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Guest (Male): Welcome to PowerPoint with Jack Graham.

Jack Graham: We have nothing to fear in facing the enemies of our faith, the enemies of God, the giants that threaten us and taunt us. So often, we build these things up in our minds.

Guest (Female): On today's PowerPoint, Dr. Graham brings a message about facing and defeating the giants in your life. Now, here's Dr. Graham with his message, The Heart of a Champion.

Jack Graham: Take your Bibles and turn with me, please, to the first book of Samuel, 1 Samuel chapter 17. David's great heart for God, the heart of a champion, developed when he was just a boy growing up on the humble hillsides of Bethlehem. And there, looking into the starry nights, he wrote the Psalms as God the Holy Spirit gave him the words. His heart was enlarged as he considered the vastness and the beauty and the glory of eternity, and looked into the face of God and experienced the presence of God in his life.

And all through those years as a young boy growing up and in the shepherd's fields as a teenager, his heart for God developed. This story is not only a familiar story, it is a faith-building story. What we need as we face life's challenges is faith, faith in God. And of course, David faces this great giant and he overcomes the obstacle, the challenge, the confrontation, because of his great faith in God.

Now, we all have giants to face in life. Our giants are not physical giants, but emotional and spiritual. We all face challenges to our lives and to our faith that can bring anxiety or worry or fear or disappointment or doubt. Whatever you may name your giant, most of us are dealing with a giant or certain giants on a daily basis. Because once we determine to live for Jesus Christ, we will face opposition.

So let me remind you of the story that is recorded for us here in 1 Samuel 17, because it is not only David's story, but it is our story. And if you will listen well this morning, I believe you will learn how to be a champion from the heart. The armies of Israel and the armies of their enemies, the Philistines, had gathered in the Valley of Elah. You can go to this place today as I've done on numerous occasions with groups when we've traveled to Israel.

And the ravine is still there. It's a large, cavernous ravine and mountainous on either side. And we know it's the same place because the mountains which have been there for generations are still named, and of course, they're still there. And so you can go to the Valley of Elah and still see the stones there in the riverbrooks that David could have picked up. But they're encamped there—the Philistines on one side and the Israelites on the other side.

And then we are introduced to Goliath, the giant of Gath. He's an amazing figure. And according to the passage in verses 5 through 7, we discover this mammoth figure is over nine feet tall. In fact, some estimate him to be nine feet, nine inches tall. He was a man of brute strength, a seasoned, veteraned warrior, and he was a killing machine. The armor that he wore weighed in excess of 200 pounds. Just his armor. The head of his spear weighed 25 pounds.

And this incredible giant, this incredible hulk, appears in the Valley of Elah representing the Philistines day after day. He paces up and down the Valley of Elah, seething rage, pouring out blasphemies against God and the people of God. He stalks up and down, terrorizing and taunting the children of Israel, defaming the name of God and mocking God's people. He was an infidel, an uncircumcised Philistine who hated God and all that God representative. This blasphemous Philistine was just begging for some fool to fight.

And so one day the giant issued a challenge. As it was often issued in the ancient days, battles were not fought between armies from time to time, but rather armies would choose a representative to fight in behalf of the army. And so in this case, the Goliath giant, he issued this challenge and said, "I will represent the Philistines and you send someone out to fight with me, and it will be a winner take all. Whoever wins, whoever is the champion, the army will share the victory."

And so the challenge came day after day. As a matter of fact, we discover in the scripture that this challenge did not come once, but for 40 days, day and night, morning and evening, every single day, twice daily, this giant came out, raging and ranting and seething and sulking, crying out for someone to come and fight him. For someone from Israel to defy him. Meanwhile, the Israelites, including Saul the king, are shaking in their sandals. They're hiding in their tents, becoming more and more cowardly every single day.

Have you ever noticed how the giants that we face—again, whatever giant you may be dealing with, it could be a sinful habit, it could be an illness, it could be disappointment, it could be envy, it could be jealousy, it could be lust, it could be depression, anxiety, whatever giant is shadowing your life and stalking your life—have you ever noticed that if you begin to listen to the giant, they stay day after day after day? They stay and terrorize us like huge shadows.

