Then Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are but a youth while he has been a warrior from his youth.”
1 Samuel 17:33
Unbelief seeks to discourage the exercise of faith.
If there is one thing unbelief opposes above all else, it is faith. This is because faith shows unbelief for what it truly is – a lack of trust in God. Those who are caught in the web of unbelief labor diligently to disguise it, covering their lack of trust in God with high-sounding words - prudence, fiscal conservatism, realism, rationality, tradition. But when the verbal façade is removed, their unbelief is clearly revealed. Like Adam and Eve in the Garden, people who don’t exercise faith will often attempt to cover the their unbelief with the fig leaves of rationality, while simultaneously attacking those who seek to walk by faith. Those without faith are relieved when they can convince themselves and others that their position is the reasonable one. Then, their naturalistic (anti-supernatural) worldview remains unchallenged, and its open denial of God’s power rests comfortably undisturbed.
By faith, David saw Goliath’s challenge through God’s eyes, and he knew that God would grant him the victory, no matter what the odds. So, in a stinging rebuke to the cowardice of Saul and those who followed him, the shepherd boy volunteered to face the giant. David had complete faith in God’s power, while Saul had no faith at all. This contrast set up a classic conflict between faith and unbelief, exposing Saul’s unbelieving heart. David’s faith threatened Saul’s naturalistic worldview, and so Saul set out to discourage David from following the Holy Spirit’s leading.
First, Saul gave a perfectly reasonable explanation why David couldn’t be the one to oppose Goliath: David was a youth and Goliath was an experienced warrior. Saul made a very good point – on the natural level. But his argument only considered what was apparent to the natural man: David’s inexperience and lack of resources. Considered from that perspective, the situation was hopeless. Saul was completely right - David was not able (in himself) to successfully fight the giant. But David was not deterred by Saul’s reasonable argument. He saw that Saul had failed to take into account the supernatural power of God, and he proceeded (in vv. 34-37) to cite his prior experiences of God’s divine provision in impossible circumstances.
When he realized he could not discourage David’s faith, Saul tried to get him to at least include some “reasonable precautions” in his plans. Saul spoke some religious words (“Go, and may the Lord be with you.”), and then dressed David in his own armor. After all, it was enough that David was going to face the giant by faith. It only made sense to take some precautions just in case things didn’t go well. But David refused to take anything from Saul – not his garments, his armor or his weapons. He knew that when faith and reasonable precautions are mixed together, God’s power is often ignored. In such a context, people tend to act in reliance upon the precautions, not in reliance upon God. And ultimately, it’s the precautions - the wise plans - that get the glory, not God. And so this mixture of faith and precautions ends up actually hindering faith. Thankfully, David’s determined faith (like that of our Lord when He faced Satan’s temptations) was neither discouraged nor diluted. He willingly faced this impossible challenge, relying only upon God.
What would the Church be like if Christians today followed David’s pattern? What would YOUR life be like? You see, this kind of faith isn’t just for Bible stories; it’s our heritage as God’s children. It lies at the root of our redemption and is an indicator that we are truly alive in Christ. Sadly, like Saul, many of those who try to discourage such faith are found among God’s people – even in leadership positions. Many Christians are so blinded by our anti-supernatural culture that they live in practical denial of our Father’s ability to do “exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think.” (Eph. 3:20) Could this be why we see so little of God’s power in our churches? After all, the times of great advance among God’s people, times like the Reformation, the Great Awakening and the Protestant missionary movement, have been lead by men and women of faith. The examples are legion: Martin Luther, John Knox, David Brainerd, Adoniram Judson, George Mueller, Amy Carmichael, Hudson Taylor, Gladys Aylward, Watchman Nee and on and on. Each of them faced and conquered “impossible” challenges through strong, unshakeable faith in God. Our Lord calls each of us to “get out of the boat” (Matt.
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