"Beware the threatened King"

This has been automatically generated, and therefore may contain some unintended inaccuracies.

David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adulam. When his brothers and his father's household heard about it, they went down to him there. All those who were in distress are in debt are discontented gathered around him, and he became his commander. About 400 men were with him. From there, David went to MISpur in Moab and sat at the king of Moab Would you let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what God will do for me?

So he left them with the king of Moab and they stayed with him as long as David was in a stronghold. But the prophet of God said to David. Do not stay in a stronghold. Go into the land of Judah. So David left and went to the forest of heareth.

Now Seoul had that David and his man had been discovered. And Seoul was seated, spear in hand under the Tamaresk tree on a hill at Kibby with all his officials standing at his side. He said to them, listen, men of Benjamin. Will the son of Jesse give all of you field and vineyards? Will he make all of you commanders of thousands and commanders hundreds.

Is that why you have awe conspired against me? No 1 tells me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse. None of you is concerned about me or tell me that my son has incited my servant to lie in wait for me as he does today. But doak, the edomite, who was standing with Seoul's official said, I saw the son of Jesse come to a Himalak, son of a hiptop at Nope. A Himalak inquired of the lord for him.

He also gave him provisions and the sword of Belieth, the Philistine. Then the king sent for the priest, a Himalak son of a hittop, and all the men of his family who were the priests at Nobb, and they all came to the king. Shol said. Listen now, son of Ahedob. Yes, my lord.

He answered. Saul said to him, why have you conspired against me? You and the son of Jesse giving him bread and assured an inquiring of God for him so that he has rebelled against me and lies in wait for me as he does today. A Himalak answered the king. Who of all your servants is as loyal as David, the king son-in-law, captain of your bodyguard, and highly respected in your household.

Was that day the 1st time I inquired of God for him? Of course not, let not the king accuse your servants or any of your father of his father's family for your servant knows nothing at all about this whole affair. But the king said, you shall surely die a human like you and your whole family, then the king ordered the guards at his side, turn and kill the priests of the lord because they too have sided with David. They knew he was fleeing yet he did not tell me. But the king's officials were unwilling to raise a hand to strike the priest of the lord.

The king then ordered Dowac. You turn and strike down the priest. So, Dowac, the Idowac turned and struck them down. That day he killed 85 men who wore the linen e fort. He also put to the sword knob.

The town of the priests with its men and women, its children, and infants. And its cattle, donkeys, and a ship. But 1 son of Himalak, son of uhitha, named Atiatha, escaped and fled to join David. He told David that soul had killed the priest of the lord. Then David said to Abitha that day when Joach, the edomite was there, I knew he would be sure to tell soul.

I am responsible for the death of your whole family. Stay with me. Don't be afraid. The man who wants to kill you is trying to kill me too. You'll be safe with me.

Thank you Yasmin for reading that for us. Please keep the passage open in front of you. And let me pray for us. Heavenly father, we pray please now as we look at this passage. Help us to be attentive, help us to be ready to listen to you, knowing that this is your word, breathed out by you, and therefore help us to be attentive.

And help us to be ready to be changed by your words, to change our thinking, to change our hearts, and to change our lives. Our man. Where is a refuge? When you feel threatened, you want a safe place to go, a place to hide. I gather in Scotland and in the lake district, in remote places, There are houses, which I think probably were from what I read used to be sort of old farmers cottages, but are no longer used like that, but they're maintained.

So I said, if you're out in the wild, out in the remote, a remote place, and things go wrong, you've got a place that you can go to, and you can take shelter there. Well, there are many threats we face in life. Things we fear may happen to us. To our children, to our families, even in relatively safe tolworth, where maybe they we don't have the wild animals and the weather is relatively safe. But we still have things we fear, threats to health, family, finance, happiness, and so on.

So where can we find refuge? In 1 Samuel 22, we have 2 main characters, and we've seen them over and over again over the last few weeks. We've got David, and we've got Saul. Saul is the king of Israel, but as we know, he's been rejected by God. Saul disobeyed god, and so God has rejected him as king.

