With God’s spirit in him, David set aside any fear he had and decided that he would fight this proud Philistine champion. Even though Goliath was big, he was not bigger than the God of Israel. The others feared David had no chance, and when Saul heard this, he tried to persuade David not to fight Goliath as he was too young and too small.
Yet as God had believed in David, David believed in himself and he told Saul that when a lion or bear came and took a lamb, he went out after it, attacked the beast, and brought the lamb back to the flock.
As a shepherd, David had been training for this moment his whole life! If he could handle a bear and a lion when he was in the fields, surely God would be with him today against Goliath.
When Saul could not persuade David to stay behind, he tried to give David his armor but the king’s clanky armor was too large and too heavy, so David took off Saul’s armor and decided to fight with the tools he already knew how to handle—his sling and a rock.
David was then able to set aside his fear because he felt God had already trained him for this. David’s confidence was in the God of Israel. He went to a nearby brook and put five smooth rocks in his bag and returned with his sling ready for battle.
When Goliath saw David approach, he cursed David with his gods. He mocked Israel for sending him a small, young shepherd boy instead of a seasoned warrior. David said, (1 Samuel 17:46) “This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I will strike you down!” Suddenly, David started running towards the Philistine.
He put a rock in his sling, swung it over his head, and released it. The smooth rock went soaring through the air and hit Goliath right on the head. The rock hit him so hard that Goliath fell to the ground on his face.
David ran and stood over the Philistines’ champion and, as a final sign of victory, cut off his head. Against odds and others’ beliefs, David proved himself to be a strong warrior. His size and where he came from did not matter at all. His faith and belief won the day.
God gave Noah very exact instructions for how to build the Ark. Reading these instructions in the Bible gives us a good idea of what Noah’s Ark might’ve looked like. The Bible measures the Ark in cubits, an ancient measurement. Different countries had different ways of measuring cubits, and we aren’t exactly sure which one the Bible used for Noah’s Ark. Depending on which cubit it’s measured with, we can tell that the Ark was between about 440 feet and 515 feet long. Inside, it had three decks, or floors, and there was a big window on top that could be opened to let light in. Based on those measurements, the inside of the Ark would’ve had more room than 20 basketball courts!
God also told Noah to coat the Ark with pitch, a thick black liquid that is found in nature. Pitch is sticky and waterproof, so it helped hold the Ark together and kept any water from getting through the cracks in the wood. Unlike modern ships, the Ark probably wasn’t meant to be steered or sailed. It may have been more like a floating barn, so that Noah had to trust in God to guide the Ark.
God’s promise to bless the whole world through Abraham was very important because it revealed a part of God’s plan. Abraham and his descendants, the Jewish people, would play an important part in this. God knows the future; He worked through Abraham so that the whole world would be blessed.
The Birth Of Isaac
Just like God had promised, Sarah became pregnant when she was 91 years old. Less than a year after God and the angels had visited Abraham, she gave birth to a son who she named Isaac. The name Isaac means ‘laughter’ in Hebrew. Sarah named her son this because at first she had laughed because she didn’t believe that she could have a son, and later she laughed from happiness after he was born.
Three Visitors
One day, Abraham was sitting outside of his tent when three men he’d never met before came to visit him. Abraham’s society had very strict rules about treating guests nicely, so he gave them water and Sarah prepared their best foods for them to eat. The men didn’t say who they were, but they said something that surprised Abraham and Sarah: by this time next year, Sarah would finally have a son. Sarah laughed at this, since she was already 90 years old. Even though she didn’t say anything, and they couldn’t hear her laughing, the men knew what Sarah was thinking and reminded her that nothing is too hard for God to accomplish.
Who Were the Three Visitors?
Abraham didn’t know who the visitors were at first, but he eventually realized that one of them was actually God appearing as a human being. Later, the Bible reveals that the other two men were angels.
What About Ishmael?
After Isaac was born, Sarah was bothered because Ishmael was misbehaving. She also didn’t want Ishmael to inherit anything from Abraham. She asked Abraham to make Ishmael and his mother, Hagar, leave and go live on their own. This bothered Abraham because he cared about Ishmael very much, so he asked God what he should do.
God told Abraham to send Ishmael and his mother away. God promised to care for them and said that even though Abraham’s most blessed descendants would come through Isaac, that Ishmael’s descendants would still become a great nation. Ishmael and his descendants went to live south of Canaan, in the Arabian Peninsula. His sons became leaders of the nations there. Because of this, Ishmael is considered the father of the Arabs, which makes him an important person in Islam.
As Samson and his family neared the vineyards of Timnah, a roaring lion came charging toward them. Samson quickly went to face the beast alone, and as he did, the Lord filled him with strength, and Samson defeated the attacking animal with his bare hands. He looked down at the slain animal and found inside the lion’s body there was honey and no meat.
