You can follow my new blog over at Glory and Joy. The posts on this blog will stay here for a while, and I will integrate some of them into Glory and Joy. I hope what I have sporadically posted over the past few years has been helpful. May we all seek the glory of God, our Creator and Redeemer.

Several years ago I was at a family gathering in the home of a relative who had small children. I was having a hard time participating in the family festivities because I had lost my voice to fall allergies, so I was simply watching the children do what children do when in the house–watch television. Mom of the house had put a “Christian” children’s video on and the children were enthraled. It wasn’t quite Barney the Dinosaur, but almost. The video was loosely about David and Goliath. The video did a credible job of teaching the raw events of the story, but when it came time for the “moral of the story” it missed the point completely. For the sake of family harmony, it was probably a good thing I had lost my voice. My relatives are good people but probably would not have appreciated my response.

The video taught that the moral of the story of David and Goliath was that God could use them no matter how small they were. That is backward. It made David the hero of the story rather than God. It effectively said that David killed Goliath for God rather than God killed Goliath for David. Sadly, the video reflects current theological thought. It focuses on us rather than on God. God always works to glorify himself. That is why he works in the way he does, so that all will know it is he doing the great works, so the focus will be on him. God used a small boy to defeat Goliath so that all would know it was the Lord at work not the Israelite army. Compare this to the story of Gideon. Gideon had assembled an army of approximately 32,000 men, but God told him, “The people with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel boast over me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’” (Judges 7:2) Ultimately, God defeated the Midianites with a mere 300 men using torches, jars, and trumpets. Again, God’s lesson was that the victory came from him and that he does not save with sword and spear.

We are naturally self-centered and make everything about ourselves. That usually gives us too much credit. The story of David and Goliath and of many, if not most, of the stories in the Scripture teach that God does for us what we cannot do for ourselves. They are not about our service, but about God’s gracious provision for his people. We cannot save ourselves. Only God can do that. We cannot change lives. Only God can do that. Furthermore, God will do that in ways we can neither understand nor duplicate. In the events surround David and Goliath, God was teaching King Saul and his army to get their eyes off of themselves and put them on him. The Israelite army did not need more training in order to defeat Goliath. They needed a God that was bigger than Goliath.

A self-focused faith can only result in a shallow, insipid practice of that faith. As James would ask, “Can such a faith save him?” Of course not. In his book Christless Christianity, Michael Horton begins by saying,

It is easy to become distracted from Christ as the only hope for sinners. Where everything is measured by our happiness rather than by God’s holiness, the sense of our being sinners becomes secondary, if not offensive. If we are good people who have lost our way but with the proper instructions and motivation can become a better person, we need only a life coach, not a redeemer. We can still give our assent to a high view of Christ and the centrality of his person and work, but in actual practice we are being distracted from “looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith” (Heb. 12:2). A lot of the things that distract us from Christ these days are even good things. In order to push us off-point, all that Satan has to do is throw several spiritual fads, moral and political crusades, and other “relevance” operations into our field of vision. Focusing the conversation on us—our desires, needs, feelings, experience, activity, and aspirations—energizes us. At last, now we’re talking about something practical and relevant. ¹

He goes on to say,

I think that the church in America today is so obsessed with being practical, relevant, helpful, successful, and perhaps even well-liked that it nearly mirrors the world itself. Aside from the packaging, there is nothing that cannot be found in most churches today that could not be satisfied by any number of secular programs and self-help groups.²

Horton is correct. We need more than just good teaching. We need a savior to save us from the righteous wrath of God, and that can only come by focusing on God rather than on ourselves.

May “he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Revelation 2:11)

Notes
1. Michael Horton, Christless Christianity (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2009), pp. 15-16.
2. Horton, pp. 16-17.

First, God’s people can trust God to fight their battles. First Samuel 17:47 says, “. . .that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord’s . . .” The word ‘assembly’ refers to King Saul and the Israelite army. Israel’s military record against the Philistines had been a mixture of success and failure. King Saul was a capable military leader, but obviously did not understand the concept of trusting in God and obeying him completely. By the time God defeated Goliath, Saul had already demonstrated his lack of faith in God’s power over the enemies of Israel. (See 1 Samuel 15.) This is a lesson that must be learned by every generation of God’s people. Unfortunately, like Saul, we often miss God’s glory because we trust in ourselves rather than him. God’s promise is sure. He promised to be our God if we would be his people, and that promise includes defeating our greatest enemies. May we learn this lesson before it is too late.

