The Spear Makes the Point
Notes
Transcript
Claim - God is always at work even when we don’t know what his plan is
Focus - We can be righteous and faithful because God’s annointed is - based on trustiung God.
Function - Choose righteousness and faithfulness at every turn.
We associate ourselevs with all sorts of things for our benefit,
Simple examples might be if you lokked through the apps on your phone,
You might find companies you’re happy to be assosciated with for your benefit,
Perhaps shopping apps or reward apps,
the odd game.
But assoication is not the same as alegence.
The moment any of those apps starts charging you more than you think it’s worth,
or expects you to sign up to things you don’t agree with,
or they send you too many emails.
- we’re out.
We’re associated with them,
but we are not - alliegent to them!
I had a debate this week about whether ‘alliengent’ is an actual word
- and I have found it in some reliable dictionary sites.
It means loyal and committed - really at your own risk or sacrifice.
You show your alleigence by being alleigent.
And this is what we’re considering today.
What is our relationship to God’s annointed one - to Jesus.
It might be outright rejection
- and if you’re in that boat, then I pray that hearing more about the Saviour Jesus who offers the only sure hope in life and death might pursued you to consider him for yourself.
But for the rest of us, most of us - there is still a great challenge for us.
Is our relationship with Jesus one of
1 - Association or Alliegence?
1 - Association or Alliegence?
Into our passage,
Nobody likes a tell-tale - well that’s what my mother regualrly told me most times I opened my mouth..
And the Ziphites in v1 are certainly tell-tales.
As they did in chapter 23 they report back to King Saul, that they know where David is.
The Ziphites went to Saul at Gibeah and said, “Is not David hiding on the hill of Hakilah, which faces Jeshimon?”
The fact that Saul is still pursueing David is a testiment to his selfish ambition and his depraved mind!
Even if Daivd has also been annointed by the now desessed Prophet Samuel, to be the next king,
David has not once tried to take power in his own strength and timing,
he is trusting God’s plans.
2 chapters ago,
as Saul pusued David,
he went into the very cave that Daivd was hiding in to relieve himself and David,
while having the oppertunty to kill Saul,
instead cut a small peice of his robe off,
(This reminds me of another chidlhood story involving one of my Brother - but that’s for another time)
Anyway, David, showed Saul his alligence to Him,
and his mercy, depsite Sauls unfounded agression and desire to kill!
And yet Saul is still pursueing David.
If i were David - I’d have had enough by this point.
He knows he’s to be the next king,
he knows Saul is an evil man,
pause
Followoing the intelligence reports from the Ziphites Saul assembels his 3000 strong special forces and sets out again to take out David.
Saul and his troops make a camp for the night,
an inpenetrable circle of 3000 soldiers around the king.
Then David set out and went to the place where Saul had camped. He saw where Saul and Abner son of Ner, the commander of the army, had lain down. Saul was lying inside the camp, with the army encamped around him.
I think we have learnt enough about miltiary techiques and intelligence servceis and reports from 1 Sam to know that these were not nieve times.
Kings and commanders knew what they were doing,
techiques and communications were advanced.
So David’s next request was not a light request!
David then asked Ahimelek the Hittite and Abishai son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, “Who will go down into the camp with me to Saul?”
“I’ll go with you,” said Abishai.
There must be a reason our narrator records these 2 people as being asked by Daivd to go with him.
One, Ahimelek is a foreigner. He is a man who is counted amounst the 600 depserate men who choose to ‘assosiate’ with David - but who declines his call to follow when things look hard or dangerous.
He will never be mentioned in the bible again.
Abishai on the other hand, not only associates with David, but will willingly follow him into dangerous places!
He will be a regular right hand man of David for a long time, mentuioned numerous times in 2 Sam and 1 Chronicals.
I can’t think of any other reason to have these 2 mentioned by name,
and asked by Daivd to go forward with him,
other than it shows us that mere assosiation with God’s annointed is not the same a alleigence to God’s annointed.
Ahimelek associates with Daivd for his own gain, comfort, saftey, community of others looking for refuge,
Abishai, also amoung the 600 desperate men is likely also there for similar benefts,
For there is cetyainly much personal gain from being with the annointed!
and yet he has seen that David therefore deserves and is worthy of not just
selfish assosication,
but selfless alleigence.
I don’t know whether you have thought about your own relatiuonship with our annointed one Jesus, in these terms, but it’s a good question to ask!
Do you assosiate with Jesus, or are you alliegent to him?
