Spear Throwers

1 Samuel 18:8-11

David was loved by the people of Israel and Judah, not only for his exploits in defeating the giant Goliath, but because he was a man of the people, who dwelled among them (1 Samuel 18:16). The streets of the towns and villages all over Israel were filled with singing and dancing, praising the exploits of both King Saul and his trusted warrior David. They sang, “Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands”.

Saul heard the lyrics to the song, and saw the admiration in the eyes of the people toward the young man, and envy and anger began to rise in his heart. His fear grew to the point of paranoia, as he began to envision the very kingdom turning to David to be its king. He had no knowledge that the old prophet Samuel had already visited David a few years before and anointed him to be the next king in place of Saul. The hand of God was obviously on this young man, and Saul was forced to respond.

We have many people cross our path; some to our pleasure and some we would rather forget! The story of Saul and David can be applied in our lives from both sides of the coin. From Saul’s standpoint, we may have encountered those who have an obvious touch and call of God on their life. Do we rise up in jealousy or envy that they are gifted or blessed or chosen in an area that we may not be? Saul took his jealousy to a whole new level; throwing a javelin at David in an attempt to kill him.

When we lash out at those around us with verbal attacks, or loft insults at them through the grapevine of gossip, we are throwing a javelin. These spears hurt to the core when they strike; doing damage to both the victim and to the one that throws it. Sometimes we even mask our spear-throwing with a form of Christian holiness and godliness, using scripture in our hurl. Saul could still prophesy even as he hurled the spear (1 Samuel 18:10), so having the touch of God on you does not ensure that your spear-throwing is of God.

Jesus told the accusers of the woman caught in the act of adultery to throw the first stone if they had kept the law perfectly (John 8:7). All men dropped their rocks, for no one had the authority to throw a stone under those conditions. Do we have that authority?

From David’s perspective, we have some options when spears of insult and hatred are thrown at us. We can continue on doing what we do, and act as if it never happened and then be on guard in the future. David chooses this action because he comes back into Saul’s presence after the first incident (1 Samuel 18:11). We can also decide to only take so much and then stay away from that individual if at all possible, which David obviously chooses to do eventually. Finally, we can do what David thankfully did not do; we can pull the spear out of the wall and throw it back. Returning fire with fire is us defending what only Christ and His glorious grace can defend.

Let the Holy Spirit be your rear-guard. It is His job to defend you and to shelter you. When accusations and attacks come against you, never lift a finger in retaliation. You are the righteousness of God in Christ, and you are better than becoming a spear-thrower.

Mess With the Saint, You Mess With the Savior!

Acts 9:1-5

Saul was “breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord” (Acts 9:1). His mission was to stop this new religion known as “The Way” by taking anyone captive who claimed Jesus as their Savior. This form of intimidation was sponsored by the church but was spawned by Satan to stop the spread of the good news of Jesus Christ.

In choosing Saul to do the dirty work, Satan had went after the most learned of the law teachers in all of Judaism. A Pharisee of Pharisees, Saul was everything that a law-abiding Jew strived through their efforts to be. It is of no little significance that God would choose to bring His message of grace and New Covenant through this one who had trusted in his efforts at keeping the Old Covenant his entire life. By choosing a vessel that was “spotless” in the eyes of the church, God brings credibility to the choice of Paul to be the one to preach pure, radical grace. If the first minister of God’s grace had been one who had sin issues and questionable lifestyle practices, then people would accuse him of preaching grace to cover his failures. This should be noted by us today as we minister and walk in the glorious grace of God.

As Saul (who would later begin to use his Greek name, “Paul”) travelled to Damascus to persecute the early church, he was met by a great light from heaven, which blinded him and stopped his journey. From the midst of the light, he heard the typical greeting of the Father when He speaks tenderly to someone close to His heart, “Saul, Saul” (verse 4). There is nothing as tender to us as the sound of our own name on someone’s lips that loves us. From the Father, it sounds so nice He says it twice! “Samuel, Samuel” (1 Samuel 3:10); “Martha, Martha” (Luke 10:41); “Simon, Simon” (Luke 22:31); “Jerusalem, Jerusalem” (Luke 13:34).

Jesus asks Saul, “Why do you persecute me?”, which must have seemed confusing to Saul, for he did not feel that he was persecuting anyone. Remember, Saul felt that he was doing God’s work in exterminating this new-found faith. Even if he felt that what he was doing was persecution, he surely would not have felt that it was against one individual but rather against the collection of individuals known as “The Way” (later to be referred to as Christians). To be asked, “why do you persecute me?” is to denote that one person is being attacked.

