Defiance is Beheaded

Psalm 14:1....The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God."
They are corrupt,  They have done abominable works,
There is none who does good.    NKJV

Psalm 14:1 Amplified: The [empty-headed] fool has said in his heart, There is no God.
They are corrupt, they have done abominable deeds; there is none that does good or right.

Romans 3:10-13 Amplified................10 As it is written, None is righteous, just and truthful and
upright and conscientious, no, not one. 11 No one understands [no one intelligently discerns or comprehends]; no one seeks out God .12 All have turned aside; together they have gone
wrong, and have become unprofitable and worthless; no one does right,  not even one! 13 Their throat is a yawing grave; they use their tongues to deceive ( to mislead and to deal treacherously). The venom of asps is beneath their lips.

Psalm 5:9-10............9 For there is no faithfulness in their mouth;

Their inward part is destruction; Their throat is an open tomb;

They flatter with their tongue. 

10 Pronounce them guilty, O God!

Let them fall by their own counsels; Cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions,

For they have rebelled against You.   NKJV

Defiance is seen vividly in these accounts. They do not seek God, they go wrong in every decision they make.  They are the unprofitable and when they speak, they speak with venomous words that kill another. 

In the time of David, we saw him come against Goliath. Now when thinking back to that time, we remember David minding his own business of shepherding sheep. In his 24 hour daily routine of keeping the sheep in hand, he was asked by his father Jesse to go to the front lines and take food to his brothers who were in the military and others who were in the stand off with the Philistines. David held a place in regard to God and His power, for he saw God do mighty things for him while tending those sheep in the wilderness.

We know one hulk of a man stood against the whole might of Israel and his name was Goliath. He was DEFIANCE!

1 Samuel 17:4-19

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 greaves on his legs and a bronze javelin between his shoulders. 7 Now the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam, and his iron spearhead weighed 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, then 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 verse 8, we understand that the giant was after Saul. For he made the remarks that they who stood at the front line were the servants of Saul.)

12 Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Bethlehem Judah, whose name was Jesse, and who had eight sons. And the man was old, advanced in years, in the days of Saul. 13 The three oldest sons of Jesse had gone to follow Saul to the battle. The names of his three sons who went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, next to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah. 14 David was the youngest. And the three oldest followed Saul. 15 But David occasionally went and returned from Saul to feed his father's sheep at Bethlehem. 16 And the Philistine drew near and presented himself forty days, morning and evening. 17 Then Jesse said to his son David, "Take now for your brothers an ephah of this dried grain and these ten loaves, and run to your brothers at the camp. 18 And carry these ten cheeses to the captain of their thousand, and see how your brothers fare, and bring back news of them." 19 Now Saul and they and all the men of Israel were in the Valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines.   NKJV

Yes, David had become the messenger of what was transpiring with Goliath. (verse 18)....Carry back news of them...!

1 Samuel 17:21-27

21 For Israel and the Philistines had drawn up in battle array, army against army. 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, and 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."   NKJV

David asks: "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?"

1 Samuel 17:40-52

40 Then he took his staff in his hand; and he chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in a shepherd's bag, in a pouch which he had, and his sling was in his hand. And he drew near to the Philistine. 41 So the Philistine came, and began drawing near to David, and 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 and 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 And the Philistine said to David, "Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!" 45 Then David said to the Philistine, "You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and 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, and I will strike you and 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, and He will give you into our hands." 

48 So it was, when the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, that David hastened and 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.   NKJV

In David's story, we find he was faithful to do what he was asked to do when asked by Jesse, his father, to take food to the brothers.  In the case of Goliath, we find hostility for others. Goliath was openly challenging Israel. He was the prideful in his own stature and muscular development. He saw Israel as weak and insignificant. Goliath was faithful to  himself. And he took that great pride and spoke. He displayed his mockery toward Israel and their God. Yes, his throat was the open tomb.

