A New Beginning presents a book from Pastor Greg Laurie, with help for those suffering loss, called Hope for Hurting Hearts. God has used this book over the years to touch many people. If you've lost a loved one, or if you know someone that's recently lost a loved one, it would be an excellent thing to get this book into their hands, because I really wrote it for them. So we're offering you a copy of this book, Hope for Hurting Hearts, for your gift of any size. Available at Harvest.org.
I have the strength to do what God has called me to do. More people complain about headaches than any other health condition. About 45 million people suffer from them each year. The major causes?
Stress and lack of sleep, among others. There's a lot on our minds. Many people feel overwhelmed much of the time. But today on A New Beginning, Pastor Greg Laurie helps us chart a new path. He'll talk about the giants we face, those forces that seem bigger than we are. We'll learn today how to stand against them in the power of God. How do you overcome a giant?
That's what we're going to talk about in our series. Again, we're in the house of David, which is a look of David, the second king of Israel. We're going to look at the very familiar story of David and Goliath. 1 Samuel chapter 17, starting at verse 40.
By the way, I'm reading from the New Living Translation. He roared at David, Am I a dog that you come at me with a stick? And he cursed David by the names of his gods. Goliath yelled, Come over here, and I'll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals.
I love the response of David. David shouted in reply, You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord God Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. Today, David says, the Lord will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head, and then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know there is a God in Israel. And everyone will know the Lord does not need weapons to rescue his people.
It's his battle, not ours. The Lord will give you to us. I love this verse. As Goliath moved closer to attack, David quickly ran out to meet him. Verse 49, reaching into a shepherd's bag, taking out a stone, he hurled it from his sling and hit the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank in, and Goliath stumbled and fell face downward on the ground. Now David finishes the job, 1 Samuel 1750, so David triumphed over the Philistine giant with only a stone and a sling, and since he had no sword, he ran over and pulled Goliath's sword from its sheath, and David used it to kill the giant and cut off his head. When the Philistines saw their champion was dead, they turned and ran. Is that not an awesome story?
I love it. What a victory. The will of the Philistines was broken. The Israelites were reinvigorated. David the shepherd boy had cut down the giant Goliath. So what do we learn from this about defeating our own giants?
If you're taking notes, here's point number one. We all have giants. We all have giants. We all face severe hardships, seemingly insurmountable obstacles, temptations that come our way. First Corinthians 10, 13 says, remember, temptations come into your life. They are no different than what others experience, but God is faithful. He will keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can't stand up against it. When you are tempted, God will show you a way out so you will not give into it. So while it is true that we all have giants, it is also true that every giant is defeatable.
Principle number two. David knew the battle belonged to the Lord. David knew the battle belonged to the Lord. Look at verse 47. It is his battle, not ours, the Lord will give you to us.
What are you facing right now? The battle belongs to the Lord. Commit it to the Lord. Don't worry about anything, Paul reminds us, but pray about everything and the peace of God that passes all human understanding will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus. The battle belongs to the Lord.
Number three. Attack your giants. Attack your giants. Earlier in the story we read that the Israelites said, how is this man Goliath come up into our camp?
That is 1 Samuel 1725. In other words, Goliath wasn't just down in the valley. He had climbed up and was walking through the camp of Israel. Hey, hey, who wants to fight me? Come on, you are big enough to fight me.
Let's go. So he was right up in their face, up in their grill as they say. And he wasn't going away. And that is what happens with giants.
You compromise here, you compromise there. Now they have invaded your life. They are in your front room. They are in every room.
And they are becoming even more powerful. So what do you do? You don't run from giants, you attack them. You don't negotiate with them. You don't yell at them. You kill them.
You don't say I will get to this one day. You deal with your giant right now. Look at verse 48. As Goliath moved closer to attack, David ran out quickly to meet him. He didn't run from Goliath. He didn't just hold his ground against Goliath.
He attacked Goliath. And you must do the same. Let's say you have a problem with drinking.
Let's say you have a problem with drugs. And this is an ongoing problem that has not gone away. You've got to deal with it. Stop rationalizing it. Stop hiding it. Stop making excuses for it.
Take it out of the dark and put it in the light of day and deal with it. And that brings me to my next point. Point number four. Finish the giant off. Finish the giant off. So David thought I am not going to give this guy a second chance.
First Samuel 1751. He ran over and pulled Goliath's sword from its sheath and he used it to kill the giant and cut his head off. Now why did he cut off his head? Because Goliath was still breathing. Now you might say, no the poor giant.
No, no. No poor giant. You don't coddle giants. You kill giants. Well why should I kill my giant? Listen to this. If you don't kill your giant, your giant will kill you. That's your choice. You kill it or it kills you. Kill or be killed.
He cut off his head. Coming back to drugs. Let's say your problem is drugs. What do you do? Get rid of your drugs. No brainer.
Hello? Flush them down the toilet. Booze? Pour it down the toilet. Then flush.
