Latest / Fairview Presbyterian Church (PCA) Sermons / Trust Through Trial (1 Samuel 24:1-22)- Mr. Dalton Vetter

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Trust Through Trial (1 Samuel 24:1-22)- Mr. Dalton Vetter · Fairview Presbyterian Church (PCA) Sermons

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It is my pleasure tonight to get to continue
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our series on shepherding sermons. Tonight we
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are going to be in First Samuel 24. And as you
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turn to First Samuel 24, I want to admit to you
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something. As I was reviewing my sermon and specifically
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the text of scripture this afternoon, I realized
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that the title, The Heart of Mercy that I have
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in the bulletin, does not represent the text
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well. So I'm changing the title of the sermon
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to trust through trial. Again, trust through
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trial. I think that captures the heart of 1 Samuel
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24 more than the heart of mercy does. So if you'll
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turn to your Bibles there, if you haven't already,
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I'll begin reading in verse one. When Saul returned
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from following the Philistines, he was told,
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behold, David is in the wilderness of Enjedi.
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Then Saul took 3 ,000 chosen men out of Israel
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and went to seek David and his men in front of
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the wild goat's rocks. And he came to the sheepfolds,
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by the way, where there was a cave. And Saul
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went in to relieve himself. Now David and his
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men were sitting in the innermost parts of the
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cave. And the men of David said to him, here
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is the day which the Lord said to you, Behold,
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I will give your enemy into your hand, and you
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shall do to him as it shall seem good to you."
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Then David arose and stealthily cut off a corner
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of Saul's robe, and afterward David's heart struck
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him, because he had cut off a corner of Saul's
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robe. He said to his men, the Lord forbid that
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I should do this thing to my Lord, the Lord's
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anointed, to put out my hand against him, seeing
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that he is the Lord's anointed. So David persuaded
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his men with these words and did not permit them
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to attack Saul and Saul rose up and left the
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cave and went on his way afterward David also
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arose and went out of the cave and called after
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Saul my lord the king and when Saul looked behind
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him David bowed with his face to the earth and
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paid homage and David said to Saul why do you
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listen to the words of the men who say behold
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David seeks your harm? Behold, this day your
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eyes have seen how the Lord gave you today into
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my hand in the cave. And some told me to kill
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you, but I spared you. I said, I will not put
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out my hand against my Lord, for he is the Lord's
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anointed. See, my Father, see the corner of your
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robe in my hand, for by the fact that I cut off
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the corner of your robe and did not kill you,
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you may know and see that there is no wrong or
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treason in my hands. I have not sinned against
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you, though you hunt my life to take it. May
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the Lord judge between me and you. May the Lord
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avenge me against you, but my hand shall not
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be against you. As the proverb of the ancient
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says, out of the wicked comes wickedness, but
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my hand shall not be against you. After whom
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has the king of Israel come out? After whom do
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you pursue? After a dead dog? After a flea? May
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the Lord therefore be judge and give sentence
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between me and you and see to it and plead my
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cause and deliver me from your hand. As soon
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as David had finished speaking these words to
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Saul, Saul said, Is this your voice, my son David?
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And Saul lifted up his voice and wept. He said
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to David, you are more righteous than I, for
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you have repaid me good, whereas I have repaid
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you evil. And you have declared this day how
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you have dealt well with me and that you did
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not kill me when the Lord put me into your hands.
