believe God then why should you?
When Saul realized that he could not discourage David, then he tried to burden him down with man’s power and man’s ability. He put his own armor on David. But Saul’s armor wasn’t made for David and it was too restricting for him so David cast it aside. After all, what good would the armor of Saul do against the huge spear and sword of Goliath anyway? If David got close enough for Goliath to hit him, the armor just wouldn’t matter.
David would not put his trust in man’s armor. Instead, he put his trust in God and what he knew had already worked for him.
God’s way of doing things doesn’t always make sense, but it is the best way because God never fails.
1 Samuel 17:39-40, "And David girded his sword upon his armor, and he assayed to go; for he had not proved it. And David said unto Saul, I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them. And David put them off him. And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine."
1 Samuel 17:51, "Therefore David ran, and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw their champion was dead, they fled."
Here is where we find the detail that I mentioned in the beginning. As David crossed the valley below to face Goliath, he carried his Shepherd’s staff and his sling. But he carried something much greater than these. He carried faith and trust in the God of Israel to fight this battle!
David had to cross a little brook as he walked toward Goliath. He reached down and picked up 5 smooth stones. Why 5 stones? Why not just one? After all, it would only take one shot with his sling, and like a guided missile, that stone would strike a deadly blow to Goliath. Did David not trust in God enough to just use one stone? Was he uncertain of his ability to kill that giant, or of the accuracy of his sling?
I can’t answer what was going on in David’s mind as he knelt down to pick up those stones, but I know that he did what God wanted him to do. In picking up those 5 stones, David, perhaps by chance, but more by the foreknowledge and guidance of the Lord in his heart, was making a statement, not only to Goliath on this day but Goliath’s whole family for the future as well.
The stones represented the “Rock”, the “Lord Jesus Christ”, the “Messiah of Israel that was to come.
David’s stone represented that stone that Daniel spoke of in Daniel 2:45, "Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure."
That stone represented the “rock” that delivered Israel from the bondage of Egypt and led them through the wilderness to their Promised Land. 1 Corinthians 10:4, "And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ."
David would live to sing about the “rock” in Psalms 61:2, "From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I."
That stone represented the very foundation of David’s life and the life of every man, woman and child who would ever live who would build their lives upon the foundation of the rock, Jesus Christ. Matthew 7:24-25, "Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock."
That “stone” that God had made, and smoothed down with many years of “flowing water” washing it, cleansing it, preparing it for the day that it would be needed, represented the very “Rock, Jesus Christ”.
Do you catch what I’m saying here? We are washed daily by the “Word of God”. We are cleansed by the Blood of that “Rock”. All of our impurities and rough edges are worn away over a lifetime of washing and the moving of the Holy Ghost within us, sanctifying us continually, until we come to the place where God can use us for His purposes because we standing upon that “Rock, Jesus Christ”. There is no way in Heaven that David’s first shot could have missed. Jesus never fails!
Jesus is the “stone” of my life. He is the “rock” of your life. He is the one who fights my battles, not me. It’s his power and will to deliver, not mine. I want to be like David and put my trust in the “rock”. AMEN
But why did David need 5 stones? One was enough. There is only one foundation, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is One Lord, One Faith and One Baptism and nothing else matters. So why did David need 5 stones?
Turn with me now to the Book of 2 Samuel, chapter 21, and you will see why David chose 5 stones!
2 Samuel 21:15-22, "Moreover the Philistines had yet war again with Israel; and David went down, and his servants with him, and fought against the Philistines: and David waxed faint. And Ishbibenob, which was of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose spear weighed three hundred shekels of brass in weight, he being girded with a new sword, thought to have slain David. But Abishai the son of Zeruiah succoured him, and smote the Philistine, and killed him. Then the men of David sware unto him, saying, Thou shalt go no more out with us to battle, that thou quench not the light of Israel.
And it came to pass after this, that there was again a battle with the Philistines at Gob: then Sibbechai the Hushathite slew Saph, which was of the sons of the giant. And there was again a battle in Gob with the Philistines, where Elhanan the son of Jaareoregim, a Bethlehemite, slew the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the staff of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam. And there was yet a battle in Gath, where was a man of great stature, that had on every hand six fingers, and on every foot six toes, four and twenty in number; and he also was born to the giant. And when he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea the brother of David slew him. These four were born to the giant in Gath, and fell by the hand of David, and by the hand of his servants."
Can you see the reason for the other four stones that David had picked up in that brook at the first battle against Goliath? Maybe David knew that Goliath had four sons and maybe he didn’t. But the Lord God of Israel knew and he was telling them all, through David’s 5 stones, that they were are destined for defeat! God would not tolerate the blasphemy of his name, nor of the persecution of his chosen nation of Israel. All of those who would swear to destroy David and Israel would face the wrath of Almighty God.
God knew that there would come a time when the sons of Goliath would seek revenge and so He already planned their defeat when the time came.
What does that say to you and I today? There are so many times when we question, or wonder, why God would have us to go through some of the tests and trials that we must face. In the midst of those trials we often wonder why things have to be this way. We often wonder even, if our living for the Lord will make any difference in our family coming to Christ. We wonder sometimes if anyone is even watching as we battle the forces of evil on behalf of those we love.
What we must come to understand is that God is a sovereign God and that He knows what lies ahead for each of us.
God is preparing a table for you in the presence of your enemies. Your enemies are God’s enemies if you are on the Lord’s side. God has already prepared a victorious end for you.
David didn’t have to go down to war again. His days on the battlefield were over but he had laid a foundation that the nation of Israel could build upon. He had laid the foundation of faith and trust in the Rock. He had shown them that man’s knowledge, skills and power would come to nothing. The only thing that will stand is the “Rock”.
You will have some giants to slay in your life too. None of us will make it through this life without a lot of trouble and many tests.
Job 14:1, "Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble."
Whether you build upon the “rock” or upon the “sand” the storms of life are surely coming. The question is, “Will you stand through the storm, or be washed away into eternity without God.”
As you go against the enemy of your soul, don’t forget to pick up some extra stones. You won’t need them for yourselves. You are already trusting in the “Rock”. But pick them up to pass along to your children and grandchildren and the generations to follow should the Lord tarry in His coming.
Let your light shine. Let your children see Jesus in you, the Hope of Glory! Let those around you know that your source of victory is the “Rock” and nothing else.
The future of the church, and the eternal destiny of your family and friends will depend on whether you pick up those “extra stones” to give to them by your example of living for God.
Perhaps you are still in the tents with Saul, hiding from the devil. Maybe you are afraid to come out and fight. Come on out and pick up your "stones". Jesus will not fail you. He has already given your victory.
Maybe there are some here who don’t know who Jesus is. You need to cross over from the side of the Philistines who are fighting against God and come on over the winning side for a change. It won’t be long until the "Rock" falls and crushes the power of the devil and the sin of this wicked world. Don’t be crushed with them. You can accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and become founded upon the "Rock" this morning. Then you too can begin to pick up extra stones for your family. Live your life for Jesus and you will never regret it. A wonderful eternity awaits those are founded upon the "Rock".