 The abominable works: the hateful and the loathing leading to destruction was evident every time he spoke.   Meaning: Philistine: pelishtiy...OT:6428....one who rolls in the dust

David was probably seen as one who came to publicly ridicule the mighty men who were to fight "Goliath"....the one who rolls around in the dust. Yet, this man was a GIANT. AND he presented a problem to King Saul and his mighty men. But David did not ridicule anyone. He took his stand with God and ran quickly to complete God's plan for him to do. And when the stone sunk into Goliath's forehead, David again ran quickly and took Goliath's own sword from the sheath that was fastened to his body, raised the sword...........and removed his head permanently.

Have you seen those who like to roll in the "dust"?  Kick up some dirt, throw stones at another person, protest loudly and still have no "good" results? Have you seen those that boast in themselves?

Our counsel is to be with the Lord. We are to find His will in His word for us. In that counsel, we find that He is the faithful and true. In that Word, we find hope, love, safety and wisdom!

Defiance is on every corner. It is raising its ugly head. And wherever it might be seen, remember what David spoke. "I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. AND 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. 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."

Going out in God's name is that He is 1st in our lives. We speak that His name is above every other name. We declare Him to be the One TRUE God! Consider for a moment the defiance we may project on our own. It could be the putting of our trust in our abilities or even in knowledge. Gaining knowledge that is wisdom from the world can be detrimental when not putting God 1st. That knowledge of the world is problematic. But God's Word delivers us to safety and moves us out of harm's way.

From Ephesians 6:17, we find that the sword of the Spirit is the Word of God. Leaving His Word and guidance can bring us into many mistakes and failure. David used the smooth stone. It was the tested in the wilderness. It was the proven and in it we see Christ our Cornerstone. As David confessed God before the infidel, he was the ready and the prepared. And the sword was used against Goliath when he was knocked out cold by the small, smooth stone. Ah, yes God will confound the wise of this world indeed!

For the "giant" was only knocked out with the smooth stone to the forehead. But it took the power of God in David to run alongside the fallen giant and take his sword from its sheath and take off his head. Yes it took the power of God and David had to have a trust in God.

1 Samuel 17:37........ 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." And Saul said to David, "Go, and the LORD be with you!"  NKJV

We cannot rely on our own experiences from trials or tribulations of the past. For David saw deliverance from the paw of the lion, to that of the bear and yet these were different animals that acted much differently in battle. Each animal attacks knowing their own skill. 
So too, we must think on where our walk is with the Lord. Do we sing praises like David did in the wilderness? In every act we do each day, is it done unto the Lord and to His praise?

And I close with this:

1 Samuel 21:1-6, 8-9........................21:1 David went to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. Ahimelech trembled when he met him, and asked, "Why are you alone? Why is no one with you?" 

2 David answered Ahimelech the priest, "The king charged me with a certain matter and said to me, 'No one is to know anything about your mission and your instructions.' As for my men, I have told them to meet me at a certain place. 3 Now then, what do you have on hand? Give me five loaves of bread, or whatever you can find." 

4 But the priest answered David, "I don't have any ordinary bread on hand; however, there is some consecrated bread here-provided the men have kept themselves from women." 

5 David replied, "Indeed women have been kept from us, as usual whenever I set out. The men's things are holy even on missions that are not holy. How much more so today!" 6 So the priest gave him the consecrated bread, since there was no bread there except the bread of the Presence that had been removed from before the LORD and replaced by hot bread on the day it was taken away. 

8 David asked Ahimelech, "Don't you have a spear or a sword here? I haven't brought my sword or any other weapon, because the king's business was urgent." 