And has chosen someone else, David, who will take over as king of Israel. But David is now on the run. On the run from Saul. Saul doesn't want David to be king. Doesn't want him to take over.

So Saul is chasing after David or has been, and David we saw last week is on the run. And there was evidence last week. In the passage that you looked at that Geron preached on, that David's faith was faltering, was giving way. And at the beginning of this chapter, David is still on the run. He's fearing for his life, knowing his enemy is after him.

David is in despair, and we're gonna see David says no 1 cares for me. You may not have spotted it in the passage, but I'll point it out to He says no 1 cares. Everyone's after me. But we're also gonna see in this chapter that King Saul is quite similar. He too is feeling threatened.

He too is feeling like everyone is against him. He too says no 1 cares for me. Interesting. Both David and Saul feel like they're under attack. They both need a refuge, but only 1 of them finds it.

And we're gonna learn from this passage, who does, and how we too can find a refuge. 1st of all, our 1st heading, in the refuge on the run, in the refuge on the run. And this verse is 1 to 5. So we're gonna begin with David. We start with David, who, as we said, he's on the run, and he, in the 1st 5 verses, goes from place to place to place.

So let's just trace his movements in those 1st 5 verses if you follow them with me. He he begins, actually, the previous chapter, he was in Philistine territory. Now Philistia is to the west of Israel. And that's where he was. It was enemy enemy territory where he'd been in the previous chapter, and he goes from there.

At the beginning of our chapter, he goes to the cave of Adalam, you'll see in verse 1. Now that is in the land of Israel. So he's kind of come back to the land of Israel back home to to Israel, to the cave. And there's quite a crowd that joins him in this cave, isn't there? 1st 1, his family joining brothers and father's household, join him there.

And then 1st 2, you get this band of people who joins him. 1st 2, all those who are in distress, in debt or discontented, gathered around him. It's quite a crowd of people to have around you, isn't it? Probably not cheerful fireside conversation afterward, in the evenings. You know, why you here are discontented?

Just grumbly. Don't like the way the country's being run. Don't like how things are. Don't like the weather. Don't like, you know, those in distress, things have gone wrong.

Those in debt. Well, why are you here? I owe money? Oh, great. What about you, why are you here?

Oh, I just love David. I like being here. Really? No. I'm in debt.

Too. Yeah. What a great group to have around you, and this is the group that David's leading. Some people have said church plants attract these kind of people. I don't think that's true.

This is the group with David, but they don't stay in the cave. Verse 3, from there, David went to mispur in Moab and said to the king of Moab, would you let my father or mother come and stay with you until I learn what what God will do for me. So he travels to Moabs, and now we've gone east to the nation east of of Israel. And he's gone to misper, which means a watch tower, and there's more than 1 misper around the place. But it means a watch tower, and it's in Moab.

And it's not a ridiculous place for David to go after all, 1 of his ancestors was from Moab. If you remember, if you know, the Bible from earlier on, his, his grandmother was he great grandmother? No. Great grandmother. Ruth was from Moab.

So he's kinda going back to her back her, land, and he's providing for his family and doing but he goes to the watch tower, and he makes arrangements for his parents, and he stays in the stronghold. He think, okay, he's in the refuge. He's in a safe place. But the prophet gad then says to him, don't stay there verse 5. Go to Judah.

Don't stay in Marab. Go back. And so he travels back and goes to the forest of Harris. And you might think, well, okay, where's the safe place? Where is the stronghold?

It looked like Moab. Look like this, the the watch tower. The stronghold was the safe place to be. But actually, we know a bit more about David's time, around this time, not just from 1 Samuel, but because David wrote about it in Psalms. And there's a Psalm that he wrote right at the very beginning of the chapter, actually.

When he was in the cave. And I just want you to turn to this Psalm. So you might wanna keep a hand in 1 Samuel 22, and I'd love you to just turn to Psalm 142. Summer 142, which is page 630. And I just want you to imagine David in that cave.

