Life Academy Chapel: How To Be A Giant Killer
by Dan MacLeod
August 28, 2025 · New Life Terre Haute (New Life Fellowship)
Kind: teaching
Scripture: 1 Samuel 17:13-17, 1 Samuel 17, 1 Samuel 16, Luke 16:10, 1 Peter 4:10-11

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/dan-macleod--life-academy-chapel-how-to-be-a-giant-killer
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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So, but it's a joy to be here with you today. Why don't you stand with me? We're gonna read from the word of the Lord. First Samuel chapter 17. And we're gonna begin at verse 13. And I wanna give honor to our Life Academy leadership. And we thank God for them, our school administration and every teacher and volunteer. I know you hear it often, but you are very, very blessed to be able to be educated in an environment like this. And we honor them today. And as we look to the word of the Lord, first Samuel 17, verse number 13 is where we begin. The Bible says the three eldest sons of Jesse went and followed Saul to the battle. And the names of his three sons that went to the battle were Eliab, the firstborn, next unto him, Abinadab and third, Shama. And David was the youngest

and the three eldest followed Saul. But David went and returned from Saul to feed his father's sheep at Bethlehem. And the Philistine drew near morning and evening, presented himself 40 days. Verse 17 said, Jesse said unto David his son, take now for thy brethren and ifa of this parched corn and these 10 loaves run to the camp of thy brethren, carry these 10 cheeses unto the captain of their thousand and look how thy brethren fare and take their pledge. And I taught from this on a Wednesday night, a couple months ago in, in fact last night, one of the ladies in the church, she said, my husband has a gift for you. I said, well, okay, I like gifts. She said, he has a 3D printer and he was so moved by what you talked about the cheese, he 3D printed you a piece of cheese with arms and legs.

And so I'll be here on Sunday to collect that gift, but I was a little bit inspired by that as I was leaving church last night and went back to this scripture and found some inspiration before bed. And I wanna talk to you for a few minutes on how to be a giant killer. Amen, how to be a giant killer. Let's pray together. Lord Jesus, we love you, we honor you. This is the day that you have made and we choose to rejoice and be glad in it. I pray that you would help us, have ears to hear, hearts that are tender, let your word speak to us, let it change us and make us better. We ask these things in Jesus' name and everybody said what? Amen, you can be seated. Now, 1 Samuel 17 is most known for David killing Goliath, who we call a giant.

The Bible doesn't exactly use that word, but we do know he was over nine feet tall. And this is what this chapter is most known for. It's David's heroic action and confronting and killing Goliath. We read it, but the Bible said, every morning and every evening, Goliath would present himself to the Israelite people and he would challenge them and he would say, send me a man. And the deal was this, that if Goliath won the battle, that the Israelites would have to serve the Philistines. But if the Israelites won the battle, the Philistines would have to serve them. So there was a lot riding on the outcome of this victory. And so when we look at this story, and it's been preached many times this way, we like to personalize it. And when we do, we envision ourselves being David and Goliath becomes the symbol of our adversary

or the big obstacle in our life that we're trying to overcome. And so this is Goliath, he is the giant, he represents the big thing that we want to do or we want to conquer. Now here is what I'll submit today for us to consider. Most people never get to Goliath. You say, well, isn't this the highlight of the story it is, but most people don't even live their life in the way that is necessary that they ever get the opportunity to face Goliath. And so this is what we're talking about today, how to be a giant killer, the things you must do if you will face your Goliath. A little bit of context that the battle is raging in the valley and Goliath is challenging them. And all of a sudden the story in 1 Samuel 17, it changes direction and no longer does the narrative

of this chapter, no longer is it happening in the valley of Elah, but all of a sudden the story changes back to a little town called Bethlehem where the Bible tells us this man named Jesse is talking to his son, David. And what is amazing is just one chapter prior to this in 1 Samuel 16, a prophet of God by the name of Samuel had come to the house of Jesse and he had anointed David to be the future king of God's people. This is what we would call a prophetic act, meaning this was something God did and something God said pertaining to what he would do or how he would work in the future. But this is something that we must learn is that every prophecy has a process. And what that means is every time God tells us that he wants to do something, there is a process

we must walk in order for that to come to pass. Now, how many like being patient? You guys are lying. Nobody likes being patient. Now, we understand the value of patience, but how many times when you ask your parent for something and they say, wait, you like that. You want a treat, you want a toy and they say, no, not today, not right now, maybe later, they demand patience of you. That is not pleasurable, but it is valuable. And this is what God is starting to teach is that there is a patience required if you're going to see me work in your life. And so, we're reading 1 Samuel 17 and there's a battle raging in the valley of ELA. The Israelites and the Philistines are fighting and Goliath is challenging them and then all of a sudden the story changes and now we're reading of a conversation

