2002-01-01
Good Morning Dear Ones,
Before going on to the story of David’s flight from Saul’s persecution from 1 SAM 21, there is one point that space in the last message wouldn’t allow me to discuss. We already know that David and Jonathan reiterated their covenant promises to each other several times before their parting when Jonathan finally realized his father, Saul’s, evil intentions to kill David and signaled David to flee [1 SAM 20: 17 and 42, for example]. Both of these faithful men understood the eternal, binding and serious nature of these promises. Both understood the connectedness that they had with each other and with God. And, both understood these promises would extend to their descendants and all members of their households. At the time I was studying this, it occurred to me to say something about the marriage vows that we, as believers, take. Consider God’s commands given to Paul in EPH 5: 22-23 & 25, “Wives, submit yourselves to you husbands as to the Lord. For a husband has authority over his wife just as Christ has authority over the church; and Christ is Himself the Savior of the church, His body…Husbands, love you wives just as Christ loved the church and gave His life for it.” There is a God-mankind connection in both the friendship vows taken by Jonathan and David, as well as marriage vows taken by a husband and his wife. If we look at the God-mankind connection intended in these vows, what we see is God in the leadership role and the parties involved in the covenant blessed abundantly. A friendship and/or a marriage entered into in this manner is sure to be blessed, because it is in line with God’s will. The married parties need never worry about fighting the battle of the sexes or abusing each other in any way. The friends need never worry that they will betray each other. Think about that and see how you feel.
Now, let’s continue letting God reveal to us through 1 SAM 21 the series of events that will eventually transcend generations and impact the life of Jonathan’s son, Mephibosheth. The events of this chapter allow us to see the condition of David’s heart-attitude, the awful physical danger he was in, God’s interactions with him, and the extent of cruelty and evil of which a world-led man is capable. David and his men went to the priest, Ahimelech, in Nob for rest and provisions. When David asked the priest for bread, he was told that the only bread available was sacred bread, bread that should be eaten only by people who are ritually clean (have not had sexual relations in this case). David said his men were ritually clean. 1 SAM 21: 6-7, “So the priest gave David the sacred bread, because the only bread he had was the loaves offered to God, which had been removed from the sacred table and replaced by fresh bread. (Saul’s chief herdsman, Doeg, who was from Edom, happened to be there that day, because he had to fulfill a religious obligation).” David explained to Ahimelech that he had needed to leave in a hurry and had no weapons, so he asked the priest to give him weapons. In an interesting turn of events, the very same sword that Goliath had used against David was the only weapon Ahimelech and the other priests had. This was kept behind the ephod (special symbol of the priesthood), wrapped in a cloth. David asked for it, and Ahimelech gave it to him. This detail might lead us to believe that Ahimelech and the other priests also understood that God was with David even before David’s arrival. Otherwise, why would they have valued that sword to the extent that it would have rested in so honored a place? It is also possible that Ahimelech and the others were present at the time in 1 SAM 16: 13-14, when Samuel took the olive oil and anointed David. Perhaps they knew that the Spirit of the Lord took control of David and left Saul.
From Nod, David left for the next stop of his journey of flight from Saul’s persecution which took him to King Achish of Gath. Once again we can see God’s intervention here in giving David a plan to deal with the immediate danger he was in. Gath was a part of Philistia at that time, and one can be sure David was not exactly a welcome arrival there. The moment King Achish recognized who David was in (11) and commented, “Saul has killed thousands, but David has killed tens of thousands,” David became quite afraid. That was when he got the idea to act like he was insane, letting spit drool down his chin and scribbling on the city gates. This was enough to get King Achish to send him on his way. When we speak of God being “with” someone, that can take many forms. Sometimes it is protecting him from clear and present physical or spiritual danger. Sometimes it is giving a person an idea that will allow him to extricate himself from a jam. Sometimes it is instilling the person with a view of the future or enough insight to see a bigger, more accurate picture of the truth. There are many different ways. We need to examine our lives to see how God’s presence is manifesting itself in them. Ask: Are we taking the time to discover all the ways that God is there for us? Then ask: How well are we living up to our covenant agreements with Him?
PRAYER: O Lord, how many times I am reminded that every detail, word, or number that You place in the Scriptures is of importance. The citations in this message leave us with something unfinished and propel us to go on to see the significance of what is in them more fully. What we can see is Your presence with David, Your love for him and his men, and how righteousness and authority given by You is recognized by others, like Ahimelech, who are faithful. We are reminded of Your ability to intervene to protect the faithful from danger by the story of David’s brief interaction with King Achish. When examining our own relationship with You, we need to take these examples and reminders seriously, understanding that they apply to all who share faith in You. This is one way that we can recognize how You have equipped us to do spiritual warfare in our own lives, no matter what form it takes. What comfort it brings us to know that we can trust and rely on You in this way. We are challenged to listen for Your direction in our lives through study of Your word, through prayer, and through interaction with others whom You are using to convey a message to us. We accept that challenge and are fueled to go on seeking You out and obeying Your commands. We must never forget the great sacrifice of Your Son on the cross made solely out of Your profound and unselfish love for us. You deserve nothing less than our humble offering of adoration, worship, loyalty, diligence, trust, obedience, glory, honor, praise, and thanksgiving. In Christ’s holy name, we pray. Amen.
Of course, I have left some things dangling in today’s message. You are probably wondering why I would mention Doeg and the priests of Nob. I admit these are “teasers” for events to unfold in this fascinating story of how covenant promises transcend generations. When we take the time to see how God’s love extended to David all the while he was in great physical danger from Saul’s persecution, we are getting a real look at how God’s love extends to all who believe. Remember RO 8: 1 and 28 and claim them as your own today. The time we take to honor our Abba and to listen and obey His commands is time precious to each of us. That is because His life-giving love is the greatest gift we have. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn