KASUMIGAOKA
2017/06/18
SERMON: “David’s Victory Over Goliath” 「ダビデのゴリヤテに対する勝利」
TEXT: I Sam. 17: 32-51
I. INTRODUCTION
In the early days of the Christian church a controversy developed over the question of sin and salvation. Both sides agreed that man’s basic problem is sin. However, some said that sin is the result of man’s bad decisions. If man received a better education, he would choose to obey God and not sin. Others argued that man’s sin is a much deeper problem; a sinful heart cannot be fixed by providing a better education. Every part of man’s nature is corrupted by sin, they said, including man’s ability to think and reason. In the early part of the 5th century, these two opinions were taught by Pelagius and Augustine, respectively. The Pelagian point of view was finally condemned as heresy by several church councils during the 5th century. Yet, most people today—even Christians—tend to think like Pelagius. They don’t realize that our ability to think has been corrupted by sin. Augustine called this corruption of human nature “original sin.” During the Reformation Calvin referred to it as “total depravity.”
Is there any connection between these views of man’s sinfulness and today’s Scripture passage? I think there is. People who think like Pelagius believe that man’s mind is free to choose the right course of action. They think that our minds will usually guide us to choose what is wise and good, unless we receive some bad advice. However, people who think like Augustine believe that unless we have the help of God’s Spirit, we will always choose sin instead of righteousness. We should trust God rather than our own minds. King Saul might have been a model for Pelagius. Saul thought that he could rely on his own wisdom to make good decisions. But David was different. When we look at David’s life, we see a man who often chose what most men would not choose. In this way David was like Augustine. He wanted to obey God and choose what would honor God, rather than simply follow the guidance of his own fallen nature. This is David’s distinguishing characteristic, as a “man after God’s own heart” (1 Sam. 13:14). How many of us would do what David did and face Goliath? Today, as we think about the battle between the giant Goliath and young David, we should ask what God is teaching us through David’s experience recorded here. Will we trust and obey God, or will we always choose to trust our own wisdom and experience? I want to consider, first, David’s preparation for the battle. Next, we will look at the brief battle itself. Finally, in conclusion we will think about how we should apply these lessons to our own experience in the 21st century.
II. DAVID’S PREPARATION FOR BATTLE (vv. 33-40)
When David told King Saul that he was ready to meet Goliath in combat, it is clear that King Saul and David held completely different opinions about that conflict. Both understood that this would be a battle to the death. But Saul thought, “Goliath is much too strong for any ordinary warrior to face. Goliath is huge! David is small. Goliath has many years of experience as a warrior! David is a novice soldier. Goliath will be impossible to overcome in man-to-man combat! David surely will lose this battle.” So he said to David in v. 33, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.” Actually, from the standpoint of human reason alone, Saul was correct! David had no chance of defeating Goliath by relying only on his own skill and strength. Maybe Saul thought that David’s foolish bravery might encourage a more “qualified” warrior from his troops to fight Goliath. Anyway, though the Scripture doesn’t tell us Saul’s reason, the king permitted David to accept the challenge of this “unbeatable” enemy.
David’s thoughts were quite different from King Saul’s. When he looked at the towering Goliath and heard his taunting challenge, David thought, “Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?” (v. 26). Goliath has not just taunted men, he has mocked the living God! He must not be permitted to continue this blasphemy of God’s name. Goliath must be stopped! David’s thoughts were focused on God’s honor, not man’s glory. And his hope and confidence were also placed in God. David knew that he could not defeat Goliath by his own skill and strength. But he trusted God to deliver him. He shows this confidence in v. 37: “The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”
The difference between Saul’s thinking and David’s is also seen in their attitudes concerning proper weapons and armor for the combat. In v. 38 it says that King Saul put his own clothing on David, then armor and a bronze helmet. Finally, he gave David a sword. He thought David must use the same kind of weapons and armor that his opponent used. David tried to walk in this armor, but could not move freely. “‘I cannot go in these,’ he said to Saul, ‘because I am not used to them.’” The Hebrew verb translated 「慣れていない」in v. 39 means “tested.” What David is saying here is that he has not “tested” such weapons and armor, so he cannot depend upon them in his combat with Goliath. So, before the eyes of the amazed king, David takes off the king’s clothing, armor, helmet, and sword. “Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine” (v. 40). David would not put his trust in untested weapons and armor. Instead, he put his trust in the tools he had learned to use as a shepherd. And He put his trust in God, who had often delivered him from dangers in the past. He had “tested” God’s faithfulness, and he knew that God is always completely trustworthy.
III. THE BATTLE (vv. 41-51)
David clearly trusted God to deliver him from the terrible Goliath. But David did not just sit down and pray for God’s miracle. After he had removed Saul’s armor, and taken up his shepherd’s tools, including a sling and 5 smooth stones, David went out to face the giant. The story builds suspense as it moves toward the actual combat in v. 49. But first, Goliath and David exchange short speeches. When Goliath sees who his opponent is, he despises David and curses him by the name of his gods. He is angry that Israel has not sent a true “champion” to fight him. To Goliath, David seems no more than a boy with a “stick.” Goliath feels insulted that he must face such an insignificant opponent. With angry oaths, Goliath tells David, “Come here, and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals!”
