January 15, 2023 - Prostituted Obedience
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Your child comes to you in tears...
What do you do?
[I] ask - WHY are you crying?
The child responds - “So-n-so YELLED at me”
What do ya do?
[I] ask - Why did they YELL at you?
The child responds - “Because I hit so-n-so”
What do ya do?
NOW - some of you have caught on - Some of you are thinking - Didn’t we HEAR this already....LAST WEEK?
YES - you did.
Last week - i used this same analogy as my intro...
THIS WEEK - I REPEATED it - to make a point.
For those of you who CAUGHT on and realized it...
I want you to REMEMBER how you felt when you realized it.
Other than TODAY - if you realized it - I’m sure we’ve all experienced that - WAIT A SECOND moment - where we’ve thought… I’ve seen this before!
Like a De ja vu moment.
Well - That is the EXACT same feeling I got when reading our passage today.
In order to give you the story - let’s pull out some verses over the span of chapters 21 and 22 of 1 Samuel.
If you remember last week - we ended with David fleeing from Saul - as SAUL was busy worshiping the Kingdom…and in doing so trying to KILL David.
David had killed Goliath - and the people began ELEVATING David over Saul...
And Saul became - ANGRY
And this anger CAME from a place where Saul was AFRAID about something…remember what?
7 And the women sang to one another as they celebrated, “Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands.”
8 And Saul was very angry, and this saying displeased him. He said, “They have ascribed to David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed thousands, and what more can he have but the kingdom?”
This ANGER came from a place where he was AFRAID to lose the KINGDOM...
The Kingdom had become an IDOL in his life...
And as we saw last week - SAUL’s disobedience to God - had led to God no longer WALKING with Saul (Spiritual separation)...
Which led to the Emotional separation - from PROPER God-honoring emotions - to EARTHLY emotions...
TO eventually a physical - RELATIONAL separation between Saul and David.
One that kicked itself off - by Saul trying to KILL David - SEVERAL times - with a SPEAR.
And so - David is ON THE RUN...
We pick it up there...
1 Then David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. And Ahimelech came to meet David, trembling, and said to him, “Why are you alone, and no one with you?”
2 And David said to Ahimelech the priest, “The king has charged me with a matter and said to me, ‘Let no one know anything of the matter about which I send you, and with which I have charged you.’ I have made an appointment with the young men for such and such a place.
3 Now then, what do you have on hand? Give me five loaves of bread, or whatever is here.”
Jump down to v7
7 Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before the Lord. His name was Doeg the Edomite, the chief of Saul’s herdsmen.
8 Then David said to Ahimelech, “Then have you not here a spear or a sword at hand? For I have brought neither my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste.”
9 And the priest said, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you struck down in the Valley of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you will take that, take it, for there is none but that here.” And David said, “There is none like that; give it to me.”
10 And David rose and fled that day from Saul and went to Achish the king of Gath.
11 And the servants of Achish said to him, “Is not this David the king of the land? Did they not sing to one another of him in dances, ‘Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands’?”
12 And David took these words to heart and was much afraid of Achish the king of Gath.
1 David departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. And when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there to him.
2 And everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul, gathered to him. And he became commander over them. And there were with him about four hundred men.
6 Now Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men who were with him. Saul was sitting at Gibeah under the tamarisk tree on the height with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him.
7 And Saul said to his servants who stood about him, “Hear now, people of Benjamin; will the son of Jesse give every one of you fields and vineyards, will he make you all commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds,
8 that all of you have conspired against me? No one discloses to me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse. None of you is sorry for me or discloses to me that my son has stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day.”
9 Then answered Doeg the Edomite, who stood by the servants of Saul, “I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub,
10 and he inquired of the Lord for him and gave him provisions and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine.”
11 Then the king sent to summon Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father’s house, the priests who were at Nob, and all of them came to the king.
12 And Saul said, “Hear now, son of Ahitub.” And he answered, “Here I am, my lord.”
13 And Saul said to him, “Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, in that you have given him bread and a sword and have inquired of God for him, so that he has risen against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?”
