I Samuel 17:47 And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give you into our hands.
Who is winning this morning? If you listen to your friends, social media, or the news, it seems like evil is winning everywhere you look. This is not a new feeling. Israel felt the same way many years ago when the Philistines were their enemies. God’s people had been disarmed earlier in their history by the Philistines. They were discouraged by the Philistines who had many victories over them. Now they were facing this familiar enemy once again.
But, a young man named David entered the scene. Even people who are not familiar with the Bible are probably familiar with the story of David and Goliath, and even if you are not familiar with the story of David and Goliath, you are probably familiar with the term “goliath.” Goliath’s name is used to describe many things. It is part of our social consciousness. Goliath, this giant of a man, said to this young David who had come out to fight him, “Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves?” The Bible says that Goliath cursed David by his gods.
What follows is a wonderful reply worthy of our thinking about. I Samuel 17:45 says, “Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.” He was saying, “You’ve not defied me or this army; you have defied God.” David continue, “That all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD’s.”
Let me tell you, God will win. This was God’s army. This was God’s enemy. There is something liberating about saying, “I don’t have any enemies, but God does. God, they are your enemies. I’m your person.” It was God’s people, God’s kingdom, and God’s battle. So, confidence comes from hearing Him.
We live in a very noisy world. We are inundated all the time, more than we realize, with noise from good and bad sources. There is very little quiet in most minds today. This doesn’t happen often, but sometimes when a person who is deaf gains back some of their hearing, it can drive them crazy because they are not accustomed to the clutter in their head that comes with noise. In most cases, we would go crazy if we went back to the silence we would have experienced a hundred years ago. We are living in a very noisy world.
Where does confidence come from in such a world? Confidence comes from hearing God. David’s brother scolded David and said, “You’ve just come to cause trouble and see the battle. I know the naughtiness and pride of your heart.” Well, no matter how far you go or how accomplished you become, you are always going to have a brother who remembers when. It is good to be humble, but you need to know that you cannot be defined by such a person. You can’t be defined by you brother.
You can’t be defined by your king. We shouldn’t be insubordinate, but Saul tried to give David his own armor when David went to face Goliath because Saul didn’t know any other way to fight an enemy except with armor. David had not proved the king’s armor. He had been a shepherd and protected the sheep from the lion and bear with a sling and the grace of God. God would give him victory over this giant in much the same way. So, whatever you do or accomplish, God is going to use you with the gifts you have. So, be faithful as a shepherd and you will lead more than just sheep at some point.
Also, don’t be defined by your enemy. Goliath said, “Send me a man.” Israel just accepted that challenge. When you think about it, shouldn’t they have said, “We’ll do better than that. We’ll send you five hundred men.” Though it might sound crazy to us, this type of challenge was a cultural norm at the time. There are many things we do, not because it is wise, but because it is what we have always done.
So, do not let you brother, the king, or your enemy define you. Listen to God. The battle is the Lord’s and so are you.