If you have ever read the story of David and Goliath you have seen that people tend to line up for battle behind their heroes. These heroes are men that have been put in that standing by those who know how they have shown great courage, or done outstanding achievements, or shown great valor. Goliath was put in this category by the Philistines and he challenged the Israelites, who at that time, were under the leadership of their first king, Saul. Goliath kept calling out the Israelites and mocking their God and David got tired of hearing it and stepped up to challenge the great Giant. King Saul tried to give him some battle armor for David to wear but David didn’t want it, and he believed God for victory. You know the end of the story. David took a smooth stone and put it in his sling and hit Goliath in the head and Goliath fell to the ground. 1 Samuel 17:51 picks up the story as follows, “David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistines sword and drew it from the scabbard. After he killed him , he cut off his head with the sword. When the Philistines saw that their HERO was dead, they turned and ran.” Wow. Bested by a boy.. What kind of hero can stand up against a powerful God working through His servant? None. God’s power was shown through the stone of a young boy and David became a hero who was of a very small stature. The God of the Israelites came through when they needed Him the most and He did it in a very grand fashion, so all would know it was Him and not a man, who had the true power. He used David as a vessel to show His greatness and David was known as “a man after God’s own heart.” How do you want to be known? Hopefully in the same way. There is no doubt we will all face our Goliaths in our lives and we will need the power of God to defeat them. There is no doubt we will feel great fear in the face of the world’s heroes, but stand fast, your God will give you strength. Some of the foes you face may seem insurmountable and huge, but God is not into size, and His power is sufficient to win the battles in our lives. The bigger they are, the harder they fall in the presence of Jehovah God. You may not know now the weapon that God will use in you to fight your Goliaths, but you can be sure that with God empowering it, you will see victory. The bigger the enemy, the more God’s power will be shown, and that power will be enough!! Just like the story of the two guys who were being chased by a bear. The one guy said as he ran, “I hope I am faster than this bear.” The other guy said, “I just need to be faster than you!” If you get the point, then you know what I mean. God will come through with just enough of His power to defeat the Goliath’s in your life. The bigger the problem, the more of His power. There was a very good distinction about David that accompanied him wherever he traveled. He really trusted in God!! He believed God could do what He said and David lived his life out of that faith. I pray that I might be the same way and live in the security of following my hero, Jesus Christ. He is the one who goes ahead of me and paves the way. Praise God for our mighty conqueror, Jesus Christ. Our cornerstone.
The Pilgrimage continues….
David Warren