1 Samuel 17. This is the story of David and Goliath. We're not going to read the whole story, but I'm going to go through and pull out some truths from this story. And I'm starting by asking this question, where are the heroes? I believe this is what God laid upon my heart. I was preparing for another sermon and spent quite a bit of time working on it. And God changed it at the last minute. And here we are. And I believe this is what God has given me. Now for some of you, you all know that I'm related to Sergeant Alvin C. York. Some of you probably don't know that. Some of you probably don't even know who that is. Alvin C. York was, Sergeant Alvin C. York was one of, I've read it a couple ways. Somebody said one of the most decorated war veterans of World War I. Another source said that he was the most decorated veteran or soldier of World War I and he received medals not just from America but from other allied countries because he helped break the back of the Germans in a pretty important battle. Sergeant York single-handedly took out 35 machine guns of the Germans. And if anybody in here is German this morning, please take it within the context and don't be offended. He killed 25 enemy soldiers and he captured 132 prisoners single-handedly. Now, Sergeant York in his early life, Alvin C. was a rabble rouser. And at some point he heard the gospel and it broke him and he got saved. And before that point, he had a mother who prayed for him that he would come to Christ and would change his ways. And God heard her prayers, broke his heart, and brought him to Jesus Christ. He got saved and became a good Christian man. When the draft came about, he said, no, I can't go fight. He went and talked to his pastor. His pastor gave him some counsel. He took some time to go up in one of the mountains of Tennessee near his home. And he spent a few days up there with the Lord and prayed about it. And while he was there, the Lord revealed to him that what was going on in this war was the spread of evil and that he could do more by fighting in the battle and ending evil than he could if he was sitting at home. And so he went and enlisted, and when he enlisted, he went to battle with the purpose of doing what God had revealed to him, and that is to do all that he could to resist the evil forces. And in one battle, he took out those 35 machine guns, the 25 enemy soldiers were killed, and he captured 132 prisoners. And when he marched those prisoners back into their camp, the guys that were there surrounded them, and of course, and captured them, and then said something to him like this, York, how'd you do that? And he replied with that southern drawl that very few of us would be able to understand, man, the woods are full of them, go out and get them. Simple answer, isn't it? But why was one man willing to do that? And I want to tell you that the world is looking for heroes, right? Now that's just an example from World War I of a physical battle where God used a man. But this morning I want to talk about spiritual battles. And I want to talk about the need for spiritual heroes. And we're in the story of David, and I wanna begin reading verse number 23, and we're not gonna get all of the story, but David is now in the camp. His brothers are in the army. David was tending the sheep, and his dad sent him to go check on his brothers and to bring some gifts to them in the way of food and things that would be appreciated. In verse 23, it says, and as he, that's David, as he talked with them, behold, there came out the champion. The Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the armies of the Philistines, and spake according to the same words, and David heard them. And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were sore afraid." This man was over nine feet tall, by the way. Verse 25, "'And the men of Israel said, Have you seen this man that has come up? Surely to defy Israel is he come up.' And it shall be that the man who killeth him, the king, will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father's house free in Israel. And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth his Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God? And the people answered him after this man, saying, So shall it be done to the man that killeth him. And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spake unto the men, and Eliab's anger was kindled against David. And he said, Why camest thou down hither? And with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy pride and the naughtiness of thine heart. For thou art come down, that thou mightest see the battle. And David said, What have I now done? Is there not a cause? Good question, isn't it? And he turned from him toward another, and spake after the same manner, and the people answered him again after the former manner. And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul, and he sent for him. And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him. Thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine. Father, as we look at this passage this morning, we see a young man who was willing to do what nobody else would do. We see a man who understood the power of God, that understood the context of a man defiling God. He understood the way that you work in his life. He understood that he was in your care and in your presence. He understood that there was a cause. And God, He surrendered and allowed you to use Him in a way that very few men have been used. God, would you open our hearts and