Many of the battles which are waged on earth are not the Lord's. They are unnecessary and unrighteous. The end they seek and the means they adopt to attain it are evil. Other conflicts are only the Lord's in an inferior sense. Although not unnecessary, nor in themselves unrighteous, they are waged with secular aims and carnal weapons. But there is one which is the Lord's in the highest sense. It is a holy war; a conflict of the kingdom of light with the kingdom of darkness. Observe that -
1. The obligation is imposed by the Lord. "Fight the good fight of faith."
2. The adversaries are the adversaries of the Lord. "Principalities and powers," etc.
3. The soldiers are the people of the Lord. Those in whose hearts the principles of the kingdom of God are implanted - "righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost."
4. The Commander is the Anointed of the Lord. "The Captain of our salvation." "The Leader and Commander of the people."
5. The weapons are provided by the Lord. "Put on the whole armour of God" - "the armour of light."
6. The success is due to the Lord. He gives the strength which is needed: "teacheth our hands to war, and our fingers to fight," and "he will give you into our hands."
7. The end is the glory of the Lord. When it is over God will be "all in all." "Who is on the Lord's side?" - D.
The battle is the Lord's.
This familiar dramatic story has much to teach us. One lesson only is our present consideration — David's heroic and victorious faith. "Time would fail me," said the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews in his beautiful chronicle of the worthies of faith, "to tell of Gedeon and of Barak, and of Sampson and of Jephthah; of David also." And when does his faith shine with such lustre as when, having single-handed slain Goliath, he "turned to fight the armies of the aliens"? In this narrative we see —
I. THE SURPRISES OF FAITH. Forty days; and is he ever to be met in combat? Who will meet him? No Hebrew veteran. No well-panoplied soldier, but a young shepherd, and he with well-slung stone will be victor! Unlikely warrior! unlikely weapon! unlikely victory! A victory of faith. A surprise of faith. So has it ever been. The surprises of history are the surprises of faith. Who are the men who have "entered the kingdom" of influence wherein with abiding sceptre, they rule the human generations? Men of faith. The great men whose names are in the Old and New Testament chronicles were less likely, according to human judgment, to leave the impress they have upon the ages. And what surprises await us if we but emulate such faith? We "can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth us!"
II. THE HINDRANCES TO FAITH. It is easy to go in company. It is easy among the faithful to deem our faith strong. But solitude tries the spirit. Celebrated is the poet's Abdiel, because "faithful found among the faithless, faithful only he." And where was another faithful beside David through all the camp of Israel.? It was no ordinary foe against whom his courage kindled. Much, too, had he to hinder him in the craven spirit of Israel. Nothing in this to help David. His eye, lit with indignant courage, met no answering light in any other. Israel's only answer to Goliath's challenge was — flight! Enough in this to arrest David from offering himself for the combat. Who is he to stand forth as the pick of the nation's valour? He is brought into the presence of the king. But David had to beat down hindrance sharp and strong before he reached Saul's tent. Sharper, I think, than from any other. To be thus rebuked and slandered by a brother! But his faith stood fast. He answered not bitter with bitter. Eliab was his brother, not his Lord. "The battle was the Lord's," the battle within him as well as against Goliath And the Lord gave him the inner victory before the outer. Had his faith failed him before Eliab he had never stood before Goliath. Hindrances to faith! "How many hindrances we meet" in the way of our heart's supreme surrender to, and reliance on, Christ! Hindrances from tyrannic evil habit whose power Christ only can break. Hindrances from our circumstances; our business methods; the worldly faithless atmosphere in which we long have lived. From those who nearest us can affect us the most, from kindred as close as — closer than — was Eliab to David. What then? All the more need for earnestness. But whether within or without, "the battle is the Lord's."
III. THE ARGUMENT OF FAITH. Faith has varied arguments. God's promises are one. God's character is another But experience is the argument of David. This he urges with Saul. A valid argument is that of experience. Has God ever forsaken David. even when life depended upon well-aimed blow against wild beast? As He had never forsaken him, so he never would. One victory carried with it the assurance of another. One enemy slain that all enemies should be destroyed. We too have personal memories of deliverance. These are to be cherished. They are silent promises. To the listening heart they speak of goodness to come as well as past. "Jesus Christ" is "the same yesterday, today, and forever."
