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Good morning.

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Good morning.

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Once again. Thank you, Wendy. I appreciate that. All right, so we're in Daniel chapters. I'm sorry, 1 Samuel chapter 17 this morning. Now, we're going to be talking about still in the heart of the matter, but this is the kind of heart that God uses. Now, chapter 17 deals with David killing Goliath. Now, I don't have to tell you all about that story. It ends the same way every time you read it. Right? And the Bible is a book that we've been preaching for hundreds and centuries, centuries, centuries. And we come to church and we preach from the same book every Sunday. But it's still interesting to us because every time you read it, you can find something in there if you allow it to speak to you. And if you read the Bible in a year, every year you read it, David's going to kill Goliath. People who don't even read the Bible know the story. And so if I said David blew Goliath's brains out, even people who don't read the Bible's gonna know that's not right. Right? They'll be able to say, no, I think it was a slingshot and a rock. Right? Every time you start reading the Old Testament, Noah always builds an ark. And the guys in Louisiana decide they'd follow that. They just call them houseboats. Amen. Well, their families can go in and they can take the dog, the cat, or whoever. But at the end of the day, when we start preaching and reading these stories, what are we looking to get out of them? Because if it's just a story to you, you've really missed what God's trying to say. So I don't have to take you through David beating Goliath. I don't have to take you through him taking a slingshot and throwing it and hitting him in the head. I don't have to take you through all the armor and how big Goliath was. At the end of the day, the question is, God, what are you saying to me? Because everything in the Bible, whether it's a story or not, has a purpose and it has a message. And it has a deeper meaning. The question is, are we seeing what God wants us to get out of it? So let's first look at it from this perspective. We focus in on David going to war and to battle against Goliath. But you know, it really wasn't about David and Goliath. It was really about two nations that were fighting against one another. And the only reason why they were fighting was because of the egos of the leaders. And that's the way wars usually begin. Leaders have egos, and somebody decides that they're going to go to war. And the people who have to go to war and fight don't have anything against anybody. They're just doing what the leader is telling them they have to do. Amen. Thank you, Brother Zach. That's what happens. Even when our sons and daughters and grandchildren go to war to fight, they don't have any beef with the people they're fighting against. They have to go because they signed up. And it's really more or less about two leaders who can't come to terms of agreement. Right? Anybody disagree with that? All right. All right. So if God is trying to show us something in the midst of this lesson, we just got to dig a little bit deeper to understand it. So, a little bit more background. Goliath was referred to as a champion, which means he was just a warrior who will fight as a single individual in single combat as a stand-in for the entire army. The army didn't fight, it was Goliath that was the champion. In verse 4, you'll find that word champion used, and that's really what it means. Now, watch this. According to 1 Samuel chapter 9, verse 2, Saul should have been the one going to battle. Because it was the champion the one who was the largest of all. That's why Goliath went to the battlefield for the Philistines. It should have been Saul who went on the battlefield for the Israelites. Let's read it. 1 Samuel chapter 9, verses 1 through 2. It says, There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish, the son of Abel, son of Zero, son of Bacharath, and son of Aphiah, a Benjaminite, a man of wealth, and he had a son whose name was Saul, a handsome young man. There was not a man among the people of Israel more handsome than he. From his shoulders upward, he was taller than any of the people. So Saul was the tallest one, he was the larger man, he should have been on the battlefield, but yet he's the leader who's a coward and doesn't go. And so in all of this, as Pastor Jarrett has been preaching about pride, protecting one's own reputation instead of the reputation of the Lord, cowardness, we see that even in the midst of this battle, those that should have been fighting or the one that should have been fighting wasn't fighting. So what does this say to you? Sometimes we face battles that we don't want to fight, don't feel like we ought to fight, and look for somebody else to go along with us, other than the Almighty God Himself. Because every battle that we're faced with, we'll never fight it by ourselves anyway. God is right there, willing, ready, and able to engage in battle. You never have to fight a battle alone. And sometimes we look for the wrong resources, we look for the wrong help. When God is saying, I am a very present help in the time of trouble. So what is God saying to us today? Do you have a battle going on in your life right now that you're facing with? And you're wondering, what can I do about this thing that I'm challenged with that seems bigger than me, and I don't know what to do with it. I don't even know how to fight it. And sometimes in this life, there are gonna be some things that come your way that you have no idea what to do about it, how to get through it, and when it's gonna be over. Some of the stuff that you've already been through that's supposed to be behind you, but it keeps coming up in your thoughts. And it keeps engaging you in this battle against your own self. And you're trying to figure out how to get to the other side of it. See, God is not merely looking at what's going on outwardly, He's not even looking at that ability that we have on the outside of us. Not the ability, not the experience