Five Smooth Stones

The Challenger

1 Samuel 17:1 Now the Philistines gathered together their armies to battle, and were gathered together at Shochoh, which [belongeth] to Judah, and pitched between Shochoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim. 2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and pitched by the valley of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines. 3 And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side: and [there was] a valley between them. 4 And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height [was] six cubits and a span. 5 And [he had] an helmet of brass upon his head, and he [was] armed with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat [was] five thousand shekels of brass. 6 And [he had] greaves of brass upon his legs, and a target of brass between his shoulders. 7 And the staff of his spear [was] like a weaver's beam; and his spear's head [weighed] six hundred shekels of iron: and one bearing a shield went before him. 8 And he stood and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set [your] battle in array? [am] not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me. 9 If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye 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 those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

Scripture: 1 Samuel 17:1-11; 1 Peter 5:8; Genesis 3:1; Joshua 1:9; Acts 1:8; Matthew 14:24-28

Introduction

Experience the victory of unwavering faith

Happy New Year church! I am really excited to see 2023 arriving. And I am excited to be with you this morning. We are kicking off a brand new four sermon series, concerning a well-known story in scripture.

I remember hearing about David and Goliath, one of the best-known in the Bible, at a “Back Yard Bible Club” in Denver, Colorado. The teacher was using flannel graph. Flannel graph was the Power Point of my generation.

The bible is filled with stories and when correctly applied, they include a spiritual lesson for the reader.

The story appeals to many believers as it is easy to identify with the whole of the account. It is easy in my life to identify with the nation of Israel.

· They love God with all their hearts.

· They turn away from God and His blessings.

· They “come to themselves,” confess their sins

· They repent and the fellowship with the LORD is restored.

· They Love God with all their hearts.

A consistent cycle in the life of Israel and my life as well. However, when focusing on David and Goliath, I find myself consistently at odds with the “Goliaths” in my world.

Another way of looking at the struggle is when we wrestle with “faith.”

· They wholly trust in God and His Word.

· Doubt intervenes in their life and begin questioning God and His blessings.

· They continue to doubt and lose faith.

· They “come to themselves,” and confess their sins.

· They repent, reject their doubts and their faith is restored.

· They wholly trust in God and His Word

Sometimes I am the underdog, or at least I feel that way.

I would venture a guess that most of you have heard the story of “David and Goliath.” This story is about how David’s faith and trust in the LORD God of Israel in what appeared as insurmountable odds. Goliath was as fierce of a warrior as one could imagine who will be challenged by a teenager who was not a warrior.

To place the story in the right context, it is important to note that David had already chosen and anointed in private by the prophet Samuel. David was placed in King Saul’s court as the king’s armorbearer. When King Saul was sad, David would play for him. The defeat of Goliath brought a young David to attention of the world.

For the next four weeks we will review the 17th chapter of 1 Samuel verse-by-verse.

The Intimidator: Goliath

1 Now the Philistines gathered together their armies to battle, and were gathered together at Shochoh, which [belongeth] to Judah, and pitched between Shochoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim.

The Philistines crossed the border into land that belonged to Judah and camped on the southern side of the valley, between Shochoh, and Azekah, about seven miles from Gath and Ekron in the green undulating hills adjacent the Valley of Elah.

2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and pitched by the valley of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines. 3 And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side: and [there was] a valley between them.

The incursion had to be met with might. Therefore, Saul and the armies of Israel gathered in the Elah valley[1] and set themselves in battle array on the opposing hill from the Philistines. There wasn’t going to be discussion or parlay. This military invasion by the Philistines was going to be met in full battle array.

4 And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height [was] six cubits and a span.

The Hebrew word for “champion” properly means, “the man between the two.” In this case Goliath was the warrior between the two camps: Philistines and Israel. During this era, wars and battles could be decided by single combat by their champion and saved many lives as only one warrior would die. Goliath stepped out of the army to fight between the two lines, with the champion from Israel.

“…whose height was six cubits and a span.”

Goliath’s height of six cubits (9 feet) and a span (8.5 inches) is over 9 and a half feet tall.

A cubit is the measurement from the tip of the elbow to the tip of the middle finger. However, everyone’s cubit will be different. That would mean if more than one person were working on a project as large as the Tabernacle, the results would not find that the precision of the pattern that the LORD showed Moses and would have dire consequences. Therefore, a standardized cubit would be created and shared, much like handing out measuring tapes to construction workers.

For simplicity’s sake, we will assume throughout this study that the cubit is eighteen (18) inches or a foot and a half.

There were Royal cubits (7 palms equaling 20.61 inches), Egyptian cubits (6 palms equaling 17.67 inches), and the cubit of Israel.

While we are at it, we might as well look at other measurements used in the OT.

Inch – the measurement of the tip of the thumb and the first knuckle. Handspan – The measurement of the hand between the outstretched thumb and little finger of a hand Handbreadth – The measurement of the hand between the middle finger and the wrist Palm – The measurement of the hand from the little finger to the pointer finger Footspan – The measurement of the foot between the heal and big toe Fathom – the measurement of the outstretched arms from middle finger to middle finger.

5 And [he had] an helmet of brass upon his head, and he [was] armed with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat [was] five thousand shekels of brass.

The Philistine champion was a very large and imposing figure. For Goliath’s armor, he had a helmet made of brass, that would be very heavy, and his coat of armor alone weighed “five thousand shekels of brass,” which would equate to 125 lbs.

6 And [he had] greaves of brass upon his legs, and a target of brass between his shoulders.

Greaves is the armor from the foot to the knee. The “target” of brass is a small shield made of brass made to protect the warrior’s back, was attached between Goliath’s shoulders.

7 And the staff of his spear [was] like a weaver's beam; and his spear's head [weighed] six hundred shekels of iron: and one bearing a shield went before him.

Goliath’s spear was huge in relationship to the spears in use by the Israelites. Goliath’s spearhead weighed an astonishing 16 pounds. Goliath had his own armor bearer who ensured that his armor and weapons were maintained and when going to battle, carried his shield.

Goliath Trusted in His Weapons

The Insult

8 And he stood and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set [your] battle in array? [am] not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me.9 If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye 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.

This speech from Goliath didn’t just happen once. Later in the chapter we find that the “Philistine drew near morning and evening and [Goliath] presented himself forty days.”

How can an entire army from Israel continue in shame day after day? Day one. Day two. Day fifteen. Day twenty-seven. Day thirty-five. And every day, Israel left the battle field returning to their camp in fear and shame.

Fear and Shame in the Israel Camp

11 When Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

Fear causes paralysis. Sometimes that paralysis is but a brief suspension of action. Other times fear results in retreat and fleeing.

Goliath’s Presence Created Fear

Israel did not have a champion like Goliath.

Doubt is the first tool in Satan’s tool belt. The first recorded words of Satan were ones of doubt and not confrontation.

Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

Conclusion

1. There will always be Goliaths

2. They will always trust in their earthly weapons

3. Fear and doubt will continue to meet you every day.

4. Every day you will live in shame until you meet your fears and doubts head on.

5. The Enemy will be persistent

6. The Enemy will Condemn

7. The Enemy will Strike Fear

[1] Control of this valley would give the Philistines entry into the hill country of Judah. Socoh is about 14 miles (22 km) west of Bethlehem toward the Philistine territory. Azekah, about 2–3 miles (3.2–4.8 km) northwest of Socoh, controlled the main road across the Valley of Elah. (Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 519.) [2] My measurement of a “handspan.” [3]Arkencounter.com