James Merritt - Giant Killers
I am glad that I'm here, I'm glad you're here. I wanna show you a picture of one of my favorite places in the world to go. You probably won't recognize it at first, but if you go to Israel with me, and I'm going again next year love to have you go it's, you'll know where it is. Because I love to preach, every time I go I preach there. It is the Valley of Elah. Now that may not ring a bell with you but maybe this will. This valley is actually the setting of probably the most famous battle in the Old Testament. And the reason why it's so special is because it wasn't a battle fought between two armies necessarily, it was actually a battle fought between two people. And even those who don't know anything about the Bible, know everything about this battle. And if that still doesn't ring a bell with you, all I've got to do is David and Goliath and you know exactly what I'm talking about.
Now, this is a very important story that we're gonna study today and if you brought a copy of God's word. I wanna invite you to follow along with me in the story, we're in 1st Samuel, that's in the Old Testament. You start with the book of Genesis turn right, go about six or seven books, you're at 1st Samuel chapter 17. Now this is a very important story not just because it's a cool story, and it is, but I know it must be a big, big deal to whoever wrote it. Because the author gives it a lot of space. It's one of the longest chapters in the Bible. Has 58 verses. He took 912 Hebrew words to tell this story. Were told about the historical location and the military weapons used in the battle, as a matter of fact, there are more detailed descriptions about this battle than any other battle that is fought in the entire Bible.
We're even told about the physical dimensions of one of the combatants. We're actually told how tall he was and how big he was. And if you're visiting with us today, if this is your first time, we are actually in a series that we're calling, "David Life Lessons from a King". David was one of, if not maybe, the greatest king who ever lived. And he is by far the most honored king in Israel. He's the only king that has his own tomb. You can visit the tomb of David. You probably know that the sign of the State of Israel is called the Star of David. David is a big deal. He was a big deal then he is a big deal now. When I look at that I realized there's some great life lessons that we can learn that are indeed worthy of a king.
Now let me just kind of warn you something before we get into this. The story of David and Goliath is kind of like the Christmas story. And what I mean by that is you've heard it before you already know how it ends. You already know the plot, you already know every person that's in the story, and you already know how the whole thing's going to come out. And if you're not careful, you'll tend to check out on me right now you say, "look, I've heard the story before I know how it goes. I've read it in the Bible, I've seen it at the movies, I've watched it on TV, I've heard it talked about, I've studied it in Bible school, I know all about the story".
And I just wanna invite you, don't tune out just yet. Because I'm gonna make a promise, I'm gonna do my best to keep. You're going to learn some things. And I heard some people say this after the nine o'clock service. You're gonna learn some things I guarantee, you've never heard before. There's some things in the story I guarantee you, you've already overlooked. And it has Hollywood written all over it, just for those of you that may not have heard it. You've got this huge giant, that would make the Incredible Hulk, look like a punk. This guy is big. And he's going to fight this battle, but not against another soldier. Not even against another man. He's gonna fight this battle against a boy.
Now David in the story is about 15 years old. Now kind of get that in your mind, okay? Doesn't even have his learner's permit. He can't even drive his dad's chariot yet, by himself, okay? He's just 15 years old. He's not even started shaving. And by the way, this is not the picture of David, most people have, as you probably know. If you go to Florence, Italy, and some of you been there, to the Accademia gallery, you will see what is perhaps the most famous statue in the world. It is Michelangelo's, David. Now if you've ever seen the statue, you know why we're only gonna show the top 1/2 of the statue. All right. But you've got this statue and it's 14 feet tall from head to toe. And that's kind of the picture of David that we've got, right? Bulging biceps, built, you know, got the V shaped torso, got the six pack, you know, just a man of steel, so to speak.
That is not the David that's in the story. He is the youngest child of the Son of Jesse, and by the way he's the smallest in stature. Had you been on the battlefield that day, you would have been like everybody else going. "You got to be kidding me. This is what's going to fight that? He is going to fight him? He's 15 years old. He hadn't even started shaving. He's just a kid". From the outside, not very impressive. But on the inside, super impressive. Because he was a man after God's own heart. Something said about him that's not about anybody else in the Bible. And I do believe, this story captures one of David's finest hours. I call this his MVP moment. This was the moment when David went from the minor leagues of living, to the Major Leagues of living. This was the day that the boy sat down, and the man stood up.