Second, God’s purpose was less military and more spiritual; less physical or carnal and more a purpose of faith. Were God’s purpose solely military or political, using the sword would be appropriate. God’s purpose, however, was spiritual. His goal was the faith and holiness of his people. The battle was not against a giant soldier, but against “principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” (Ephesians 6:12) Wisely, he did not use a military solution on a spiritual problem. This is another lesson we often miss. Just as the disciples could not see past the earthy kingdom they believed the Messiah would establish, the church often can only see its current social and political circumstances and fails to see that the battle is the Lord’s and he does not save with sword and spear. Our battles are spiritual battles against the rulers of the darkness of this world and spiritual wickedness in high places, not against politicians, judges, and activists. God will not defeat them by the human means of the ballot box and the court system, but by defeating the enemy on a higher level and in the hearts of his people. (See John 6 and Acts 1:1-6-8.)

Third, God works so that he is glorified. First Samuel 17:46 says that God would defeat Goliath so “that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.” In their culture a nation won a battle because it had the strongest god. By defeating Goliath in the way he did even the Philistines knew the God of Israel was indeed a mighty God. This has been the theme throughout this story. Our God is a mighty God that works to glorify himself because he is worthy of all glory. God is glorified when all see that he is greater than we.

May “he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Revelation 2:11)
Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it.

    After David volunteered to accept Goliath’s challenge, King Saul dressed David in his own armor and weapons. This was a natural thing to do. It was even a wise thing to do from a strictly military point-of-view. At first, David went along with the idea for just that reason—it was logical and what one did when getting ready to fight a formidable enemy. Saul and David were simply doing what was natural, what anyone else would have done in the same situation. It was such a common thing to do they did not think twice about it. In later battles in David’s life it may have been the correct thing to do, but not that time. David quickly realized that Saul’s armor and weapons we not appropriate for this battle. First of all, how effective could it have been in the face of such a large and strong enemy? Were armor alone sufficient Saul would have already taken care of the problem of the giant Philistine. More importantly, David could hardly walk in the armor; he had not “tested” it. In other words, he had no experience with the armor and did not know if he could trust it. It was more a burden than a tool. He did, however, have experience with God and knew that he could trust God and that God was sufficient for any enemy.

    David understood that God does not do things the way we do things. God does things in order to glorify himself. He does things in such a way that all will know that it is an act of God, not an act of men. Isaiah said, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9) God doesn’t do things the way we would do things. When we need water, we dig wells or build dams. God gave his people water from a rock. When we need food we either plant and harvest crops or hunt animals. God sent his people bread with the dew of the morning and made the quail simply show up in camp and surrender on their doorsteps. When we fight an enemy, we use armor and weapons. God used a boy with a sling and a rock.

    David knew that this battle was a battle of faith and that it could not be won with conventional weapons. So, he took off the armor, collected a few stones, put his faith in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and went to do battle with a man many times his size. This is a lesson the church must learn. God promised that the gates of hell would not prevail against the church, but as long as the church goes to battle with the weapons of the world, which do not fit and only weight her down, Satan does not even bother to close the gates. He knows we will not defeat him with our church activities, marketing techniques, superficial Bible studies, mission boards, political activism, trite sayings and slogans, nor any other means except by the power of God working through his holy and sanctified people. As long as his people are indistinguishable from the people of the world—thinking like them and doing what they would do—Satan will continue to challenge God’s people with virtual impunity.

May “he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Revelation 2:11)

    Goliath was a big man and he was heavily armored and heavily armed. He was approximately nine feet tall, wore a bronze helmet, a coat of mail that weighed almost 200 pounds, and had bronze armor on his legs. He carried a bronze javelin and a spear with a shaft like a weaver’s beam. Just how big a weaver’s beam was we don’t know, but it had to be big to support a spearhead that weighed almost two pounds. As easy as it is to criticize the Israelite army for being afraid of him, they had good reason to be afraid. Because of his size, Goliath was accustomed to the fear he inspired in others. It is unlikely he had ever fought a one-on-one battle once he “had his size” as they used to say. Because of this he had a sense of invincibility. When David came out to challenge him, he “disdained” David as an unworthy opponent. He did not take David seriously. He logically believed that his size, his armor, and his weapons were sufficient to deal with any individual enemy, much less a young man. He feared no man and believed in his own size, strength, and ability.

