Trusting the Lord
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ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Giving
Games night tonight - no prayer meeting. Need help with setup!
Sledding tomorrow!
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THE STORY OF GOLIATH AND THE ARMIES
What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him.
David said to Saul, “Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.”
Saul replied, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight 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, struck it and rescued the sheep from its 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.
So david basically says - I got this. I’ve killed lions and bears.
But here’s the key:
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, “Go, and the Lord be with you.”
David knew what was up. He understood a few key things that i’ll walk us through today.
First - He didn’t have previous success because he was awesome - he had previous success because
The Lord Rescued Him
The Lord Rescued Him
The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all;
we can trust in the Lord to deliver us.
But when we have success - The Lord’s successes in our lives shouldn’t drive us to arrogance.
So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’ ”
Jesus is saying - if you obey well, and you do what you’re told, your response shouldn’t be LOOK AT ME! I was strong enough to kill that lion and that bear! We’re supposed to say - I am just an unworthy servant, i’m only doing what I was told.
in david we learn that trusting in the Lord to fight our battles is the surest form of security.
What does it look like in your life to expect the Lord to intervene? This doesn’t mean inaction - david went after the lion, and the lord rescued him while he was on the chase!
Sometimes this involves checking our hearts. What’s driving my motives in this situation? Faith - or fear? Anxiety? Need for recognition?
We take those bad motivations, and offer them to the Lord.
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Now let’s see how David’s faith that God would rescue him transforms David’s approach to goliath.
This phrase, ‘david and goliath’, it’s come to mean a lot of things.
So how did David approach his goliath?
1 Samuel 17:45–46 (NIV)
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.
David Fought with the Lord’s Weapons
David Fought with the Lord’s Weapons
He recognized the weapons of the enemy. Sword and spear and javelin.
What weapons does the enemy use in your life? It’s probably not still swords. Maybe - allure of wealth. Fear of abandonment. Shame. Guilt. Arrogance. Pride. The enemy’s arsenal is full and extensive.
But David didn’t fight back with sword and spear and javelin. He fought back with faith in the Lord who rescues.
And that looks wild. Soldiers of the day wore armor - David wore none.
The world will say when you have faith and trust in God - where’s your defenses? How can you be sure you’ll be ok?
But God calls us to fight a drastically different fight
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.
Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.
Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone.
If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord.
On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
These are some wild suggestions. If someone persecutes you, bless them.
If your enemy is hungry - make them food. If they’re thirsty - give them something to drink.
Do you fight with God’s weapons? Or the worlds? Do you fight persecution with more persecution? Do you fight hatred with more hatred?
But david didn’t just fight THROUGH the Lord -
David fought for the Lord’s glory
David fought for the Lord’s glory
He wasn’t there in the name of saul. Or himself. Or even Israel. He said - i’m here for God.
David fought to see the Lord glorified.
and make no mistake - the Lord lifted up David too.
Jesus said,
In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
This is what it means to trust in the Lord. To trust that the Lord so completely has our back, that we don’t even need credit or recognition.
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,
since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.
David trusted the Lord entirely - and the Lord gave him a kingdom, a name that’s remembered to this day, and made his lineage part of the line of Jesus.
Whose glory will you settle for? Phrased that specifically. Because in general, praise tends to come at us first.
In the life of David, he could have settled for the accolades.
But he knew that the Lord had a reward for him - and that’s all he wanted.
In your life, glory is going to be available in spades. You’ll have opportunity for recognition, wealth, power. Even the poorest among us rank in the highest paid people on the planet.
But are we satisfied just to see those lions and bears die? Or do we press on until we see the Lord’s name glorified?
Never settle for anything less than the glory of the Lord. Because the good thing is - we can see it.