Even with the eyes of Judea and beyond on Him, Jesus performed miracle after miracle.
He healed a disabled man simply by telling the man that his sins were forgiven.
With Jesus and His apostles trapped in a storm in the Sea of Galilee, Jesus woke from a nap and calmed the sea with just a few words.
Jesus fed 5,000 people from just five loaves of bread and two fish.
Coming across a dead child and her wailing parents, Jesus told the girl to “get up,” after which she returned from the dead!
He turned water into wine!
The Pharisees and Sadducees were in a tough spot. The people loved Jesus, but to the Pharisees and Sadducees, Jesus was not a person they wanted to follow. They expected a mighty king or warrior, a man of power like them, not such a kind and simple man.
The Apostles
As Jesus traveled and preached, perhaps no one picked up His words and teachings more than the twelve extraordinary men who became His apostles. These apostles hung on Jesus’ every deed and word, and wanted to be more like Him so they could better help spread His Gospels.
The apostles were Simon Peter, Andrew, James (son of Zebedee), John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James (son of Alphaeus), Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot.
The apostles took on the same responsibilities and dangers as Jesus by sharing God’s word and standing up to corruption and unjust power!
The apostles were essential to Jesus’ ability to teach and spread His word. Some days, Jesus would teach. Other days, He would be busy helping and healing people. Still other days, Jesus would pray, talk to, or listen to God. Having a force of twelve “experts” allowed Jesus’ words and deeds to spread farther and faster. This also invited more danger as Herod Antipas and Roman officials would undoubtedly be hearing the news!
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Because so many people had traveled to Bethlehem for the census, there wasn’t any room at the inn for Mary and Joseph, even though Mary was about to give birth to Jesus. The only place that they could stay was in a stable. Jesus was born there, and slept in a manger, a box that is used to hold hay for animals to eat. Jesus spent His first night in the world there in that stable. Many houses had a stable on the lowest floor, and that might’ve been where Jesus was born. Some people think it might’ve been in a cave used as a stable. Most Nativity scenes show a small shack. Today, the Church of the Nativity, the oldest church in the world that’s still used, is built around a cave where many people believe Jesus was born.
No matter what it looked like, a stable was a very humble place to be born, God made it clear that something very special had happened that night. An angel appeared to some shepherds who had to stay outside all night to guard their sheep from wild animals. It was scary to see an angel in the sky, but the angel brought them good news: it told them that the Messiah had been born and that they should go to the stable and see Him. Other angels appeared in the sky to sing songs praising God, and the shepherds went to the stable to see Jesus. They told other people about the wonderful news that the angel had told them and celebrated the birth of the Messiah.
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. – Luke 2:14
Long Journey
Joseph and Mary had to travel 90 miles to the city of Joseph’s ancestors: south along the flatlands of the Jordan River, then west over the hills surrounding Jerusalem, and on into Bethlehem. It was a grueling trip.
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Early in His ministry, Jesus began performing miracles and healings, which infuriated and frightened those in power. Early on, two groups were most worried about Jesus. These were the Pharisees and the Sadducees.
The Pharisees and Sadducees were not priests or men of God. Instead, they were more like lawyers and tax collectors, men who used their knowledge of the Old Testament to create rules and control the people.
Even with the eyes of Judea and beyond on Him, Jesus performed miracle after miracle.
He healed a disabled man simply by telling the man that his sins were forgiven.
With Jesus and His apostles trapped in a storm in the Sea of Galilee, Jesus woke from a nap and calmed the sea with just a few words.
Jesus fed 5,000 people from just five loaves of bread and two fish.
Coming across a dead child and her wailing parents, Jesus told the girl to “get up,” after which she returned from the dead!
He turned water into wine!
The Pharisees and Sadducees were in a tough spot. The people loved Jesus, but to the Pharisees and Sadducees, Jesus was not a person they wanted to follow. They expected a mighty king or warrior, a man of power like them, not such a kind and simple man.
The Apostles
As Jesus traveled and preached, perhaps no one picked up His words and teachings more than the twelve extraordinary men who became His apostles. These apostles hung on Jesus’ every deed and word, and wanted to be more like Him so they could better help spread His Gospels.
The apostles were Simon Peter, Andrew, James (son of Zebedee), John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James (son of Alphaeus), Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot.
The apostles took on the same responsibilities and dangers as Jesus by sharing God’s word and standing up to corruption and unjust power!
The apostles were essential to Jesus’ ability to teach and spread His word. Some days, Jesus would teach. Other days, He would be busy helping and healing people. Still other days, Jesus would pray, talk to, or listen to God. Having a force of twelve “experts” allowed Jesus’ words and deeds to spread farther and faster. This also invited more danger as Herod Antipas and Roman officials would undoubtedly be hearing the news!
Want More!
To get more Bible and faith learning tool go visit our store HERE!
