Five Smooth Stones: The Object of Glory

Introduction

Welcome back for another week of worship together! I’m thankful you decided to join us this morning. If you were here last week, you know we started a brand new sermon series called “5 Smooth Stones.” We looked at the story of David and Goliath. This is a well-known story about the Israelite army coming up against their enemies, the Philistines.

Last week we unpacked a little bit about Goliath and our enemy, the devil, who the Bible says is actively seeking people to devour. But this ultimately is a story of God’s power to deliver His people.

Today I want to spend some time learning more about the chosen man of God who would act as this vessel of deliverance for his people.

What do you know about David? Take feedback - wrap up with this: The point being, he wasn’t abnormal or superhuman, he was called by God.

Let’s jump in together to learn a bit about David. If you have a Bible with you, turn with me to 1 Samuel 17 once again. We are going to start reading in verse 12…

1 Samuel 17:12–28 ESV

Now David was the son of an Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah, named Jesse, who had eight sons. In the days of Saul the man was already old and advanced in years. The three oldest sons of Jesse had followed Saul to the battle. And the names of his three sons who went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and next to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah. David was the youngest. The three eldest followed Saul, but David went back and forth from Saul to feed his father’s sheep at Bethlehem. For forty days the Philistine came forward and took his stand, morning and evening. And Jesse said to David his son, “Take for your brothers an ephah of this parched grain, and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp to your brothers. Also take these ten cheeses to the commander of their thousand. See if your brothers are well, and bring some token from them.” Now Saul and they and all the men of Israel were in the Valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines. And David rose early in the morning and left the sheep with a keeper and took the provisions and went, as Jesse had commanded him. And he came to the encampment as the host was going out to the battle line, shouting the war cry. And Israel and the Philistines drew up for battle, army against army. And David left the things in charge of the keeper of the baggage and ran to the ranks and went and greeted his brothers. As he talked with them, behold, the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, came up out of the ranks of the Philistines and spoke the same words as before. And David heard him. All the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were much afraid. 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.” 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?” And the people answered him in the same way, “So shall it be done to the man who kills him.” 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.”

Transition....

This passage shows us what David was like and what he spent his time doing. We already know that soon he will be the one to take on and defeat the giant, Goliath. But who really was the man of God chosen to fight?

One: David Didn’t Appear to Be Much

We learn in verse 14, “David was the youngest son.” Maybe you remember the story of David’s anointing by Samuel to become the next king of Israel following Saul’s death. Just one chapter earlier, Samuel the prophet shows up at Jesse’s house (the father of David). He is there because God has chosen one of Jesse’s sons to serve as the next king of Israel, but Samuel doesn’t yet know which one. Jesse brings out all of his sons, except the one God chose…David.

When Samuel moves past all the sons and then inquires about David, Jesse says, “there is still the youngest. But he’s out in the fields watching the sheep and goats.” As if to say, “Oh David, don’t worry about him, he’s just out tending to the family’s livestock in the fields. He’s not the one you’re looking for.”

Because David was the youngest, all of his brothers were taller, bigger, stronger, and more “king-like,” at least by external human standards. But there is a key phrase the Lord says to Samuel during this scene in chapter 16…

1 Samuel 16:7 “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.””

Wow. Wow. Wow! What a powerful statement God makes to the prophet Samuel! God does not judge people like we do, God looks deeper, He looks at the heart.

First time around God gave Israel what looking for in a king…Saul. Tall, charismatic, looked like a leader, acted like a leader (except for that hiding thing). He was what Israel expected....at least on the outside.

So when it comes time for a new king, God reveals how He chooses and how He works.

Picks David....outside not so much....but inside....that’s where David had it going on.

Our natural tendency is to “judge a book by its cover,” just like Samuel was doing, even though we are constantly told not to.Many of us know what happens when we pass judgment on someone before really getting to know them.

Story: About Jason Brooks (academy)

This friendship/relationship would not have ever happened if I had held too tightly to my initial judgment.

And consistently throughout scripture God challenges to dive deeper than just the surface. And this is how He does it - God chooses to use people who are the youngest, weakest, poorest, least educated, marginalized, and forgotten about.

If you find yourself in one of these categories today, regardless of what culture has defined you as, the Bible makes it clear that God intends to use you for more than you know.

God seems to delight in using the weak and unexpected things of the world to humble the powerful. And at the end of the day it’s all for His glory, not ours.

