(1 Samuel 18:12 NLT) Saul was then afraid of David, for the LORD was with David and had turned away from Saul.
This morning I continue our series entitled, “Standing on a Word from God.” This is Part 59 of the series and Part 31 of the life of David.
Yesterday we saw how trouble followed David’s triumph. King Saul, a man who once loved David for harp playing and who greatly appreciated David killing Goliath, quickly turned on him and attempted to kill him. In the middle of a rage of anger, while being tormented by an evil spirit, Saul turned a spear at David twice, wanting to pin David to the wall. But David avoided both attacks.
So where did this leave David and Saul’s relationship? David was the hero, Saul was the king. David was the new kid on the block, Saul was the seasoned veteran and sovereign leader. Saul should not have been intimidated by David whatsoever, but he was. Our text says, “Saul was then afraid of David, for the LORD was with David and had turned away from Saul.”
No matter how popular David was, Saul was the king. I think it is hard for us (Americans) to truly understand the king-dynamic. There is a huge difference between the Presidents and Prime Ministers of today, and the Kings of yesteryear. Saul was a sovereign. He had no checks or balances. His word was the supreme authority. With a single word Saul could bequeath land, forgive debt, overturn a legal sentence, or pronounce a death sentence. No one questioned the king. No newspaper articles could question his methods. No bloggers could dissect his decisions. No news anchormen/women could criticize his ways. Saul was like a ‘little g’ god to the people. And this man — a man who seemingly had it all — was intimidated and afraid of a young boy who had the grace of God upon his life.
So what does this mean to you today? A few things:
- Some people will be intimidated by the grace of God on your life. David experienced this and I have as well. Sometimes you will run across people who feel intimidated by what God is doing in you and through you. There is not much you can do about it, other than pray for them. The issue is not with you, it is with them. Just continue to run your race, with the benefit of God’s grace, and make sure you operate in love and humility. If you keep operating in love, and you remain humble (not prideful), you will continue to enjoy the abounding benefits of God’s grace. And while others may not like it, they won’t be able to do anything about it. Their poison can never stop your purpose. Since God is FOR you, He is more than the entire world against you!
- People of authority, who are over you, may despise God’s favor on your life. Being intimidated is one thing, but Saul got to the point where he hated David. The truth is David never did anything wrong to Saul. All he did was go out of his way to bless Saul. Saul did not hate David because David was doing something wrong. Saul hated David because of his own insecurities. The issue was with Saul, not David. My point is that sometimes people you don’t even know will hate you. Or, like in this case, people of authority, who are over you, might develop bitterness and resentment toward you, simply because God favors the work of your hands. See, the favor of God can cause you to experience uncommon, unusual, atypical success. David was only 17 years old, but he was a national hero and people were chanting his name. This can happen today in boardrooms, conference rooms, meetings, video calls, business transactions, and etc. When God favors you, some people will love you for it. Other won’t. Sometimes those who resent you for it are people authority. But don’t worry. Remember, God is the ultimate authority. They might think they have power, but they can’t curse what God has already blessed!
- Never allow the insecurities of others to cause you to change who God made you to be. David knew Saul had a problem with him, but he did not change. Sometimes you might feel the urge to ‘tone down’ who you are, because others don’t like you or you might feel the urge to ‘tone up’ who you are because of pride, because of all the attention you are getting. Here’s the point: if you are operating in God’s grace and you are being blessed, there will be some people who have a problem with you, even if you do nothing wrong to them. Just don’t allow their discomfort to cause you to get outside of God’s will. Continue to run your race, with God’s grace, without getting too low, or too high. This is how you endure for the long haul. This is how you hold on long enough to become the man/woman God called you to be, so you can receive the fulfillment of every promises God made you before you die. You are in-it to win-it. You are not moved by people, you are only moved by God!
Closing Confession:
Father, I thank You for this teaching. I know who You made me to be and what You have called me to do. I have the grace to run my own race and I declare that I will. Along the way there may be people who develop their own insecurities, because of what You are doing in my life. Or there may be some who because of those insecurities, develop bitterness and hatred toward me, to the point where they actually attack me. I declare, by faith, that I shall keep my eyes on You. I will not allow the internal struggles of others to change who I am. I know their attacks will be unfruitful and I shall pray for them as I continue to run my race, with Your grace. I shall not be moved by others and I will never allow the attention I get to ever cause me to cross over into pride. I will also not allow the pressure from others to cause me to operate any less than who You have called me to be. I am who I am by Your grace and I won’t allow anyone to change that. I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper.
