Names of God | Pastor Jerrell Jobe

Come on, let's put our hands like this all across the room. Come on, let's sing. And Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise, when you say Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise always. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise, when you say Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise always. And I've got a God who is for me And he's known for making a way And he fought the battle so I wouldn't have to All glory belongs to his name And I've got a God who's been faithful And far more than I could explain And through every season in spite of my weakness He gave me a song I could sing And I came to pray And I came to pray That's why I woke up today Alleluia And I came to pray When you say Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise, when you say Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise always. And I've got a king who is risen And he put my shame in the grave

Went to the back and now I'll never have to He did it in all them three days And I came to pray I came to pray That's why I woke up today Come on, does anyone want to praise the Lord today? I came to pray When you say Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise, when you say Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise always I'm singing in the morning I'm singing at night I'm singing in the battle That's how I fight I'm singing He's holy I'm singing it twice I'm singing He's holy the rest of my life I'm singing in the morning I'm singing at night I'm singing in the battle That's how I fight I'm singing He's holy I'm singing it twice I'm singing He's holy the rest of my life I'm singing He's holy Come on, sing with me Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise, when you say

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise always Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise, when you say Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise always I'm singing in the morning I'm singing at night I'm singing in the battle That's how I fight I'm singing He's holy I'm singing it twice I'm singing He's holy the rest of my life Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia! You get all the praise always Come on church, put your hands like this I came to praise I came to praise Devil get out of my way Devil get out of my way And I came to praise Come on, let's give a little shout of praise Thank you Lord And all of my steps are ordered by you You give every breath that I take And only a kind God gives power to choose It is my privilege to say You are the Lord You're the Lord of my life You are the Lord

You're the Lord of my life Jesus Christ You are the Lord of my life Though I may stumble I will not fall For I am upheld by You Even as trial I'll count it as sure To say it again and again And again and again We'll sing You are the Lord You're the Lord of my life You are the Lord You're the Lord of my life Jesus Christ You are the Lord You are the Lord You're the Lord of my life You are the Lord You're the Lord of my life Jesus Christ You are the Lord You are the Lord You are the Lord of my life Thank You Jesus Thank You Jesus I will bless Your Name For all of my days I will bless Your Name Lord

Oh yeah Every knee will bow Every tongue confess But it's my joy to do it now Oh Jesus Every eye will see You in Your glory But I've been to seeking now Come on lift your voice and say it out Every knee will bow Every tongue confess But it's my joy to do it now Every eye will see You in Your glory But I've been to seeking now Oh Jesus And there will be a day Tears will be no more The angels and the saints Will worship and adore I'll enter Heaven's gates Forever sing Your Name But it's my joy to do it now Oh Jesus Oh Jesus Oh Jesus Yes I've been to seeking now Oh Jesus Thank You Lord Thank You Lord

Oh Jesus Yes I've been to seeking now You are the Lord You're the Lord in my life You are the Lord You're the Lord Jesus You are And there will be a day And there will be a day Tears will be no more The angels and the saints Will worship You And I will sing Your name I will sing Your name But I can't just sing it now Lord Jesus ♪ Jesus, yeah, yes I get to sing it now ♪ ♪ Oh, Jesus, I get to sing it now ♪ ♪ Oh, Jesus, yes I get to sing it now, oh ♪ ♪ Thank you, Jesus, take care, oh Lord ♪ ♪ I will be blessed in the end, I will bless in the end ♪ ♪ There is one in a thousand, oh yeah ♪ ♪ There's a thousand in a thousand, I will bless in the end ♪ Come on, let's have your voice, let me hear it. ♪ Begin to bless in the name of the Lord ♪ ♪ Begin to bless in the name of the Lord ♪ ♪ Begin to bless in the name of the Lord ♪ ♪ Come take your place, come take your place ♪ ♪ Come take your place in Jesus, come take your place ♪ ♪ Come take your place, come take your place, Lord ♪

♪ In Jesus, Lord, come take your place, come take your place ♪ ♪ Come take your place in Jesus, Lord ♪ ♪ Come take your place, come take your place, Lord, come take your place, Lord ♪ ♪ Come take your place in Jesus, Lord ♪ ♪ Take your place ♪ ♪ Let me see your name, Lord, share my word, Lord, take my word, Lord ♪ ♪ Take your place in Jesus, Lord, come take your place, come take your place, Lord, come take your place, Lord ♪ ♪ Take your place in Jesus, Lord, share my word, Lord, take my word, Lord, take my word, Lord, take my word, Lord ♪ ♪ Come take your place, come take your place, Lord ♪ ♪ Take your place, come take your place, Lord, take your place, Lord, take my word, Lord, take my word, Lord take my word, Lord take my word, Lord take my word, Lord take my word, Lord take my word ♪ Come on, give the Lord a shout of praise. Hallelujah! Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you. Come on, if the Father has been good to you, can you just lift your hands all across this room? Thank you, Father. Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Holy is your name, Jesus. We revere you in this place. We thank you for the price that was paid for us. We thank you that you love us so much, that you gave us your best, Jesus Christ. He came and he died, he was raised back to life so that whoever believes in you will live with you forever. Thank you for the good news, Jesus. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Okay. Come on, can anyone testify that today? Come on, if the Lord has been good to you, can we sing that together all across the room?

