Saved by Enemies

1 Samuel 23:19-29

At the end of last week’s message, Jonathan had sought out to David to encourage him.  That was a bold move on his part.  Saul was willing to murder anyone associated with David.  He had just allowed an entire town of priests to be destroyed and had even thrown a spear at Jonathan when he stood up for David.  Let’s pick up back in I Samuel 23:16 and 17.

And Jonathan, Saul's son, arose and went to David at Horesh, and encouraged him in God.  Thus he said to him, "Do not be afraid, because the hand of Saul my father will not find you, and you will be king over Israel and I will be next to you; and Saul my father knows that also."—1 Samuel 23:16-17 NASB

Serving while Struggling

1 Samuel 23:1-18

Do you ever feel like you are just barely hanging on? One more storm, one more gust of wind, and you are just going to fall flat? You might be tempted to say, “Okay, God, that’s enough. This is all I can handle. One more problem, one more challenge, and I will just go to pieces.” God hears every cry of our hearts. He loves us more than we can imagine. But He is never sympathetic to self-pity. When we are struggling, He will assure us that He is right beside us. But He will often say, “I want you to reach out to someone else. I want you to help them, even though you feel helpless yourself.” He wants us to serve while struggling.

No Turning Back

I Samuel 22:6-23, Psalm 52

Welcome! Today we continue our series in I Samuel. I almost feel as though I should give a movie rating before getting into today’s passage, something along the lines that this passage is not suitable for young children, because I Samuel 22 is one of the darkest episodes in the book, and maybe one of the darkest accounts of the entire Old Testament.

Never Alone

I Samuel 21:10-22:5

Last week was Easter, and we took a step back from our series on David…or maybe it was a step up!  Tim shared about the Lord Jesus who is the greatest Shepherd and King.  Today, we return to our study of David.  David was a forerunner of Christ.  David was a humble shepherd as a boy, but God used that experience as part of his preparation to become king of the nation of Israel.  In this series, we are now in between the days when David was a shepherd and his ascendance to be king.

The Greatest Shepherd and King

Today we take a break from our tracing of David’s life from his humble beginnings as a shepherd to his becoming a great king over the nation of Israel. Today we remember an event that David looked forward to, by faith, without knowing when or how it would happen. The Holy Spirit gave him insight to anticipate a successor who would fulfill all the promises that God had given to him. That person, of course, was Jesus, who in His resurrection on the first Easter established David’s throne forever. The angel Gabriel announced the birth of Jesus in Luke chapter 1. It says that when Gabriel greeted the young woman Mary that she was “greatly troubled,” which I think is understandable, under the circumstances.