minds this morning to the fact that those around us, Lord, even in this room, they need to see other people fully surrendered to the Lord Jesus Christ. They need to see people given to Him and to His purposes. And God, I pray that you'd help us to understand ultimately that it's all about your honor. And Father, we ask that you'd preach through me. And it's in Jesus Christ's name that we pray, amen. Verse 32, and David said to Saul, let no man's heart fail because of him. Thy servant will go and fight with his Philistine. And Saul said to David, thou art not able to go against this Philistine, to fight with him, for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth. And David said unto Saul, thy servant kept my father's sheep, and there came a lion and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock, and I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth. And when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him. thy servant slew both the lion and the bear. And this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God." I want us to look at some principles that had David prepared for this that made him a great hero. First one I see in these verses is this, God had prepared David for this battle. We don't often know what God is doing and what He's preparing us for. But God is constantly working in our lives and he's constantly putting us in circumstances where that we have decisions to make. And because of those decisions, God is slowly growing us. Now, I don't know about you all, but I don't think I would have wanted to have faced a lion or a bear. And when David said he caught him by the beard and slew him, I don't know if it was the lion that he grabbed by the beard or whether it was the bear that he grabbed by the beard, but I wouldn't want to grab either one by the beard. David understood that God was with him. This is one of the most amazing things about David that I see in scripture, and that is, as David lived his life, he understood he was in the presence of God, and that everything that happened to him was under God's control. David was sent there to do a job, and God sent a lion and a bear. Say, how do you know God sent them? Because God used that lion and that bear to prepare David for this very day. Now, let me ask you this morning, Christian, what has God sent into your life to prepare you for greater service for Him? Jesus Christ, when He was talking to Peter in Luke chapter 22, and He told Peter that He was going to be tempted of Satan, Jesus said this, And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not, and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. Do you hear that? Now this whole idea of sifting as wheat is a little different than some of the other ways that they harvested wheat and sorted it out. The sifting is where they would put it in a pan and they would kind of shake it and let the good stuff drop to the ground and the lighter stuff that was no good would stay on the top. Thus what you see when you look in the pan was the stuff you didn't want. It was the ugly stuff. You wanted the stuff that had fallen down. And so when Satan sifts an individual, he wants to reveal the ugly stuff. And he's really good at it. And Jesus said to Peter, I've prayed for you. And he didn't pray that Satan or that God would stop the temptation and that Satan wouldn't be able to sift Peter. He didn't pray that at all. He didn't say, I prayed for you so that the devil couldn't get to you. He didn't pray that at all. He said, I prayed that your faith would fail not because you're going through the trial, Peter. And when you come out on the other side and you're converted, there's something I want you to do because I'm not just taking you through this for your own benefit. It is for your benefit because it's gonna make you stronger. But when you get to the other side, there's something I want you to do. I want you to take what you've learned and I want you to use it to strengthen your brethren. You see, God always prepares us for greater service. And whatever you're going through right now that you may perceive as a hardship in your life, and there are hardships in life, right? If you've not had a hard time in life, you've not lived long enough. Whatever that may be that you're going through, God is using it to prepare you for greater service because he wants you to serve others or serve him by ministering to others. And so God had prepared David by sending him some pretty big challenges. And God's going to do the same for you. Now, if David would have ran from that bear and from that lion, I guarantee you he'd have ran from Goliath. Are you hearing me this morning? When God puts us through difficult circumstances and all we do is whine and complain, we're failing to see what God wants to accomplish in our lives. And I'm not saying that hard circumstances are easy because they're not. We live in a sin-cursed earth and we've all been there. But God uses those. And the way that we respond through those makes all the difference in the world whether we're gonna grow or not. Look with me at verse number 37. David said, moreover, the Lord hath delivered me out of the paw of the lion and out of the paw of the bear. He will deliver me out of the hand of the Philistine. We'll get to that last phrase in a minute, but what do we see in that first phrase there? David knew where the victory came from. Saul said, excuse me, David said, the Lord hath delivered me. The Lord hath delivered me. He didn't say, hey, I'm pretty