Life Matters - October 22, 2025

As the imposing figure shouted out his challenges across the valley, strong and usually valiant, fully armored men inwardly cringed from this fearful threat to life, limb, and happiness. Who could stand against this hulk of a warrior who dared to shout challenges against God Himself without any visible consequences? 

When a young sheepherder observed his cringing countrymen with their full suits of fighting armor, that included combat weapons with lethal capabilities equal to those of the giant’s, he determined to do something about it. But not in his own strength. He needed God on his side. He also needed to be free from cumbersome weapons that would slow down his youthful vigor. 

So he took up the weapons familiar to him. Simple weapons that he understood, had practiced with, and proven. With deadly accuracy he had taken down a lion. And a bear. With God on his side he believed in his heart and his mind told him that this battle was a foregone conclusion, that God had already given the giant into his hands. 

David did not wait until the giant came to him. He did not accept the cringing defensive position of his brethren. David, willing to stand out, stepped out boldly to face the giant, to confront Goliath on his own turf, on the Philistine-controlled side of the valley. 

But first there was a brook to wade through, a brook flowing its refreshing course through the valley floor but also serving as a dividing line between the army camp of Philistia and the army camp of Israel. The brook was also a refreshing source of ammunition for young David who stopped there and chose five smooth stones.  

Why five stones? Some have reasoned because Goliath had four brothers. Which he did, but whatever the case may be, we can gather this much, that David was committed to a fight to the finish. He had no backup plan such as; fling one stone and be prepared to run just in case. No. David was in this to win or to die. Rightly sensing the battle behind the scenes, he believed himself to be on the side of the Almighty, against Whom the stature, strength, battle-wise and hardened Goliath with his weapons of war was—in the spirit realm—insignificant. “Who can stand against the Almighty?” may well have been in David’s thoughts, as well as the formation of thoughts later written in Psalms 91 such as, “…his [God’s] truth shall be thy shield and buckler.” 

Having gathered his five smooth stones, David approached the hulk of a man who, at nine feet tall must have had a strong three-feet advantage, towering over the lad, menacing—threatening—daring him closer. “Come to me,” said the Philistine to David, “and I will give thy flesh to the fowls of the air, and to the beast of the field.” David had taken his shepherd’s staff along to the brook where he chose his five smooth stones of ammunition and seems to have kept the staff in his hand as he approached the giant who snarled, “Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.  

David had a lot to say to the Philistine; (perhaps God was offering the giant a space to repent) ‘’Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield; but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. This day will the Lord deliver you into mine hand; and I will smite thee…” There’s more but you get the picture—David’s message was quite simple, “How dare you defy the living God?” 

The message of Goliath was also clearly stated. In essence the giant was saying, “How dare you defy me?” The battle was no longer (as it never had been) between David and Goliath, the battle was between Goliath and God. The winner was clear to David, who had taken note of Goliath’s sword with which he purported to finish the job – “and take thy head from thee.” David had with him only a sling, a few stones, and a staff, so we get the strong impression that he was already eyeing the sword of Goliath. 

The Philistine drew nigh to meet David and David ran toward the Philistine, took a stone out of his bag, placed it in his sling, and slang it with such deadly aim and force that it sunk into the giant’s forehead and he fell upon his face to the earth.  

Now the giant was down, but David had no sword to finish the job—to make sure beyond any doubt that this threat to life, limb, and happiness was indeed so dead he would rise no more. “Therefore David ran, and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith.”  

Goliath was lying on his face, so when David swung that sword the first vital it cut off was the communication pathway between body and brain—the spinal cord. (for the full account read I Samuel 17) 

I suspect that with AI (artificial intelligence) we are at the cusp of an information-communications war such as the world has never seen. The Christian’s armor and weaponry are still beautiful in their simplicity. Perhaps we also need to note the arsenal of the enemy. To take note of opportunity to decapitate the digital info-enemy with its own weapon. The Sword of Goliath.  

Life Matters!