Five for Five

“And he (David) took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd's bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine.” (I Samuel 17:40)

Everyone is familiar with the story of David and Goliath. We were doing our VBS a few years back, and I announced to the kids that our story that night would be on David and Goliath. One 10 year old rolled his eyes and said, “Yeah, I’ve heard that story about a million times…”

In stories like these, there are always a few details that go “under the radar”. God is a master at dropping little subtil things under our noses, then scattering the details in various parts of the Bible to make us dig for them. The verse above says David chose five stones for his battle with the giant. Most people would never notice that detail, many others would not think it was worthy of notice or comment, and if they did, they would think David was just “playing it safe” and making sure he had enough ammo for the job. But every detail of the Bible is important.

When we do a little digging, we find that Goliath had four sons (II Samuel 21:15-22) who later came against Israel and were defeated in the latter days of David. When our hero chose five stones out of the brook to take on Goliath, he was intending to take on the entire family and go “five for five”. There are a couple of important lessons for us in this detail.

First of all is faith. David took on Goliath “In the name of the Lord of hosts” (I Samuel 17:45). One stone would be plenty. He didn’t need four other stones as “back-ups” in case God did not come through with the first one. Most Christians “step out by faith” with a back-up plan in place just in case God swings and misses. Those other four stones were not “plan B, C, D, and E”. God does not bat .200 (one for five). God promised that those who “call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13). He meant it. He promised to “preserve us unto his heavenly kingdom” (II Timothy 4:18). It is guaranteed. He said, “…that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). He will “git-r-done”. If God has led you to accomplish something for his glory, one stone is enough.

The other lesson we see in this story is the relentless onslaught of the enemy. Once Goliath was out of the way, his four sons came back later to try to finish the job. We serve a God who is persistent and dedicated to the mission of bringing the world to the saving knowledge of his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan is just as persistent in his desire to defeat the work of God and frustrate God’s people. When Goliath went down, his boys ran for the hills. But it wasn’t long before they mounted a counter offensive. Life is like that. As soon as we get the victory over some problem in our life, four more problems take its place. Our adversary is “as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (I Peter 5:8). He will never leave you alone until you are safe in the arms of Jesus at home in heaven. Israel faced a constant battle with the Philistines during the Old Testament, and they still face it today. The Philistines are the same people as the modern day PLO. That problem will never be solved until the King of Kings returns to take care of it. He is the only one who is “man enough” to do it the right way. Until then, brethren, strap it on and get ready for a battle. We know who wins because we can read the last page of the book. But our enemy ignores that and continues his assault. God has equipped us with plenty enough “smooth stones” to get the job done. Just pick them up, load up the sling, and trust God to accomplish his work in your life with each one of those smooth stones. He will give you as many as you need, and he will never miss with any of them.