In the night, in the morning, the giant is there, robbing us of hope, stealing our hearts, taking away our joy. That's what was happening to the Israelites. Sometimes when we face these giants, we decide we're going to buck up and we go against the giant in our own strength and our own willpower, and we only fail because we're not as big as the giant we face. Our weakness overcomes us.

Giants, giant-sized challenges that we face. Really, this battle, there's a story behind the story because it's not just about a boy fighting a giant, but it is an illustration of the great war that exists even now between good and evil, right and wrong, God and no God, Christ and Antichrist. The war that rages on the battlefields of our hearts. So Goliath is parading up and down, and that's when David comes along.

When we meet David in our story, he's a teenager. According to verse 42, he was good-looking and ruddy of complexion. That means, most likely, that he was red-headed and fair-skinned. Good to look at, he was a handsome teenager. Now, the giant was nine feet, nine inches tall. David most likely, as a young Jewish boy, was about five feet and a little bit of change. A mismatch, wouldn't you say?

But when David arrived on the scene to the camp of Israel, he arrived with a heart for God. Now the Israelites, their problem was they had a heart for the giant. Their thoughts, their hearts, their minds were dominated by this giant. This giant that taunted them, threatened them, tempted them every day, terrorizing them. They were giant-dominated. But when David came on the scene, he wasn't dominated by that giant.

He was dominated by God. His heart was big because it was full of God. His mind, large, because he thought great thoughts of God. And he was prepared for the challenge. He didn't fear the giant. When he arrived to the camp of Israel, he was amazed and even angered by what he saw and what he heard. When the giant moved in and the story reveals that the giant is no longer on the side of the Philistines shouting his oaths and challenge, but he's actually moved near and into the camp of Israel.

Have you ever noticed that if you do not deal with the giants, if you do not confront the giants in your life, they get closer and closer and closer? They take territory that belongs to you and eventually, if you don't annihilate the giant, the giant will move in with you. Giants are not meant to be tolerated or accommodated. Giants are to be destroyed when we face them and fight them in the power of God.

And so David was amazed that these children of Israel were so afraid. Why were they running? Why were they living in fear of this giant? He was also angered by the fact that this giant was blaspheming the name of God. What upset David, what charged him, was his heart for God. And to see that the name of God, the glory of God, the honor of God, was being blasphemed. Because he lived for God's glory, he could not abide someone such as this Philistine abusing his God.

And so you know the story how David took the stones and the slingshot and killed the giant, refusing the armor of Saul and the advice of professional warriors, and just with a slingshot and a stone felled the great giant and cut off his head. How could just a boy do something like that?

Guest (Female): You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message, The Heart of a Champion. Easter is just around the corner and we want to help you prepare your heart for the season. When you sign up, we will send you a video devotion every day beginning February 18th until Easter, to remind you of the sacrifice Jesus made so that we can be forgiven of our sins and reconciled to God. Dr. Graham will share a short devotion about the final words that Jesus spoke from the cross and what they mean to us today. To sign up, just text "Cross" to 59789. Again, text "Cross" to 59789.

Right now, you have the incredible opportunity to help others experience the unshakable hope and abundant life found only in Jesus Christ. Your support of PowerPoint Ministries makes a real and lasting difference, changing lives for eternity as people encounter God's Word. And because your partnership matters so deeply, we'd love to send you Dr. Graham's new book, Living Hope in a Hostile World, as our thanks for your gift of $10 or more.

This book explores the bold truths of 1 Peter and offers strength, courage, and hope for whatever you may face. To give your gift, text "Feb" to 59789. Text F-E-B to 59789. Now, let's get back to today's message, The Heart of a Champion.

Jack Graham: I want to mention three principles in his life that I believe if you will apply, you will kill the giants you face. Number one is the principle of determination. Determination. David, in according to verse 32, "Then David said to Saul, 'Let no man's heart fail because of him. Your servant will go and fight with the Philistine.'" Note the determination and the commitment to go do it, whatever the cost of the consequences.

He confronts the giant. One of the first things we have to do when we're dealing with giants in our lives is to identify the giant and confront the giant. Identify that giant and then determine in the power of God to defeat that giant. Now, if you determine to have a heart for God and to defeat the giants in your life, some are going to laugh and to mock. That's what happened to David. His own family, his own brothers, questioned his motives, challenged him, laughed at him, mocked at him.

