By now, anyone who reads my ramblings consistently has probably (hopefully…?) gotten used to my convoluted introductions to the main premise.
Once again, the focus is on King David. Over the years, three other articles posted in this space showed the importance of what can be gleaned by studying the life of King David. On 6/22/18, “Alternate History: Imagine If King David Had Been A Liberal” was posted. This was followed by “Meet The New Philistines, Same As The Old Philistines” on 9/21/18, and by “King David: More ‘American’ Than Democrat Midterm Losers” on 11/23/18.
A companion article to this is “Forget WWJD-Focus On What He Did“, posted on 10/29/21. Just as our focus in that article was on the life of Christ and what He actually did, this time let’s look at what David did before he became King David.
The first mention of David wasn’t even by name. (1 Samuel 16:6-17) He was a shepherd and the youngest of the sons of Jesse, and the one whom God directed the prophet, Samuel, to bless. David’s skill as a musician (a harpist) led him to the court of King Saul, Israel’s first king. He also became the king’s armorbearer (1 Sam. 16:21)
Chapter 17 of 1st Samuel is the story of David slaying the Philistine giant Goliath, as the armies of the Philistines and Israelites faced each other across the valley of Elah. (1 Sam. 17:2,3) This is one of those Bible stories we’ve all heard dozens of times, if not more. We think we’re familiar with all the subtleties of it, but are we really? There are some very interesting details concerning David’s preparation and conduct leading up to facing Goliath that are applicable to what we’re facing against those who want to destroy America as we know it. This is what David did to face the challenge of Goliath.
- He understood by paying attention to those around him what he was getting into. (1 Sam. 17:23-27)
- He came prepared with past experience of protecting his flock of sheep from a bear and a lion. (1 Sam. 17:34-37)
- He was mocked by his own brother for willing to take a stand and get involved, but it only deepened his resolve (1 Sam. 17:28,29)
- He didn’t wear the armor that was offered to him because he had not tested it; basically, he understood his own skill better than anyone realized. (1 Sam. 17:38,39)
- He chose five stones before facing Goliath. Traditionally, this is said to have been because Goliath had sons and brothers who were also giants. (2 Sam. 21:15-22; I Chronicles 20:4-8)
- He was not intimidated upon facing Goliath. Read the verses and you’ll see that the two of them basically, trash-talked each other for a while. David knew that failure was not an option (1 Sam.17:42-46)
- He actually took Goliath down with a stone to the forehead. It has been suggested that the stone only stunned Goliath, but it did in fact kill him. (I Sam. 17:49,50). David then made sure that Goliath was dead by using the giant’s own sword to behead him. (1 Sam. 17:51) In other words, he made sure the job was done.
We’re facing the type of foe that’s just as evil as the giant warrior David faced. The only real difference is that our evil is probably college-educated, soft-spoken, and wears a suit and tie or designer pantsuit. It’s time for Christians to start understanding that evil truly does exist, and its only purpose is to destroy us. Our only option will be to get to it and stop it one way or another before it gets that chance.
The midterms are closer than we realize. Time flies by quickly as you get older and in politics a lot can change in a short time. Granted, the repercussions and consequences of change might not be felt immediately but knowing that change could come allows for preparation.
Now is the time to start familiarizing ourselves with the voting records and backgrounds of all candidates-local, state, and federal.
I don’t know if President Trump will run or not in 2024. I’m not going to speculate on that. If he doesn’t, though, he did get 3 conservatives on SCOTUS. If nothing else, that’s his legacy. Things now would probably be even worse had that not happened. Pay attention to that; it’s an example of how important these upcoming midterm elections are. We have adequate time to prepare and be aware of what we can do just as David did for the fight we’re going to face on all levels.
God help us if we screw this up.
In Closing…
I feel, personally, that it’s important to study the life of King David as part of a Christian’s spiritual foundation. In Luke Chapter 3, the genealogy of Christ is traced back to David through his earthly mother Mary. This is important for several reasons. It establishes Christ as being able to claim an earthly kingship and royalty with the nation of Israel. I also feel that it’s not hyperbole to say that it establishes the fact that Christ had the human DNA of a warrior king.
Jesus was called a Son of David in Matt. 9:27; 12:23; 15:22; and 20:30,31. The same reference is also found in Mark 10:47, 48, and in Luke 18:37, 39.
In what is known as Biblical typology, David was regarded as a symbol appointed by God in anticipation of the Christ yet to come. Examples are found in Psalms 2, 16, 18:43, 69:7-9, 20, 21, 26, 29 and also in Ps. 89:19-37.
Please take the time to check this out for yourself…and thank you for your indulgence.
