David the Warrior

David the Warrior
Have you ever been in a situation that seemed impossible? The odds of success were slim to none and fear gripped your heart? Adventure movies love these scenarios where you are sitting on the edge of your seat anticipating tragedy or a miracle. The battle of David and Goliath was one of high drama and was a major turning point in the life of David as he was transformed from a Shepherd to a Soldier and a Warrior for the Lord. Tonight I want to examine the life of David the Warrior and draw applications for our lives today.
David became a mighty warrior for the Lord and led Israel in victory over their enemies for many years. He learned how to fight his enemies from an early age as he shepherded his father’s flock of sheep and had to defend them against the attack of a lion and a bear. It takes courage to put yourself into a situation like this with a wild animal with sharp claws and teeth that can cut and crunch your body in a single bite. Yet David was able to tear the sheep from the jaws of both of these dangerous animals and lived to tell about it. I believe the key to David’s success against these animals is found in 1 Samuel 16:13 So as David stood there among his brothers, Samuel took the olive oil he had brought and poured it upon David’s head; and the Spirit of Jehovah came upon him and gave him great power from that day onward. Then Samuel returned to Ramah.
David had been anointed as the next King of Israel and the Holy Spirit of God came upon him. I believe that when David was faced with these animals that same Spirit came upon him to empower him to overcome the enemy.
David was also a skilled musician and when Saul was being tormented by evil spirits his advisors suggested a musician come and play music that would sooth is soul. David was then called upon to join Saul’s staff to play music and be his personal body guard and armor bearer. God was training David in spiritual warfare as well as learning how to physically protect the King. When the evil spirits would attack Saul, David’s music drove them away. David’s eyes were being opened to the realm of the spirit as well as the power of praise. All of this was in preparation for the battle that would set David apart from everyone else in Israel.
God was preparing David for a greater battle with the army of the Philistines. We are all familiar with the story of David and Goliath yet it is a story that continues to inspire us in the battles we face.
David was not full time staff with Saul, he still was tending to his father’s sheep and when needed was sent to Saul. While he was tending the sheep his father, Jesse sent him on a mission to deliver food to his three brothers who were engaged in the battle against the Philistines and he was to check up on them to see how they were doing and report back to his father.
The battle between the armies had come to a standstill and it was determined that one soldier from the Israelite army would go to battle against one soldier from the Philistine army who happened to be a mammoth of a man. Goliath would have been great person to have as your tag team partner in a WWF wrestling match. He was very intimidating and none of the Israelite soldiers were volunteering to go one on one with him. The odds were not good and preservation of life seemed to dominate their thinking. So for 40 days, twice each day, the challenge to battle against Goliath was issued and for 40 days no one accepted. The number 40 represents a fulfillment of a time of testing or temptation and the time of testing of the Philistine Goliath was soon to come to an end. Goliath was going down.
When David comes on the scene he again demonstrates responsibility by leaving his luggage with someone who would faithfully guard it. He proceeds to investigate what is happening and finds out that Saul has issued a huge tax benefit plus one of his daughters to the person who could take on Goliath. Perhaps he issued the challenge because he knew that no one would really be successful so the tax write off and losing one of his daughters may not have ever had to be fulfilled. Up to this point no one had the courage to take him up on the offer as everyone viewed the one on one battle against Goliath as instant death and Israel would become the servants of the Philistines. The future of the entire nation was at stake and nobody was prepared to risk it all. David inquired three times what the challenge and reward would be for the person who was victorious over Goliath. Perhaps he wanted to make sure he was hearing correctly but I think more than that he wanted to take up the offer and was looking for someone to bring him to the contest. His oldest brother when he found out what David was doing immediately came against him and accused him of abandoning his job as a shepherd to come to see the battle. His brother did not have the facts and judged David by his own opinions and that will always get you into trouble. David knew why he had come, his father had given him a mission to bring food to his brothers so David did not have to defend himself. The true mission God had given David was being revealed to David and he was ready to take on Goliath, the loud mouthed heathen who was defying the armies of the Living God. David saw a spiritual battle, a cause that was worth putting his life on the line. It was his God versus the Philistine gods and he knew that his God was more powerful and would give him victory just as he had done with the lion and the bear. I believe the battles against the evil spirits that attacked Saul prepared David to see beyond a physical battle between a giant of a man and the army of Israel. The anointing of God’s Spirit upon David would give him victory in the battle. It was not David’s abilities but God working in David as he had demonstrated in the past that would give him victory again. David had great confidence in God’s ability to bring victory. He knew God’s power and thought nothing of Goliath’s ability or size. David was ready for the challenge and when the other men finally understood what David’s questions were really saying they took him to Saul. David was no stranger to Saul yet it seems from the text that Saul did not recognize or remember him. Maybe David had changed physically or Saul was having a senor moment and did not remember him. Saul tried to dissuade him from going to battle against a man who had been raised as a soldier since he was a boy. David’s persistence that he could do the job finally won favor with Saul and he was given permission to go to battle. When Saul offered David his armor it was more than just an act to give David protection.
