1 Samuel 29:1-7
The Philistines gathered all their forces at Aphek, and Israel camped by the spring in Jezreel. 2 As the Philistine rulers marched with their units of hundreds and thousands, David and his men were marching at the rear with Achish. 3 The commanders of the Philistines asked, "What about these Hebrews?" Achish replied, "Is this not David, who was an officer of Saul king of Israel? He has already been with me for over a year, and from the day he left Saul until now, I have found no fault in him." 4 But the Philistine commanders were angry with him and said, "Send the man back, that he may return to the place you assigned him. He must not go with us into battle, or he will turn against us during the fighting. How better could he regain his master's favor than by taking the heads of our own men? 5 Isn't this the David they sang about in their dances:"'Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands'?" 6 So Achish called David and said to him, "As surely as the Lord lives, you have been reliable, and I would be pleased to have you serve with me in the army. From the day you came to me until now, I have found no fault in you, but the rulers don't approve of you. 7 Turn back and go in peace; do nothing to displease the Philistine rulers."
Introduction:
Achish, the king of the Philistines as his army was poised to go to war with Israel. He and his army was pitched at Aphek while Israel was pitched by a fountain in Jezreel. Aphek was a fortress city, located in the land of Issaachar. According to the Bible,there were 4 cities barring this same name in 4 different places. The other 3 cities were respectively located in Judah, in Asher and east of Jordan.
While the Philistine army passed in review before their king ,as they were making final preparation to go to war with Israel, Achish’s war lords noticed the unusual presence of a renowned Israelite, and his mighty men militia within their ranks bringing up the rear of the battle formation and serving as, (and get this): their king’s bodyguards. This prompted them to ask the king a very poignant question: What are these Hebrews doing here?
David's Militia of Mighty Men:
David and his mighty men found themselves here of all places because of the "after effects" of someone’s personal “Drama”. David had to flee from a “lame duck” king (Saul) who being tortured by an evil spirit sent by God was in the midst of a long angry tirade, which stemmed from a “jealous reaction” to a victory song sung in fromt of the king's palace. A huge bounty had been placed upon David’s head.
Because of this and other subsequent events, by Chapter 29 of 1 Samuel,, we find David now part of an unusual army, in an unusual alliance and totally out of his rightful place and once again…dealing with more “drama”. By this time… he’s been on the run for many years and up to this point, he faced a lot of drama along the way, but on the flipside of this fact truth, while on one hand, he was running from drama, on the other hand, he had caused some drama along the way too…and between what Saul was doing to him and he himself was doing along the way… here he is, the future king of Israel …a fugitive from injustice and living in the wrong country, with the wrong king, a part of the wrong army and definitely in the wrong place…..
Sound The Alarm!
Today my brothers and sisters, I must sound the alarm, and take out precious time to warn you : it’s imperative that we hurry up and learn how to deal with any drama that’s surrounding us in the right way, because if we fail to do so and deal with that drama the wrong way, we just might become guilty of start causing drama ourselves, and thus, find ourselves lined up with the wrong people, serving God the wrong way, even possibly serving the wrong God and standing for the wrong cause and totally out of our rightful places… spiritually, psychologically or in David's case, phyhsically.
A Triumphant Warrior To A Branded Fugutive:
A. Humble beginning:
David had both and humble and an unusual beginning. He burst forth, out from obscurity in Chapter 16, as a lowly shepherd boy working in his father’s sheep pasture and tending to his father sheep to becoming Saul's personal musician. He stepped into the limelight because back in Chapter 13, God dethroned Saul, the first king of Israel, and withdrew his Holy Spirit from him, and took away his “royal anointing”. So by the time God sent the Prophet Samuel to Jessie’s house in Chapter 16 to find the new successor to the throne, Saul was a “lame duck” king merely occupying the throne, until the new king would be ready to sit on the throne.
Even from the sheep pasture, everything about David’s life’s actions and attitude showed his dedication to God. Here was a young man doing a thankless job, out in the shepherd’s field, as a shepherd in the sheep pasture, Out here, David became a protective shepherd. On a couple of occasions, David confronted sheep predators and at one time, he had to kill a lion and even a bear because these deadly predators from time to time would come near the pasture trying to raid Jesse’s flock….attacking sheep after sheep at every opportunity, snatching them from the flock and devouring them for their food…It was David’s job as a sheep herder to protect his father’s flock at all times…and at all cost…snatching them from the very jaws of death if necessary!
Point of Power!
In these days and times, we need strong shepherds and equally strong willing workers to protect the flock of God from satanic spiritual predators. These predators, agents of Satan come to attack the sheep in every church. They come to steal, kill and destroy the sheep. They come to snatch you away from the flock and devour you with dangerous doctrines and damnable heresy and secular traditions. We must protect our Heavenly Father’s flock (church) and do all we can to keep weaker members in the various churches safe from the jaws of death and do it at all cost!!.
David's Life's Dramatic Turn:
By the end of chapter 16, David’s life s takes a dramatic turn. Saul has been battling that evil spirit sent to him by God for a pretty good while,…This demonic spirit constantly grieved him, made him moody, ill-tempered, grumpy and hard to deal with. So Saul ‘s servants searched for a musician that played good enough to move the evil spirit from the king. David had a stellar reputation as harp player so Saul’s servant told the king about all of David’s talents and revealed to him that the Spirit of the Lord rested upon him… (It’s good to have a godly reputation!)…
So.. David became his harp player and eventually his armor bearer… Now….