or appearance. He's looking for hearts that trust him no matter what. The key verse in this chapter is verse 45, and we'll get to that later. But it says this then David said to the Philistine, You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. And if you would allow me to kind of translate that into today's language, David he basically said, Man, I'm gonna whoop you in the name of Jesus. Sometimes that's what you got to say to your problems. Sometimes that's what you have to say to the things that you're faced with, is that I may not be able to do it, but in the name of Jesus. Devil, I'm taking you down today. We're not having it. We ain't having it in my family's life, we ain't having it in my life, we're not having it in my friend's life, we're not having it in the life of the church. Because I know that there's a power that rests within me that is greater than myself. I just have to activate that power. And so let's look at one of the main thoughts here. The greatest battles are won, not by the strongest hands, but by hearts fully surrendered to God. A heart that's fully surrendered to God. And you win, you must win the battle within before you win the battle ahead. Now think about that for a moment. Think about that for a moment. Most of the time, the battles that we're faced with start right here. The doubt and the fear starts within us, which hinders us from being confident in the strength of the Lord. It causes us to lose faith in believing in the God who we've already seen bring us through past battles. But if we can just get over the battle within, we can truly stand up and be warriors in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Because that's what we find that David did. He understood that the battle wasn't his to begin with, it was the Lord's battle, and he knew the one that was on his side was going to bring him to the point of victory. I love the story of the three Hebrew boys. When they went before the king, they said, Oh King, we will not bow down. They didn't say our God might deliver us, they didn't say we think God's gonna deliver us. They said, Our God will deliver us. And he did. So, what is it in your life that God has already delivered you from? What is it that God has already brought you through that you can look back on as a reminder that if God can do that, he can do whatever you're facing to. If he got you through one thing, he can get you through many more. Now, I don't want to preach too long today because we got to come back next week. But let's look at 1 Samuel chapter 17, verses 1 through 11. I'm coming back next week, and guess what? I'm gonna be preaching from the same book. Isn't that amazing? How you can find so much stuff in the same book. The Bible does not change, it is what it is, but thank God that he does not change. He is faithful. Amen. So let's look at 1 Samuel chapter 17, verses 1 through 11. It says this now the Philistines gathered their armies for battle, and they were gathered at Sokah, which belongs to Judah, and encamped between Soko and Azekah in Ephesdemon. And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered and encamped in the valley of Elah, and drew up in the line of battle against the Philistines. And the Philistines stood on the mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on the mountain on the other side with the valley between them. So let's pause right there for a moment. So you got them a distance away with the valley in between. So what's happening is Goliath comes out, he's way on the other side. And he's just taunting them. All right? In other words, he's he's he's talking trash. And he's he's on the other side. But it's amazing how he can be on the other side and there's a valley between. And then he can't get over to them, but they're still afraid of it. There's some things that are in the distance from us, some things that haven't even made it to us yet, and we're already scared. If I may. My daughter Kennedy is here. It's gonna be good, baby. She's nervous, she's like, oh God. So she got ready to take this test at school. And let me tell you, she cried and cried and cried. And we prayed for her, we prayed for her that night, we prayed for her that morning before she went, and she was just a wreck. Well, I'm and I told her, I said, baby, don't cry over what you haven't even been confronted with yet. You haven't even taken the test, you don't have a reason to cry. You haven't failed the test yet. If you fail it, then cry. But don't cry in advance, right? Amen. Sometimes we worry in advance, we cry in advance, we run in advance. And guess what? She came home and she hates the test. I'm like, see, I'm trying to tell you. Like, sometimes, y'all, just the thought of what we're facing causes us to lose all of our confidence in what God has already given us the ability to do. And we get scared in advance. All that energy, all that sickness, all of that delay for nothing. In advance, y'all. I said if I'm gonna do anything, I'm gonna praise him in advance. I'm gonna praise him for the victory that he's already given me. Amen. Sometimes that's what we ought to do. We ought to practice just giving God thanks in advance. And however it turns out, we know that God is good. So however it turned out is gonna be for our good. Amen. And watch this. Let's finish reading. In verse 4, and there came out from the camp of the Philistines a champion named Goliath of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. He had a helmet of bronze on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze. That's about 125 pounds, y'all. And he had bronze armor on his legs, and a javelin of bronze slung between his shoulders that strapped on his back. The shaft of his spear was like a weaver's beam, and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron. That's about seventeen pounds. A lot of weight. Had to be a very strong man to handle that. And his shield bearer went before him. He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, Why have you come out to draw up for battle? Am I not a Philistine? And are you not servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves and let him come down to