David: A Man After God's Own Heart
Refuge: Part II
What kind of man sacrifices safety for responsibility?
The short version: A man who is always ready to step forward and defend those in need.
Or apparently a really great husband.
Long version? Well, here goes nothing.
If you sit back and read Psalms for any given period of time there are going to be two major themes running through most of the book. Any guesses?
1. Rejoice! (Psalms 92: 4-5)
2. Save Me! (Psalms 69:1-3)
In the Psalms there are 43 references to the word "refuge" alone
Refuge
1. Shelter or protection from danger, trouble, etc.: to take refuge from a storm.
2. A place of shelter, protection, or safety.
3. Anything to which one has recourse for aid, relief, or escape.
Synonyms
1. security, safety. 2. asylum, retreat, sanctuary, haven, stronghold.
So, being chased through Israel, surrounded by people who are looking to him for protection, constantly praying to God to be saved. David is looking for a refuge at the same time he's acting as a refuge. Read the rest of Psalms 69 sometime, its a heavy, vivid prayer that begins with "I'm trapped in a mire and there is no place to stand" and ends with "you will be worshiped all through this land." and it gets even more difficult, because one day a messenger shows up with news of a Philistine invasion.
1 Samuel 23:1-5
1 When David was told, “Look, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah and are looting the threshing floors,”
2 he inquired of the LORD, saying, “Shall I go and attack these Philistines?” The LORD answered him, “Go, attack the Philistines and save Keilah.”
3 But David’s men said to him, “Here in Judah we are afraid. How much more, then, if we go to Keilah against the Philistine forces!”
4 Once again David inquired of the LORD, and the LORD answered him, “Go down to Keilah, for I am going to give the Philistines into your hand.”
5 So David and his men went to Keilah, fought the Philistines and carried off their livestock. He inflicted heavy losses on the Philistines and saved the people of Keilah.
Now note: nowhere in the job description of "fugitive" is the requirements to save people, let alone cities. In fact for all David's running and hiding from Saul he rarely ever acts like someone who needs to be running. Saving Keilah isn't something that David was required to do, in fact it was probably Saul's job to rally and army and stop invaders. But no, Saul is keeping himself busy with other things. And its not like God showed up and said "Go save Keilah." David takes the inititative and seeks the Lord's direction in this matter. Notice the change in the answers: David comes and asks "Should I go?" And God says "Yes, go." David comes back and says "My men are afraid." God says "Go, you'll win."
So, what kind of man sacrifices safety for responsibility?
A man who does not believe that he is the one keeping himself safe.
Way back at the beginning of watching David's life unfold we see him stand up against Goliath, a 9 foot trained killer, with a stick and a slingshot, and he did it because of faith in God's promises and because he was unwilling to watch someone stand there and call God a liar. And this is David, who is sticking with that choice to trust in God's promises. He is living the life that all of us should be living, one that acts like the things we are promised will actually happen.
In this case, we are focusing on the promise of safety, of refuge.
Zeph 3:16-17
16 On that day
they will say to Jerusalem,
“Do not fear, Zion;
do not let your hands hang limp.
17 The LORD your God is with you,
the Mighty Warrior who saves.
He will take great delight in you;
in his love he will no longer rebuke you,
but will rejoice over you with singing.”
Now, I think the whole idea of a warrior God has been kind of lost in the last couple generations, but that's a topic for another time.
But sidenote: what do you think it means by their hands hanging limp? (Surrender.)
Take a moment to think about the people that make you feel safe, that you know you could go to if you were in trouble, that would come to your help if you were in danger. I know that if someone broke into my house and tried to harm my sisters I'd be doing everything I could to protect them. I would fong them, there would be pain, lots of pain, their entrails would become their extrails... etc etc etc. If that person isn't your dad, I'm truly sorry, that's tragic, but anyway, think about that person and then think about God and think about Matthew 7:11
Matthew 7:11
If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!
