There’s a good chance you’ve heard the story of David & Goliath. David, a young boy, saw a giant taunting his brothers and the Israelite army. Nobody stood up to him so David took matters into his own hands. He picked out five smooth stones from a nearby river and slung one at Goliath, knocking him square in the head. The little guy defeated the big guy! Wham, bam, he’s a dead man! It’s a true underdog story. How inspiring!
Quite often we use this story as a motivation to fight tyranny, work hard when success isn’t guaranteed, and even to slay the giants in our lives. Here’s one example of the way we use the story:
You’re David, and your Goliath is relationship issues. The five stones are confession, forgiveness, honesty, communication, and counseling! Boom, you just killed the Goliath of relationship issues! Your mom just called, she’s proud!
There’s something wrong with this version of the story, though. We assume we’re David, but we aren’t. You aren’t David and Goliath isn’t some problem to be solved. If we did have a part in this story, it wouldn’t be the one you thought.
Finding our part in the story:
Travel back with me as we find it. In case you forgot, Goliath was gigantic! He was so big, in fact, we use his name as an adjective! Here’s our part of the story, as told by Samuel:
And the Philistine (Goliath) said, “I defy the ranks of Israel this day. Give me a man, that we may fight together.” When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.
– 1 Samuel 17:10-11
Did you catch our part? We’re the ones in the back who were dismayed and greatly afraid. Which of you would have had the audacity to take a stand against Goliath? David is thought to have been about 15 years old when he killed the Philistine giant. My mind was elsewhere when I was 15. At that age, I was God’s gift to women, or so I thought. I certainly would not have done what David did. No offense, but I suspect you wouldn’t have either.
After David killed Goliath we show back up. The Israelite army finally gained courage after seeing David’s valor and chased down and killed the remaining Philistines. Once they saw the courage of David, they gained some for themselves. And so it is with us.
They weren’t the ones who did the brunt of the work, David was. Likewise, we aren’t the ones who did anything of value in God’s Kingdom, Jesus did. But that’s alright, it’s the life of a Christian. Jesus did everything for us. Sure, we get to clean up a few messes (arguably less than we make ourselves). The greatest work ever done was completed for us on the cross of Christ. Jesus did what we were unwilling and unable to do the day he defeated death just as David did what every other Israelite soldier was unwilling (though able) to do.
We’re not David, but we do have a part to play. While standing in the back, afraid, isn’t as sexy as being the hero, it sure beats being Goliath.
Recommendations:
To avoid these types of applicational mistakes when reading the Bible, check out these resources to help you better understand how to read the Bible well:
- How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth by Fee and Stuart (Zondervan, 2014)
- Misreading Scripture With Western Eyes by Richards and O’Brien (InterVarsity Press, 2012)
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