skilled at this. I've been able to outwit a lion and a bear. You need to trust these canons." That's not what David said. He said, the Lord hath delivered me. David was a young man at this point too, by the way. That built faith in the Lord. And let me say this, all the time that David spent around the hillsides of Bethlehem, tending those sheep gave David the opportunity to draw close to God. He could have used it for all sorts of reasons that were selfish, but God became David's best friend as he tended those sheep. God became his greatest desire as he was up on that hillside around Bethlehem. God became so real to David that David could fight a lion and a bear knowing that the protection of God was upon him. He was not afraid to face them. And I would dare say that if you were in David's mind when that lion and that bear came out and David had to make that decision whether he was gonna fight or whether he was gonna lose that lamb that he had the responsibility to protect, I imagine you would know within the mind of David that there was a prompting of God that said, David, why don't you go take care of this? I'm with you. Because God wanted to use it to prepare him for greater service. You see, there was a lamb saved when that lion attacked. There was a lamb saved when that bear attacked. But there was an army and a nation saved when that giant attacked. And God took him through those experiences to prepare him for the bigger service. David became his best friend, his greatest desire. David wrote psalms out on those Bethlehem hillsides, psalms about God. He sang them and played his harp, praising God. And then at the end of verse number 37, it says this, and Saul said unto David, go and the Lord be with thee. What changed his mind? He's saying, David, you can't do this. You're just a youth. Goliath is a trained warrior. But there was a point where David said, you know what? I think God is in this. Now, to fully understand this, keep a finger in chapter 17, but go over to chapter 18 and look at verse number 12. There, Saul had tried to kill David by this time. And it says in verse number 12, and Saul was afraid of David. It doesn't say David was afraid of Saul. Saul was the king. Saul had a javelin in his hand. Saul threw it at David. Saul was afraid of David. Why? Because the Lord was with him and was departed from Saul. Look at verse 28 of chapter 18. Verse 28, and Saul saw and knew that the Lord was with David and that Michael, Saul's daughter, loved him. Saul knew, Saul recognized God's hand. You know, when God supernaturally moves in a person's life, God supernaturally moves, other people can see it. Now, they may not always understand what it is, but they will know that there is a difference. My prayer is that when people come into Brentwood Baptist Church, they will know that there's a difference, that they sense God here. They may not know why, they may not understand what it is, but when they come in here, I want them to say there is something different about this place. I pray that your prayer is the same. We have a group of men that gathers together on Saturday night and we pray, and men, I would like every one of y'all to be here. We pray for the services on Sunday. You know why? Because we believe that it's important that we plead to God and ask him to meet with us on Sunday morning because all of the trappings and all the things that we do are of none avail if God's not here. People need to know. And David handled himself wisely. Now look at chapter 18, verse 14. I want you to see this. And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways, and the Lord was with him. Wherefore, when Saul saw that he behaved himself wisely, behaved himself very wisely, he was afraid of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he went out and came in before them. You see, Saul was afraid he was gonna lose his kingdom. Because he knew that God was with David. Saul had already been told the kingdom was gonna be taken from him because he was unwise in his behavior. And David handled himself wisely. God was with him and it produced two different responses. Do you see this? Now I want you to understand this with me. Because when we surrender to God, and we are totally given to Him, and we allow God to accomplish what He wants to accomplish in our lives, there are gonna be some people that are gonna love it. And there are gonna be some people that are afraid of it and want to take it away. The people love David. Let me say this, that people who are looking for, no, let me say that differently. There are people who are looking for a person to stand up and be godly. And some of the people who you work with may not want you to be a righteous person because it reflects on their corruption. But I guarantee you, even if they tease you about being a Bible thumper or being whatever that they may tease you about being a child of God, they don't wanna see you fail. You know why? Because they're looking for heroes. They want to know that there is something greater than they have in their life. They want to know that there is somebody who has surrendered to God who can help direct them when they need it. People are looking for a spiritual hero. And let me say this, this contemporary culture nonsense that we live in that says you gotta be like them to win them is just basically nonsense. That's not God's plan. I want to tell you, the closer you draw to the Lord, the more those who are searching for peace and truth will gravitate to you. I want to say