At first, David’s life changed for the better because the training he got from sheepherding as a protector of the sheep and his ability to play the harp was paying off now…He protected sheep, now he’s the protector of the king’s armor …His ministry of music warded off the evil spirit that grieved the king …..then …his warlike training from the sheep pasture moved him from being just an armor bearer and the king’s musician to bearing arms for the army as a great warrior. But, after that, his life took a terrible turn for the worst. What happened? Well…In Chapter 17, David scored one of Israel’s greatest victory over the Philistines when he personally killed Goliath. Once he took care of the 9 foot gaint, it allowed the rest of the Israeli army to advance upon the Philistine army and soundly defeat them.The greatness of this victory didn’t rest in the sturdy slingshot… it didn’t rest in the contour of the five smooth stones… neither did it rest in that “chosen” stone he used in the sling,…but… the greatness of David’s victory came because David knew and called on the name of THE MOST HIGH GOD!!"
Point Of Power!
This point is an obvious one: We need to know and know how to call on the "real" source of all of our power!…..I dare you to get to know God …I dare you to walk with HIM talk with HIM tell Him that you are HIS own …..I dare you..because if and when and if you do…. you will find out that we have ALL POWER IN HIM… We got plenty of power!…We got POWER IN PRAYER! WE got POWER IN THE WORD OF GOD!! Power in having FAITH…POWER in a HAVING HOPE …POWER in worshipping GOD in spirit and in truth …POWER IN THE REVERENCE OF GOD..Yes THE REAL POWER LIES IN YAHWEH. , IN JEHOVAH….The True and Living GOD! .AND the greeat news is WE HAVE ACCESS TO ALL THAT POWER THROUGH JESUS CHRIST!! Let me tell you….There is POWER. SO MUCH POWER, IN THE NAME OF JESUS , POWER, SO MUCH POWER, POWER IN HIS NAME!!! WELL, WHAT KIND OF POWER? HEALING POWER…. DELIVERANCE POWER…LOVING POWER…HOLY GHOST POWER… FOOD WHEN YOU ARE HUNGRY POWER … WATER WHEN YOU'RE THIRSTY POWER….. JOY IN SORROW POWER…HOPE FOR TOMORROW POWER…POWER!! IN HIS HOLY NAME!
God's Power in Action:
Look at God’s power in action: David loads up his slingshot and took aim at Goliath, and said to Goliath…Now you come at me with a spear and with a sword and with a javelin,…but…I come at you …..in the name of the Lord of Host…the God of Israel’s army… and this day… My God is GOING TO deliver you into my hands and I’m going to cut off your head and feed your whole army’s carcasses to the wild birds!!! There is something about the name Jesus!
Can’t you see David loading that one stone….that stone…that stone that was hewn out of the mountain…into his trusty slingshot….and began to revving up his sling shot… and as the sling spun faster and faster ….God whispered in his ear and said Now let it go and as that stone left that sling, GOD became the sling’s sight and windage adjustment and guided that flung stone from the slingshot of David and that stone…hit Goliath right between the eyes… and to add insult to injury,..
The bible said David didn’t have a sword of his own…, so he picked up Goliath’s sword and cut off his head…with Goliath’s own sword…It reminded me of what the Psalmist said that God will make your enemy your footstool to such an extent that sometimes, God will make your enemy provide the very blessing they were trying to block from you. He did say that the wealth of the wicked is laid up for the righteous! …With the power of God will always come a great victory
This was a great victory for this shepherd boy, who first came to the battlefield as a" curious waiter"…because his daddy sent him to the battlefield to bring food and drink for his brothers who were soldiers in the army … but when he saw fear in the eyes of the army of Israel and heard all the scaving and callous insults Goliath hurled his God, his country and the army… his love for GOD STOOD UP and his patriotism for his country got STIRRED UP … David so mad that he went from being a "curious waiter" to a “willing warrior”.
Point Of Power!
When you get on the battlefield… you will come in direct confrontation with "demons and devils" influenced people! …. God need WILLING WARRIORS in HIS church.. …trained warriors… singing warriors…. Standard bearing warriors… preaching warriors….praying warriors….Holy Spirit filled bold warriors to put on the whole armor of God and go on the battlefield…able to stand against the wiles of the Devil…knowing that you are fighting powers, principalities, the dark rulers in this world and spiritual wickedness in high places…..In these days and times, You can’t afford to be a passive pew sitters…IT’S A WAR...you can’t afford to get hunkered down in being comfortable….the place where you are now…IT’S A WAR…You got to fight the good fight of faith in Christ Jesus….God’s looking for “stirred up folk ….who are tired of ALL the drama from sin and Satan and willing to stand up and hold up the blood stained banner …ready and willing to move from the church pasture to the world’s battlefield!!
Too many of us have gotten too comfortable working in the pasture…and won’t go out on the battlefield…We are backing up from the onslaught coming from the devil..and we’re letting the Devil come in and take over many of our churches… David shows us on the battlefield that just like the devil comes at us with his weapons….his fiery dots…God has given us weapons that we can come back at him with…and we need to use those weapons…to the glory of God…in the name of Jesus the Son of the Living God …. We can load up our gospel slingshots ….Load up the Word of God in any place and at anytime …Matthew 28: 19-20 says: Go ye therefore teach all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost…teaching them to observe all things I commanded you and Lo…I’ll be with you always until the end of the age….READY…AIM….FIRE!!
Here Come the Drama!
The women came from the city and held a joyous celebration of the victory over Goliath and the rest of the Philistines …They came out singing and dancing….and they sang a victory song: Saul has killed his thousands, but David has killed his ten thousands!! …and what did they want to sing that song for because when they sung that song …..Lord have mercy….THAT’S WHEN THE DRAMA REALLY GOT STARTED !!! When Saul heard that victory song that esteemed what David did over and above all the king had done, King has got jealous, …and over time…continually threatens David’s life and ended up… put out a contract on David’s life…causing him to take flight for his life and go into hiding! It was a sad situation…here it was…David now running from the very king that he had showed total loyalty and had done no wrong to…. He finds himself a marked fugitive… running from kingly injustice…the victim of jealousy pangs… and his life going from "hallelujah into hiding.!!"
Point of Power:
As a Christian,…get used to it…. you are going to deal with drama, and don’t be surprise sometimes where it comes from and who drama comes through…Everybody’s not going to like you and many of them won’t be happy that you got your name honorably mentioned…Some people can’t stand it when you get blessed!...even in the church!!!...well…Favor ain’t fair… Drama is spiritual warfare at its best! Drama is the devil’s weapon of mass destruction…. Job can tell you about DRAMA: Job said in Job 14:1 “A man that’s born of a woman is of a few days and full of trouble …FULL OF .DRAMA!! ALL KINDS OF DRAMA: Insulting drama, lying drama…rumor spreading drama…. Insecure drama…jealousy drama…deceptive drama .., taunting and the trash talking drama .. health related drama,… financial drama,..family drama… on your job drama…rush hour traffic drama…spiritual drama…church drama…..drama on the left…drama on the right…drama in front…drama behind you…drama above you…drama beneath you….DRAMA!!!
What brings on all the drama? Glad you asked! : SIN
Whenever you are out of fellowship with God…whenever you are insecure, full of envy, strife… living and acting out of fear…to the point that you can’t bridle you tongue and you are constantly acting out of control… Wherever sin rears its ugly head…drama always happens!!!…
Well…what brought on this drama? The answer is Jealousy !!! Let me tell you about Jealousy:
JEALOUSY is WORST SPIRIT that can creep into ANY FELLOWSHIP,… and yet… Jealousy is one of the MOST FREQUENT and CANCEROUS SPIRIT found in and among people, even in the church! JEALOUSY is dangerous and left unchecked….JEALOUSY will lead to murder… Satan incited jealousy in Cain to kill Abel…He thought he could cut off the generation that would one day produce the “promised seed” …but It didn’t work…You can kill the messenger but you will never kill the message…that’s why God in his infinite wisdom gives the same talents to more than one person …in the same manner he gave different talents to different people!!!That’s why one monkey can’t stop no show!
SATAN operates in pride and jealousy and it shows up every time he comes against a child of God..Read Isaiah 14:12-16 Satan is jealous of God and everything God stands for !!! He want to be like the MOST HIGH!! Why do you think he goes up and down…to and fro… in the earth…seeking whom he may devour? The devil is doing all he can to tear up everything God built up… SATAN wants the POWER, THE PRAISE, and HONOR THAT BELONG TO GOD! He constantly sows this seed of jealousy among people of all ranks to keep up massive confusion and people at odds with God and with each other!!! ....He ‘s trying to cutting off promised seeds that will lead to many others confessing Christ as their LORD and Savior….
Unfortunately… So many people fall victim to jealousy because the person stuck in jealous person spends more time trying to devalue other people rather than focusing on their value and the gifts God had placed in them: So what if you can’t preach ot teach like ‘Rev. Boddie…So what if you Can’t preach or pastor like Pastor Brown…So what if you can’t sing and minister like Reverend Rowser, teach like Deacon Thompson…witness like Roger Adams…or handle the pertinent business that makes Carters Hill stand tall like many of the women here who constantly step to the plate and hold up the blood stained banner for the Lord here So what if you don’t have a degree…Do like many of us have done… take the time out of your busy schedule and Get one… My real point is…It doesn’t mater if you can’t do what others are able to do..God has blessed you and anointed you to do something for the kingdom and to his glory….Do what you can do ….. do it to the glory of God! This race is not given to the swift…nor is it given to the strong but it is given to those who will endure to the end!!!
You can see the toxic results of jealousy everywhere!!….Leaders in the church jealous of one another… Standing leaders…in Corporate America and other places…. JEALOUS of potential leaders.. Co-workers on your job jealous of other co-workers …, JEALOUS of …your seniority …jealous over your salary…jealous of your job classification..jealous because God has given you favor… Brothers and sisters of the same family having jealous sibling rivalries …. Some people are so jealous that they won’t simply ride out the momentary position of someone else have…They can’t ride out someone else being praise and complimented …. Jealousy causes people to get bent out of shape…and start mega-drama over something not even worth fighting over and behaving in bazaar ways that eventually prompts that honored person to leave home, quit the company, . leave their church, or quit going to the church all together… becoming out of fellowship with God and constantly at odds with their fellow man..
David is not the bad guy in this text!....but look at the side effects of Saul’s drama… David went out of his way….sparing Saul’s life twice …trying to convince Saul that he was loyal and not a threat… David knew that God simply gave the king the victory over his enemies, without using the king! Instead of getting jealous over each other's talents, we should thank God that that person's talent is among the ranks!! God is not limited to just your talent!! God can bless you in so many ways and never use any of your resources to do it with!!