I sing the good news of God. ♪ And I still believe in God the Father ♪ ♪ Creator of the earth and the sky ♪ ♪ I still believe His word has power ♪ ♪ And I know it's working all for good ♪ ♪ I still believe in Christ the Savior ♪ ♪ The Son of Man came down for us ♪ ♪ I still believe His blood has work ♪ ♪ And I know it's working all for good ♪ ♪ And all praise to the One, the God who never changes ♪ ♪ All praise to the One, the God of all the ages ♪ ♪ All praise to the same, Almighty King forevermore ♪ ♪ Forevermore, forevermore ♪ ♪ Forevermore, forevermore ♪ ♪ I still believe the crucifixion ♪ ♪ My faith is in the empty grave ♪ ♪ I still believe the resurrection ♪ ♪ And I know He's calling back again, yeah ♪ ♪ And I know He's calling back again ♪ ♪ All praise to the One, the God who never changes ♪ ♪ All praise to the One, the God of all the ages ♪ ♪ All praise to the same, Almighty King forevermore ♪ ♪ Forevermore, forevermore, Jesus ♪ ♪ I still believe the Holy Spirit ♪ ♪ The gift of God given to us ♪ ♪ We're calling on a move of heaven ♪ ♪ A rushing wind right here, right now ♪ ♪ Oh, He's here, He's here ♪ ♪ I still believe Your kingdom's coming, Lord ♪ ♪ It's like a fire in my bones, one day ♪

♪ One day we'll see the King of heaven ♪ ♪ Our living hope, our cornerstone ♪ ♪ Oh, He lives at high, forevermore, yeah ♪ ♪ All praise to the One, the God who never changes ♪ ♪ All praise to the One, the God of all the ages ♪ ♪ All praise to the Savior, our mighty King, forevermore ♪ ♪ Forevermore, all praise ♪ ♪ All praise to the One, the God who never changes ♪ ♪ All praise to the One, the God of all the ages ♪ ♪ All praise to the Savior, our mighty King, forevermore ♪ ♪ Forevermore, forevermore, forevermore, oh, forevermore ♪ ♪ Forevermore, oh, forevermore, oh, forevermore, oh, forevermore ♪ Jesus, hmm. I know we just raised our hand to clear this. Let's just do it one more time. Just lift your hands if you're willing in this room. just say you, you're a good God. Not only you're a good God, you are a good father. And on a day when some of us understand that well, and on a day when some of us struggle to even understand it's true of ourselves, on a day that some of us struggle to believe it's true about you, we declare in faith, your word says you are not just a good God, but you are a father, and you're not just a father, you're a really good father. And so we thank you, that you are so loving as a father, you did what no other father would do, and you gave your only son, and we just say thank you. In Jesus' name, and everybody said, amen. Amen, you may be seated. Whew, we haven't met, my name is Gerald, so, so glad you're here. Today I also give a big shout out, big welcome to Locations En Gedi Español, En Gedi Grand Rapids. We've got a bunch of friends, bunch of friends throughout the U.S. joining us from prisons and jails, and to you, if you're watching, we just simply say we are so glad you're with us today. Last several weeks we've been in a

series looking at the different names of God, and I love, I don't know, I hope you're digging the series, but often there's a pattern, there's a theme, right, there's a person, individual, a couple, or a group of people, they're up against some type of impossible situation, and God is there, and we know God's there because the narrator of the story told us that God is there, but they, the characters, as it were, on the pages of Scripture, they're clueless, but until the breakthrough comes, until the miracle comes, until, like, God shows up, and the battle is won, and an angel from heaven, or a voice from heaven, like, this is God, and they understand a name of God, or the person is like, whoa, that's what God's like, and they declare for the first time, at least in the pages of Scripture, a new understanding of who God is based on that name, and I love it, I love it, because it, Scripture just shows God, He's not up there, out there, aloof and distant, but He's up close, personal, intricately involved, intimately acquainted with all our ways, and He makes Himself known in those very personal circumstances, and the whole goal, friends, for you and I studying the story, isn't just like, oh, I know a new name of God, and I can impress my friends or my granny at Thanksgiving, right? No, no, the goal is when we understand the name, we see an element of His character, and we understand element of His character, the goal, the goal is it begins to get worked in us, so that when we find ourselves facing stuff, living stuff, going through stuff, we find ourselves relating to God based on who He is and can be in that place at that time, right? Yeah, that's good, that's good. What I love about the story we're going to look at today is it's a little different in that there's one person in the story that already has an understanding of who God is, a name of God, a facet of God that nobody else in the story has. But it's because one person has this understanding of who God is, it changes everything that happens in the battlefield, as it were. And so, we're going to dig in to that today. We're going to look at one story, we're going to hunker down,

we're going to work through it because it's longer. I'm just going to summarize parts, so we won't put all of that on the screen. And then, at times, we'll slow down, come up, catch our breath, and we'll read a verse together. I'm going to be in 1 Samuel 17, if you've got a Bible on your phone, you can turn it on and go there, or there's some Bibles in the aisles, or just buckle up and hold on, right? 1 Samuel 17, verse 1 and verse 4, to start with, it begins by saying, now the Philistines gathered their forces for war. A champion named Goliath, that's the giant, right? Who was from Gath, it's a kind of key city of the Philistines. He came out of the Philistine camp. From the beginning, just to kind of set the stage, we could maybe summarize what's going on this way. There is a battle, okay? And there is an enemy, right? Israel, the people of God, they're in a battle and there is an enemy, right? Now, what's fascinating and helpful and necessary for you and I to understand when we read the Bible is that the Bible is not full only of stories that happened. The reality of those stories still happen, right? Let me say it a different way. Paul says in 1 Corinthians chapter 10, and he's talking about the Israelites in Egypt, getting out of Egypt, wandering through the wilderness and the struggles they face, the ups and the downs. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10, verse 6, he just says, like, what happened, past tense, to them is an example, present tense, to us. Like, because what happened, happens. And if I understand that, no matter where I'm reading in the Bible, I'm reading on the one hand, what happened to us? happened, and how did it happen?