If your dad or big brother or best friend would go to such great lengths to keep you safe, how much more will an all-powerful, all-knowing God?
Now for us, sitting in this room. Most of us will not be put into a place where we have to escape from an army or protect their families from intruders or travel to France to save our best friends. And believe me, I pray every day that we don't have to, but I've lost count of the evenings I've spent on the phone or sitting on a couch with a friend, listening to them pour their hearts out, with all the pain and confusion and stress and drama getting everywhere, and its not because I can say the magic words and make the pain go away, that I can wave my magic wand and make all their enemies disappear in a poof of smoke, as much as I wish I could its rare that I can do more than tell them I'll pray for them. They came and talked to me because they felt safe to do so, and in that way I was able to be a refuge for them. And I don't know how or where those situations will arise in you guys lives but they will if you are willing and live the kinds of lives that makes you a refuge, and I wish I could give you a ten point list of things you can do to become a sanctuary, but mainly it means being willing to and loving people.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Monday, September 12, 2011
Recap + Refuge part 1
We have been studying the life of David for the last month, or maybe I should say lifetime of David because we’ve spent a surprisingly small amount of time actually discussing the man himself. Its time for a recap, except this time we’re going to be playing a little bit of fill in the blanks.
So, let us recap:
The story of David’s life begins with: (Saul).
Saul, the first king of Israel, began his life as king by (hiding in the baggage), living in (fear) and that led him to (compromise).
He obeyed part of what God asked of him, and part of what the world around him expected of him, and gained (nothing).
This compromise led God to find himself a (man after his own heart) to rule Israel, and He found David.
One of the first mentioned things David does after being anointed is he went out and killed Goliath. Why was he able to do this? Because he stepped out in (faith) to prove God’s (promises).
After this, Jonathan enters the scene and swears a (covenant) with David, declaring them BFF’s and eventually choosing his friendship with David over his (Kingdom).
Which leads us to now, the end of act one of the lifetime of David. David is running for his life while being chased by an angry king and his army. The heroic music swells as David makes his way into the wilderness throughout Israel.
Now, just out of curiosity, and I know we haven’t actually talked about him that much, we’ve pretty much stayed on the sidelines and watched the side characters, but in one word, how would you describe David?
Also, before we get any further into this, does anyone have any questions on what we’ve talked about so far?
1 Samuel 22:13-17
13 Saul said to him, “Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, giving him bread and a sword and inquiring of God for him, so that he has rebelled against me and lies in wait for me, as he does today?”
14 Ahimelek answered the king, “Who of all your servants is as loyal as David, the king’s son-in-law, captain of your bodyguard and highly respected in your household?
15 Was that day the first time I inquired of God for him? Of course not! Let not the king accuse your servant or any of his father’s family, for your servant knows nothing at all about this whole affair.”
16 But the king said, “You will surely die, Ahimelek, you and your whole family.”
17 Then the king ordered the guards at his side: “Turn and kill the priests of the LORD, because they too have sided with David. They knew he was fleeing, yet they did not tell me.” But the king’s officials were unwilling to raise a hand to strike the priests of the LORD.
1 Samuel 22:18-23
18 The king then ordered Doeg, “You turn and strike down the priests.” So Doeg the Edomite turned and struck them down. That day he killed eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod.
19 He also put to the sword Nob, the town of the priests, with its men and women, its children and infants, and its cattle, donkeys and sheep.
20 But one son of Ahimelek son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped and fled to join David.
21 He told David that Saul had killed the priests of the LORD.
22 Then David said to Abiathar, “That day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, I knew he would be sure to tell Saul. I am responsible for the death of your whole family.
23 Stay with me; don’t be afraid. The man who wants to kill you is trying to kill me too. You will be safe with me.”
So, while David was escaping he dropped by the priests at Nob and gets bread and the sword of Goliath from them (apparently he’s all grown up now, and when Saul hears about this he freaks out, gathers his army and heads over to accuse the priests of treason.