Shocked, Saul asks who is speaking to him, and the reply is, “I am Jesus whom thou persecutest” (Acts 9:5). The persecution that Saul was breathing out was against the Christians, but Jesus claims that it was against Him personally. This humbles Paul and leads to his salvation, for he sees Jesus as the defender of the church and thus personally invested in the lives of His followers.

When Satan attacks a believer, he is essentially attacking Jesus Christ. This is a lost battle for Satan, for he was de-fanged at Calvary, but he continues to roar like a lion anyhow. You and I are no match for Satan on his terms, which will always be performance and works related, so we must rest in the finished work of Christ’s cross to find the victory that Jesus has already won. Allow all attacks by the enemy to lead you back to the resting place in Jesus, for if Satan is coming after you what he should find is Jesus. Praise God!

Destroy All

1 Samuel 15:3, 8, 9

“Destroy all” was a simple command from the LORD to King Saul. Amalek had attacked Israel in Exodus 17 while Israel was on the journey to the Promised Land. God is not slack in His judgment, so He now orders Saul to repay Amalek by destroying everything that they have, animals included. Saul had other plans though.

Typical of man operating under rebellion, Saul felt that he had a better plan, which included the destruction of the people of the Amalekites, but the sparing of the best of the sheep and the oxen and the fatlings, and the lambs, “and all that was good” (15:9), as well as King Agag.

Where Saul failed in his discernment of spiritual things is found in his failure to understand that there is nothing good with that which God has cursed. Amalek was under the judgment of God’s hand, thus they had nothing to offer God’s chosen people. By destroying Amalek, God was not only judging them for their actions, but He was sparing His own people and their future generations from dealing with these heathens again.

Saul leans to that side of himself that is still prevalent in mankind to this day: the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Saul felt that he could identify that which was good and that which was evil. This is why he refused to destroy things that he felt could be useful to him and to his army, though God had specifically order such extermination. He even categorizes other things as “vile and refuse” and thus worthy of destruction. He did not know the heart of God in this matter which viewed ALL of it as “vile and refuse”.

Amalek is a type of the flesh and of sin, and thus all of it is deemed unusable by God. Christ came to completely destroy the power of sin and the flesh, leaving none of it unresolved at the cross. His death was a complete and total victory over the forces of darkness, not even sparing Satan himself. Jesus said of the devil that he was cast out as a source of power when God’s judgment came pouring into the body of Christ (John 12:31). Paul also said that Jesus “spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it” (Colossians 2:15).

As if to show us what happens when sin is left unresolved, Saul is ultimately killed at the hand of an Amalekite (2 Samuel 1:13), in an enormous piece of Biblical irony, that was not at all coincidental. Thank God that we do not have to fear the return of our old man of sin, but that Jesus has already destroyed Satan’s power in our life. Our heavenly Saul “hewed Agag in pieces” just as old Samuel did when he arrived (1 Samuel 15:33). We are free from the fear of tomorrow because our Amalek has been dealt with today.

Spear Throwers

1 Samuel 18:8-11

David was loved by the people of Israel and Judah, not only for his exploits in defeating the giant Goliath, but because he was a man of the people, who dwelled among them (1 Samuel 18:16). The streets of the towns and villages all over Israel were filled with singing and dancing, praising the exploits of both King Saul and his trusted warrior David. They sang, “Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands”.

Saul heard the lyrics to the song, and saw the admiration in the eyes of the people toward the young man, and envy and anger began to rise in his heart. His fear grew to the point of paranoia, as he began to envision the very kingdom turning to David to be its king. He had no knowledge that the old prophet Samuel had already visited David a few years before and anointed to be the next king in place of Saul. The hand of God was obviously on this young man, and Saul was forced to respond.

We have many people cross our path; some to our pleasure and some we would rather forget! The story of Saul and David can be applied in our lives from both sides of the coin. From Saul’s standpoint, we may have encountered those who have an obvious touch and call of God on their life. Do we rise up in jealousy or envy that they are gifted or blessed or chosen in an area that we may not be? Saul took his jealousy to a whole new level; throwing a javelin at David in an attempt to kill him.