But then it's like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, how does that happen here? And that's what we want to do today. We want to look at what happened and how it happened, but also how is it happening? Because there is a battle, and there was an enemy, but if we put it with the understanding that Paul's saying it's true of us, we can maybe word it like this. We are in a battle, and we have an enemy. We are in a battle, and we have an enemy. And that's language we don't often talk about, right? But the Bible actually talks quite a bit about the fact that you and I have an adversary. Sometimes it's called Lucifer. Sometimes it's devil, or Satan, or a serpent, or a dragon, or these forces of evil. Like, it gets worded different ways, but be not mistaken. The Bible makes it clear, especially throughout the New Testament, that we have an adversary who would love nothing more than to wreak havoc on your mind, your emotions, your soul, your family, your home, and your whole life, right? We are in a battle. There is an enemy. I love what the theologian A.W. Tozer said. He goes, the world is not a playground. It is a battleground, and we are not here to frolic. We are here to fight, right?

And not to over-dramatize things, but we're foolish to not at least acknowledge what the Bible's saying. On one occasion, Paul, the apostle, wrote 2 Thirds New Testament, got caught up to heaven, raised people from dead, that guy, Paul, he said on occasion in the Book of Thessalonians, he says, the devil stopped me. I was going to preach, and the devil got in my way. He stopped me. He doesn't tell how he understood that. He doesn't tell us how it happened, but he just states, matter of factly, the devil stopped me. Amen. Amen. On another occasion, Paul says in 2 Corinthians that the devil, the god of this world, he blinds the minds of unbelievers. If there's people who do not believe, and Paul says, you know why they don't believe? It's not just, I don't believe. He's like, no, there's forces of darkness that are trying to keep them from believing. Paul would say in another place, in 2 Corinthians 11, verse three, I'll show it to you just so you know I'm not just making stuff up up here. 2 Corinthians chapter 11, verse three. Paul, he's speaking of Satan. Now, he's just talked about forgiven, and there was somebody that had done some people wrong,

and they had forgiven that person, and Paul says, if who you forgive, I forgive, and then he says this, in order that Satan might not outwit us. Some translations say have an advantage over us. It's actually a boxing term. Like in boxing, they measure how long your arms are, and the guy or gal, I guess it is a word, who has the longer arms, they have an advantage because they can punch you, and you can't touch them. That's outwit, that's advantage, and Paul's like, there's some things we can do that if we're not careful, the schemes of the devil, like they outwit us, they outadvantage us. So he says, we're not gonna be outwitted, and we will not be unaware or ignorant of his schemes. What's Paul saying? There is a devil, he has schemes, and if you're not aware, you'll be unaware, and you're gonna get caught. Book of Ephesians chapter four, he says it from a different angle. He talks about anger, and he said, if you're not careful, anger, well, it's one of those things, it allows the devil just to put a foot in the doorframe of your soul, and he'll just come on, move on in. You can say, well, I don't know. I don't know, but that's what it says. That's what it says.

And, you know, C.S. Lewis, in the book Screwtape Letters, says, you know, there's two equal and opposing errors we make as humans. On the one hand, he says, ain't no devil, there are no forces, there's no Satan, that's just fate and choices and happens, and there's nothing spiritual out there, and he says, that's a mistake. He says, on the other hand, you smell that? That's a demon. Ooh, lucky charms. There's a leprechaun. That's a demon. Right? Sugar-free for me, right? And he's like, everything becomes like this obsessive spiritual, and he says, he goes, but what C.S. Lewis says is, wisdom is somewhere in the middle, or, or, put it just another way, if you're into J.R.R. Tolkien, contemporary Lewis, he's writing the book called The Hobbit, and there's little hobbits, that's where he gets his name, they're on a journey to get to a place they wanna go, but there's something in between where they're at and where they wanna get to go, and it's a dragon by the name of Smaug, and there's a guy by the name of Bilbo Baggins, he's leading these little hobbits to the destination,

and he says, hey, it does not do well to not consider a dragon in your calculations, especially when you live near one. What's the point, what's the point? There is a battle, we are in a battle, there is an enemy, we have an enemy, and if we learn nothing else, that should at least make us step in tomorrow and be like, all right, God, I don't wanna be unaware. The Bible, though, is going to help us understand even more. We look back to the story, 1 Samuel 17, verse 1, it says, They, the Philistines, pitched camp at Ephesdomene, between Saquoah and Azekah. Saul and the Israelites assembled and camped in the valley of Elah and drew up their battle line to meet the Philistines. The Philistines occupied one hill and the Israelites another with the valley between them. And that's part of the Bible. Some of us are like, I have no idea what Ephesdomene even means. I don't know where Saquoah is. And is it Azekah or Ezekah or Ezekieh? Like what in the world? And there are names of places in the Bible and often we just skip over them because we don't know what they mean. But the author actually thought you and I knew what they mean. That's why he put them in there. And the author knew that if we knew those places, we would understand something about the strategy of the enemy,

the Philistines. We'd understand why the valley of Elah was so significant. Let me break it down just a little bit. Israel, it's a small country or state, if you will, and if we go from north to south. So, if that way's north, this way's south. Stage would be to the east and then west. So, in the lobby, like we'll just say that flat, like glossy looking, we'll just call that the sea. We'll call it the Mediterranean Sea. And the people that live on over there, they're coastal people. That area is called the coastal plains. We know them as the Philistines because they're sea people. Sea people near the sea, coastal plains, it's the coast, right? So, about 12 miles in from the Mediterranean Sea, that's the coastal plain. Whole highway goes up and down, down, down, right? Now, we, you and I, we're the children of Israel. So, we're living in a higher elevated place. So, in about 30 miles of Israel going from north to south, you've got this mountain ridge. You call it the Judean hill country or the central hill country. But lots of the Israelites are camped living up in these hills, right? Hill country, coastal plain. Now, when the enemy, in this case, the Philistines, wants to come and take over where you and I are living in the hill country, he doesn't have drones, he doesn't have parachutes, he can't helicopter up and then parachute down and come down

