A Better King Is Coming

Our sermon passage for today is the whole chapter, 1 Samuel 24.

! I'll read it trusting that it's God's inspired, inerrant, infallible, clear, sufficient word

! That he's preserved for us over every generation.

And in the hand of the Holy Spirit, it's the sword.

It's powerful.

It cuts through where no man's words can pierce.

All right.

We read in 1 Samuel 24, beginning at verse 1.

Now it happened, when Saul had returned from following the Philistines, that it was told

him, saying, Take note, David is in the wilderness of En Gedi.

Then Saul took 3,000 chosen men from all Israel and went to seek David and his men in the rocks

of the wild goats.

So he came to the sheepfolds by the road, and there was a cave, and Saul went in to attend

to his needs.

David and his men were staying in the recesses of the cave.

Then the men of David said to him, This is the day in which the Lord said to you, Behold,

I will deliver the enemy into your hand, that you may do to him as it seems good to you.

And David arose and secretly cut off a corner of Saul's robe.

Now it happened afterwards that David's heart troubled him because he had cut Saul's robe.

And he said to his men, The Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the Lord's

anointed, to stretch out my hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the Lord.

So David restrained his servants with these words and did not allow them to rise against

Saul.

And Saul got up from the cave and went on his way.

David also arose afterward, went out of the cave and called out to Saul, saying, My Lord,

the king.

And when Saul looked behind him, David stood with his face to the earth and bowed down.

And David said to Saul, Why do you listen to the words of men who say, Indeed, David seeks

your harm?

Look, this day your eyes have seen that the Lord delivered you today into my hand in the

cave and someone urged me to kill you.

But my eye spared you.

And I said, I will not stretch out my hand against the Lord, for he is the Lord's anointed.

Moreover, my father, see.

Yes, see the corner of your robe in my hand.

For in that I cut off the corner of your robe and did not kill you.

Know that there is neither evil nor rebellion in my hand, and I have not sinned against you.

Yet you hunt my life to take it.

Let the Lord judge between you and me, and let the Lord avenge you on me.

But my hand shall not be against you.

As the proverb of the ancient says, Wickedness proceeds from the wicked, but my hand shall

not be against you.

After whom has the king of Israel come out?

Whom do you pursue?

A dog?

A dead dog?

A flea?

Therefore let the Lord be judge, and judge between you and me, and see, and plead my case,

and deliver me out of your hand.

So it was when David had finished speaking these words to Saul that Saul said, Is that

your voice?

My son David.

And Saul lifted up his voice and wept.

And he said to David, You are more righteous than I, for you have rewarded me with good,

whereas I have rewarded you with evil.

And you have shown this day how you have dealt well with me.

For when the Lord delivered me into your hand, you did not kill me.

For if a man finds his enemy, will he let him get away safely?

Therefore, may the Lord reward you with good for what you have done to me this day.

And now I know indeed that you shall surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall

be established in your hand.

Therefore swear now to me by the Lord that you will not cut off my descendants after me,

and that you will not destroy my name from my father's house.

So David swore to Saul, and Saul went home.

But David and his men went up to the stronghold.

The word of God for the people of God.

Thanks be to God.

Please be seated.

The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of the Lord shall endure forever.

Let's pray.

Oh Lord, we ask that you please work mightily through the preaching of your word.

We ask that you take the truth in your word, Lord, that you open our eyes, our minds, our

hearts to see Christ, to receive Christ.

We pray that you please help the preacher to lift up Christ, to give your people Christ.

And Lord, we pray that we can leave here trusting more in Christ, looking forward to his kingdom,

and enjoying the status we have as citizens in the kingdom of Jesus Christ, even while we're

sojourners and pilgrims on this earth.

We ask this for your glory.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Well, we humans are perpetual waiters.

Someone has pointed out how even with technology and all the shortcuts and the efficiency, we

still find ourselves waiting and waiting and waiting for many things, don't we?

I think this is wired into who we are.

We spent childhood waiting for the freedom of adulthood, only to spend adulthood waiting

for retirement, for the weekend, or for some change in our situation.

And as we wait for different things in this life, it's very easy in our flesh to look to

worldly things as a fix.

Someone described waiting as a faint kind of death.

To wait is to die slowly because it drains out the life we have in the present.

If we are always waiting, it's like we are merely enduring life.