And what you're gonna learn today, one of the things you're gonna learn is how we can all face and fight the giants of our own lives, and realize the secret on getting victory over your giant. And almost everybody that's listening to me right now, you're facing a giant in your life. It may be a physical giant. I just had someone tell me in the prior service that they failed a mammogram and they've got to go for another test next week, and of course they're concerned is therefore cancer. Some of you are facing a marital giant, your marriage is in trouble you don't think you're gonna make it. Some of you are facing a financial giant. You're deep in debt, don't think you'll ever get out.
Some of you are facing an emotional giant. You battled depression or discouragement or disillusionment. Some of you are facing a spiritual giant. You're in a spiritual dryland. God seems like he's a million miles away, and you're tempted to throw in the towel, wave the white flag and say, "I can't beat this giant". Yes, you can. Because if David did, you can. But you got to follow the steps that he followed. And I will give you three of them. Number one. You've got to be focused on God's presence. You've got to be focused on God's presence.
Let me kind of set this up. Israel is fighting the Philistines. They are their most hated enemies. You've got the Philistines on one side of this valley, you've got the Israelites on the other side. The Israelites had a giant of a problem and that problem was a giant. They've been facing this giant and been putting up with this giant for almost two months. And the author wants us to know, what a big giant he is, how intimidating he is, how strong that he is. Because he's going to give us the most detailed description of a soldier and a warrior, that's found anywhere in all of the Bible. We pick up in verse four.
"A champion named Goliath who was from Gath, came out of the Philistine's camp. His height was six cubits and a span. He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor bronze, weighing 5000 shekels. On his legs he wore bronze greaves and a bronze and a bronze javelin was slung on his back. His spear shaft was like a weaver's rod, and it's iron point weighed 600 shekels. And his shield bearer went ahead of him". Now what's interesting is, he's called a champion. Now this is the only time that word is ever used in the entire Bible. One time and it's used about this guy called Goliath. And the word champion literally means, a man between two armies.
Now any boys and girls in here, any kids in here, you'll find this interesting. He is nine feet nine inches tall. But that perspective. He can dunk a basketball standing still. How much money do you think he would make today? All right. He is one big guy. He wears a bronze T-shirt that weighed 175 pounds. He carried a spear, the head of which weighed 25 pounds. I'm gonna tell you this. I'm gonna tell you why you need to come to church every Sunday. I'm wanna tell you why you need to be here. Because you're gonna learn things that you won't learn if you don't come to church. For example, you won't find this in the Bible. This guy was so big, that in the first grade, he was the strong left tackle for his college football team. You won't find that in the Bible, okay. This guy was big. And he had challenged Israel to a one-on-one winner take all me and you match.
This had been going on for almost six weeks. Nobody volunteered, as a matter of fact, things were so desperate. King Saul had even tried to bribe somebody, to go out and fight this guy, here's what we read. "Now the Israelites had been saying, do you see how this man keeps coming out? He comes out to defy Israel. The king will give great wealth to the man who kills him. He will also give him his daughter in marriage, he will exempt his family from taxes in Israel". The King said, if you'll go out, if somebody will just take the shot, take the chance, go out and fight this guy. If you win, instant fortune, instant fame. You'll be a part of the royal family, you'll be living on Easy Street the rest of your life. You'll never pay any more taxes. Nobody was taking it. Nobody was interested. Everybody had a headache. It was amazing. He couldn't find anybody to fight.
Reminds me of a story I read the other day about a little boy and he was playing out in the garage and his dad was talking to his uncle about a recent argument he'd gotten into, with his mother, his wife. And he said, "uncle Johnny," said, "you know we got an argument the other day because I'm gonna tell you something. I'll let my wife know exactly where I stood. I told her how things are going to be around this house. I told her that I was the boss". He said, "The next thing I know, she was crawling toward me on her hands and knees". The little boy piped up and he said, "Daddy, is that when mommy told you to get out from under the bed and fight like a man"?
