GIANTS ARE DOOMED

Most all of us are familiar with the story of a giant killer from long ago.

While we remember the story as told to children, many people never see the larger story of how being a giant killer relates to New Testament Christianity.

All of us have at one time or another been faced down by giants, and how we reacted to each event is indicative of a few things.

We will begin by looking in 1 Samuel ch 17.

There are two armies facing each other from a distance, neither has the courage to come against the other.

One army is camped in a place named Ephes-dammim, which is in English “a boundary of blood.”

The other is camped across a valley in Elah, or in English “an oak.”

Do you see what I see, one cannot cross a boundary of blood because the other has encamped around a tree!!!

Those camped around the tree were comfortable in the tree and had lost the courage to confront those who were on the other side of the boundary of blood.

A mighty giant railed against the God of the tree and no one person in the army would take a righteous stand.

An entire army could not find one who would step up and declare what was right.

One came that would.

Goliath-or “great heathen”

David- or “beloved”

The great heathen raged against and cursed the living God and those that were His for a period of forty days.

For years God had been preparing His beloved as a warrior, as a shepherd, as a husband, as a worshipper, as a leader of men, as a seeker of what is holy and pure, and as a King.

For some time David had been following Saul and doing service to him, whenever time came for him to grow away from Saul, he returned to his father, to do his will and not that of man.

Goliath was prepared for war. David had been preparing to serve.

David’s father had sent him during this time to tend to a small flock of sheep in the area of Bethlehem, yet God was preparing him to come from Bethlehem to the field of battle.

David’s father requested that he take good things to his brothers who were supposedly doing battle with the enemies of the King.

When David arrived at the battle he was confronted by those who should have already acted in the name of the Lord against the heathen.

They accused David of being his own servant, of not submitting to authority, and of attempting to act alone, and they were jealous that he would not compromise his faith and allow sin to be flaunted against those encamped around the tree who had become lukewarm to the idea that there are things that cannot go unopposed.

The king of men called for David and offered to him, the armor that the king felt was appropriate, David recognized immediately that if the king did not use the tools, then they were unproven and could not be relied upon in the battle that was to be fought.

David had heard of the reward for faithful, successful service to the king, and knew that no other reward would bring satisfaction. The reward being that to the victor went provision, eternal recognition, and a bride.

The army that was encamped at the boundary of blood was about to flee, by a path that would take them to Sharaim or “two gates” and would end up at Gath or “wine vat.”

The rest of the story we know, David killed the giant and claimed the reward, and was then hated by those who should be his brothers and sisters.

He was prepared, and willing to serve God, and not man, and because of it, his life soon became miserable, but only for a while.

Do you want to be a giant killer?

You can be sure that when you begin to prepare, through acceptance of Jesus as Savior, through service, through prayer, through bible study, through witnessing, through giving, through going, through the use of your spiritual gifting, a giant will come against you to dissuade you from doing what is right.

You can be sure that the giant will attack; your family, your health, your wealth, your service, your time of communion with the Lord, your faith.

You can be sure that those who want you to submit to them will offer you their opinion of how you should serve, how you should worship, how you should pray, how you should witness, how you should seek their favor before seeking Gods favor, and will attempt to fit you with weapons and armor that are either faulty or untried.

You can be sure that those with a different agenda than yours will encourage you to join them so that they can be leader over you.

You can be sure that like David’s brothers they will tell you that you have not been called by God to do a service.

After all thewarfare that you have learned does not fill the armor in a manner that they understand.

Sibbechai, who was one of David’s heroes, killed a giant in the battle of Gob, David was a giant killer, Joshua killed a few, the Apostle Paul was a giant killer, Peter killed giants, Timothy and Steven killed giants; the giants of death, hell and the grave, were killed on a hill named Calvary, and the list goes on.

You are a giant killer when you are prepared to do so.

David left the crowd of uncommitted, picked up five stones, and ran without thought for himself into a battle that he knew he could not lose, because God had prepared him, to become a giant killer.

The fickleness of humanity is such that as he killed the giant a cheer went up, he was a hero to the people, however because of his faithful service he had shown himself to be different than the king who craved control, and yet David loved the king because he understood that it was not the king who had anointed him it was God himself and that he would soon be blessed.

You have a specific calling, all of us have a calling if we have accepted Christ as Savior.

We cannot fail if we follow His leading and cast off the yoke that man would entangle us in.

The giant killers of scripture knew a few things that we in the New Testament Church should know more fully.

Whenever we become faithful to Him, then He will use us.

1 Timothy 1:12 “And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry;”

God alone puts ministry into your heart and God alone calls you to perform what He has instilled in you, and it is God alone who enables you to perform what He has determined is right for you.

Romans 11:29 “For the gift and callings of God are without repentance.”

Don’t be discouraged by those who only want to camp out by the oak tree, stand up; stare the giant in the face, and do battle, but only in the manner that God has proven in you.