God works out His will even in the midst of our pain.   ~~~   Matthew 1:1 “The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the Son of Abraham.” Matthew starts the genealogy by calling Jesus the son of David, which spoke of the divine promise of a royal lineage, a kingdom that would be established forever and ever, but also as the son of Abraham, which identified Jesus as the chosen one through whom all the nations would be blessed. And then we have the actual lineage, which is mixed with all sorts of characters, and of particular interest are five women that are listed: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, “the wife of Uriah” (Bathsheba), and Mary. The women who are listed show us that God kept his redemptive purposes alive, even through incredible hardship, impossible circumstances, and sinful scenarios. Tamar was taken advantage of; Rahab was a prostitute, Ruth was a widow, the wife of Uriah was an adulterer; and then there is sweet, unsuspecting Mary. This is not fate or chance that this line of families produced Jesus Christ, but rather the providence of God. God was at work each step of the way making sure the lineage continued to the next generation, in the face of poverty, barrenness, loneliness, sinfulness, and even in the case of virginity. But then we immediately come to the story of the birth of Christ, and in particular, Joseph’s part of the saga. Here is Joseph, this man who has come across the love of his life, the one whom he will marry. They have already had a betrothal celebration, declaring to the community their intentions of marriage. But then something happens. Perhaps a friend knocks on Joseph’s door late one night, and, not wanting to but knowing he had to, tells Joseph what he has heard about Mary. She is pregnant. You can imagine the flood of emotions that overwhelmed Joseph, because he knew the reality and purity of their relationship. This was not his baby. How could she do this to me? How could she value me so little and embarrass me in the community so greatly? There was no option for Joseph. Justice must be served, and it must be served swiftly. But it didn’t have to be loudly. So he decided to divorce his wife, but without fanfare. He would spare Mary that. But on the eve before this were to happen, Joseph gets a visit from an angel, and the angel reveals two immensely important pieces of information. One, Mary’s pregnancy is a divine pregnancy. Two, this baby would called Jesus because he would save his people from their sins. He must not divorce. He must take her, keep her as his wife. What is it that changes Joseph’s mind? What is it that dispels the fears, the concerns? What is it that makes it worth enduring the scandal of it all? An angel comes and tells all that is going on and how God is in the middle of it all. Now Joseph has hope and a purpose even in the midst of criticism, name-calling, dirty looks, that he would surely receive. God was providentially working something out that was greater than Joseph. Joseph was just one piece in the tapestry of redemption that God was weaving together. All of us know hard times. Some of you know hard times and heart break better than others. We know pain, sadness, loneliness, and the salty taste of tears that come streaming down our cheeks. But there is good news right here in this part of the Christmas story. Matthew wants his readers to know that God has been working out His plan of redemption since the beginning of time, even in the midst of hard, insurmountable odds. He is a providential God who can be trusted to work out His plan for His glory and our joy. Listen, if you are in pain or heartache right now, or are confused about your situation in life, I can almost guarantee that you will not get a visit from an angel tonight explaining all the providential things God is doing in your life right now, like Joseph did. The point of the text is not to make us hope for some angelic encounter, but rather to help us see that God is working out His will, for His glory and your joy, even in the midst of your pain. He can be trusted. And when you see Him as a providential God, then Hope is on the rise in your heart.

As we celebrate the birth of Jesus, we should also anticipate His second coming.   ~~~   The nation of Israel lived in pretty dire circumstances and darkness in the 8th century during the time of a prophet named Isaiah. Their security was taken away; they had a sense of confusion. People were turning away from God. In their minds they weren’t altogether rejecting Him, just simply not following him. Kings of the land were oppressive. The rich were cruel and heartless. Widows and orphans and the poor had no where to turn for relief. The nation of Assyria, the dominant world power of the time, was marching into the northern kingdom of Israel and carrying fathers and mothers and children by the droves into slavery. The southern kingdom had a ruler who was being advised by God himself to take certain actions, yet that king, Ahaz, refused to do so because of his pride. So the Israelite nation experienced spiritual decay, family stress, national compromise, political corruption. It was a time of darkness—deep darkness. The Jewish people had sown unbelief, and they were reaping the whirlwind of it. This is what Isaiah saw when he looked over the landscape of his day. Yet, on this dark and gloomy canvas, God paints for His people a radiant picture of the coming salvation in His Son. He gives them a Hope. He gives them a place to put their faith. He gives them a person of security. Isaiah 9:6 “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” The mercy of God, under no obligation, was extended to them in not giving them what they deserved; and the grace of God, under no obligation, flooded forth like a beaming light in the night sky with the gift of salvation found in the promise of His Son. Do you think the people were eager for the Son to come? Not all of them were, but all of us should be eager for the Son to return, and we should be making preparations for the Son’s return. How many of you, right now, are making preparations for a son or daughter coming home from college; how many of you are making preparations for a big family get together for Christmas? Even more so should we be making preparations for God’s Son to return and take us home! As you celebrate Christmas, and tell your children and grandchildren the story of God’s Son coming to the earth to be born in manger, don’t forget to tell them that He died on a cross to redeem people. And then, don’t forget to tell them that He is returning to gather up all of His brothers and sisters to take them to the home He has prepared.