Now, the soldiers were under the bed, nobody was coming out. Nobody was interested. "I don't care how much money you wanna give me, I don't care how beautiful your daughter is. I'd rather pay taxes. I'm not going to fight this giant". Nobody. The king wouldn't fight, the generals wouldn't fight, the commanders wouldn't fight, the privates wouldn't fight, the soldiers wouldn't fight. Nobody would fight, because they were all focused on the giant. Then, David shows up. And the reason David showed up was, because his dad had sent David from Bethlehem to the battle lines, to take food you have brothers and to bring back news about how the war was going, how the battle was being fought.
Well it don't take long for David kind of size up situation. And now we're about to hear the first words, we ever hear David say that's recorded in scripture, verse 26. "David asked the man standing near him". He didn't know about what the king had offered. "What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel"? Now listen to this next statement. "Who is this uncircumcised Philistine"? What an insult. "Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living," and don't miss this last word, "God". Who is this guy that were dare defy the armies of the living God? Now let me tell you why that last word is so important.
If you go back to verse one and read right down to verse 26. This is the first time God's ever mentioned. First time God's name is ever even uttered, you know why? Because everybody else is focused on the giant. Nobody's thinking about God. God's not even in the picture. Because what's the army been saying for six weeks? "Now the Israelites had been saying, do you see how this man keeps coming out"? In other words, every time Goliath stepped down and said, "okay, who's gonna fight me today"? Everybody was saying, "look how much bigger he is than we are". And a 15 year old boy said, "look how much smaller he is than God". Everybody else was focused on the giant. David was focused on God.
And I want you hear this. When you face a problem that you think you can't solve. When you're looking at an obstacle you don't think you can get over. When you're looking at a giant, you don't think you can defeat, don't ever forget what I'm about to share with you. Listen to this. "Fear will focus on the giant, faith will focus on God". Fear will focus on the giant, faith will focus on God. Because if you read the entire story, here's what you're gonna learn, I did this by the way a while ago. When I got to church, I went back, got my Bible. I was out in the green room. I read the whole chapter again with a pin in my hand. I circled every time David mentioned the giant.
You know how many times he talks about the giant? Twice. Once he talks about the giant, "who is this uncircumcised Philistine"? When he talks to the giant, he calls him an circumcised Philistine. Two times. You know how many times he mentions God? Ten. For every one time he giant, he mentioned God, five times. You know what we do? We reverse the ratio. David talked about God five times more than he talked about the giant but we reverse it. God wasn't even on the soldiers radar screen. God filled David's radar screen. So, if you wanna be someone after God's own heart. Here's one way to do it. The next time you face that difficulty, the next time you face that problem. The next time you face that obstacle. The next time you face that issue.
You think, "I can't do anything about it". Don't focus on the giant, focus on God. God is always with you. He focused on God's presence. Here's the second thing. "Be fearless in God's power". Be focused on God's presence. Be fearless in God's power. Now here's the good news, okay? Somebody has finally showed up that said, "I'll take this guy on. I'm not afraid of him. Yeah, I'll fight him". That's the good news. The bad news is, it's a kid. Not a battle tested soldier. It's a shepherd boy. It's an inexperienced shepherd boy. Here's a 15 year old kid. He had never held a sword. He had never put on a helmet. He had never worn armor. He had never even seen a battlefield much less been in one.
So that raises a question, okay help me here. Why was David ready to run to the fight, when everybody else wanted to run from the fight? Why? Well listen to what we read in verse 33. "Saul replied, you're not able to go out against this Philistine and fight against him. You are only a young man and he has been a warrior from his youth. But David said to Saul, your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it". That's a pretty gutsy. I wouldn't have done it, right?
"Struck it, and rescued the sheet from it's mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear. This uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear, will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine. Saul said to David," I love that Saul says, "go, and the Lord be with you". What a king. Shaking David. "Go get him David. We're gonna fight him to the last drop, but your blood, go". It's incredible, that it takes a shepherd, a shepherd boy, to reminded the King and an army of just how powerful God really is. I thought about this. Why do we fear our giants so much? Why don't we worry so much? Why do we quit so easily? Why do we run so quickly? Because, "We forget what we ought to remember. And we remember what we ought to forget. We magnify the giant that is before us and we minimize the God that is within us".