David sized up the situation…He knew he either had to leave or fight off the king… but had David stayed in the camp and fought against the king… David would have been just as wrong if he had fought, injured, or killed Saul… so rather than fight "God's anointed"… David decided that a good run was better than a bad stand!! He now flees for his life! And it was on one hand good that he did because in all, Saul made 21 attempts on David’s life
But on the other hand while he was on the run…David acting out of fear started some drama that put others in harm’s way and in one case all the priests of Nob lost their lives… So by the time we see David here in chapter 29, David has been cursed out by Nabal, pursued by Saul,, lied to a priest, pretending to be crazy, just to save his life…Let me tell you….the last thing a child of God needs to do in wartime is play crazy on the battlefield…We are in a war this is no the time to play crazy…This is the time to lay aside every weight and the sin that easily besets you…. This is the time to put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against all the wiles of the devil…, deceiving Achish the king and taunting Abner, the captain of Israel’s army and willing to fight for the wrong side! David now was now out of place…
You can understand why the Philistines would be uneasy…They were Israel’s life long enemies and they knew about the drama between Saul and David. The Bible said the Philistines already knew about the problem that existed between Saul and David….yet…they found it very strange that David was in their land…in their camp… willing to fight against his own people… and even though David had not done anything wrong. The way they had it figured…David might turn on them at any moment and he wasn’t worth the risk… so after much wrangling with their king…The king of the Philistine said to him: I know you haven’t done me wrong …but my army is not with this…you can’t fight with us…you’re making my men uneasy and they refuse to fight as long as you are here…Go on back where you belong!! It reminds me of an old Temptation song: Runaway child running wild! You better go back home where you belong!
But finally understand this 4th point also, if you are the king or queen of drama..your drama doesn’t stop God’s plan…for someone else’s I heard Isaiah say Lord, What God has for me..it is for me…and the same is true for you too!!! Whatever God has for your life you will get it in due season…if you hold on and don’t get weary and give up The bible said that the vision is for an appointed time…but at the end it shall speak and not lie…Though it may tarry…it will truly come to past… Why all the drama? I don’t care who you are…your time in leadership is not for a lifetime…and God reserves the right to replace whoever he wants… however he wants and is not intimidated by any of us… in his infinite wisdom… Why the drama? God didn't give all the gifts of the Holy Spirit to one person, …..because he want all of us to realize that we are all co-dependent upon the gifts of others in the group…and that it's going to take all of us…and all things working together for the common good to make it on this journey! The truth is…I need you, and you need me…So since we are our brother's keeper,….we need to realize that not only do we need each other, but ALL OF US NEED THE LORD!!
Closure: What is God’s solution to your "Drama" problem? How do you deal with drama?
First of all you got to deal with your own drama:
Jesus said hypocrite..why do you focus on the mote in your brother’s eye and you can’t see the beam in your own eye. What that says is… all of us got some drama. We were all born in sin …that’s drama…shaped in iniquity….shaped in drama..the old nature of every man is full of drama…and the wages of drama …of sin is death…but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our LORD…Jesus said if you really want to rid yourself of drama…first concentrate on dealing with the drama in your own life…then and only then…you’ll be able to help your brother and your sister deal with the drama in their life…It’s been said many times and many ways: nothing will happen through you until something has happened to you….. The Bible says you got to lay aside every weight and the sin that thus so easily beset you and run with patience the race that has been set before you Looking unto Jesus because He is the Author and finisher of our faith…
The second way to deal with drama is understand that you can’t return evil for evil:
You can’t cause drama because others cause you drama… Saul killed…David killed…Saul lied…David lied…Saul deceived…David deceived…Saul turned against God…the one thing David still did right was he still sought God…Wherever there is drama….some type of death is right around the corner…and you got to remember: the bible says be not deceived…God is not mocked…whatsoever a man sows…that will they also reap..
Third thing you got to do is change your way of thinking.
The Bible says in Romans12:2 …Don’t be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. In other words you can’t thin nor act the same way the world acts. You must strive to be a peacemaker. You must strive to bless and not curse
Finally…the last way to deal with drama is to turn it all over to Jesus!
That problem that you face…turn it over to Jesus…That bill that is past due turn it over to Jesus… When friends turn their back on you turn them over to Jesus…You have a sickness that seem like it won’t go away turn it over to Jesus…Why cause drama when you can turn it over to Jesus and stop worrying about it.. Put your hand in the hand of the man who stilled the waters…Put your hand in the hand of the MAN who calmed the sea…Take a look at yourself and you will look at others differently…by putting your hands in the Man from Galilee….When your burden get heaven and the tears began to fall …. fail down on your knees and looking toward heaven with out-stretched arms and say: I need you Oh Lord.. I need you…Every day and every hour …I need you.. Bless me now my Savior… I come to thee….Somebody told me…you are a healer when I’m sick.. Somebody told me…your are a battleaxe in the time of a war…Somebody told me you’re an on time God…Here I am…Come and see about me….Father, I stretch my hands to thee..No other help I know..If thou withdraw thyself from me where shall I go..Tell the LORD..Guide me o thou Great Jehovah..I’m a pilgrim through this barren land…I am weak..but thou art mighty…Hold me with thou powerful hand…. Turn it over to Jesus stop worrying about it…Turn it over to the one who died for your sins Up on Calvary…He died for you and for me…they buried him in a borrowed tomb…but early Sunday morning Jesus rose from the dead with all power wrapped in his hands…If you turn it over to the LORD…He will work it out!!! putting your hand in the hand of the MAN from Galilee….Do you know HIM? Have you tried HIM? Ain’t he alright??