Do you listen to his word becasue it makes you feel better about yourself
or becasue you also want to do better things for him?
Do you come to church to be part of something, that perhaps feels safe, or part of community,
or becase you also want to sacrficially give to Jesus and his other followers like you - For he is your Lord?
Is following Jesus done at your convienience - when it fits with your own ideas and plans and comforts.
Or is follwoing Jesus done at your inconveinience? Where you give up all worldly comforts for the sake of the one you love and follow?
In short, do you associate with Jesus for personal gain,
dare i even say simply so you can get saved and be forgiven - that is surely why Ahimelk was with David.
or are you alliegent to Jesus for He is worthy?
And as a result - perpared to follow him into every danger- letting go of all selfish gain for his sake?
Assosiation may mean you are never heard of again in the Kingdom of God,
for your faith might be based on a love for yourself, not a love for Jesus.
Which is no relationship with him at all!
Alleigence means you will be great in the kingdom of God, for your faith is based on love for Jesus at the expense of love for yourself!
It’s a question I think that simple verse raises.
And a dangerous postion to be in if you find you love yourself more or before Jesus.
Perhaps One test for our alligence is to be demonstrated next by David to God.
Allegience means we obey and trust,
even when the future is a mystery to us..
I’ve called this point,,,
2 - Alliegence even in God’s mysterious ways
2 - Alliegence even in God’s mysterious ways
David and Abishai sneak into Saul’s camp, right up to where Saul himself lies asleep.
His now famous spear stuck in the ground next to him as he sleeps.
The spear that signifies his authroity and power, as well as his slightly unhinged nature,
the spear he hurls at anyone who gets on his neverse,
Abishai said to David, “Today God has delivered your enemy into your hands. Now let me pin him to the ground with one thrust of the spear; I won’t strike him twice.”
You’ve got to like Abishai haven’t you,
Let me serve you Daivd - I wont have to do this twice!
(reminds me of another chidlhood story that didn’t end so well)
And surely David’s got to be tempted,
he spared SAuls life last time and he’s still pursueing him - finish it now, surely!
But without instruction from God himself,
David has learnt from last weeks chapter,
that trusting and obeying God’s word,
not seeking hurt even against our enemies,
is the right way forward,
For God will avenge and bring justice in his good timing..
Last week the fool Nabel took advanatge of David and David nearly killed him and all his men,
but Daivd chose the way of wisdom instead.
Nearly instantly, God brought judgement himself upon Nabel, who died of a heart attack.
The lesson Daivd has learned is that God is in complete control and so there is never a time when we should seek to overule God’s commands to suit out own.
Daivd has learned to be patient and trusting even in the mysterious ways of God,
And it’s an encouragement to us in our complex and painful lives,
that God works in mysterious ways.
Listen to some of David’s reasonsing about why he shouldn’t kill Saul and instead can trust God;
But David said to Abishai, “Don’t destroy him! Who can lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed and be guiltless? As surely as the Lord lives,” he said, “the Lord himself will strike him, or his time will come and he will die, or he will go into battle and perish. But the Lord forbid that I should lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed. Now get the spear and water jug that are near his head, and let’s go.”
He might die today at God’s hands,
or it might die another day - in battle, or even of old age!
Daivd has no idea when or how God will bring justice in this situation - God’s way is mysterious - but he remains completely aleigent.
There is no escape from the judgement of God for those who stand against the Lord’s annointed!
God’s will and wisdom, justice and avengence all must come before and above
our will or plans.
His mysterious ways can me trusted, and the fact they are shown to be mysterious to us,
actually gives us confidence that our nievety to God’s ways is no reason to doubt Him!
Many of us have or have been tempted to take the future into our own hands against God’s will - not trusting his mysterious ways..
Difficult topics spring to mind,
Divorce,
sex outside marriage,
abortion,
Morrally complicated IVF treatments
all becasue we don’t trrust God’s mysterious ways, in our painful lives.
and we would rather solve the problems in our own way.
Today, if you or I stand against God’s anninted - the Lord Jesus,
if we choose repeatedly our way, not his,
if we all out reject Jesus,
or simply associate with him but never truely give him our alleigence,
then God’s justice will catch up with us.
His ways are mysterious, and we may do ‘very nicily thankyou very muich in this life’
- but the judgement of God will face us after we die or Jesus returns - which ever comes first!
Even David would learnt his painful lesson,
and he too would realise he cannot live in perfect alliegence.