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For if a man finds his enemies, will he let him
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go away safe? So may the Lord reward you with
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good for what you have done to me this day And
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now behold I know that you shall surely be king
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that the kingdom of Israel shall be established
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in your hand swear to me therefore by the Lord
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that you will not cut off my offspring after
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me and that you will not destroy my name out
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of my father's house and David swore this to
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Saul then Saul went home, but David and his men
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went to his stronghold The grass withers and
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the flower fades, but the word of the Lord endures
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forever. Let us pray. Our Lord and our God, you
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are holy and you are righteous. Your throne is
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formed of righteousness and justice, and you
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show your mercy and your steadfast love to us
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and our children's children. Lord, we thank you
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for how you have worked through the history of
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your church. through Israel, through King David
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and through your son, Jesus. Lord, we pray that
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you help us this evening to understand all that
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you have hidden within your word and help us
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to be driven to your glory by it. Pray all of
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this in Jesus' name, amen. In 1983, one of the
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greatest fight scenes to ever happen took place
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in theaters. This is the great fight scene between
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Luke Skywalker and his father Darth Vader We're
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finally after two movies now on to the third
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we have waited as Luke has ran from Vader He
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had his hand cut off and he had it replaced and
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then he ran and he ran and he ran before He finally
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got to the point. He could no longer deny what
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needed to happen. He needed to face his father
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good versus evil had to go to war. And so Luke
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surrendered himself into the hands of Vader and
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went before the throne of the emperor. And as
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he's face to face with the emperor and his father,
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he sees an opportunity to grab his lightsaber.
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So using the force, he pulls his saber towards
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himself and him and Vader began to go to battle.
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exchanging blow after blow after blow until Luke
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gives into his anger he gives into his emotions
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and begins to just drive blow after blow after
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blow bringing Vader to his knees where he has
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the opportunity to kill him the father has the
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opportunity to kill or the son has the opportunity
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to kill the father good has an opportunity to
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kill evil but Luke chooses mercy Luke, just like
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David, chose mercy. I actually think that Luke
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Skywalker and King David are quite similar. Two
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poor boys, one a farmer, one a shepherd, called
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on by an old man, Luke by Obi -Wan, and David
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by Samuel to do something, to fight the darkness.
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And they both were on the run from their father
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or someone that represented. their father and
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they both had the opportunity to kill those who
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opposed them and so David up to this point in
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Psalm 24 has been a servant of the king but he
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has ultimately been on the run starting in chapter
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20 he has been on the run and in chapter 23 right
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before we get to chapter 24 is the culmination
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of it all Saul's anger hits a high point He believes
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that the Lord has given David into his hands
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when David goes out at the command of God to
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fight the Philistines and So Saul pursues after
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David and seeks to kill him when he has the opportunity
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but the Lord prevents this opportunity and so
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David goes on the run as he did many times before
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and He goes from town to town and Saul pursues
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after him Using spies and using messengers, Saul
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continues to learn where David is at until Saul
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is called back to Israel to fight against the
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Philistines. So we pick up in chapter 24 where
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Saul has gone to battle and he learns where David
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is. David is in the wilderness of Enjedi in verse
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one. And Enjedi was the perfect place to hide
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yourself and hide an army. It was a very hilly
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terrain. It was hard to move an army through.
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However, it was an oasis where there was plenty
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of food, plenty of water. There's a waterfall
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that runs right through the middle of this wilderness.
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And within the hills of Njeti is this area called
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the Wild Goats Rocks. And the Wild Goats Rocks
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were natural caves that had been cut out. They
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had been cut out to hold for the shepherd, so
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that as the shepherd were standing in the heat
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of the desert day, they could have a place of
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escape. Well, now this place turns to a stronghold
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for David and his men. So David is hiding in
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the cave with 600 men, and Saul brings out 3
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,000 chosen men. These are chosen men, hands
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selected by Saul to go to war. They were men
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that knew war well. They would have been equivalent
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to our modern day SEAL Team 6, or the Army Rangers,
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where they knew how to battle, they knew how
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to fight, they knew how to draw blood and wouldn't
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stop until that happened. And so, Saul brings
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out these 3 ,000 men to find David and his men.
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Now, David had around 600 men, but these would
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have just been common infantrymen. They knew
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how to fight, but not against SEAL Team 6, not
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against the Army Rangers. But thankfully, Saul,
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like most of us, when he goes about a task, hits
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a point where he needs to use the restroom. And
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so thinking he was safe, not having seen David
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for a while, or at least not have seen him yet,
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he takes a couple of his men and places them
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outside of this cave, and he enters this cave.
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But David is in this very cave. And there's an
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interesting phrase here when the text says that
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Saul went in to relieve himself. Our modern translation
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summarizes a Hebrew phrase. The Hebrew phrase
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is actually to cover one's feet. And it literally
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meant to take your tunic and wrap it around yourself
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and so you could not see your feet in front of
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you and you could properly use the restroom.