Celebrating the birth of Jesus should be real and exciting for believers.   ~~~   This time of year is marked with anticipation and waiting. Everywhere we turn, we can’t wait for something to happen. Kids can’t wait to get out of school for the holidays, adults can’t wait to get off of work. Parents can’t wait to give their presents to their children to see their eyes light up and children can’t wait to open them. We anticipate the weather turning colder so we can throw some logs on the fire and enjoy some hot chocolate. We anticipate the arrival of hunting season. We anticipate the arrival of reduced prices for the shopping season. And of course, at some point during this season, we will all probably wait in a long check out line. And all of this chaos and busyness can so cloud our Christmas season that we forget or neglect to anticipate and long for Christ. To make sure that does not happen in our live, we have advent. The word “advent” simply means the coming, the arrival, or the dawning. So Christmas Advent is the celebration of the first arrival of the Christ child. This is when we celebrate and rejoice that God sent His son to the earth to redeem us from the curse of sin. And one way that we celebrate Advent is by looking back into the OT to see how the people of God in the OT were to anticipate the promised Savior. We have one of those promises in Micah 5 Micah 5:2-5 “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin os from of old, from ancient days…And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. And he shall be their peace.” The text tells us that the city of Bethlehem would be the hometown of this ruler of Israel. Bethlehem was not going to show up on many maps. It was small; it was insignificant; it was overwhelmingly normal. And yet Micah declares that it will be this tiny city that will be the starting point for this anticipated Savior. Why would God do this? One reason God does this is because Bethlehem is the place where David was born, and it was prophesied that the Messiah would be from the lineage of David. But that is not entirely what Micah is going after in this verse. Micah is trying to paint a picture for us to see that something extravagant will come from something insignificant. God chooses to use something unsuspecting and small, obscure and out of the way, to be the commencement of the biggest revolution in history ever. But Why? Why does God choose something small? He chooses something as unexpected as Bethlehem so that no one can boast. He doesn’t choose Jerusalem or Athens or Greece or Paris or New York. No one can say, “Well of course it was Bethlehem. That place is replete with great leaders. Of course Bethlehem, it has the best of teachers and schools to raise up a great young man. Of course Bethlehem, look at all that has been accomplished there!” God goes out of the way to help us see that he does not need our efforts, accomplishments or help in order to bring himself glory. He plans a census and orchestrates a virgin birth and books up a hotel so that no one can say, “Look at what I helped bring about!” He said that the Messiah would come in the line of David, but he waits until that lineage has lost influence and uses a lowly peasant girl, from the line of David, so that no family member can say, “Look at what we accomplished!” Instead, we are left to say, “How great is our God.” So he promises to bring forth a Messiah, the Shepherd King, in an unexpected, unsuspected way to bring glory to himself. And Shouldn’t the New Testament Christian’s anticipation be even brighter and greater and filled with more joy because we know what Christ is like and we have experienced His presence in a very real way. The Old Testament saints had clues to the mystery and they rejoiced over that, but the mystery has been unveiled to us! So I am praying that this Christmas builds your anticipation for the return of this Shepherd King, who will one day wipe away every tear from our eyes.

Advent is a celebration of the coming of Christ and looking forward to His second coming.

All tests and trials are important and should lead us closer to God.   ~~~   1 Samuel 17:32 informs us that the shepherd boy David is standing before King Saul, volunteering himself to go and fight the Goliath. And notice the reasoning that David gives for his willingness and even eagerness to face off with the behemoth. The text says that David, in his days of keeping sheep, has encountered lions and bears, striking them and grabbing them by the beard and killing them, rescuing sheep from their very jaws. And those animals were only acting in line with their nature an according to the food chain. But Goliath is defying the armies of the living God. And at this point in the story, we often times think that this information about the bears and the lions is given to us to let us know that God gives us different tests in order to prepare us for bigger trials in our lives. Sometimes we have to face lions and bears before we are ready for a Goliath. But that is simply not how David views this. David says nothing about his own preparedness. But listen to what he does say: vs. 37 “The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” What David is appealing to is not his preparedness but to God’s faithfulness. God delivered me from the bear; he delivered me from the lion; he WILL deliver me from the Philistine. This is not about David’s ability but rather God’s allegiance. God was preparing David’s heart, not his hands, to trust Him time and time again. Do you get that? All tests and trials that we face are important ones, and all tests and trials that we face should lead us to lean in to the faithfulness of God, not our own ability. Trusting in our own ability is what gets us into trouble, or what causes us great fear when we run into something that is greater than our own ability. David is not boasting because he knows how to snap necks with the best of them. David is so ever confident not in the strength of his hands to wrestle Goliath, or in his ability to be a sharp-shooter. He is confident in God. David is simply willing to be the courageous vessel that steps in front of Goliath. Are you willing to trust the faithfulness of God?

Rather than be motivated by earthly gain, we should remember who we are to God.   ~~~   1 Samuel 17:24-27 How will the men react to Goliath’s request for a man to fight with him? Well, they react like they have the previous 40 days. They run and hide, just like their chosen one, Saul. They are broken to pieces once again, emotionally, mentally, spiritually… 40 days of being shattered and fearful! I don’t want to read too much into this, but the fact that Goliath has done this for 40 days, I think may be significant. 40 is a number of testing and trial, and at this point, Israel’s army, King Saul, has failed the test. And this is just another reason why Saul has been rejected by God as a suitable King. And the Israelite soldiers are talking among themselves about the incentive that is offered to the man, to the champion who would dare set foot against Goliath. It’s as if David is so consumed with Goliath’s blasphemy that he doesn’t hear what the men are saying, and he asked them what they have just been talking about, but he adds a caveat. He says, “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the army of the living God? Finally, a God-centered, theological hope is expressed, a God-centered worldview is finally articulated, and this is what sets David apart. David sees reality and life and the battle before him in terms of who God is, and not in terms of who Goliath is. These are the first words that are put on David’s lips by the narrator. So far to this point, he has not spoken in the narrative, but his first words are big ones, they are the first God-words brought into the text. God’s honor and strength and purposes and covenant have not been a factor up until this point. They haven’t concerned Saul or anyone else as far as we know, so no one else has spoken of God, until now. David is the one who sets the scene of the battle correctly. “Men, this Goliath is not coming against just us. He is not just defying us as men. This man who stands outside the covenant is mocking and ridiculing and belittling the Living God and the chosen people of God. How can you just sit there? Isn’t the honor of God incentive enough to go and fight?” You see, David is not really interested in the earthly incentives at this point. He is simply confused how no one from the LORD of Hosts’ army has not gone out to fight yet. But they hadn’t because they had forgotten who they were, until now. And church, don’t forget who you are! We are the bride of Christ!

