1) Embrace and Strengthen
2) Entitlement and Sin
3) Reject and Fight
I am not going to prove anything specifically, only look at three stories from their lives and compare the promises. Now to be clear, when I am speaking of promises, we could also use the word prophesy, and even calling. All three represent slightly different ways of describing God speaking a word into our lives, with the intent of encouraging us to fulfill His created purposes in our lives. I would define the different words as follows:
1) A promise is God telling us something He is going to do in the future that will affect change in us.
2) A prophesy is the Lord speaking a word of encouragement about who He sees us as and what He sees us doing in the future.
3) A calling of God is His encouragement to actually step into who we are and what we are called to do.
As we look at the different responses, we can see that these are likely related to their view of God's character and thoughts of how He works in our lives. A.W. Tozer, one of my favorite authors, says that how we think and what we think about God is the most important thing in our lives (my paraphrase), and I think he is completely right. Our understanding of God affects how we see ourselves, how we see others, and how we understand and react to circumstances and situations we encounter in life.
Back to the theme this morning, as we look at the life of David, I am going to extract out two different stories, and look at the David's assumed thinking, and how it might relate to God's promises/prophesy/calling in His life. The first set is found in 1 Samuel 16 and 17, and here we will find the anointing of David to be the future King of Israel, and the his confrontation of Goliath.
Here are the verses that describe the anointing of David, found in 1 Samuel 16:1-3,10-13 NIV:
[1] "The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.” [2] But Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me.” The Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.' [3] Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what to do. You are to anoint for me the one I indicate.”
[10] "Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, “The Lord has not chosen these.” [11] So he asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?”
“There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered. “He is tending the sheep.”
Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.” [12] So he sent for him and had him brought in. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.”
[13] "So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David. Samuel then went to Ramah."
Now the text does not say specifically that Samuel said the words, I am anointing you as the future King of Israel, but the assumption is that was exactly what He did. Samuel didn't just anoint random people. The last person He anointed in this way was Saul, and that was to set Him apart as King. This could not have been lost on Jesse nor on David. We also see some proof that this would be the case, in the feared response of Saul, spoken by Samuel in verse 2. Again, this was not a light thing, and people understood the ramification of Samuel's actions.
One other important point we should also note that with the Prophesy and the anointing, the Spirit of God came upon David and strengthened him. In other words, with the release of the word, comes the grace and strength to do that which has been spoken. In Isaiah 55 God speaks about how when His word is released it will accomplish that for what it was sent to do. We can see in that statement that it is like God's power is infused in His Word, and when we receive the Word, we also receive the power to accomplish that which it was meant to accomplish.
So David is empowered by the Spirit of God, and one of the next things he encounters, is Goliath and the Philistines at war with Israel. David's response to the threats of the giant is completely different than everyone else, including Saul. David seems empowered and encouraged by God. Here is his brief exchange with Goliath before killing him - 1 Samuel 17:45-48 NIV:
[45] "David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. [46] This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I'll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. [47] All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give all of you into our hands.”
[48] "As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him."
We see in David's response, an absolute fearlessness. I like to think that He was backed by God's Word, and strengthened by His Spirit, which tells me David had embraced this promise of God in His life and it gave him strength and courage. It would be pretty hard for him to be the future King of Israel if he died in his battle with Goliath. History is full of people who thought they were invincible, only to be surprised by their soon discovered mortality. David, wasn't fueled by some insane thought of his own superiority, but rather by the fire of his faith, and experience of God's provision, and by the Promise of God that he would be King. David later describes God as his rock, his fortress, his deliverer (Psalm 18:2). He stood on that rock, surrounded by that fortress, and was delivered by the Hand of God. What a great story of embracing the promise, and allowing that promise to encourage and strengthen one's faith and actions.
In the second example we are going to look at God's promise to David in 2 Samuel 7, and in this we see God's promise to David, that now includes one of His sons and even future generations. It is my belief that David got a bit carried away in his embracing of this promise and started thinking he was somehow entitled to more because of God's promise and special blessings. Here are the verses where God speaks His promise to David - 2 Samuel 7:8-16 NIV:
[8] “Now then, tell my servant David, 'This is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. [9] I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men on earth. [10] And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning [11] and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also give you rest from all your enemies."
“ 'The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you: [12] When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. [13] He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. [14] I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with a rod wielded by men, with floggings inflicted by human hands. [15] But my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. [16] Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me ; your throne will be established forever. ' ”
When you look at this promise, it is really quite awesome. Imagine receiving this word from God! Its like David can't mess it up, because he knows that God is already planning on His successor (his own son), and has already established His family line, and even the nation. This must have been an immense relief to David, and as I mentioned earlier might have been the point where David started thinking differently about Himself. It is a dangerous thing to think too highly of oneself. We can start convincing ourselves that God's rules don't apply to ourselves, because He has a special call, one that exalts us over our fellows. As we see God move in marvelous ways, we can start to think that we are irreplaceable to God plans and purposes, and when pride enters, the fall is due shortly. We have seen this same story played out over and over in the lives of powerful men of God, who somehow lose their way, and start thinking of themselves as blessed and approved and gifted in such a way that they are above the common faith-filled individual, and even above God's laws and will. They start to think they can do no wrong, and the blessing they are seeing is the result of God's approval of them, and their actions. It is as if they think nothing they do will affect them outcome of God's promise in their lives, and they begin to take what they want. They forget that God is a God of Justice.