We often are waiting for some new king or new regime or new change, solutions, leaders, money,

status, something that we think will help, but none of those things can actually save.

In Lamentations chapter 3, verses 25 and 26, we have this wonderful promise.

Lamentations 3:25

The Lord is good to those who wait on him.

The soul who seeks him.

So there is a type of waiting on the Lord that is good.

When our soul is seeking him first, his kingdom, not a fix of this world.

It's good that a person should hope and wait quietly for the kingdom of the Lord.

It's a quiet confidence that the outcome is already secured by the better king.

Chapter 4 causes us to do that.

To put our hope in a better king.

A king who is coming.

And that's the title for our sermon today.

An encouragement for you and me today.

We look back at the first coming of Jesus.

We also look forward longingly with hope in his second coming.

So brothers and sisters in the Lord, be encouraged.

From this chapter, a better king is coming.

Four observations as we look at this passage.

First, a better king is coming.

A king whose heart loves God more than anything he can grab in this world.

A better king is coming.

A king whose heart loves God more than anything he can grab in this world.

Let's look back at verse 1.

We read,

Now it happened when Saul had returned from following the Philistines.

Remember, that's where we left off in chapter 23.

Saul and his men were encircling the rock of escape about to capture David.

And then a messenger says,

Hurry, the Philistines are invading Judah.

So all those men turn around and go fight off the real enemy.

And we remember right before that,

that Saul loved to do one thing day after day after day.

And that's chase David, hunt David down.

So as soon as he's driven off the Philistines,

apparently successfully by God's power,

Saul returns to the thing he loves to do every day.

And that's find David again.

And there are some messengers at work.

Look at verse 1.

It was told him.

And this is a pattern we see.

Skip forward a couple more chapters.

Those Ziphites, again, in these rocky caves,

they go back out of their way to Gibeah to tattle on David to Saul.

This is a repeating pattern.

And they say,

Take note, David is in the wilderness of En Gedi.

Verse 2.

Who then saw took 3,000 chosen men from all Israel

and went to seek David and his men in the rocks of the wild goats.

In this region, there were apparently these many caves.

Some of them had a big mouth,

and you could bring an entire little flock of sheep in there

to get out of the heat of the desert and the wilderness.

They could enjoy a little bit of shade.

Or in the other months, if it's snowing and cold,

it provides a little bit of shelter.

And it was just a place where maybe like Waterton Canyon,

you can see these wild goats or longhorn sheep as you go there.

An amazing place to hike around

and so many places to hide.

In verse 3,

What does your translation say that Saul went in to do?

Well, in the Hebrew, it literally says,

Saul went in to cover his feet.

And the feet are meaning like cover your lower parts.

It was a polite way of saying a lot of different things.

It became an idiom.

Go and cover the lower parts.

Or cover your feet.

Matthew Henry, maybe because he's in that Puritan era

and he's being overly British about it,

he says that he was just, you know,

laying his robe maybe like over his feet

so he can be in the fetal position and stay warm.

But I think a better interpretation,

we can take our cue from Scripture itself in Judges 3.24.

We're told of another wicked king,

King Eglon.

And they said he went up to the upper room

to use the bathroom,

but they used that exact same phrase.

He went up there to cover his feet.

And so whether he actually has the robe,

you know, pulled down over his feet

isn't necessarily implied.

It could mean he takes off the royal garment,

puts it hanging up on the rocks out of the way.

And David and his men were staying in the recesses

of that same cave.

Can you picture this, kids?

And I wonder from their perspective what that was like.

You hear these men coming,

oh man, we might be trapped here.

Should we try to get out quick and go somewhere else?

Like when you're playing hide and seek,

you know you're in a dead end.

You got to find a way out.

Maybe it was too late.

We don't know.

Somehow they ended up that way.

They're hiding now in the shadows

and the recesses of the cave.

And here comes, you know,

maybe not the whole 3,000,

but at least the elite bodyguards with Saul.

And they probably give him his privacy,

give him a little distance.

And there's Saul inside the cave

with David's men hiding inside that same cave.

Verse four,

then the men of David said to him,

probably in a whisper,

you know how it can echo in a cave,

this day of which the Lord said to you,

behold, I will deliver the enemy into your hand

that you may do to him as it seems good to you.

So David's men are giving him counsel.

They're saying, we are all fugitives.

We're exiled.