Which, as a side note, is a really odd concept to throw at a priest, if only because the priests serve God, the king doesn’t really even show up in their chain of command.
So, Saul accuses and Ahimelek's answer is fascinating. If you will allow me to remix for a moment: The priest looks over at Saul and says “are we thinking about the same David. Married your daughter, captain of your bodyguard, personal musician, renown war hero, brilliant leader, who has never spoken a bad word against you, even after you tried to pin him to the wall? That David? Are you joking with me? Why wouldn’t I help him? And what are you doing chasing him?”
To which Saul says to his men “Okay, kill them all.” And to which they (still being sane) say “Oh definitely not.” Doeg, who gets top honors in the horrible people in the history of Israel awards, butchers the priests, their families, their animals.
And this is a tragedy, not only because it marks a massacre against the priests of God, but because this is a moment where Saul receives the first of a several wake up calls that moving against David is wrong, and in response he basically redefines the very idea of “epic fail”.
Guilty conscience much?
So, one priest escapes and comes to David who offers him a place to stay, a place where he needs not fear, he offers him safety.
We’ll come back to this idea, but let’s head back a chapter for a moment and dive deeper.
1 Samuel 22:1-5
1 David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and his father’s household heard about it, they went down to him there.
2 All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their commander. About four hundred men were with him.
3 From there David went to Mizpah in Moab and said to the king of Moab, “Would you let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what God will do for me?”
4 So he left them with the king of Moab, and they stayed with him as long as David was in the stronghold.
5 But the prophet Gad said to David, “Do not stay in the stronghold. Go into the land of Judah.” So David left and went to the forest of Hereth.
So, David is on the run. He’s escaping Saul, who is after him with an army and intent to kill. He’s hiding in a cave. All of a sudden his family shows up, and then 400 other men show up, and that’s probably just the men. They’ve got families, so David’s gone from Israel’s most beloved son to Israel’s most wanted in 3 chapters, and now he’s gone from a guy hiding in a cave to a guy hiding in a cave responsible for 400+ people. The man basically has a small army, and all the responsibilities that come with that. At that point he decides the cave is getting way to cramped and drops his parents off at Mizpah before marching off on the bibles most dangerous camping trip. But think about that for a moment: David is hiding.
The perfect example of this is sardines. The larger the group gets the harder it is to keep them hidden and he’s gone from one man (easily hid) to a small army (not so much). He’s moved from hiding in a cave to having to hide in an entire forest.
He is beginning to sound an awful lot like Robin Hood.
What kind of man sacrifices safety for responsibility?
The short version: A man who is always ready to step forward and defend those in need.
We'll continue to look into this next week.
So, let us recap:
The story of David’s life begins with: (Saul).
Saul, the first king of Israel, began his life as king by (hiding in the baggage), living in (fear) and that led him to (compromise).
He obeyed part of what God asked of him, and part of what the world around him expected of him, and gained (nothing).
This compromise led God to find himself a (man after his own heart) to rule Israel, and He found David.
One of the first mentioned things David does after being anointed is he went out and killed Goliath. Why was he able to do this? Because he stepped out in (faith) to prove God’s (promises).
After this, Jonathan enters the scene and swears a (covenant) with David, declaring them BFF’s and eventually choosing his friendship with David over his (Kingdom).
Which leads us to now, the end of act one of the lifetime of David. David is running for his life while being chased by an angry king and his army. The heroic music swells as David makes his way into the wilderness throughout Israel.
Now, just out of curiosity, and I know we haven’t actually talked about him that much, we’ve pretty much stayed on the sidelines and watched the side characters, but in one word, how would you describe David?
Also, before we get any further into this, does anyone have any questions on what we’ve talked about so far?
1 Samuel 22:13-17
13 Saul said to him, “Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, giving him bread and a sword and inquiring of God for him, so that he has rebelled against me and lies in wait for me, as he does today?”
14 Ahimelek answered the king, “Who of all your servants is as loyal as David, the king’s son-in-law, captain of your bodyguard and highly respected in your household?