14 Then Ahimelech answered the king, “And who among all your servants is so faithful as David, who is the king’s son-in-law, and captain over your bodyguard, and honored in your house?
15 Is today the first time that I have inquired of God for him? No! Let not the king impute anything to his servant or to all the house of my father, for your servant has known nothing of all this, much or little.”
16 And the king said, “You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house.”
17 And the king said to the guard who stood about him, “Turn and kill the priests of the Lord, because their hand also is with David, and they knew that he fled and did not disclose it to me.” But the servants of the king would not put out their hand to strike the priests of the Lord.
18 Then the king said to Doeg, “You turn and strike the priests.” And Doeg the Edomite turned and struck down the priests, and he killed on that day eighty-five persons who wore the linen ephod.
19 And Nob, the city of the priests, he put to the sword; both man and woman, child and infant, ox, donkey and sheep, he put to the sword.
Quite a bit of text here - but I wanted you to get your eyes on it.
IN a nutshell - we see David continue to FLEE from Saul - as Saul continues to PUSH for his destruction.
BUT OVERALL - at the highest level of ALL of this - is God’s plan being played out.
And while SO FAR in this story between - Saul and David - - David has been the HERO…the one WITH God...
But TODAY - we’re going to look at BOTH men - to see things that we (TODAY) can fall into…but hopefully not much!
We FIRST look to David.
1 Then David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. And Ahimelech came to meet David, trembling, and said to him, “Why are you alone, and no one with you?”
2 And David said to Ahimelech the priest, “The king has charged me with a matter and said to me, ‘Let no one know anything of the matter about which I send you, and with which I have charged you.’ I have made an appointment with the young men for such and such a place.
If we were to just BREEZE thru this section - we’d miss the fact that these statements by David - to the priest - were FALSE.
Verse 2 here contains LIES by David.
Saul had NOT done what David had said that he had done...
YET - this is David’s story...
WHY?
SLIDE: Prostituted Trust: Trusting Our Way More Than God’s Way
Prostituted Trust
Prostituted Trust
If you remember - David had already been told that he was going to REIGN over Israel...
12 And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome. And the Lord said, “Arise, anoint him, for this is he.”
13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah.
At this point - David KNEW who Samuel was...
He knew he was a PROPHET - speaking FOR God
And so at this point - David KNEW God’s plan...
So WHY the lies?
WHY did David lie to the Priest in Nob?
David KNEW the law!
Thou shall NOT lie...
He lied - because of the same reason SAUL didn’t WAIT for Samuel before making the sacrifices in … Gilgal
Remember that?
Samuel had told Saul to wait 7 days - and then he would come and make a sacrifice...
Saul didn’t WAIT long enough...
8 He waited seven days, the time appointed by Samuel. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people were scattering from him.
9 So Saul said, “Bring the burnt offering here to me, and the peace offerings.” And he offered the burnt offering.
10 As soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came. And Saul went out to meet him and greet him.
13 And Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the command of the Lord your God, with which he commanded you. For then the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever.
Why did Saul go AGAINST the command of God?
He let his circumstances DICTATE his path forward!
SLIDE:
His circumstances became his master
And it seems - the same could be said for DAVID!
David was shaping up to be - THE SAVIOR…and he ends up LYING to a priest...
He KNEW God’s plan to make him king - YET - because of the circumstances surrounding SAUL and his pursuit to KILL him...
He took matters into his own hands...
LIKE SAUL had done...
And did what he thought he needed to do - to PRESERVE his own life!
*How about us? How about you?
David knew that God’s plan included him becoming RULER over Israel...
BUT - he DIDN’T know HOW that would come to be.
Same with US right?
As we saw last week - we KNOW our call to treat people with the Love of Christ...
32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
BUT - HOW OFTEN do we let our circumstances KEEP us from living this way with others??
David knew LYING was a sin...
YET - he felt justified DOING SO when he felt his life was at stake...
We’re called to SHOW Grace to others...
be kind
tenderhearted
FORGIVING...
YET - when the RUBBER meets the road - and WE’RE the one who GETS RUN over...
when WE’RE the one who gets slapped
gets offended
gets the short end of the stick
gets THREATENED...