between Jesse and David and this is what he tells him. It was in our text today. He says, I want you to take the grain, the bread and the cheese. I want you to go check on your brothers and bring me a rapport about how they're doing. It seems like menial tasks. Now, I want to remind you just one chapter prior, the prophet anointed him. He had this powerful experience with God and now just one chapter later, his dad is delegating him the menial task of carrying the groceries. Here's the first thing you have to learn if you're going to be a giant killer. You cannot kill giants unless you can follow instructions. Say, uh-oh. Brother MacLeod likes to kind of meddle in the real affairs of life. This means that you can't kill giants if you don't listen to your parents. You can't be a giant killer

if you refuse to receive instruction from your teacher in the classroom. Giant killers follow instructions. Luke 16 and 10 says this, if you are faithful in the little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won't be honest with greater responsibilities. To be faithful simply means this. It means you can be trusted. You're always present, always ready, always alert, always willing. This is what it means to be faithful. And if you are faithful, you can be trusted. So the question today is can you be trusted? Can your parents trust you? Can your siblings trust you? Can your classmates trust you? Can your teachers trust you? Can you be trusted? And ultimately the question is can God trust you? Goliath, I wanna remind you, he was the big thing. He was the great adversary. He represents the obstacle that must be conquered.

And while Goliath is the big thing in the story, I'm emphasizing the basic thing. The bread and the cheese. Because I have observed our tendency to want to give ourselves to the big thing. We get excited about the big thing. We wanna conquer the big thing, but David found himself in the position where he was being asked to be faithful with the basic thing. And so this is the second thing that giant killers must learn. Basic things are just as important as big things. We may want to do the big thing, but God was teaching him what we all must learn, and it is that we must first do the basic things. Had David looked at his father and refused to do this basic task of carrying bread and cheese and checking on his brothers, he would never have had the opportunity to do the big thing that he is known for.

When we talk about David, everybody talks about how he killed the giant. It's really the highlight of the chapter. But you would not have heard about the big thing if he was not faithful in the basic thing. And so the basic things in life are just as important as the big things. Well, what are the basic things? I'll give you just a couple, some really practical and some a little more spiritual. Basic things include things like this, picking up your toys when you're done playing with them. Basic things mean cleaning your room. Basic things mean if you have a piece of garbage, it goes in this amazing invention called the garbage can. You don't leave it on the counter. You don't leave your dirty dishes on the table. You know where they go. You take them to the sink. And you know, better yet, why drop a dirty dish in a clean sink?

Why not take the 30 seconds and wash it out? You say, well, what does this have to do with living for God and conquering my Goliath? This is the basic thing. And it was the basic thing that positioned David for the big thing. The basic thing means that you help your parents. You do your homework. The basic thing means you do your homework. You obey adults and godly authority. The basic thing means you be kind to your classmates. You be respectable to teachers. The basic thing means you show honor one to another. The basic thing means that you read your Bible. You memorize your memory verses. The basic thing means you worship God. You say, well, I'm not the worship leader. I know, that's the big thing. I'm talking about the basic thing. And you don't just worship God at chapel or on Sunday, you worship God every day.

These are the basic things. And while the basic things are so often overlooked in light of the big things, David would have never found himself doing the big thing had he looked back at his father and said, no, I refuse to do the basic thing. It seemed like any other day, more than likely it was ordinary by every sense of the definition. But David was about to discover that this is how God works. That when you are willing to serve, he uses servanthood to position you for kingdom promotion. So here's what David had going for him. I know we talk a lot about the anointing and the prophecy, but here's what David had control of that helped him greatly. A submitted heart, a servant attitude and a hard work ethic. And these things qualified him. You say, well, he was anointed, wasn't anointing enough? Nope, it was not.

It was his submitted heart, his servant attitude and his good work ethic that allowed him to be positioned by God for the big thing. He mastered the basics. And this is what giant killers must do. There is no amount of ability or anointing that will allow you to stop being faithful. There is no such thing as being so talented or so smart that you can neglect being faithful. This is the basic thing. Now when we consider David in comparison to his brothers, he was not the strongest, probably not the most gifted or most qualified. This is what he was. He was a humble teenager. He was willing to serve his father, to serve his brothers and to serve his nation. That was David. 1 Peter 4 and 10 says this, God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts.

Use them well to serve one another. Now I know we talk a lot about serving God, but you can't serve God without serving one another. Verse 11 says this, do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Then do it with all your strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. Say that word everything. Now say it louder, everything. This means if you do the basic things right, that everything you do glorifies God. So when you're paying attention in class, God is being glorified. When you submit your homework on time, God is being glorified. When you treat your classmates with honor and respect, God is being glorified. These are the basic things that giant killers must learn. So my question today is where are the Davids

of Life Academy and New Life Fellowship that will exhibit humility and a willingness to serve parents, spiritual authority, and school administration? Where are the Davids that will serve pastor and teachers, parents, and peers, Life Academy and New Life? And lastly, this. When David finally finds himself standing before King Saul, King Saul is a little hesitant but willing to relent and he tells David, okay, I will let you go but take my armor, put my armor on before you go fight Goliath. The Bible tells us that David rejected Saul's armor. There's probably many practical reasons. Perhaps it did not fit, it was too big, but the Bible says he had not proven it. He did not prove it. This was foreign to him and I would simply explain it to you like this. David had determined I will not try to be someone else. I will just be myself.