this, too. David developed the closest friend he ever had during this time. That friend was Jonathan. God said that their souls were knit. All that time as a shepherd, developing a close relationship with God. established God as David's closest companion. Now listen, this is important. All the time as a shepherd that David developed a close relationship with God, God became his closest companion. And once that was established, God gave him a human friend who encouraged him in the will of God for his life. And that was Jonathan. And when we have a relationship with God that nobody will stand in the way of and we won't let people in between and God is our number one friend and companion, then God can trust us with human friends who will be like iron sharpening iron and will help us and not drag us down. There's a great principle in this. But as much as the people loved him, Saul feared him. You see, not everyone will appreciate a spiritual hero. In fact, many people will fear and try to destroy such a person. You know why? Because a spiritual hero sheds light on the corruption of a sinful person. David didn't rebuke Saul. Saul was out of line. David didn't rebuke him. David didn't condemn him. David didn't call him out. David simply lived a godly life and it scared Saul. Now why didn't Saul go out to fight Goliath? Here we are in the middle of this battle, right? Why didn't Saul go to fight Goliath? The answer to that is he didn't have the relationship with God that David had, that's why. God needs people who will walk with him and accomplish great things for him. They're far and few between. Those who are willing to say, God, if you lead me, I'll do it. David's love for the Lord, David's love for God's word made Saul look bad, so Saul would rather destroy David than to turn to God with his whole heart himself. So when you are fully surrendered to God, And people recognize that there is something in your life that is special, and they may not know that it's God, but they know that there's something different. But when people see that, some will love it, and some will fear it, and try to destroy it. But it's no different today, is it? We see the same thing today. So Christian, let me ask you, how do you handle this? Do you throw up your hands and say, God, I can't believe they made fun of me. I can't, I can't talk about you anymore. Or are we willing to say, no, that's my God. I'm proud of him. He's the closest friend I have. Look at verse number 40. Back to chapter 17. LET'S GET VERSE 38 IT SAYS, AND SAUL ARMED DAVID WITH HIS ARMOR, AND HE PUT A HELMET OF BRASS UPON HIS HEAD. ALSO HE ARMED HIM WITH A COAT OF MAIL, AND DAVID GIRDED HIS SWORD UPON HIS ARMOR, AND HE WAS SAID TO GO, FOR HE HAD NOT PROVED IT. AND DAVID SAID UNTO SAUL, I CANNOT GO WITH THESE, FOR I HAVE NOT PROVED THEM, AND DAVID PUT THEM OFF HIM. YOU KNOW I CAN'T HELP BUT JUST SMILE AT THIS AND I THINK ABOUT SAUL Saul, who the Bible tells us was head and shoulders above everybody else in the nation of Israel, so here you have this big man, not as big as Goliath, mind you, but you have this big man, and here you have this young man, and this big man who has been the king and trained in fighting, says, well, I tell you what, David, since you're gonna go do it, and I think God is in this, let me just give you my armor. And you can just see that armor going on David and David just hanging on him, you know? And David said, nope. Nope, that's not it. Look at verse 40. And he took a staff in his hand and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook. And he put them in a shepherd's bag, a shepherd's bag, which he had even in a script. And his sling was in his hand and he drew near to the Philistine. You know what I see here? David did his preparations before he faced the giant. David went and picked up five stones. Let me say this, this wasn't David's first fight. He had already fought a bear and a lion, right? And who knows what else. Before that bear and that lion, I imagine God may have sent some smaller critters there, maybe a wolf or something like that. I don't know. I do know that God sends us challenges in proportion to our faith and He tries to build us and so God often sends us stepping stones where that we can grow. But David made sure he was ready. David did not walk up to that giant and say, hold on a minute, I need to pick up a rock to kill you with. David had them in his shepherd's bag ready to go. He picked them up, then he went. Now some people have asked, why five? Why five stones? Oh, I'm not 100% sure, but I can tell you this much, the Bible tells us that Goliath had four brothers. We see that later in scripture, they show up, they get killed by the Israelite army. Maybe David had so much confidence in God that he said, five men, five stones, that's all I need. One for each man. David only used one, right? He only used one. But let me say this, when we're faced with trials and temptations, do you have your weapons in your bag? David had it in the bag, then he went to face the giant. So when he got there, all he had to do was reach in and use it. Do you hear me? When you're faced with lust, can you pull out a verse to fight it with? What you got in your bag? Job 31.1, I made a covenant with mine eyes. Those of you that have a problem with pornography. Job said, I made a covenant with mine eyes. Why then should I think upon a maid? Are you ready to pull that out of your bag when you need it? What do you have in your bag to help you with control of your media? You watch whatever