We do it all the time. I'm a worrywart. I'll admit that's my Achilles heel I'm a worrier. And every time I worry I realize what I'm doing. I'm maximizing the giant, I'm minimizing God. You know, take something on instance. I don't know if you've thought about this or not. There's so many ways, we're different from animals. We've got people today trying to convince us, through evolution all that, "well, we're just a higher form of animal". There's a Greek word for that, stupid. I'm not going to argue science with, I'm just telling you. We're not just a higher form of an animal. We're created in the image of God. And God has given us three kinds of sight. He's given us, that animals don't have. We have hindsight, we have insight, we have foresight. We have the ability to look back. We have the ability to look in and we have the ability to look ahead.
And listen to this. The right hindsight will give you the proper insight to have the correct foresight. The right hindsight, will give you the proper insight to have the correct foresight. See, the reason why David could face the present, and the reason why they would was unafraid of the future, is because he remembered what had happened in the past. He said, "look you think I'm afraid of this guy? Can I tell you about what God's done for me? I've killed lions and bears with a stick and my bare hands. You think I'm worried about him"? If God can take care of a lion and a bear with just the bare hands and a stick of a 15 year old boy. I think God can take care of the giant, because David realized something. He realized he was able to kill that lion and that bear, not because of his strength, but because of God's power. He's say, "I get it. I know where the power comes from".
See, here's the point. "If you remember what God has done for you yesterday, you will believe what he can do for you today and you will be confident in what he will do for you tomorrow". But you got to remember what he did yesterday. Let me give you an illustration. Do you know why you're here right now? Because God took care of you yesterday. God didn't take care of you yesterday, we'd have an empty building. So if God took care of you yesterday, can He handle today? Absolutely. And if God can handle today, Don't you think God can handle tomorrow? See David remembered what everybody else had forgotten. David believed in what everybody else doubted, and that's why he stepped out when everybody else stepped back.
I wrote this down when I was reading this, thought hit me just like a ton of bricks. "When you see the God that others don't, you'll do for God what others won't". When you see the God that others don't, You will do for God, what others don't. What David finally realized, and they didn't realize, what David had to make them see was, you know, "guys you got a problem. You think that giant is your problem. That's not your problem". Because at the end of the day, you know, there's only one giant we all really face. You know what that giant is? Fear. That's what paralyzes. That's what stops us in our tracks. That's what gets us to quit praying or quit going to church or reading our Bible, or just give up on God, fear. Yeah, that trial, that trouble, that temptation, that tribulation you're facing, it may look like a giant, it may sound like a giant it may feel like a giant, but there's only one gian that we face and that is fear.
And here's what happens. Fear will say, "look how much bigger that giant is than I am". Faith will say. "Look how much smaller that giant is than God". That's the difference. You're fearless in God's power. So now we're about to come to the fight now, right? The scene is set, fight's are about to start. Many of you remember back, many, many years ago when Muhammad Ali, fought George Foreman in Zaire. They called it the "Rumble in the Jungle". Some of you remember that. Well this is the "rally in the valley," okay? You've got Goliath on one side, you've got David on the other side. And can you just see this scene right now? I guarantee you the spirit of Las Vegas, was alive and well. Everybody's placing their bets on this fight.
And who do you think is betting on David? Well, the Philistines aren't betting on David. Goliath is not betting on David. His own King, is not betting on David. His own brothers are not betting on David. The soldiers are not betting on David. And you know what, even David is not betting on David. David is betting on God. David is putting all his marbles on the color called God. David is not just betting money, he is betting his life on God. And you know why David was so confident? You know why David didn't mind making that bet? I'm gonna tell you why. When you bet on God, you always win. You bet on yourself, you may lose. You bet on me, you may lose, you bet on your circumstances you may lose, you bet on the stock market you may lose you, you bet on the the next president you may lose, you bet on who controls the Congress you may lose. But when you bet on God you never lose. You always win.
So David said, "Okay, I don't care who you're betting on. I'm not even bet". David probably said, "nobody's betting on me, that's okay, I'm not even betting on me. I am betting on God". That's why you should always be fearless in God's power. Because what you're gonna see in the story, we've heard it a 1000 times. If God is for you, it doesn't matter who is against you. So you'd be fearful, you'd be fearless in God's power. And then here's the last thing. You "be fervent for God's Praise". Be fervent for God's praise. Be focused on his presence. You're with me God and I know it. Be fearless in his power. "God I'm not fighting in my strength, I'm gonna fight yours". And then you be fervent for God's praise.