Fearing for his life. He's run away from the Philistines who were after, run away from saul who's after him, and this is what he says in the cave. And I'm gonna read the whole Psalm. It's not very long. Let me read it for you.

I cry aloud to the lord. I lift up my voice to the lord for mercy. I pour out before him my complaint. Before him, I tell my trouble. When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who watch over my way.

In the path where I walk, people have hidden a snare for me. Look and see there is no 1 at my right hand. No 1 is concerned for me. I have no refuge. No 1 cares for my life.

I cry to you, lord. I say, you are my refuge. My portion in the land of the living. Listen to my cry for I am in desperate need, rescue me from those who pursue me. For they are too strong for me, sent me free from my prison that I may praise your name.

Then the righteous will gather about me because of your goodness to me. Here he is in the cave, on the run, and he finds a refuge notice he says verse 4, look and see there is no 1 at my right hand, no 1 who is concerned for me. Yeah. I said to you, we said at the beginning. David says no 1 cares about me, but it wasn't in 1 samuel, but it's in this Psalm.

Where he says, everyone's out for me. No 1 cares for me. And he says, I've got no refuge. Verse 4, I have no refuge, but then verse 5. I cry to you, lord.

I say, you are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living. Do you see David is saying not that I'm safe because I'm in the cave. And actually, he's not safe because he goes to the watch tower or the stronghold. But because he finds the refuge in the lord. The lord is his refuge, his safe place.

And therefore, though he's on the run, he's in the refuge. All the time. We we heard last week or you heard last week, Gerron rightly saying, you know, David's faith falters, and it looked bleak. It looked like he he was giving up on the lord. But at some point, certainly in the cave, there's a turnaround where he says, god, I I trust in you.

I need you. I need you to be my refuge. Everyone, my those enemies who are against me, they are too strong for me. I can't cope against them, but I need you. You're my refuge.

And that's where he turns to. David, on the run, but in the refuge, here's the safe place. And I'd want this week in gospel communities. We're gonna look at some hundred and 42 and spend time in that to think how do we enter that refuge. It's all very well knowing that God can be our refuge, but how do we actually do that?

How did David do it? Let's learn from David. How to enter that refuge and find God to be our safe place? So we're not gonna spend more time in that team. I wanna turn back to 1 Samuel 22.

But important lesson for us. There are many castles and fortresses in this country. It's wonderful and it's lovely when you can go and visit them. And you can look around them and you can explore them. And you can imagine what was it like to live here?

What would it be like if you were under attack? And in this castle, would it feel safe with the thick walls and the high ramparts? And, you know, would you feel safe there? And David is saying, my safe place, the safe place, the refuge is the lord god, and we can go to that refuge too. We must.

In the refuge on the run, 1.2st point, when fear turns fatal. The scene changes. We're no longer with David. We turn to saul, and there's a stark contrast. Whereas David is on the run throughout the rest of the chapter, Saul is stationary.

He's in 1 place. Saul is move David is moving around. Saul is sat under a tree. David has this motley crew of grumblers around him. Saul has his officials around him.

And yet, whereas David is the 1 on the run, David seems to find refuge where Saul is totally and utterly insecure. You'd have seen that as the reading was read. Saul is so insecure. And the image you have of him right at the beginning of the chapter is he is sat there with spear in hand, which if we know, if you know from earlier in 1 Samuel, he has thrown that spear several times. If I were 1 of his officials, I'd be worried being around him.

He's got that spear in his hand, and he seems like he could blow up at any moment. He reminds me of 1 of my teachers from school. Not that he had a spear. Good. He didn't.

Maybe you had a teacher like him. Maybe it was just our school. It was I mean, we had some strict teachers, but this guy we were all frightened of because you just didn't know what he was gonna be like. He would blow up at anything. 3 1 kids bag out the classroom.

I can't remember why. He sent a kid to the head teacher for not having a pen. He he sent kids out of the room for yawning. He was just and he would blow up at anything. It seems like saul was like that, but with a spear in his hand.

