Sermon - Lenten Midweek 1 2022 - David and Goliath 1 Samuel 17:1-58

David and Goliath, Osmar Schindler, 1888

War has been on the minds of many lately. Of particular interest is the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Seems like we can’t talk about hardly anything else. But frankly, it’s not really worth all of the attention and worry that we’re giving it. There’s nothing we can do to change any part of the conflict, both because none of us have the necessary information on the situation and because none of us have any authority over this situation. Worrying and fighting about this conflict makes about as much sense as worrying and fighting about the weather, we just can’t do anything about it. Anxiety over a situation entirely out of our hands only makes us depressed, angry, and bitter.

What’s more, when we’re distracted with anxiety over such a situation, we don’t have the energy left to focus on the problems right in front of us which we actually do have the power to change. To illustrate, I can’t fix the conflict in Ukraine, but I can work on fixing the conflict within my own family or among my friends. This is something which young king David teaches us: by the power of God we can do battle against the evils in our midst, and we can even win. David’s defeat of Goliath foreshadowed Jesus’ defeat of Satan, and encourages and empowers us for our own battles against evil today.

The first step in fighting against evil is placing undivided trust in God. This is the great contrast between David and Saul and his armies. After the nine foot giant of Gath stepped onto the battlefield, challenging Saul’s army, the reaction of the Israelites was embarrassing! “When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid… All the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were much afraid.” Why were they afraid? Because they had no faith!

David on the other hand, when he sees everyone’s reaction, responds with courage on account of God: “For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?”” David thought of Goliath as nothing more than a piddly unbeliever defying God, he’s no worse than some wild beast. David declared: “The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.”

David didn’t have faith in weapons or the strength of men, He didn’t rely on his cunning use of a slingshot, he trusted in God to deliver him. Before he slaughtered Goliath on the battlefield he told him what was about to happen and why. “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… 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.” Sure enough, the stone hit the mark, Goliath fell on his face, and David cut off the slanderer’s head. 

This foreshadowed Jesus and His victorious battle against Satan. Like David, Jesus didn’t look like a warrior, “He had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire Him.” In fact, He looked worse than David, since He was flogged and crucified. He didn’t even go to battle with a slingshot, rather like a sheep before its shearers is silent, He was silent before His accusers. Meek and humble, Christ fought the ancient dragon from the cross. Yet, upon a tree our Lord did vanquish the foe with nothing except His own blood.

While David single-handedly defeated the Philistines on behalf of the Israelites, Jesus defeated sin, death, and Satan on behalf of all the world! Like David He entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly. Like David, Jesus is the Shepherd who has sought out His straying sheep and even rescued them from the jaws of the lions and bears; out of the fangs of Satan Christ has rescued us!

Jesus hasn’t only redeemed us from sin and death, but He’s also awakened us to a new life of righteousness! We are servants of the living God and we’re fighting in His army. We fight against evil in the name of the Lord of hosts. The Lord will deliver us from evil. The Lord saves not with sword and spear, but with the Word and the precious body and blood of Jesus. The battle is the Lord’s and He will give our enemies into our hands. Like David, we can confront the evil in our world fearlessly and courageously because we go forward in the name of the Lord. We have been baptized with the name of God and are soldiers of the cross fighting against the spiritual forces of darkness all around us.

We don’t have to tuck our tails between our legs and run when there are problems, but we can defend against them since we have the living God on our side. We don’t have to just do the typical conservative thing, which is to complain and moan about how bad things are getting, instead we can act where God has placed us to make positive changes and fight against evil. For example, we can complain that the world doesn’t know about God, or, we can do the work of teaching our families and our parish God’s Word. We can complain about how the family is breaking down, or, we can strengthen our own families. We can lament the passing of the good ole days, or, we can gird up our loins and make these the good days. 

The fight which we’ve been called into may not look like a battle in Ukraine or chopping off a giant’s head. Oftentimes it looks like turning off the screen and saying a prayer, it looks like memorizing a hymn or a Bible verse, it looks like reading a Bible storybook to kids, it looks like visiting a fellow parishioner or having a meal together. Away with sloth and fear and bitter hearts in these gloomy days, and onward Christian soldiers!