your chimney. No, he has to come through the points and the paths of least resistance and that would be this open space in between us. So, there's an area, stick with me, we're going somewhere, between the coastal plain and the hill country that's just got foothills. So, there's like a foothill and a valley, foothill and a valley, foothill and a valley. The technical term for that is called Shafala. Can you say that with me? Shafala, right? And so, it just means rolling hills, right? So, when the Israelites wanted to come against the, when the Philistines wanted to come against the Israelites, you read this in your Bible, it always tells you where these battles are taking place. And if you read closely, they're always taking place in these valleys. And so, there's four main valleys. There's a valley over here and that's going to be where Joshua and the son stand still. And there's a Sorak Valley and it's a little lower, right? And that's where Samson's hanging out. And this little cute girl from Temna named Delilah and he hooks up with her and it just goes bad from there. So, that's battles, Philistines happening in a valley. And then you move a little further south and you've got our story today, the Elah Valley. And so, you've got this valley and then further south you've got a Guvran Valley, goes down to Egypt.

And so, the enemy, when he wants to take out the people, he starts with these easy access points. And the children of Israel, this area then became like a buffer zone, a combat zone. It's a place where cultures are colliding and the Israelites, when they enter into this area, because it is pretty fertile, by the way, still to this day. They're in the world but they're around some other folks with different ideals. So, they're not of the world. And it became a metaphor throughout Scripture and even into rabbinic traditions and Christian traditions that there's this place in our lives where we engage the world. We don't run from the world. We don't hide from the world. We don't hide in a cave like some monastic community, though that had its place at a time. But we live in amongst to these places where there's this interaction of cultural ideas. But if we're not careful, the enemy wants to infiltrate how we think, feel, believe about God, ourselves, others, and interact in the world. But he does so not by parachuting here. He does so in these easy access points. We could call them media. You could call it social media. You could call it conversations at the office. You could call it movies, whatever. But there's these access points where the enemy seeks to influence how we think and how we believe and how we act, right?

Tracking, tracking. So, you've got the Philistines and the Israelites. In this valley of Elah, stakes are high because if they take out this valley, they take out the whole land of Israel. And so, there's a battle going on in this place between the Philistines and the children of Israel. Verse 16 tells us this. For 40 days, the Philistines came forward every morning and evening and took... The Philistine came forward... Morning envy and took his stance. So they're there paints a picture prior to this. You've got all of Israel They're on the northern side of the valley and Then you got all of the Philistines there across the valley on the southern side of the valley right and Every morning and every evening You got to read it and like see it in your head because it becomes bizarrely insane when you do here's what's happening for 40 Days every morning every evening all of the Israelite boys now They don't have like full armor us all in his son They're the only guys with like a real sword and real armor these guys got like sticks and stones And you know like something they stole from their honey's kitchen or whatever and forks and pitchforks and tools That's what they're fighting for but they're soldiers right and so every morning in the morning in the evening They all line up and they get in their formation They got like a pot on their head or something and they pound their chest and like we're gonna take you down And they're Screaming in there shouting on the other end of the valley There's all the Philistines there, and they got they got like full full suit armors right these dudes These dudes are like decked out They like ruling the iron industry at this point in time the blacksmiths are all on their side and so they're all decked out They're all decked out, but then out of them steps forward this dude

He's like nine feet nine inches tall, but like who's counting right? But he shows up and he steps forward and then as soon as he steps forward all the children of Israel They're like we're gonna take you we're going we're going back to them And they go to their tents and they they have breakfast and then the afternoon around three o'clock like like they It's time and they go and they line back up. They pound the pound their tools. They pound their chest We're gonna take you out then the giant stands forth They're like whoo-hoo my foster just kidding and they go back like like morning and evening and morning and evening and Bible scholars say it's Morning and evening, but it was probably nine and three nine and three nine and three and if that was the case That's a key time because that's the time these boys should have been focusing their attention on God And if they've been stooped in his word And eyes fixed on God Perhaps they'd have saw all of this Differently, but they didn't right and so they're distracted from their devotion from God They're distracted from an image of who God is they're distracted from the word and here's the irony 40 days. They're showing up They They're in this routine of living that's insane and They're oblivious and you're like, what's the big deal? What's video? You ever had your car Like your alignment go out it pulls to the left or pulls to the right And and somewhere in between the time you realize it and you get it fixed. What do you do? You just Accommodate right? You're not trying to be all gangster and driving, right? You're just trying to keep it keep it on the road You're accommodating and and it's not weird until like your granny wants to borrow your car to go to the grocery store Like Oh granny I need to tell you hold on tight, honey Because if you don't you're gonna be in a ditch and you have to tell granny like granny to drive my car You ever been in somebody's car and they have to give you like the whole tutorial Maybe you have a car like that before they can ride your car You have to tell them I hit twice here crank here. Hold it tight here

