Samuel 16-17
Even the anointing that Samuel carried out to anoint David, Jesse's youngest son, as king shows the standards according to which God acts. The Bible says, "A man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).
When Samuel came to the house of Jesse and told him that he had come to anoint one of his sons as king, he assumed that it was one of his seven great sons. And not only the father, but also the brothers of David have to make the experience that not the biggest and strongest among them is the one whom God has chosen, but the smallest and youngest among them. The Bible does not tell how the "big" brothers reacted to it, but one can very well imagine that they did not break out in enthusiasm about it. After all, David is just the little brother whose job it is to take care of the goats and sheep in the field. And now they experience how he, the prophet Samuel, is anointed king.
This act was something special for people at that time, because the prophets were the ones who were in direct contact with God. A prophet was one who proclaimed the counsels of God. He had a special position in the society of the Israelites of that time.
In Samuel 16 it says that the Spirit of God fell on David after the anointing and never departed from him. He was filled with the Holy Spirit.
And through God's providence it also happened that David was called to the court of King Saul, who was still in office, in order to bring relief to him by playing the harp. For Saul was once anointed and appointed king by Samuel, but through his actions he lost the grace of God. So it happened that Saul repeatedly fell into phases that the Bible describes as an evil spirit that visits him.
During this time, the Philistines poured into the land of the Israelites to fight against them.
And so it comes to the historic encounter between David and Goliath. I don't want to go into every detail, but the fact that Goliath (the giant) mocks the army of Israel and the God of Israel brings David into play. For he, filled with the Holy Spirit, cannot simply let this mockery stand. He experiences the reaction of his compatriots. Fear and Loathing. Just seeing Goliath inspires great fear among the Israelite soldiers. And so it is that David says he wants to fight Goliath. This news causes disbelief in King Saul and his followers, but they finally let him fight. I find it even more impressive as described that they are trying to equip him with the armor of the king. But this is simply too difficult for the young shepherd and harpist, so he puts it down again. Instead, he takes the shepherd's crook and five flat pebbles for his slingshot and approaches the giant. And when he taunts him and tries to intimidate him, David replies that he will come in the name of his god Sabaoth and will kill him. (1 Samuel 17:45-47)
Then he puts a stone in the slingshot and uses it to kill the giant Goliath. From a purely human point of view, it is very unlikely that a pebble from a young shepherd's slingshot would have been able to kill this giant, but with the help of the god in whose name David fights this battle, anything is possible. David did not defeat Goliath by his own strength, but faith in God and his help made it possible.
Every single one of us has such giants in our life and has to fight again and again to change something. And it's important that we have support. Often we have that support from loved ones around us, but having the support of God, a certainty that comes from faith, changes our lives in fundamental ways.
The decision to live a life with and according to God's commandments allows us to grow beyond ourselves in a special way. If we are aware that the power that rests and works in us comes from God, then we have understood the really important things.
And nothing is impossible for God.
When we read the psalms and songs that David wrote and know his story from the Bible, we know that these are not just beautiful words. These psalms and songs are based on the life experiences David made on his way to kingship. He EXPERIENCED it.
It can be said that David got off to a good start after his anointing, but as is often the case with great men recorded in the Bible, there were difficulties. These difficulties are, in my opinion, part of the character development that everyone goes through who decides to walk their path with God. So did David, he had a great promise, but the road to get there was rocky.
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