This Morning We Return to Our Sermon Series in 1 Samuel. Just to Remind You Where We Are

A Marriage Plot

1 Samuel 18:10-30

September 4, 2016

This morning we return to our sermon series in 1 Samuel. Just to remind you where we are: 1 Samuel is written about a time in Israel’s history when they moved from a cycle of rebellion against God, judgment, repentance, to redemption through leaders known as judges, and restoration to favor. Samuel was the last judge.

Samuel was the last judge because his sons were corrupt and the people wanted a king to lead them to military victory – modeled after all the nations around them. Samuel was not happy about this; however, God said, “They have not rejected you, they have rejected me.”

God granted their request. Even so, the author of 1 Samuel made it clear that God remained sovereign over Israel. God told Samuel to anoint a young man named Saul to be king. Saul looked the part: handsome, tall, brave in battle. He had all the qualities the people wanted. The problem was that he lacked the heart for God that God required. Saul’s repeated pattern of disobeying God’s command, followed by an excuse or explanation for why he did what he did (rather than repentance), led to God’s rejection of Saul as king. Thus, Samuel was appointed to go find another.

Samuel went according to God’s instructions to Bethlehem to look at the sons of Jesse. Jesse paraded seven of them before Samuel. God said no to each. Then, Samuel asked, “Is that it?” Jesse replied that he had one more son, David, who was out tending the sheep. David was the one Samuel anointed. At the time of his anointing, “the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that day forward.” Two verses later, the author wrote, “The spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD tormented him.” Just so you know, I know that last bit – the evil spirit from the LORD tormenting Saul – is a mystery. It is one of those things with which we have to wrestle if we are going to take Scripture seriously.

When we last left off with the story, David, full of the Holy Spirit, went out and defeated the Philistine giant and champion, Goliath. That brings us to today’s Scripture. David was held in significant favor with the people as a result of his victory. Saul was jealous even though he was still king. The narrative now describes David’s ascent and Saul’s concurrent descent. David moves from humble origins into the royal palace. Saul descends from anointed and favored into madness and despair.

Read 1 Samuel 18:10-30

The Plot

Before we get too deep into the “meaning” of this text for us, I want to go back through and point out a couple of things that are going on. First, this story is told artfully. The compare and contrast between Saul and David is the whole point and the author is masterful at making the differences stark. Saul is presented as a malevolent evil mastermind; David is the innocent young hero. Saul plots and schemes. David is humbled by the king’s attention, appreciates the opportunities he is given, and marvels at how God is fulfilling his word of anointing that David had received through Samuel.

Second, it is important to note what God was doing through the movement in the story. God was clearly orchestrating the events. The author was showing how the fruit of the Spirit evident in David was opening doors – all of which was part of God’s plan to elevate David to the kingship. For example, Saul initially loved David because David’s harp soothed his spirit. Then, Saul’s eldest son, Jonathan, loved David. Further, because of his military exploits, all Israel and Judah loved David. Now, here in our text, it is Saul’s second daughter, Michal, who loved David. That gave Saul the angle and strategy to try to do something about David. However, from our perspective, we can see how God was working David up to be positioned to be the king who would be a “man after God’s own heart.” Look at the change in David’s status: he moved incredibly quickly from lowly shepherd to recognized leader and relative of the king.

Third, the bride price that Saul demanded for David to marry Michal seems kind of gross. Well, it is gross. That said, it is gross to modern ears; but the author was employing politically incorrect ethnic humor. To the ancient Jewish ear, this portrayal of the Philistine rivalry and warfare would have made the story memorable. David was going to circumcise one hundred dead Philistines. I am not going to dwell on the significance of this action other than to say Saul was hoping that David would die trying.

Saul’s Standing As King

Let me now turn our attention to the larger picture that the author wanted to show us. There are two opposite movements taking place simultaneously that I want to raise to your attention. On the one hand there is the public success Saul was enjoying because of David’s service; and on the other there is the private meltdown that Saul was having because he knew God’s favor had been removed from him. We know that Saul was losing his grip on the kingdom, but to the general public it would appear that Saul was doing really well. He seemed to be an awesome king. Remember, he looked the part. He looked like a king was supposed to look. In public he acted like the people expected a king to act; that is, he acted like the kings of the nations around Israel. Because there was no social media, there were no reports of his madness or growing jealousy of David played out to the general public. He and his military commanders were having success against the Philistines. Thus, for the general public, Saul’s kingship seemed to be going well.

To maintain that public façade, Saul was acting according to the wisdom of the world. He wanted to portray himself as the king. He wanted to secure his power. He wanted to act like a king so that he would be perceived as the king. David did not seem to be fazed by Saul’s attempts on his life; almost as if this was something people knew kings could do behind closed doors. The perception of power and the latitude of normal mores was just a given.