Pull up here put that you get you ever drove. Yeah. Yeah, some of you some of you back in the day that's all I had so my daddy gave me it's what I drove, but But you get used to it My wife and I we had a in our old house We had a dresser and two lamps on each side and you know those with a source of light We didn't use the overhead light because these were more like, you know mood lights, whatever not like that. Don't get excited I mean, they're just they're just you know They're just good lights right and and one of them one of them the one closest to the door like it stopped working light bulb Works, but that that booger of a switch a little plastic thing. You turn it broke And we just left it like that for a couple weeks Turned on the other one, but we usually didn't use the other one It became quite a nuisance my wife's like I really wish we could fix that lamp And so one day I was inspired by I really wish she'd fix that lamp and so she went somewhere You know what? I did. I just I just switched the lamps Works like a charm, I mean we didn't really use that one that often. Anyway, she comes in what happened? I fixed it. Really? Oh, well, I switched it. She's like you didn't fix it. It'd be nothing then you're a couple weeks go by but we live Like I said, it'd be really nice. We had two lamps a couple weeks could be less hit two lamps one day I was inspired by her be nice. We had two lamps and I'm gonna see if I can fix this thing So I look up in there where that switch is broken I'm like, oh I bet if I turn that metal thing I can get this thing on I go out to the garage my toolbox I got like six tools Two of my pliers And I grab it and turn it and light comes on I fixed it I fixed it. My wife comes, you know before she comes to the room. I'm like, oh, I gotta how I gotta get it off And so I oh I got it off Ah Turn to the right goes up, you know, I She comes in. She said there's a light. I'm like, I Fixed it. Yeah, really? Well to get it off honey. You gotta you gotta get it off. You gotta get it off Really? Well to get it off honey, you gotta

But be careful, it gets hot after a while. It got a little awkward, you have a babysitter over and they're house-sitting and whatever, you're like, hey, oh, I forgot to say, to get this one off, be careful. But we just, we live. Until one day I went to Home Depot to get some light bulbs, I'm standing there and I look to the right and there's like a whole, whole like little wall and there's these black and brown plastic things that look like what broke on my lamp. $1.68. I bought me one. I took it home, I fixed it, for real this time, for real, I mean, for real. And I remember standing there like $1.68 and this thing's been like months, like, Jero, you're not a handyman, you're an idiot. But we live like that for several months. You know what? I've done been like that with God sometimes. Like something just got broke, maybe I got busy, got a new rhythm and like I just wasn't dialing in to Jesus, the light, it works, it just wasn't on. I've noticed at times, maybe it's not alignment in my car, but it's alignment in my way of thinking. Going through the motions, you wouldn't know it, but I prayed for a couple one time after a message, they came up and they said, hey, pastor, would you pray for us? I said, yeah, sure. What kind of prayer? Our marriage. What's wrong with it? It's bad. So before I prayed, I asked like three questions. Two questions in, he's raising his voice and she's using words I didn't know if we should be using it in church. And they must have discerned, like I didn't think something was all good with this.

I don't know if it was like when I did that, but he looks at me, I'll never forget it. Brother looks at me and says, oh, pastor, it's okay. This is normal. And he says, oh, we always talk like this. It's okay. We're just loud. And I'm like, hey, brother, this might be normal, but this ain't healthy. Love me, but you need a new normal because this is going to wreck your life. And the children of Israel every morning, every evening, it's normal, but they just don't know they need a new normal. And friends, we were in a battle and there is an enemy and he has a strategy. And sometimes the strategy is that we just get caught up in the routine and don't even realize that the bulb's out, soul's out of alignment, we're hooked in some sin. And the devil doesn't care if he gets credit, he just cares you stay on the sidelines and never go to the battle. And this story, if it tells us nothing else, it'll tell us more, but it tells us this, be aware, friends, be aware that there are access points, no marriage, like you don't say I do. And on the way out, like I hope this doesn't work. Like I've married a few people in my years of ministry. I've never married a couple that said, yeah, we're just going to try this out. We're just going to do a little starter deal here. We think we'll find a better one later. No, everybody, they're in heat, I mean, love. Nobody says I do and thinks I'll be done by tomorrow. No, no, but it's just little offense and unhappy conversation and infrequent intimacy and a bitterness and an offense that gets cumulated with something else and then distance and then over time. And that's what the Shefala, that's what this valley reminds us about the enemy. He's just looking for an inroad, a little one, a little one, and a little one.

And that's the state of Israel. They are taunted by this giant and that's all they can see. And I love the brilliance of scripture. It's just master storytelling. Like this camera is like zooming in. You've got this giant and patting their fist and running away and coming back. And then when we're like, is anybody going to capture this dude? And then the camera just takes us 12 miles away up in the hill countries to a little village known as Bethlehem. There's a dad there by the name of Jesse. He's got eight sons. Three of them are on the battle. One of them is watching sheep. His name's David. And Jesse says, David, I want you to go check on my boys. And David shows up. He's got some bread. He's got some cheese. He just shows up and says, the Bible says early in the morning he left. If he's 12 miles away, it took him about seven or eight hours to get there. Meaning he probably got there, I don't know, it doesn't say, but if I had to guess, 3 p.m. Right when they go down and they line up, because it tells us they're pounding their chest, raising their fist, yelling at the other side when David shows up. But then while David's there, this giant Goliath steps forward and everybody's like, and they run away. And David's like by himself. And he's like, where did everybody go? And there's some other doofus apparently that stopped. Look around, and he's like, who's that guy? What's up with this guy?