Because if you are desperate you might go back later. Is this still drinkable? Trust me I have heard worse. If you have fallen into sexual sin, admit it is sexual sin. Stop rationalizing. Stop excusing it. Stop calling it a mistake or a human weakness. It is a sin. After David's sin with Bathsheba, we will get to this later, in Psalm 51 he said, against you Lord and you only have I sinned. That is what it means to confess your sin. 1 John 1 says, if you will confess your sin, God is faithful and just to forgive you your sin and cleanse you from all unrighteousness.
The word confess means to acknowledge it and it means to agree with God. So let's say you and I are standing on the beach and we see a beautiful sunset. And I say, that was an amazing sunset. And you say, I agree Greg.
It really was. So God says, that is wonderful. I love it. And we say, I love it too Lord. And then the Lord says, that is horrible. I hate it. And we say, I agree Lord.
It is horrible. To confess your sin is to align your will with the will of God. And see sin as God sees it. God hates sin. He loves a sinner. But he hates sin. So to confess our sin is to acknowledge how horrible it is. And then of course to repent or turn from it. We like to gloss these things over. Well I am human and I make mistakes.
Yeah that is true. We all do. Call sin, sin. Bring your giant out in the light of day. But before you can do this, the Lord may strip you down to nothing. So you will see when your giant is defeated, it is not your strength but his.
I love this little part of the story. 1 Samuel 17 verse 38. Before David goes and faces off with Goliath, Saul says, well you need to wear some armor boy. I will tell you what, you can wear my armor. And so David put on a bronze helmet, a coat of mail. Strapped the sword over it. Took a step or two to see what it was like. Because he had never worn things like this before. And he says, I can't go in these. It is like a little kid playing dress up.
Right? Big breastplate. Helmet.
Shoes even too big. And he has got this sword. You know, no way he is going to go against Goliath with all that stuff so he strips it all off. He is not going to wear Saul's armor. It was going to be God or nothing.
There was no plan B. If God did not come through, he was done for. But David knew God would come through. See the problem in our minds is Satan is the giant and God is small. When the very opposite is true. Satan is powerful but God is way more powerful.
Again he is bigger than your giant. So there is also a picture here for us sharing in the victory of Jesus Christ. Remember whoever won then the other people would share in the victory. So because David won everyone was excited. The Israelis then had the courage to attack the Philistines which they lacked before. So they shared in the victory of David. The greater David if you will. The son of David as he called himself. Jesus Christ went to the cross and defeated Satan and his demon forces.
And we share in that victory. Because Colossians 2.14 says of Christ, He canceled the record that contained the charges against us. He took it and destroyed it by nailing it to Christ's cross. In this way God disarmed evil rulers and authorities.
He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross of Christ. So I don't fight for victory. Listen to this. I don't fight for victory. I fight from victory. I don't have to go take the devil out of my own strength. I will fail.
You will fail. Satan's way more powerful than Greg. He's way more powerful than you. But oh the Lord.
Oh he's so much stronger than Satan. So I stand on the Lord and on the power of his might and that gives me the boldness and that gives me the strength to do what God has called me to do. They shared in the victory of David and we share in the victory of Christ. Pastor Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message in just a moment. We have our television program, daily devotions and much more.
So go and download the Harvest Plus app. Well you're joining us for a series called The House of David. And Pastor Greg is offering practical lessons on overcoming giants in our lives from the story of David and Goliath. So let's recap and land this message. If you missed these points, point number one was everyone has giants.
There are no exceptions. It's just a matter of what, where, or who your giant is. Point number two, the battle belongs to the Lord.
Rest in the finished work that God has done. It's his spiritual battle and it must be fought with spiritual weapons. Number three, attack your giant. Force your giant, your problem, your addiction, your vice, whatever it might be into the light of day. Call on God.
Pray for his power. Then attack your giant. Point number four, finish your giant off. Cut off its head. Burn your bridges and break with the past.
Draw lines. Make yourself accountable to others. You see a lot of times we'll say, well I don't want to live that way anymore. But we still hang out with the same people leading us to do the same things.
You need new friends. You need godly friends. The Bible says flee youthful desires and follow the Lord and all those that call upon him with a pure heart. If you hang around godless people, they'll pull you down. I'm not advocating having no contact with non-believers. How else will we evangelize them? But having said that, we need godly people who will spur us on. That's why the Bible says don't forsake the assembling of yourselves together as the manner of some is. But encourage one another and so much more as you see the day of the Lord approaching. Let me come back to a point I raised earlier.
The greater David, the Lord Jesus Christ, went on the cross and died for our sin. This is where we find the power to live the Christian life. Listen, some people say, you know it's hard to be a Christian.
I would disagree. It's not hard to be a Christian. It's impossible. It is impossible to be a Christian in this world today.
Dot, dot, dot. Apart from the power of the Holy Spirit. I need God's help. Jesus said, apart from me you can do nothing. But the flip side of that coin, the words of Paul, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Yes, but I'm tempted above my capacity to resist.