The Philistines gathered all their forces at Aphek, and Israel camped by the spring in Jezreel. 2 As the Philistine rulers marched with their units of hundreds and thousands, David and his men were marching at the rear with Achish. 3 The commanders of the Philistines asked, "What about these Hebrews?" Achish replied, "Is this not David, who was an officer of Saul king of Israel? He has already been with me for over a year, and from the day he left Saul until now, I have found no fault in him." 4 But the Philistine commanders were angry with him and said, "Send the man back, that he may return to the place you assigned him. He must not go with us into battle, or he will turn against us during the fighting. How better could he regain his master's favor than by taking the heads of our own men? 5 Isn't this the David they sang about in their dances:"'Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands'?" 6 So Achish called David and said to him, "As surely as the Lord lives, you have been reliable, and I would be pleased to have you serve with me in the army. From the day you came to me until now, I have found no fault in you, but the rulers don't approve of you. 7 Turn back and go in peace; do nothing to displease the Philistine rulers."
Introduction:
Achish, the king of the Philistines as his army was poised to go to war with Israel. He and his army was pitched at Aphek while Israel was pitched by a fountain in Jezreel. Aphek was a fortress city, located in the land of Issaachar. According to the Bible,there were 4 cities barring this same name in 4 different places. The other 3 cities were respectively located in Judah, in Asher and east of Jordan.
While the Philistine army passed in review before their king ,as they were making final preparation to go to war with Israel, Achish’s war lords noticed the unusual presence of a renowned Israelite, and his mighty men militia within their ranks bringing up the rear of the battle formation and serving as, (and get this): their king’s bodyguards. This prompted them to ask the king a very poignant question: What are these Hebrews doing here?
David's Militia of Mighty Men:
David and his mighty men found themselves here of all places because of the "after effects" of someone’s personal “Drama”. David had to flee from a “lame duck” king (Saul) who being tortured by an evil spirit sent by God was in the midst of a long angry tirade, which stemmed from a “jealous reaction” to a victory song sung in fromt of the king's palace. A huge bounty had been placed upon David’s head.
Because of this and other subsequent events, by Chapter 29 of 1 Samuel,, we find David now part of an unusual army, in an unusual alliance and totally out of his rightful place and once again…dealing with more “drama”. By this time… he’s been on the run for many years and up to this point, he faced a lot of drama along the way, but on the flipside of this fact truth, while on one hand, he was running from drama, on the other hand, he had caused some drama along the way too…and between what Saul was doing to him and he himself was doing along the way… here he is, the future king of Israel …a fugitive from injustice and living in the wrong country, with the wrong king, a part of the wrong army and definitely in the wrong place…..
Sound The Alarm!
Today my brothers and sisters, I must sound the alarm, and take out precious time to warn you : it’s imperative that we hurry up and learn how to deal with any drama that’s surrounding us in the right way, because if we fail to do so and deal with that drama the wrong way, we just might become guilty of start causing drama ourselves, and thus, find ourselves lined up with the wrong people, serving God the wrong way, even possibly serving the wrong God and standing for the wrong cause and totally out of our rightful places… spiritually, psychologically or in David's case, phyhsically.
A Triumphant Warrior To A Branded Fugutive:
A. Humble beginning:
David had both and humble and an unusual beginning. He burst forth, out from obscurity in Chapter 16, as a lowly shepherd boy working in his father’s sheep pasture and tending to his father sheep to becoming Saul's personal musician. He stepped into the limelight because back in Chapter 13, God dethroned Saul, the first king of Israel, and withdrew his Holy Spirit from him, and took away his “royal anointing”. So by the time God sent the Prophet Samuel to Jessie’s house in Chapter 16 to find the new successor to the throne, Saul was a “lame duck” king merely occupying the throne, until the new king would be ready to sit on the throne.
Even from the sheep pasture, everything about David’s life’s actions and attitude showed his dedication to God. Here was a young man doing a thankless job, out in the shepherd’s field, as a shepherd in the sheep pasture, Out here, David became a protective shepherd. On a couple of occasions, David confronted sheep predators and at one time, he had to kill a lion and even a bear because these deadly predators from time to time would come near the pasture trying to raid Jesse’s flock….attacking sheep after sheep at every opportunity, snatching them from the flock and devouring them for their food…It was David’s job as a sheep herder to protect his father’s flock at all times…and at all cost…snatching them from the very jaws of death if necessary!
Point of Power!
In these days and times, we need strong shepherds and equally strong willing workers to protect the flock of God from satanic spiritual predators. These predators, agents of Satan come to attack the sheep in every church. They come to steal, kill and destroy the sheep. They come to snatch you away from the flock and devour you with dangerous doctrines and damnable heresy and secular traditions. We must protect our Heavenly Father’s flock (church) and do all we can to keep weaker members in the various churches safe from the jaws of death and do it at all cost!!.
David's Life's Dramatic Turn:
By the end of chapter 16, David’s life s takes a dramatic turn. Saul has been battling that evil spirit sent to him by God for a pretty good while,…This demonic spirit constantly grieved him, made him moody, ill-tempered, grumpy and hard to deal with. So Saul ‘s servants searched for a musician that played good enough to move the evil spirit from the king. David had a stellar reputation as harp player so Saul’s servant told the king about all of David’s talents and revealed to him that the Spirit of the Lord rested upon him… (It’s good to have a godly reputation!)…
So.. David became his harp player and eventually his armor bearer… Now….
