Jesus Isn't Decaf (By Naomi Meyers)

They were a boisterous lot as they gathered together making battle plans and receiving orders for their posts. Adrenaline ran high. Fear didn’t. Even if it should have. There was no room for fear in the hearts of the Israelite soldiers. They were still riding the waves of victory. Two victories, in fact. Resounding ones. Destroying the Amalekites hadn’t been much of a battle, but it was definitely a victory. God had clearly gone before them, making a way for His word to be enacted. He’d done the same at Michmash. Through Jonathan’s faith and God’s power, the Philistines were thrown into panic and confusion, turning on one another as they would on their enemies. Israel had won the battle. The war was still outstanding. The Philistines hadn’t been completely destroyed as had the Amalekites. Instead, they had regrouped, returned, and now camped between Socoh and Azekah, effectively putting Israel on notice. They were coming for them. Again. They hadn’t been destroyed, just momentarily defeated. Israel would need to come out and fight. Again. For real this time. (I Samuel 14:1-23; 15:1-19)

Setting up camp in the Valley of Elah, the Israelite soldiers strapped on their armor, picked up spears and swords, and went out to stand on the hill across from the Philistines. Everyone knew they were just posturing. Doing reconnaissance. Assessing the situation. Taking a moment to identify any new tricks the opposition had invented. No actual spears would be thrown. No arrows would be released. It was a pre-battle standoff to help solidify their strategy. Do a little saber-rattling. Stare one another down from the relative safety of the opposite side of the valley. Cold, hard gazes locked. Obligatory insults flew. Weapons and armor clanked. But the battle hadn’t begun. This was just a demonstration. It was all hype. Until the Philistines brought out their champion. 

Jaws dropped open as he strode out of their camp to join the troops on the front lines. He was enormous. Nine feet, nine inches of height held upright by tree trunk-sized legs. His biceps bulged. His eyes were dark stones peering out from his massive bronze helmet. Heavy bronze armor perfectly fit to his frame. He looked invincible. And dangerous. A javelin rested between his shoulder blades, the handle within easy reach of either long arm. The spear in his hand struck fear in the heart of every Israelite soldier. They’d never seen a weapon so large or menacing. The sight of the monster was horrifying. Terrifying. The sight of his shield-bearer was nearly laughable. The man was clearly superfluous to the requirement. Goliath didn’t need him. He could handle things himself. And he knew it. 

Slowly striding to the front and center of the gathered Philistine troops, Goliath turned to face the Israelite army with a scowling look of derision. Resting the shaft of his spear beside his huge, sandaled feet, the giant opened his mouth and thundered out his invitation to battle. Send a man. Only one man. Let them come and fight him. A fight to the death. The winning warrior would take home the spoils, making servants of the opposing side. Two men. One battle. One death. One victory. That was the offer. Take it or leave it. 

As the words echoed across the valley, the men of Israel shrank back in fear. Their hearts trembled within them. Their courage did a runner. Terror had them abandoning the posturing and fleeing back to their tents. There were things to discuss. How do you respond to the demented demands of the giant who is clearly leading the opposition? Was anyone crazy enough to respond to the challenge? Did anyone want to sacrifice themselves to death at the giant’s hands? Anyone? No. No one was. No one was willing to put themselves on the line for the land. No one had the courage to take a stand, mount an offensive. Instead, they huddled around their campfires, whispered among themselves, and tried to ignore the threats still ringing in their ears. 

Forty days passed that way. Morning and night Goliath would stride out to bellow his preposterous offer. Morning and night, the Israelite army would don their armor and weapons, march out, and line up in battle array, only to retreat in terror as soon as Goliath appeared shouting his fateful offer. Their courage was an illusion. Their fear was palpable. Who knows how long they would have stayed camped there, doing the same silly thing day after day had Jesse not sent David to visit his brothers.