And it's Goliath, Goliath that the Bible had just described. Like, interesting, go back and read it sometime in chapter 17, around verses four to seven, right around. It gives greater description to Goliath than nearly any other character in all the Bible. It's a fascinating Bible fact there for you. You know how tall he is, how much his helmet weighs, how much the end of his spear weighs. He's got these bronze shin guards on, he's got this scale on, and it says that his armor's like scales, and ancient Hebrews used to say, and it was a word similar to use, like the scales of a fish, or the scales, like the looking of scales of a snake. And so he's embodied not as a human, not as a soldier, but almost like this personified machine, or a tank, or a moving fortress, or some ancient traditions say he's embodied like a dragon that's releasing chaos on God's people. He's like the embodiment of everything that's against God. And the writer, the author, he's like spilling all kinds of ink, because I think he wants you and I, as we read, to be like, holy smokes, Batman, this guy's a beast, and he wants you and I to feel the same hopelessness of all of the Israelites. And David's like, who's this punk? And he keeps asking questions, and word gets up the food chain to the king, and the king's like, hey, king, there's some kid down there asking questions about the Goliath, and he actually, I don't know, he said he wanted

to talk to you, so David shows up, and King Saul there, King Saul, he's tall, dark, and handsome himself, he's head and shoulders above everyone else, he's the most qualified to fight, but the least likely to show up on the battlefield himself, and so David is talking to him, he's the only one with armor that could fight, but he won't fight, and David's like, hey, I'll do it. Like, what's your plan, boss? He's like, well, every day in the morning, we line up, we pound our fists, we yell at them, and then he comes out, and then we go home. He's like, you gonna keep doing that, or what? And he's like, well, we need somebody to fight him, and he's like, I'll fight him, and Saul just looks at him, he's like, bro, I know your mama loves you, maybe, but you're small, you're small, you're a kid, you're youth, and he says, that guy, the giant, he's been fighting since he was a youth, and David, you gotta love David, you gotta love the spunk, he's 12, 13 years old, give or take, David's like, you know, I know I'm small, and I've been through some stuff, boss. He's like, I watch sheep back home, that's what I do. What's the irony of that is when we first meet Saul, he's a donkey herder, and he can't even keep his donkeys in check, he loses his donkey, and David's like, I watch my sheep, and I've never lost one, and the author's like, booyah, but David's like, I watch sheep, I ain't lost one, in fact, I've had lions come up, there's lions in the hills

where lions and bears, I mean, there's lions up there where I live, and they've snatched one of those boogers when I was napping, I shouldn't have been napping, but I was napping, they snatched it, you know what I did? I went after him, I went after him, I caught him, I caught him, he turned on me, you know what I did? I knocked that booger upside the head with my stick. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I got that lamb back, I didn't lose any of them, the bear, bear too, bear came. I knocked that booger upside the head too. I can take him, and on the one hand, it sounds like David's kind of pounding his chest, he's giving his resume, no doubt. On the one hand, it's as if David's saying this, like, I had a lion, that was the worst day of my life, till I had a bear, and that was the worst day of my life, but you know, that lion prepared me for the bear, and that bear, I think that bear prepared me for him, I think, you know, if we were to say, what does that teach us, it might teach you, and a lot of us rebuke our lions and bears. God, take away this lion, take away this bear, sometimes it's one of your cousins you don't like at dinner, or that co-worker you can't stand being around, they just rub you the wrong way, and Holy Spirit, would you saturate this place with their absence? I know you don't have anybody in your family like that, neither do I, neither do I, but you know, your cousin does, it might be you, right?

Like, sometimes we rebuke what God allowed to train us, because he knows there's something down the road bigger, and the stakes may be higher, and if we allow this to shape us, and form us, and train us now, we might slay a giant someday, but if I bail on the bear, and bail on the lion, I ain't ever gonna be in the battle, and so on the one hand, it's as if David's just saying, boys and girls, we're gonna go through some stuff, we've been through some stuff, and Jesus said one day, be of good cheer, yeah, you're gonna have trials and tribulations, but I overcame the world, I'm with you, I'm in you, you will too, but today's trial may prepare you for tomorrow's temptation, so on the one hand, I think David is just saying, like, I don't know, my whole life brought me, on the other hand, on the other hand, Listen, David does say, like, I went after that booger. I showed up. But David, he's like, but when he drops his true colors, he says, the Lord rescued me. Now, if had I not showed up, I wouldn't need rescue, and now would I, big boss? But I showed up. I did my part. I obeyed. I went after that sheep, because that's what I do. But I'm not mistaken. I'm under no delusion. There was one bigger than me, stronger than me, the Lord.

He rescued me, he says, from the paw of the lion. And the paw of the bear. And is that guy got paws? I don't know. Whatever he's got, he's going to rescue me from his hands, too. And that's what David, David's like, I know I had a part to play, but it was small. I mean, hello, Saul. Look at me. There's a bigger, there's a name. When that name is understood, poof. And sometimes we talk about, in the name of Jesus. You ain't got no idea what that means. It sounds good. It sounds churchy. You sing about it. Like, did something happen? And what does that look like? And the best example, it's minuscule, I know. But the best one I can think of, the power of a name, is I was in seventh grade. And in my school, it was Southeast junior high. Like, it was the last year it was junior high. What does that mean? There was seventh, eighth, and ninth graders together. That was long before the educators figured out, there's a big gap between those seventh graders and those ninth graders. I don't know why it took them so long. And this may surprise you, but I wasn't the biggest seventh

grader in my class. And it was right at the beginning of the school year, my seventh grade year. And I'm all excited to be in the big junior high. But I got lost and found myself on the ninth grade hall. And the particular place I found myself, I found myself surrounded by a couple of ninth grade boys who thought it would be fun to haze the not so big seventh grade boy. And I don't remember exactly how it started or how I in there. I just remember my back was up against the locker. And these boogers were looking down at me. And I don't remember what they were saying or what they were threatening. And I don't know if they'd have really beat me up. But they were sure acting like it. And I was probably scared. And I'll never forget it. Some guy walked up. Don't know him, never met him. But he walks in, pokes his head, starts with the chumming. And then he looks. He says, hey, what's your name, kid? And I said, Gerald. He's like, Gerald, that's a weird name. He's like, you got a brother? I'm like, yeah. He goes, oh, crap. Sorry. He goes, oh, man.

