THE God Who Saves part 1 & 2
Notes
Transcript
A. Rapport for the time
The Lord has never failed to accomplish the desired outcome that HE desired in any event in history. Think about that from a human standpoint of rarely seeing things go according to my plans or desired outcomes.
B. Reading of the text
Will read as you go.
C. Review of the text
When we jumped into 1 Samuel we said that his book would show us the sovereign hand of God constantly. This was pointed out to us from the very beginning in the life of Samuel himself as God created him to be a servant. The text would go on to show us how God place his hand on Saul for a time for what seems to be a judgement upon the people of God. Two weeks ago we look at:
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”
The rest of 1 Samuel is an unfolding of this verse in the life of David and the downfall of Saul.
Last week was David’s first words
26 And David said to the men who stood by him, “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?”
Looking at the text and how we serve a Living God unlike all wordly religions based upon men.
D. Relevance of the text
In the text today God will defend his name using an extremely unlikely source from the worlds standards and from what we can see as man. The text will enable us to look at our faithfulness in light of a God who is always faithful.
T.S. As we arrive at verse 27 of chapter 17 we will look at confidence beyond confrontation.
I. Confidence Beyond Confrontation
I. Confidence Beyond Confrontation
1 Samuel 17:26-33
Perhaps you could highlight how David's confident response to his brother's ridicule and Saul's doubt sets the stage for a faith that sees beyond immediate challenges. The focus is on recognizing that David's confidence came not from his abilities, but from his unwavering trust in God. This is a powerful example for believers to shift their perspective from focusing on personal strength to relying on God's promise in battle.
26 And David said to the men who stood by him, “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 the same way, “So shall it be done to the man who kills him.”
28 Now Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke to the men. And Eliab’s anger was kindled against David, and he said, “Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your presumption and the evil of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle.”
29 And David said, “What have I done now? Was it not but a word?”
This is a hard moment for David. After speaking of the Living God in light of what this pagan Philistine is spouting off at the people day after day his own brother comes at him. Living with family can be hard at times. A brother has seen every day of David’s life and sees him from the outside as just a shepherd. I don’t entirely blame Eliab in this moment. The motive of his heart is hard to read into scripture but he definitely seems to be bothered by David and his presence. That never happens between older and younger brothers now a day does it?
vs. 28—Eliab....I know your presumption and the evil of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle.”
Eliab thinks David has come to see the battle but in truth his action have come out of obedience to his father and he is in exactly the place God wants him to be. David’s response is what we have all said to a brother or sister at some point. “What Have a I done now?”
30 And he turned away from him toward another, and spoke in the same way, and the people answered him again as before.
31 When the words that David spoke were heard, they repeated them before Saul, and he sent for him.
32 And 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 but a youth, and he has been a man of war from his youth.”
The next person to doubt David after Eliab is King Saul. Saul is thinking like Eliab on outward appearance. David is a youth and not a man of war that could go to battle against Goliath. David fails the eye test by human standards and this is exactly what we been told is not how God works.
27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong;
God is using David from a little town in Bethlehem to ultimately bring the savior into the world that would save all mankind of their sins. This to would fail the eye test to us and did to so many.
T.S. David is different because God said he would be different. We see Courage fueled by faithfulness starting in vs. 34
II. Courage Fueled by Faithfulness
II. Courage Fueled by Faithfulness
1 Samuel 17:34-40
34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock,
35 I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him.
36 Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.”
37 And David said, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!”
Who was it that killed the bear and the lion?
David clearly state very clearly in vs. 34-36 that it was by the hands of David they were struck down. There is now doubt that David was on the job as a good shepherd and protected the sheep. But don’t miss vs. 37 as it is the key to David’s heart for the Lord. He fully understood he could do nothing with the Lord. “The Lord delivered me” Very clearly the life that David is living is not his own as he see’s himself as a servant of the living God whether he is out being a shepherd, being obedient to his father, standing before a giant, serving the King of Israel, whatever the circumstance David will look to the Lord for his salvation.
Understand this morning that apart from faith in Christ this morning this is the place that you and I find ourselves lost in our own thoughts and with great fear like Saul and the rest of Israel before the Philistines.
vs. 36
36 Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.”
Goliath will die this day not because of David but because the Living God will not be defied. We have seen this happen in 1 Samuel already with Hophni and Phinehas.
15 Moreover, before the fat was burned, the priest’s servant would come and say to the man who was sacrificing, “Give meat for the priest to roast, for he will not accept boiled meat from you but only raw.”
16 And if the man said to him, “Let them burn the fat first, and then take as much as you wish,” he would say, “No, you must give it now, and if not, I will take it by force.”
17 Thus the sin of the young men was very great in the sight of the Lord, for the men treated the offering of the Lord with contempt.
33 The only one of you whom I shall not cut off from my altar shall be spared to weep his eyes out to grieve his heart, and all the descendants of your house shall die by the sword of men.
34 And this that shall come upon your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, shall be the sign to you: both of them shall die on the same day.