“Is the armor too big, or the crown.” 1 Sam. 17:38-40
There is more to Saul’s offer of the royal armor and sword to David than meets the eye. Positions of authority in the ancient world were marked by formal insignia, or by special clothing. Even more important, the ruler’s weapon, usually a sword, was seen as a gift of the deities and a mark of their favor toward the bearer as the legitimate ruler. So when Saul offered David his armor, he would have been understood by Israelite culture as offering David his own position as King of Israel. The transfer of clothing signified a transfer of status…Saul’s sword was the mark of his position as defender of Israel; when the sword was given to David, Saul’s kingship went with it. But David could not wear the armor or the sword; he was not ready to rule, even though he already had the favor of God and the courage to defend Israel. By returning the military gear, David showed that he did not intend to replace Saul as king. (Chronological Study Bible p. 314)
Saul wanted to protect David by giving him his armor but it was too big and awkward for him. Saul had good intentions but David knew it would not serve him and would be a hindrance to him. David would rely upon God to protect him and not man so he went to battle with his normal shepherd clothing. Saul sent him off with the words, “God be with you.” He may as well have added, “Because none of us is going with you!” David was going against all odds in the eyes of Saul and all of Israelite army yet David knew who was calling the shots in this situation and he boldly stood in front of Goliath. Goliath was in his full armor; definitely an intimidating sight and he roared insults against David. To Goliath this whole scene was a joke, a young kid with a shepherd’s rod and a sling shot was no match for him. David did not fear or back down from the battle. He boldly proclaimed that Goliath was going down! David’s God was going to give him victory and Goliath’s head would be chopped off to be displayed to the entire world that God was real and that that He did not need weapons to give victory. The battle was not about two armies fighting against each other but God fighting against the gods of the Philistines. The stage had been set for the winner take all battle. Goliath must have thought it was a big joke while David was pumped and took his sling shot and 5 rocks and ran toward Goliath. David slung the rock toward Goliath’s head and it struck him in an unprotected part of his forehead causing him to fall probably unconscious. David wasted no time when Goliath was down, he ran over to him and used Goliath’s own sword to cut off his head. Panic set in among the Philistines while courage was infused in the Israelites who pursued and slaughtered their enemy and took great spoil. King Saul knew that he needed David at his side and made sure that Jesse was notified that his son had been promoted and was called into full-time service of the King.
David was given responsibilities and assignments by Saul to fight battles against their enemies. God was with David and gave him success and he became a person of great renown among all of Israel. God was preparing David to become the King of Israel and to be a successful King David had to learn how to engage in warfare and defeat the enemies. Throughout David’s life he learned how to depend upon God to give him the strategy to gain victory over the enemy. David sought the counsel of God before he engaged in warfare and he learned that obedience to God would ensure victory.
We can learn several things from David’s life as a warrior that we can apply to the battles we face as believers.
First we must recognize the nature of the battle we face is spiritual and not physical. This is the cause that propelled David into battle. Goliath was defying David’s God and that was all the motivation David needed to engage in battle. Today we are faced with attacks from the new atheists who defy the existence of God and publicly have ridiculed those who believe in His existence. An atheistic campaign in England is currently making the news.
The campaign was designed to respond to various claims from various religions that people who do not believe in God are doomed to an eternity in hell. They sought to raise money for a campaign that says, “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” Within two days of launching the fundraising portion of the campaign they had all the money they needed, and the money has continued to come in. The organizers of the campaign are now looking at how they can expand it. (Alonzo Fyfe blog, “Atheistic Ethicist”)
Christianity is under greater attack than at any time in history. Persecution of the church and martyrdom are greater than at any time in history.
God is being mocked, denied, denigrated and his image is being destroyed through the lies of the enemy. We have to understand that we are not battling personalities but principalities and the ideas that they are positing against belief and faith in God. Paul understood this when he said in Ephesians 6:12, For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
We live in a spiritual world that has real forces of darkness that are waging war against us each day. The enemy uses people to carry out his plans and we have to realize that behind each attack by a person is an evil influence that is motivating the attack either directly or indirectly. There is enough evil nature in fallen man to motivate many horrific acts of violence. Without the presence, power and submission of our lives to the Holy Spirit each of us is capable of doing great evil. I was watching World Christian News from CBN last week as they gave a report about persecution of Christians by radical Muslims. I want to show this segment of the broadcast as it typifies what man is capable of doing when his life is not controlled by the Holy Spirit of God but rather the demonic influence that drive evil behavior.