Saul himself looked at David and said, "You're just a boy. This Philistine, he's a giant. He's a warrior. It is suicide for you to go after this giant." And if you determine to live for God, if you determine to have a heart for God, if you determine to stand for Jesus Christ, there will be always somebody to come along and say you can't do it. Someone who will say it's impossible for you to kill the giant and stand for God.

But David refused to listen to the naysayers and the negativity that was all around him. It's very important when you determine to live for Christ and to stand for God in your life, that you don't listen to the naysayers, to the negativity, and especially that you don't listen to carnal Christians who don't have a heart for God. You listen to God. You listen to your own heart as you've cultivated it for Christ.

David's heart was full of the Lord and he said, "I will go." Do you know why some of us never win great victories, great battles for God? It's because we don't show up. We're not there for the battle. David was willing to risk and to risk it all, because he knew that God was greater than the giant. Saul and the children of Israel, the armies of Israel, they were seeing David. They were saying, "David, have you seen that giant?" And David is saying, "Man, have you seen my God? My God is greater than that giant."

Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world. This is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith. And it is by that spiritual determination that we go in His name. We have nothing to fear in facing the enemies of our faith, the enemies of God, the giants that threaten us and taunt us. So often we build these things up in our minds. Have you ever noticed how often the shadows of these giants keep getting larger and larger and larger?

Because we're listening to the crowd or we're listening to our own fears, rather than looking to God. Satan and all of the demons and giants of hell are nothing but shadows in the face of our champion, the Lord Jesus Christ. Secondly, if you want to kill giants, do it by determination. Identify your giant, be willing to go and to get into the battle and face the giant head-on. And secondly, preparation. Preparation.

Before David fought Goliath, he had fought the lion and the bear. He had spent many hours out there on the hillsides of Bethlehem working that slingshot, first just picking off a few pieces of fruit and then maybe going after some birds. And then when the day came when he was facing wild beasts, animals, bears, and so forth, he learned how to use that slingshot and to use it powerfully. And he won small battles along the way.

And because he had won small battles along the way, he was now ready for big battles. Because in his heart there in Bethlehem as a shepherd boy, he had looked to God and he had experienced the presence of God in his life. When he went up against that giant, he was prepared. The reason we fail sometimes in our spiritual battles, our big battles, is because we have failed in small battles. I'm telling you that if you will prepare in the secret place, in the small place, in the obscure place, in the insignificant place, if you will develop your heart for God when no one else is looking.

Because remember, God doesn't look at the face, He looks at the heart. And if we will prepare ourselves spiritually, internally, if we will give our hearts to Him and truly have hearts that are His, then when the giants come, whatever the giants may be, we will be thoroughly equipped for every good work. Preparation. Giant-killers faithfully behind the scenes do what needs to be done. Jesus said, "He that is faithful in that which is least will also be faithful in that which is much."

Just little things. Being faithful in worship. Hey, students, what are you going to do when you're on campus and it's time to go to church? Are you going to sleep in because you've been out so late and you're tired, or are you going to get up and be faithful in something that may seem like a little thing to you at the time? But just show up for the battle. Something else about this preparation. When David went out against the giant, you see, he knew that he was ready because God had given him the bear, God had given him the lion, God had given him the skill to accomplish these things.

He had some small victories in the past, and because he had some little victories along the way, he was confident of greater victories. When you face the giants and the challenges to your faith, be mindful of former victories. What God has done in your life. Has God worked in your life? Has God done great things in your life? Is God moving in your life? Then remember those things.

Remember how God has touched you, remember how God has changed you, remember the great victories in your life. And when you go up against something that seems bigger than you are, you can remember what God has done and what you have done in His name and you will have confidence to go forward. That's preparation. Thirdly, what I want to call authorization. When David went up against that giant, I want you to look at verse 45.

David said to the Philistine, "You come to me with sword, with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied." He came to that giant and against that giant in the name of the Lord. That was the secret and the source of his strength. The name of God. He came not with the strength of armies or armor, but in the name and in the power of God.

David did not rely upon human resources, but upon God Almighty. The giant was powerful, but David knew his God was greater and he had more strength because his God was greater. The key to this passage in my estimation and the key to life, by the way, is seen in verse 47. If you don't hear anything else I've said or don't remember any words that I've given you today, I want you to remember this phrase in verse 47.