9 The priest replied, "The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the Valley of Elah, is here; it is wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you want it, take it; there is no sword here but that one."   David said, "There is none like it; give it to me."    NIV

Pressure had come to David. Saul was breathing out lies and cruelty about David. And Saul wanted David gone for good. David fled into the Philistines territory. Looking into Psalm 34, we find a man so in tune with God that worship was forever on his mind. In reading the pages of his life and his fight against Goliath, the moment of real trusting in God came when brought before Achish the king. And appearing as a madman before the king proved success to David.  He found concealment within his own country. Yes, he found the cave of Adullam that was in the wilderness of Judah. David still sought to make "his boast in the Lord".

What the enemy has chosen to use against you, know that it will certainly come back upon himself. As with David, and asking for the bread, he gained 5 loaves..........5 meaning grace. The sword kept under the ephod was used again by one with authority as of a "priest".  We have a High Priest who intercedes for us. In our daily affairs of life, battles will show up on the scene, but where we stand, makes the difference of who fights for us. Is it in ourselves and our abilities, or is it in our allowing God the Holy Spirit to guide us through?

"Lord behold we have here two swords"........and He said, "It is enough".
 Luke 22:38.

enough...hikanos...2240........enough for the....coming season is the meaning.

And they certainly saw great war before the nation of Israel.

God's word is powerful and it is the weapon to wield upon the enemy. David used praise. Interesting the giant had a weaver's beam that if thrown into the direction of David would have went through him and planted him in the ground, yet the giant did not use it. He had the sword and did not use it. And  he even carried the javelin,  yet it was not used either.

Rely on God...........and He will show you what you have in hand that is from Him that will be used. What the enemy has in his hand will be used against himself. Understand, you have the victory in Jesus' name. Amen.

You can also visit my Youtube channel The Voice of Prayer for more teaching at http://bit.ly/1tNyBhV

God, Enlarge our Hearts

Psalm 119:25-32
25 My soul clings to the dust;
Revive me according to Your word.
26 I have declared my ways, and You answered me;
Teach me Your statutes.
27 Make me understand the way of Your precepts;
So shall I meditate on Your wondrous works.
28 My soul melts from heaviness;
Strengthen me according to Your word.
29 Remove from me the way of lying,
And grant me Your law graciously.
30 I have chosen the way of truth;
Your judgments I have laid before me.
31 I cling to Your testimonies;
O LORD, do not put me to shame!
32 I will run the course of Your commandments,
For You shall enlarge my heart. NKJV

Have you ever had a day when it seems like you rather go back to bed than make the best of the day that awaits you?
In the scripture above, David seems to relate to us that his soul, was clinging to the dust. Now, that is a bad day! When your mind, will and emotions gang up on you and tell you it is over. At this point one might as well cancel the day, and then resign ones self to the bedroom or the the recliner chair in the living room, right?
Wrong! Just because the T.V. commercials tell you that your life will be better after that face lift or tummy tuck is wrong. That latest procedure to take years off your your face in 15 minutes is in reality another gimmick to make you purchase something you really do not need! If you would or could remember the last night you had a good sleep, and then actually choose to go to bed and rest one might would find their face looking better just from the time of extra rest!

Or how about that aid you need to live longer but may cause a string of ailments ( you know, those side-effects )that may even cause death to come quickly to you?

Or what if healthier eating became a lifestyle for our bodies and  bring more energy for us to make it through the day?


Help Lord, oh please help, my hair is too long, my hair is too short, that second job is not working out, that weight loss aid put more pounds on the body, instead of off the body, the boss needs me to stay late all next month and the kid's extracurricular school play is being held, not in the town we live but 45 minutes from here at a civic center and will be on five nights of that same month! I was scheduled for two events on work calendar, but now I am looking at doing five events on the work calendar for the lady who usually does them but is taking a year long trip around the world. Oh help me Jesus!  Am certain this life has turned into an amusement ride and I want off........now!!!!

It appears that David had the same kind of days we sometimes have. He tells of the heaviness, and he spoke that he would be strengthened according to God's Word in verse 28.
Now some commentaries wrote that they thought, "the soul clings to dust" is meaning near death. But I do not think that is the truth, for why would David, ask in the verse 29, that he be removed from the way of lying? I believe for every decision he had to make, he needed the wisdom of God to make it. He did not want to base his decisions on anything false. No, I believed he still had many days ahead of him and he needed God's wisdom!

