Jesus is Your Champion :: 1 Samuel 17:40-51

And when the Philistine arose and came near to meet David, David prepared quickly and ran to the battleline to meet the Philistine. And David stretched out his hand to the pouch and took a stone from there, and slinging it, he struck the Philistine on his forehead, and the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell upon his face to the earth (vv.48-49).

1.

Goliath is towering, mighty, and menacing. He stands over 9 feet tall. His armor weighs about 130 pounds. He has a massive sword strapped to his side. This giant was well-versed in battle, having practiced war from childhood. And for forty days, he came into the Valley of Elah and demanded that a challenger from Israel confront him. His towering presence, booming voice, and certain threats rained down over Israel. He derided their God, and caused panic and fear. He’s bigger, mightier, and more menacing than anyone they’ve faced. Full of worry, fear, and despair, the army hid. In truth, that was all they could do. No amount of ingenuity, skill, weapon, or wisdom could match the deadly might of this great and powerful enemy.

That’s the way it is when you are faced with certain death. That’s really who Goliath is ... he is certain death. Goliath had death as his obedient servant ... He used death as he desired ... Death was his weapon. ... Death obeyed him. This is the giant that taunts, mocks, and challenges. Death is the giant that appears completely unstoppable. 

That’s the way sin is. That’s what temptation feels like. That’s how Satan operates. 

Together, these three ... sin, temptation, and Satan ... comprise the greatest enemy we Christians fight against every single day. Sin, temptation, and Satan are a towering giant that we cannot face alone. Every day they confront us in the valley. Every day we hide. Every day we cover up our sin and make excuses for it ... and we die ... we die because of the giant called sin. 

Scripture says that Satan is like a roaring lion, prowling around, seeking someone to devour (1 Pt 5:8). He too is a giant, toying with your emotion and reason. He holds up your massive guilt before your eyes, pulling you deeper into despair because of past sin. He lures you into deeper temptations. Soon, your sinful mind slips into sinful habits ... and by the time you notice it, the fight seems too great to overcome ... your love of self has consumed your heart. Then in fear, you avoid confronting it, confessing it. You pay lip service to it. Reconciliation sometimes seems too big to be achieved. 

2.

As you confront the giant mess of sin in your life, Goliath continues taunting: Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks? (v 43) He curses you and curses your God. He is mighty and powerful. No amount of self-reliance ... no amount of inner-strength ... no  motivational self-speak can help you. But fear not. 

This is exactly why God sent Jesus forth. 

Christ shares our very flesh and blood. As an ordinary man, he stands up for you ... God’s chosen champion for you.

JESUS IS YOUR CHAMPION 

3.

God did not leave you to cower in the face of death. He has chosen someone after his own heart to fight for you. This is David’s confession today. It is not David who fights Goliath ... The Battle is the Lord’s (v 47). David has the word and promise of God in his heart and on his lips. The battle is the Lord’s. The text tells us that there was no sword in his hand. David did not presume to bring anything of his own to this battle. He goes into the Valley of Elah ... the Valley of the Shadow of Certain Death ... in the name of the Lord of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom [Goliath] ... whom Satan ... blasphemes (v 45). The giant foes of temptation, Satan, and death are much too great for you. 

But fear not ... God has chosen a champion for you, to fight for you. God has chosen a champion for you ... one who walks into battle in the name of the Lord God Almighty ... one who is confident of victory and of salvation ... one who fulfills the promises of God for you.

David stood in for the whole army of Israel ... really the whole nation of Israel. Jesus stands in for all mankind who has been taunted, terrorized, and tortured by Satan. He stands for you. 

We should not blush at this ... it is God’s promises being played out for you ... beginning with the first promise in the garden when mankind fell into the trap of the serpent. I will put hostility between you and the woman, between her offspring and your offspring. You will strike his heel and He will crush your head (Gen 3:15). There is no giant too big for God in Christ. 

4.

We see a glimpse of this battle in the Gospel reading from Matthew 4. Jesus stood toe-to-toe with man’s great foe in the wilderness. In the likeness of man, He was tempted. He was made weak. He was hungry. He did not presume to bring any weapons of warfare to this battle. As the devil taunted and tempted him, Jesus rested on the Word and Promises of God ... knowing that these promises of God are for you and for your salvation. 

Our epistle to the Hebrews says, We do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses (4:15). In other words, in Jesus we have a warrior who in every way has been tempted as we are ... yet him without sin. The sinless son of God did not fall ... remember, ἀγάπη never falls. It boldly declares to Satan, that the Battle is the Lord’s. And with the Word of the Lord, the battle is won. It is written: Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God (Mt 4:4). ... It is written: You shall not put the Lord your God to the test (Mt 4:7). ... It is written: You shall worship the Lord your God and Him only shall you serve (Mt 4:10). Then the devil left him, defeated. 

5.

Christ is victorious. He uses the shield of faith to extinguish the flaming arrows of the evil one. He uses the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, as his only weapon. The Word of God is victorious ... and the devil’s taunts and temptations are broken.

Look again at the shepherd David. He trusted solely in God’s promises to Israel. He knew that God promised to rout all their enemies. He was confident that God would establish Israel in the promised land. He rested on the promise that God would provide a Savior ... that through this Savior, all the families of the earth would be blessed. In these established promises from God, David stood toe-to-toe with Israel’s giant enemy.

And when the Philistine arose and came near to meet David, David prepared quickly and ran to the battleline to meet the Philistine. And David stretched out his hand to the pouch and took a stone from there, and slinging it, he struck the Philistine on his forehead, and the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell upon his face to the earth (vv.48-49).

The weapon ... the rock ... is Christ ... the immovable, indestructible, always faithful and confident God of our salvation. Trusting in the Rock of God, David was given the victory. 

Your Lord Jesus completed that victory in the great battle upon the cross. There, Christ suffered all the indignity and shame for your sin. He was pierced for your transgressions, crushed for your iniquities. He bore the full wrath of God for you. He died on the cross, and sank into the heart of the earth. He then overcame the towering enemy called death, rising victorious forever. He has destroyed sin, temptation, and the devil. Jesus is risen from the dead. Hallelujah!

6.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, because of this battle, your sins ... though they seem mighty ... died with Jesus on the cross. And in exchange, he has given you new life through the resurrection. Because of David’s victory, all of the people of Israel were granted freedom, safety, and an established kingdom in the land of promise. Because of Christ, all who trust in him, are forgiven, free, and given a home in the eternal and everlasting kingdom of paradise. 

This promise is guaranteed by our Lord through the spoils of war. Christ cleanses the battle wounds of your sin with the pure waters of Holy Baptism, which saves you now. He feeds your hungry heart and soul with His own body and blood ... given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. These two means of grace speak a better word. They nurture and nourish your faith in Christ that he will save you. They strengthen your faith in Christ that he will overcome your weaknesses. They deliver to you the forgiveness of sins, which we need everyday. So as the evangelist to the Hebrews declares, Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need (Heb 4:16). 

Let us do this everyday. Let us do this always. 

This is the Lord’s work for you. This is the Lord’s promise to you ... as he renders your Goliath powerless through his life, through his death and resurrection, and means of grace. 

As Luther voiced in the final line of our hymn of the day: 

The victory has been won; the Kingdom ours remaineth (LSB 656).

In Jesus’ Name. Amen.