When we lash out at those around us with verbal attacks, or loft insults at them through the grapevine of gossip, we are throwing a javelin. These spears hurt to the core when they strike; doing damage to both the victim and to the one that throws it. Sometimes we even mask our spear-throwing with a form of Christian holiness and godliness, using scripture in our hurl. Saul could still prophesy even as he hurled the spear (1 Samuel 18:10), so having the touch of God on you does not ensure that your spear-throwing is of God.

Jesus told the accusers of the woman caught in the act of adultery to throw the first stone if they had kept the law perfectly (John 8:7). All men dropped their rocks, for no one had the authority to throw a stone under those conditions. Do we have that authority?

From David’s perspective, we have some options when spears of insult and hatred are thrown at us. We can continue on doing what we do, and act as if it never happened and then be on guard in the future. David chooses this action because he comes back into Saul’s presence after the first incident (1 Samuel 18:11). We can also decide to only take so much and then stay away from that individual if at all possible, which David obviously chooses to do eventually. Finally, we can do what David thankfully did not do; we can pull the spear out of the wall and throw it back. Returning fire with fire is us defending what only Christ and His glorious grace can defend.

Let the Holy Spirit be your rear-guard. It is His job to defend you and to shelter you. When accusations and attacks come against you, never lift a finger in retaliation. You are the righteousness of God in Christ, and you are better than becoming a spear-thrower.

Mess With the Saint, You Mess With the Savior!

Acts 9:1-5

Saul was “breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord” (Acts 9:1). His mission was to stop this new religion known as “The Way” by taking anyone captive who claimed Jesus as their Savior. This form of intimidation was sponsored by the church but was spawned by Satan to stop the spread of the good news of Jesus Christ.

In choosing Saul to do the dirty work, Satan had went after the most learned of the law teachers in all of Judaism. A Pharisee of Pharisees, Saul was everything that a law-abiding Jew strived through their efforts to be. It is of no little significance that God would choose to bring His message of grace and New Covenant through this one who had trusted in his efforts at keeping the Old Covenant his entire life. By choosing a vessel that was “spotless” in the eyes of the church, God brings credibility to the choice of Paul to be the one to preach pure, radical grace. If the first minister of God’s grace had been one who had sin issues and questionable lifestyle practices, then people would accuse him of preaching grace to cover his failures. This should be noted by us today as we minister and walk in the glorious grace of God.

As Saul (who would later begin to use his Greek name, “Paul”) travelled to Damascus to persecute the early church, he was met by a great light from heaven, which blinded him and stopped his journey. From the midst of the light, he heard the typical greeting of the Father when He speaks tenderly to someone close to His heart, “Saul, Saul” (verse 4). There is nothing as tender to us as the sound of our own name on someone’s lips that loves us. From the Father, it sounds so nice He says it twice! “Samuel, Samuel” (1 Samuel 3:10); “Martha, Martha” (Luke 10:41); “Simon, Simon” (Luke 22:31); “Jerusalem, Jerusalem” (Luke 13:34).

Jesus asks Saul, “Why do you persecute me?”, which must have seemed confusing to Saul, for he did not feel that he was persecuting anyone. Remember, Saul felt that he was doing God’s work in exterminating this new-found faith. Even if he felt that what he was doing was persecution, he surely would not have felt that it was against one individual but rather against the collection of individuals known as “The Way” (later to be referred to as Christians). To be asked, “why do you persecute me?” is to denote that one person is being attacked.

Shocked, Saul asks who is speaking to him, and the reply is, “I am Jesus whom thou persecutest” (Acts 9:5). The persecution that Saul was breathing out was against the Christians, but Jesus claims that it was against Him personally. This humbles Paul and leads to his salvation, for he sees Jesus as the defender of the church and thus personally invested in the lives of His followers.

When Satan attacks a believer, he is essentially attacking Jesus Christ. This is a lost battle for Satan, for he was de-fanged at Calvary, but he continues to roar like a lion anyhow. You and I are no match for Satan on his terms, which will always be performance and works related, so we must rest in the finished work of Christ’s cross to find the victory that Jesus has already won. Allow all attacks by the enemy to lead you back to the resting place in Jesus, for if Satan is coming after you what he should find is Jesus. Praise God!

Destroy All

1 Samuel 15:3, 8, 9

“Destroy all” was a simple command from the LORD to King Saul. Amalek had attacked Israel in Exodus 17 while Israel was on the journey to the Promised Land. God is not slack in His judgment, so He now orders Saul to repay Amalek by destroying everything that they have, animals included. Saul had other plans though.