Boys, that's Terrell Jobes' little brother. And he didn't give any explanations. And truth be told, between you and me, if my brother was there, he'd have helped them beat the fuhooki out of me. But he said, that's Terrell Jobes' little brother. And one by one, they looked at each other, locked eyes. Hey, man, what's up? Peace out. Seventh grade's that way. See you around. And I'm standing in there, back against the locker, probably almost wetting myself. And I'm like, what? Who in the world is my brother? That's right. I'm Terrell Jobes' little brother. You better step all back. And what I found out shortly thereafter is, apparently, my brother had a reputation of being, I don't know, somebody you don't mess with. He'd have been a sophomore at that time. But you know what I discovered? When they just dropped his name, and what David is about to say, and I don't want you to miss that, because it's more powerful than it just poetically reads. When he runs out onto the battlefield, we're going to be told he's going to pick up five smooth stones on the way.

And some of you are like, why five? Do you think he's going to miss? He knew he wasn't going to miss. His brother had been practicing throwing stones every day on the hillside. There's no chance he's going to miss what he's going to sling at, right? No, he's got four extra stones, because he heard a story that this brother got four brothers. And he's like, if this brother, when I take him down and his brothers come out, I got four more. It's a true story. It's a true story. You dig into the latter part of 2 Samuel. He's got some brothers. And David's men later take them out. Whatever the case, he picks five. He takes one. He hits his mama in the head. He falls down. And this is what David says right before he throws that stone, right after Goliath just says, who are you, little pipsqueak chihuahua coming after me? Verse 45, David says, you come against me with sword and spear and javelin. But I come against you in the name. The name of the Lord Almighty. Then here's the key part. The God of the armies of Israel whom you have defied. In that phrase, the God of the armies of Israel,

seven words in English. It's two words in Hebrew. It's Yehovah, Jehovah, or Yahweh, Sabaoth. And it just means the Lord of hosts or the Lord of angels armies or the Lord who's over everything everywhere with all of his soldiers like you're big you're bad your mama probably thought she was on but see David David understood something the giant wasn't always a giant at one point that giant was a baby now might have been an ugly baby a fat baby might have been a mean baby might have been menacing baby the only person that thought it was cute was his mama's but you see some babies never say he's so cute he's so cute you're like he's ugly you know what you say he looks just like his daddy just say that nothing is a compliment but you got away with it but nonetheless nonetheless David knew right he was and at some point they tried like we can live with him and we can accommodate him and we'll just go out morning and evening and David's like no no no no but now he he's he's full-grown but sometimes sometimes like when I was little I was little my dad we lived near a farm my granddad had a farm my dad lived right next to my grandparents my parents got divorced when I was 12 and and my dad caught a caught a raccoon raccoon got in the garden barn something I don't know all I know is I showed up one day and there's a trap and little baby booger and I'm like daddy can we keep him he's so cute he's so cute and my daddy he said sure you can keep him and so I had a baby cat now you had a chihuahua I had a raccoon I'm from the south maybe that explains it and um and I fed him and I put him on the leash and I'd walk him around the yard and he sit on my shoulder and he sit in my lap and he's he's cute he's cute he's cute and I played with that little guy all summer long and then and then school started and I didn't visit my dad apparently for a couple weeks and I remember I came back and I just ran down to the cage and the cage is empty and I'm like daddy where'd he go and my dad's like a couple weeks after you left last week I went in there to feed him and he turned on me

he backed up and started doing this is like demons jumped in that little booger and um and my dad's like I had to turn him loose between you and me I knew exactly what that meant but I didn't ask he turned him loose and you're like what's that have to do with anything it's just part of my childhood I wanted to share with you now here's what it has to do with everything is at times you and I see her or him but there's this new way of thinking and we're like I can tame it and we try to domesticate you try to tame a wild animal you try to domesticate a giant you can't tame a dragon and you can't put lust on a leash friends a David is now standing in front of what is now full-blown and full-grown and he knows there's nothing I can do in of myself to take that out but there is a name that is greater and I wonder like what was it about David that caused him to see differently everybody sees a giant and Dave is like ain't nobody gonna take care of him like everybody is pounding their fist and shouting and then hiding and David's like we're gonna let him talk like that about our God everybody sees an enemy and David's like he doesn't he calls him a Philistine uncircumcised in short David's like he has no relationship with our God and he is against everything our God is for and we're gonna allow that no there's a name and and like how does a little kid see differently and here's what I think it might be more than this but it's at least these two things we know from the book of Psalms David spent a lot of time thinking about the Bible someone's blessed as the man and it just talks about the one who meditates on God's Word day and night like nothing can take him out so he's steeped into the word which shapes your perspective who God is secondly David we know that he worships a lot Psalms songs hello he's singing he's singing about the word and you think about what is worship worship isn't just like like putting God in his place worship isn't just like making God big God's big worship just postures me in a place where I recognize how big he worship worship you can make feel like it helps me to see God clearer it helps me to have a clearer perspective who got worship it's the corrective lenses for my soul you wear glasses some of you blind I know you like 2600 you get out of bed

