1 Samuel
17:1-11 NKJV Now the Philistines gathered their armies together to battle, and
were gathered at Sochoh, which belongs to Judah; they encamped between Sochoh
and Azekah, in Ephes Dammim. 2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered
together and they encamped in the Valley of Elah and drew up in battle array
against the Philistines. 3 The Philistines stood on a mountain on one side, and
Israel stood on a mountain on the other side, with a valley between them. 4 And
a champion went out from the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, from Gath,
whose height was six cubits and a span. 5 He had a bronze helmet on his head,
and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five
thousand shekels of bronze. 6 And he had bronze armor on his legs and a bronze
javelin between his shoulders. 7 Now the staff of his speak was like a weaver’s
beam, and his iron spearhead weighted six hundred shekels and a shield-bearer went before him. 8
Then he stood and cried out to the armies of Israel, and said to them, “Why
have you come out to line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine and you the
servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves and let him come down to me. 9 If
he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if
I prevail against him and kill him, they you shall be our servants and serve
us.” 10 And the Philistine said, “I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me
a man, that we may fight together. 11 When Saul and all Israel heard these
words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.
In this we
see conflict! In the age of kings and his men, we see Saul and his army scared
to face Goliath. The mighty do not seem so mighty against Goliath the
giant. They are gathered listening to
the critical complaints of a bully! Speaking among themselves and watching the
giant parade before them in all his arrogant pride!
Even today,
we have such bashing's against those men of war, a bashing and complaints to
those men and women who police the community for safety and then continue to
see an all out brutality with knives to those who respond to help either by
first-aid or that ride to the hospital in an emergency. But the culture has
dictated to belittle the man, the leader, the source who should lead. Alas, man
is being bashed and pushed aside like Adam in the Garden of Eden. The voice of
them should be heard today where chaos is running a muck. And some are choosing
to speak up while others pack up and leave. But man should be on the “alert”.
Man should take his place and lead others by his influence held by the Holy
Spirit of God.
We see David
being sent to his brothers on the front-line!
*
David rose early to do the father’s bidding
*
David left his sheep in the hands of the keeper
*
David took the food and went as Jesse commanded him
* David had order in his life; disciplined
to obey the commands
22 And
David left his supplies in the hand of the supply keeper, ran to the army, and
came and greeted his brothers. 23 Then as he talked with them, there was the
champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, coming up from the armies of
the Philistines; and he spoke according to the same words. So David heard them.
24 And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were
dreadfully afraid. 25 So the men of Israel said, “Have you seen this man who has come up? Surely he has come up to defy
Israel; and it shall be that the man who kills him the king will enrich with
great riches, will give him his daughter, & give his father’s house
exemption from taxes in Israel.” 26 Then David spoke to the men who stood
by him, saying, “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and
takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine,
that he should defy the armies of the living God?” 27 And the people answered
him in this manner, saying, “So shall it be done for the man who kills him.”
David was rehearsing what the men of Israel
spoke in regard to the three things done for the man who slew Goliath! He,
David would see wealth, he would be given the king’s daughter and his father’s
house would have exemption from taxes!
1 Samuel
17: 28 Now Eliab his oldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab’s
anger was aroused against ( his anger was one of arrogance when he spoke of
David’s pride and insolence.)David, and he said, “Why did you come down here?
And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your
pride and the insolence of your heart, for you have come down to see the
battle.”
David
was anointed. We read it in 1 Samuel 16:13….how Samuel took the horn of oil and
anointed David in the presence of his brothers and the Holy Spirit came on him
in power) 29 And David said, “What have I done now? Is there not a cause?” 30
Then he turned from him toward another and said the same thing; and these
people answered him as the first ones did.
1 Samuel
17:31 Now when the words which David spoke were heard, they reported them to
Saul; and he sent for him. 32 Then David said to Saul, "Let no man's heart
fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine."
33 And Saul said to David, "You are not able to go against this Philistine
to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he a man of war from his youth." This
battle was not David’s battle!
34 But
David said to Saul, "Your servant used to keep his father's sheep, and
when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, 35 I went out
after it and struck it, and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it
arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it. 36 Your
servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will
be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God."
37 Moreover David said, "The LORD, who delivered me from the paw of the
lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this
Philistine.”
Conflict: how people hate the word conflict
….that confrontation; the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear… is viewed in
the natural as a conflict of interest. It is a place of violence spoken of you
and about you. It involves you and will be the up close and personal, a rolling
in the dust. It will attack your character and your voice in what you give
regard to as to God, YOUR Lord and to His Word!
