One of the most iconic scenes in movie history comes from The Fellowship of the Ring. In the dark mine of Moria, the nine members of the fellowship meet a foe beyond any of their skills — an extremely powerful and evil creature called the Balrog.
The Balrog spreads smoke and a trail of fire, his vast wings span from wall to wall, and he wields monstrous, destructive weapons. So as the group sees his approach, they flee.
Soon they’re separated by a single bridge. We see the great enemy on one side and on the other, we see a group of frail and weak individuals. But between them stands their leader, the wizard Gandalf. He stands firm between the two, ready to defend his friends. Gandalf doesn’t cower in fear, but he himself courageously goes to fight for them.
In 1 Samuel 17:10–11, we see the nation of Israel in desperate need, like the characters in the Lord of the Rings. The Israelites have come face to face with an enemy, a foe beyond any of their skills, but they’re missing one key element: There is no one willing to fight for the nation.
Who Will Fight For Us?
Ever since Saul became the first king of Israel, the country has been at war with the Philistines. In this particular battle, the two sides find themselves in Israel’s territory, and Israel’s enemy sends in their champion, Goliath.
Goliath challenges the Israelites to a winner-take-all duel. The loser would surely be killed, and his fellow people would become slaves. As the Bible tells us, this soldier was no ordinary man. He towered over the average man at just a little over 9 feet high, and if that wasn’t intimidating enough, he wore armor and had heavy weapons that were unwieldy and cumbersome for people like you and me.
If you’ve ever watched a basketball game on television, you’ll notice that the basketball players don’t look that tall. But in-person, they’re giants. I got to take a picture with NBA player Nerlens Noel, and I remember feeling both amazed and intimidated at his height. But Noel is only 6 ft, 10 in. Imagine he was looking up at someone more than two feet taller.
Because of Goliath’s intimidating figure, no one dares to challenge him, even though he spews insults and challenges. All the people and even the king are dismayed and afraid. But that was the problem. Saul was supposed to be different.
1 Samuel marks the beginning of the kingdom of Israel. The famous song of Hannah predicts the reign of a king who will be anointed and be strengthened by the LORD himself to fight the enemies of Israel (1 Sam. 2:10). Later in the book, the Israelites had demanded there be a king over them so that the king could “go out before us and fight our battles” (1 Sam. 8:20), and Saul is installed as the first king of Israel.
As the king, Saul was supposed to fight for his people to defeat their enemies. But he doesn’t. In fact, as the people cower in fear and are dismayed by their enemy, so is their king. There is no distinction between the ruler and the people he is supposed to protect.
The Once and Future King
There are many verses in the Bible that we read and think to ourselves, “Praise God, this is us!” Think of the mountaintop passages in the Bible like Romans 3:23-24 how we “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift through the redemption in Christ Jesus.”Or Ephesians 2:4-5: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ.”
When we read these kinds of promises in the Bible, we think, “This is great news because it’s true for us!” We can do the same here in this seemingly impossible battle between the Philistines and the Israelites. As we consider Saul and the Israelites’ fear, we can say, “Praise God, this isn’t us! We’re not like the Israelites. We’re not left with a King, who is too weak and afraid to fight for us.”
Christian, you have a King who is able to fight.
King Jesus came to defeat your enemies – Satan, sin, and the world – by becoming a man, living a perfect life of obedience, dying a cruel and unjust death, and being raised to life on the third day. On the cross, Colossians says, Christ has “disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them” (Col. 2:15). Through his resurrection, Paul writes in 1 Corinthians, that Christ has secured victory over the sting of death and power of sin (1 Corinthians 15).
Because what good would it be if we have a King who is powerful but is not willing to fight for us? Friend, not only is Jesus powerful to defeat our enemies, but he is also willing to fight for us. Jesus is not like Saul. Jesus is not dismayed or afraid but he willingly goes to fight for his people, even to the point of death (John 10:18).
Whom Shall We Trust?
So what should be your response as Christians as you see that Christ is our King who fought for you? You need to trust in this King.
There is one thing that the Israelites and the Philistines had in common even though they were enemies: They trusted too much in their eyes and ears.
Goliath believed in his own strength. He saw that he physically overshadowed every Israelites. He saw his shining armor and his impressive weapons. Perhaps he saw the effect of his intimidation and insults on the camp of Israel. He believed too much in what he could see.
Israel was guilty of the same sin. They saw how great Goliath was, they saw his armor and weapons, and they heard Goliath’s threats. Instead of trusting in God and trusting that only God can give power over their enemy, Saul trusted too much in himself and his army. hen he realized he couldn’t fight on his own, he was afraid.
When I am faced with circumstances that should make me trust in King Jesus, my actual response oftentimes is to not trust him. Instead, I believe that something or someone else will deliver me; I look to myself and live under the illusion that I can be independent of Jesus.
That is why we all need to remember the power of King Jesus. Because he defeated sin and death on the cross, we will never taste the sting of death. Because he is the good King, he protects and provides for us every day.
Jesus is not like our presidents who may have certain influences and effects over our lives, yet we feel distant from them, and don’t know personally. But our King is not far from us. He is intimately close with his people, cares for them, loves them.
Jesus also serves us with joy, as he “for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:). Jesus does not begrudgingly rule as King. Parks and Recreation character Leslie Knope’s delight and enthusiasm to serve pales in comparison to the self-sacrifice and love of our King.
So remember that this King is still reigning and ruling on his throne. Earthly authorities come and go, but Christ’s Kingship endures forever. As long as the tomb is empty, the throne will never be empty. There is no re-election, no coup, and no rushing to the capitol, in His dominion. There is no other king, no other Goliaths, no other powers that can match this King. Our courageous and gracious King serves and rules forever.