At first, David’s life changed for the better because the training he got from sheepherding as a protector of the sheep and his ability to play the harp was paying off now…He protected sheep, now he’s the protector of the king’s armor …His ministry of music warded off the evil spirit that grieved the king …..then …his warlike training from the sheep pasture moved him from being just an armor bearer and the king’s musician to bearing arms for the army as a great warrior. But, after that, his life took a terrible turn for the worst. What happened? Well…In Chapter 17, David scored one of Israel’s greatest victory over the Philistines when he personally killed Goliath. Once he took care of the 9 foot gaint, it allowed the rest of the Israeli army to advance upon the Philistine army and soundly defeat them.The greatness of this victory didn’t rest in the sturdy slingshot… it didn’t rest in the contour of the five smooth stones… neither did it rest in that “chosen” stone he used in the sling,…but… the greatness of David’s victory came because David knew and called on the name of THE MOST HIGH GOD!!"
Point Of Power!
This point is an obvious one: We need to know and know how to call on the "real" source of all of our power!…..I dare you to get to know God …I dare you to walk with HIM talk with HIM tell Him that you are HIS own …..I dare you..because if and when and if you do…. you will find out that we have ALL POWER IN HIM… We got plenty of power!…We got POWER IN PRAYER! WE got POWER IN THE WORD OF GOD!! Power in having FAITH…POWER in a HAVING HOPE …POWER in worshipping GOD in spirit and in truth …POWER IN THE REVERENCE OF GOD..Yes THE REAL POWER LIES IN YAHWEH. , IN JEHOVAH….The True and Living GOD! .AND the greeat news is WE HAVE ACCESS TO ALL THAT POWER THROUGH JESUS CHRIST!! Let me tell you….There is POWER. SO MUCH POWER, IN THE NAME OF JESUS , POWER, SO MUCH POWER, POWER IN HIS NAME!!! WELL, WHAT KIND OF POWER? HEALING POWER…. DELIVERANCE POWER…LOVING POWER…HOLY GHOST POWER… FOOD WHEN YOU ARE HUNGRY POWER … WATER WHEN YOU'RE THIRSTY POWER….. JOY IN SORROW POWER…HOPE FOR TOMORROW POWER…POWER!! IN HIS HOLY NAME!
God's Power in Action:
Look at God’s power in action: David loads up his slingshot and took aim at Goliath, and said to Goliath…Now you come at me with a spear and with a sword and with a javelin,…but…I come at you …..in the name of the Lord of Host…the God of Israel’s army… and this day… My God is GOING TO deliver you into my hands and I’m going to cut off your head and feed your whole army’s carcasses to the wild birds!!! There is something about the name Jesus!
Can’t you see David loading that one stone….that stone…that stone that was hewn out of the mountain…into his trusty slingshot….and began to revving up his sling shot… and as the sling spun faster and faster ….God whispered in his ear and said Now let it go and as that stone left that sling, GOD became the sling’s sight and windage adjustment and guided that flung stone from the slingshot of David and that stone…hit Goliath right between the eyes… and to add insult to injury,..
The bible said David didn’t have a sword of his own…, so he picked up Goliath’s sword and cut off his head…with Goliath’s own sword…It reminded me of what the Psalmist said that God will make your enemy your footstool to such an extent that sometimes, God will make your enemy provide the very blessing they were trying to block from you. He did say that the wealth of the wicked is laid up for the righteous! …With the power of God will always come a great victory
This was a great victory for this shepherd boy, who first came to the battlefield as a" curious waiter"…because his daddy sent him to the battlefield to bring food and drink for his brothers who were soldiers in the army … but when he saw fear in the eyes of the army of Israel and heard all the scaving and callous insults Goliath hurled his God, his country and the army… his love for GOD STOOD UP and his patriotism for his country got STIRRED UP … David so mad that he went from being a "curious waiter" to a “willing warrior”.
Point Of Power!
When you get on the battlefield… you will come in direct confrontation with "demons and devils" influenced people! …. God need WILLING WARRIORS in HIS church.. …trained warriors… singing warriors…. Standard bearing warriors… preaching warriors….praying warriors….Holy Spirit filled bold warriors to put on the whole armor of God and go on the battlefield…able to stand against the wiles of the Devil…knowing that you are fighting powers, principalities, the dark rulers in this world and spiritual wickedness in high places…..In these days and times, You can’t afford to be a passive pew sitters…IT’S A WAR...you can’t afford to get hunkered down in being comfortable….the place where you are now…IT’S A WAR…You got to fight the good fight of faith in Christ Jesus….God’s looking for “stirred up folk ….who are tired of ALL the drama from sin and Satan and willing to stand up and hold up the blood stained banner …ready and willing to move from the church pasture to the world’s battlefield!!
Too many of us have gotten too comfortable working in the pasture…and won’t go out on the battlefield…We are backing up from the onslaught coming from the devil..and we’re letting the Devil come in and take over many of our churches… David shows us on the battlefield that just like the devil comes at us with his weapons….his fiery dots…God has given us weapons that we can come back at him with…and we need to use those weapons…to the glory of God…in the name of Jesus the Son of the Living God …. We can load up our gospel slingshots ….Load up the Word of God in any place and at anytime …Matthew 28: 19-20 says: Go ye therefore teach all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost…teaching them to observe all things I commanded you and Lo…I’ll be with you always until the end of the age….READY…AIM….FIRE!!
Here Come the Drama!