Now to be fair to saul, he had been told that that the king ship was gonna be taken away from it. And that David, he now realized was gonna take over, but he descends into a pit of paranoia. He thinks everyone is out to get him. And whereas for David, people genuinely are after him, for all. It's just not true.

But he still thinks everyone is after him. He says verse 7, listen, men of Benjamin. Will the sun of Jesse give you fields and vineyards, will he make all of you commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds? Is that why you've all conspired against me? No 1 tells me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse.

None of you is concerned about me or tells me what my son has incited my servant to that my son has incited my servant to lie in wait for me as he does today. You're all in this together. It's says. You're all after me. What's he doing?

In his paranoia, he is making up people's motives, making up what people are thinking about him, and it is all negative. It is all bad. Everyone is after me. Now you might look at him and quite rightly go, well, he's just gone mad. And we wouldn't do anything like this, would we?

Except sometimes in our worst moments, we do kind of do this, don't we? I mean, maybe not quite like this, and you don't sit with a spear in your hand, but Maybe in the middle of the night or late at night, you might lie on your bed and just wallow in a pit of self pity and maybe even go down into the pit of paranoia. Maybe you know what it feels like at times to feel no 1 cares for me. Everyone hates me. After all, in making up what people are thinking about you, how long does it take you after you send a message to someone?

And you've seen they've read it, but they haven't respond. How long does it take you to start imagining what they're thinking or that they they've rejected you? They're ignoring you. They don't care about you. Or maybe at the end of the day, you do the VAR on all the conversations from the day.

That's the only football reference that you got there. For this week. But you replay all the conversations that you've had and all the comments and the looks that you've been given, and you think, people don't like me. They're after me. And there's a lesson here.

If we don't pour out our hearts to the lord, if we're not finding our refuge in him and turning to him, we can easily just spiral down. We can do this, can't we? We can make up what people's motives are, what people are thinking about us. And then comes doeg. Doeg, the edomite, and he is a stirrer.

We saw him actually in the previous chapter. So, doeg was there when David came and consulted at himalek, the priest. And you saw that he was there, and now he pipes up. Just at this moment, when Saul is saying no 1 cares about me. Doug pipes up saying, oh, yeah.

I saw David. He was consulting at himalek, the priest. And you might think, well, Doug just seems to be reporting what happened. You know, the things that happened that the David was there and Himalay consulted the lord from although actually in the previous chapter, that wasn't mentioned that Himalek consulted the lord for David, but Himalek doesn't deny it later, so maybe it was true. But there it just includes all the bits of information that are gonna windsaw up.

And make him conclude that a Himalak is against Saul too and is helping David. And so he says, yeah, a Himalak inquired of the lord. Gave David provisions and gave him a sword, the sword of goliath. And you might oh, and David actually writes Osama about this moment. We're not gonna turn it up, but you could look at it later.

Yet he writes a Psalm just about this moment when Doug does this. And he says, you who practice deceit, your tongue plots destruction. That sounds like Dougag. You're you who practice to see your tongue plot's destruction. Well, and again, maybe there's a lesson here for us.

Not just about what we say to ourselves, but who we listen to? When things are going badly, when you feel threatened, when you feel people are against you, who do you listen to? Are they wise people? Are they godly people who will point you to the refuge or are they people who will confirm you in your worst fears? Be careful who you listen to.

Well, then Saul goes on the attack. Fear turns fatal. He calls in a Himallec. And a Himalax family. And he says and well, actually, it wouldn't have really mattered what a Himalax said.

You get the feeling it just wouldn't have mattered. And that's the way it is with people who are paranoid, isn't it? There's nothing you can say really. He, but he calls a Himalak in, and he demands to know why a Himalak has been helping David, why he's, why he's sided with David. And then verse 14, a Himalak answers.

Who of all your servants is as loyal as David, the king's son and or captain of the bodyguard, highly respected in your household, and so on. Now you can't help feeling that these things that Himalix has probably make things worse for him. You know, who who's better than David? Who's more loyal than he? And everyone in your household thinks he's loyal and great.