We should pay attention when we hear someone speaking against God and His people.   ~~~   This is, perhaps, my favorite section of the story of David and Goliath because of four little words we come across. So let’s get the picture. David has risen early and hurried to the army camp. He quickly throws down on the ground what he brought on near the man who is watching over the baggage, and he sprints to the ranks where his brothers were. He wanted to get an update, perhaps a story or two of some epic battle or valiant sword-fighting. And in mid conversation with them, the echo of Goliath’s vile voice is heard booming up the mountain, “I DEFY ISRAEL AND ISRAEL’S GOD! IF YOUR GOD IS REAL AND POWERFUL, LET HIM PROVE IT BY SENDING OUT ONE OF YOU!” And this is my favorite part…this is where the needle scratches off the record… where the director calls for a zoomed in shot on David’s face, because the text says, “AND DAVID HEARD HIM.” This is the turning point in the whole story! Goliath has stomped out and bellowed across the valley, up the mountain, blaspheming Israel and Israel’s God, mocking God, taunting the men. “Is there not a man in all of Israel? Is there not a champion in all of Israel? What kind of God do you serve if there is no champion?” And this went on and on and on, but this time his message landed on new ears— David heard him. Without looking ahead, what do you think happens next? Tune in tomorrow and find out!

God provides hope and deliverance from unlikely places.   ~~~   In 1 Samuel 17:12-18 we are taken to a new scene, a dramatically different one, and we are introduced to David, an Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah. And you have to wonder, why this re-introduction of David’s family lineage? The last time we read of an Ephrathite from Bethlehem was back in Ruth 1, when we read of Elimelech, who led his family away from Bethlehem, away from God’s presence, away from faith in God. Are we going to see the same thing happen? Is this another person who is going to run away when the times are hard and the situation is bleak? The story doesn’t it appear to be very promising. Jesse is an old man, three of his sons already in Saul’s army, and David is youngest and he is just a shepherd and errand boy. In other words, he doesn’t inspire much hope at this point. All he can do is watch sheep, carry cheese, and bring back some keepsake from his brothers to assure their father that they were still alive. But we can be very quick to forget can’t we? You see, we have been let in on a little secret that no one else really knows about except Jesse and his other sons, and that is that David has been anointed King by the prophet Samuel. And we actually know even a little more than Jesse and his sons, because we know that God has said, “The LORD sees not as man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.” And so far, what we have been presented in Goliath is all physical; all outward appearance. And all we know of David is that he is the youngest, the smallest, the insignificant keeper of the sheep, while his brothers are off at war. Isn’t funny and sad all at the same time how quickly we forget God’s word? His ways? Or how little we trust them? But we are about to discover why David is a man after God’s own will, choosing.

We can find time to fit Bible study in even during busy seasons like the holidays.

Those who seem strongest are not always the best choice.   ~~~   King Saul stood head and shoulders above every man in Israel. He was the standout! But now another has stepped on the scene, and all the Israelites were “dismayed.” That word, “dismayed” means, broken, shattered. And the Israelites were “terrified,” which means “exceedingly afraid.” Why? Why were they shattered and abundantly terrified? Because everyone in the Israelite army, including Saul, knew deep down that their champion was no champion at all, and now they were all in a serious predicament. In the words of Doc Holliday, Saul was no daisy. At this point in the story, the air is thick with tension. Our eyes are to be wide with hushed anticipation as we await Saul’s next move. But that is not what we get. The story is interrupted to tell us about this son of Jesse who beebops on to the scene. So the story of Saul versus Goliath will have to wait until we can get through this distraction with David. And so will you!

We should not tell God what we need before asking what He thinks.   ~~~   1 Samuel 17 opens up in such a way as to send shockwaves of awe and terror upon us. The belabored physical description of this man and his armor and his weapons is meant to accomplish one goal, and that is to put us into fearful awe of this man named Goliath. He is called in the text, the champion of Gath. The term “champion” literally means “the man between.” The champion would be the man who would go and stand between the armies, the representative, and this representative of the Philistines was more than impressive, as we learn from his description. He stood over 9’ tall, which is simply difficult for us to even imagine. He wore an armored suit that weighed around 120 pounds. Add to that weighted shin guards, a javelin on your back, and a spear in your hand. The size of the spear is described for us. The shaft of it being bigger than a tire axel; no normal sized man would be able to get his hand around it, and the tip of the spear weighing in at around 15 pounds. And this man thundered out from the army of the Philistine, fearlessly making himself a bullseye for anyone, and he would shout to the Israelite army. And all of his words are meant to incite humiliation and shame upon the Israelite King, and army. “Did you not come out for a fight? Well here I am! Let’s get with it! Are we not enemies and rivals? Am I not a pagan Philistine? Are you not servants of the great and mighty Saul and the God of Israel? What are we waiting on then? Choose a man for yourselves! Let’s get it on!” Goliath is saying, “We have chosen our champion, our man to stand in between. Where is your man that you have chosen?” And all of these words should send us back somewhere in our minds and in the text. Hasn’t the nation of Israel already chosen a man? 1 Samuel 8:19 “There shall be a king over us, that we may also be like the other nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles!” Isn’t this exactly what they have asked for? A Champion? A man to stand between? And in 1 Samuel 12, Samuel reminds them in verse 13, “And now, behold the king whom you have chosen, for whom you asked; behold the LORD has set a king over you…” We are being reminded on the front end of this episode of the foolishness of the people in selecting for God a king for themselves. May we not be so quick to tell God what it is we need, before we ask Him what He thinks.

