So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came upon David in power. (1 Samuel 16:13, ESV)
From the pages of Scripture, we often read well-known stories and rush through them with a familiarity that robs us of any application for our own lives. We can fall into the “that was then, this is now,” mentality.
In our recent LINKS Fellowship study, “Kingdom Expansion- Memories,” our focus was on the story of David as a young man and his courageous victory over Goliath.
This magnificent story is powerful in many ways but most especially in how God positioned David before men, allowing him to gain recognition as the next king over Israel.
As challenging as it may be to draw any parallels between what was going on with the Israelites and their war with the Philistines and today’s culture, we often hit on more than a few comparisons during our LPI study discussion.
The Philistines were a group of people that continually harassed and oppressed the Israelites, often invading Israel’s territory. Unlike the chosen Israelites, who worshiped the one true living God, the Philistines worshiped a variety of false gods: Ashtoreth, Dagon, and Baal-Zebub.
These false gods led the Philistines, and sadly the Israelites at times, to practice sexual immorality, prostitution, divination, and fortune telling. They began to rely on and give credit to other gods for fish and grain as well as many other forms of idolatry.
Additionally, the Israelites had also allowed their hearts to be deceived at this time in history. They even followed the practices of the Ammonites, who worshiped Molech in the gruesome practice of child sacrifice.
In our story, the Philistines and the Israelites were at a standstill. The battle line had been drawn, and they regularly appeared for forty days on two different hillsides with a valley beneath them. The deal was this—you send your best warrior, and we will send ours. Whoever loses, their nation would become the victor’s slaves.
It sounds pretty simple, but the problem was all the Israelites were afraid and intimidated by the opponent. They were terrified to a point of tolerating and allowing this “uncircumcised Philistine” to defy the armies of God.
David asked the men standing near him, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?” (1 Samuel 17:26)
It appears that all of the Israelites, with the exception of David, were frozen in fear and intimidation. They had forgotten that this battle was not theirs to fight, but rather it belonged to the Lord Almighty, “Yahweh.”
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.” (1 Samuel 17:45)
David was filled with the Spirit of the Lord. His courage and unwavering desire to defeat this enemy of the one true God demonstrate this reality. One thing we don’t see in this story from David is silence regarding those practices of those who worship pagan gods.
Have Christians today become intimidated into silence, tolerance, or acceptance like the Israelites were? Where have all the David’s gone?
Prayer: Father God, anoint us with your power to accomplish your will today. In your name, Lord.