1 Samuel 17:41-47 – Living to glorify God

David met Goliath face to face. Not cowed by Goliath’s size nor his weaponry, he countered the Philistine’s threat saying, “You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have taunted. This day the Lord will deliver you up into my hands, and I will strike you down and remove your head from you. And I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the Lord does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the Lord’s and He will give you into our hands.”

What was David doing? He was setting the battle in perspective for us. The conflict he was engaging in had two dimensions – the natural versus the supernatural. Goliath came to the battle armed to the hilt. From the human viewpoint, he had undisputable power to cause great harm and destruction, but that was just one part of the equation. David went to him looking at the battle from a supernatural standpoint. He was there in the name of the Lord, meaning he was there as God’s representative. David saw the battle as the Lord’s. This is the crux of the matter. In every conflict we experience in the natural, there is a supernatural element. This happens in all our misunderstandings with others. Our conflicts with others in life are never about the person we are at odds with. It is about who God is shaping us to be through our rows. It is about being able to discern and interpret the purpose of those disagreements. It is about knowing who God is, and who He is molding us to be.  

   

David’s dependence on this encounter with Goliath was not on any weapon but on “the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel.” In every battle where Israel had been successful, it was never about their capability but the God who fought on their behalf. It was in the name of this victorious God that David was now confronting this hunky Philistine. One aspect stands out as we look at the boldness of David. It is the closeness of the relationship between him and God. He had such an intimate relationship with God that he just knew God was there in the battle with him. We too can cultivate such a relationship with God so that we will discerningly know His supernatural presence in our natural encounters in life.  

In his defiance, Goliath was unwittingly mocking God. This mockery of God was his undoing. So David blatantly told him that in his taunt of the army of Israel, he had defied God. He would certainly not get away for such flagrant disrespect. In reality, no one who mocks God, or the things of God can get away scot-free.  So David told him what his outcome would be.  There is one more lesson we need to be clear. Every triumphant experience God grants us in life has a purpose. It is to make His name known. David puts it this way: so that “…all the earth may know that there is a God….” It is He who delivers and grants us the victory. Remember, we exist to bring God praise. So let us live to bring Him glory!