We see this occur in David's life in his encounter with Bathsheba (2 Sam 11:1-27). There are plenty of discourses on this fall in David's life, so I won't repeat them here, but I think we can say that He wasn't thinking right. He stayed true to his purpose for quite a while after the promise that was spoken in 2 Sam 7, but in time, he started to lose focus. By the time we get to chapter 11, he was starting to take it easy. Instead of going to war with his armies, he stayed home. He wasn't where He should have been. He was thinking that he could just take what he wanted, whether that was free time, or something else He was living the dream, and started thinking he was the reason. I think this is how pride can blind us! Oh what a terrible place, replacing God's Blessing with our own pride. In this case, David, had already sinned, even before he saw Bathsheba, his response to her was a clear sign of what was already at work in his heart. David was full of himself, and no longer full of faith, or pursuit of His promises. Ugh!
David went on to experience the consequences of His sin, he repented and was forgiven, but I believe he bore the pain of his failure the rest of His life! The good news in this, is that God's promise was still fulfilled, but imagine how much more beautiful the story of David would be without his failing.
Finally we come to the story of Jonah, and his response to God's call/promise in his life. The call of God is very short in his case, as described in the following verses - Jonah 1:1-2 NIV:
[1] The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: [2] “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”
What is left out of this description are a few things that we should consider. First, Jonah was obviously a prophet, for God didn't speak to just anyone in those days. He specifically chose a few individuals and spoke to them, most of the time to call His nation back to Him. The people of Israel didn't take the call of God to be a prophet lightly, and we can see how they recorded what God spoke, and pondered it and discussed it and revered it. The whole of the Old Testament is witness to their revering God's word, as it was spoken through prophets. Secondly, the intention of God, in releasing this calling to Jonah, was that Nineveh would repent! The promise of revival was in this call of Jonah. We see Jonah describe it later in his conversation with God as follows - Jonah 3:10 NIV: "When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened."
Jonah 4:1-3 NIV: "But to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry. [2] He prayed to the Lord, “Isn't this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. [3] Now, Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.”
Man, what a hard-hearted and judgmental guy Jonah was! He didn't want God to relent, but was longing to see Him release His judgement on Nineveh! One could assume this was a religious spirit that Jonah was embracing, one that required sacrifice, judgement and punishment. We could also make an assumption that this attitude possibly stemmed from the belief that He was part of the chosen people, the Jews, and that anyone else wasn't and thus only worthy of judgment! He clearly understood God's heart, that He was "gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love" and wanted nothing to do with that part of God's character. He seems full of pride, full of judgment and full of himself. Rather than embracing God's call, he instead rejected it and fought against it. He didn't want to fulfill God's purpose and plan for Him, because it would require him to change his heart and actions, and he didn't want to do that! Even when He relented and went and preached, he was unrepentant and angry.
It is interesting, in Jonah's case, he did everything he could to resist and fight the call/promise of God, and yet we see God releasing exactly what He promised, even using an unwilling Jonah. The power and strength for success was clearly provided in the word of God to Jonah. When he went to Nineveh, Jonah opened his mouth and spoke the word of the Lord, and when the word was released, God's power was released and the people responded immediately. The good news is that once again, we see God's word doing that which is was sent to do, even with an unwilling prophet. Imagine how glorious it would have been for Jonah to just have obeyed right away, and went to Nineveh, seen them as people that God loved, and called them and led them in repentance. He could have been greatly blessed, along with God being glorified. Instead he is just remembered as an angry prophet.
In summary, I am encouraged today to check my heart, to check my response and expectations concerning God's promises. I am encouraged to embrace God's promises in my life, and allow them to empower and strengthen me. I am encouraged to keep a humble attitude, recognizing that all good things come from God. I am encouraged that we are invited to join in working with God to see His purposes and plans fulfilled in our lives, and the lives of those around us! I am encouraged to know that the Word of God will fulfill its purpose on the earth and while I don't understand how He does it, I know that His plan and purpose for me will be fulfilled. I am encouraged to continue to refocus and draw my heart back to God, knowing that He is about wonderful and blessed things in my life. He desires me to walk in humility and right mindedness that I might maximise His blessing! I want to walk into the battle of life with God's promises backing me up! I want to fulfill all that He has planned for me!
Amen!
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