David also has a few words that he wants Goliath—and the other Philistines—to hear. Verses 45-47 contain David’s “confession of faith.” This little speech is David’s personal testimony to God’s truth and saving power. First, David declares that he comes better prepared for battle than Goliath. ”You come against me with sword and spear, and javelin,” David says, “but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied” (v. 45). Next, David proclaims exactly what he will do to Goliath. “This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head..” And not only Goliath, but the whole Philistine army will be utterly destroyed. Finally, David tells his opponent why this will happen. God will do this so that, as David says in the end of v. 46, “the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel.” God will display His sovereign, saving power through this battle. Verse 47 states a theme that David repeats in some of the Psalms he later wrote. “All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and He will give all of you into our hands.” God does not need man’s weapons and man’s strength. God does not deliver His people by those means. As David later wrote in Psalm 124, “If the Lord had not been on our side—let Israel say—if the Lord had not been on our side when people attacked us, they would have swallowed us alive when their anger flared against us; the flood would have engulfed us, the torrent would have swept over us, the raging waters would have swept us away.” “Our help is in the name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth” (vv. 1-5, 8). When we obey the Lord and trust Him, we can say, as David did, “the battle is the Lord’s!” The climax of this story is really in v. 47, I think. The climax is David’s remarkable confession of faith in God. David is merely the Lord’s servant, carrying out the Lord’s instructions. The victory belongs to the Lord, not to man.
After this confident confession of faith, David and Goliath come together for the actual combat. David did not hesitate; he “ran quickly toward the battle line to meet” Goliath. The fight is over before Goliath can even lift his weapon. The entire battle is contained in one verse–v. 49. David did not even need the five stones he brought with him. “Reaching into his bag and taking out just one stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground.” The terrible battle was over that quickly! “So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him” (v. 50).
IV. CONCLUSION
How can we try to apply what God is teaching us in this record of David’s life to our own lives in the 21st century? Three particular matters come to mind. The first is that we need to recognize the enemy that challenges us. As Christians in Japan, we face an overwhelming foe. Christians are fewer than 1% of the population. That means that our opponent is 100 times bigger than we are. You may think, “Our Buddhist neighbors are not our enemies.” That may be true, and I hope that it is. But the spirit who rules your neighbor’s life is God’s enemy. Jesus called that ruler of unbelievers’ souls “the ruler of this world” (John 12:31, 16:11). Paul called him “the prince of the power of the air”–that is, the ruler of the unseen powers of this world (Eph. 2:2). This ruler is a powerful enemy, and he is in control of the lives of everyone who is not serving the Lord Jesus Christ. This is our strong enemy! He has challenged us who serve the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ. He taunts us and despises us. He is cruel and terrible. Many people think he is invincible. How can we poor, weak Christians ever defeat such a mighty enemy? David shows us the answer. First we must face our enemy, as David faced Goliath, trusting God to give us the victory.
Secondly, as we face the battle before us, we should understand what our goal is. Our goal is to completely overthrow our enemy! Like David, we must win our battle by putting to death our enemy. Of course, we are not fighting to destroy or to kill any human opponent. As the apostle Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph. 6:12). Our goal must be to destroy this enemy completely.
There can be no peace with the ruler of this world; and there can be no compromise. Unless you kill this enemy, he will kill you. If your purpose is to destroy this enemy, you must make use of the defenses and weapons that God has supplied for this battle. The only weapon that can topple and destroy this enemy is the “sword of the Holy Spirit”—the word of God, which is the Bible. If you will not trust and obey the Scriptures, you will certainly be defeated by your enemy. You will be like David wearing Saul’s armor and caring Saul’s sword, if you trust only in your own wisdom, thinking, and experience. In the battle against the ruler of this world and his influence, such things are of no use! You cannot depend on your own thinking alone. This is one of the lessons we should learn from David’s encounter with Goliath. Will you live in obedience to God, or will you do what seems right in your own eyes? Are you serious about defeating your enemy? Or do you think you’d like to make peace with this enemy? Those who serve the Lord Jesus Christ must put to death both the deeds of the flesh and the wisdom of the world. There can be no compromise with the devil.
Finally, we must trust God as we enter into combat against our mortal enemy. We must trust God and obey Him. We trust God because only He can win this battle. We cannot do it by ourselves. David went to fight against Goliath when he knew that his own strength and skill were totally inadequate. But God is never inadequate! With God all things are possible. In fact, He has already defeated our great enemy, “the ruler of this world.” He was defeated when Jesus gave His life freely as our Redeemer on the cross at Golgotha 2000 years ago. “Take courage,” Jesus told His disciples, “for I have overcome the world.” Listen to those words again: Jesus said, “I have overcome the world!” The battle is the Lord’s. Will you follow Him by faith? Japan belongs to Jesus Christ. He has won it. If we trust and follow Him, we will share in His victory. And all the world will know that He has done it, for He alone is God!