you can't eat you know you kiss in the dresser you thought it was your wife till you put your glasses on right like you you just can't see I remember my son when he was about 10 or 11 he started complaining he couldn't see the board and grades were showing that he wasn't seeing the board and teachers like I don't think he can see the board and I moved him up It's not really helping, you should probably get him checked out. So as a good dad, we went and checked him out, and the doctor's like, he needs glasses. Bought him glasses, went the next week to pick him up. I never forget it, never forget it. I'm driving home, and I'm looking in the rear view mirror at little man in the back, and he's doing this. But here's the deal, it came with sound effects. Every time he put the glasses on, wow, whoa, and then he said these words, I'll never forget, dad, dad, does it always look like this? And I'm like, Lord Jesus, I'm a horrible dad, my son's blind, I didn't even know it. And I'm like, no, it always looked like that. He just didn't see it. And worship, worship, and the word, it's nine and three, it's morning and evening, it's what the rest of the Israelites are missing as they're going through the motions. They've gotten pulled away from the word, they've got pulled away from scripture, they've got pulled away from meditation, they've got pulled away from worship, they've got pulled away from community, and they're just going through the motions, and they don't even realize it. And so when they look, they're completely nearsighted, they cannot see clearly. All they can see is what's before them, but they can't see the one beyond what's before them, which is God. What's the point of all that? I really like the story, thanks for listening. But I think it has a couple of applications. Number one, friends, don't forget this, there is a battle, we are in a battle, there is

an enemy, we have an enemy, he has a strategy, and one of the things he wants to do is numb us in these areas of least resistance in the way that we think, the way that we feel, it has to do with what we look at, what we watch, what we entertain. But slowly by slowly, what we take in begins to shape what is, and that begins to direct what will be. And it's a good story just to remind us, like, what's my Shephelah, what are those places that are susceptible to, what are those places that the enemy would like to have access to? This is a story that reminds us of that. And secondly, it's a story that reminds us, this morning and evening, morning and evening, in or out, and it could be a light bulb, it could be an alignment, or it could just be something you just let go, a pattern of prayer, of scripture, and this summer is a time when a lot of people just let go, get busy with other things, and maybe it's a time you and I could say, okay, what would it look like this summer for me to be intentionally engaged in scripture, to intentionally lean in and worship, and you might become one of those people that you're at the stoplight, and you just, and they look over, and you're like, I ain't stopping, and you just keep on worshiping, and they think you're crazy, and that's okay, even if it's your balls. But worship to posture ourselves, like, God, I'm going to worship you, I'm going to remind myself of who you are, why? Because when I understand that name of Jehovah Sabaoth, I understand he's not just a good God, I understand he's not just a big God, I understand he's not just a powerful God, I understand he's not just present with me, but he's present with me, fighting for me. And when I understand that, all of this changes, because the lie of the enemy is all that you see is all that is. And David's like, yeah, I know there's a diagnosis, I know there's a sickness, I know there's a giant, I know that he's big, he's got lots of bronze, I bet that costs lots of money, but there's somebody bigger than that. And that's the invitation that the story is inviting us into, to see that there is an enemy, but to see there's a God bigger than that that's walking with us with purposes he wants us to be a part of, to expand those into the world.

But the real moral of the story is not be more like David, because most of us aren't more like David, we're more like Israel, and so we look to a better David, and Jesus is the better David. The Bible would speak to him as the son of David. There once was a David that stepped into a valley that no one else would step into, and faced a giant that no one else would face, but there once was a son of David that stepped into a chasm of sin and darkness that no one else could step into, would step into, and he stood into. There once was a David that went up against a giant and took him down with one blow of a rock, and there once was a David that stepped into a hill, not a valley, and in one blow of the cross, wiped out all sin, and all death, and all destruction. As we wrap up today, I just want to challenge you, A, what are your access points the enemy would like to nudge into with you unaware? B, what are the areas that you and I can lean into this summer, and just say, God, I want to become more aware of who you are, and I want to saturate myself, so that when a giant shows up, I know where my strength is. But thirdly, thirdly, friends, if you're here, or watching online, and you've never said, I need that David, the son of David, Jesus, to be my representative, today would be the day that you could say, I'm going to surrender my life, and I'm going to follow him. So I'm going to pray, I'm going to do something different, I'm going to ask all of you to repeat after me out loud. You may have prayed this prayer a thousand times, but if it's your first time, the first time as I pray, I'm going to ask you to do something with these words. words that we're all going to say together. I'm going to ask you to just lift up your hand. And it's a way to say, God, in the midst of the words that we're all saying, I'm saying them for the first time. So would you repeat this for me? Jesus, I thank you that you are a greater David. If that's you, just lift up your hand. You stepped into the valley of sin, and you were crushed for my iniquities, but you rose for my forgiveness. And I want to follow you all the days of my life in Jesus' name. In Jesus' name. And if you prayed that for the first time, one, I want to just give thanks. Like, praise God. Can we celebrate

with them? That's a big step for some. If you did that, if you did that, if you prayed that prayer, I'm going to ask you if you would lift your hand up one more time. We've got some friends in the front. They've got some Bibles and a book we'd love to give you. They make their way through the aisles. They'll hand that to you. There's a little card in it. You could fill that out and turn that in at the kiosk out front or one of the drop spots and Pastor Brian will send you a text. As we close, we finish. I think it would be appropriate if we stand and we just talk a little bit about the word and the power of the word. We talked about worship and the power of declaring who God is. What if we finish this day by declaring who he is? I still believe the Holy Spirit, the gift of God given to us. We're calling on the move of heaven, a rushing wind, right here, right now. I still believe your kingdom's coming. It's like a fire in my bones. One day we'll see the king of heaven. A living hope, my cornerstone. We lift it high, forever. Forevermore. Oh, praise to the one, the God who never changes. Oh, praise to the one, the God of all the ages. Oh, praise to the same, almighty King. Forevermore. Forevermore. Forevermore. Forevermore.