What would you do if you knew that God was calling you to do a great work but the time was not right because there was an insurmountable barrier that God needed to move before you could do anything? This is the situation that faces David in 1 Samuel because he has been anointed by Samuel as the next king of Israel but he cannot take possession of the throne because Saul was still king. Could David have done anything through his own strength to resolve the problem of his not inheriting the throne immediately? David did the most daring thing he could by resting in God’s promise and providence as he awaited for his rule of Israel to begin. There are moments in my life that I wait just as David did for God to fulfill his promise and the temptation to fulfill my needs of through my own strength is ever present. Resting in God is difficult because we are giving up authority to God trusting that He knows exactly what we need.
In 1 Samuel 19 and 20 Saul continually tryies to kill David. Why did Saul want to kill David so earnestly? After Saul’s disobedience in 1 Samuel 15 he was told by Samuel that God had taken away the kingdom from him. Saul viewed David as a threat to his legacy and he was attempting to ensure his rule and the rule of his posterity by killing him. Why could Saul not see the futility of his attempts to kill David? Was the evil spirit that was upon Saul so controlling that all logical thought left him? What would Saul’s true legacy have been if he choose to cling to God throughout every area of his life? I believe the only way to secure a legacy is to have at it’s foundation a firm faith in God with Jesus Christ as the focal point of that faith.
I found encouragement in the midst of David’s flight from Saul when David seeks out Samuel. When David arrived in Ramah and spoke to Samuel did he ask if he was truly going to be the next king of Israel? Did he doubt God’s calling in the midst of these troubles? Often when I do not see that God is moving as quick as I would like I become impatient or I start to wonder if God will be faithful to me. When Saul sent messengers to take David away from Samuel they couldn’t because when they came into the presence of Samuel and the other prophets they themselves prophesied. What was it like to be around Samuel and these men who were prophesying? Three times Saul sent messengers to take David away and each time they all prophesied. Even when Saul himself came to collect David he prophesied along with Samuel. Was Saul so concerned with the details of his own life that he didn’t want to seek out where God was actively at work? If you heard that the men you sent to collect David could not bring him because they encountered God around Samuel would that draw you to Ramah to also experience God?
Why was the bond of friendship between David and Jonathan so strong? Jonathan was the son of the king and he was of elevated stature while David was a servant within the house of Saul and the least son in the house of Jesse his father. These two men were not likely to have such a strong bond of friendship by human standards but was their friendship based upon human design and desires? Jonathan and David were united by their common faith in God and that was the gravity that drew them close together. How have you experienced bond of friendship that were centered on a common faith in God? When friendship is based upon God it allows for disappointment and failure to attack the bond but since God is a constant that friendship can overcome any trial it may face. Take hope knowing that the bonds of christian friendship are deeper than you may know and they endure.