me. If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants and serve us. And the Philistine said, I defy. In other words, I disrespect, I will not obey, I have no regard for the ranks of Israel this day. Give me a man that we may fight together. When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid. Focus right there. When they heard these words, all they had to do was hear words and be afraid. Really? Isn't that what happens to us sometimes? Whether it's the doctor or whether it's just bad news coming from somewhere else. And we get afraid over the words, but at the same time we say we're gonna trust God for the miracle. We get afraid of what it might be. It's not really that yet, it's not even claimed to be that yet, but we are afraid already. You see, I get words do have some power, but words only have the power that you allow them to have. Yeah. So let me tell you what I mean by that. So in in on my job, we go through training. And it's training on sexual harassment. And sexual harassment is not about what you said, it's about how the person received what you said. Right? So some people bridge that line and they talk back and forth, and some are like, ah, that's just them, they're just kidding. Somebody else may be very offended and hurt over it and make a complaint. Same thing said, some people took it one way, the other person took it another way. You can say to me, Byron, I don't like the way you preach. Depending on how I feel that day, it might matter, it may not matter. Because at the end of the day, I'm just trying to glorify the Lord. Amen. People may say some things to you, you may get some news, and you may hear some words that people speak to you. Somebody might say, You can't do this, you'll never be that, you'll never be this. It depends on how much power you allow those words to have over you. Because at the end of the day, they're just words that are not even yet manifested. When they become manifest, then they have some power. So let us not allow words to cause us to fear. Because at the end of the day, they're just words. Look what God says here in Matthew chapter 10, verse 28. It says, and do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. That's all Goliath was doing. He's gonna taunt them, cause them to have fear. And most of the time when people are winning and they begin to lose, it's because fear creeps in or they're overconfident. But fear stills and robs us of our confidence. Isaiah 41 and 10 says this fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your God. Somebody says, He is my God. He says, I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Why fear? We've got God on our side. If you've been coming to church all this time and you don't truly believe that God is on your side, and you truly don't believe that God has the power to help you when you need Him and that He can deliver you, then we really need to have a conversation after church. We really need to have a conversation. If you're if you're dealing with the struggle in your life right now, that you have fear over it, we need to have a conversation after church. We do. I'm setting you up right now saying, please come and talk to the prayer and decision partners. Let's not live in fear. Because at the end of the day, when we fear, it says more about what we believe about God. And if we're walking in fear, then we truly don't believe who God really is. Because if we knew who God was, we would not have to fear. You see, forgetfulness of God's past deliverance diminishes confidence in present conflicts. When you forget what God has already done and how powerful He really is, it will weaken your confidence. 1 Samuel chapter 17, verses 23 through 24. It says, as he talked with them, behold, the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, came up out of the ranks of the Philistines and spoke the same words as before. Said the same thing. And David heard him. All the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were much afraid. Trash talk day after day. And they're still afraid of talk. See, fear magnifies problems. But faith magnifies God. So I'm gonna ask you a question here. Are you asking how big is your problem? Or are you stating how great is our God? Say it again. Are you asking how big is your problem? Or are you stating how great is our God? You see, you can ask a question, but I'm not going to ask how great is my God. No, I know I'm gonna tell him, I'm gonna speak to my problems and say, I might have big problems, but I got a greater God. I might have problems that are bigger than me, but my God is bigger than me, and he's put some of him inside of me. Come on, somebody. Y'all ought to celebrate on that because that great big God has contained himself inside of us by way of the Holy Spirit. So Jesus said, and greater work shall you do in my name. There's a power that rests within us. And the question is, do we realize what God has already placed inside of us for the battles that we face every single day of our lives? When you know who you are and whose you are, your perspective totally changes. Yeah, I know my name is Byron, but I'm a child of God. And I know I belong to Rashonda. Praise the Lord. But I also belong to God. And you see, there's a difference. Roshonda can only take me so far. I love her with all that I got, but baby runs out sometimes. She gets sick and tired of me sometimes. You understand? She loves me, but she's got a cutoff point, y'all. But God doesn't cut me off, praise the Lord. God is always there. And He takes me, He loves me, He cares for me, and He's gonna look out for me, and He will do the same for you. That's how great our God is. That's how great He is. Psalm 56, verses 3 through 4 says this. When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God whose word I praise, in God I trust, I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me? What can flesh do to me? I think that David understood that perspective more so than anybody else. Because your perspective reveals your heart. And David had the kind of heart that God could trust. David had the kind of heart that God could use. David had the kind of heart that would give God the glory