DO WE - like David here - PROSTITUTE our trust - and THINK that OUR way is better than God’s way?
Do we TRUST that a LIE will do US MORE GOOD than the truth?
Do we trust that DECEPTION will do us MORE GOOD than honesty?
*it’s one of those cases where - the family is ON the streets - and IN NEED… HUNGRY...
Do they justify STEALING in order to SURVIVE…?
*The man REALLY needs a job - and he’s had NO LUCK for the past year...
Does he justify LYING/Embellishing on his resume to get the job?
OFTEN - we will find ourselves in situations JUST like these...
We REALLY need that thing - NOW - so I will STRETCH the truth to make that HAPPEN!
We REALLY don’t want our PRIDE to be hurt - so we will REWRITE history so it now agrees with us.
Last week we talked about Unrepentant sin in our lives...
Unrepentant sin in our lives - usually ends up being - prostituted trust.
As believers - WE KNOW - the commands of God.
And A LOT of times in our lives - we BOW to our CIRCUMSTANCE - and obey our EARTHLY desires...
Instead of bowing to Jesus - and obeying His word!
FOR SURE - something we need to consider...
to think about - to EXAMINE ourselves over.
Here’s what we need to know - (as John Piper has said)
SLIDE:
Sin never pays off
~ John Piper
NOW - we might not completely agree with that - 100% of the time...
But it couldn’t BE more true!
Now - we might say - Well lying got David a SWORD and some BREAD...
Have we forgotten...
47 and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hand.”
have we ALSO forgotten?...
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.
If THIS is true - (that God’s ways are NOT OUR ways)...
Then shouldn’t we get USED to - DIFFERENT....?
Shouldn’t we get used to - Uncomfortable?
…Difficult?
…Maybe even Awkward?
Because here’s the thing - the SOONER we can EMBRACE this - that’s God’s ways ARE NOT our ways...
Then maybe we won’t be so quick to ABANDON God’s way - for our own - more COMFORTABLE way!
May we TRUST God - fully....
Even through the HARD ways
Even through the valleys
Even on the LONG roads
EVEN on the painful paths of life
Even through suffering!
Even when threatened with our RIGHTS
Even when threatened with our lives...
And so - as we examine ourselves -
May we ASK ourselves where we Prostitute our TRUST...
But not only that....
Back to our text...
David went to Nob and spoke with the priests there...
But when he gets there - he realizes that one of Saul’s chief servants was there...
Saul hears about it - and responds…How?
Saul himself goes to Nob - and calls for the priests to come to him.
Let’s go back to it...
13 And Saul said to him, “Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, in that you have given him bread and a sword and have inquired of God for him, so that he has risen against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?”
14 Then Ahimelech answered the king, “And who among all your servants is so faithful as David, who is the king’s son-in-law, and captain over your bodyguard, and honored in your house?
15 Is today the first time that I have inquired of God for him? No! Let not the king impute anything to his servant or to all the house of my father, for your servant has known nothing of all this, much or little.”
16 And the king said, “You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house.”
So Saul kills 85 priests....that day in Nob...
But he wasn’t done!
Jump to v19
19 And Nob, the city of the priests, he put to the sword; both man and woman, child and infant, ox, donkey and sheep, he put to the sword.
When we started this sermon - and I started asking the same questions I asked last week - WHO IN HERE thought - Wait a second! What??
Well- THIS WEEK - as I was looking through this passage, I came to this verse and had the SAME REACTION!
I read this - and thought - WAIT a second - I’ve seen this before!
But where?
You guys remember in chapter 15 - God commanded Saul to do something to the Amalekites?
2 Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘I have noted what Amalek did to Israel in opposing them on the way when they came up out of Egypt.
3 Now go and strike Amalek and devote to destruction all that they have. Do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’ ”
God had told Samuel to DESTROY EVERYTHING...
So let’s look at these 2 instances...
SLIDE: (1 Sam 15:3) - (1 Sam 22:19)
Wow - similar right?
LOTS of similarities...