The women came from the city and held a joyous celebration of the victory over Goliath and the rest of the Philistines …They came out singing and dancing….and they sang a victory song: Saul has killed his thousands, but David has killed his ten thousands!! …and what did they want to sing that song for because when they sung that song …..Lord have mercy….THAT’S WHEN THE DRAMA REALLY GOT STARTED !!! When Saul heard that victory song that esteemed what David did over and above all the king had done, King has got jealous, …and over time…continually threatens David’s life and ended up… put out a contract on David’s life…causing him to take flight for his life and go into hiding! It was a sad situation…here it was…David now running from the very king that he had showed total loyalty and had done no wrong to…. He finds himself a marked fugitive… running from kingly injustice…the victim of jealousy pangs… and his life going from "hallelujah into hiding.!!"
Point of Power:
As a Christian,…get used to it…. you are going to deal with drama, and don’t be surprise sometimes where it comes from and who drama comes through…Everybody’s not going to like you and many of them won’t be happy that you got your name honorably mentioned…Some people can’t stand it when you get blessed!...even in the church!!!...well…Favor ain’t fair… Drama is spiritual warfare at its best! Drama is the devil’s weapon of mass destruction…. Job can tell you about DRAMA: Job said in Job 14:1 “A man that’s born of a woman is of a few days and full of trouble …FULL OF .DRAMA!! ALL KINDS OF DRAMA: Insulting drama, lying drama…rumor spreading drama…. Insecure drama…jealousy drama…deceptive drama .., taunting and the trash talking drama .. health related drama,… financial drama,..family drama… on your job drama…rush hour traffic drama…spiritual drama…church drama…..drama on the left…drama on the right…drama in front…drama behind you…drama above you…drama beneath you….DRAMA!!!
What brings on all the drama? Glad you asked! : SIN
Whenever you are out of fellowship with God…whenever you are insecure, full of envy, strife… living and acting out of fear…to the point that you can’t bridle you tongue and you are constantly acting out of control… Wherever sin rears its ugly head…drama always happens!!!…
Well…what brought on this drama? The answer is Jealousy !!! Let me tell you about Jealousy:
JEALOUSY is WORST SPIRIT that can creep into ANY FELLOWSHIP,… and yet… Jealousy is one of the MOST FREQUENT and CANCEROUS SPIRIT found in and among people, even in the church! JEALOUSY is dangerous and left unchecked….JEALOUSY will lead to murder… Satan incited jealousy in Cain to kill Abel…He thought he could cut off the generation that would one day produce the “promised seed” …but It didn’t work…You can kill the messenger but you will never kill the message…that’s why God in his infinite wisdom gives the same talents to more than one person …in the same manner he gave different talents to different people!!!That’s why one monkey can’t stop no show!
SATAN operates in pride and jealousy and it shows up every time he comes against a child of God..Read Isaiah 14:12-16 Satan is jealous of God and everything God stands for !!! He want to be like the MOST HIGH!! Why do you think he goes up and down…to and fro… in the earth…seeking whom he may devour? The devil is doing all he can to tear up everything God built up… SATAN wants the POWER, THE PRAISE, and HONOR THAT BELONG TO GOD! He constantly sows this seed of jealousy among people of all ranks to keep up massive confusion and people at odds with God and with each other!!! ....He ‘s trying to cutting off promised seeds that will lead to many others confessing Christ as their LORD and Savior….
Unfortunately… So many people fall victim to jealousy because the person stuck in jealous person spends more time trying to devalue other people rather than focusing on their value and the gifts God had placed in them: So what if you can’t preach ot teach like ‘Rev. Boddie…So what if you Can’t preach or pastor like Pastor Brown…So what if you can’t sing and minister like Reverend Rowser, teach like Deacon Thompson…witness like Roger Adams…or handle the pertinent business that makes Carters Hill stand tall like many of the women here who constantly step to the plate and hold up the blood stained banner for the Lord here So what if you don’t have a degree…Do like many of us have done… take the time out of your busy schedule and Get one… My real point is…It doesn’t mater if you can’t do what others are able to do..God has blessed you and anointed you to do something for the kingdom and to his glory….Do what you can do ….. do it to the glory of God! This race is not given to the swift…nor is it given to the strong but it is given to those who will endure to the end!!!
You can see the toxic results of jealousy everywhere!!….Leaders in the church jealous of one another… Standing leaders…in Corporate America and other places…. JEALOUS of potential leaders.. Co-workers on your job jealous of other co-workers …, JEALOUS of …your seniority …jealous over your salary…jealous of your job classification..jealous because God has given you favor… Brothers and sisters of the same family having jealous sibling rivalries …. Some people are so jealous that they won’t simply ride out the momentary position of someone else have…They can’t ride out someone else being praise and complimented …. Jealousy causes people to get bent out of shape…and start mega-drama over something not even worth fighting over and behaving in bazaar ways that eventually prompts that honored person to leave home, quit the company, . leave their church, or quit going to the church all together… becoming out of fellowship with God and constantly at odds with their fellow man..
David is not the bad guy in this text!....but look at the side effects of Saul’s drama… David went out of his way….sparing Saul’s life twice …trying to convince Saul that he was loyal and not a threat… David knew that God simply gave the king the victory over his enemies, without using the king! Instead of getting jealous over each other's talents, we should thank God that that person's talent is among the ranks!! God is not limited to just your talent!! God can bless you in so many ways and never use any of your resources to do it with!!