• WILL have an outcome of something or
someone coming against your person, will be about shutting you down and if you
are ruled by emotions, then a most probable
defeat. Matthew 8:26 But He said to them,
“Why are you fearful, O you of little faith? Then He arose and rebuked the
winds and the sea and there was a great calm. When our faith is little, it is
not trusting in God. We have no confidence that He will do what He has spoken
in His word. Destructive power can appear on land as well as the sea. And it
can be loud and boast great things, but anything that kills, steals or destroys
is not of God, but of the enemy. And we as believers are to stand against that
which has come to kill, steal from us and destroy our lives.
• OUR faith is that which resides in
God WHO is our righteousness, &
we know without doubt that His truth
prevails in our lives, & we stand firm in the faith voicing freely God and
His love to others.
Saul said to David, "Go, & the LORD
be with you!" 38 So Saul clothed David with his armor, & he put a
bronze helmet on his head; he also clothed him with a coat of mail. 39 David
fastened his sword to his armor, & he tried to walk, for he had not tested
them. & David said to Saul, "I cannot walk with these, for I have not
tested them." So David took them off.
·
Saul
decided to cloth David in his own armor, but David had no freedom in that which
he was dressed
·
David
refused those things and removed them.
·
To
do what God has for us is to be dressed in Him: dressed in salvation ( white
garment) and to be dressed in the robe of righteousness
1 Samuel
17:40 Then he took his staff in his hand( remember the promises of God); &
he chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, & put them in a
shepherd's bag, in a pouch which he had, & his sling was in his hand. &
he drew near to the Philistine. 41 So the Philistine came, and began drawing
near to David, & the man who bore the shield went before him. 42 And when
the Philistine looked about and saw David, he disdained him; for he was only a
youth, ruddy & good-looking. 43 So the Philistine said to David, "Am I
a dog, that you come to me with sticks?" And the Philistine cursed David
by his gods. 44 & the Philistine said to David, "Come to me, & I
will give your flesh to the birds of the air & and the beasts of the
field!"
·
From
verse 41….and the man who bore the shield went before him
·
Can
you imagine a giant some 9-11 feet tall requiring an armor bearer, a man who
bore a shield who would go before Goliath?
·
I
have read it and re-read it and I am
always in awe how a big guy had an armor bearer. What kind of shielding can this
short guy do for a 9 plus-footer?
·
All
I know is that this armor bearer of Goliath's had a real job before him!
1 Samuel
17:45 Then David said to the Philistine, "You come to me with a sword,
with a spear, & with a javelin. But
I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of
Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the LORD will deliver you into my
hand, & I will strike you & take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the
camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the
earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. 47 Then all
this assembly shall know that the LORD does not save with sword and spear; for
the battle is the LORD's, & He will give you into our hands."
1 Samuel
17:48 So it was, when the Philistine arose & came and drew near to meet
David, that…. David hastened & ran
toward the army to meet the Philistine. 49 Then David put his hand in his bag
and took out a stone; and he slung it and struck the Philistine in his
forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to
the earth. 50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone,
and struck the Philistine and killed him. But there was no sword in the hand of
David. 51 Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and
drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it. And
when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled. 52 Now the
men of Israel & Judah arose & shouted, & pursued the Philistines as
far as the entrance of the valley & to the gates of Ekron. & the
wounded of the Philistines fell along the road to Shaaraim, even as far as Gath
& Ekron. 53 Then the children of Israel returned from chasing the
Philistines, & they plundered their tents. 54 And David took the head of
the Philistine & brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his armor in his tent.
NKJV
·
Now
my question: where did the armor bearer go when Goliath went down
·
I
thought the armor bearer was to be available always, especially in events, in
activity the armor bearer should be on the spot, in the scene, but I find no
place where he is mentioned when Goliath goes down and ……then dies by the
sword.
In Facing a Philistine! Philistine is a word meaning “unclean spirit”. Unclean spirits can
manifest in different ways but one main quick attack is through trying to
“silent mouths” that is to shut a mouth so that it will not speak for God. The open door was the encounter with Goliath
and it was through Eliab’s anger he testified and confirmed his hate when he
told David that David had insolence and pride. In Goliath, we see one wanting
to shut their mouths & scare the nation of Israel away!
• We have demonic spirit doing the same
thing today through people just like David saw back in his day! You have those
of an unclean spirit targeting your testimony of victory and God’s goodness in your life.
• Those who follow truth and operate in it
are being harassed by those who love lies and live in them. We cannot watch our
weather man any more as a T.V. station who promotes lies now none of their
reports even come close to truth including their weather report! We are relying on God for our own weather
report these days!