after he got the victory. But he gave God the glory even before he got the victory. When I'm facing difficult times, I tell the Lord in advance, thank you, Father. Thank you for the victory that's already won. And you know, sometimes our problem with victory is that we realize that there is more than one outcome. When we're facing a battle, we realize that there could be victory and that there could be defeat. And that's the problem, is we put the word defeat in the midst of victory as children of God. Because at the end of the day, no matter what it looks like, even though it may not turn out the way you want it to, you still win. Because all things work together for the good of them who love the Lord and who are called according to his purpose. But when you understand that, it might not turn out the way you wanted it to, but you still got to know that it's victory. Because if you're God's child and you know that he's looking out for you, you win no matter what. Paul sought the Lord three times for a thorn that was in his flesh. He was sick. But God said, My grace is sufficient for you. My strength is made perfect in your weakness. And he went on to be a mighty man of God, continuing to write letters to the church that we are still reading to this day that are changing lives forever. It didn't turn out the way he wanted it to. God didn't remove that flesh battle from him. God gave him victory in the midst of the battle. Didn't he do the same thing for Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane? Jesus sought him three times to remove the bitter cup. But he said, Nevertheless, not my will, but your will be done. It didn't turn out the way that he first asked. It turned out to be something greater that God used to bring victory to each and every one of us who would receive Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior. The victory belongs to God. And because we are his children, we are his people, we win no matter how the circumstance or the situation turns out. It's a matter of what's your perspective when you get that victory. See, the problem with victory is that it doesn't always look the way that we want it to look. It just looks the way that God wants it to look. It is the way God wants it to be. And so we ought to be able to glory even in our afflictions. We ought to be able to say thank you, Jesus, even in the midst of our battles and our struggles. Because at the end of the day, it's producing something within us, and our testimonies will be something that people will be delivered by and delivered because of. What can man do to me? Whether you're facing a financial battle, whether you're facing a spiritual battle, whether you're facing a physical battle, or a battle in a relationship, the Lord is with you. He will never leave you. And we thought that this was all about David fighting Goliath. But there's so much more that God has placed in the midst of his word that we sometimes just read right over. Because sometimes all we're trying to do is get to the other side of the story. We're just trying to get through the story. But in the midst of your story, there's a greater purpose and a greater cause that God is bringing out of your story. And you thought that you were just sharing your testimony. You thought that you were just sharing your life story. You thought that you were just telling people about the stuff that you've been through. You thought you were just telling people about the victories that you've won. You thought you were just telling people about the struggles that you had in your marriage, on your job, with your children, but yet still God was doing something greater and much deeper than you even realized. And if you wrote your autobiography, somebody's gonna read it. And they're not gonna just read about your life, they're gonna see themselves in your story. What story is God writing in? What story is God writing in your life? Because I can tell you, I got some stories in mind, but they all end in victory. Even the bad stuff, hallelujah. I wouldn't go in here, but I feel it, Holy Spirit. Even the bad stuff brought me to where I am today. So when I look at all that stuff, all the stuff I struggled through, all the things that seemed like they were engulfing my life, and they were the worst things that happened to me if they brought me here. Praise God. It's victory. I win. All of those hardships. I win. Because it brought me to the point of salvation, it brought me to a point of confidence in the name of the Lord. It brought me to a point where I don't mind telling people what God has done, what God can do, and what God will do. And if David was here today, he would say, Thank you, Lord, for the story. Because it's not just a story, it's so much more that God is doing in the midst of the story that God will reveal, even in your life. So let the Lord write his story of your life. Whatever it looks like, whatever you have to go through, and open that book so that people can get what the Lord wants them to get out of it. Your testimony is the book that God wants to open so that other people can be delivered. Your testimony is the book that God wants to open so that other people can come to know salvation through Jesus Christ. Somebody needs to know the struggle that you've gone through and the thing that you've overcome, and yet you're trying to hide it because you don't want anybody to know about it. You're still embarrassed over it. But God says, I'm gonna use it for my glory. So let God write your story. Every hardship you're going through, every disappointment in this life, let Him write your story. Because there's a victory, even in the midst of what you're going through right now. So don't ever see yourself as a loser. No matter what it looks like, no matter how it turns out, remember you always have victory in Jesus. You can't lose. You cannot lose with God, you cannot lose as a child of God. That's the way the story ends. We win every time. Yes, Jesus dies on the cross, but every time you read the book, he gets back up on the third day. Every time. If you're reading in 2030, he's gonna get up on the third day. Hello, somebody. And you gotta remember