I know something about you this evening. I know that you live in David's world. Your world is sometimes a world of danger. Your world is sometimes a world of disappointment. Sometimes your world is very confusing. Sometimes it is hard to understand what God is doing. Sometimes your world is a world of great struggle with sin. Sometimes your world is a world of sadness. Somehow, someway, you're making sense out of your world. What did you think about God, this week? What did you think about you this week?
What Did You Think This Week?
What did you think about sin this week? What did you think about God's grace this week? What sense did you make of your world? Well, for that, we have the Word of God. The Word of God is meant to be a mirror, a map, a finger - a mirror showing us ourselves as we actually are. The passage we'll look at tonight is designed by God to be a mirror, a mirror in which you can look and see yourself with accuracy. The passage we'll look at tonight is meant to be a map laying out for us the direction of the great plan of God, giving us guidance for what it means to live God's way in this confusing world in which we live.
And then this passage, like every other passage, is meant to be a finger that points us to the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. If you would, take your church Bibles and turn to I Samuel 20. I'm asking you to do that because there are verses that we will look at that are not in your 'Order of Worship'. We find David in this period of time called, "His Wanderings." He has been driven into hiding by the murderous jealousy of Saul, and in verse 20, he comes back toward Gibeah, which was Saul's stronghold to see if he can make amends to counsel with his dear friend, Jonathan.
It's a dangerous time for David to be there because the time he has chosen is the time of the New Moon Feast. He is, after all, the son-in-law of the King; he would be expected to be at the table during the celebrations. And so, Jonathan and David have to work this back story that gives him an excuse for not being there. Quickly, Saul realizes the ruse and explodes in anger toward Jonathan. David is then forced to continue his wanderings, and the passage ends with one of the most tearful, sweet, and heartbreaking farewells that you have in all of Scripture.
Jonathan and David would not see one another again except for one brief moment, these men who loved one another so dearly. What I want to do with you is use the characters in this passage as a lens on this account. I want to start first with Saul and how Saul pictures for us the dangerous slavery of sin. This man that was once a man who felt it was his right to step over God's boundaries had gone deeper and deeper in his rebellion. Now he is literally a warrior against the plan of God. He will not let God's annointed king take the throne.
Saul is going to do anything in his disposal to keep that from happening. I want to pick up with you the account at verse 26. The King notices the first day that David is not there... Yet Saul did not say anything that day, for he thought, "Something has happened to him. He is not clean; surely he is not clean." (Perhaps he thought David was ceremonially unclean; maybe he touched a dead animal or something, and so, he couldn't come the first day of the feast.) But on the second day, the day after the new moon, David's place was empty.
And Saul said to Jonathan his son, "Why has not the son of Jesse come to the meal, either yesterday or today?" Jonathan answered Saul, "David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Bethlehem." (This is the back story that he and David created.) He said, 'Let me go, for our clan holds a sacrifice in the city, and my brother has commanded me to be there. So now, if I have found favor in your eyes, let me get away and see my brothers.' For this reason he has not come to the King's table." Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, he said to him, "You son of a perverse, rebellious woman, did I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame, and to the shame of your mother's nakedness?
Jonathan Answers Saul
For as long as the son of Jesse lives on the earth, neither you nor your kingdom shall be established. Therefore send and bring him to me, for he shall surely die." Then Jonathan answered Saul his father, "Why should he be put to death? What has he done?" But Saul hurled his spear at him to strike him. So Jonathan knew that his father was determined to put David to death. And Jonathan rose from the table in fierce anger and ate no food the second day of the month, for he was grieved for David, because his father had disgraced him.
(ESV) There's a word here in describing Saul that I think is very important. Look at verse 20, it says, "Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said to him . . ." the terrible things that he said. It doesn't say in this passage that Saul's anger was caused by Jonathan. Saul's anger was ignited, was kindled by Jonathan. Jonathan was not the cause of his anger. Jonathan's love for David was what excited the anger of this man. Now why is that important? It's important to recognize that Saul's anger was not first with Jonathan.
Saul's anger was not first with David. Saul's anger was first with God. Saul's anger was first vertical before it was ever horizontal. The war in this passage is not a war between men. The war in this passage is the war of a man against the will of God. Saul is angry at God's plan. He's angry at God's purpose. He's obsessed with power. He's obsessed with the continuance of his line, and that anger explodes against anyone that stands in the way of his plan. Listen, brothers and sisters, those people that you blame for your anger have never caused your anger.
Those people are only ever the occasion for that anger, and what you see in Saul is the scary slavery of sin. What Saul once seemed to have control over, now utterly controls him. He's utterly obsessed; he's utterly driven; he's utterly depressed; he's utterly angry. This man is now in full-blown slavery to his own sin. So much so, that when his son questions his anger, that anger explodes against his own son, hurling a spear at him--actually a murderous moment against his own son. In my years of counseling, one of the things that I wasn't prepared for, that deeply affected me, was the amount of anger in the people of God toward God that I experienced.