Okay now, here we go you're ready? Now the fight's about to start. One thing that both sides are convinced of, nobody disagreed on one thing that day, this fight was not gonna last long. Don't be pretty don't even blink or you might miss it. Because here's what you got. You got a tornado against a toothpick. You got an 18 Wheeler. Against a mini bike. You got a gator against a bulldog. That's what you got, that's what you got. And the Philistines couldn't wait, and the Israelites couldn't watch. Had it been taking place today all the Philistines would have their cell phone out. "Don't miss this". All the Israelites would have had blindfold over. "I can't watch this. I can't even, I can't stand the sight of blood, especially David's".
And everybody was wondering. Saul wondered, "what's the last word of this little runt gonna be? What's the last thing, he's going to say"? They weren't his last but they were some of his best. Verse 45. "David said, to the Philistine, you come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I'll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals and the whole world will know that," this is a big deal, "and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered who will know that it's not by sword of spear that the Lord saves, for the battle is the Lord's, and He will give all of you into our hands".
David wants everybody to know. He calls attention, he says, "I want you for Philistines to listen, I want you Israelites to listen, I want Goliath you to listen. I want my brothers to listen. King Saul I want you to listen. This is not about me. It's not even about him. This is about God. And I want you to understand something else. I'm not fighting that giant for fame, I don't want any fame. I'm not fighting that giant for fortune, I've never had any money, don't want it now. I'm not fighting the giant to be a part of your family, I've already got a family. So let's just get one thing straight. I'm fighting this giant for one reason. I'm doing it for the glory of God. I'm doing it for the honor of God, I'm fighting in the name of God, believing I'll be delivered by the power of God, because I'm fighting for the glory of God". And then he says something they never got for six weeks. "This is not my battle. This is his battle. I'm not fighting for God, God is fighting through me".
See, this may be the most famous story in the Bible, but I'll be honest with you, I think one of the most misunderstood. I've heard preachers, and I'm not trying to be critical, I'm not trying to sound sassy. I've heard so many preachers preach on this and I go, "you totally missed it. You totally missed it". This is not a story about a giant. It is a story about the giant. This is not a story about a boy who killed a giant for God. This is a story about a God that killed a giant for a boy. The battle was the Lord's. See, this is not a story about the giants that we face. It is a story about the God who fights the giants that we face.
See, we get this idea. Boy I tell you, "life is tough life is a battle, life is a war". You're right. I agree, life is tough, life is a battle, life is a war. But I want you to, if you don't hear anything else I say you hear this. The battle is not yours. The battle is His. The war is not yours. The war is His. You think about Goliath, get this picture in your mind. Here's a giant, nine feet nine inches tall, he's wearing a bulletproof vest, Kevlar helmet, steel nose boots, his sword is taller than David, his shield weighs more than David. Here's a 15 year old kid, he's got five rocks and a slingshot. Now let's just be honest, don't be super spiritual here. Who would you have bet on? Don't give me that holy look, like you'd have bet on David. No you wouldn't. You wouldn't have bet on David, I wouldn't have either. I'd have said man.
"I'd have told Teresa, 'empty the bank account and go put it on Goliath. We're not going to this, we're we're about to bite this the world.'" That's why Hollywood makes the movie. Because here's what happens, verse 48. I love this part. Every time, I don't care how many times you read it, this just fires me up. "As the Philistines moved closer to attack him," for the first time, every time for six weeks, when the Philistines took one step forward, the Israel out army took six miles back. But for the first time, the Philistine takes one step forward. "David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him". Couldn't wait to get it on, "Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell face down on the ground".
Remember David's last words? "For the battle is the Lord's, and He will give all of you into our hands". David was not fighting the giant for God. God was fighting the giant for David. David was not fighting God's battle. God was fighting David's battle. Now let me let you in on a little secret, if you hadn't already figured this out. The fight was fixed. Goliath never had a chance. Because Goliath wasn't fighting David, Goliath was fighting God. And David did not kill Goliath for God. God killed Goliath through David. David got the victory, but God got the glory, God got the praise, God got the honor and that's all David cared about. And that's why he was a man after God's own heart, because David said I don't care about me. I don't care about money. I don't care about fame. I don't care about fortune. I don't care about reputation. I don't care about anything else. All I care about is that you get the glory.
