The Bulletin
of the
Church of Christ at
New Georgia
Tim Johnson, editor
March 10, 2002
In
This Issue:
"How
to Slay a Giant"
By
Mike Wilson
"The
Matter of Authority"
by
Bill Crews
How to Slay a Giant
The battle of David and Goliath is one of the best-known stories in the entire Bible. A champion, Goliath, came out of the Philistine camp every day for 40 days, defying the Israelite army to send him a worthy opponent. This Philistine giant was about 9 feet 9 inches tall and wore at least 150 pounds of armor. Confident in the superiority of his equipment and his extraordinary natural strength, he proposes a winner-take-all contest. There were no takers!
Young David was sent by his father to deliver some roasted grain, loaves of bread and cheese to his brothers and their commander on the battlefront. It was on this battlefield that David's life took a very different turn, and it would never be the same. The ultimate outcome, however, did not occur by accident. David did four things that are timelessly instructive to the young and the young at heart.
1. He took advantage of his opportunity. We know David as a shepherd, a musician, a psalmist, a warrior and a king. But the doorway to a successful career as a man of God opened up to him in the valley of Elah. Observing firsthand Goliath's psychological warfare and intimidation, David asked, "What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should taunt the armies of the living God?" (I Sam. 17:26). No one ever accomplishes anything of note if he doesn't take advantage of his opportunities. The cowardice of the Israelite armed forces, including King Saul, was an open door for David. The same shepherd boy who had slain a lion and a bear would say to the king, "This uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them&ldots;" (17:32).
2. He did not allow his youth to deter him. David's older brother, Eliab, spoke with disdain: "Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your insolence and the wickedness of your heart; for you have come down in order to see the battle" (17:28). Other detractors might have said, "Oh, he's young and inexperienced. This is just youthful exuberance." Even today, young people in the church will naturally defer to older people who are in positions of influence, but that doesn't mean they don't have anything to offer. A young godly person can make a huge difference!
3. He saw the victory before the battle was fought. One can detect no trace of fear in David's voice throughout this episode. On the contrary, his courage is infectious. He informed the king, "Let no man's heart fail on account of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine" (17:32). When the battle finally ensued, Goliath gave him a verbal barrage: "Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?" (14:43). Just as trash talking is an ugly part of modern sports, it was part of ancient battle etiquette. One gets the impression, nevertheless, that Goliath was genuinely offended by the handsome, unintimidating youth who stood before him. Is this the best the Israelites have to offer? On the contrary, David stood his ground and engaged the giant verbally, but he did not boast in the deadly marksmanship of his slingshot. "You have come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts&ldots; for the battle is the LORD's and He will give you into our hands" (17:45,47).
4. He was moved by a greater purpose. David tells his opponent that the immanent victory had a higher aim: "that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel" (17:46). Young David was moved by the vindication of God's name to an ignorant world. Does it pain you to think of how many of your friends and neighbors do not know God? If so, then what will you do about it? David wasn't going to sit on the sidelines while an uncircumcised Philistine defied the armies of the living God! When the truth of God moves a person to righteous indignation and absolute trust, as well as concern for the lost souls of other people, he will no longer be able to tremble in silence. Instead, he will rise up and act! Like Isaiah, he will say, "Here am I, send me." How does the story end? "Thus David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and he struck the Philistine and killed him" (17:50). The rest, as they say, is history.
-- by Mike Wilson
On the question of the necessity of authority for religious practices there are but two positions that one can take. Either we must have authority or we do not have to have authority for all that we do in religion. Any position in between would be ridiculous and impossible. If someone should insist that one must have authority for some things, but not for all things, by what standard could he possibly distinguish the things for which he must have authority from the things for which he does not need authority? And how could he condemn anything merely because it was unauthorized in the Scriptures?
May God pity the man who calls himself a gospel preacher and who makes such statements as: "Why we do many things for which we do not have authority"; and "We do not have to have authority for everything we do in religion." Such a preacher would have neither right nor grounds to condemn any of the religious practices around us, which, though without authority, are not expressly forbidden in the Scriptures. On what basis would he show that instrumental music, infant baptism, choirs, missionary societies, quarterly or annual communion, etc., are wrong?
Authority falls into two categories: general and specific. Some things are specifically authorized: baptism, singing, Lord's Supper. Other things are authorized because they are embraced in and necessary to the performance of things specifically authorized: (Some things may be used as "aids" in carrying out a command as long as no Scriptural principle is violated); a baptistry, songbooks, containers.
To say that one must have authority for all that he does in religion is a far cry from saying that one must have specific authority for all that he does in religion. Some "gospel preachers" have offered this sort of quibble: "Why if one must have authority for everything, where did Noah get the authority for the tools he used in building the ark since God did not specify any tools." This is nothing more than a dodge, a smoke screen to cover up the fact that many churches today are practicing things for which they have no authority--either general or specific. Certainly Noah had authority in that tools were necessary to carry out the injunction to build the ark. Had God specified the tools, he would have been limited to what God specified.
by Bill Crews