It’s the acclaimed story of the underdog overcoming and winning. The story of David and Goliath has energised and empowered many for generations past and will continue to do so until Jesus returns. We can only hope that we will have David's heart to bravely face life's hardships and opponents. It’s not just that David won the fight with Goliath, it is his daring words that ignite the warrior’s heart in many of us. We quote scriptures like ‘touch not the Lord’s anointed’, ‘no weapon formed against me shall prosper’, and ‘if God is for me, who can be against me”! We connect with David's heart when we refuse to allow others to insult, misuse, and abuse us, chiefly the enemy!
David may have been perceived as an insignificant shepherd boy, but his words reverberated as those of a mighty warrior. He was confident in God and let Goliath know that his advancement on the battlefield was not in his ability as a champion warrior but in the name and might of God, the Warrior of warriors.
When David’s name and person came before Saul who was king at the time, he thought that his army needed someone to match Goliath’s stature, strength, and years-long fighting experience. Therefore, Saul was sure that this young lad could not get the job done.
The last time I read this story, I was captivated, not by David’s words to Goliath but by his presentation to Saul on why exactly he was the man for the job. In modern times we’d say that David basically read his resume or credentials to Saul which were not letters behind his name, but lions and bears to his name. In the most crucial interview of David’s life, he expounded every reason he was more than capable, which told a story of his Care, Courage, Might, and Faith.
Of his care, David demonstrated that he was only able to do what he did because he cared deeply for his sheep and took his responsibility as a shepherd seriously. Why else would he go after lions and bears that took even one lamb? Couldn’t he have simply said 1 from 100 still leaves 99 and maybe that was good enough. As a shadow of the love and care Jesus has for us, like David, He wouldn’t sacrifice a single sheep. He cared and because he cared, there is no end that he won’t go to retrieve us from the jaws of lions, bears, or any enemy.
Courage isn’t isolated. There is always an impetus that propels us to demonstrate courage when we have every reason to cower and fear. David was courageous because he knew that if he wasn’t prepared to sacrifice himself and bury his fear, his sheep would suffer. He loved them too much to let fear prevent him from pursuing any predator. Though Jesus said, “If it is your will, take this cup of suffering from me”, it was His courage that walked the Delarosa after He daringly declared, “Not my will but thine be done”. (Luke 22:42)
David told Saul, Listen, I am strong and I fight back. I pursued those lions and bears wrestled my sheep from them and then slew them if needed. I am not afraid of lions and bears. I am strong because God gave me the skill to defeat barbaric animals and as far as he was concerned, this giant Goliath was no more powerful or intimidating than those animals.
Any success that David claimed against the lions and bears was underpinned by his belief that God was his enabler who he was sure would continue to be his defender against Goliath. The Israelite army saw an undefeatable giant in Goliath, but David merely saw lions and bears that he previously defeated. That temperament of aggrandizing an enemy was clearly in the Israelites' DNA; remember what the majority of them said of the inhabitants of Canaan when they spied out the land, after wandering for years in the wilderness? David however saw a blasphemous Philistine that would be defeated. Can you imagine facing off with ferocious lions and brutish bears and then letting someone in a flesh suit intimidate you?!
In 1 Samuel 17: 33, Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him, for you are but a youth, and he has been a man of war from his youth.”
David responded by reassuring Saul with his resume, which contained his years-long fighting experience showing why he was the perfect man for the job and more than capable of defeating Goliath.
“Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him. Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.” And David said, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.”
Don’t walk into this new year as a weakling, instead march in with care, courage, might and faith splattered across your resume of victory after victory. If you haven’t in a while, then give it some thought and then update your resume with all the victories God gave you in the past. Then walk purposefully into this new year, because the God who delivered you then from the ‘lions’, ‘bears’, depression, loneliness, heartbreak, and every other enemy, will continue to keep you.
To you, I echo the words of King Saul in verse 37: “Go, and the Lord be with you!”
Love Ya!
Krystal Baynes-Hoseinee
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