We don't have a place to lay down our head

one night in a row.

We're living here on hard rocks in these caves.

Let's end all of our misery once and for all.

If you won't do it for yourself, do it for us.

You can almost hear them saying,

God has put your enemy right here in front of you

for the slaughter.

Verse four says,

David arose.

So I wonder if the men thought he's going to do it.

And he starts walking over toward where Saul is

and he's got something sharp,

some sharp blade in his hand,

maybe a smaller dagger,

something like that,

if Goliath's sword would be inconvenient

at this time maybe.

And instead of killing Saul,

could have done that in any number of ways.

He's a veteran warrior.

He'd gone out slaying the enemies of the nation

and come back victoriously many times.

Instead, David secretly cut off

a corner of Saul's robe.

Literally in Hebrew it says,

David cut off the wing of his robe.

You've heard this before.

You remember in the book of Ruth,

where Ruth comes next to Boaz

and she says, cover me with your wing.

You know, the tip of the robe.

And cover that over me.

And that becomes imagery of God

covering his beloved.

You know, like the wings of the eagle.

Or Jesus said, even like a mother hen, you know,

putting the wings around my people.

In Sunday school, Professor John

brought an actual tassel

that has the Torah, the Jewish law.

And that was the instruction

that you will put the law on these wings,

these corners of your robe.

And it also reminds you of another tearing of a robe

in this same book.

Do you remember that one?

How the prophet Samuel walked away from King Saul

and Saul reached back and grabbed

and tore off the corner of his robe.

So this motif is developing

and it's very symbolic.

Verse five says,

it now happened afterward

that David's heart troubled him

because he had cut off

Saul's robe.

He didn't take his life,

but he did take

other things from him.

Representing the law,

the kingdom,

the royal garments.

And David's heart is now troubled,

sensitive

before the Lord.

When the spirit

of the holy God

lives within

a saved

sinner,

God's redeeming grace

makes the believer

tremble

at the thought

of committing

even a small

wrongdoing

against God.

You've experienced this,

haven't you?

The Holy Spirit

indwelling a believer.

He does not

let our conscience

be okay with that,

with sinning against him.

Well,

while we don't have more insights

into David's heart

in this moment,

there's a wonderful

application for us.

believers who have

the Holy Spirit

indwelling us.

In 1 John 3.15,

we're told,

whoever hates his brother

is a murderer.

And you know

that no murderer

has eternal life

abiding in him.

Verse 6 picks up,

and he said to his men,

the Lord forbid

that I should do this thing

to my master,

the Lord's

Messiah,

the Lord's

anointed.

That's what's

on David's mind.

To stretch out

my hand against him,

seeing he is

the Messiah

of the Lord.

He is

the anointed.

Verse 7,

so David restrained

his servants

with these words.

David went over

and got a piece

of the robe,

but his men

were ready

to do this

themselves now.

He's having to

hold them back.

And these words

reminded them all,

it's God

who anoints.

It's God

who gives

delegated power

to a steward.

Don't sin

against the Lord,

no matter how

evil Saul is.

He did not

allow them

to rise

against Saul,

and Saul

got away

for free

that time.

He got up

from the cave

and went

on his way.

If they're

whispering this

entire time,

I wonder how

much arguing

and fighting

there is after

that.

I mean,

if you're David,

you might have

a mutiny

on your hands.

This should

have been it.

You blew it.

How are we

ever going to

trust our

captain again?

This guy

has no

common sense.

We're at war.

We don't know

the exact

inspiration

for all the

Psalms,

but we do

know the

occasion

and the

setting of

them

in the

wilderness

and prayer

and asking

the Lord

to judge.

These are

common themes

and even

if it's

a different

psalmist,

it's the

same

Holy Spirit

breathing out

the Word

of God.

In Psalm

Psalms 119:161

119,

verse 161,

which we read

as part of our

call to worship

today,

says this,

Princes

or noblemen

like Saul

persecute me

without a

cause,

but my

heart

stands in

awe

of your

word.

It's the

Word of

God,

the good

law of

God

that's

keeping

David

in check

by the

power of

the Spirit.

Psalm 37

is a

Psalm of

David

with this

setting as

its occasion

and in this

Psalm,

David

sings,

rest in the

Lord and

wait patiently

for him.

Do not

fret because

of men

who prosper

in their

way.

