“Dismayed and terrified.” That’s the description of how you are feeling as you are watching this giant of a man, this killing machine named Goliath, invite a challenger to stand up and oppose him. And you aren’t the only one feeling that way! The Israelites – battle-hardened, trained soldiers! – are also “dismayed and terrified.” Saul, the one who was no physical slouch in his own right, described as being a head taller than the average man, the one who is supposed to be Israel’s fearless leader, the king and general – he also is included among those who are “dismayed and terrified.”
And understandably so! Nowhere else in Scripture do we have such a lengthy description of a soldier – ally or enemy! According to the measurements provided in these verses, the Philistine champion, the best of their best, Goliath, was in the neighborhood of nine feet tall. His coat of bronze scale armor weighed as much as a small teenager. The iron tip of his spear was as heavy as an olympic men’s shot put. Twice a day for forty days (v.16) Goliath had come out to face a potential challenger, but none showed because every time he appeared, they all fled in fear (v.24). This much was clear to any sensible person who might consider opposing the imposing Goliath: you don’t stand a chance.
I doubt anyone’s opinion changed when the challenger, David, arrived. He was small in stature, comparatively speaking – a shepherd, not a soldier. In place of any weapons of war, he had a staff, a slingshot, and some stones. Any armor was absent. When Saul sent him, saying, “Go, and the Lord be with you,” (v. 37b), while he surely must have admired David’s confidence, it’s hard to imagine that he himself had any real confidence that David would actually be able to pull this off. The rest of the Israelite army watching had to be expecting a blood bath. David’s own brothers likely assumed their arrogant little bother was going to get what he deserved. This much was clear to any sensible person watching David opposing the imposing Goliath: you don’t stand a chance.
Step away from the showdown for a moment and into your own life. There may be no Goliath, but there is no shortage of imposing threats in his place that seem like insurmountable challenges to overcome. Some are seasonal and situational and some are just plain sin. They’re circumstances you find yourself in that don’t ever seem like they’re going to change. The burden of a loved one with zero interest in Jesus or who believed at one time but is now walking away from the faith. You’re tied up in a toxic work environment, but can’t afford to walk away from the paycheck. Frustrated by a friend who can’t seem to get their life on track because it’s littered with awful choices. Quietly suffering abuse with no clear way out. Chronic pain for which nothing seems to offer relief. Not being able to quit doing that thing that I know full well I should not be doing. This much is clear to any sensible person: you don’t stand a chance.
But sensible doesn’t hold a candle to spiritual. Return back to the showdown between the Philistine and fearless shepherd. Why do you think David, at a severe disadvantage when it came to size, training, and weapons, was unafraid? Because sensible doesn’t hold a candle to spiritual. When we consider the significance of what was described in the previous chapter as having taken place, it starts to make sense. David was anointed. “Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David” (1 Sam. 16:13).
There it is – the source of his confidence! David was anointed with the power of the Spirit of the Lord! With that in mind, suddenly it isn’t David who appears to be the underdog, but the godless heathen, Goliath!
There we have it! A David-like faith, a spiritual swagger that knew God was for him, a trust that refused to be taunted – when these are present, then we have a fighting chance. Then we can slay our own giants and take down the Goliaths getting in the way in our lives! Then the underdog story can play out just like it’s supposed to! The little guy wins; the big oppressor is overcome. It’s a tale for the ages, and arguably one of the most played out stories from the whole Bible. We see it in movies when the underdog team ends up pulling off the upset in the championship game, when the little start-up small business takes down the blue-chip behemoth at its own game. We love the underdog story!
And as Peter preached in the days of the early church, through baptism, we have been anointed with the same powerful Spirit that came upon David. “Peter replied, ‘Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit’” (Acts 2:38). We, too, can imitate David and courageously take down whatever stands in our way! Greater faith! Titanium-like trust! With God on our side, we can overcome any adversary in our lives and slay our giants!