    David, on the other hand, knew that this was not his battle, but the Lord’s. David did not trust in his own ability, strength, or experience. He trusted in the power and promises of God. He knew what God had done for His people; he knew what God had done for him; he knew what God would do on that occasion. He had complete faith and confidence in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Notice the difference in their attitudes when they came together for the battle. Goliath said, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks? . . . Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and to the beasts of the field.” David responded,

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. 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, 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. (1 Samuel 17:45-47)

David’s entire response glorified God. David trusted in the Lord not in his skill, experience, armor, or weapons. Because David was young and small he understood that he could not kill a giant Philistine, but God could and would if he had faith in Him. One of the basic axioms of Alcoholics Anonymous and other twelve-step groups is that one’s addictions are too big to defeat alone and that only by relying on God can those additions be conquered. AA’s historic success is a result of this great truth. As long as we depend on our own strength defeat is inevitable as it was for Goliath, but as long as we put our faith in God, He will defeat our biggest enemies.

May “he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. (Revelation 2:11)”

    At the prompting of a good friend, I have been doing some reading lately, and that reading has prompted some considerable thought about the nature of our Savior. The mystery of the incarnation is one of those great truths that are foundational to our faith, professed by nearly everyone, and commonly ignored in practice. It is becoming increasingly evident that much of contemporary teaching and preaching ignores the great truth of Christ’s nature. This is spiritually fatal. The true nature of Christ must be declared and applied, believed and practiced. To that end, let’s look at another of the chapters in the story of God’s redemptive work.

    “As he [Jesus] drew near to Jericho, a blind man, [Bartimaeus¹], was sitting by the roadside begging. And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant. They told him, ‘Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.’ And he cried out, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ And those who were in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ He said, ‘Lord, let me recover my sight.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Recover your sight; your faith has made you well.’ And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.” (Luke 18:35-43 ESV)

    It was natural that Bartimaeus would want to know about the cause of the commotion passing him as he sat by the road near Jericho. He was blind, not incurious. So, he asked those around him what was happening. The crowd around him answered that it was “Jesus of Nazareth.” They were using Jesus’ human appellation, which was natural enough for that was how the crowd knew him. The crowd correctly knew Jesus for his compassionate work among the sick and unfortunate and for his religious and moral teachings. His teachings drew great crowds as we see in the story of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) and his teaching on the other side of the Sea of Galilee when he fed the 5,000 from five loaves and two fish (John 6). He was very popular and his teachings, like those of John the Baptist before him, were a refreshing relief from the corrupt and hypocritical fundamentalism of the Pharisees. It was a very important part of his ministry, and it is important to note that Jesus commanded his disciples to carry on his compassionate work and his teachings.

    In spite of his blindness, Bartimaeus saw something the crowd did not see. When he heard that Jesus of Nazareth was passing, he called out to Jesus, “Son of David,” using Jesus’ messianic appellation. He knew that this man Jesus was more than a healer of bodies and a teacher of truth. He knew that Jesus was the fulfillment of God’s covenant with his people. Jesus said that he had come to ‘seek and to save the lost.’ ² Before Jesus’ birth, the angel told Joseph that Jesus would ‘save his people from their sins.’ ³ It is a less visible part of Jesus’ work, but it is ultimately the reason he ‘became flesh and dwelt among us.’ ⁴ The crowd did not understand this, but Bartimaeus did and acted accordingly. He addressed Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah, and called out to him for mercy.

    It is interesting that when he called out to the Son of David, those in the front of the crowd, the more visible ones,  rebuked him and told him to be silent, but Bartimaeus would not be silenced. He knew that Jesus was the Messiah and called all the more for Jesus’ attention. That faith was rewarded. The passage does not tell us the crowds reaction when Jesus commanded that Bartimaeus be brought to him, but I am sure they were astonished. Just as they did not see Jesus’ messianic side, neither did they see the deeply spiritual side of Bartimaeus. The crowd could not see the faith Jesus saw. Jesus did more than simply give Bartimaeus the ability to see. He redeemed his soul as well, as we know because from that time Bartimaeus followed Jesus. He left his old life behind for a new life in Christ. Granted, the life of a blind beggar in the first century would be pretty easy to leave behind, but following Jesus as he did was the fruit of repentance both John the Baptist and Jesus taught was the proof of redemption.