Christ had to pay our debt because we could never pay it ourselves.   ~~~   As we finish up 1 Samuel 16, we are beginning to learn that, once again, God provides what we need and what we need is a king on whom the Spirit rests, a king that is radically and faithfully and completely obedient to the Holy Spirit. And that King is Jesus! He is our Great Leader! We are not waiting for another. He is the fulfillment of the promise of an eternal King. And we are those who follow. But there is a way to follow Him. The game changer for first century church was the coming of the Holy Spirit to indwell believers and live through them this life of discipleship. The same Spirit that came and resided in them resides in every believer today. Romans 8:11 “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.” The sports commentator said that the right quarterback is worth whatever price you have to pay to get him. The price is too high for us. We cannot purchase our way to having Christ as our king. We do not have enough moral or spiritual currency. You can’t pay with debt. But what makes Jesus a great King is that He was willing to pay the price on your behalf.

A good leader recognizes that they still need God to guide them.   ~~~   Last week ended with Saul having a tormenting spirit upon him. Unfortunately, this will not be the last time we read of Saul and a harmful spirit. It will be a recurring theme throughout the remainder of his kingship. But instead of humility and repentance, Saul grows more paranoid and spiteful. But here is the wild thing. David himself will face his fair share of hardships. He will face plenty of nights of depression and torment himself. But he does something Saul never did. He examines his heart. God is the one, the only one who can provide what we need. The world cannot. And what we need is a King obedient to, captured by, the Spirit of God. And that is what the LORD provided to Israel in David. And we will see in the coming weeks that David really is a man of war, a man of valor, and that the LORD really was with Him in a mighty way. But David himself knew that he was not Israel’s ultimate answer. He knew a greater king was to come. This is why he said in Psalm 110:1 “The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.” David recognized that he himself needed a king, a Lord to reign over him, one mightier, more powerful, a greater warrior, of greater valor. And oh how that original audience must have longed for another King like David, a leader, a champion of whom it could be said, “The Lord is with him!”

You don’t have to have a perfect setting and environment to study the Bible.

We shouldn’t go to God to feel better while still doing whatever we want.   ~~~   The world uses God as a means to an end, instead of God being the end. We see next that Saul listens to this advice and says, “Provide for me a man who can play well and bring him to me.” One of the servants speaks up and makes a suggestion: “King Saul, I know a guy. Really good musician, man of war, man of valor, well-spoken. And the Lord is with him.” Saul knows exactly who the servant is speaking of and sends a messenger to Jesse and says, “I would like to have David for a bit in my service.” So David comes. And when Saul is being tormented, David plays, and Saul is refreshed, the harmful spirit leaves. All is well, right? What could be so wrong with this? Music therapy really does seem to be the answer. Wrong. What is happening here is Saul is using the anointed one of God as a means to an end. Once again, mercy is brought into his palace, and he rejects it. How so, Clif? Think about this for just a minute. David, the writer of many of the psalms, the sweet psalmist of Israel. David is playing these songs, these praises to Yahweh, but Saul is simply using David to get to a better mental state. Saul is having some of the greatest theology being sung over him, and he uses it to soothe his soul for a minute, but not surrender the totality of his life to the LORD. If you want to be religious, the world allows that, so long as God is used as a means to a different end other than God himself. What does this look like in our day? It looks like your faithfulness to prayer, the Bible, the church when there is a crisis in your life, but when everything simmers down, you go back to your normal routine of ignoring the LORD. You have in front of you and all around you the songs of God, the word of God, the people of God, yet you use God like a vitamin shot to make you feel better, and you will come again when you start to feel bad. You use the means of God to fulfill your great end, and that is to get you to a place where you can function again according to your will and ways. Saul’s life will play out in disaster. He will still function like a king, but it spirals and spirals out of control. And you can function in this life because you will look just like the world. You won’t think anything is wrong, but it will end in everlasting disaster. So don’t play here. Recognize that this is a dangerous game you are playing. No Saul, you are not supposed to use God as a means to feeling better so you can run His kingdom how you want to.