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This phrase is only seen one other time in scripture.
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And that is in the book of Judges, the book that
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immediately precedes 1 Samuel. And we see it
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when Ehud, the judge, goes to the Moabite territory
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and goes in to kill King Aeglon. King Aeglon
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is setting on his throne, vulnerable. He was
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a fat king, that's what the text tells us. He
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cannot run quickly. His men were outside of the
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throne room and Ehud was able to go in front
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of the king and thrust his dagger into the king's
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side. He was vulnerable. And so seeing this same
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phrase in Psalm 24, there's two things that the
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author of Samuel wants us to see. For one, this
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comparison between Saul, who has shown his wickedness
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many times before, that Saul is closely related
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to this wicked Moabite king. But then second
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and most importantly, Saul is completely vulnerable.
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There's nowhere he can run. There's nowhere he
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can hide his Tunic is pulled up and there's no
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quick escape. And so David and his men in this
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section are watching Saul as he comes into this
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cave and he wraps his tunic around himself. And
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they believe that this is a moment that the Lord
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has provided. In verse four, here is the day
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which the Lord said to you, behold, I will give
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your enemy into your hand. And this phrase actually
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comes from chapter 23, the chapter immediately
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preceding this. where David is called out to
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go against the Philistines. And he asked the
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Lord, are you sure you want me to go out? And
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the Lord says, I will give the Philistines into
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your hand. So there is a small change that we
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see here in the text from Philistine to enemy.
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But when you're dealing with a wicked king, there
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is not a major difference between a wicked king
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who is your enemy trying to kill you and the
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Philistines who had tried to kill David. Previously,
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it's one for one. And so I do not believe the
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text does not support the idea that David's men
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are being deceitful. Actually, they're trying
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to acknowledge the sovereignty of the Lord, that
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nothing happens to David unless the Lord wills
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it, and nothing happens to Saul unless the Lord
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wills it. But the second part of their phrase
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becomes dangerous. you shall do to him as it
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shall seem good to you." God never gives permission
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to David to do what seems good to him. God in
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scripture never tells us to do what seems good
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to us because our hearts are wicked and they
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will always choose wickedness when we're left
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to our own devices. This phrase is again closely
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tied to the book of Judges. where in the book
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of Judges it's told to us that they did what
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was right in their own eyes. So we have a scene
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before us that we have seen before, a vulnerable
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king and a righteous judge who is given the opportunity
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to kill. David's men simultaneously are acknowledging
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God's sovereignty while also trying to tempt
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David. It's almost like Eve in the Garden. There
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is a perfectly good opportunity in front of her
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and she sees that the fruit is good and she takes.
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So what does David do with this opportunity?
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David listens to his men. He does not distinguish
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between the two parts of the phrase, the one
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of sovereignty and the one of temptation. And
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so David arises and he stealthily cuts off the
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robe of Saul. And here we see David's tactical
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ability and the fact that he could sneak up behind
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a king in a perfectly quiet cave and cut off
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the very corner of his robe. And the text doesn't
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tell us why David stopped there and he didn't
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thrust his dagger into the side of Saul. It just
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says that he stopped at the robe. And it's a
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good thing that he did because the moment after
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he cut off the robe, he was convicted. The text
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tells us in verse 5 that David's heart struck
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him because he had cut off a corner of Saul's
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robe. It was in this very moment where David
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realized he had ceased trusting in the Lord and
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had become like Saul. The robe in Israel is an
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important symbol. In 1 Samuel 15, God tells Saul
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to go forth and kill King Agag of the Amlicanites.