You have seen it in Sunday School class as you are looking at the book of Joshua. God will protect his own name and will bring his judgement upon those who continually defy him as King. Jericho
17 And the city and all that is within it shall be devoted to the Lord for destruction. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall live, because she hid the messengers whom we sent.
18 But you, keep yourselves from the things devoted to destruction, lest when you have devoted them you take any of the devoted things and make the camp of Israel a thing for destruction and bring trouble upon it.
19 But all silver and gold, and every vessel of bronze and iron, are holy to the Lord; they shall go into the treasury of the Lord.”
20 So the people shouted, and the trumpets were blown. As soon as the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the people shouted a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they captured the city.
21 Then they devoted all in the city to destruction, both men and women, young and old, oxen, sheep, and donkeys, with the edge of the sword.
No one is able to say on this day that Joshua won this battle it is obvious that the Living God won the battle using Joshua and the people that day. Just like on this day with David. God will get the Glory because he uses David to accomplish what only God can do.
38 Then Saul clothed David with his armor. He put a helmet of bronze on his head and clothed him with a coat of mail,
39 and David strapped his sword over his armor. And he tried in vain to go, for he had not tested them. Then David said to Saul, “I cannot go with these, for I have not tested them.” So David put them off.
Saul’s relationship with the Lord is not in a good place as he has continually walked in disobedience but he is more than willing to let David go see this Philistine warrior. Interesting that Samuel is willing to let David represent the nation in this moment because he won’t be happy about it soon. Using earthly wisdom Saul would have never allowed this to happen if he knew that David was anointed by God to be the next king if Israel and we know that because of what unfolds in the rest of 1 Samuel.
40 Then he took his staff in his hand and chose five smooth stones from the brook and put them in his shepherd’s pouch. His sling was in his hand, and he approached the Philistine.
David fully believes that God will deliver him on this day or he would have never accomplished verse 40. David is fully confident not in his own abilities but in a God who saves. I pray that is the place that you find your heart this morning. Not relying upon your own earthly abilities but instead upon a God who has redeemed you for his namesake to bring him Glory. That is what David knows will happen on this day. Why did he pick up 5 stones is a great place to get totally lost and push the passage away from speaking to your own heart. We can talk about how Goliath might have had 4 brothers and the great faith that David had that he would take the other 4 down. Or another one is how David must not have had faith that God was going to do this with just one stone and so he took more. How silly all these are in light of the actual event unfolding in scripture. You want to know why 5 stones? Because…you ready for this? David does not know how this is going to unfold. He is being obedient one step at a time. Not running ahead of God but instead allowing God to be God and get the fullness of the glory from whatever will unfold on this day.
T.S. David now goes to confront Goliath with conviction.
III. Confrontation with Conviction
III. Confrontation with Conviction
41 And the Philistine moved forward and came near to David, with his shield-bearer in front of him.
42 And when the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him, for he was but a youth, ruddy and handsome in appearance.
43 And 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, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and to the beasts of the field.”
Goliath had disdain for David.
Disdain—the feeling that someone or something is unworthy of one’s consideration or respect.
Don’t miss the scene of David coming before the Goliath and the heart condition of Goliath spews all over David as he curses at him by his own dead gods. He is thinking after some 40 days this is what Israel has decided to send out to fight me? There is not a thought in his big head that he would ever lose. Vs. 44 This tells us that Goliath is just as confident as David is on this day. Isn’t that something? Two humans can be confident one in their own abilities and other in their God and neither think that they are wrong but yet one of them has to be don’t they. Goliath has zero doubt he can save himself this day but David has zero doubt the the Lord can save him.
What we place our faith in matters!! If you are setting your faith in yourself, others, or things like your job, money, your own smarts or wisdom you will find yourself lacking greatly. But on the other hand those who find themselves with faith is something outside of themselves and their own abilities will find they can accomplish amazing eternal things by the hand of the living God.
45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword and 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.
David is cute standing before Goliath after all the spitting of Goliath David simply tells him you are not in a battle today with the youth standing before you. You are really in a battle with the God the you have DEFIED.
You have defied—Remember why we are here!
harap—Hebrew..To reproach, defy, mock, deride—Openly resist or refuse to obey— 6 times in chapter 17 a form of it is used.
10 And the Philistine said, “I defy the ranks of Israel this day. Give me a man, that we may fight together.”
25 And the men of Israel said, “Have you seen this man who has come up? Surely he has come up to defy Israel. And the king will enrich the man who kills him with great riches and will give him his daughter and make his father’s house free in Israel.”
26 And David said to the men who stood by him, “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?”
36 Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.”
You ready for this? The battle has zero to do with the stones that David has in his shepherds pocket. It has nothing to do with the sword and the spear or javelin. This battle on this day has everything to do with the Lord protecting his own name and using a resource that no one expects for his purpose.
God had used David in the past to train his heart to rely upon God stepping out in faith that God would protect him and guide him. Each event of the past prepared David’s heart for this moment. This moment would prepare the heart of David for what we know would be a long hard road to be King of Israel.
