1 SAMUEL 17
4 Outlines
1 Samuel 17
PRIZE FIGHT
THE CHAMPION - GOLIATH
1. He Was Big. Vss. 1-7
2. He Was A Bully. Vss.
8-11
3. He Was Brash. Vss.
41-44
4. He Was Beatable. Vs.
54
THE CHALLENGER - DAVID
1. His Courage Vss.
20-40
2. His Confrontation
Vss. 45-48
3. His Conquest Vss.
49-54
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1 Samuel 17
THE GIANT
Vs. 1 - Imagine waking
up one morning and discovering that there is an invading army in your country
ready to attack. A similar thing
happened to King Saul and the nation
Vss. 2-3 -Word came to
King Saul, who mustered his army and went down to the same valley and set up
for battle against the Philistines. They were on opposite mountains from each
other with a valley in between.
Vss. 4-7 - It appears
that there was little or no action between the two armies until a giant named
Goliath appears. He was big and their
best warrior. He was their champion! This guy with all his height, equipment
and power stood out in the valley and began to yell a challenge to the Israeli
army.
Vss. 8-10 - The giant
called for one warrior from
Vs. 11 - The response of
King Saul and the Israelites was fear and dismay.
Vs. 16 - This
intimidation went on for 40 days.
Such was the impact of
the GIANT!
Do you have any giants
in your life? Is there a habit, a sin, a
person, a situation that is bullying you around and taking control of your life? It could be worry, smoking, cursing, gossip,
alcohol, bad temper, illicit sex, or a bad influence. There are many giants who might try to
dominate you.
It could be that these
giants have been harassing your for so long, that you
have given up hope of ever being delivered from their influence.
If you have such a giant
in your life, you can be sympathetic towards Saul and the men of
They needed deliverance
They needed a champion
greater than the giant they faced!
Perhaps today, you need
help. You need deliverance. You need a champion greater than the giant that you
face.
LET ME TELL YOU FROM THE
BEGINNING THAT THE CHAMPION OF
Your champion against
the giants in your life is also the Lord of Hosts!
THE ENEMY IS REAL - Vss.
4-7, 33
Goliath was a real
person. Goliath was big (10 feet tall), strong, and dangerous!
Our enemy is real too.
His Name is Satan. Isaiah 14:12-15
He caused Eve to fall in
the Garden. Genesis 3
He is the Father of
lies. John
He is powerful.
Ephesians
THE STAKES ARE HIGH!
Vss. 8-11
Much was at stake when
Goliath came out and taunted
The personal integrity
of every soldier was at stake.
The integrity of the
nation was at stake.
God's integrity was at
stake. Vs. 26
Much is at stake when
giants torment you.
Personal integrity is at
stake.
Church integrity is at
stake.
God's integrity is at
stake. He is your God. Giving in to a "giant" implies that God is not
strong enough to deliver you.
THE
David arrived to see
Goliath at work taunting
Vss. 23-26 - David
wanted to know the reward for defeating Goliath. He realized that Goliath had
no right to "defy the armies of the living God."
Satan has no right to
defy us who are God's children. Victory over Satan was won at the cross. Romans
6:10-14, Galatians 2:20
Vss. 32-37 - David
appears before Saul and confidently announces that God will give him the
victory!
THE VICTORY IS GOD'S!
Vss. 38-54
Vs. 45 - David
confronted the giant in the name of his God.
Let us confront our giants in the
name of the Lord Jesus!
As we trust Him, he will give the
strength to defeat any giant. Philippians 4:13
Ultimately, God gave the
victory!
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1 Samuel 17
PERSPECTIVE
Perspective or how
we look at things is important. If we
have the right perspective about something we will do well. If we have the wrong perspective, we are in
trouble.
1 Kings 17 tells
the well-known story of David and Goliath.
In this particular story we see that the rest of the Israelites and
David looked at the problem Goliath caused with different perspectives. In fact in this passage I see three different
factors that affected the perspective of those involved.
BACKGROUND:
Vss. 1-10 - Goliath was a giant threatening the well being of
Let me remind you
that we all face "giants" in our lives.
Sometimes our
"giants" are influential people who oppose us such as family members,
bosses, teachers or fellow workers.