There's

David now

even reflecting

back and

singing to

rest in the

Lord and

wait patiently

on him.

Do not

fret because

of evil

men.

Spurgeon

commented,

he who can

sing to

God in

the recesses

of a cave

will not

be tempted

to grab

the crown

by the

hand of

murder.

Sing to

the Lord.

Preach

to your

own soul.

Rest in

God.

Wait patiently

on him.

David knew

that he

who waits

for God

loses

nothing

by our

patience.

In

Matthew

4,

our Lord

Jesus Christ

was offered

the kingdoms

of this

world

by the

prince of

this world,

Satan.

And our

Lord Jesus

Christ,

King

Jesus,

the

Messiah,

the

anointed

one,

he battled,

he fought

back with

God's

word,

God's

law,

the first

of the

Ten

Commandments,

also this

theme of

Deuteronomy

6,

the Shema.

And he

told Satan,

you shall

worship the

Lord your

God and

him only

shall you

serve.

The Lord

will strengthen

you and me

too,

brothers and

sisters,

by his

spirit and

his word

hidden in

our heart

that we

may not

sin against

God.

By God's

power and

God's grace,

this will be a

testimony for

each of us.

As Matthew

Henry put it,

a whole

kingdom will

never be

worth a

sin.

A better

king is

coming,

a king whose

heart loves

God more

than anything

he can grab

for himself

in this

world.

Second,

a better

king is

coming,

a king

who will

restore

honor to

the office

he will

fill.

A king

is coming

who will

restore

honor for

the office

that he

himself will

fill.

Isn't that

what David's

doing?

Look at

verse 8.

What happens

next is not

what you would

expect.

It's something

you'd read

in the Bible.

David also

arose afterward

and went out

of the cave.

I wonder

if his men

approved of

this decision

next.

I mean,

think of the

options available

to Saul

and these men,

do you think

these 3,000

choice men

like being

away from

their families

going around

this wilderness

area?

There's the

target.

You can

almost hear

their bow

is getting

pulled back.

There he is

right there.

David steps

out into

the wide

open.

not only

does he

make himself

visible,

he calls

out to

Saul.

And if

that's not

shocking enough,

his words

and his

posture

certainly

elevate it.

Look at

what he

says.

I'm going

to summarize

some of

them,

but I

want you

to see

each one

very carefully.

In

verse 8,

he says,

my lord,

see,

you're the

ruler here

and I'm

your servant,

the king.

he has

a high

regard

for the

office

that crazy

Saul holds.

And look

what's next.

He's stooped

with his

face to

the earth,

bowed

down.

Three

powerful

descriptions

in a row

of his

posture.

He's

restoring

honor to

the office

of king

that Saul

has so

disgraced.

In

verse 10,

he calls

Saul the

Lord's

Messiah,

the Lord's

anointed.

In

verse 11,

he calls

Saul my

father.

And in

verse 14,

he calls

him the

king of

Israel.

David is

restoring

honor to

this very

office that

David himself

will fill

next for

Israel.

He starts

off in

verse 9 of

this speech

by telling

Saul,

why do

you listen

to the

words of

men who

say,

indeed,

David

seeks

your

harm.

Now,

whether

there's

spies going

back and

forth or

gossip or

rumors or

stuff like

that,

we don't

know.

Someone

pointed out

in Bible

study,

maybe it's

him helping

Saul save

face a

little bit,

but he's

telling Saul,

beware of

bad counsel,

whether it's

your own

crazy mind

or these

spies,

the Ziphites

and others

going back

and forth.

those voices

are lying

to you.

They're

bearing false

witness about

me.

You've got

it all

wrong.

David now

shows him,

I can

prove I

don't seek

your harm

in verse

10.

Look,

this day

your eyes

have seen

that the

Lord delivered

you today

into my

hand in

the cave

and someone

urged me

to kill

you,

but my

eye spared

you and

I said I

will not

stretch out

my hand

against my

Lord,

for he

is the

Lord's

anointed.

I wonder

what David

is recalling

here by

using this

word over

and over

and over

anointed,

anointed,

anointed,

Messiah.

I wonder

if he's

remembering

the oil

that flowed

down his

head even

before he

could grow

a beard

when he

was anointed

by the

prophet

Samuel.

The

spirit of

God upon

him mightily

in battle

and playing

the harp.

The

promise of

an anointed

one,

a Messiah.