    Things really have not changed much. Many know Jesus of Nazareth, but few really see and know Jesus Son of David. Many are content with Jesus’ work as a miracle worker and moral teacher, but few are willing to accept his hard teachings about redemption. Many, I suppose from a sense of duty, attempt to apply Jesus’ teachings to their activities, but few truly understand the nature of his redemptive work and our role in it. Many boisterously follow him down a road eagerly awaiting his next wonderful act, but few truly call out to him in life-changing faith. That reading I mentioned earlier in this post confirms this. The authors have some good things to say, but they miss one very important point. The true prophetic voice points men to Christ and him crucified. No matter how loudly or eloquently one may speak of Jesus and the need to follow him and him alone, if he does not focus on the cross of Christ his teachings are just “espuma.” ⁵ They are form without substance.

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¹ The Luke account of this story does not name the blind man, but the Mark 10 account gives his name as Bartimaeus.

² Luke 19:10  ³ Matthew 1:21  ⁴ John 1:14

⁵ Espuma is the Spanish word for ‘foam’ or ‘lather.’ It is often used to describe something that is without substance.

    David knew God would not allow this to continue. He asked, “Who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” David knew God always defends his own glory. This was the purpose of all he did for Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It was also his purpose in the exodus, in the conquest, in the time of the judges, and in this particular event. Old Testament history is littered with examples of those who mocked God or brought shame to his name. Pharaoh defied God and suffered ten plagues and the loss of his army.  Jericho defied God and its walls fell down. The sons of Eli brought shame to God’s name and they both died on the same day. The Philistines had defied God by taking the captured ark of the covenant to the temple of their god, Dagon, and the statue of Dagon fell and the people were struck with tumors until they returned the ark. The list is a long one, but each time God vindicated his name. David knew he would do so with Goliath as well.

    David also knew God would honor his covenant and defend his people. When David referred to Goliath as an “uncircumcised Philistine” he was declaring that no matter how big Goliath was, he was not one of God’s people. He was an outsider who had no right to mock them. On the other hand, no matter how dismayed they were at the time, the Israelite army was among God’s people and under his protection. David’s complete faith in God’s faithfulness to his people gave him confidence to take on their enemy single-handedly. David knew what God would do because he had seen what God had done. God had already defeated the Egyptians, the Amalekites, the Canaanites, and the others living in the land God gave to Israel. God had already defeated the Philistines more than once, and David knew God would defeat not only this “uncircumcised Philistine,” but the entire Philistine army as well. Because he knew this, David could face this giant of a man with confidence, knowing that the sling might be in his hand, but the battle was in the hand of the Lord.

    Paul understood this story and this great truth. He also knew God would defend his name and defend his people. He said, “And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:30-31) Of course, those whom he predestined, called, justified, and glorified are his elect, his people, and he still defends them from their enemies. The outcome of the battle is decided before it begins. God is still God. We can confidently take on the enemies of God’s people without fear. Of course, our enemy is usually not physical, as in a giant Philistine, but the much more dangerous spiritual enemy of Satan himself. That is why Jesus made it a point to tell his disciples that his people, the church, would not be defeated by their enemies. When Jesus asked his disciples who they believed he was, “Peter replied, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:15-18)

So, why should we be afraid? May “he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. (Revelation 2:11)”

    David, however, was not afraid. At least he did not appear to be afraid when he volunteered to accept Goliath’s challenge even though most thought his challenge of Goliath was foolish. David’s brother, Eliab, certainly thought him foolish. He reminded David that he was not a warrior, but a shepherd and that he only had responsibility for a few sheep at that. He further accused David of leaving those sheep with someone else so he could come and watch the battle, implying that he was not a good shepherd. Even King Saul, who was desperate for someone to volunteer to fight Goliath and solve this problem, did not believe David had a chance to win. David was just too young and inexperienced to be taken seriously. Everyone figured he would go out and be quickly defeated, but David did not see it that way. He had great confidence that God would defeat this “uncircumcised Philistine.”

