Needed: A Few Giant Killers
Text: 1st Samuel 17:41-53
Introduction-
Today in the Christian church I believe we face
some giants that are just as real, just as antago-
nistic to our cause, just as threatening to our
existence as did the nation of Israel in the time
of David. They may not seem as real to many pro-
fessing believers today as in David’s time, but,
let me tell you, they are just as formidable as
then. If you had to say what the No. 1 enemy or
giant is that we face today in God’s church, what
would you say? Let’s think about it!
I.I believe that one of the greatest, if not The
Greatest foes that we face in the church of today
is THE GIANT OF COMPROMISE.
The mind set, and the beliefs, and the morals of
the world have entered into the church. Like
Lot, Abraham’s nephew, the church has settled
down in Sodom, and has compromised its convictions
and beliefs. Lot wasn’t pleased with what was
going on in Sodom, he vexed his righteous soul,
the Bible tells us, but he did not challenge or
confront the evil culture either.
Our society condones many things that are not
Christian, and the church of today has learned
to accept that which is unacceptable to God. We
have become like the world, and we’ll never win
the world to Christ like that. God hasn’t changed
His opinion of divorce, or sexual immorality, but
many professing Christians have. Things that once
would have shocked us are now seen as so prevalent
that we refuse to speak out against them, for fear
of offending someone. We’ve learned to look the
other way, ignore, or simply accept the status quo.
We need a Heaven-sent, Holy Ghost Revival to draw
our hearts back to God, but I fear it may never
come, because so many are content settled down in
Sodom. God have mercy on us.
II.A second great giant that we face in the church
of today is THE GIANT OF APATHY.
The first giant that I mentioned helps to create
the second giant-apathy. When people who profess
to know God know that they are doing wrong, and
accept it, rather than confess and forsake it,
then it creates indifference and unconcern about
spiritual matters.
The church of today does not want to be confronted
with the evil that exists within it. It wants to
reach more people, take in more money, and "keep
the peace," rather than declare the unadulterated
Gospel of Christ.
This half-hearted commitment among so many today
would change if the church would repent. Whenever
we start working on a new church year’s teachers
and officers and workers, then we see some of the
evidences of this indifference to the things of
God. Instead of working for God, many now don’t
have the time, because they are so involved in
things of the world, and questionable matters, that
they don’t have time for God. Indifference is
a contagious disease. Stay around it, and you
will soon catch it.
Thank God, not everyone has caught this disease
yet, but it is fastly spreading. The only remedy
for it is for the fire of God to fall on His people.
In the book of Hosea God referred to His people as
"a cake not turned." They were only half-baked.
Have you ever tried to eat a half-baked cake, or
bisquit? Well, the top part might taste pretty
good, but when you hit the bottom part, it is
nothing but a gooey mess that sticks to your tongue!
God wants us hot or cold, not lukewarm.
The masses of people that we encounter today who
are unchurched and do not have time for church are
not openly hostile to the church-they just are
indifferent to it, and ignore it. They don’t
consider it worth the while.
III.Thirdly, another great giant that we face in the churches of today is THE GIANT OF PRIDE AND SELF-
ISHNESS.
Now, this two-headed monster is still around, after
all these years. Pride manisfests itself in many
different ways:
1. There is social pride-feeling that one is
superior to others of a different class or race
2. There is intellectual pride-feeling that one
is superior to others in knowledge
3. There is religious pride-feeling that one has
the only right interpretation of Scripture and
that its denomination is the only way to God
4. There is economic pride-feeling that one is
better because one has more than another materially.
All of these things should not exist in God’s
church, but they do sometimes. Pride stirs up
strife, and division, and jealousy. God hates
such pride, and He resists the proud, but gives
His grace to the humble.
Selfishness is akin to pride. When one thinks
only of self, and what self wants, then feelings
get hurt, and other people’s needs go unnoticed.
We need to kill these two giants if they are in
our lives.
We are not to live for self, but for God, and for
others. This is the only way we will ever please
Jesus.