IV. THE SIMPLICITY OF FAITH. With what naturalness David enters and moves through this wondrous story! He "runs" into the camp and against Goliath with a boy's eagerness, and yet stands among the soldiers, before the king, and face to face with the loud-tongued foe with the calm heroism of seasoned warrior. He will have no controversy with Eliab. He presumes not on his former service to the king; others open for him the way; the king sends for him. He is not boastful, but tells enough of his previous prowess to secure the king's assent to his championship. If faith be simple, not marred by any self-seeking, fixed only in the Lord, set only on His glory, difficulties drop asunder into a pathway for our feet. No matter of what kind they may be. Only trust in God and do the right; let that be the constant rule of life, and you can safely leave the result with Him. Be fearful of criticism; be swayed by the opinions of men, and then the path darkens, troubles gather, and even when the right thing is done it has no acceptance with God, being done to please men and not Him.
V. THE VICTORY OF FAITH. Calmly forth went David, a spectacle to two armies. On he went alone, yet not alone, "being," in the words of Josephus, "accompanied with an invisible assistant, who was no other than God Himself." He teaches us to fight. He assures us of victory. Under His banner "the weakest saint shall win the day." He helps to every prayer and effort of resistance.
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People
Abinadab,
Abner,
David,
Elah,
Eliab,
Ephah,
Goliath,
Israelites,
Jesse,
Saul,
ShammahPlaces
Azekah,
Bethlehem,
Ekron,
Ephes-dammim,
Gath,
Jerusalem,
Shaaraim,
Socoh,
Valley of ElahTopics
Advanced, Army, Attack, Battle, Closer, David, Direction, Draweth, Drew, Face, Hasted, Hastened, Hasteth, Hurried, Line, Meet, Meeting, Move, Moved, Nigh, Pass, Philistine, Quickly, Ran, Rank, Ranks, Risen, Rose, Run, Runneth, TowardsOutline
1. The armies of the Israelites and Philistines being ready to battle4. Goliath challenges a combat12. David, sent by his father to visit his brothers, takes the challenge28. Eliab chides him30. He is brought to Saul32. shows the reason of his confidence38. and slays the giant55. Saul takes notice of DavidDictionary of Bible Themes
1 Samuel 17:20-51 5658 boys
1 Samuel 17:32-54
5086 David, rise of
1 Samuel 17:34-50
8202 boldness
1 Samuel 17:34-51
5088 David, character
1 Samuel 17:38-50
4366 stones
5597 victory, act of God
1 Samuel 17:48-49
5209 armour
Library
The victory of Unarmed Faith
'And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine. 33. And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth. 34. And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock; 35. And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureApril the Thirtieth the Test of victory
"David behaveth himself wisely." --1 SAMUEL xvii. 55--xviii. 5. The hour of victory is a more severe moral test than the hour of defeat. Many a man can brave the perils of adversity who succumbs to the seductions of prosperity. He can stand the cold better than the heat! He is enriched by failure, but "spoilt by success." To test the real quality of a man, let us regard him just when he has slain Goliath! "David behaved himself wisely"! He was not "eaten up with pride." He developed no "side." …
John Henry Jowett—My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year
April the Twenty-Ninth the Mood of Triumph
"I come to thee in the name of the Lord of Hosts." --1 SAMUEL xvii. 38-54. The man who comes up to his foes with this assurance will fight and win. Reasonable confidence is one of the most important weapons in the warrior's armoury. Fear is always wasteful. The man who calmly expects to win has already begun to conquer. Our mood has so much to do with our might. And therefore does the Word of God counsel us to attend to our dispositions, lest, having carefully collected our material implements, …
John Henry Jowett—My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year
The Call of David.
"So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone."--1 Samuel xvii. 50. These words, which are taken from the chapter which you heard read just now in the course of the Service[1], declare the victory which David, the man after God's own heart, gained over Goliath, who came out of the army of the Philistines to defy the Living God; and they declare the manner of his gaining it. He gained it with a sling and with a stone; that is, by means, which to man might seem weak and …
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VIII
How David Prevailed.
"So David prevailed over the Philistine!"--1 SAMUEL xvii. 50. Yes, he did, but he would not have done so if he had remained as quiet as the other Israelites. David was one of those who could not be easy so long as the enemies of his country were in the ascendant. To see a Philistine strutting about, defying the armies of the living God, was more than he could bear. Is not this the spirit which should animate Christians to-day? It is not one GOLIATH merely, there are many. DRUNKENNESS, PROFANITY, …
Thomas Champness—Broken Bread
Knox -- the First Temptation of Christ
John Knox, the great Scottish reformer, was born at Giffordgate, four miles from Haddington, Scotland, in 1505. He first made his appearance as a preacher in Edinburgh, where he thundered against popery, but was imprisoned and sent to the galleys in 1546. In 1547 Edward VI secured his release and made him a royal chaplain, when he acquired the friendship of Cranmer and other reformers. On the accession of Mary (1553) he took refuge on the Continent. In 1556 he accepted the charge of a church in Geneva, …
Various—The World's Great Sermons, Volume I
Hwochow Women's Bible Training School
COURSE OF STUDY FIRST TERM Book of Genesis. Gospel according to St. Luke or St. Mark. Acts of the Apostles, chapters i. to ix. "A Synopsis of the Central Themes of the Holy Bible." Reading Lessons, with necessary Explanation and Writing of Chinese Character. Arithmetic. Singing and Memorisation of Hymns. SECOND TERM Book of Exodus, Numbers, and 1 Samuel i. to xvi. The Gospel according to St. John. The Epistle of St James. "A Synopsis of the Central Themes of the Holy Bible"--(continued). Reading …
A. Mildred Cable—The Fulfilment of a Dream of Pastor Hsi's
He Does Battle for the Faith; He Restores Peace among those who were at Variance; He Takes in Hand to Build a Stone Church.