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And Saul does not do so. He conquers the city,
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but he captures the king. And Saul is proud of
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this until Samuel shows up. When Samuel shows
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up in chapter 15, Samuel rebukes Saul for not
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listening to the Lord, for capturing the king
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instead of killing him. And so Samuel the prophet
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turns away. And as he turns away, Saul reaches
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out. and he grabs the robe of Samuel, and he
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rips the robe. And in that very moment, Samuel
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turns back to Saul again and says that just as
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you have ripped my robe, the Lord will rip the
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hand of the king, or will rip the kingdom out
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of your hand. And it's in that very moment that
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we understand as readers of scripture that anytime
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we see the robe being cut or torn or taken, that
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we are to view it as the kingdom of Israel. And
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so David knows that in this moment, he's no greater
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than Saul. He had trusted the Lord up until this
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point to protect him. When he went to war, he
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prayed and he waited for the Lord's answer. But
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in this moment, he tried to take the battle into
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his own hands. Through trial and temptation.
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He tried to do it by himself. And so I ask you
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brothers and sisters Are you like Saul or are
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you like David in the midst of trial? Do you
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try to handle the trial by your own means and
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your own strength? Or do you turn to the Lord
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and prayer and wait and be still and trust in
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the Lord? I want to encourage you to be like
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David Have mercy in the moments when you want
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to take vengeance and David's mercy does not
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just stop with himself He encourages his men
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to be merciful In fact, he rebukes his men so
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that they are merciful and so David cuts this
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robe and he goes back to his men and in verse
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6 He says the Lord forbid that I should do this
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thing to my Lord, the Lord's anointed. This is
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the king of Israel, the king that God himself
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had chosen and anointed. And at this point, David
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himself had been anointed as king, but it was
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not in the Lord's foresight, in the Lord's will
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at this point to make him king. And David, after
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cutting the robe, repented and he understood
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that he needed to continue to trust in the Lord.
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And so David rebukes his men. Now, if you have
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like the ESV translation, it will say that David
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persuaded his men. The Hebrew has a much stronger
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word there. It's a word for he tore into his
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men. He rebuked his men. He wanted to obey the
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Lord and he forbid his men to do something else.
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He made his men obey the Lord along with him,
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to trust in the Lord along with him. David trusted.
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in the Lord through his testing. He did not waver.
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He did not shrink back. He trusted in the Lord.
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He did not use his own means and his own strength.
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And we need to follow the Lord's example or David's
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example. We need to trust in the Lord's timing
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in our life. We need to trust in the Lord's timing
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when there's a surgery that we must undergo that's
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unexpected. We must trust in the Lord's will
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and in his timing. when healing from that surgery
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takes longer than expected. We must trust in
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the Lord's timing when our friends and family
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move away and we feel alone. We must trust in
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the Lord's timing when we lose our job or our
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children fall sick. We must trust in the Lord
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and we must show the Lord's mercy to our enemies.
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And so David is patient. He is merciful. He is
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trusting in the Lord. And so Saul is able to
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walk out of the cave unharmed. David does not
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harm him. David's men do not harm him. He walks
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out unscathed. And now in verses 8 to 15, we'll
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see the defense of the righteous son. David will
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defend his own actions. And so in verse eight
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is Saul is walking away from the cave. He gets
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a little distance from the cave and David comes
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running out. And he yells out, my Lord, the king.
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He gives Saul honor. Even though Saul has tried
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to kill him again and again and again, he gives
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Saul the honor that he deserves as the Lord's
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anointed. And he does not just stop there. David
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places himself at the feet of Saul as a servant.
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He bows down with his face to the earth and he
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pays homage. And so he calls the king by the
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proper title and he bows down. He makes himself
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a servant in his time of trial. And so he continues
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from there. After calling out from Saul, he gives
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Saul kind of the benefit of the doubt where he
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gives him some grace. David says to Saul, why
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do you listen to the words of the men? who say,
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behold, David seeks to do you harm. David, just
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like his own men, assumes that Saul has advisors
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and men around him who say, David will kill you.
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He wants to take the kingdom, and you need to
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kill him before he does so. And so Saul gives
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him the benefit of that. He gives him some grace.
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He's not going to remove the guilt from Saul,
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but he gives him grace. Do you do the same in
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trials when you're persecuted by people? Do you
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give them grace? Do you encourage them in wisdom?