How much

of scripture

David knew

that seed

of Eve,

that promised

one that's

coming,

that seed

of Abraham,

that seed

that would

now be

coming through

David's line

one day,

the Lord's

anointed.

He says,

moreover,

my father,

he's extending

grace,

he's reminding

Saul,

you're the

father of a

nation,

you're my

father-in-law,

that's how I

see you,

Saul.

He says,

yes,

see the

corner,

the wing of

your robe

in my hand,

loaded with

symbolism.

for in that

I cut off

the corner

of your

robe and

did not

kill you,

know and

see that

there is

neither evil

nor rebellion

in my

hand,

I have

not sinned

against you,

yet you

hunt my

life to

take it,

you are

the one

who seeks

my harm,

he says.

In verse

12,

David reminds

Saul,

I'm a

sojourner,

I'm in

caves,

he calls

himself even

worse than

that here in a

bit,

and while

you're the

king,

while you're

my father,

look at

verse 12,

let the

Lord,

let Yahweh,

the Lord of

hosts,

judge between

you and

me.

If David's

not innocent,

this is a

scary thing

to invoke.

You and

I,

we don't want

what we

deserve,

do we?

We need

God's grace.

David says,

let the

Lord avenge

me on

you,

but my

hand shall

not be

against

you.

He's

emboldened

by summoning

the Lord

to judge.

I won't

do anything,

Saul,

if the

Lord will

strike you

down.

That's the

Lord avenging

you himself.

Verse 13,

as the

proverb of

the ancient

says,

wickedness

proceeds from

the wicked,

but my

hand shall

not be

against you.

He's saying

it would be

wicked to

kill the

one that

God has

put in

this office.

Only a

wicked man

would wish

to avenge

himself,

and I

do not.

I leave

that to

God.

Verse 14,

after whom

has the

king of

Israel

come out?

Now he's

reminding him

of how

little David

is.

Whom do

you pursue?

A dead

dog?

Now there's

a picture

for us.

I mean,

in the

wilderness,

there might

have been

some sheep

dogs,

you know,

there's

these sheep

folds all

around,

but there's

also the

hyena of

the Middle

East,

it's a

jackal.

A dog

was viewed

by the

Israelites

as a

dirty

scavenger.

It's a

name used

derogatorily for

those outside

of God's

covenant.

That's what

David is

describing himself

as.

I am the

outcast here,

I'm the

outsider,

I'm living

here like

a scavenger,

and I'm

a dead

dog at

that.

I'm a

flea,

he says.

It's a

tiny little

parasite that

lives on

sheep and

dogs and

other animals.

In verse

15,

therefore let

the Lord

be judge and

judge between

you and

me,

see and

plead my

case and

deliver me

out of

your hand.

David could

have walked

out of that

cave,

think about

this.

He could

have walked

out of that

cave and

shown the

army of

Israel,

the head

of King

Saul,

another tall

corrupt

warrior,

another

Goliath,

and the

whole army

of Israel

could have

followed him

that day.

Instead he

stepped out

into the

sunlight with

a token of

God's mercy

because a

better king

is coming.

In

Psalm 35,

David cries

out,

plead my

cause,

O Lord,

with those

who strive

with me.

Fight

against those

who fight

against me.

Stir up

yourself,

God,

and awaken

to my

settlement,

to my

cause,

my God,

my Lord.

Judge me,

O Lord,

my God,

according to

your

righteousness,

and let

not them

rejoice

over me.

David's

case is

entirely

in the

hands of

God

as his

advocate.

God

sees,

he knows.

God

pleads,

he trusts.

God

delivers.

David would

not strike

Psalm

even

though

Saul

was a

wicked

king

because

David

knew

his

office,

the office

that Saul

currently

held,

was sacred.

It was

appointed

by God.

And a

kingdom

gained

by sin

would be

a curse,

not a

blessing.

David

had this

promise

from God

of the

kingdom,

but he

would not

take it

by blood.

He

would wait

on God's

time.

God

can

look at

David

and we

see the

image of

Jesus

Christ.

Jesus

was

reviled,

but he

did not

revile

back.

He

had the

armies

of heaven.

He

is

the

Lord

of

hosts

and he

could

have

commanded

the

angels

of

heaven

and

all

the

saints

to

come

in

power

and

crush

his

enemies.