He too would need a Lord greater than he to save him from himself.
And what a joy that is for those of us who have made grave mistakes in our past,
We can repent - we are forgiven - For when we are not alleigenent to God’s ways,
Jesus is for us.
So,
What a joy this is to know that we need not fight for our will or way.
God’s mysterious ways can be trusted,
BUt it is not just a sure hope of God’s justice that helps us choose his ways not ours,
God will always give us what we need to obey..
David escapes the camp with the spear and a water jug that were both by Saul’s head.
It seems an unlikely story
But the source of David’s sucess is made clear.
It was not time for David to die, so the Lord protected him,
So David took the spear and water jug near Saul’s head, and they left. No one saw or knew about it, nor did anyone wake up. They were all sleeping, because the Lord had put them into a deep sleep.
The mysterious ways of the Lord are far from disconcerting for those of us who follow.
They are glouriously enboldening to follow him.
David’s confindence to entre the enemy camp of special forces was seemingly suicude.
They would surely have round the clock watchmen on every side,
But today was not his time, and God protected him.
Daivd was bold becasue he knew God’s ways are mysterious but trustworthy.
He could not die, unless God willed it!
It’s true for us too,
and perhaps forgetting this great truth is what stops us from being bold for God as well!
We cannot fail if we choose God’s will - even if it looks or feels like failure!
We need never hear the word of God and say ‘I can’t do that!’
Of course you can - for God is mysterious and soverign.
If he desires you to suceed in a certain way - you will.,
A great sleep will over come your obstacles - even if you don’t fully enjoy that success until Jesus returns!
God’s ways are mysterious - but also emboldneing and glorious for those who are alleigent.
Fiannly then, let’s beter define alliegence:
3 - Alligence has 2 traits: Righteousness and Faithfulness
3 - Alligence has 2 traits: Righteousness and Faithfulness
Hey, shouts Daivd to the military commander who is about to face a court marshall for his lapsed night security!
Why were you not protecting your King?
Saul replies,
Saul recognized David’s voice and said, “Is that your voice, David my son?”
David replied, “Yes it is, my lord the king.”
But David isn’t ready to listen to the usual spin and confusion of Saul,
so he makes things clear,
And he added, “Why is my lord pursuing his servant? What have I done, and what wrong am I guilty of? Now let my lord the king listen to his servant’s words. If the Lord has incited you against me, then may he accept an offering. If, however, people have done it, may they be cursed before the Lord! They have driven me today from my share in the Lord’s inheritance and have said, ‘Go, serve other gods.’ Now do not let my blood fall to the ground far from the presence of the Lord. The king of Israel has come out to look for a flea—as one hunts a partridge in the mountains.”
Why are you driving me away from the promised land Saul?
Who’s set you against me? God or Man?
Knowing full well that it is Saul himself who has set himself against him.
Then Saul said, “I have sinned. Come back, David my son. Because you considered my life precious today, I will not try to harm you again. Surely I have acted like a fool and have been terribly wrong.”
Come home, forgive me -
But David ignores his empty or at best short lived promises
“Here is the king’s spear,” David answered. “Let one of your young men come over and get it.
Send someone to collect your spear - i’m not coming back.
And hear comes the key to this passage - we’ve already aluded to it.
The Lord rewards everyone for their righteousness and faithfulness. The Lord delivered you into my hands today, but I would not lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed.
The Lord Rewards everyone for their righteousness and faithfulness.
There is our calling, and our joy,
This is what allegence to Jesus looks like,
trusting in the mysterious ways of God,
it is to be righteous and faithful.
David doesn’t mean a perfect righteousness that earns us salavation before God,
His Pslams and life demonstrate how far short even he has fallen of God’s perfect righteousness.
He and we, need only faith in the perfectly righteous and faithful Jesus for salvation.
BUt once saved - our allegence to Jesus looks like: righteousness and faithfulness.
A righteousness that desires and seeks to do God’s will not our own.
A righteousness that seeks to trust God’s ways even when they are unknown to us!
A faithfulness that is always looking to Jesus, not oursleves.
Like Abisha choosing Daivd’s will not his own comfort,
Like David choosing God’s way not his own.
They looked up in faith, not inward.
God’s ways are mysterious but our way is clear!
We are to be righteous and faithful!
There is no other way to live,
No other casue that is greater or worthy.
Give your allegence to Jesus,
Trust and be emboldened by the mysterious ways of God,
And live a life of righteousness and faithfulness.
Let us Pray