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Before you give them rebuke or before you try
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to correct them We must be like David because
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David's actions here are just like the future
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son of Jesse Jesus who even though he was sinless,
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when men rebuked him, he took the trial that
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God had given him and he went to the cross. He
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was obedient to the will of the Lord. And so
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David here is obedient. He seeks to show mercy
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and he stands there. He makes himself wide and
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he tells King Saul, look at me. I'm standing
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at this cave and Saul was a smart man. He knew
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that David could have taken his life, and David
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points that out in case Saul did not catch up
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on that fact. And he says that the Lord had given
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me the opportunity to kill you, but I did not.
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See that there is no wrong or treason in my hands.
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I have not sinned against you even though you
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hunt for my life, even though you want to take
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my life. Saul presents himself as, or he presents
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as members righteous. When he could have killed,
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he remains righteous. He uses himself as a physical
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testimony to what he was willing to do because
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of what the Lord had commanded. And then he goes
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a step further. In verse 11, he says to Saul,
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my father, he uses a term of endearment. It goes
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from a term of honor and a term of reverence
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to a term of endearment. And Saul was the father
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of David. Metaphorically, as king of Israel,
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he was, Saul was the father of all the nation
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of Israel. He was meant to teach the children
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of Israel how they ought to walk. But then also,
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literally, Saul's daughter had married King David.
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King David was the son -in -law of Saul. And
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so in this phrase, it's a term of endearment
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for the king of Israel, but for his own family.
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And David holds up this piece of robe that he
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has cut off. And you actually know this feeling,
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or you might be able to relate to it. I know
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many of you are parents, and some of you it's
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been longer than others, where you've had little
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children in your household. Maybe you know this
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from your grandchildren at this point. But you
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know that call of your child when they're in
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the other room, Mom, Dad, come here, I have something
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to show you. I made something for you, I did
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something. And you go running and... Upon coming
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into the room you see that they have a drawing
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for you or maybe they finally clinged your room
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But imagine if they called for you mom dad come
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quick and now in the room They are holding the
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deed to your paid -off house above a lit candle
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in that moment Your heart would begin to race
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your blood pressure would skyrocket. You might
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even begin to sweat Everything you had worked
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for, everything you have attained is now being
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held over the flame. That is what David is doing
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here by holding up this robe. I can burn, I can
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destroy everything you've worked for with the
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Lord's permission, but I will not. I will be
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obedient. I will trust in the Lord's timing.
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I will not take your life, even though I was
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given the opportunity. And so he tells Saul that
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the Lord should be judged between them. that
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he will not avenge himself. David, again, shows
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himself to be a man of righteousness, a man after
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God's own heart. He will not avenge himself.
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And now he takes his mercy, he takes himself
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from going from a sign of righteousness to using
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his mercy to call out Saul for his own actions.
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And he quotes an ancient proverb. Out of the
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wicked comes wickedness, but my hand shall not
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be against you. This proverb is not one of scripture,
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is just an ancient proverb, but it is one that
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we are familiar with. It is from Matthew chapter
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seven, when Jesus uses a similar proverb. So
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every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the
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diseased tree bears bad fruit. The statement
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of David here, out of the wicked comes wickedness,
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is a double -edged sword. On one hand, it points
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out that when you are a wicked man or woman,
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you will act wickedly. But if you are a righteous
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man or a righteous woman, you will act righteously.
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David has already showed himself to be the righteous
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man. But he points out to Saul that he has been
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the wicked king. And verse 14, after whom has
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the king of Israel come out? After whom do you
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pursue? After a dead dog, someone, something
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that cannot bite you, that cannot bark at you,
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that can't even move, who's dead. Or maybe after
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a flea. You could spend hours upon hours chasing
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a flea around your kitchen, trying to kill it,
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but there's no point in that. That flea will
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not harm you. It's not going to destroy anything.
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It's powerless. And so Saul has spent much time,
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multiple years chasing after David, after someone
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who is powerless, after someone who bends the
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knee to the Lord God before he bends the knee
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to anyone else. And then he asked the Lord one
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more time to be the judge between him and Saul.
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He does not want to act. And he asked for Saul
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not to act until the Lord himself has acted.