that. You don't show up in this house just to hear somebody preach about somebody that you don't really believe in. If you don't believe these stories, you need to really have a conversation with me after church. Amen. But you show up because you believe it. But the problem is sometimes our situations and our circumstances pull the confidence out of us to where we don't even think about what we say we really believe. Have you thought about why you show up on Sunday morning? I hope it's not just to have a social fellowship with people that you've been around for a while. I ain't that fun. Actually, I am. Actually, I am. But I would hope that we come here because we trust in the Lord, because we believe the things that we read about, we believe the things that the preachers preach about, and we believe that God is everything that we say He is. So I hope that's why you come here. And if that's the reason why you come here, if you're dealing with a struggle, I hope you also believe that God, through prayer, is able to deliver you. Because if you believed that, you wouldn't walk out of here Sunday after Sunday carrying that burden. You would say, I do need the help of my brothers and sisters. I do need somebody praying for me. And I know time I said I wasn't gonna be that long. I'm gonna have to be like Pastor Jared. He's my big brother, my mentor, my boss. I'm gonna have to finish this next week. Just in case your stomach starts growling. But I'm gonna say just a few more minutes. I'm gonna move on to point three. The heart that remembers God's faithfulness. Sometimes we often forget to remember God's faithfulness. Watch this in verses 34 through 37. It says, But David said to Saul, Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. When there came a lion or a bear and took a lamb from the flock, I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him. Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God. David's pretty upset about that. Sometimes we ought to get upset when things come against our God. And David said, The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said to David, Go and the Lord be with you. I love that confidence. He recalled the battles that God had already given him against a lion and a bear. Now that's a bad dude. To go after a lion and a bear, because they took his sheep. I think David's like, man, you better bring my lamb chops back here. But he went after him. A lion and a bear. And he's recalling these things of what the Lord has already done. And he said, The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of the Philistine. Remember what God has already done. Remembering past victories become present confidence. Sometimes that's what we need to do is remember the past victories that God has already given us. Remembering grows faith. When you remember, your faith grows. Testimonies prepare us for the next battle. I've got some things that I can testify about, and when I remember what God has already done, I'm ready for the next one. Now is for what's next. What you're dealing with right now is for what you're gonna have to deal with next. A pastor of our church in Shreveport said something to me. He said, Byron, when the Lord reveals something to you, it's not always time to go do it. He says, revelation necessitates preparation. He says, when the Lord shows it to you, it might be time to go prepare for the thing that God is showing you. May not be time in that moment to do it, but it's time to prepare to go and do it. And so your now is preparing you for what is next. Live in your now, understand the purpose of your life, understand what God is doing in your life, and be ready for what's next. Because I'm gonna tell you this if the devil had his way, he would have killed every last one of us in here before we gave our life to Christ. So you could have our souls in hell. But guess what? He missed. And because he missed, he's gonna do everything he can to make this life a living hell. You just gotta remember that as a child of God. So every battle that you have faced, every time it seems like God is not with you because the enemy is constantly in your life, since he can't have your soul in hell, he's gonna try to destroy your joy. He's gonna try to destroy your testimony and keep you shut up. He's gonna have you thinking, oh man, all this trouble I got going on in my life, I can't tell anybody about the goodness of God. Man, all this stuff I got going on in my life, I can't even concentrate on anything else. I'm just trying to get keep my head above water. That's what the enemy wants from us. Because he will rob us of our testimony. So walk in your victory. And as I close, and we're gonna ask this that we put this scripture up and leave it. Oh, this last slide up. Word, what words or circumstances are keeping you from trusting God for your next victory? You must win the battle within before you can win the battle ahead. I'm gonna ask the worship team to come. I want you to look at that. Ask yourself that question right now as the worship team comes. What words or circumstances are keeping you from trusting God for your next victory? What is it that you're facing right now? What is it that you're dealing with right now that's perhaps keeping you from your next victory? I'm gonna ask the prayer and decision partners to come. If you're dealing with the battle within you, let's deal with that today. Let's put that before the Lord. Whatever it is, whatever your need is. Put it before the Lord. Don't walk out of here another day carrying that burden, carrying that fear. Because we have a great hope in Jesus Christ. And hope looks for what's coming. Isn't that hope like a hope that happens? No, this hope is great expectancy. Expecting for God to do exactly what his word says he would do. If you're here today, no matter what it is, if you desire prayer, I'm gonna ask that you slip your hand up. If you don't want to walk up front, that's okay. We will meet you where you are. Because that's what God does. That's what Jesus does. He'll meet you right where you are. So if you desire prayer today, I'm gonna ask that you just slip your hand up. That we may pray with you.