    So what did David know that his brother, the king, the king’s military advisors, and the rank and file soldiers not know? David knew history. David knew what God had done for his people over the centuries. He knew that when his ancestors referred to God as “the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” they were reminding their brothers of all God had done for them that they could not do for themselves. He knew that God was faithful to Abraham and kept his promise to give him a son in spite of his great age, and that God had done so in a way that unmistakably was an act of God. After all, his son was probably the only child ever born to a hundred year-old father and a ninety year-old mother. He knew that God had blessed Isaac, and that he had not only blessed Jacob but had redeemed him and changed both is name and his character. David knew that God had liberated his people from slavery in Egypt, that God had sent manna and quail and given them water from a rock, that God had knocked down the walls of Jericho, that God had liberated his people from their enemies in the stories of the judges, that God had toppled the Philistine god in its temple, and that through many other afflictions God had faithfully cared for his people in ways they could not do for themselves.

    David also knew that God was faithful from his own experience. It may seem to us that David killing the bear and the lion is unrelated to his valiant offer to fight Goliath one-on-one, but it is not. David knew he was no match for a lion or a bear. He knew that in the natural order of things both of these wild animals would have easily taken his sheep and would have probably killed him had he intervened. God used these experiences to strengthen the lessons David had learned from history. God proved to David that he could and would defeat all David’s enemies. David knew this included giant, uncircumcised Philistines. David knew that his God was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

    David also knew he was not fighting a common battle and, therefore, could not use common weapons and armor. This faithful young man who walked in the way of the Lord could not walk in the king’s armor much less fight. Goliath was an extraordinary enemy. Ordinary weapons and armor were not effective. David knew that. After all, Saul had all the armor he wanted and he was still afraid to accept Goliath’s challenge. For David, the weapons of this world were untested and unreliable. He preferred to fight with the weapon he knew would be sufficient to defeat the enemy. That weapon was absolute faith in the covenant-keeping God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, and yes, even us. He had another weapon as well. That weapon was the glory of God, and David knew God would protect his glory by doing for his people what they clearly could not do for themselves.

    Perhaps this great lesson has been best expressed by another faithful believer, Corrie Ten Boom, when she said, “Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.” That, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, is a profound truth.  May “he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. (Revelation 2:11)”

How God would convey his message is easy. He would tell a story. God did not give us a systematic theology or an academic text, but a redemptive history. That is the way God primarily reveals¹ himself to us. Nearly all of the Old Testament is historical narrative. Even the gospels are a history rather than a systematic Christology. Certainly, parts of the Scripture are instructional. The Ten Commandments and much of the epistles are more instructional in nature, but even they are within the context of the redemptive history of God. This poses a bit of a problem for us. Because so much of God’s message to the church is related through Bible stories we learned as children in Sunday School, we often fail to take them seriously and to study them as mature believers looking for the deep spiritual truths embedded in them.² Sister Maria Montemayor, a great saint who was a member of our church for many years and is now with the Lord, said that the Old Testament stories were God’s kindergarten. Of course, all we really need to know we learned in kindergarten, right? Well, maybe not everything, but those kindergarten lessons are valuable and life-long.

The story God would probably tell to my congregation,  and I am sure to many others, is the story of David and Goliath. Most of us already know that story as related in 1 Samuel 17. Briefly, it is the story of young David. He was visiting his brothers in Saul’s army when Goliath, the giant Philistine, mocked and challenged the Israelites to a one-on-one duel. David volunteered to take on Goliath and in spite of his youth killed him with a small stone launched from his sling. It is a simple story, but it is both profound and foundational to our understanding of God and his work. It is also commonly misunderstood as we shall see down the road a bit.

There are at least six important spiritual truths in this story that I wish to explore. Those six truths are:

    The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
    Uncircumcision
    The Bigger They Are . . .
    Don’t Bring a Knife to a Gunfight
    Can You Hear Me Now?
    It’s Not About David

What does this great story say to us? Well, keep and eye on this blog and we will see what he has to say. “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. (Revelation 2:11)”

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Notes
1. I am using the present tense ‘reveals’ rather than the past tense here because I firmly believe that God’s work of revelation to his people is active and vital. Not in the sense that he is giving us new biblical revelations, but that he actively works in us through the illumination of the Spirit to deepen our understanding of him, his character, his will, and his purpose.

2. For more information about how we perceive truth in modern society see Neil Postman’s Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business. It is very insightful.