1 Samuel: Looking on the Heart The Vitality of Faith (17:34–37)
This is instructive for the people of God. Faith is sustained in the present and for the present as it remembers Yahweh’s provision in the past. The rich history of God’s past goodnesses nurtures faith in its current dilemma. It is here that memory (Yahweh delivered me then and there) and logic (If he handled that, is he not adequate for this?) can be handmaids of faith. It is so crucial to remember God’s past deliverances. If you’ve trouble doing so, invest in a diary. In God’s economy no experience is wasted.
46 This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head. And I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel,
47 and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hand.”
There it is again in verse 46. The Lord is the one at work on this day at the hand of David. (The Lord will deliver and I will strike you down.)
1 Samuel—Looking for a Leader Two Powers (v. 45a–b)
This is the God who had been with his people Israel since their beginning, but never before had there been an individual who claimed to “come … in the name of the LORD.” This was not just a man of great faith in the Lord God speaking. This was the Lord’s king, who came to Goliath “in the name of the LORD,” as the Lord’s representative, as the Lord’s own king. This was the first time there had been such a person
The Lord will do all this according to his purpose to make his name known. Not just to the people in that valley the Israelites and Philistines. But all the earth will know that God saves. They will also know how he saves not by the might of men with a sword and a spear but instead by his own power. Everyone will have no doubt after this day that the Israelites serve a living God who saves. Beloved this is the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Who send a child to be born in Bethlehem Immanuel God with us. God did it to save the world from sin. Jesus living a life of obedience as fully God and fully man to do what you could not do for yourself and that is walk obediently before the Lord. God sends the son to the cross to die for you and I that he might save us from our iniquity. This is the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ from the mouth of David.
Do you serve a God that saves today? Are you standing before him desperate or do you have it all figured out and don’t need him? Goliath thought he had it all figured out also and was sure that he could not lose. We are desperate to be saved from our sins. (Gospel)
48 When the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine.
49 And David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone and slung it and struck the Philistine on his forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the ground.
We have spent two weeks building up to this moment and it ends just as soon as it begins. You simply have David putting his hand into his shepherds bag and slinging a stone at Goliath. After all the words and all the fear the even lasted what seems to be less than 15 seconds. The Living God had done exactly what he said he would do at the hand of David, God’s king.
T.S. The Conquest by divine power would be shown in verse 50-54.
IV. Conquest by Divine Power
IV. Conquest by Divine Power
1 Samuel 17:50-54
50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. There was no sword in the hand of David.
51 Then David ran and stood over the Philistine and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him and cut off his head with it. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.
vs. 50 We are reminded that David did not use conventional methods to win this fight. God gave Goliath into the hand of David on this day just like he had told him back in vs. 46
46 This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head. And I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel,
David now takes out a sword and cuts the head of Goliath off and the Philistines to not become the servants of the Israelites like Goliath had been saying for 40 days
6 And he had bronze armor on his legs, and a javelin of bronze slung between his shoulders.
7 The shaft of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and his spear’s head weighed six hundred shekels of iron. And his shield-bearer went before him.
8 He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, “Why have you come out to draw up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not 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.”
Instead they run.
52 And the men of Israel and Judah rose with a shout and pursued the Philistines as far as Gath and the gates of Ekron, so that the wounded Philistines fell on the way from Shaaraim as far as Gath and Ekron.
The men of Israel who had all that fear now go after the Philistines with a shout..exuberance. What God has accomplished with David today has empowered them to now go after the philistines. I can’t help but picture the little dog that follows the big dog in the cartoons that I watched growing up.
We are a strange people. Empowered by seeing what God had accomplished for his own name they take off after the Philistines.
53 And the people of Israel came back from chasing the Philistines, and they plundered their camp.
54 And David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his armor in his tent.
1, 2 Samuel (2) David Rescues Israel from a Philistine Giant (17:1–58)
A second possible reason for selecting Jerusalem as the site for depositing Goliath’s head was because it was the major city in the frontier separating the northern tribes from their somewhat alienated Israelite brothers to the south (cf. Josh 15:8), and thus a neutral place where both Israelite groups could go to divide up the spoils of war. His tribal forebears had also used the site as a place to bring prizes of war prior to their (temporary) conquest of the city (Judg 1:7–8). Israelites were apparently permitted to enter the city (cf. Judg 19:11), and it is reasonable to assume that the Jebusites had worked out a coexistence with the Israelites who ringed their settlement. Klein suggests that the note regarding David bringing Goliath’s head to Jerusalem may refer to an event that occurred years later, following David’s conquest of the city.
V. Celebration of God's Salvation
V. Celebration of God's Salvation
1 Samuel 17:55-58
55 As soon as Saul saw David go out against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the commander of the army, “Abner, whose son is this youth?” And Abner said, “As your soul lives, O king, I do not know.”
56 And the king said, “Inquire whose son the boy is.”
57 And as soon as David returned from the striking down of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand.
58 And Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?” And David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”