15 Was that day the first time I inquired of God for him? Of course not! Let not the king accuse your servant or any of his father’s family, for your servant knows nothing at all about this whole affair.”
16 But the king said, “You will surely die, Ahimelek, you and your whole family.”
17 Then the king ordered the guards at his side: “Turn and kill the priests of the LORD, because they too have sided with David. They knew he was fleeing, yet they did not tell me.” But the king’s officials were unwilling to raise a hand to strike the priests of the LORD.
1 Samuel 22:18-23
18 The king then ordered Doeg, “You turn and strike down the priests.” So Doeg the Edomite turned and struck them down. That day he killed eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod.
19 He also put to the sword Nob, the town of the priests, with its men and women, its children and infants, and its cattle, donkeys and sheep.
20 But one son of Ahimelek son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped and fled to join David.
21 He told David that Saul had killed the priests of the LORD.
22 Then David said to Abiathar, “That day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, I knew he would be sure to tell Saul. I am responsible for the death of your whole family.
23 Stay with me; don’t be afraid. The man who wants to kill you is trying to kill me too. You will be safe with me.”
So, while David was escaping he dropped by the priests at Nob and gets bread and the sword of Goliath from them (apparently he’s all grown up now, and when Saul hears about this he freaks out, gathers his army and heads over to accuse the priests of treason.
Which, as a side note, is a really odd concept to throw at a priest, if only because the priests serve God, the king doesn’t really even show up in their chain of command.
So, Saul accuses and Ahimelek's answer is fascinating. If you will allow me to remix for a moment: The priest looks over at Saul and says “are we thinking about the same David. Married your daughter, captain of your bodyguard, personal musician, renown war hero, brilliant leader, who has never spoken a bad word against you, even after you tried to pin him to the wall? That David? Are you joking with me? Why wouldn’t I help him? And what are you doing chasing him?”
To which Saul says to his men “Okay, kill them all.” And to which they (still being sane) say “Oh definitely not.” Doeg, who gets top honors in the horrible people in the history of Israel awards, butchers the priests, their families, their animals.
And this is a tragedy, not only because it marks a massacre against the priests of God, but because this is a moment where Saul receives the first of a several wake up calls that moving against David is wrong, and in response he basically redefines the very idea of “epic fail”.
Guilty conscience much?
So, one priest escapes and comes to David who offers him a place to stay, a place where he needs not fear, he offers him safety.
We’ll come back to this idea, but let’s head back a chapter for a moment and dive deeper.
1 Samuel 22:1-5
1 David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and his father’s household heard about it, they went down to him there.
2 All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their commander. About four hundred men were with him.
3 From there David went to Mizpah in Moab and said to the king of Moab, “Would you let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what God will do for me?”
4 So he left them with the king of Moab, and they stayed with him as long as David was in the stronghold.
5 But the prophet Gad said to David, “Do not stay in the stronghold. Go into the land of Judah.” So David left and went to the forest of Hereth.
So, David is on the run. He’s escaping Saul, who is after him with an army and intent to kill. He’s hiding in a cave. All of a sudden his family shows up, and then 400 other men show up, and that’s probably just the men. They’ve got families, so David’s gone from Israel’s most beloved son to Israel’s most wanted in 3 chapters, and now he’s gone from a guy hiding in a cave to a guy hiding in a cave responsible for 400+ people. The man basically has a small army, and all the responsibilities that come with that. At that point he decides the cave is getting way to cramped and drops his parents off at Mizpah before marching off on the bibles most dangerous camping trip. But think about that for a moment: David is hiding.
The perfect example of this is sardines. The larger the group gets the harder it is to keep them hidden and he’s gone from one man (easily hid) to a small army (not so much). He’s moved from hiding in a cave to having to hide in an entire forest.
He is beginning to sound an awful lot like Robin Hood.
What kind of man sacrifices safety for responsibility?
The short version: A man who is always ready to step forward and defend those in need.
We'll continue to look into this next week.
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