Recover All!

1 Samuel 30:1-19 “Then it happened, when David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had carried out an attack on the Negev and on Ziklag, and had overthrown Ziklag and burned it with fire; and they took captive the women and all who were in it, from the small to the great, without killing anyone, and drove them off and went their way. When David and his men came to the city, behold, it was burned with fire, and their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive. Then David and the people who were with him raised their voices and wept until there was no strength in them to weep. Now David’s two wives had been taken captive, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite. Also, David was in great distress because the people spoke of stoning him, for all the people were embittered, each one because of his sons and his daughters. But David felt strengthened in the Lord his God. Then David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, “Please bring me the ephod.” So Abiathar brought the ephod to David. 8 And David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I pursue this band of raiders? Will I overtake them?” And He said to him, “Pursue, for you will certainly overtake them, and you will certainly rescue everyone.” 9 So David left, he and the six hundred men who were with him, and they came to the brook Besor, where some who were left behind stayed. 10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men, for two hundred who were too exhausted to cross the brook Besor stayed behind. 11 Now they found an Egyptian in the field and brought him to David, and gave him bread and he ate, and they provided him water to drink. 12 They also gave him a slice of fig cake and two cakes of raisins, and he ate; then his spirit revived. For he had not eaten bread or drunk water for three days and three nights. 13 Then David said to him, “To whom do you belong? And where are you from?” And he said, “I am a young man of Egypt, a servant of an Amalekite; and my master abandoned me when I became sick three days ago. 14 We carried out an attack on the Negev of the Cherethites, and on that which belongs to Judah, and on the Negev of Caleb, and we burned Ziklag with fire.” 15 Then David said to him, “Will you bring me down to this band of raiders?” And he said, “Swear to me by God that you will not kill me or hand me over to my master, and I will bring you down to this band.” 16 Now when he had brought him down, behold, they were dispersed over all the land, eating and drinking and celebrating because of all the great plunder that they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah. 17 And David slaughtered them from the twilight until the evening of the next day; and not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled. 18 So David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken, and rescued his two wives. 19 And nothing of theirs was missing, whether small or great, sons or daughters, plunder, or anything that they had taken for themselves; David brought it all back.

Introduction: The Conflict in Ziklag

Before I attempt to glean some of the valuable lessons from the account which was just read, please allow me explain it, briefly, in its proper historical context. The account we are considering today is but an early chapter in the life of a man named David, who would become the King of Israel. At theis point in time, David is not yet the King. On the contrary, at this moment he is an outcast- the leader of a band of outcasts, living in the land of his sworn enemies, the Philistines. Both he and his host know that this alliance will not last forever; David will eith turn on them or they will be forced to kill him.

David is preparing to go into battle is support of one of the Phillistine Kings, Achish. But the enemy they’re going to fight is near David’s homeland; the Phillistines remember what David was capable of, aand are afraid that he would turn on them in the midst of the battle to win back favor with his former country. So despite his protest, David is sent “home”, to the town on the edge of the Phillistine kingdom known as Ziklag. He & his men arrive to find out that everythnig of value has been stolen from them- possession to be sure but, most importantly, their wives & children have been taken. In that critical moment, David has no friends; his host does not trust him because of his past; his men blame him for their loss. Although he is tempted to despair, David make a crucial decision: before taking matters into his own hands, he seeks God personally for help. This leads me to the first step of spiritual recovery:

Recover Your Composure/Mind. It is understandable and, honestly, quite easy to worry about things we can’t control, or issues that we struggle with. But when we are afraid we must rememember 2 Tim 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.” (KJV says “sound mind”) And if God didn’t give it to me, I don’t have to accept it. I can reject that package and “return to sender”. David was in a difficult place; there was a good chance that if he chased down his enemies, that he would arrive too late; but there was an 100% chance that he & his men would lose EVERYTHNIG if they did NOTHING. He controlled his emotions instead of letting them control him, then HE ACTED ON WHAT HE KNEW TO BE TRUE, NOT ON HIS FEELINGS. In verse 7, David tells the priest to bring him the Ephod- a garment used only by the preists. Yet the text suggests that David put in on himself to speak with God directly. Never forget that the Church was meant to be a “chosen generation; a royal priesthood” (1 Peter 2:9). You have the right & privilege to go to God directly- if fact there are things that your pastor, spiritual friend, mother or father cannot do for you- you must come to God for YOURSELF!

Before we go any further, I want to highlight just a few of the things in this story which have symbolic meanings (in addition to their literal meanings).

The Amalekites- the antagonists, the “bad guys” of this story. They represent sinful habits/addiction, waiting to attack you, but it often does so indirectly- you go back to find that you have lost possession and, most importantly, relationships with family & friends.

Ziklag- the town where David & his men were living, temporarily, on the border of the Phillistine territory. It represents a place of compromise. You think you’re in control, that you’re able to manage, but you are surrounded by enemies & the loyalty of your allies are tenuous at best.

How do we know Ziklag was a place of compromise? David was not only living in the land of a sworn enemy- people who remember that this was the guy who killed our champion and cuased us to lose a battle. But that’s not all. In chapter 29, the Philllistines are about to go to war in a place called Aphek. This was on the edge of Israel’s territory, and part of their army was in a nearby city. There was a very good chance that if David had gone with them, he would have been in a fight against his own countrymen, the very people for whom he would become king! That’s who David was destined to be. This leads me to my next step of recovery:

Recover Your Purpose. When David fled Israel under death threat of Saul, it was part of God’s plan to prepare him to be king. He needed t know what it was like to be cast out, to be despised. It was a lesson in compassion. But he was not meant to stay in that place. Before David crossed a line, the Lord ochastrated another transitional event. That transition was not only to put him back on track to recover his purpose, but it lead him to the 3rd step of recovery:

Recover Your Strength & Confidence. We will all go through season where we feel as though our strength is gone, as though we do not have the will to fight…the will to walk away. God will restore us, but more than restore your strength God wants you to know that His strength in you does not have to fade- His deliverance, His power to stand and stay free can remain, if you stay connected to Him as your source. They you can declare John 8:36 “So if the Son sets you free, you really will be free.”

The end of this story also brings me to the last step in recovery:

Recover Much of What Was Lost. David’s situation seemed impossible. I am sure that the closer he got to the place where his loved ones were kept that his fear of what he might find grew. And yet…there they were. Whole. Intact. Waiting. Because the enemy fully expected David & his men to give up hope. “They won’t forgive me; its too late; it’s just too hard; I can’t move forward if I keep looking back.” These are some of the excuses we tell ourselves for not really trying to bring restoration. The hard truth is that some things that were broken in sin are beyond OUR repair [emphasis: OURS]. Some relationships are beyond repair- But…before you give up, try giving it over. Try God!!!!

***Closing Prayer!***