Text: 1 Sam. 17
Anyone here this morning believe in Miracles? Do you believe that God still unleashes his
miracle working power in the lives of His people?
The Smart Family this week witnessed a miracle, and they are giving glory to God for
bringing home thier daughter after being kidnapped for over 9 months. Didin’t you just
celebrate with them as you saw thier faces of joy?
I believe that God not only is still performing miracles in the lives of His people, but the
truth is that He wants too..... He not only is cabable of performing miracles.... miracles of
healing.... miracles of spiritual breakthrough.... miracles that break through bondage to
sin.... miracles that break through bondage to addiction..... the list is endless, because His
power is unlimited, and His Love for His people doesn’t ever run out.
To be honest, I believe most of you here this morning believe in the power of God to
perform miracles, to step into our lives and do something supernatural that we couldn’t do
on our own. It’s not a matter of us not believing it can happen, but what I want to ask
you this morning is simple, “Will We See a Miracle Here, In our lives, In our Church?”
I believe as I read Scripture and study the Word, that we can put ourselves in Miracle
working territory. In other words, by our Faith, by our Actions, we can have access to
God’s Miracle working power, and that’s the place I want to live.... don’t You?
On the other side of that belief, we can also put ourselves in a place where there is no
power, there is no supernatural work going on........ In other words, by our lack of faith,
by our lack of action, we can put a barrier between ourselves and God’s Miracle working
power...... and friends, that’s not where I want to live..... how about You?
So let’s investigate just one great event, Let’s look for reasons that God’s Power was
unleashed in the life of this man..... Why did God use this man to perform what
seemed to be impossible? Why was this man so confident that God was going to
perform a miracle on his behalf, what gave him the confidence? And, maybe the most
important question, Is this kind of Miracle working power available to me, in my life,
in our church, in our battles?
One of my favorite Bible stories is found in 1 Sam. 17. The true historical event of
Scripture..... The epic battle between a giant Warrior of a man named Golieth vs. a young
shephard boy, whose Faith was bigger than the whole army of Israel.
When I read this story, I think this is what it would be like if I tried to step into the
ring with Mike Tyson..... This is what it would be like if I tried to out spend Bill Gates....
This is what it would be like if I tried to outsign Michale W. Smith..... are you getting the
picture.... it’s not pretty..... The odds are stacked..... but what we are going to read really
happened.... and David really did get into the ring.
Read.
This morning as we investigate this story I want to answer those three questions I raised
earlier, the first one is : Why did God use this man to perform what seemed to be
impossible?
One thing that I find as I read this story is that God just didn’t pick anyone to take on this
Giant..... God wasn’t up in heaven playing innny, minnnny, minnny, moooooo, who can I
pick to Go?
As we look at the life of David, and we are asking ourselves, “Why did God pick David?”
As you study the life of David, we realize that first of all David didn’t have it real easy in
life. He was the youngest brother of eight brothers.... he was the baby. Don’t you know
he was picked on by his older brothers?
How many of you had an older brother or sister? Did they tend to pick on you,
did they take advantage of you because you were younger? Of coarse they did, that’s
what older siblings do.... I know I did.....My younger sister still has emotional scars.
In Chapter 16 of 1 Sam. we find that the Prophet Samuel has been ordered by God to
annoint the next King of Isreal. God ordered Samuel to go to David’s Father’s house,
Jessie was David’s father’s name. Samuel started looking over these brothers to find the
one that God wanted to become the next King of Isreal..... Samuel saw the oldest son,
Eliab, and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord.”
Do you know how God answered Samuel? Listen to his words found in 1 Sam.
16:7 “But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height,
for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man
looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."
My question was simply, Why did God use this man to perform what seemed to be
impossible?
Why did God use David to perform this awesome miracle? What caused God to
choose David not only as the one who would fight Golieth, but also as the next King of
Isreal, was it because of his good looks? Was it because of his great fighting ability? Was
it because of his personal wealth? Was it based on his intelligence? No, none of those
things came into play because God doesn’t choose His leaders, God doesn’t choose His
miracle workers based on the same things that we look at....
“.... but the Lord looks at the heart.” can you say that with me.... The Lord
Looks at the Heart.
What does God see when he looks at your heart this morning?
Does God see a heart full of Faith? Does God see a heart full of Trust? How’s your heart
this morning..... is it healthy with faith?
Alot of people, and some Christians are infected with Heart disease... not the kind
the American Heart Association deals with.... but many people are struggling with a
diseased heart that lacks faith...... their heart lacks trust in Jesus Christ...... they say they
believe with their mouth, but thier lives and actions tell a different story.
How’s your heart today? Can I tell you a secret to having a strong healthy heart?
It’s exercise..... Now I know that’s what your doctor told you last time you went to see
him... but the same is true in our spiritul health.... Exercise your Faith, put your faith into
action...... It’s one thing to say you believe with your lips.... it’s another to act upon your
belief.