Another manifested form of an unclean spirit that pertains
to and is of a performing nature, is like that of Goliath parading around on the merit
of his size… and his big mouth. Some 9'-11' feet in height must have helped
Goliath accomplish something…Remember in Canaan that the very giants Joshua and
Caleb saw were evident indeed? But maybe it was just his big mouth that was the
chaos and fire-starter for hate that rallied people that day!
Have you seen people who are there just to perform and not minister anything? No life, and no good word comes out of them, but they speak of me, myself and I …. Just saw a woman make voice to the vaccine mandate. She gave her opinion of it while holding her 2 year grand-daughter in her lap. This “grandmother” hissed out venom that she was getting the vaccine and then get to all the people to infect them to make them sick. (Remember now that the vaccine gives a spiking protein throughout the body of the person who has taken it. They can shed that protein for six weeks infecting others!) She wanted freedom and she said she was going to get it by infection. Yikes! She said it was enough and it was time this “thing” was all over. Well, most certainly it is over. But it is over and done in and through those who trust the Lord and His leading by His grace and His love.
IN
Scripture unclean means "to be the defiled, to be the polluted, unwholesome,"
… readily refers to foods that are unfit, defilement can be of a religious
character, and moral or spiritual impurity.
In the New Testament we find a spiritual application: in it is listed as
uncleanness or moral defilement with fornication plus other sins as "works
of the flesh in reading from Galatians 5:19-21.
Are we behaving as we gather together with other believer’s? Behaving in an environment focused on God and praise to Him that can cause some people to shrink back into that which many seek to find as a place of comfort and the hidden. But our love for others should be seen. And our voice should give heed to that which is of God for life and not of the enemy for death!
Are we waving at God
as we pass by on our journey of this life, or do we really stop, visit, and have some time of
serious talk, some laughter and always a few tears with our Father God. Behaving
is about allowing the Holy Spirit to have His way in us either in the home, in
the prayer closet, in public as to shopping and greeting others and even within
a church service. As the righteous we are committed to truth and no lies. We
are committed to God’s word and no changing His word. And as a child of God, we
follow no one but the Lord. And when He tells us to go, we GO and if we are not
take anything deadly into our bodies, even then we are to obey always by His truth and His will
in our lives being done. If not, then we are all lost without our Lord and
going to hell. I have seen it on earth so far and not fond of where most will
find their home. Hold on for this ride is going to be good indeed and some will enjoy God's peace on it and others will only smell smoke and feel the heat of the flames of fire!
Romans
13:11-14…..the hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our
salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. 12 The night is nearly
over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put
on the armor of light. 13 Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in
orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality& debauchery, not in
dissension and jealousy. 14 Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus
Christ, & do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature. NIV
David spoke in verse 47. 47 Then all this assembly shall know that the LORD does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the LORD's, and He will give you into our hands."
And in
verse 51….David runs over, takes the sword from the sheath of Goliath and uses
it against him.
• David’s faith was in God: He went in His
Name, the God of the armies of Israel
• David was speaking against that whom
defied God
• David affirmed that the LORD would
deliver the enemy into his hand
• David also included the entire camp of
Philistines for destruction to be food for the birds of the air and the wild
beasts of the earth
• David understood, that the “battle is
the Lord’s.”
Every time he took up his shepherd’s staff, David could read the promise God had for him from it. Marked with every good thing God had done for him like a journal, even his own staff marked good things done by God. David walked with the promise in his heart. David walked forward and his path included a giant. Deuteronomy 31:6 in the Amplified Bible, “ be strong, courageous and firm; fear not nor be in terror before them, for it is the Lord your God Who goes with you; He will not fail you or forsake you.”
The
courageous do not have to pretend. They have this undaunted courage. They have
no fear, they have no discouragement. They are armed with the Presence of God!
In this
hour, all men stand in faith of God, all believers stand in readiness to speak
by faith a confidence that God is with them and from the willing heart they are disciplined
in prayer and of the spoken Word! God our Father has given us His Holy Spirit to not fear. He has given us power, love, and a sound mind
to prevail in all situations. Holding fast the pattern of sound words &
always cultivating a relationship with His Holy Spirit that propels us into the
power of God for signs and wonders.
• John 4:23-24........ 23 But the hour is
coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit
and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24 God is Spirit, and
those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." NKJV
The more infusion of His Spirit into our lives, the greater of God’s love flowing through us. The true believer is one who manifests the love of God and moves in that love toward others. It is always residing and abiding in His truth, not moving from that truth, using the weapons He has provided for us in worship to Him that is a love revealed. Is our love showing to reveal God on earth? Are we positioned to take our land of freedom that is of the Lord and not of any enemy?
Where will you stand when the smoke settles and the dust clears for our
battle is not ours but the Lord who is true and prevails, for He is the power and He is the might!
Seasoned With Salt
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