57. (32). There was a certain clerk in Lismore whose life, as it is said, was good, but his faith not so. He was a man of some knowledge in his own eyes, and dared to say that in the Eucharist there is only a sacrament and not the fact[718] of the sacrament, that is, mere sanctification and not the truth of the Body. On this subject he was often addressed by Malachy in secret, but in vain; and finally he was called before a public assembly, the laity however being excluded, in order that if it were …
H. J. Lawlor—St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh
The Shepherd-King
'And the Lord said unto Samuel, How long wilt them mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel! fill thine horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the Beth-lehemite: for I have provided Me a king among his sons. 2. And Samuel said, How can I go? If Saul hear it, he will kill me. And the Lord said, Take an heifer with thee, and say, I am come to sacrifice to the Lord. 3. And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show thee what thou shalt do: and thou shalt anoint …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture
Temporal Advantages.
"We brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content."--1 Tim. vi. 7, 8. Every age has its own special sins and temptations. Impatience with their lot, murmuring, grudging, unthankfulness, discontent, are sins common to men at all times, but I suppose one of those sins which belongs to our age more than to another, is desire of a greater portion of worldly goods than God has given us,--ambition and covetousness …
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VII
The Quotation in Matt. Ii. 6.
Several interpreters, Paulus especially, have asserted that the interpretation of Micah which is here given, was that of the Sanhedrim only, and not of the Evangelist, who merely recorded what happened and was said. But this assertion is at once refuted when we consider the object which Matthew has in view in his entire representation of the early life of Jesus. His object in recording the early life of Jesus is not like that of Luke, viz., to communicate historical information to his readers. …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament
The Blessing of Jacob Upon Judah. (Gen. Xlix. 8-10. )
Ver. 8. "Judah, thou, thy brethren shall praise thee; thy hand shall be on the neck of thine enemies; before thee shall bow down the sons of thy father. Ver. 9. A lion's whelp is Judah; from the prey, my son, thou goest up; he stoopeth down, he coucheth as a lion, and as a full-grown lion, who shall rouse him up? Ver. 10. The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come, and unto Him the people shall adhere." Thus does dying Jacob, in announcing …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament
Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners:
A BRIEF AND FAITHFUL RELATION OF THE EXCEEDING MERCY OF GOD IN CHRIST TO HIS POOR SERVANT, JOHN BUNYAN; WHEREIN IS PARTICULARLY SHOWED THE MANNER OF HIS CONVERSION, HIS SIGHT AND TROUBLE FOR SIN, HIS DREADFUL TEMPTATIONS, ALSO HOW HE DESPAIRED OF GOD'S MERCY, AND HOW THE LORD AT LENGTH THROUGH CHRIST DID DELIVER HIM FROM ALL THE GUILT AND TERROR THAT LAY UPON HIM. Whereunto is added a brief relation of his call to the work of the ministry, of his temptations therein, as also what he hath met with …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3
Man's Chief End
Q-I: WHAT IS THE CHIEF END OF MAN? A: Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever. Here are two ends of life specified. 1: The glorifying of God. 2: The enjoying of God. I. The glorifying of God, I Pet 4:4: That God in all things may be glorified.' The glory of God is a silver thread which must run through all our actions. I Cor 10:01. Whether therefore ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.' Everything works to some end in things natural and artificial; …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity
Samuel
Alike from the literary and the historical point of view, the book[1] of Samuel stands midway between the book of Judges and the book of Kings. As we have already seen, the Deuteronomic book of Judges in all probability ran into Samuel and ended in ch. xii.; while the story of David, begun in Samuel, embraces the first two chapters of the first book of Kings. The book of Samuel is not very happily named, as much of it is devoted to Saul and the greater part to David; yet it is not altogether inappropriate, …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament
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