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The Stones of David

Smooth Stones

Fewer stories in the bible have touched the imagination and the emotions of God’s people over the ages like the story of the epic battle between David and Goliath, It has been the subject of many a sermon and I daresay it will still be for many much more. Everything is in that story, suspense, bravery, faith victory of good over evil, I mean it’s an epic any day.

I want to look at that story again this is an entirely different way, you know the story, the giant Goliath champion of the Philistines, standing at a height of well over 11 feet was a giant of man, terrible and fearful to look at, for 40 days he bellowed out a challenge to the terrified army of Israel ‘send me a man, he said, let’s fight man to man, if he wins we will be your slaves but if he loses you will be ours’  This was a challenge nobody in the camp of Israel  was willing to take, that is until David came along ( you can read the full story here in I Sam 17)

The Philistines were a sea faring people who arrived in the Levant (an area that includes modern-day Israel, Gaza, Lebanon and Syria) during the 12th century B.C. They came during a time when cities and civilizations in the Middle East and Greece were collapsing

David was able to challenge and kill Goliath but what catches my attention is how he was able to do it, read what the bible says

1 Sam 17:40

 Then he took his staff in his hand; and he chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag, in a pouch which he had, and his sling was in his hand.

When the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David that David hurried and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone; and he slung it and struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him.

David and Goliath

A stone, little stones, just one of it was enough to bring down that great and terrible giant Goliath. When the Lord began to impress the thoughts I share with you in my heart I saw that the whole picture was actually a type or metaphor for the the classic encounters between Jesus and the Devil, look at it like this, satan like Goliath is the arch enemy of the people of God, you could even say that Goliath was a front for the devil because when he confronted David, he cursed David by his gods, so what seemed like an ordinary battle was actually a battle or conflict between spiritual powers. What about David?  He was a type of Jesus, remember David was actually the forebear of Jesus, he was a shepherd king just like Jesus in fact Jesus is actually called the son of David. Wow!

The stones are actually a type of the believer, in 1 Peter we are told

You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 2:5-6 NKJV

Just like the Goliath confronted the people of Israel, so the devil our adversary prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour, he challenges the Church in so many ways as he has always done through the ages, threatening death, destruction, slavery and harassing God’s people  and doing so through the many fronts available to him today. Just like the Children of Israel cowered in fear so in many places it seems the Church is in retreat cowering under the threats of the Goliath of our days, but our David is ever ready to defend the honor of His God and to over throw the threat of Goliath. Jesus said He has overcome the world and all that is within it but he needs stones not just any kind of stones but smooth stones from the brook to bring that victory into manifestation daily.

Then he took his staff in his hand; and he chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag, in a pouch which he had, and his sling was in his hand.

David chose five smooth stones, not one but five, I wonder why, maybe there is a message there on grace, 5 is the biblical number for grace, not any stone will do, he needed smooth stones , if we say the brook is a type of the Holy Spirit, what will the smooth stones represent? Stones are not naturally smooth, stones in their normal state are rough edged and jagged, but stones that are smooth are usually stones that have been subject to constant attrition either by wind or running water. As running water flows over rough stones, it carries other stones and debris that constantly rub against the stones, causing the rough edges to be smoothened over time, it is this action of constant attrition that makes the stones ready and useful to our David.

Many believers are unusable in the hands of the Lord, they are still full of rough edges and so David cannot use them in the battle against the enemy, if we are going to be used today we need to allow the rough edges of fleshly behavior, besetting sins and such like be smoothened out of our lives, the Lord is willing to help us here IF we let him. The process of ‘smoothening is not very pleasant, many times the Lord will use the frictions of life to deal with our rough edges, we need to be submitted to the Holy Spirit throughout this process. Many of the negative conditions we want to run away from the Lord will permit in our lives because they are his tools under the work of the Spirit to prepare us for a life of usefulness.

The smooth stones may represent believers who have been prepared by the Spirit of grace and have been smoothened an made ready for use.

Jesus said some things like love your enemies, I mean naturally we don’t want to love those who we consider our enemies, we want to do some other things to them but sometimes your enemies are instruments in the hands of God to prepare you for a life of usefulness, this is the wisdom of God.

Even Jesus was made perfect and learnt obedience through the things he suffered! God wants to slay the giants of divorce, strife, division in the Church but he cannot do it unless he finds some ‘smoothened’ believers.

You remember Moses, how zealous He was to deliver God’s people from Egypt, He sensed the call no doubt but he was still very rough, in his roughness he killed a man, the arm of the flesh is not God’s way. God would use Moses but only after some smoothening experience, it took God quite a bit to get Moses into shape but after 40 years he was ready and what a mighty instrument He was!

Remember this every time you pray ‘God use me’ you are just inviting him into your life to do some smoothening, it will take time and will be painful and deadly to the flesh but when patience has had her complete work you will come forth like a tried and tested battle axe ready and prepared for the master’s use.

Stay in the brook, let the Holy Spirit have His way, count it all joy when you fall into diverse tests and irritations’, smoothening is painful work, when the Lord has had His way, you will be ready a giant destroyer.

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