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And so now we wait. There's maybe a faint pause
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in the air as we wait to hear the response of
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the wicked father in verses 16 through 22. So
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David has presented himself as a man of righteousness,
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someone that has no spot or blemish. But now
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he has accused the king of being a righteous.
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an unrighteous man, a wicked man. What is his
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response? As soon as David finished speaking,
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Saul said, Is this your voice, my son David?
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And obviously, Saul at this point has seen David
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clearly. He has seen the actions of David. He
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knows that it is David standing before him, but
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he almost can't believe everything that's going
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on. And he returns David's word of endearment.
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He says, My son, David. And Saul is cut to his
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heart. He lifts up his voice and he weeps. He
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sees his wicked actions and acknowledges everything
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that David has been that he is not. David is
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more righteous than he is. He repaid Saul good
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where Saul repaid him evil. Saul in this moment
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of mercy looking at this righteous man does not
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repent. And if Saul was going to repent, this
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was the perfect opportunity. David, I'm sorry,
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forgive me. I will no longer chase after you.
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I will follow after the Lord as you have. But
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Saul does not repent. He acknowledges the righteousness
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of David. He acknowledges the mercy of David,
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and really the mercy of God, because the king
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was always the representative of God. And so
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this is not just the mercy of David. This is
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the mercy of the Lord. The Lord has saved Saul
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from the hand of David, but Saul refuses to repent.
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He will not repent. He rejects the mercy and
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he rejects it and acknowledges that David will
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be king because of the mercy that he has shown.
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David is a man after God's own heart. He is a
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man that perfectly fulfills and keeps Deuteronomy
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17. He will be king of Israel. The Lord does
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bless those who do righteousness. And that is
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not prosperity gospel. That's not do the right
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thing and you will be blessed. But if you keep
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the commandments of the Lord, the good father
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gives good gifts to his children. David will
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be king. He will replace Saul. He will be the
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ruler of Israel. And Saul acknowledges that.
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But before he stops speaking, even though he
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has rejected the mercy of God, he asked for that
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mercy for his children. And it's at this point
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that we see that Saul, if he would have repented,
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he would have made a good Presbyterian. Because
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he asked for the mercy of David and the Lord
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to be on his children. He says, swear to me therefore
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by the Lord that you will not cut off my offspring
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after me. It was commonplace in the ancient world
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that when one king took the throne, the family
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of that king would be killed or at least pushed
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out of the land, driven out of the land. And
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we actually see that in our politics today. When
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one president leaves office and another one takes
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his place, every executive order that the one
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president made, the new president cancels all
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of them, especially if the parties are now switching.
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And so we know what this looks like. We know
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that it means condemnation on the new ruler.
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But Saul asked for the mercy of David. David's
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trust in the Lord and his mercy is so great that
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even before Saul made this request to his children
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and the prior chapters David had already made
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a covenant with Jonathan the son of Saul that
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he that Jonathan would be at the right hand of
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David when David became king David would bless
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the children of Samuel David had great mercy
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just as our Lord has shown us great mercy And
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so as we go through the trial, as we face opposition,
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we must remember that the righteous son rests
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in the hands of his father. The righteous son
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rests in the hands of his father. David underwent
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great trial, great tribulation running from King
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Saul, but he trusted in the Lord and he showed
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the mercy of his heavenly father. Through testing,
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David became a true king. He represented the
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God of Israel. He did not give into his desires.
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He did not seek out the dark Lord to kill him
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and listen to the commands of the wicked Emperor,
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but he grew in righteousness. He was sanctified
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by his trial. Whereas Saul showed his unrighteousness.
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He rejected the mercy of David and thus the mercy
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of God. He showed himself to be wicked. She showed
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himself to be condemned. And so in our darkest
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moments of temptation, let us be like David.
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Like David in Psalm 57, let us cry out, be merciful
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to me, oh God, be merciful to me. For in you,
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my soul takes refuge. In the shadow of your wings,
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I will take refuge. Till the storms of destruction
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pass by, I cry out to God the most high, to God
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who fulfills his purpose for me. He will send
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me from heaven and save me. He will put to shame
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him who tramples on me. God will send out his
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steadfast love and his faithfulness. Let us pray.