When David came up against that giant, he shouted, "For the battle is the Lord's." The battle is the Lord's. Say that out loud. The battle is the Lord's. Say it again. The battle is the Lord's. And our champion, the Lord Jesus Christ, has accomplished victory for us in His name, and therefore we have authority over all the works of the enemy and we have strength to deal with any giant in our lives.

I love Philippians 4:13 where Paul says, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." But listen to how it's given to us in the Amplified Bible. It expands it. It says, "I have strength for all things in Christ who empowers me. I am ready for anything. I love that. I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him who infuses inner strength into me." Can you say that? Can you say "I am equal to anything and ready for anything" because of the strength of Jesus Christ who lives in me?

How sad it is when Christians live in defeat and doubt and fear and failure, dominated by these giants, when our victory is sure in Jesus Christ. The battle is His. And if God be for us, who can be against us? Say to God, "I determine to fight those battles. I determine to stand for Jesus Christ. I'll not ever be AWOL in the service of Jesus Christ. I will always be present and accounted for as a follower of Jesus Christ. I will show up for the battle."

Say, "I will do everything that I can to prepare myself in the little challenges and the little battles that are behind the scenes when no one else is looking and nobody else knows. I will be faithful to God in those little things so that when big-time challenges come, I'll be ready and I'll be confident because I know God has given me victory. And I, in the authority and the name of Jesus Christ, will overcome every giant."

Guest (Female): You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message, The Heart of a Champion. Your support of PowerPoint Ministries makes a profound impact, helping more people discover the truth and hope of Jesus Christ. And to thank you for your generous gift today, we'd love to send you Dr. Jack Graham's new book, Living Hope in a Hostile World. It's a timely resource that reminds you how to stand firm in faith, cling to God's grace, and live with courage even in your most challenging times.

As you grow in your walk with the Lord through this resource, may you be encouraged to know that your generous support is helping others do the same. Text "Feb" to 59789. Again, text "Feb" as in February to 59789. Easter is just around the corner and we want to help you prepare your heart for the season. When you sign up, we will send you a video devotion every day beginning February 18th until Easter, to remind you of the sacrifice Jesus made so that we can be forgiven of our sins and reconciled to God.

Dr. Graham will share a short devotion about the final words that Jesus spoke from the cross and what they mean to us today. To sign up, just text "Cross" to 59789. Again, text "Cross" to 59789. Pastor, what is your PowerPoint for today?

Jack Graham: We all face giants in our lives. Now, these aren't literal giants, of course, but we face emotional, spiritual giants in every phase of our lives that can be very menacing. And left unchecked, these giants taunt us, threaten us, terrorize us day and night. And if we don't destroy them, they can keep us from experiencing the victory that God has given us in Christ. So we have to learn to be giant killers. And as you might imagine, it's the story of David and Goliath where we discover the principles of slaying our own giants.

What are those principles? Well, first we see the principle of determination. When David arrived at the battle where Goliath was mocking the army of Israel and defaming the name of God, he was shocked to see the fear in the hearts of his own countrymen. So David became very determined and courageous to face down this giant. And then we learn that David was prepared to do battle.

You see, David, before he ever fought Goliath, had fought many other smaller battles when he was protecting sheep on the hillsides of Bethlehem. And having won smaller battles, these prepared him with confidence and courage to win bigger battles. And then we see a principle of what I'm going to call authorization, the principle of authority. When David went out to face the giant, he only took five stones and his own slingshot, and then he spoke these incredible words, these powerful words: "The battle is the Lord's."

You see, he didn't go out to do battle in his own authority; his authority and power was in the name of the Lord. And as we know, the giant came tumbling down. So what are the giants in your life? Are they doubts or habits or addictions? Whatever giants you may be facing, the scripture says, "If God be for us, who can be against us?" God has given you the heart of a champion if you will receive him and trust him and obey him.

Determine to kill the giants in your life in God's name. Remember, the battles belong to the Lord and he has and will bring you through. Move out in God's authority and win in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Guest (Female): And that is today's PowerPoint. Remember, when you give a gift of $10 or more to PowerPoint, we will send you Dr. Graham's book, Living Hope in a Hostile World. Just text "Feb" to 59789. And join us again next time as Dr. Graham brings a message about what to do when you're feeling lonely and lost. That's next time on PowerPoint with Jack Graham. PowerPoint with Jack Graham is sponsored by PowerPoint Ministries.