The world offers wellness by deniability, rather than repentance.   ~~~   Saul has rejected God’s word and will over and over. He has tried to use God’s ceremonies and ways as manipulative tactics. And now, God has rejected him from being king, and sent a harmful spirit upon him and Saul is being tormented by this spirit. The word tormented means “to be overtaken by sudden terror.” This is not the first time something like this happens. Psalm 78:49 “HE let loose on then his burning anger, wrath, indignation, and distress, a company of destroying angels.” And the solution that is offered to Saul by his court is to find a really good guitar player so that he may be well. Does that sound just a little silly? Saul, you have been a constant rejector of God. You have led His people selfishly. And now, His convicting spirit is harming you, keeping you up at night, not giving you any relief. How about we see if Glen Cambell is available? That should do the trick.” And yet, that is exactly what the world wants to prescribe for you in terms of bringing you relief—let’s make you feel better. Let’s not bother with truth. Let’s not bother with your actions, your attitude, your rejection of your maker. Let’s not bother with reality. Let’s just sooth your precious little soul with some music that will make you feel better about yourself. How about this instead—REPENT SAUL! Do you not realize that you have abandoned God? Have you not realized that you are eaten up with yourself, and your image, and your own self-glory? You must repent! You are being tormented because of your willful pride and refusal to fall on your face before God and seek mercy. But this is what the world offers—wellness by means of deniability. It’s not my fault. This is what happens when you look to the world.

Jesus’ kind of leadership takes the burden of legalism and self-righteousness from us.   ~~~   Jesus is the king who went into the cities and had compassion on the people because he saw that they were harassed and helpless with burdensome, legalistic commands; they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he tells his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few, therefore pray to the LORD of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” Doesn’t this sound like our world right now, our own family, our own friends? They are seeking a king, a leader, to calm the panic, alleviate the fear and give them courage, conviction, rest, and peace and purpose, many Christians are in this camp. Jesus is the king who says to us, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” If Jesus is a King who takes from us the weariness and burdens of the oppressive yokes of legalism, then shouldn’t we, Christians be the rested warrior ready to go out in the fields for battle? If the yoke is easy and the burden is light, then what is hindering us from the fight? Why are slow and sluggish and faint? Shouldn’t we be the Jonathan’s who have been refreshed by the honey of God and have bright eyes ready to go to battle? If our leader, our King has told us as parents to raise our children in such a way that they are to be sharp arrows that will strike a mighty blow against the enemy, don’t be surprised nor afraid when might enemies rise up in the world. We have the weapons in our hands! If we are those things, perhaps we have been following the wrong king, seeking the wrong king, and it’s time to recalibrate our lives. Do what Saul refused to do and that is repent. Recognize your hard-heartedness, confess, and turn in humility and repentance to the Almighty. There is also a word to those who serve in leadership, kingly roles, like fathers. How do you lead? Do you lead with godless demands and rules and rash vows? Do you lead in order to protect your own reputation, to gain your own glory? Does your leadership cause so much desperation that it brings others to sin? Then we know you are not following Jesus, but living in your own kingdom of self-exaltation and self-righteousness. So you too, turn, repent, and run to Christ in faith, and walk with him Day by Day.

Our goal is not to be less self-exalting, self-righteous, or self-preserving, but to follow more closely to Jesus.   ~~~   So what are we to do with all of this that we have seen in 1 Samuel 14—fear, self exaltation, self-righteousness, self-preservation? Is the lesson, the truth here that if we want to be good leaders then we should not be self-exalting, self-promoting, and self-preserving? No. Believe it or not that is not the lesson at all. The question is, “Who can secure and lead the people of God and bring the kingdom of God to flourish?” And the answer that we are going to be given is, King David! But even that is a short-lived, unsatisfying answer, because even in David we see self-preservation, and his great need for repentance. And so as we read this unfolding saga, our hearts are taken on this journey longing for a king. We are looking and seeking a king. And if you have read through the Old Testament, you definitely know that that list of names of kings is lacking severely in presenting us with a suitable King. But then we come to Jesus. Jesus was motivated by the glory of God, not the glory of self-exaltation. Jesus was motivated by love for God, not love for appearing a certain way to a certain crowd. Jesus was motivated by his desire to rejoin God and be in His presence, not run from mission, and in order to do that, Jesus did not avoid blame, but took on blame that was not His own. Jesus didn’t desire to be ransomed by the people of God, but rather was the ransom price for the people of God. The lesson of the text is not that we need to be less like Saul, but rather, that if we are honest, we are just like Saul and we are bad kings. Our churches are weakened when led by self-exalting men like Saul. Our families are weakened when led by self-righteous pricks; We are not good kings; we need a different type King to reign over us. And this King is Jesus. So the goal is not to be less self-exalting, less self-righteous, less self-preserving, but rather, to follow and cling more closely to Jesus, who will bring humility and sacrifice into and through your life day by day.

Self preservation will lead us to accuse and harm others to ensure we get what we want.   ~~~   In this last scene of 1 Samuel 14, we see self-exaltation in Saul wanting to pursue and plunder the Philistines by night, and we see self-righteousness in Saul when the priest comes to him and say, “You think we should ask God about this?” And Saul says, “Course, I was just about to do that. Give me some time.” (He really didn’t say that but I’m just adding some flare.) But we are also going to see self-righteousness. So Saul inquires of God. He asked God, “If we do this, will we be victorious?” And there is no answer. Only silence. So Saul assumes, rightly, that there must be some breach in the relationship between Israel and Israel’s God. So he calls all the people together, and he is going to use the high priests special stones to show them who has sinned. All of you stand on that side, and me and my son will stand on this side, and whoever is chosen, even if it be my son, they shall die.” This is more self-righteousness by the way. So they go through this process, and the lot falls to Jonathan. Jonathan is identified as the guilty party, the one who sinned. So did God speak through those High Priest’s stones? Well, think about this for a moment. In this particular scene, God’s presence is no where mentioned. Just prior to this, at the corrupt high priest’s request, God is silent towards Saul. Earlier in chapter 14, Saul cuts short a religious ceremony asking for God’s blessing, all of this going on while the High Priest is of a cursed line. Could it be, not that God identified Jonathan as the guilty party, because God was not manifesting his presence to Saul, but that Saul was simply trying to avoid the blame, even if the blame had to fall on his own son? He was trying to save his own skin, his own reputation. He cared not that he was out of fellowship with God, and refused to offer any kind of repentance to get back into the presence of God. Saul was the bus driver, willing to throw run over his own son to preserve himself. This is what we call self-preservation. So we have seen self-exaltation, self-righteousness, and self-preservation. Let us be reminded that this King, King Saul, is exactly the type of king Israel asked for…a king like the other nations. May we learn the lesson that what God desires for us, and provides to us in King Jesus, is far greater than we could ever ask or imagine.