But it’s the DIFFERENCE I want us to focus on...
What was the difference?
ON SLIDE:
HERE - we have God’s command TO Saul...
And HERE - we have - Saul’s act - INDEPENDENT of God...
What i hope JUMPS OUT at us - is that when it came to God’s will (command) - Saul would not comply...
But when it came to Saul’s will (his will OUTSIDE of God’s command) - he completed the exact same task… wiped out EVERYTHING.
SO what are we seeing here?
SLIDE: Prostituted Obedience: Doing What God Says But Apart From His Will
Prostituted Obedience
Prostituted Obedience
And so - for me this week - I asked - OK - where in my life do I DO THE SAME THING!!??
Where in MY life do I prostitute my obedience?
I KNOW - God calls me to READ and STUDY His word!
Do I INSTEAD - ONLY read and study the stock market?
DO I INSTEAD - ONLY read and study my employee handbook?
Do I INSTEAD - ONLY read and study fantasy football news?
I KNOW - God calls me to fellowship with the saints!
Do I INSTEAD - fellowship ONLY with unbelievers?
I KNOW - God calls me to INVEST in the Kingdom!
Do I INSTEAD - INVEST ONLY in the world? (my house, my yard, my hobbies, vacations)?
I KNOW - God calls me to COMMIT to a body of believers!
But INSTEAD - am i REALLY more committed to my employer...
…to my gym?
…to my workout routine?
…to my diet?
See God calls us to do many things...
Like - Love our enemy.
Yet - most of us will only LOVE those who SERVE us.
And so - we’ll take the LOVE that God has placed inside of us...
We’ll take that LOVE - MEANT for our enemies...
And we’ll prostitute it - to THOSE who serve US!
To see an example of this in scripture…let’s go to Matt 18...
23 “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants.
24 When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.
25 And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.
26 So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’
27 And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.
28 But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’
29 So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’
30 He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt.
31 When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place.
32 Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.
33 And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’
34 And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt.
35 So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
What happened?
The first servant - WHO OWED much debt…couldn’t pay it...
ASKED for mercy - and RECEIVED MERCY!
He then went out and found one of his FELLOW SERVANTS...
who owed him money....and ASKED HIM TO PAY UP!
The FELLOW servant - COULDN’T PAY UP either....
So he asked for - MERCY!
Did he get it?
NO!
So the 1st servant - RECEIVED MERCY...
He was BLESSED - in order to BE A - - Blessing!!
He was given GRACE - WHY?
SO HE COULD GIVE GRACE to someone else!!
He - FAILED!
In our text today - David failed - he let the circumstance DICTATE his actions (instead of God)
SAUL - failed! - He let the circumstances dictate his actions - instead of God!
As Christians (believers) - we’ve been GIFTED - what?
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
We’ve been GIFTED...
love - Do we LOVE OTHERS with this Love…(Christ - with this love) or the world?
joy - Do we delight in Christ and His glory - (or this world?)
peace - Do we display our PEACE with God to the world through pursuing righteousness - or do we seek PEACE with the world?
patience - Do we display this GRACE with the world - or WITHHOLD it?
Kindness / goodness / gentleness - Do we feel this way toward the world FOR THE SAKE of CHRIST…or for the sake of the world?
faithfulness - Do we display faithfulness to the Lord or do we display an ALLEGIANCE to the world?
Self-control - Does our self-control WAR AGAINST sin....or does our self-control war against righteousness?
SUMMARY:
SLIDE: Prostituted Trust: Trusting Our Way More Than God’s Way
Prostituted Trust
Prostituted Trust
Do we let our circumstances RULE over us?
If so - then we’re TRUSTING in ourselves more than God..
Examine ourselves
SLIDE: Prostituted Obedience: Doing What God Says But Apart From His Will
Prostituted Obedience
Prostituted Obedience
Can we examine ourselves - in a way - where we get down to the MOTIVE level...
WHY do I do things?
Am i ignoring God’s clear commands and using what He’s given me to PURSUE this world?
May we examine ourselves today - to see where our TRUST lies - and thus - where our obedience flows from!
Let’s pray