Actually you aren't. Because we already look at 1 Corinthians 10 13 that says God won't allow you to be tempted above your capacity to resist. But will with the temptation make a way of escape that you may be able to bear it.
So there's always a way out. God will give you the power. The question is do you want to utilize that power? Do you want to be free of that addiction? As Jesus said to that one man who was disabled, do you want to be made whole? What kind of question is that to ask? Of course he does.
No. Not every person who is addicted to drugs wants to be free. Not every alcoholic wants to stop drinking. Not every person living on the streets wants to get off the streets. There are people that have made a decision to live that way. And that is the way they want to live.
They're never going to change if they don't want to change. So the question is do you want to be made whole? Do you want to change?
Do you like this lifestyle you're in or do you want to get out of it? If so, Jesus extends his hand and he'll pull you up just like he pulled that one man up. But listen, I can never overcome Satan or sin in my own strength. Well, I'll just get some holy water. There is no such thing as holy water.
I hate to break it to you. Well, I'll just wear a crucifix. I will keep the devil away.
Are you kidding? I'll wear garlic around my neck. That'll keep Satan away. That'll keep your friends away. I won't keep Satan away.
Especially if you take a bite out of the garlic. No, the only power greater than Satan is the power of Christ. The only thing that will keep Satan from controlling you is the power of Jesus indwelling you. That's why you need Jesus in your life.
And I close by asking this question. Is Jesus living in your life right now and has he forgiven you of all of your sin? Maybe you've just been sort of a religious type person trying to live this life in your own strength. And that is why you're defeated day after day, month after month, year after year. See, you need a relationship with God.
That's what it's all about. And Jesus Christ, who died on that cross and rose again from the dead, now stands at the door of each of our lives and he knocks and he says if we'll hear his voice and open the door, he will come in. Have you ever asked Jesus Christ to come into your life?
If not, you can do it right here, right now. And then everything will change for you. If you want Jesus to come into your life and forgive you of your sin, respond to this invitation that we'll close with as we all bow our heads for a closing prayer. Father, I pray that your Holy Spirit will work in this group of people and all those who are watching. And if there's anyone here who does not know you, who does not have a relationship with you, let this be the moment they believe. Let this be the moment they come to you, Jesus.
We commit them to you while our heads are bowed and our eyes are closed and we're praying. Maybe there's somebody here that would say, I need Jesus. I need my sin forgiven. I've tried to change my life and pull myself up on my own bootstraps and I keep failing.
I need help. I need God. Pray for me. If that's your desire, if you want Jesus Christ to come into your life, if you want Him to forgive you of your sin, if you want to fill the big hole in your heart that you've tried to fill with so many things this culture offers, if you want to know that you will go to heaven when you die, wherever you are, pray this with me. Lord Jesus, I know that I'm a sinner, but I know that you're the Savior who died on the cross for my sin and rose again from the dead. I turn from my sin now and I choose to follow you from this moment forward. Thank you for hearing this prayer and answering this prayer.
In Jesus' name I pray, amen. Pastor Greg Laurie with an important prayer. And if you've prayed those words today and you've meant them sincerely, if you've asked the Lord to forgive your sins, we want to be the first to welcome you into the family of God. Pastor Greg quoted 1 John 1-9 a little earlier.
If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanses from all unrighteousness. Well, we want to help you get started living this life of faith. Let us send you Pastor Greg's New Believers Bible.
It's designed to answer the questions new believers have and get them started in their walk with the Lord. We'll send it without charge when you contact us and ask for the New Believers Bible. Here's our round-the-clock phone number, 1-800-821-3300.
That's 1-800-821-3300. Or write a new beginning, Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514. Or just go online to harvest.org and click Know God. And then let us take a moment to thank you for praying for this ministry and for supporting it through your generous donation.
It's an investment in kingdom business. Isn't that right, Pastor Greg? Yeah, it's really true, Dave. And I believe it's so important because, you know, the Gospel saves lives. It saves eternal lives because when a person believes in Jesus, according to Scripture, they pass from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to the power of God. And then, of course, that changes the course of their future.
That impacts their children and their children's children. The Gospel changes everything, and thousands and thousands of people respond every single year. Thanks to the Lord. Also, thanks to you for your investment in this ministry, enabling us to reach people wherever they are. So if this is something you care about, I encourage you to make a financial investment in A New Beginning and Harvest Ministries. Yeah, that's right, and we really do appreciate your support. Thanks for partnering with us today.
It can make a real difference, not just for today or this week, but for eternity. So get in touch with your support today by calling 1-800-821-3300. That's a 24-7 phone number, 1-800-821-3300. Or write A New Beginning, Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514.
Or go online to harvest.org. Well, next time, Pastor Greg shows us what happens when everyone turns against David and courage is in short supply. Join us here on A New Beginning with pastor and Bible teacher Greg Laurie. This is the day, the day when life begins.
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