Two: David was Looked Down Upon

Even though God chose to use David for great things, as in this battle with Goliath, it did not stop people from doubting him. Even those people closest to him, people who you’d think would be the first to advocate for and support him.

In verse 28, out of all the people to make a statement of doubt toward David, it was his own brother who really went after David when he showed up on the battlefield.

1 Samuel 17:28 “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.””

Sounds like Eliab didn't even want David around. The verse says he burned in anger towards his brother. Maybe he felt threatened by him being there…maybe his presence simply caught him off guard.

Either way, it’s clear to see that even someone within his own family was looking down on him. He goes so far as to call him conceited and wicked hearted.

Is it because of his youthful age? His inexperience? Did his brother really think David came to watch the battle?

It’s a tense scene, with a reminder that oftentimes we look down upon those younger than us. We can see them as a hindrance or an obstacle to whatever goal we want to achieve.

But with this in mind, the Bible seems to have some contrary things to say about “youth.”

1 Timothy 4:12 “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.”

This is the apostle Paul writing to a young leader named Timothy. Paul seems to understand this reality: people will find ways to look down on you, especially when you’re young. They will criticize certain aspects of your life. They will talk behind your back. They will try to give you tons of reasons you cannot do something great for God.

And I love Pauls’ encouragement to Timothy to, “Set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity.”

Regardless of how others decided to define him, David knew God chose him for a moment like this one. David successfully defended his Father’s flock many times in the wilderness, and he was about to set an undeniable example of faith and courage for the whole army to witness.

You see, David’s perspective on the broader situation throughout this story seems to be due to his intense focus in one particular place. We get a glimpse of His mindset in 1 Samuel 17:26.

1 Samuel 17:26 “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?””

Three - David Was God-Focused

Did you catch the last thing David asks in this verse? “Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?”

This is why this statement is so important: it shows us David’s focus was never on the army, nor on the opponent. David doesn’t refer to Goliath as one who is allowed to defy the armies of Saul, or Israel.

Instead, he refers to him as one who defies the armies of the living God. David’s faith in God was so much bigger than the giant he faced.

It’s passages like 1 Samuel 17:12-28 that show us why David was called a “man after God’s own heart.” I wonder what would shift in our own lives, in our marriages, in our families, in our friendships, and even in our workplaces, if we decided to maintain a focus on God above all other things.

I don’t just mean saying we have our sights set on pleasing and honoring God, or only doing so if it aligns with our will and ways. We must make the decision, as David did, to be so focused on God’s Kingdom, we immediately recognize someone or something coming against it.

And here is the really scary thing....Goliath doesn’t always look like Goliath…sometimes we can be a Goliath in the since that we can sometimes position ourselves to run contrary to the Kingdom of God in someones life and think we are doing it out of love.

Me and Samantha and the Dream Center...

I worked a couple of jobs - kids shouldn’t “have to”...

I want “better for them”

Their mom and I have served enough....

Ridiculous....every generation, every Christian has to set his or her sites on the only true object deserving of glory and that’s God and pursuing His desires over their own, or even those of a well meaning Goliath.

Conclusion

There were always be Goliaths in our lives and some of them are big and mean and stinky and want to incite fear and doubt in the minds and hearts of the people of God. But what happens if we believe, like David did, that the almighty God is bigger and more powerful than any “giant” who comes.

Sometimes those Goliaths mean well....(may or may not still be big, mean and stinky) but they are still in the way.

What, or who, are the “giants” in your life? What are the things or situations that make you feel completely inadequate, insufficient, and unable?

Or even worse who are the giants who mean well but who are squarely in the way

Whatever the giant…please understand from this passage that part of what empowered David was his understanding of who he was before God. He understood he was part of God’s people, he was a beloved son. A guy with a mission from God.

And that understanding led him to defy anything not of God or in line with the priorities of the Kingdom.

So press into Jesus this week and stay focused on God. Remember who you are because of Him.

Remember what God says about you always trumps any lie the enemy or anyone else speaks over you.

And remember ....sometimes you Goliath won’t need to have his head chopped off....just extricated from the southern end of his anatomy.

At the end of the day, when all is said and done, it’s all for His glory. The size of the enemy, the lies of the evil one or even the expectations of a loved one can’t compare to whatever plan He has for you.

Let’s pray together.