comes up or do you have control? Psalm 101 verse three says, I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes. I hate the work of them that turn aside. It shall not cleave to me. So when something comes across that screen, and you know it displeases God, what are you gonna do? DO YOU HAVE A TOOL IN YOUR BAG TO PULL IT OUT TO HELP YOU SET THAT STANDARD AND MAKE THAT DECISION? WE'RE FACING ELECTIONS THIS FALL. OUR CHOICES ARE BAD AND BADDER. WHAT DO YOU HAVE IN YOUR BAG TO HELP GUIDE YOU IN YOUR CHOICES? PROVERBS 14 VERSE 34 SAYS, RIGHTEOUSNESS EXALTETH A NATION, BUT SIN IS A REPROACH TO ANY PEOPLE. DO YOU KNOW that the best way to get America back the way that it was is to bring it to righteousness? So how do we vote? We vote for the man that is closest to the standard of God's word, right? And I'm just gonna throw this in right now, I probably shouldn't, I'm gonna start meddling here and some of y'all are gonna get mad at me, but why is it that a godly man can't run for president? Because he'd never get elected, that's why. Our nation has already gone so far down the tube that we embrace sin. WE PASS LAWS TO PROTECT SIN. WE DON'T BELIEVE THAT RIGHTEOUSNESS EXALTETH THE NATION. THERE MAY BE A FEW OF US THAT DO IT, BUT FOR THE MOST PART, AMERICA WOULD RATHER EMBRACE A MAN WHO STANDS FOR SIN THAN TO EMBRACE RIGHTEOUSNESS. IT'S NOT ABOUT THE ECONOMY. RIGHTEOUSNESS WILL FIX THE ECONOMY. It's not about foreign affairs. Righteousness in America will fix foreign affairs. It's not about crime. Righteousness will fix crime. And I can go on and name a lot of things. What do you have in your bag to help you vote? When you start to get angry, what do you have in your bag to get you under control? Can you reach in there and pull out something to defeat that giant that's in your life that causes you to lose your temper? THAT CAUSES YOU TO BE HATEFUL WITH OTHER PEOPLE? DO YOU HAVE ROMANS 12, 19 IN THERE? DEARLY BELOVED, AVENGE NOT YOURSELVES, BUT RATHER GIVE PLACE UNTO WRATH. FOR IT IS WRITTEN, VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY, SAITH THE LORD. WHAT DOES HE MEAN, GIVE PLACE UNTO WRATH? WELL, HE ANSWERS IT RIGHT IN THE VERSE. VENGEANCE IS MINE. WRATH DOESN'T BELONG TO ME, IT BELONGS TO GOD, RIGHT? AND SO, WHEN I HAVE BEEN WRONGED, IT BELONGS TO GOD TO TAKE CARE OF ME. When you're tempted to stay home from church and give into your flesh, what do you have in your bag to help you set your mind straight and to do what's right? I'm grateful for technology where that when people are sick or traveling that they can tune in and we've got, I don't even know, is that the right word, tune in? Do you do that with the internet? I don't know. But that doesn't take the place of church, does it? What do you have in your bag? Do you have Hebrews 10.25 in there? Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another and so much the more as you see the day approaching. And boy, don't we see the day approaching. What do you have in your bag to help you fight these giants in your life? Are you equipped for the sin struggles you may have? Whatever it is that may get you down, why don't you look up some verses and memorize them to help you fight them? Reach in your bag and pull it out and have it equipped before you get there. If we don't have these in our bag, how do we expect to fight off the giants? You will not be a hero if you do not have the tools in your bag. Spiritual heroes set the examples for others' lives, right? Our young people need to see spiritual heroes. Man, I want to see young people serve the Lord. I want to see them give their lives to the Lord. We need them in this next generation, don't we? But we need them pure, don't we? We don't need them corrupted by sin in a young age and having to deal with that the rest of their lives. Who's going to teach them that? They need our examples, don't they? Are y'all with me? Who's going to be those spiritual heroes? In my office, I have, between my office and my Bible, I have three cards that were memorial cards of individuals that have passed away, men who became my spiritual heroes. I have a picture of my dad, a man by the name of Dr. Clinton Brainein, very responsible for growing Indiana Baptist College, I sat under his tutelage, a man who I looked up to, a man by the name of Ben Kendrick. Ben Kendrick spent 20 years as a missionary in Africa. God called him back to the States, so for the next 20 years he worked in a mission board, supporting missionaries who went to Africa. And when he got to the point where he felt like he needed to retire from that, you know what he did? He went to the Bible college, Indiana Baptist college, and he went there and he taught classes on missions. And he tried to convince every student that came through the door that they needed to go to the mission field. So much so that from time to time, we had to say, now, Dr. Kendrick, we need pastors too. Okay. So we can't send them all to the mission field, but he had a passion for it. Who are our children going to look up to? Well, look at verse 41, And the Philistine came on, and drew near unto David. And the man that bare the shield went before him. And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him. For he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of fair countenance. And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. And the Philistines said to David, come to me and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air and to the beasts of the field. Now, how would you like to have a man