Well, Saul decides the verdict. Not only will a Himalek die, but his family will. And so Soul orders their death, but the guards won't do it. They still respect the priests of the lord, which a Himalak is. And so he turns to doeg, who kills a Himalak, his family, and their entire town.

And this is a very low moment. It's a tragic moment. Saul is now attacking god's people and killing them. He's treating them as he should have treated god's enemies, god's people's enemies. He's now treating them as being.

His enemies and destroying them. It's got really bad. This is a final descent for saul into into rebellion and into. It's just gone awfully terribly wrong. And this killing of the priests is far more significant, even just than a paranoid killing and killing so many fears as a traitor.

Because if you trace what where Saul has descended to, he's he's rejected David, who is now god's chosen king, and tried to kill him in the past. He's disobeyed the prophet in the past, Samuel, and now he's killing priests. Woodhouse in his book on on 1 Samuel. Says his corruption is complete. And Saul now has become like others in the Bible who attack god's people.

He stands alongside people like pharaoh who, in the days of Moses, tried to kill off god's people. He stands alongside, well, later in the Bible, 1 like King Herrod. Who in the days of Jesus, when Jesus was born, tried to kill off all the baby boys in Bethlehem. Saul now, do you see is standing alongside then, the opponents of God and those who are trying to kill god's people? And we need to see in the Bible that there is this thread running through of these people who come to power, who attack god's people, try to destroy them.

And the books I read all then point from this chapter to say that throughout the bible, there is this talk of 1 who will come who will ultimately really try to destroy god's people. Called the Antichrist, an Antichrist, meaning opposing Christ, anti, of against Christ, who will really concertedly try to troy god's people. And there's much debate amongst theologians and about who the antichrist is, and it's probably not worth joining in with those discussions. But it is good to notice in a book like 1 John where John says 1 John 2 verse 18. You could look it up later.

He says many antichrists have come. And he says the spirit of Antichrist is in the world already. So whether or not there is this big figure yet to come, he's saying, actually, there have been many Antichrists. Those who have opposed God and tried to destroy god's people, and it looks like Saul Voking of Israel stands alongside them. And why do we need to know this so that we are prepared?

Because this didn't finish with all, like we've said, there have been others. And as you look through history, there have been others who've tried to attack and destroy god's people. You might look at Nero who in the 1st century had Christians burnt and thrown to wild animals. Or diocletian, who I gather in the 4th century tried to destroy Christianity from the Roman empire, or you come to more modern examples of Soviet Russia or Cambodia under the khmer rouge where they killed Christians on today in North Korea. Where Christians face imprisonment, torture, and killing.

This spirit of Antichrist is still around. It's not everywhere all the time. But where it happens, it's terrible. And therefore, there is a sense in which god's people on earth, we are on the run under threat. And we should expect it just if you're unsure, just reread, we as a church read through 1 Peter recently, which warns about sufferings, and how to deal with them.

Reread that. Or the book of Revelation, you we expect that this is the way it's gonna be? Well, I I don't know about you, but that makes me feel even more unsafe. We said at the beginning, we need a refuge. But this sounds terrible.

Being a Christian. If this opposition is around, this spirit of Antichrist, if there have been many Antichrists, we expect more. This sounds even worse. Well, we've got 1 last point. But I'm not gonna give you the title of it just for a little bit.

Just to keep you on your toes. We've got 1 last point. You see, thankfully, the chapter doesn't end with the slaughter of the priests. We end with a glimmer of hope, and it is a real glimmer of hope. Let me read again.

Verse 20 to 23. It says, but 1 son of a Himalek son of ahitha named Abiyafa escaped and fled to join David. He told David that Saul had killed the priests of the lord. Then David said to Abiatha that day, when DuAG the edomite was there, I knew he would be sure to tell Saul. I am responsible for the death of your whole family.

So stay with me. Don't be afraid. The man who wants to kill you is trying to kill me too. You will be safe with me. Now we do see here, as you see elsewhere in the Bible, when god's people are under threat, when god's people are attacked, that God preserves and protects his people, Abiyafa, here escapes flees to David.

