Westside Church of Christ

The giant taunted and the people of God trembled. Who wouldn’t? The fight was not fair. The odds were stacked high against the Israelites, and a one-sided victory for the opposition was certain. He was, after all, an enemy of enormous proportions. Then along came a little shepherd boy with his sling, and a secret weapon. It was an unfair fight alright, but not in the way that they thought.

He had experience. He had entered combat with both a lion and a bear and came out victorious. The Lord had delivered the knockout blows in both fights, and He would surely do it again. Skeptics doubted, but he didn’t and he rejected all of the fancy armor that the king offered him. Off he went to confront a giant that all of Israel feared. He took a sling, five stones, and confidence in the living God.

It was comedic to Goliath. He thought it was a joke. He greeted the confrontation with ridicule, a sword, a spear, and a javelin. He was twice David’s size and armed for a slaughter. It was coming, but not like he expected. That secret weapon was out of view but more powerful than him and his weapons. The shepherd boy stepped up in the name of the living Lord of hosts. It was quickly over, and a giant wound up face down in the dust. David chopped his head off for good measure, and the fight was finished (1 Samuel 17). An oversized man is no match for an undersized man who has the almighty God on his side.

We face giants every day. They come in all kinds of ways. It might be the pressure of the culture in which we live. It could be Satan taunting us with those shiny objects that appeal to our sensual side. They come from within and without. As with Eve, he dangles forbidden fruit in front of our eyes. We look. He persuades. We listen and lust. A giant in disguise. We take a bite, and immediately know; we should have slung that stone.

They aren’t fancy, just simple pebbles. He’s huge. We aren’t. The temptations that he wields are strong. We’re no match for them. Our weapons seem inadequate. They’re simply Bible verses. How can we withstand his attacks and even defeat him with something so unimpressive? After all, the whole world is trembling at his presence. He seems so gigantic. David was convinced that the living Lord of hosts would deliver him. Convinced of it! Are we? What is our giant? The one that seems unbeatable? It isn’t. Whatever it might be will end up face down in the dirt when we arm ourselves with the word of God and prayer. David knew that “the battle is the Lord’s (1 Samuel 17:47),” and He is still fighting for His people.

Call to Praise: Acts 1:1-5

His word on it: Acts 2:36

Sermon: “Our Roots”