that's over nine foot tall with a sword strapped to his side and a spear in one hand and say those kinds of things to you? It's a little intimidating, isn't it? I want us to see this, the threats didn't defeat David. Threats will come. The giant was overwhelming in his presence, but David had a greater source, do you hear me? He went to accomplish the task that God had given him to do. And he knew without a doubt that he was going out there to fight that giant by God's directive. There's a saying, some of you have heard it before, but it certainly applies here, God's will will never take you where His hand will not protect you. You know, you have David here facing humanly impossible odds simply because he knew God wanted it. Now let me ask you this morning, Christian, what is it that God's trying to do in your life right now? You see, because God leaves none of us sitting still. God is always working in our lives and always trying to grow us, so what is God doing in your life right now to prepare you for that next step? What is it that may seem overwhelming to you, and you know that God wants you to do it, are you willing just to step out because you know that that's what God wants, even if the odds look humanly impossible? I'm gonna tell you, when I came to Brentwood Baptist Church over 11 years ago, There was nothing about this church that appealed to me. I'm just being honest. Y'all heard me say it before. The building was run down. It leaked. It smelled. The people had already kind of gotten together on their own and said, what are we going to do when this church closes? Because it's obviously headed that direction. Am I right, Kenny? Yeah. When my wife and I came here, we used up our savings within the first year that we were here just trying to live in this area. We left a good situation. I was involved in a good ministry. I was respected in the area, had opportunities to preach around down there. So why would I come and walk into a situation that was Pretty rough. I'll give you one answer. Are you ready? I knew God wanted me here. It was God's will. And I banked on that. And I'm telling you what, I went through some discouraging times. And it was difficult. But I kept going back to God, I know this is what you want, and I want you to look what God has done. I want you to see the lives that have been touched. And it's not because of Daryl York, it's because of God, do you hear me? Am I the only one God wants to do that with? No, I'm not the only one. God wants to do great things with all of us, but we gotta be willing to step out and do them, right? Some of you need to surrender to God in some area of your life that you're holding back. God has shown you his will and you're just not there. There are some folks that for some reason won't commit to church membership. I don't know if they're afraid of the commitment. I don't know if they've got some hurt from the past. But the way I read my New Testament church membership is God's will for every man and woman. If God has brought you here and he intends for you to be a part of the body, then be a part of the body. Don't let the fear stop you from accomplishing God's will. And if this is not the part of God's body that he wants you to be in, go down the road and find one that you can commit to. Some people are afraid to tithe. Some people look at their finances and say, I can't afford it, and I want to ask you a question. Is God a liar? Because God said, bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith. saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing, that there may not be room enough to receive it." Did God mean that? Some people just plain don't want to. God, this money's mine. I don't want to give it to you. And I want to ask you this question. Do you think God's worthy of it? Proverbs 3, 9 says, Honor the Lord with thy substance and with the firstfruits of thine increase. Is God worthy of your honor? What happens if the government comes in and shuts us down and says we can't assemble anymore? Will we let the threats of the government keep us from obeying God's word? Some of y'all are thinking, Pastor, you're getting a little rough this morning. I'm telling you, I believe God is in this. I talked to a pastor on Friday who said that his church attendance has never fully recovered from COVID. He's still running about 50 people lower than what he did before COVID. And let me ask you, who was the winner in that situation? The devil. If God gives you an opportunity to talk to someone about him, will you fear the faces of men? Or will you share the truth of God's word with them? Hey, what if God calls you to full-time service? I'm just throwing out scenarios. What if God calls you to full-time service? Are you willing? What if God says, I want you to be a pastor? What if God says, I want you to be a teacher? I want you to work at the church. What if God says, I want you to be a missionary? And you know God is leading. What are you going to do? There are churches across this nation that need pastors. I just heard of another one this week, church of about 20 people. They need a pastor. What if you're here this morning and you've never placed your faith completely in Jesus Christ? Maybe you've got apprehensions, maybe you've got some fears, maybe you've got some confusion. Let me remind you this morning that there is no other name given under heaven whereby you must be saved. Jesus Christ. Maybe you need to take that step. You see, the threats didn't defeat David. All of the overwhelming