And actually, you do see god's control in the whole chapter. And if you wanna know more about that, come and chat with me afterwards. We don't time to go into that, but we you do see god's control in the whole chapter even actually over the killings as the priest. We can chat about that more. But you see it here that Abialathe is protected and preserved kept safe, and he flees to David in the forest.

And now you've got this band of people in the forest, which is all sounding sound a little bit Robin Hood like that you've got we've got Fry Tuck has now joined them and all looking a bit interesting there, and You've got this band in the forest. But more than that, do you notice? You've got the king there. You've got David, god's chosen king. And if you noticed earlier in the chapter, you have got a profit there, God.

And the king, David, is being obedient to the prophet. Unlike Saul who's disobeyed the prophet, David's obeying the prophet by going to the forest, if you remember. But now we've also got a priest there as well. There are 3 key roles in the in the nation of Israel as you go through their nation hit national history, king, prophet, priests. You've got all 3.

In the band in the forest. There is a glimmer of hope there, isn't there? And then you've got how David speaks to Abiatha. And he says to him, and unlike Saul, that David is taking responsibility. He says it's my fault your family were killed.

But verse 23, I think, is a wonderful verse. He says, stay with me. Don't be afraid. The man who wants to kill you is trying to kill me too, you will be safe with me. And that seems to be bigger than just, I'm not gonna attack you.

That seems to be, you will be safe here, which sounds mad, doesn't it? I mean, this this madness to say, you're gonna be safe with me. The way, the 1 who's trying to kill you is trying to kill me too, you'll be safe with me. That doesn't sound right, does it? That sounds like a very unsafe place to be.

But yet, you know, I mean, it's still amazingly when, you know, apparently in a thunderstorm, when you've got lightning strikes going. Apparently, a safe place to be is in a car. Now, okay. Don't go out and test this, still under, yeah, Bart said, I'd be safe. But that feels mad, doesn't it?

Metal? Petrol lightning seems like a terrible place to be, but I gather physicist afterwards, couldn't help me, but I gather it's a safe place to be because the lightning strikes the car goes round, down, into the ground. You're safe. So it's not a bad place to be. David is under fire.

David's like the lightning's heading for him, but he says to Abiyatha, you'll be safe with me. You'll be alright. Happy Arthur, you see, finds refuge with the fugitive king, with the king on the run. With the king who's under fire. He says you'll be safe.

And David here is pointing us forward to Jesus, isn't he? The ultimate king on the run. The ultimate fugitive king. Few thousand years later, was hounded to death, opposed and rejected, but says to you and me, you will be safe with me. Come to me.

You'll be safe. But what kind of safety is this? After all, Jesus himself was persecuted and killed, and we've already seen if there's this spirit of antichrist in the world, doesn't sound very safe to be with Jesus. It doesn't look like a safe place to be. But actually, there is no safer place.

It's the only refuge. Jesus is the only refuge there is. Why? Because the 1 thing that could ultimately destroy you and me, our sin was taken by Jesus. And you can find refuge at the cross.

It's like the car where the lightning strikes it and goes round it and into the ground and doesn't destroy you. So the cross at the cross, god's anger pours out on Jesus for our sin, and he becomes like that shield. He is the only refuge. Yes. By coming to him, you may lose all sorts of things.

He doesn't promise that your family will will necessarily be be safe or that your finances will be safe or your health will be, or any of those things will be. But he does promise this. He says, in Mark 8 36, what good is it for someone to gain the whole world yet forfeit his soul? That's the thing Jesus keeps safe. Through the cross.

He can protect your soul. There is no other safe place to be than in Jesus. So the ultimate fugitive king is the place where we can find refuge. So pour out your hearts to him, find refuge with him in trials and in sufferings. He is our refuge.

Let me lead us in prayer. Heavenly father, we praise you that Jesus is our refuge that though he was the fugitive king, yet he is the only safe place to be. And we pray, please, that you would help each 1 of us to find refuge in him even when we go through trials and difficulties and sufferings.