Those who are self righteous will point fingers to highlight the faults of others.   ~~~   1 Samuel 14 presents us with King Saul pursuing self-exaltation, and also self righteousness. In the words of the famous detective Monk, “Here is what happened.” Saul called for a fast upon his soldiers so they would focus on dominating the enemy, no matter how wearisome they were. Once the time finally arrived where it was allowed for the soldiers to eat, they “pounced” on the spoils. The image being presented to us is one of a bird of prey descending on its findings. The men dropped whatever they had in their hands, fell to their knees and instantly began slaughtering whatever animals were close by, and eating them. They did this out of desperation and starvation. It is simply what the body does in this moment. You lose all sense of decorum and turn into animals. You also lose all sense of holiness. The soldiers knew that they were not supposed to eat meat that still had blood. Blood was the life source and was the symbolic means of atonement for the people. The blood was to be poured out, not consumed. But this was perhaps the furthest thing from the men’s minds. When someone finally realized what was going on, they told King Saul. And in his arrogance he says to the men, “You have dealt treacherously; roll a great stone to me here.” And so they did and the people brought their animals to the stone, slaughtered them on the stone, thus gravity providing a sufficient way to drain the animal of its blood. Now at this point we might think, “Why would we call Saul self-righteous at this point? Isn’t this the very thing that needed to be done. Were not the people sinning against the LORD?” Yes they were. But we must remember the body of work in the text. What have we read that would lead us to believe that Saul cared anything about sincerely following God’s word? We have read nothing. Nothing in Saul’s life would lead us to believe that Saul cared anything about truly following the LORD. We have seen disobedience, fear, laziness, spiritual ignorance, opportunistic endeavors. And for him to say, “You have dealt treacherously,” is the height of arrogance.” He has zero concern about God’s holiness, but he does have concern about appearing holy. “There is no pride so dangerous, none so subtle and insidious, as the pride of holiness.” Andrew Murray Self-righteousness is the pointing out of other people’s sin while all the while having the great ability to ignore or suppress your own. That is self-righteousness. When Jesus says, “Judge not lest you be judged,” He is not forbidding that believers should judge other believers. He is forbidding self-righteousness. He is saying that you should not be self-righteous, calling out other people’s sin without navigating the sinful trenches of your own heart and life. Saul called the people’s sin “treacherous” without the slightest indication of acknowledging his own selfishness, without ever realizing that it was his selfishness and sin that led to the people’s desperation at this point. How about you? How about me? Are we better at pointing out the faults of others and conveniently ignoring our own. You cannot do this and walk joyfully, day by day with the LORD.

When we look to someone other than God, we should not be surprised when they fail us.   ~~~   1 Samuel 14:23-24 “So the LORD saved Israel that day. And the battle passed beyond Beth-aven. And the men of Israel had been hard pressed that day…” The “that day” of verse 24, is the same “that day” of verse 23. So what we have in verses 24-46 is a re-telling of the days events, a replay, if you will that gives us more insight, a close-up of what took place. Yes, the LORD gave victory, thanks to Jonathan, but it didn’t come easily, thanks to Saul. And finally, the feature of this text is the recurring description of the army of God We read that they were “hard pressed,” in verse 23, and that the people “were faint,” in verse 28, and then they were “very faint,” in verse 31. So there is a progression of being distressed, to be exhausted, and then into a state of being in a state of extreme exhaustion and tiredness, and completely frustrated with King Saul. How did the warriors get to this point? What brought on this detrimental, desperate situation for them? It was King Saul and his leadership of them. And that is what the author wants us to see and know, and he also wants us to remember, “This is the type of king you asked for…a king like the world who chases his own personal glory.” Well, this is what you get. And the motivations and intentions of a king like the world bring trouble to the land. The people of God are weakened/troubled when led by worldly men. The kingdom is not safe in the hands of a worldly man. Proverbs 29:2 “When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan.” So who is leading you? Your family? Where is your hope? In the president? In the potential of a next president? Let’s learn the lesson of 1 Samuel 14, and put our hope in the King who has been revealed to us, and resurrected for us—King Jesus.