And he

said,

not my

will

according

to my

flesh,

but your

will be

done,

oh Lord. He suffered according to his human nature and patiently endured to fulfill all righteousness

because Jesus Christ is the better king. The king who restored the honor to the office that had been

so corrupted. Think of the office of king in Israel, the office of priests in Israel, the office of a

prophet so corrupted. God had been silent for 400 years. The Lord Jesus restored those offices and then filled them.

Well the third observation for today is that a better king is coming. A king whose rule is established

in righteousness, justice, and mercy. A better king is coming. A king whose rule is established in

righteousness, justice, and mercy. That's the kingdom you want to be part of and belong to. Look at verse 16.

So it was when David had finished speaking these words to Saul that Saul said, is this your voice my son

David? Someone pointed out in our Bible study David initiated the grace. He said my father

and Saul now reciprocates it at least in the moment my son. And Saul lifted up his voice and wept.

Real tears here. Real wailing. And then he said to David you are more righteous than I.

If that's what Saul is weeping about, praise God. A sinner recognizing his righteousness is not enough.

We fall short of the righteousness we need. He quickly shifts his focus to himself again. He says,

for you have rewarded me with good where I have rewarded you with evil.

And so we need to take Saul in this chapter as he is and then watch in the next two chapters to find out

if this is a repentance wrought in his spirit by the work of God or if it's more of a superficial

repentance at this time. Someone pointed out if it was a repentance of the feelings and not of the soul,

he's weeping because of the danger he, his near death experience and not because of a true turn from his sin.

Saul's temporary repentance at the words of David shows how truth can reach even the most hardened

conscience. And the law of God does that. The moral law of God, it taps into that part of being made in

the image of God, which every man, woman, boy and girl, every generation, every part of the world knows this,

that I am a sinner and I need a savior outside of myself.

In verse 18 we read Saul's words,

Verse 20,

And now I know indeed that you shall surely be king

and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand.

The Hebrew is powerful here.

In the English we get these words like surely, you know, it will endure.

It's like trying to add emphasis.

And in the original language it's this,

Reigning, you shall reign.

A double emphasis.

It's guaranteed.

It implies an absolute certainty.

Even Saul recognizing that David's uprightness was the mark of God's true king.

The kingdom of God is not a kingdom of force where man gets his own way,

but it's a kingdom of servants of God who wait upon the providence of God.

Proverbs 16, 12 tells us,

It is an abomination for kings to commit wickedness,

for a throne is established by righteousness.

Isaiah 9, 7 is this prophecy of the better king that's coming,

of the increase of his government and peace.

There will be no end.

Reigning he shall reign.

Upon the throne of David and over his kingdom in order to order it

and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward,

even forever.

Isaiah 16, 5,

In mercy the throne will be established,

and one will sit on it in truth,

in the tent of David,

judging and seeking justice and hastening righteousness.

This is the kingdom of Jesus,

the better kingdom.

It's established on righteousness,

justice,

and mercy.

And even wicked King Saul recognizes this

and declares it.

It's a powerful reminder how one day when our Lord Jesus comes back,

every knee,

even the most wicked knees,

the knees of his enemies who will never repent and be saved,

every knee will one day drop to the ground

and every tongue will confess,

even the enemies of God's anointed to the end,

those who resist his kingdom in pride and stubbornness.

They will confess that Jesus Christ is the Lord of Lords

to the glory of God the Father.

A better king is coming.

Well, the fourth and final observation for today,

a better king is coming,

a king whose kingdom is truly blessed.

A king is coming whose kingdom is truly blessed.

Verse 21 reads,

Therefore,

in Saul asking David,

swear now to me by the Lord

that you will not cut off my descendants after me,

and that you will not destroy my name from my father's house.

This is Saul who's built an idol for himself.

It's Saul who parades around all Israel

to celebrate his own victories.

And his final words give us a glimpse

into his true concerns.

My name,

my house,

my kingdom still.

Now,

in verse 22,

we read,

David swore to Saul.

Is this David compromising?

We read next that Saul went home,

but David and his men went up to the stronghold.

In our Bible study this morning,

you all pointed out something powerful here.

Two things.

First, in verse 22,

David swore to Saul nothing new.

Because who is in the line of Saul?

It's Jonathan.

He's already covenanted with Jonathan

to show God's covenant faithfulness to Jonathan's line.