Second, we have to have complete confidence in the power of God to overcome the enemy. David had no doubt in his mind that Goliath was no competition for the Lord. The enemy has power but it is limited and it is as nothing in comparison to the power of God. Dean Sherman used the illustration of comparing God’s power with the enemies power by stating that if you filled a large room with sand and called that the amount of power of God, and then picked up on grain of sand, that grain would represent the power of Satan. We don’t have to be intimidated by the power of Satan when we have the power of God at our disposal. “If God be for us who can stand against us?” (Rom. 8:31). We can boldly go into the battlefields because we are well equipped to overcome. One of the problems that police face whether they are in Guatemala or any other country is that the people they are often going to face have weapons that are more powerful than the ones they have. This is cause for great fear and often hinders the police from assaulting the enemy. We never have to face this fear, God’s power is infinite. No weapon formed against us will prosper.
Third, we have to fight against the true enemy by inquiring of the Lord and then with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we use the spiritual weapons God has given us. In the confrontation with Goliath, there is no mention of David seeking guidance about whether he should take on Goliath. It was obvious to David that action was required. Many times it will be obvious that we must take action against the enemy and this is one example. There were several other battle situations that David confronted in which he first inquired of the Lord as to whether he should pursue the enemy.
In 1 Samuel 23:1-5 we read of David inquiring of the Lord as to whether he should go to battle.
Then they told David, saying, “Look, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah, and they are robbing the threshing floors.” 2Therefore David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go and attack these Philistines?” And the Lord said to David, “Go and attack the Philistines, and save Keilah.” 3 But David’s men said to him, “Look, we are afraid here in Judah. How much more then if we go to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines?” 4 Then David inquired of the Lord once again.
And the Lord answered him and said, “Arise, go down to Keilah. For I will deliver the Philistines into your hand.” 5 And David and his men went to Keilah and fought with the Philistines, struck them with a mighty blow, and took away their livestock. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah.
When the city of Ziklag was invaded by the Philistines who burned it and took captive all the women and children, David again inquired of the Lord as to what he should do.
1 Samuel 30:7-8; Then David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech’s son, “Please bring the ephod here to me.” And Abiathar brought the ephod to David. 8 So David inquired of the LORD, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?” And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.”
After David was anointed King he was faced with an attack by the Philistines and again he sought God for guidance and strategy. 1 Chronicles 14:8-17 records the events.
8 Now when the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David. And David heard of it and went out against them. 9 Then the Philistines went and made a raid on the Valley of Rephaim. 10 And David inquired of God, saying, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will You deliver them into my hand?”
The LORD said to him, “Go up, for I will deliver them into your hand.”
11 So they went up to Baal Perazim, and David defeated them there. Then David said, “God has broken through my enemies by my hand like a breakthrough of water.” Therefore they called the name of that place Baal Perazim. 12 And when they left their gods there, David gave a commandment, and they were burned with fire.
13 Then the Philistines once again made a raid on the valley. 14 Therefore David inquired again of God, and God said to him, “You shall not go up after them; circle around them, and come upon them in front of the mulberry trees. 15 And it shall be, when you hear a sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall go out to battle, for God has gone out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.” 16 So David did as God commanded him, and they drove back the army of the Philistines from Gibeon as far as Gezer. 17 Then the fame of David went out into all lands, and the LORD brought the fear of him upon all nations.

David was a mighty warrior but he knew that he would only win the victory as he sought God for guidance and then obeyed what the Lord spoke to him. When we are led and directed by the Holy Spirit the weapons that we use will do exactly what needs to be done to defeat the enemy. David’s rock, rocked Goliath and brought him down, it was I believe a Spirit guided rock, like the smart bombs that are used in warfare today. The weapons God has given us are powerful (2 Cor. 10:4), they can defeat the enemy when they are used properly and under God’s direction. We will not discuss how to use each of these weapons tonight but I want to list the weapons that are at our disposal to overcome the enemy.

1. Word of our testimony (Rev 12:11)
2. The blood of the Lamb (Rev 12:11)
3. Love not your life unto death (Rev 12:11)
4. Prayer in different forms and fasting (Eph. 6:18)
5. The Name of Jesus (Acts 3:6)
6. Doing good works (Rom. 12:21)
7. Binding and loosing (Matt. 16:19)
8. Living a holy life (Rom. 12:1,2)
9. Preaching the gospel (Rom. 10:17)
10. Praise and worship (Psalms 149:6-9)
11. Repentance and Exercising Faith (Matt. 3:2)
12. Giving (1 Tim. 6:10)
Fourth, your example of victory over the enemy will be a motivator for others to pursue the enemy and win the battle. Our faith and confidence in the Lord increase through the testimonies of the victories of other believers. Just as David’s victory propelled the Israelites into battle so too will our victories be an encouragement to others who are facing difficult situations. Your testimony is powerful, make sure you share your stories of victory over the enemy.
As believers in Christ we are all called to be warriors and engage in the battle on a daily basis. As we apply the principles and lessons we learn from David’s life we will learn how to be victorious over our enemy.
1. The real battle is spiritual not physical.
2. Our confidence is in God’s power not our own.
3. Seek God’s guidance and strategy to wage warfare using the weapons He has made available.
4. Share your testimonies of victory to encourage others in the battle.