Selfishness and pride will lead us away from God.   ~~~   What is it, what is motivating King Saul? What makes Saul such a bad leader?There is trouble in the land when the King is motivated by self-exaltation. We see self-exaltation in 1 Samuel 14:24 “Cursed be the man who eats food until it is evening and I am avenged on my enemies.” Verse 24 tells us that the fighting men had been “hard pressed that day.” The fighting had been intense and long, and the men had grown tired and hungry. But Saul lays on them a burden of continuing the fight, chasing the Philistines far out of the country, and also that no one should eat anything until the fight was over. We are not explicitly told what the concern is of Saul and why he wouldn’t allow the soldiers to eat, but I think it is a fair assessment to surmise that his concern was that if the Israelite soldiers stopped to eat, then the Philistines would escape into the night or the victory would not be as dominating as it could be. And all of this is motivated by Saul’s lust of self-exaltation. He wanted his name to be avenged. He wanted his name to be associated with complete victory and domination. What is important to know at this point, especially as we make our way into the David narrative, that fasting before a war, or even during the war, is not unheard of, but the reasons for the fast are different. Saul’s command is for his own good, not the men’s, not in order to keep the men lean and mean. He simply did not want the enemy to escape; he wanted the his name in the headline above the fold. Saul did not start the fight, but rather was content to be lazy, sitting in the shade of a tree, but when he opportunity presented itself to be in the spotlight, he jumped right in, and by doing so, put his army in jeopardy. He was leading with godless rules in order to secure vainglory, and it brought weakness on the people. All of these are works of the flesh; all of these we need to be on the hunt for in our own lives as we walk with the LORD day by day.

Are we moving, living in bold, Biblical faith, or are we standing still in binding fear?   ~~~   Listen to me church. As I survey where we are as a church, we could easily say, “The odds are against us, and the circumstances are not favorable. There is a pandemic; there is this and there is that.” And we could comfort ourselves with this. Who can really be expected to grow during this time? Who could really be expected to be fervent? Who could really be expected to invite friends and families and coworkers to church during this time? That option is open to us. But so is biblical faith. We have right now to press into the word of God, and to live by faith. Now is the perfect time. Who owns the swords? Who shaped the hills? Who gives life and breath? Are you moving, living in bold, Biblical faith, or are you standing still in binding fear?

We can choose to walk in fear, or we can trust the Lord and walk with Him.   ~~~   Last Friday we saw in 1 Samuel 14 where Saul was hiding from a battle because the situation was not right in his eyes, no matter what God’s word said. But also notice the people around Saul. The text tells us in verse 14:3 that “Ahijah the son of Ahitub, Ichabod’s brother, son of Phinehas, son of Eli, the priest of the LORD in Shiloh, wearing an ephod,” was with Saul. Why mention all of that description of Ahijah? To remind us of the corruption, of the fact that these people had been cursed by God, and that the LORD was speaking through Samuel now. Saul surrounded himself with people who did not know the LORD, and would not encourage him in the word of God. You will notice in 14:17-18 presumption in Saul. After the battle has already started, it is that point that Saul puts on a show to try and discern the will of God. He calls for the priest to help him discern whether or not they should go into battle. But when Saul sees that the enemy is running, that it looks like the victory is at hand, it is at that point that all this courage flows through his body, and he no longer needs the help of the LORD, and he jumps into battle. Why? Because at that point the odds were in his favor, and the circumstances were right for him to gain personal glory to where he could boast of a great triumph. So the question could be put to us, “Do we hide in fear, abandoning the work of the LORD, until it looks more favorable, to where we emerge from our caves with chest poked out in order to gain personal glory? Or do we walk with the LORD day by day, obediently, no matter the circumstance?”

If we only move when odds are good, we miss the impossible working of the Lord.   ~~~   Biblical faith lives to God’s glory, not personal honor. We see this most vividly in the positioning of Saul, the people around Saul, and the presumption of Saul, all in contrast to Jonathan’s faith in God. Position of Saul Samuel 14:2 tells us , that “Saul was on the outskirts of Gibeah in a pomegranate cave.” In other words, on the day of battle (13:22), Saul was hiding. He was afraid. Fear says, “I won’t move until the odds are in my favor, no matter what God’s word says.” Did you know that fears often times reveal our idols. Saul resorted to hiding because he was afraid of being unsuccessful. Better to hide than risk defeat and be humiliated. So what was his idol? Being seen as successful. Sometimes, we as the people of God do not operate in faith because we fear that we will fail and be humiliated, and we just can’t have that because we care too much about our own reputations. Neither did Saul like the situation or circumstances. They were too difficult. Too risky. The work was going to be too treacherous, too much work. Who wants to scale a slippery or thorny mountain? What is the idol there? Personal comfort and ease. We have become spiritually fat and gluttonous people, that any amount of time or investment requires too much of us. We have lost the sense that work for the LORD is oftentimes hard work, difficult work, work that no one else would even think of doing. But you know what else we forget—we forget that it is not by might, nor by power, but by His Spirit. We forget that we are not to live and fight upon on our strength, but on His. And when we only move when the odds are good and the circumstances just right, then we miss out on seeing the LORD work.

We cannot overcome sin on our own, but Jesus can do it for us.   ~~~   If you are listening today, and have been for the last few days, and you are far from God, overwhelmed by the weight of your sin, and the desperateness of your situation, you need to know that none of those can hinder the LORD from redeeming you. Your sin is not greater than God’s grace. The lowliness or bitterness of your situation does not overwhelm God, but it could be the very thing God is using to turn you to Him. So won’t you turn to Jesus today, who cancels the weight of sin by his death on the cross. He became the sin-bearer on the cross so you could be the life-receiver by faith. Will you not come to him today in faith? The odds of you overcoming your sin or atoning for your sin are too much for you. The situation is too bleak for you to overcome. You need a perfect mediator, a righteous representative. And that is Jesus. He came to seek and to save the lost; to be the physician of the sick in soul; to be the burden bearer of the weary, to be the giver of new life to the repentant, and to those who walk with him Day by Day.