odds and the threats, he knew God was with him. we need to yield when God speaks. Look at verse number 45. This is David's response to the giant. Let me say this, The battle's spiritual. We passed a billboard a few times this week on Interstate 65 that says this. It has a picture of a young man, a Marine, running through a creek. He's got mud over half of his body, and his mouth is wide open. You can tell he's gasping for air as he's running. And the motto says this. It says, battles are won within. That's a good motto for the Marines. But I'm going to tell you, for the Christian, the battle is won as we surrender to the Lord. You see, this fight took place on a literal battlefield, but it was won by spiritual dependence. When Daniel was thrown in the lion's den, was the battle physical or spiritual? And the answer is, it was both. It was a literal lion's den, but it was won by spiritual dependence, right? When the three Hebrew children were thrown into the fiery furnace, was it a physical or spiritual battle? And the answer is it was both. It was a real furnace with fire, but it was one because of spiritual dependence. These are real physical events, but they were one in the spiritual realm. Listen, learn to look past the physical circumstances and see God at work. You see, David is the man who wrote this in Psalm 139. He said, whither shall I go from thy spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there. If I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there shall thy hand lead me and thy right hand shall hold me. David learned it. early in life. It came out when he faced the lion. It came out when he faced the bear. It came out when he faced Goliath. And that thought went with him all the rest of his life. Can we get a handle on that? Now look at verses 46 and 47. And I want you to see what I consider to be probably the crucial truth in all of this. They're all good, but this is probably the one that is the crux. Verse 46, this day, he's talking to the giant, this day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand, and I will smite thee, take thine head from thee, and I will give the carcasses of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear, but the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hands." Do you see that? David understood the purpose of the battle. This wasn't about killing a giant. It was about defending God. If you can get a hold of this truth, then the rest of it will be easier to comprehend, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. This is what God wanted. David understood this battle was not about David necessarily, it was about God. Your life is about representing God to the world around us. Get a hold of that, Christian. Your life is not about your comforts. Your life is not about your savings, not about your investments, not about your home, your car, your whatever. It's about representing God. Let me just go back and mention some things that I've mentioned earlier. Tithing is about His honor. Being a part of a church body is about being in His bride on this earth. It's about accomplishing His will. Sharing the gospel is about His plan for mankind to come to Him. Controlling your lust is about you being conformed to His image. Everything we do is about Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 6 says this, what, know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God? Ye are not your own, ye are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's. When we place our will over God's will, we're messed up. And it will reveal itself in our lives. That's why some people, never become spiritual heroes. Look at verse 48. And he came to pass, and the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and sling it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead, and he fell down upon his face. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine and slew him. But there was not a sword in the hand of David. Therefore David ran and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw their champion was dead, they fled. And the men of Israel, and of Judah arose and shouted and pursued the Philistines until they come to the valley, into the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell down by the way to Shemariam, even unto Gath and unto Ekron." What do you see there? One man's victory encouraged others. Can you get a handle on that? One man's victory encouraged others. I want you to see what one man could do. So let me ask you this morning, Christian, who's watching you? There are probably some people in here. I know because I've had people say this to me. Nobody notices. That's not true. You don't know who's watching you, but I can tell you this, people are watching. Are you willing to face giants? I name to you three men in my life that I consider my spiritual heroes. What are the younger generation looking at you and seeing? John 14 verse 12 says this, Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also, and greater works than these shall he do, because I go unto my Father. Greater works, that's amazing, isn't it? You will never reach the greater works if you don't take the steps that are presented to you now. You have to do the basics, folks. You have to take the challenges as God sends them. And step by step, God brings you up to be that spiritual hero. People are looking for spiritual heroes. So what is God calling you to do? Whatever it is, not only will it benefit you, but it will benefit others too. Are we willing to surrender?