Develop an Image of Victory

This morning we continue our series “Grace that is Simply Amazing.”  Yesterday we left off with David walking into the valley to face Goliath.  Picture the scene upon the canvas of your mind.  Two armies are mustered on each side of the valley.  Down in the valley is a giant, clothed with armor head-to-toe.  Standing by the giant is his armor-bearer, carrying a shield so big it requires a second man to tote it around.  And then, out of the opposing side, comes a teenager with no armor at all.  He is more dressed like he is ready for chores than for battle.  He does not have a sword and he has never trained with one.  All he has is his shepherd’s staff, a slingshot, and five smooth stones.  But wait, I forgot, this little boy does have something else… he has the grace of God.  A few weeks earlier he was a nobody from nowhere.  Today he is a young man who is going to represent his entire nation in battle.  The weight of the nation is in his hands and his hands are in God’s hands.  That’s the scene, so now let’s pick up the story.

Goliath walked out toward David with his armor-bearer ahead of him, and sneered in contempt as he looked at his opponent.  Goliath asked, “Am I a dog, that you come at me with a stick?”  Goliath went on to curse David by the names of his gods.  However, Goliath had no idea that he could not curse what the only true God had already blessed.  Goliath went on to yell, “Come over here, and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and wild animals!”  David was unphased.  Unlike Saul and his men, David did not allow Goliath’s threats to strike fear in his heart.  David replied, “You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies—the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.”  For David this more than just a one-on-one hand-to-hand combat showdown.  This was about God and how He had been disrespected by Goliath.  David was God’s emissary and he was going to let everyone present that day know what happens when you defy the God of Israel.  So with his faith firmly rooted in God David said, “Today the Lord will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head.  And then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel!  And everyone assembled here will know that the Lord rescues his people, but not with sword and spear.  This is the Lord’s battle, and he will give you to us!”  We will stop here for this week.

So what does this mean to you today?  A few things:
1.  Have faith in God.  There is nothing — literally NO THING — too hard for God.  If He leads you to do something that is clearly beyond your natural ability, it is because He wants to flex His muscles and get the glory.  Let Him!  Have faith in His ability.  You submit and He will conquer!

2.  God’s ways you are not conventional.  God could have selected a seasoned warrior.  He could have sent out His man with full armor and a sharp sword.  He could have made someone as big as Goliath for Saul’s army, but what would be the fun in that?  God specializes in man’s impossibilities.  God does things in unconventional ways so that it would be clear that He was the one behind it, and so that He would get all the glory!

3.  Your feet will never take you where your mind has never been.  David had already envisioned himself winning.  David saw the victory, upon the canvas of his mind (spiritually) before he ever stepped into the valley.  As a believer you should seek to receive in your heart, before you attempt to receive in your hands.  And once you have received the vision (in your heart), you can have confidence that the provision (in your hands) will also come, by God’s immeasurable grace.

Closing Confession:  Father, I know I face a real enemy daily.  I know he comes up against me with pictures, plots, plans, and words.  But I also know You are a real God who deals with real issues, real enemies, and real opposition in a real way!  You are bigger than anything and anyone that can come up against me.  My confidence in You is greater than the fear of anyone else.  David was anointed by the prophet Samuel.  My encounter came directly through Jesus Christ.  The Holy Spirit enables me to hear and to see through spiritual means.  I learn what to receive and what to reject.  You bless me to receive the right things in my heart, so I can see the right things in my mind, speak the right things with my lips, and do the right things with my hands.  You help me to develop an image of victory and You then bring that victory to pass by Your grace.  I declare this by faith.  In Jesus’ name.