David And The Giant
Children's sermon
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Scripture References
David said, "The Lord, who saved me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will save me from the hand of this Philistine."
-- 1 Samuel 17:37a
2 Samuel 21:15-20 and 1 Chronicles 20:4-7 (the other giants)
Materials Needed
Card stock sheet printed with 1 Samuel 17:37a (reference and scripture) on one side and 2 Samuel 21:15-20 and 1 Chronicles 20:4-7 (references only) on the other side
Mylar helium balloon tied to a nine-foot string with a weight at the bottom
Sling
Traced hand and foot of a six-foot-tall man, enlarged 150%, printed on card stock and cut out
Balloons, one per child (optional)
Telling The Story
Do you know the story of David and Goliath? We can read the story in 1 Samuel, chapter 17, which is in the Old Testament.
In 1 Samuel, the people of Israel were at war with the Philistines. Armies from both countries were camped on the hills overlooking the same valley. Back in Bible times, soldiers didn't have guns or cannons. They fought with swords, bows and arrows, hatchets, spears, and sometimes with their hands, so even though both armies could see each other, they weren't in danger until the fighting actually started.
David was the youngest son of a man named Jesse. Usually, David was watching his father's sheep. On this particular day, his father sent him to take some supplies to his three oldest brothers, who were serving in the army. When David got there, he was surprised to see a giant step out from the Philistines' camp and yell to Israel's army. The giant's name was Goliath, and he was making fun of the Israelites. He dared them to send out their best soldier to fight him, promising that whoever won that fight would win the whole war for his country, but none of the Israelite soldiers were brave enough to try.
You might think that David would stay as far away from the giant as he could, but when he saw that none of the soldiers from Israel was volunteering to fight, he decided that he would.
Do you know how big Goliath was? The Bible says that he was over nine feet tall. Have you ever wondered how tall that is? (Show the mylar helium balloon.) Imagine that this balloon was Goliath's head. This string is nine feet long. If I let go ... (let go of the balloon) ... the balloon rises to about where Goliath's head was. Imagine someone this tall standing in our church! (Show the cut outs of the hand and foot.) If Goliath was this tall, his hand was probably about this size. His foot was probably about this size. (Let the children pass the hand and foot around and compare their to their hands and feet.) Imagine someone with hands and feet this size yelling that he wants to fight you!
In Bible times, people didn't have access to all of the food and medical care that we have today, and they had to do a lot of very hard, physical labor just to survive. Most people didn't grow as tall as we do today and David was probably between twelve and sixteen years old, not fully grown, when this story took place. (Invite one or two of the children to stand next to the balloon. Try to find a twelve-year-old.) Imagine that this is Goliath and that this is David. David walked out to where Goliath was standing, and do you know what Goliath said? He said, "What? Am I a dog and you're sending a little stick out after me?" How would you feel if someone really big was laughing at you and calling you a little stick?
Well, imagine that you're David, facing Goliath. He's over nine feet tall. He's an experienced fighter who has killed who-knows-how-many people already. He's got big muscles, the newest equipment, the best training, and did I mention that he was over nine feet tall? And now he's bragging about how he's going to kill you! Are you afraid yet? It gets worse. David was standing there, facing this big, angry, giant and all he had to protect him was a sling and five small stones! (Show the sling.) Are you afraid yet? I am, and I'm not even there!
But David wasn't afraid, because David knew that he had a lot more than a little sling to protect him. (Hold up the card stock printed with the scripture references, showing the side with 1 Samuel 17:37 printed on it.) In verse 37, after everyone else protested, David said, "The Lord, who saved me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will save me from the hand of this Philistine."
David knew that he had practiced using that sling and that he was quite skilled, but more importantly, he knew that he had God on his side. David knew that God would protect him and help him kill Goliath. If David knew God would protect him, why did he gather five stones? Some people think that maybe David gathered five stones in case he missed the first time, that maybe he wasn't quite confident in God's ability to protect him, but that isn't why.
You see, David knew that there were four more giants! You can read about them in 2 Samuel 21:15-20 and 1 Chronicles 20:4-7. (Flip the card stock over to the other side.) The Bible calls one of them Goliath's brother and says that all four were descendants of Rapha. Since Goliath was a descendant of Rapha, we can guess that the other giants were cousins or distant cousins. And all four were part of the Philistine army!
When David went out to fight Goliath, he didn't know if the other four giants were in the camp or not. But David had so much faith in God, he believed that God could take care of five giants just as easily as he could one. One stone per giant was enough. If God wanted David to fight all five giants, David wanted to be prepared to do his part.
David shows us that being prepared isn't a lack of trust. It's a sign of faith. David knew that God had guided his training -- David had killed bears and lions who threatened his father's sheep -- and David knew that God would guide each stone to its target. David just wanted to be ready to do whatever God called him to do.
What does this mean for us? Well, we could sit back and wait for God to miraculously give us the ability to do things we've never done before. He does do that sometimes; more often, God prepares us in advance. When we practice our piano lessons, study our times tables, or memorize Bible verses, we aren't doing it because we don't trust God to help us; we're preparing ourselves so that when God calls us, we're ready. Practicing, studying, and memorizing are all signs of faith.
Prayer
Dear Lord,
Thank you for this wonderful day. Thank you for helping us and protecting us no matter what we face. Please help us to study, practice, and learn what you want us to learn so that when you call us, we can be ready to do your will.
In Jesus' name. Amen.
Optional: Give each child a balloon to make a "Goliath face."