Regardless of opposition, God always comes out on top and shows He is always in control.   ~~~ God prefers to have the odds stacked against His people, and the most important, most life-changing occurrence of this is in the life of Jesus. In John 18, we take notice that Jesus is in a garden, but we also take notice of the characters involved. There is Jesus with his band of disciples, and Judas with religious leaders, and Jewish officers, and Roman soldiers with torches and weapons. John doesn’t tells us the number of soldiers, but calls them a band, or a cohort. A cohort could be as much as a thousand soldiers, but sometimes as little as 200 men. What is not an option is to think that this was just a small crowd. The gospel of Matthew says it was a great crowd carrying swords and clubs. Team Jesus, with his band of fishermen, and Team Judas with his band of fighters. This appears, on the surface, to be an unequally matched, unimpressive line up card for a fight. But this is a showdown of power and control. Judas who left the upper room, and the light of the world, to go into the darkness and be led by man’s weak and temporal lanterns. Would that light prove effective in diminishing the Light of the World? This is the showdown So take notice who initiates the action. John tells us that Jesus is the one who steps forward and starts asking the questions. He is the one on the offensive here. Jesus asked the officers, “Whom do you seek?” They answer, “Jesus of Nazareth.” “I AM!” Now right after this statement, notice what the text makes clear to us. It tells us that Judas, the betrayer, was standing with the officers and Roman Soldiers, and chief priests and pharisees, so that we might know whose side Judas is on, and also that what happened next happened to Judas as well. When Jesus said, “I AM,” they drew back and fell to the ground. In this showdown of power, where it looks like Judas and the religious leaders and the soldiers have the upper hand in quantity and weaponry, Jesus shows them that He can overtake them with just the utterance of who He is. In that moment, the entire cast in the garden was put on notice as to who was in charge and who would be running the show. When Jesus opened His mouth, it was as if part of Jesus’ veiled glory was unleashed and burst through, and the soldiers carrying their weapons, and the religious leader carrying their pride, and Judas carrying His greed, were rendered powerless. And once again we see that God stacks the odds against Himself so that all are put on notice as to who is in total control. Some trust in chariots. Some trust in horses. But we trust in the name of the LORD our God.

All things are contained by God’s authority.   ~~~   We read in 1 Samuel 16:14 that the Spirit of God leaves Saul and God sends upon him an evil spirit that torments him. Is your God this big? Is your view of God big enough to handle him sending an evil spirit to torment Saul? As believers in God, as followers of Christ, we must be people who live with both feet planted in two different worlds. We live in this physical earth, with all of it beauty and wonder and even terrifying realities. We are people who enjoy relationships, good meals, good laughs, and we are also people who suffer depression, anxiety, sadness, moodiness. This is the physical world we live in. And one of the amazing features of this earth is all that God has put in it, that has been discovered, for our good, especially over the last several hundreds of years. And many of those discoveries help in easing our physical pain, which should, by the way, only elevate our belief, and strengthen our faith in God, not cause us to abandon God and believe only in the sciences. The very fact that we can make discoveries should not lead us to praise ourselves, but to praise the One who has made himself known in the creation. So one foot is planted firmly in this world. However, our other foot must be planted in another world, another realm, that supersedes and holds sway over his world, and that is the spiritual world. The world of the heavenlies. And that world intersects with this world. That world is ruled by God, as is this world. And sometimes what lies behind the physical pain and sufferings in this world is the providence and sovereignty of God—“an evil spirit from the LORD tormented him?” Is your theology deep enough to have a God who reigns over and even utilizes evil spirits and evil acts for His glory, without being evil himself? That is exactly what we see here, Evil acts may be real attacks against God’s people and God’s glory, but evil acts are not rogue. They are contained within the almighty providence of God to ultimately serve His purposes.

Only God can provide what we truly need.   ~~~   Depth charts are a hot item on football teams, especially at this point in the season. A depth chart is a ranking of all the players at their respective positions. So there may be three or four guys listed under the position of quarterback. Some teams are still working through who their starting quarterback will be. Who will the team listen to and follow? Which one is best at making in-game adjustments? What quarterback is the most effective at knowing and running the playbook? I heard one commentator make the statement once that the right quarterback for your team is worth whatever price you can pay to get him. In our text for study today, we are watching God work down the depth chart of the position of King. In his providential grace and mercy and wisdom, He has let the nation of Israel have the first choice in who they would like their king to be. And in their first round draft choice, they chose a stellar specimen—Saul, son of Kish. All the ladies swooned when he walked through the door, and all the men stood in awe. It was an obvious choice. I mean, he stood head and shoulders above everyone else. But could he lead the nation? Well, he did have a distinct advantage in that he had the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit on his life, and he had divine word of Samuel the prophet in his ear. But after a few plays, it became evident to us that King Saul simply didn’t know what he was doing. He didn’t know the playbook, he didn’t listen to the coach. But what we see in our text is what takes place on the sidelines and in the huddle. We see providential maneuvering and private conversations. And the original audience would be learning of these behind the scenes happenings for the first time as well. You see, they may have known the big events of the history of Israel, the slaying of Goliath, and so on, but these details of how the LORD brought David into the Kingdom would have been novel to them. And the biblical author is teaching them that only by the providence of God did Israel receive a Spirit-obedient King, and only by the providence of God did they realize the unsuitableness of their first choice, King Saul. Only God provides what we need, not us, not the world, and what we need is a Spirit-driven King, a faithfully obedient King. So look to Christ! See Christ! Trust Christ! Follow Christ! Sing the song of Christ!

It is good for us to have accountability with someone to keep us on track with our quiet time.