And if you want God to use you, then you have to be you, not someone else. We have to create a culture of authenticity among us where we are not putting on a show one for another, where we are not pretending to be something or someone we are not. We have to reject Saul's armor. For David, the King's armor was something that was foreign to him. He had never worn this before. He had not trained with these things and rather than carry the weapons of King Saul, he determined I'll just use what is familiar to me. He was a shepherd. He was a custom to tending sheep, so he offered God the simple skill that he had. It was a sling. He had spent many days, weeks, probably months tending his father's sheep, walking through the desert, putting rocks into that sling. It seemed like probably a relatively insignificant skill

in the context of fighting a giant, but it's all he had. And he was willing to offer God that skill he had. The Bible says he walks out into the valley of ELA and he stops by the little brook and how many stones did he pick up? Five. Do you know why he picked up five? Because he knew he was not perfect. He knew there was a possibility I might miss. I have a skill, but I'm not perfect. And so just in case I miss on the first throw, I'm gonna get some extra stone. I might even miss on the second throw or the third throw or the fourth throw. So I want you to see this. David knows his limitations. I'm not perfect. I do have a skill, but I'm not perfect. If I thought I was perfect, I would pick up one stone.

But I know my limitation, so I'll pick up five. And so he's existing in between this place of recognizing his skill, but knowing his limitation. Willing to offer God this simple skill that he has and ultimately knowing this, that I'm still stepping out onto a battlefield that is far beyond my ability, but he trusts God. And he looks at that big obstacle named Goliath and says I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts. He acknowledged God. He trusted God. Five smooth stones because he knew I might miss. I have a skill, I'm not perfect. I recognize my own imperfection, I might miss. I know my limitations, but I will offer God my skill and trust him in this moment. So here are the five things that you have to have if you wanna be a giant killer. Number one was you have to know how to follow

instruction. Number two is you must do the basic things. Number three is you must be a servant of people. Number four is you must use what you have. Offer God any skill or interest in your life. And number five is you have to trust the Lord. Number one, follow instruction. Number two, do the basic things. Number three, be a servant of all people. Number four, use what you have. And number five, trust God. Stand together with me. Now when Brother Reagan asked me to speak today, he said I need you to help us because he said we need more musicians, we need more singers, and we need more volunteers. And he said I want you to try to speak to help us. Well this is the big thing, but you don't get to the big thing if you don't do the basic thing. Now I hope to God that this room

is full of a dozen piano players, but you'll never play the piano on the platform at New Life Fellowship if you can't follow instruction in the classroom. Now I hope to God that there are singers and camera operators, and I hope that we train the most gifted pro-presenter operators that the Pentecostal movement has ever seen. But you gotta do the basic things. You gotta carry the bread and carry the cheese. You gotta be kind and respectable and honorable. You gotta be willing to serve people. Use what you have. If you have an interest or you have a skill, offer God what you have. Now you might be like me and maybe you like to sing, but people won't let you sing. Remember David had to know his limitations too. But it might just be that you like to sing and are gifted to sing,

but don't have the confidence to sing. What do you need? You need to trust God. You need to offer God the skill that you have. Are you creative? Do you like to design graphics? Do you think that operating a camera may be fun? Is there a creative instinct in you? Well, find a place in the kingdom to offer God what you have. God gave you that skill, and this is all David did. He said, I am willing to offer God this little skill I have. Recognizing, I'm not perfect. Most of the volunteers we have, actually all of the volunteers we have are not perfect. They start to excel in their gift and they improve time after time. And this is all you have to do is be willing to offer God your interest and your skill, develop the discipline to improve, live these principles, and then one day you'll find yourself standing before Goliath,

but I end where I began. Most people in their lives never even get to Goliath because they don't embody these principles. Follow instructions. Do the basic things. Be a servant of all people. Use what you have and trust God. Amen, I want you to bow your heads with me. Close your eyes. Jesus, I love you. I thank you for every young person from the youngest to the oldest. I thank you for every boy and every girl, the talents, the potential, the callings that you have placed inside them. I pray today, Lord, that your grace would be upon us and that you would help us in these things. That you would help us have the willpower through your spirit to discipline our flesh to be obedient to follow instruction. I pray God that you would help us create a culture where we do and celebrate the value of the basic things,

that we would have a heart of a servant being willing to serve one another, serve our teachers, serve our leaders. I pray, Lord, today, especially, that you would give each one in this room confidence, confidence to acknowledge the gift and the abilities that you have placed within them, confidence to explore them, confidence to offer them to you. God, there may be people in this room thinking I could never stand behind a podium and speak like that and that may be the one that you will use the greatest. Lord, there may be one here today who deep within their heart wishes that they could stand on this platform and sing but they're so timid and so shy. That may be the one who has the most powerful vocal anointing in this church. I pray today that you would give us confidence to push beyond our insecurity and our timidity

and to offer you the skills and abilities you have placed within us. And we're gonna commit to trust you in all things that you would receive glory and honor. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.