Are You Ready to Kill the Giant?

David was anointed king by the prophet Samuel, but as far as his father Jesse was concerned, David still occupied errand-boy status. Jesse sent David out with food in hopes of getting information as to the welfare of his older sons. In 1 Samuel 17:19 NIV, Jesse informs David, "They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the Valley of Elah, fighting against the Philistines." But they weren’t “fighting with the Philistines.” No, they were in the Valley of Elah listening to the Philistines’ propaganda.

Just as David arrived on the scene, Goliath began shouting and the Israelites ran in fear. Imagine David, this young boy, watching the armies of God—which included his older brothers—running away in fear! David’s father had told him that the Israelites were fighting the Philistines, yet instead what David finds is them cowering in fear! Didn’t they recognize this is an opportunity to gain the respect of the king?

                                                                                

Okay, okay, I can hear you saying, “Are you crazy? His brothers were no match for the giant even if they ganged up on him!” I know, but that's not the point. The point is that David thought like a teenager, not like a grown man. He was wondering why his brothers, who he most likely had up on a pedestal, were so scared of this giant. Suddenly David sees his brothers as cowardly. From David's perspective, this giant was an affront to God and he needed to be destroyed immediately. So why were his brothers just standing around doing nothing? Why weren't they seizing the opportunity to go after this giant?

In 1 Samuel 17:26, David asks the men standing near him, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?” David gets it! And anger begins to boil within him, righteous anger! David was angry at Goliath’s bullying and I believe angry at the Israelites’ cowardice. David stirred up such a ruckus that his eldest brother, Eliab, put him in his place in verse 28, “Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the desert? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.”

But the youngest son of Jesse, this mere errand boy who was anointed to be king, was enraged and ready to become engaged—in battle! David had righteous rage at the enemy of God who dared to defy Him in such a public manner by yelling in the faces of the Israelites day after day! I think David was in shock at witnessing God's army cowering in fear.

1 Samuel 17:30-31 says, “He then turned away to someone else and brought up the same matter, and the men answered him as before. What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him.”

Saul expected a warrior but what stood before him was nothing more than an errand boy. An errand boy who had just gotten chewed out by his big brother! But that's not how David saw himself, even though that's what his brothers called him and what Jesse inferred when Samuel came to anoint him as king. 1 Samuel 17:32 tells us, “And David said to Saul, ‘Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.’ ”

Do you think there was some jovial skepticism? Some snickering? Some outright laughter? Maybe even some taunts and jeers? In verse 33, Saul said to David, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth.”

I encourage both young and old to listen to what I have to say. If God chooses you, you are not too small, too old, too ugly, too stupid, or too anything to do what God has told you to do. Even if a worldly king himself stands before you and tells you that you need to pack your bags and go home, if God has called you and has put His Holy Spirit within you to accomplish a task then pursue it with all of your heart. If God has called you to do something, then it’s God’s responsibility to prepare and train you. Your responsibility is to receive God's preparation and training. But there will come a time when you must finally decide to act on the calling that God has placed within you. And, as with David, there will be those who stand around, mock, and criticize. That's okay! In fact, sometimes being mocked simply indicates that you are no longer willing to listen to your stinking giant!!

Do you have righteous anger burning within you? When there is a giant shouting at you from across the canyon, defying you and your God, are you angry? Are you indignant when this giant torments you or your brother or sister in Christ? David saw things in terms of right and wrong. What about you? Are you ready to make a difference in the world? Are you ready to kill the giant?