Underneath the anger of a husband, underneath the anger of a wife, underneath the anger of friends, were deep questions about the plan of God, deep doubts of His wisdom, deep questions of His love and His goodness. Listen, if you claim to believe in the sovereignty of God, and you question your circumstances, your struggle is not with your circumstances; your struggle is with your Lord. And Saul stands for us as a warning. You would only ever, brothers and sisters, hear me say this, you would only ever need the example of Saul to understand sin is something not to be messed with.
It is damaging to your soul every time you step over God's boundaries. It's damaging to your soul every time you question God's will. It's damaging to your soul every time you doubt His Word. It's damaging to your soul every time you bring God into the court of your judgment and judge Him as having failed you in some way. I think the irritation, the impatience, the anger, the wrong communication, the ungodly actions that mark our responses to one another, and our responses to circumstances reveal for all of us that we will still struggle with the plan and purpose of God.
And you will only ever begin to get victory over those horizontal struggles when you begin to confess that your struggle is first vertical. This man, sad in his circumstances, driven and obsessed, is meant to be a mirror for us, meant to be a warning for us. I would ask you this evening, "Where do you tend to question the plan of God?" Maybe in your relationships, maybe in the dream that you had for your life, maybe in the state of life that you live in--your finances or your location, maybe what you're facing at your university, or you're facing at your job, is there perhaps a place, like Saul, where you're bringing God into the court of your judgment, and you're saying, "My will be done!
Your Kingdom Come
I do not like your will. I do not want your will. I want my will!" Or do you pray like the Lord's Prayer, "Your kingdom come, Your will be done, right here where I am on earth, as it is in heaven." Anger with God will always result in anger with others and anger with your situation. And then you have David. David is a great example of, in this passage, of the courage of godly character. It's a bit of a controversy about I Samuel 20. Some people say this actually is a bad moment for David. David is afraid and doesn't know what to do and is doing anything to find safety.
And I would argue with that--I think that there is indication in this passage that David is operating, in this moment, as a man of faith. Think about this. David is in safety in hiding, and he actually returns to the most dangerous place on earth for him. There could be no more dangerous place than Gibeah which is Saul's stronghold. David is actually walking toward his own demise. Now why would this man do this? Well, look with me at the beginning of the passage: "Then David fled from Naioth in Ramah and came and said before Jonathan, 'What have (is it I have)
I done? What is my guilt? What is my sin before your father, that he seeks my life?'" (ESV) I am persuaded that what David is doing is as an act of humility, an act of peace, and an act of courage, actually coming back to Gibeah, through Jonathan who is his dearest friend and happens to be the son of the King, seeking to make amends, seeking to make peace, hoping one more time that this great anger that Saul has against him could be once and for all settled. There is no indication that David has ever meant this man any harm.
There's no indication of any vengeance on the part of David. In fact, his responses to Saul are remarkable! And David even expresses the willingness for somebody to point out his guilt. "If there's sin that I've done, I'm willing to face my sin." He says to Jonathan in verse 8, "If I have sinned, I should pay the price for it." Now, I think, in a very different way, like Saul, David's responses are first vertical before they're ever horizontal. This is a man who has a deep rest in God. This is a man who has great confidence in the Lord.
He knows of His presence. He knows of His faithfulness. He knows of His power, and because of that, David is able to do this courageous thing, able to go to the place of greatest danger with the hope that somehow, someway, this terrible thing could be settled. This is the man who wrote these words. Perhaps these words were penned even during this experience. (Ps. 27:1-4) The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? When evildoers assail me to eat up my flesh, my adversaries and foes, it is they who stumble and fall.
Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war rise against me, yet I will be confident. One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple. (ESV) Hear this, courage is rooted in worship; humility is rooted in worship; peace, in the face of mistreatment, is rooted in worship. It's when my heart is filled with thanks and praise for the goodness of God, the presence of God, the power of God, the provision of God, that I'm able to rise above all the 'what if' fears that paralyze me.
How Do You Deal With Mistreatment?
And I'm able, in humble courage, to face danger. If that's what it takes to make peace. I would ask you this evening: How do you typically deal with mistreatment? What do you do when you're wronged? What do you do when somebody has misjudged you, has spoken against you, has wanted harm for you, or has dealt you harm? Are your responses shaped by fear as if you had no Lord? Or are your responses driven by a heart that can rest - rest in the goodness, and the wisdom, and the power, and the protection, and the love, and the grace of your Lord?
When does your faith give way to fear? And then there's Jonathan. I wish I had time to just talk about all of the things that this passage says about the sweetness of Jonathan's love for David. Isn't it remarkable that David's dearest friend in all of earth happens to be the son of this murderous king? Who could write this story but the Lord? And in this man's love, he is willing to do the unthinkable. Jonathan has a little bit of trouble in the beginning. If you notice the beginning of chapter 20, it's hard for him, verse 2, to believe that his father has these murderous intentions.