Don't miss this. You read the rest of the story of David, read it all the way till he died. David never ever bragged about killing Goliath. David never autographed his book and signed it, "David GGK, Great Giant Killer". Never even talked about it. You know why David fought that giant? Here's why. "That the whole world will know there is a God in Israel". If you are a follower of Jesus, I want you to listen to what I'm about to tell you. Your number one purpose and your number one goal in life, ought to be to live in such a way that people will look at you and say, "there is a God in Israel". You ought to be willing to stand up for what's right and stand against what's wrong, no matter what it may cost you, so people will know there is a God in Israel.
You need to be willing to share the gospel and tell people how they can come to know the God that's in Israel. And let them know there is a God in Israel. Because let me tell you something, Ladies and gentlemen, we're living in a nation that is rapidly forgetting, there is a God in Israel. And we need to be, above everything else, a people who says, "bring it on, bring on your criticism, bring on your judgment, bring on your caricature of us, bring on everything you want, that's okay. Because at the end of the day, we're gonna live in such a way, walk in such a way, talk in such a way, and act in such a way that whether you like it or whether you don't, you're gonna know, there is a God in Israel. There's a God on the throne of this universe".
The government's not in control. The press is not in control. Kim Jong Il is not in control. The economy's not in control, there is a God that's in control. And that's what David was trying to get us to understand. That's why he was so focused on God's presence and so fearless and God's power, and so fervent for God's place. Now I've said all of that and maybe you still, "well you haven't heard anything you haven't heard before".
So let me just kind of wind up with this. The story is much deeper than what I've already told you. I've heard so many pastors preach this message and they just stopped and I go, "wait a minute. Whoa, whoa, whoa! You've not even gotten to the real main part of the story. what the story is all about". Because most of you, if I were to say to you. "So what do you think the story of David and Goliath's about? Tell me what you think it's about". Here's what you would have said, "it's about a little shepherd that be the big giant. It's about a kid took a rock and got lucky and threw it, hit him in the head and killed him. That's kind of what it's about". No, it's not.
The story is not about David, primarily. The story's not about Goliath, primarily. It's not even about you or me, primarily. This is a story about God. And David wants us to know something. David it's almost like he's speaking to us right now, 3000 years later. And I think if I could call King David up here. I think if I said, "David, you only got a couple of minutes, because we got to get out of here go to eat. So, got to get quick. So David is there anything you'd like to say to our church"?
Can I tell you what I believe honestly really, King David would say? David would say, "yeah, if you don't mind, here's what I like to say to the people of the 21st century in 2018. There is still a God in Israel. There is still a God that saves, there's still a God that rescues, there's still a God that delivers, there's still a God that fights giants, there's still a God that will fight your battles, there's still a God that will win your victory". Because this story is not primarily a story about a shepherd it's a story about a savior it's a story about Jesus.
And I wanna explain then we're gonna wrap this up. Where was David born and where did David live? Somebody tell me where? Bethlehem, right? Where was Jesus born? Bethlehem. David was a shepherd. Jesus called himself the Good Shepherd. The giant taunted Israel 40 days. Jesus was tempted by the devil, 40 days. Why the parallels? Because 3000 years ago, the only one who could face that giant was David, the ancestor of Jesus. And 1000 years later, the only one that could face a giant called Satan, was Jesus the Son of David. 1000 years after David fought his giant, Jesus didn't fight one giant he fought two. He fought Satan, and he fought sin. And both of those thought you can't whip us, not by yourself. This is not a fair fight.
And just like his ancestor, David. He knelt down in a garden. But he didn't pick up Five Stones. He picked up a cross. Where David lived, Jesus died. But where David later died Jesus rose from the dead. The first David needed God to defeat his giant for him. The second David was God who defeated our giant for us. The first David never shed a drop of his blood, never got a scratch on his body. The second David shed his blood and his body was bruised and battered and beaten beyond recognition. The first David died and went to dust. The second David died and came back from the grave. And because of him, we don't have to run from any giant. Because of him, we can run to any giant, and we can win any battle against any giant and we can defeat any giant we face. Why? Because we have a God who is with us. We have a God who is for us. And we have a God who is in us, who is bigger than any giant, and his name is Jesus.