Sometimes our
"giants" are habitual sins that we have trouble standing up to.
Sometimes our
"giants" are the opinions of others.
We don't want to go against popular opinion.
Sometimes our
"giants" are difficult circumstances that threaten to overwhelm us.
Sometimes our
"giants" are illnesses in ourselves or in those we love.
Sometimes our
"giants" are huge financial problems.
Just as the giant,
Goliath, was real, your giants will be real too and will pose real threats to
your well being.
THE FEAR FACTOR
Vs. 11 - Saul and the rest of the Israeli army were terrified. They were filled
with fear. Nobody wanted to face this giant. And that's part of our problem
with our giants as well. We live in fear of these giants. We allow them to intimidate us, and even run
from them instead of facing them. In fact, according to verse 24,
running is exactly what
Fear is one of the
most paralyzing forces known to men.
People are often
gripped with fear that renders them totally ineffective.
THE FOCUS
FACTOR
Vss. 12-22 - Our hero, David, now enters the story. He has been at home looking at
his father's sheep. He is now sent to the battlefield to bring provisions to
his brother and to get a report on the war.
As David arrives the battle for the day was about to start.
Vss. 23-24 - David witnessed Goliath's daily taunt that had now been going on for
weeks. He also witnessed the fear on the part of the Israelites.
Vs. 25 - Evidently the king had made offers of reward for anyone who would
defeat the giant.
Saul's focus, and the focus of the Israeli army was not on
defeating the giant. Their focus was on
self-preservation. Saul and the rest of
the army would not face the giant personally because they were afraid of losing
their own lives. They wanted to preserve
their own lives.
Vs. 26 - David's focus was different.
David didn't focus
on self-preservation.
David focused on
the glory of God.
David was asking,
"Who is this unbeliever, that he should defy the armies of the living
God?" What right did this guy have
to intimidate God's people?
David's focus
included the thought that God's armies were far more powerful than
Goliath.
David saw the
issue as God's issue. God's glory
suffers when unsaved people are allowed to have the upper hand.
Christian, what
right does any giant have to rule your life?
When you give in
to the giants in your life, you are not allowing God to have the glory.
When you stand up
the giants, you are giving the God glory. 1 John 4:4
Now, here's a word
of warning. When you start to focus on the real issue in facing giants, the
glory of God, there will be people who will oppose you, or think you are
nuts.
Vss. 28-29 - David's brother accused him of meddling.
Vss. 31-33 - Saul told David that he was incapable.
Because Saul and
the Israeli army were focused on self-preservation any suggestion of a victory
over the giant seemed to be folly. They
saw this as impossible.
One of the great
reasons we fail to see more victories over giants is because we deem things to
impossible.
We forget the
Scriptures. Jeremiah 32:17, Luke 1:37, Luke 18:27
THE FAITH
FACTOR
Because David
focused on the issue of God's glory being at stake, he had the faith that God
would give him the victory.
Vss. 34 -37 - David remembered past victories that the Lord had given him. He
trusted by faith that God would continue to deliver by giving victory over
Goliath. Goliath had no right to
intimidate
Vss. 38-39 - Saul meant well. He gave David his armor for protection, but it was
too big and too bulky for David. Sometimes people try to help in our fight with
our giants, but their help relies on human wisdom and not on God.
Vss. 40-44 - David took with him what he knew how to use.
He took his sling,
and probably his shepherd's staff.
Goliath was
unimpressed and even insulted, and gave David a good cursing out.
Vss. 44-48 - David confronted Goliath in the name of the Lord of Hosts, the God of
the armies of
David was
confident that God would get the glory - Vs. 46.
David was also
confident that the Israeli army would also discover that the Lord "saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the
Lord's…"
Vss. 48-54 - David won the battle using what seemed to be an insufficient weapon, a
slingshot. But David won the battle because His confidence was in the Lord!
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1 Samuel 17:38-54
GIANT VICTORY
DAVID’S CHOICE (OF WEAPONS) – Vss. 38-40
GOLIATH’S CURSE OF DAVID – Vss. 41-44
DAVID’S COURAGE AGAINST GOLIATH – Vss. 45-47
GOD’S CONQUEST OF HIS ENEMIES – Vss. 48-54