So, when Saul perceived a threat, following the wisdom of the world, he took steps to mitigate or eliminate it. He could not abide with a challenge to his position. He perceived himself to be the focus of power and so he was a law unto himself. What was good for Saul – in his own eyes – was what was good. Saul did not go to God in prayer. He did not study Scripture or the law of Moses. He acted as though he hoped God would just leave him alone or that God just would be a silent force working in his favor from afar. From Saul’s perspective, he was still the king despite what Samuel had said about God removing the kingdom from him. Yes, he could see happening; but he had survived this long. If he could thwart David’s rise, he could thwart God’s rejection.

Relying on worldly wisdom to retain his worldly power, Saul used anyone and everyone for his own purposes. To the extent that his purposes were consistent with the nation’s purposes, everyone was happy. For example, Saul’s efforts to put David at risk actually played out to the benefit of Israel and Judah, so the people thought Saul was a great ruler for promoting a great warrior. But when those interests diverged, conflicted, or were not identical, Saul sought his own benefit. He tried to kill David himself. He tried to have the Philistines kill David. Then, he used his daughters as bait to get David to perform an incredibly dangerous act of service as the bride price. Any and all of these should have worked. On paper – that is, if God was not involved – conventional wisdom of how the world works would tell you that David should not have survived. And, as we will see played out for several weeks to come, Saul’s persistent rebellion against God would lead him into ever deepening madness and torment.

Friends, over and over Scripture shows us that the ways of the world are not greater or more powerful than the ways of God. The wisdom of the world is no match for the wisdom of God. The ways of the world may look good in the short term, but they inevitably lead to disastrous consequences, brokenness, despair, and even death. The hand of God may not be discernable in the immediate moment, but God always, always, always prevails. Think of the brothers of Joseph who sold him into slavery. In the short term, they had to sell a simple lie to their father, Jacob. In the long term, what they intended for evil, God intended for good. Think of Pharaoh. His hard heart was intended to keep Israel in bondage and slavery for Egypt’s profit. God demonstrated his power through the ultimate defeat of Pharaoh’s army in leading, through Moses, the people out of the land and to Sinai.

I bring this up today because of what I see happening in our country today. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Look at what is happening in our presidential election campaign. Many people in our country are despairing. The relentless onslaught of meaningless promises and counter criticisms has taken a toll. Both major political parties have nominated individuals whose track records are littered with lives broken as a consequence of relying upon worldly wisdom. If we open our eyes, both have been caught lying. Both have made statements about the other they knew or know to be false. Both have made promises they have no intention of keeping.

They both are struggling to look presidential. Their greatest success is showing why the other is not presidential. Further, although both make religious overtures when it is popular with the audience from whom they are trying to win votes, both are dealing with scandals that are rooted in the blind ambitious quest for worldly power. It almost seems like a mania, doesn’t it? What does it say that the chief motivation of the voters for both candidates is the need to vote against their opponent. The whole thing looks a lot like madness.

Neither has led their campaign by having their staff and team on their knees before God in worship, seeking after God’s approval and direction. Of course they have not; because it is a secular position. Or is it? Is the presidency of the United States outside of God’s purview?

David’s Road

Here, we turn our attention to David. David is very different than Saul. The Spirit of the LORD rested upon him, and he was dwelling in the midst of that relationship as all these other things were taking place. From a worldly perspective, David had a remarkable run of successes. But it is not the remarkable run of successes that makes David special. David himself did not own those successes. He would not attribute them to his own strength, his own power, his own wit, or his own abilities. At this point in his life, he would not even think in those terms.

To what would David attribute his success? He would attribute it to his service before the LORD. The battle was the LORD’s. David was God’s servant. Further, David’s service to God included his being the servant of the anointed one of the LORD; here, Saul. David lived with abandon because he knew the one in whom he was secure. He was not living for himself; he was living for God. He was not caught up in trying to attain earthly power. He was serving the one with eternal and universal power. David was not trying to impress anyone here for political purposes. He was living in trust before the LORD and wanted to be pleasing in God’s sight. How different that was than the mania Saul was experiencing!

David was not anxious about his rise to power. He neither sought it nor avoided it. It happened. He did not seek to be part of the royal family. God had orchestrated his path. David had been brought to the royal household to sooth Saul with his harp. He served the royal family with he military exploits. He befriended the king’s son Jonathan because, well, David was a good friend. He found favor in the eyes of the king’s daughter. God opened all those doors. There was no strategic plan on David’s part to make those things come to pass. He simply lived according to the will and pleasure of the LORD.

I get it. Not every shepherd is a David and we are not all called to become the king of Israel. That is true. Further, it is not like David’s life was stress-free. We will get to that later. But at this point where he was so very close to God because of his time spent as a shepherd, David knew incredible peace and power.

How about you? Which do you know better? Do you find yourself filled with anxiety and mania of Saul or the peace and joy of David? What did Jesus say?

He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” (Mark 8:34-38)

David understood that. After the resurrection the apostles understood it. The testimony of their lives after the resurrection was a bold statement of living for God. What about you? What about us? For whom are we living – ourselves or for the LORD?

Friends, our security will not come from the government. It will not come from military power or financial abundance. Our security will not be based on our ability to manipulate and control. Our salvation and security come only as we live in the LORD. We need not despair the election season or have anxiety about anything, “but with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, [we can] let our requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7)