Typical of man operating under rebellion, Saul felt that he had a better plan, which included the destruction of the people of the Amalekites, but the sparing of the best of the sheep and the oxen and the fatlings, and the lambs, “and all that was good” (15:9), as well as King Agag.

Where Saul failed in his discernment of spiritual things was in his failure to understand that there is nothing good with that which God has cursed. Amalek was under the judgment of God’s hand, thus they had nothing to offer God’s chosen people. By destroying Amalek, God was not only judging them for their actions, but He was sparing His own people and their future generations from dealing with these heathens again.

Saul leans to that side of himself that is still prevalent in mankind to this day: the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Saul felt that he could identify that which was good and that which was evil. This is why he refused to destroy things that he felt could be useful to him and to his army, though God had specifically order such extermination. He even categorizes other things as “vile and refuse” and thus worthy of destruction. He did not know the heart of God in this matter which viewed all of it as “vile and refuse”.

Amalek is a type of the flesh and of sin, and thus all of it is deemed unusable by God. Christ came to completely destroy the power of sin and the flesh, leaving none of it unresolved at the cross. His death was a complete and total victory over the forces of darkness, not even sparing Satan himself. Jesus said of the devil that he was cast out as a source of power when God’s judgment came pouring into the body of Christ (John 12:31). Paul also said that Jesus “spoiled principalities and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it” (Colossians 2:15).

As if to show us what happens when sin is left unresolved, Saul is ultimately killed at the hand of an Amalekite (2 Samuel 1:13), in an enormous piece of Biblical irony, that was not at all coincidental. Thank God that we do not have to fear the return of our old man of sin, but that Jesus has already destroyed Satan’s power in our life. Our heavenly Saul “hewed Agag in pieces” just as old Samuel did when he arrived (1 Samuel 15:33). We are free from the fear of tomorrow because our Amalek has been dealt with today.

From Bethlehem to Hebron

2 Samuel 2:1

A Chinese proverb says, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”. We never go anywhere if we do not begin. David’s journey from a shepherd’s hillside to the palace of a king is one of the more storied tales in the history of the world. Chosen last among his brothers, anointed to be king at about age 15, he comes from obscurity to place his name among the greatest warriors and kings of all time. How he got from point A to point B is an interesting tale, and one that each one of us must live in our own way.

From his humble beginnings in Bethlehem to his coronation as king in the city of Hebron, David encounters many obstacles and receives many blessings. Three key figures influence and shape David, making him the man that he will turn out to be: Goliath, Saul and Jonathan.

All of us will encounter a Goliath from time to time. These big, obnoxious attacks of the enemy are meant to ensnare and to scare. David doesn’t overcome because he has great talent; remember he has never killed a man before. His strength comes when he claims covenant, calling Goliath “uncircumcised”. By appealing to circumcision, David is placing the outcome of the battle in the capable hands of God, who is bound to covenant to defend those who have faith. Guess what, it is the same today! God is bound by the covenant that He made with Jesus at Calvary to honor your faith. No Goliath will stand in your way.

Saul is typical of the religious opposition that you will receive. While Jesus brings peace on earth between God and man, He certainly does not promise the same peace between men (Luke 12:51-53). When you walk in the goodness and grace of God’s love and acceptance, many people will try and pull you back into some form of works righteousness. They will oppose you and block you and in some cases they will slander your name and give false accusation. Nothing is more slanderously reported against than the gospel of grace (Romans 3:8).

Thank God for a Jonathan! We all have them; people who encourage and inspire us. These are the friends that we make covenant with, sharing our hopes and dreams, lending constant support to. More importantly, Jonathan is our Jesus. It is for Christ’s sake that we are forgiven, and it is for Jonathan’s sake that David shows kindness to Mephibosheth (Ephesians 4:32; 2 Samuel 9:1). Jesus is the one figure that not only influences our life, but He makes our life what it is (John 10:10).

You are on a journey today, not having apprehended, but a lot farther than you were when you started. Face your cast of characters with confidence and faith. Let the Goliath’s meet up with your mediator, Jesus Christ; they are no match for Him. Let your Saul’s fall by the wayside, as you rise above their chasings and their words, careful to never attack them in return (1 Samuel 18:11; 24:6). Finally, let your heavenly Jonathan, Jesus Christ the righteous provide all of your comfort and goodness.

May His face shine upon you today. You’re His child, and He cares for you.