He hadn’t come expecting to be a warrior. He’d surely have packed differently if he had. David didn’t strap on a sword, pick up a spear, or grab his bow and quiver of arrows as he walked out the door for the battleground. He had nothing intended for use on the battlefield. Spears and swords were of little use in the pasture among the sheep. He wasn’t expecting to need a weapon at all. Not even the sling he habitually carried in his pocket. At no point during his trek to visit his brothers did David anticipate a moment when he’d hear the taunts of the Philistine giant and rise up in righteous indignation. But he’d never quite been this angry before, either. Not when his brothers teased him. Not when the bear came to raid his flock. Not when a lion tried to have lamb for dinner. He’d been upset, annoyed, irritated, but it hadn’t flared hot and white and raging in his spirit like the anger he felt when that disgusting giant opened his mouth to let fly his defiance against David’s God.

Nothing could fully describe what David felt as the taunting words fell from Goliath’s lips. Indignation. Anger. Fury. Rage. Holy rage. Burning indignation. Furious offense. Who exactly did that man, giant or not, think he was, that he would so carelessly, openly, callously defy the God of Heaven? Israel’s God. The Lord of Armies. And why did not one soldier in the ranks of Israel have the courage to stand up to him? After seeing what God could do for them, why were they cowering in fear? Was there not one man among them, one warrior amidst them who would stand up for God? Why didn’t the vicious words of the giant stir their hearts to courageous action?

They stirred David’s. Riding the momentum of his hotly burning wrath and indignation, David stepped out in faith to take courageous action. Make a stand. Plant his flag. When his brothers said he shouldn’t. When Saul said he wasn’t equipped. When doubt was etched on every face he passed on his solitary march to stand across from that giant. David took a stand and chose a courageous response in the face of evil and hate, threats, and possible death. I wonder if we would do the same. (I Samuel 17:1-39)

When faced with ever-increasing hostility, hate, and defamation toward true godliness, do you stalwartly take a stand for Jesus Christ? When the people around you choose to defy God, are you faithful to light the way of truth? When churches and organizations who claim the name of Jesus choose to avoid His decrees, distort His words, destroy His applications, do you stand in solidarity with Scripture? Do you plant your feet in the undeniable truth that every single word on every single page in every single chapter of the Bible was inspired by God and written by people in direct conversation with Him? What do you feel when the people around you choose, by word and deed, to defy your God? More importantly, do you have the courage to stand up and speak truth into the lies the enemy is so viciously spreading, or are you too complacent, too fearful to do anything at all? What is your response when the giants of the land callously bellow their fictitious theories about your God? Do you run for cover? Or do you hear those words for what they really are? A call to courage. (Isaiah 58:1; Ephesians 6:10-18; James 4:17; II Timothy 3:16-17)  

No one knows how long those armies would have stayed on opposite sides of that valley yelling insults and threats at one another if David hadn’t shown up. Neither side seemed inclined to rush into battle. Maybe they’d have died of old age there. Each choosing to hide in their own way. Israel in their tents. The Philistines behind their champion. But there’s no courage there. Only cowardice. Courage is in the doing. Facing down the giants whose voices are louder, whose reach is wider, who use fear to manipulate their audience. It’s one small person taking a strong stand, walking against the grain of society, regardless of the pushback. It’s speaking the truth of God’s Word in every circumstance. It’s called courage and it looks like a teenaged boy standing in the strength of God to fight off a giant from hell.   

When everyone else was running for cover from Goliath, David was pocketing five smooth stones and courageously running to meet his enormous, threatening opponent. Why? Because he wanted everyone to know the truth about his God. He wanted to tell the world that God will always be victorious. Our God doesn’t need swords or spears or enormous armies to fight on His behalf. He just needs people. Willing people. Courageous people. People who will plant their feet and take a stand for God and truth at a time when the loudest voices in the room are crying out lies and heresy. People who push their own fear aside, choosing instead to unwaveringly follow God in the face of harassment, ostracization, and persecution. People like you. People like me. People who hear the taunts of the giants for what they really are–a call to courage. (I Samuel 17:40-51; Matthew 10:32-33; I Corinthians 16:13; James 1:12; Joshua 1:8-9; Haggai 2:4-5)