We are to base any and all decisions on the wisdom of God…..James 1:5-8…..5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. NKJV

 Always seek to make a wise choice….in Psalm 119:105 says,  “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” When we follow the teachings of God’s Word, He guides our path and provides knowledge to make wise choices.

Keeping our speech in the integrity of God's word is imperative. We should always be seeking to be honest with others. Lying is just a way of power that is of the evil one, to take you where you probably do not want to go. That lying thing is always about me and not you, the other person! Lying makes me look good and  makes you, "well not so good looking at all"!

In keeping honesty before us, is to being above reproach.......Paul tells us in Colossians 1:21-23
 21 And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled 22 in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight-- 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister. NKJV

When we have received Jesus as Lord, those wicked things were put far from us. In His death, Jesus bore every sinful thing including disease and we became holy, blameless and above reproach in the sight of God. But as Paul went on to say that.... " if "...you continue in faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the gospel which we have heard, then we continually are walking reconciled to God, blameless and above reproach.  When we reside in The Word of Promise, we stay strong, and continue to adhere to the truth and have no need to lie.

When we continue to cling, like David did in  the testimonies of God, we are never put to shame. YOU and I may have a bad day, but if we will continually turn to the Word of truth and see His light for our lives, we move out of the darkness and continue on our way to purpose. Walking in truth will keep us from at adding lies to our walk with others. People should always know us to be truthful. They should know when you open your mouth, the truth is to help others, encourage others and bring the peace of God! Granted, as a leader, some correction may need to be ministered, but should not include lies to make us look better and the "corrected one" to look like the dirt we walk on!

It is not up to us, for the other to receive in what we have given and spoken in love and faith in God, but it is entirely up to the Holy Spirit! We can certainly give to others in the grace and love of God and move away to continue our walk of faith, trusting God is still on our side and is with us in every decision based upon His wisdom.

And whether the given word was received or not, always trust God to bring to pass that which He has spoken to our hearts! What we give is under the blood of the covenant in Jesus!
Our expectancy is to allow God to continue to enlarge our hearts to receive all that He has prepared for you and me! 

It should not be about those who jockeying for positions to gain a place in ranks of those who lead, but it should be our hearts enlarged to receive what God had designed for us to stand . It is a place that will cause our gift to shine, It is a place that brings glory to God .........whatever your situation today, know God is on Your side and He will promote You in the time He has destined for you to take that place of leadership. If He gives you a name, it will still be under His holy son's name, Jesus Christ.

Today, let's continue to follow truth of God's Word and not the world. Let's put the Word into practice and see His purpose for our lives come to manifestation. Our God is for  us. He created us to look the way we do, and act the way we do according to His word of power.

Today, Lord, we pray for our hearts to be enlarged for that which YOU created us to be. We ask in the name of Jesus to be like David who always sought truth, and gave praise for YOUR counsel. Today, we do desire to move out of the arena of mediocrity, those looking to make their flesh look great, but deny any aid to their inner being, the hearts YOU our Lord hold so dear. Guide us Holy Spirit in truth and show us the right way to walk out any circumstances or situations that have arisen to give us the sense of a heaviness we know YOU do not want us to carry. In truth of YOU and YOUR word, we surrender to YOUR plan and expect to BE led away from lying. We do not desire to see ourselves dressed in reproach for we follow closely to Your Word and plan. As we learned in previous teachings Lord, Mary, the mother of Jesus never bore shame. Be it unto us according to YOUR Word and may we bless YOU and bring glory to YOUR name all the days of our lives. Amen

You can also visit my Youtube channel The Voice of Prayer for more teaching at (http://bit.ly/1tNyBhV)