He thinks that can't be true, and David is able to convince him, and the moment that Jonathan is convinced, he steps forward to counsel, to cover, to protect, to encourage, and to love David. Hear these words beginning with verse 12: And Jonathan said to David, 'The LORD, the God of Israel, be witness! When I have sounded out my father, about this time tomorrow, or the third day, behold, if he is well disposed toward David, shall I not then send and disclose it to you? But should it please my father to do you harm, the LORD do so to Jonathan and more also if I do not disclose it to you and send you away, that you may go in safety.
May the LORD be with you, as he has been with my father. If I am still alive, show me the steadfast love of the LORD, that I may not die, and do not cut off your steadfast love from my house forever, when the LORD cuts off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth.' And Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, 'May the LORD take vengeance on David's enemies.' And Jonathan made David swear again by his love for him, for he loved him as he loved his own soul. (ESV)
Hear this truth. God incarnates His wisdom; God incarnates His love; God incarnates His protection through godly people that He places in our lives. This is God's love for David. This is God's wisdom for David. This is God's protection for David. This is God's grace in David's life coming to bear in David's life through the vehicle of this godly man who was willing to endanger himself for the sake of the future king. What a beautiful picture of biblical love. Listen, do you esteem the love of the people that God has placed in your life, placed in your life to incarnate His love, to incarnate His wisdom, to incarnate His grace, to incarnate His protection?
Do you value the body of Christ? Do you understand that God has many tools in His toolbox? He has many instruments to use, and He surrounds you with His care, His warning, His grace, His protection, His wisdom. We must reject an individualistic 'Jesus and me' form of Christianity. God ordains the ministry of His people; God raised up Jonathan for David. God gave this man what he needed at this moment through this remarkable connection. Who better could appeal to Saul? Who better who could find out what he was disposed to do next than his own son, who just happened to be the dearest friend that David had ever known?
What a beautiful picture. I said earlier, that there is no more poignant moment in Scripture than when these two men say their final goodbye, and they weep. David bows three times before his friend honoring his love, and he weeps as he runs out into the wilderness, and Jonathan returns to his father. Do you esteem, value, make use of the grace of Christ that He brings to you through His people? For all of the prominence of Saul, and Jonathan, and David in this passage, the central character of this passage is not one of those men.
God Is the Central Character
The central character of this passage is God. This passage points to the zeal that God has for His plan, the zeal He has for His kingdom, the zeal He has for redemption. It is God who has turned His back on evil Saul and is punishing him by His rejection. It is God who is protecting David at every point, restraining Saul so that he cannot harm this king, from whom would come the King of kings. It is God who raised up Jonathan to be an instrument of aid, and comfort, and grace to this man. This is God zealous for His kingdom, zealous for His glory, zealous for redemption.
And as you think about that, you think, every character in this passage is a finger pointing to the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Saul was a finger pointing to Jesus. Saul, who held onto power, held onto position, would not let go of what God had already taken away, stands in stark contrast to Jesus Christ, the King of kings, who did not consider equality with God something to be held onto, but made Himself nothing, and became a servant, and was obedient to death, even death on a cross.
Jesus was willing, as it were, to leave the palace of glory, to suffer the ravages of a fallen world, to deal with injustice, to suffer and die for our forgiveness, for our redemption, for our life with Him forever. David is a finger that points to Jesus, because like David, when Jesus was threatened, I Peter says, "He uttered no threats, but he committed himself to his heavenly father that judges all things justly." Jesus rested in the will of His father, He rested in the righteousness of His father, He rested in the power of His father, and so He was able to go to the cross and to do His Father's will.
And surely Jonathan is a finger that points us to Jesus because Jesus is the better friend. Jesus is a friend that sticks closer than a brother. Jesus is the only friend you will ever have who will never leave you or forsake you even though you deserve both. So, where does I Samuel leave us? It leaves us one place. Brothers and sisters, there is no security, there is no surety, there is no hope, there is no life, there is no future, but what is found in the Lord Jesus Christ. He is our forgiveness.
He is our righteousness. He is our hope. By awesome grace, He is our friend. Maybe you're here tonight and you've never placed your life in the hands of Jesus. I would plead for you to do that this evening. Maybe you're here as a believer, and there are moments when you rest in Jesus, but there are other moments where you bring Him into the court of your judgment again and question His faithfulness, and His love, and His goodness. I would call you to confess that and rest once more in the Friend that has found you, and accepted you, and forgiven you, and is transforming you by His grace.
Jesus is your Friend. Let's Pray: Thank you, Lord, for this, in ways sin-convoluted story, but doesn't get as bad as it could get because of the zeal of Your glory, and Your zeal for Your kingdom. Thank you for how this story, as so many other stories in the Bible do, drives us, once again, away from our righteousness, away from our strength, away from our wisdom, away from hope in situations and locations and people, to find our hope, once again, in the one and only Friend who will befriend us without fail forever, the Lord Jesus. May we find our hope in Him, Amen.