So swearing this to Saul is not a new promise or a new vow.

It's simply knowing this already is in place

with what I've promised Jonathan.

And then the second observation is

their physical movement is to drift away.

And if all of this is a restored relationship,

then wouldn't you expect David and his three

or his 600 men

to travel now back in peace with Saul

to Gibeah,

the headquarters,

the palace,

the kingdom.

And he's back in the,

you know,

he's a son-in-law.

He's in good standing

and we're at peace.

But in his shrewdness

or maybe by the direction of the spirit,

as Saul goes home,

and we're not given other details,

we simply read,

David and his men

went up to the stronghold,

waiting on God's time

in a defensive posture.

And that's where the story leaves us for today.

David could spare Saul's life.

He did not need Saul's death

in order to be safe.

David committed his cause to God most high

in the words of the psalm

who performs all things for me,

trusting in God's sovereignty.

And now David remains a pilgrim.

Notice the themes that we see exhibited here,

these shadows in David.

By God's grace and power,

in this story,

David was meek.

Let's define that word.

He had the power to kill Saul.

Remember, the sword was in his hand.

But by God's grace and power,

he kept that power under God's control.

That's meekness.

It's strength under God's control.

And as a result,

he would inherit the kingdom from God.

By God's grace and power,

on this occasion,

David showed mercy to his enemy.

In return, David obtained mercy from God

and even a blessing from Saul.

By God's grace and power,

in this crisis,

David's heart was so aimed at pleasing God

that even cutting off a corner of a robe

felt like a stain on his purity.

David has been reviled

and persecuted day after day

by Saul and his evil advisors.

Yet David remained exceedingly glad

in the words of the psalm

to trust God's ultimate judgment.

Do these kingdom descriptions sound familiar to you?

David prefigures the final victory of Christ

where the old order,

dominion under Adam,

the dominion of sin and death,

it's forced to recognize the authority of Jesus Christ,

the risen king,

whose kingdom of grace

will outlast the kingdoms of men.

Our Lord Jesus Christ showed

that the weapons of his kingdom,

the way he does battle

and goes to war,

it's not material.

It's not the powers of this world

and man's way,

but it's spiritual.

It's a kingdom that's not grabbed by force,

but that's given,

that's bestowed by God.

The kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ

is the truly blessed kingdom.

Amen.

Our Lord Jesus declared this as the king,

as the lawgiver for his people

in Matthew 5, 3 through 12.

Blessed are the poor in spirit

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn

for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek

for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger

and thirst for righteousness

for they shall be filled.

Blessed are the merciful

for they have obtained mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart

for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers

for they shall be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted

for righteousness sake

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when they revile

and persecute you

and say all kinds of evil

against you falsely for my sake.

Rejoice and be exceedingly glad

for great is your reward in heaven

for so they persecuted the prophets

who were before you.

This is the blessed kingdom of Jesus Christ.

The Lord can bless those in his kingdom

because he first fulfilled Romans 12, 21.

Our Lord Jesus Christ was not overcome by evil

but he did overcome evil with good.

Our Lord Jesus taking evil

that man threw at him

with all the force available.

The Lord submitted himself to God

who will judge all

and he endured it.

1 Peter 2, 21 which we read earlier.

Our Lord Jesus committed no sin

nor was deceit found in his mouth

who when he was reviled

did not revile and turn.

When he suffered he did not threaten

but committed himself to him

who judges righteously.

And to this you were called church

because Jesus Christ also suffered for us

leaving us a pattern

that we should follow in his steps.

Ephesians 4, 31 and 32.

By the power and grace

of the Holy Spirit working

and true believers

hear this exhortation from God's word.

Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor

and evil speaking be put away from you

with all malice

and be kind to one another.

Tender hearted, forgiving one another

even as God in Christ forgave you.

The better king has come.

He has come in mercy

and he will come again soon as judge.

And like David in the wilderness

we are pilgrims in this world.

Jesus Christ is our stronghold

but in him we are truly blessed.

Amen.

Let's pray.

O Lord

we thank you for your kingdom

the better kingdom

the true kingdom of heaven

brought to earth by God the Son

our Lord Jesus Christ.

Lord help us with our mouths to confess

with our hearts to believe

with our even our posture

with our knees

our faces in the dirt

to declare that Jesus Christ is Lord

to the glory of God the Father

we ask.

Amen.