Do you have Faith in God and in what Jesus has done for you? Exercise by telling
someone what Jesus has done for you. Who have you told lately about Jesus? Exercise
your heart of Faith through prayer, be a prayer warrior, pray at home, pray with us on
Wed. nights as we pray for miracles ot happen, pray for those who are lost.... exercise
your faith through prayer.
Christians, are you exercising your Faith and Trust in God by Giving of your tithes
to the church? One of the greatest tests of a person’s trust in God comes through the the
teaching of tithing 10% of your income to the church, why? Because tithing exercises
your faith in God that he will help you and bless you financially for your willingness to
tithe and give to the ministry. Are you exercising your Faith through giving?
What does God look at when He’s looking for a Leader, when He’s looking for someone
to use to perform a miracle? “.... but the Lord looks at the heart.”
As we investigate, we know what God is looking for in a man or a woman in whom He
will perform a miracle..... A heart of Faith, a pure heart. Amen?
Second, Why was this man so confident that God was going to perform a miracle on
his behalf, what gave him the confidence?
If you have ever seen the Veggietales video called, “Bob, and the big Pickle” then you
would be able to visualize this battle in your head. The Battle lines have been drawn, the
two armies are facing each other...... and the Philistines are obviously the agressor, they
have a champion Warrior named Golieth who has been trained since his youth for battle
the Word tells us..... and he is one awesome specimin to look at... He was over 9 foot tall,
his armor of bronze wieghed 125 lbs, the iron point of his spear wieghed 15 lbs..... can
you imagine the strength is would take to throw that spear?
When I was in JR. High I went out for track one year, and because running was
not my stong suit, I went out for the Shot put..... that shot put that we used weighed 12
lbs. and it took all I had to throw it 30 some feet....... can you imagine trying to throw a
spear with a 15lb point on it......it would dislocate everything in your arm..... The point is
this guy was a Giant of a man.
This man was not only physically intimidating, like all good bullies, he had a loud
mouth on him..... The Bible tells us that every day for Forty days he has been coming and
standing in the open and defying the Israel Army..... and worse than that.... He was openly
mocking the God of Israel. You see, the Philistines believed that by bringing out two
warriors to fight for the two sides, that the gods of those two armies would determine the
winner..... you know what He was right.....problem was his god didn’t really exist, David’s
did.
So what gave David such confidence? Why did David march right to the front
lines and know that he would be the one to defeat this giant of a man?
Does David sound scared to you? Does he sound intimidated to you? Listen to
his words in verse 26, David asked 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?"
Let me tell you why David had so much confidence.... David had a history with God,
David had seen God’s hand at work in his life before..... where you ask? Was it on some
grand stage? Was it somewhere only the elect get to go before God uses them? No.
David saw God’s hand in the everyday duties of life..... For David, his everyday
duties included tending sheep. A big part of tending sheep is protecting them from wild
animals, and David had learned to trust God as he had fought off wild bears, wild lions
from his herd. David gained this great confidence from his experiences with God found in
everyday life.
I ask you this morning, Are you experiencing God on a everyday level? Are you learning
to trust Him and have Faith in Him for your everyday duties? When you go to work, are
you in tune with Him? When you deal with your children everyday, is God involved, and
invited to help you, to guide you in your instruction, in your discipline..... Is He your
source?
How are you gaining great confidence from your experiences with God found in
your everday life? I believe that we can position ourselves to be used by God in miracle
working ways if we will live lives that exercise our Faith in God......... Notice I didn’t say
for you just to exercise Faith.... But the key is to exercise Faith in God.
There is alot of people sitting in churches today who are exercising Faith...... But
they know nothing about having a Faith in God... A personal Faith in a Personal God who
wants a personal encounter with us.
We can have Faith in alot of things that won’t make a difference. Faith in
Religion. Putting you Faith in people will disappoint you. If your Faith is in your own
ability, it will fail you. If your Faith is in your wealth, it too will fail you. David was a
Champion of Faith, because he exercised a personal Faith in God, His Faith was not static,
but it was evergrowing, it was being tested, it was being stretched...... Our Faith in God
comes with a descision, but then it will continue to grow and to be shaped by God as He
uses our life events to shape us into his man or his woman.
David’s confidence came from his trackrecord of Faith and Trust in God. This is where
we can draw from also.
This morning the final question as we investigate this awesome story of David vs. Golieth,
is this: Is this kind of Miracle working power available to me, in my life, in our
church, in our battles?
The answer to that question depends on your perspective.
There’s two perspectives we find in this story..... Saul’s perspective which rubbed off on
all his troops...... and then there’s David’s perspective.
Saul’s perspective is one that we can see pretty clearly in our world today.