But what is to blame then, when cancer is the conqueror and we’re on the losing side? Why is the abuse still continuing? Why hasn’t the chronic pain gone away? Why am I still unable to quit doing what I know I should not be doing? Wait a minute – that’s not how it’s supposed to end.
But it does! And we can spin David’s victory every which way we want to into some spiritual motivational speech to lead us to boldly take down our giants, but then we’re left without an answer when the giant wins and we lose. What then? Not enough trust? Not enough faith? Tough luck – it was “just God’s will,” and there’s nothing we can do about it. Baloney.
There is so much more in this narrative that God wants us to take away, and no matter how many times you’ve heart it, the main takeaway is not that you can slay your giants like David did with the Lord on your side. No, David’s role is not primarily one for you to imitate, but simply to celebrate.
Put yourself back on the battlefield. You just witnessed a boy with a stone take down a massive man-killer. Now what? You celebrate, not because now you have someone to idolize, but because someone just did what you would not and could not. David stepped up in your place to take down the enemy. You didn’t have to lift a muscle. Your weapon rested on the ground beside you the whole time. Not the slightest bit of perspiration was required of you. Not a drop of blood on you anywhere. David defeated the enemy for you and you get to celebrate the victory.
What David was to Goliath, our Savior is to Satan. David cut off Goliath’s head; our Savior crushed Satan’s. What David accomplished against the Philistine in the valley with two armies watching intently, Jesus carried out on a cross and completed at the tomb with armies of angels and legions of demons watching intently. Jesus stepped up in your place to take down the enemy. You didn’t have to lift a muscle. Your weapon rested on the ground beside you the whole time. Not the slightest bit of perspiration was required of you. Not a drop of blood on you anywhere – it was all on Jesus, who defeated the enemy for you, and you get to celebrate the victory.
And rest assured, the victory was decisive and final. “[Jesus] is able to save completely those who come to God through him” (Hebrews 7:25). The Savior defeated Satan for you and you get to celebrate the victory. Only as those words are spoken by Jesus to Satan have they ever been so true: Satan, you don’t stand a chance.
And that means that you and I do. Now you are back on your own battlefield. No matter what you’re facing, you can face it fearlessly. Because even when you lose, you win. Because Jesus did. You can face any obstacle, any challenge, any hardship, with complete confidence – not with the guarantee that you will overcome it, for you know better – you might not!
But even if you don’t, and the struggle and the difficulty and the suffering and the pain continue, you can endure it, because the battle that matters for eternity has already been won for you by your champion, your Savior, your Jesus. And whatever we face for the short time here on earth can’t begin to compare with the celebration in eternity that will never ever end.
Earlier, in describing Goliath, I mentioned that nowhere else in Scripture do we have such a detailed description of a soldier’s weaponry and armor. That’s not entirely true. There is such a description. It’s found in the sixth chapter of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, a section describing the “armor of God” that the Christian is encouraged to wear.
How fitting a reminder! Even as Scripture encourages us to take a stand, it does so not with any worldly weapons or shoddy, short-lived solutions that we might devise or resort to, but the armor of God. How beautifully that fits with David’s bold statement as he faced the soon-to-be headless, threatless heathen, Goliath. “All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands” (v.47). The battle wasn’t David’s! The battle isn’t ours! The battle is the Lord’s! Why would you dress with anything other than the armor of God, who alone is able to overcome and conquer?
There is a noteworthy epilogue in the Bible after David’s victory. “When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran. Then the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines…” (v.51-52). David’s victory spurred on Israel! Those who were formerly “dismayed and terrified” suddenly surged forward to fight with a newfound bravery!
Should it be any different for us, for Christ’s church, for the people of God, to go forth with valor, fighting with the weapon of his Word, to demolish strongholds and let his kingdom come? Where are the enemies of the cross? Who opposes Christ, the crucified conqueror? We can face them fearlessly, bolding alerting them to this reality: “You don’t stand a chance! I fight for the Savior who already fought for me – and won! Victory is ours!”