David said, "The Lord, who saved me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will save me from the hand of this Philistine."
-- 1 Samuel 17:37a
2 Samuel 21:15-20 and 1 Chronicles 20:4-7 (the other giants)
Materials Needed
Card stock sheet printed with 1 Samuel 17:37a (reference and scripture) on one side and 2 Samuel 21:15-20 and 1 Chronicles 20:4-7 (references only) on the other side
Mylar helium balloon tied to a nine-foot string with a weight at the bottom
Sling
Traced hand and foot of a six-foot-tall man, enlarged 150%, printed on card stock and cut out
Balloons, one per child (optional)
Telling The Story
Do you know the story of David and Goliath? We can read the story in 1 Samuel, chapter 17, which is in the Old Testament.
In 1 Samuel, the people of Israel were at war with the Philistines. Armies from both countries were camped on the hills overlooking the same valley. Back in Bible times, soldiers didn't have guns or cannons. They fought with swords, bows and arrows, hatchets, spears, and sometimes with their hands, so even though both armies could see each other, they weren't in danger until the fighting actually started.
David was the youngest son of a man named Jesse. Usually, David was watching his father's sheep. On this particular day, his father sent him to take some supplies to his three oldest brothers, who were serving in the army. When David got there, he was surprised to see a giant step out from the Philistines' camp and yell to Israel's army. The giant's name was Goliath, and he was making fun of the Israelites. He dared them to send out their best soldier to fight him, promising that whoever won that fight would win the whole war for his country, but none of the Israelite soldiers were brave enough to try.
You might think that David would stay as far away from the giant as he could, but when he saw that none of the soldiers from Israel was volunteering to fight, he decided that he would.
Do you know how big Goliath was? The Bible says that he was over nine feet tall. Have you ever wondered how tall that is? (Show the mylar helium balloon.) Imagine that this balloon was Goliath's head. This string is nine feet long. If I let go ... (let go of the balloon) ... the balloon rises to about where Goliath's head was. Imagine someone this tall standing in our church! (Show the cut outs of the hand and foot.) If Goliath was this tall, his hand was probably about this size. His foot was probably about this size. (Let the children pass the hand and foot around and compare their to their hands and feet.) Imagine someone with hands and feet this size yelling that he wants to fight you!
In Bible times, people didn't have access to all of the food and medical care that we have today, and they had to do a lot of very hard, physical labor just to survive. Most people didn't grow as tall as we do today and David was probably between twelve and sixteen years old, not fully grown, when this story took place. (Invite one or two of the children to stand next to the balloon. Try to find a twelve-year-old.) Imagine that this is Goliath and that this is David. David walked out to where Goliath was standing, and do you know what Goliath said? He said, "What? Am I a dog and you're sending a little stick out after me?" How would you feel if someone really big was laughing at you and calling you a little stick?
Well, imagine that you're David, facing Goliath. He's over nine feet tall. He's an experienced fighter who has killed who-knows-how-many people already. He's got big muscles, the newest equipment, the best training, and did I mention that he was over nine feet tall? And now he's bragging about how he's going to kill you! Are you afraid yet? It gets worse. David was standing there, facing this big, angry, giant and all he had to protect him was a sling and five small stones! (Show the sling.) Are you afraid yet? I am, and I'm not even there!
But David wasn't afraid, because David knew that he had a lot more than a little sling to protect him. (Hold up the card stock printed with the scripture references, showing the side with 1 Samuel 17:37 printed on it.) In verse 37, after everyone else protested, David said, "The Lord, who saved me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will save me from the hand of this Philistine."
David knew that he had practiced using that sling and that he was quite skilled, but more importantly, he knew that he had God on his side. David knew that God would protect him and help him kill Goliath. If David knew God would protect him, why did he gather five stones? Some people think that maybe David gathered five stones in case he missed the first time, that maybe he wasn't quite confident in God's ability to protect him, but that isn't why.
You see, David knew that there were four more giants! You can read about them in 2 Samuel 21:15-20 and 1 Chronicles 20:4-7. (Flip the card stock over to the other side.) The Bible calls one of them Goliath's brother and says that all four were descendants of Rapha. Since Goliath was a descendant of Rapha, we can guess that the other giants were cousins or distant cousins. And all four were part of the Philistine army!
When David went out to fight Goliath, he didn't know if the other four giants were in the camp or not. But David had so much faith in God, he believed that God could take care of five giants just as easily as he could one. One stone per giant was enough. If God wanted David to fight all five giants, David wanted to be prepared to do his part.
David shows us that being prepared isn't a lack of trust. It's a sign of faith. David knew that God had guided his training -- David had killed bears and lions who threatened his father's sheep -- and David knew that God would guide each stone to its target. David just wanted to be ready to do whatever God called him to do.
What does this mean for us? Well, we could sit back and wait for God to miraculously give us the ability to do things we've never done before. He does do that sometimes; more often, God prepares us in advance. When we practice our piano lessons, study our times tables, or memorize Bible verses, we aren't doing it because we don't trust God to help us; we're preparing ourselves so that when God calls us, we're ready. Practicing, studying, and memorizing are all signs of faith.
Prayer
Dear Lord,
Thank you for this wonderful day. Thank you for helping us and protecting us no matter what we face. Please help us to study, practice, and learn what you want us to learn so that when you call us, we can be ready to do your will.
In Jesus' name. Amen.
Optional: Give each child a balloon to make a "Goliath face."