It’s important to note a couple of facts as we begin to talk about these two
perspectives, First, your position of power or prestige has no bearing on your perspective,
it’s a choice that we all can make, no matter your circumstances, no matter your position
in life.
Saul, the King of Israel, He knew that God had made a covenent with Isreal that declared
that God would always fight their battles for them, and if they would put thier faith and
confidence in Him, they would be victorious. And throughout Scripture we see how God
always kept his promise as the Isrealites won victory after victory as they took possession
of the Promised Land.
In other words, Saul should have known better. Just because you know what the Bible
says, just because you have been raised in the church, just because you are in church every
week, just because you may be a teacher or a leader in the church...... none of those things
mean that you automatically have the right perspective.
Saul had all the outward appearences of someone who should have known God’s power
and his promises, but Saul looked out across the battlfield and saw this Giant, and fear
siezed him, and all of his troops. Instead of looking to God in this time of testing, Saul
decided to look at the circumstances.... and he was paralyzed by what he saw.
His perspective didn’t allow Him to see the Living God, instead all he could see was the
Giant, and doom and gloom.
In contrast, We see David.... As soon as he shows up he runs to the front of the line and
looks and sees what is going on, and he doesn’t have to sit around and try to figure out
what it might cost him, he doesn’t have to make a pro’s and con’s list on whether or not
he should get involved..... David’s perspective helps him to see clearly that this is miracle
working territory.... David See’s an opportunity for God’s Name to be Glorified, For His
Power to be Unleashed.... David See’s something completely different than everyone else
that day. David wasn’t the most popular person because of it.
David’s brother was angry at him, jealous maybe of him... and I’m sure many of the others
in the army felt the same way..... Whenever you take a stand because of your Faith and
your Trust in God, it will be met with scepticism and even disdain.... and maybe even from
within the ranks. Do you hear me today?
Those who can’t see God because their perspective is only on the Giants, the
circumstances, the problems, those folks will always be against those who Live by Faith
and not by Sight ---- Why? Because those without Faith are afraid of what they can’t see.
David saw victory even though no one else could that day. Everyone else saw defeat.
I ask you this morning..... What do you see in your life? Are you faced with some Giants?
Is your perspective one of Faith and Trust in God like our hero David, or do you find
yourself more on Saul’s side, always looking at the circumstances and becoming
discouraged and defeated?
Read Vs. 45-51
Some here this morning have been living with Golieth in your life for long enough. At
some point you decided that Golieth was unbeatable, so you were just going to have to
put up with it, whatever that is..... Let me tell you something today.
With Faith and with Power from the Living God, you say this to your Golieth,
“This day the Lord will hand you over to me, and I’ll strike you down and cut off
your head.” If you will believe, if you will put your Faith in God..... that enemy that you
have been struggling with for too long can be defeated, today.... No more excuses, no
more running to the tents in fear, no more messages of doom and gloom..... KNOW
WHOM YOU SERVE, YOU STAND WITH THE LIVING GOD AND FACE THE
ENEMY, NOT ALONE, BUT WITH THE LIVING GOD ON YOUR SIDE, THE GOD
WHO HAS DEFEATED GIANTS ALL THROUGH HISTORY, THE GOD WHO HAS
PROMISED VICTORY FOR THOSE WHO ARE WASHED IN THE BLOOD.........
YOU CAN’T DO IT ALONE... YOUR RIGHT ABOUT THAT... BUT GOD NEVER
ASKED YOU TO DO IT ALONE....... HE’S SAYING RIGHT NOW, LET ME DO
WHAT YOU CAN’T DO..... TRUST ME.... PUT YOUR FAITH IN ME...... I WILL
PROVIDE THE VICTORY.
MAKE YOU DESCISION TODAY TO PUT YOUR FAITH IN GOD, AND KNOW
THAT HE WILL PERFORM MIRACLES IN YOUR LIFE.... AS YOU TRUST HIM.
CHURCH, WILL WE PUT OUR FAITH IN HIM? WILL WE LIVE IN FEAR? WILL
WE SIT AROUND AND SAY NOTHING IS EVER GOING TO CHANGE? ARE WE
LOOKING AT OUR CIRCUMSTANCES AND DECIDING THAT WE WILL NEVER
BUILD A NEW BUILDING?
WE WON’T DO IT. WE WILL BELIEVE THAT GOD HAS A PLAN, AND WE
WILL PUT OUR FAITH IN GOD TO CARRY OUT THAT PLAN THROUGH US. WE
WILL STOP ALLOWING FEAR AND DISCOURAGEMENT TO CREEP INTO OUR
MINDS AND OUR CONVERSATIONS.......TRUST GOD AND KNOW THAT HE IS
GOING TO FINISH WHAT HE HAS STARTED..... DO YOU BELIEVE IN
MIRACLES?
Today, your victory can be won, right here, through prayer, a prayer of Faith... will you be
like David? Let’s watch the giants fall today!
