MEMORY VERSE: And
Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spake unto the men; and Eliab's
anger was kindled against David, and he said, Why camest thou down
hither? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I
know thy pride, and the naughtiness of thine heart; for thou art come
down that thou mightest see the battle. 1 Samuel 17:28
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: II Chronicles 29-32
In
our post of Friday 16th October 2015, we mentioned that Goliath
represents different things to different people. To the armies of
Israel, he represented the angel of death. All they heard was Goliath's
voice and they began to shake (1 Samuel 17:11). The moment they saw him,
they fled (1 Samuel 17:24). To Saul, Goliath represented his end of
reign as the king of Israel because Goliath had demanded for a combat
between himself and an army of Israel; if the fellow loses, which was
inevitable, he would be dethroned and the Philistine king will take
over. Since there was no man who could fight Goliath, he considered his
tenure ,as king, officially over. However to young David, Goliath was an
opportunity – an opportunity to become the king’s in-law and his family
exempted from the payment of tax since that was the price for killing
Goliath. To David, Goliath also represented a big mountain on his way to
becoming king. The Lord had rejected Saul as king, and had commanded
Prophet Samuel to anoint David as king (1 Samuel 16). Whilst waiting
for Saul to die and take over as king, Goliath appeared on scene
threatening to take over Israel.
Before David
killed -his - Goliath, several things happened. On Friday, we discussed
about one of the things that happened to him – the armies of Israel
tried to put fear in him. They said a lot of things to weaken his faith
in God but thank God he was not moved by what they said. Another thing
that happened to him was Eliab (his senior brother) told him he didn’t
belong to the group of people who could defeat Goliath. When he saw
David he asked him “what are you doing here”? 1 Samuel 17:28 says, “And
Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spake unto the men; and Eliab's
anger was kindled against David, and he said, Why camest thou down
hither? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I
know thy pride, and the naughtiness of thine heart; for thou art come
down that thou mightest see the battle.” At a point, he called him a
proud boy for dreaming to conquer Goliath. Friend, people may attribute
your vision of greatness for pride. Just as David’s own brothers were
against him, your own brothers may turn against you. At times, they may
even get angry at you for attempting to do something they couldn’t do.
Thank God David did not allow his brothers to bully him off fighting
with Goliath.
Also on that day, Saul (the king
and one of the most trusted figures in Israel) told him he will not
make it. 1 Samuel 17:33 says, “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.” Saul literally told him
he stood no chance of conquering Goliath. He told him he was too young,
inexperienced, not strong enough, etc. People who have failed will
always tell you, “you can’t”. Everyone he encountered on that day tried
to break his spirit. I don’t know what people have said to you regarding
that project that God has laid on your mind or concerning that
professional exam you want to sit for, just hold on to God’s word. Those
who said David couldn’t do it watched him do it because God was with
him. Those who said David wasn’t good enough or too weak or too
inexperienced watched him cut off Goliath’s head because God was with
him. David could have believed what everyone was saying but he didn’t.
He believed in God and acted in line with the leading of the Holy Spirit
and at the end, he became a wonder.
COUNSEL:
Stop listening to those who say you can’t. You can because the God who
helped David is with you. You can take on that project and finish it.
You can sit for that exam and pass it. You can start that business and
succeed in it. You can make a difference. You can be a change agent. You
can be a liberator.
twitter@BroOluwatoki
Bro Samuel | Reaching the world
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