David sized up the situation…He knew he either had to leave or fight off the king… but had David stayed in the camp and fought against the king… David would have been just as wrong if he had fought, injured, or killed Saul… so rather than fight "God's anointed"… David decided that a good run was better than a bad stand!! He now flees for his life! And it was on one hand good that he did because in all, Saul made 21 attempts on David’s life
But on the other hand while he was on the run…David acting out of fear started some drama that put others in harm’s way and in one case all the priests of Nob lost their lives… So by the time we see David here in chapter 29, David has been cursed out by Nabal, pursued by Saul,, lied to a priest, pretending to be crazy, just to save his life…Let me tell you….the last thing a child of God needs to do in wartime is play crazy on the battlefield…We are in a war this is no the time to play crazy…This is the time to lay aside every weight and the sin that easily besets you…. This is the time to put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against all the wiles of the devil…, deceiving Achish the king and taunting Abner, the captain of Israel’s army and willing to fight for the wrong side! David now was now out of place…
You can understand why the Philistines would be uneasy…They were Israel’s life long enemies and they knew about the drama between Saul and David. The Bible said the Philistines already knew about the problem that existed between Saul and David….yet…they found it very strange that David was in their land…in their camp… willing to fight against his own people… and even though David had not done anything wrong. The way they had it figured…David might turn on them at any moment and he wasn’t worth the risk… so after much wrangling with their king…The king of the Philistine said to him: I know you haven’t done me wrong …but my army is not with this…you can’t fight with us…you’re making my men uneasy and they refuse to fight as long as you are here…Go on back where you belong!! It reminds me of an old Temptation song: Runaway child running wild! You better go back home where you belong!
But finally understand this 4th point also, if you are the king or queen of drama..your drama doesn’t stop God’s plan…for someone else’s I heard Isaiah say Lord, What God has for me..it is for me…and the same is true for you too!!! Whatever God has for your life you will get it in due season…if you hold on and don’t get weary and give up The bible said that the vision is for an appointed time…but at the end it shall speak and not lie…Though it may tarry…it will truly come to past… Why all the drama? I don’t care who you are…your time in leadership is not for a lifetime…and God reserves the right to replace whoever he wants… however he wants and is not intimidated by any of us… in his infinite wisdom… Why the drama? God didn't give all the gifts of the Holy Spirit to one person, …..because he want all of us to realize that we are all co-dependent upon the gifts of others in the group…and that it's going to take all of us…and all things working together for the common good to make it on this journey! The truth is…I need you, and you need me…So since we are our brother's keeper,….we need to realize that not only do we need each other, but ALL OF US NEED THE LORD!!
Closure: What is God’s solution to your "Drama" problem? How do you deal with drama?
First of all you got to deal with your own drama:
Jesus said hypocrite..why do you focus on the mote in your brother’s eye and you can’t see the beam in your own eye. What that says is… all of us got some drama. We were all born in sin …that’s drama…shaped in iniquity….shaped in drama..the old nature of every man is full of drama…and the wages of drama …of sin is death…but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our LORD…Jesus said if you really want to rid yourself of drama…first concentrate on dealing with the drama in your own life…then and only then…you’ll be able to help your brother and your sister deal with the drama in their life…It’s been said many times and many ways: nothing will happen through you until something has happened to you….. The Bible says you got to lay aside every weight and the sin that thus so easily beset you and run with patience the race that has been set before you Looking unto Jesus because He is the Author and finisher of our faith…
The second way to deal with drama is understand that you can’t return evil for evil:
You can’t cause drama because others cause you drama… Saul killed…David killed…Saul lied…David lied…Saul deceived…David deceived…Saul turned against God…the one thing David still did right was he still sought God…Wherever there is drama….some type of death is right around the corner…and you got to remember: the bible says be not deceived…God is not mocked…whatsoever a man sows…that will they also reap..
Third thing you got to do is change your way of thinking.
The Bible says in Romans12:2 …Don’t be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. In other words you can’t thin nor act the same way the world acts. You must strive to be a peacemaker. You must strive to bless and not curse
Finally…the last way to deal with drama is to turn it all over to Jesus!
That problem that you face…turn it over to Jesus…That bill that is past due turn it over to Jesus… When friends turn their back on you turn them over to Jesus…You have a sickness that seem like it won’t go away turn it over to Jesus…Why cause drama when you can turn it over to Jesus and stop worrying about it.. Put your hand in the hand of the man who stilled the waters…Put your hand in the hand of the MAN who calmed the sea…Take a look at yourself and you will look at others differently…by putting your hands in the Man from Galilee….When your burden get heaven and the tears began to fall …. fail down on your knees and looking toward heaven with out-stretched arms and say: I need you Oh Lord.. I need you…Every day and every hour …I need you.. Bless me now my Savior… I come to thee….Somebody told me…you are a healer when I’m sick.. Somebody told me…your are a battleaxe in the time of a war…Somebody told me you’re an on time God…Here I am…Come and see about me….Father, I stretch my hands to thee..No other help I know..If thou withdraw thyself from me where shall I go..Tell the LORD..Guide me o thou Great Jehovah..I’m a pilgrim through this barren land…I am weak..but thou art mighty…Hold me with thou powerful hand…. Turn it over to Jesus stop worrying about it…Turn it over to the one who died for your sins Up on Calvary…He died for you and for me…they buried him in a borrowed tomb…but early Sunday morning Jesus rose from the dead with all power wrapped in his hands…If you turn it over to the LORD…He will work it out!!! putting your hand in the hand of the MAN from Galilee….Do you know HIM? Have you tried HIM? Ain’t he alright??
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