1 Samuel 17:32-49, “But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts…”
Today’s text comes from 1 Samuel 17:32-49, about David fighting with Goliath. The main story is, as you know, Goliath, the champion of the Philistine army, taunted and ridiculed the Israelite army for forty days, challenging any Israelite army to come and fight with him one-on-one representing each military force, whoever the victor, the defeated one and the group will become slaves to the victor and his group.
As we know, Goliath was a man skilled in war and a giant, 9 feet and 9 inches tall. He was mighty, wearing 5000 shekels of bronze armor, about 125 pounds in modern-day measurement. On the other hand, David was just a youth, taking care of his father’s sheep, had never been trained in military skills up until that point, and he was only half the size of Goliath, taking that an average ancient Israelite’s height was about 5 feet and 3 inches. Goliath also had a javelin, spear, and sword, but David had only a sling and five stones in his pouch. It was an apparent fight that no one could foresee David would win. But he won!!! David fought and won the victory in God’s name: “You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin; but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied!!”
The lesson we can learn from the story is, –how to fight the Goliath we face in our lives. Taunted by Goliath for forty days signifies our wilderness experience in life –trials and temptations of Satan– that threaten to swallow us up. We face Goliath, seemingly insurmountable problems or trials as we live. When we face them, we become overwhelmed with the size of problems or trials. The height of 9 feet 9 inches and wearing 5000 shekels of bronze armor are overwhelming for a defenseless person whose height is about 5 feet 3 inches. The goal of Goliath is to defeat us and enslave us; in vs. 9, “If I prevail over you, you will become our slaves.”
This satanic figure, Goliath, is overwhelmingly powerful and has threatening weapons such as javelin, spear, and sword of gigantic size, which he uses to kill any opponent who comes close to him. One way or another, we face Goliath in our lives; sometimes, every day, we engage in fierce spiritual wars against Satan. Goliath comes in the form of diseases/sicknesses, in the form of financial crises, in the form of domestic conflicts or relational problems, or the form of depression or addiction. Many people around us have addiction problems. Alcohol, drugs, pain pills, TV, the internet, Facebook, pornography, gambling, etc. Satan attacks us in every corner and aspect of our lives and has tight control of us. We are like locusts, hopeless and helpless, before the gigantic Goliath that threatens to swallow us up.
When we face Goliath, what can we fight with, and how can we have victory over satanic power?
Let’s look at David’s weapons with which he fought against Goliath:
Verse 40, “Then he took his staff in his hand, and chose five smooth stones from the Wadi, and put them in his shepherd’s bag, in the pouch; his sling was in his hand, and he drew near the Philistine. We can note here in verse 40 that David only had a staff, five smooth stones from the Wadi River, and his sling—no armor, javelin, spear, or sword. Yet David was the victor, cutting off Goliath’s neck.
First, he had staff. What does staff signify here? Who had staff in the Old Testament? Moses had a staff in his hand, which was used at the parting of the Red Sea or to produce water from a rock. The staff Moses and David had in their hands signifies the power of God manifested in God’s fighting for His people, His guidance, protection, and provision. When we face the Red Sea before us while Pharaoh’s army chases after us, only God can help us by making a way in the sea where there is no way. That happened when Moses pointed to the Red Sea as if he were striking it with the staff. Likewise, David depended on none other than the power of God when fighting with Goliath.
Do we depend on God’s power or worldly tactics when fighting with our Goliath? Do we rely on our own strength, knowledge, or skills to fight against Satan? Without God’s power backing us up, countless AA meetings would not help us deal with problems with alcohol if we struggle with alcohol. By the way, the origin of the Alcoholics Anonymous meeting started under Christian influence and principles in the 1930’s. There are twelve steps of guiding principles in AA meetings, and the first step is “We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable. Step 2: Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. Step 3: Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him, etc.
God is our power on which we must depend. Then, how can we get help from God? By praying. However, many people do not know how to pray. For some, 5 or 10 minutes is the maximum they can pray. That is why I teach people to pray the Lord’s Prayer, especially those dealing with addictions; I ask them to pray it in repetition, 10, 20, 30, and even 100 times. I saw an addict who could not pray the Lord’s Prayer, especially the part, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” When I forced her to finish that part, she almost passed out. Do we see how Satan, who keeps addicts in his grasp firmly, would not like to let them go?
The second thing David had was five stones. However, before we get to the five smooth stones, we have to look at where David got those stones from –the Wadi River. We know that “river” signifies the Holy Spirit, the living water, but “river or stream” also means to “inherit” or to “possess” in the Hebrew language. In other words, David drew his ammo from the only trustworthy source, the living water of God, which was in his possession. By sitting beside the living water, by the constant washing of the water of the Word, which wears down all the rough and crooked edges of our sinful nature, that is when we can subdue and overcome the Goliath that is within ourselves.
What do five stones signify?
First of all, in Hebrew, the word “stone” is a contraction of the words or put together words of “father” and “son.” Five stands for the word of God, the first five books of Moses or Torah in the Old Testament. In other words, David picked up the word of God, and with it, he defeated Goliath. Do we get it? Not just any word, but the word that the Holy Spirit testifies about God and His Son, David, had in his possession. Which weapon is stronger than that? Since Almighty God’s power and love are in his possession, what or whom should he be afraid of? David knew God for who He is and what He is capable of through the word of God. The word of God became his living principle, the weapon he used against Goliath. Jesus also used nothing but the word of God and silenced Satan when Satan tempted him in the wilderness.
Do we know the power of the word of God? “The word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Heb. 4:12). Those of you who have a hard time reading the Bible, you might want to try to write them down. Think about owning your handwritten/typed bible. Countless people have experienced healing with depression, sicknesses, and emotional disturbances as they write the Bible.
The important thing is that we need to know the word of God enough to make it our living principle. What informs your living principle, –the worldly knowledge and ideas or the word of God? Casual reading won’t do, and superficial studying of the Bible won’t do. The stories of biblical figures should become our own stories, –adopting, imitating, and becoming them–, living the word of God in our lives. We must become like David, Daniel, Samuel, Abraham, Isaac, and Joseph. Only then can the word of God become our powerful weapon in fighting against Goliath and winning victories.
Today is Father’s Day, and, as fathers, I want our fathers to examine how they treat the word of God. Fathers are the representatives of God in their own households. Their children will pick up ideas about God depending on how they behave and live. Fathers have the responsibility of raising their children to know and revere God. Do we equip our children to have victories when they face Goliath? Is the word of God our living principle, have our move and living it?
What is your Goliath? Do you face Goliath? How would you defeat Goliath?