(Read 1 Samuel 26)
Today I will continue with “Faith and Patience Volume 5 – Greater is Coming!” In chapter 26, David spares Saul’s life for a second time. After everything that happened between Saul and David, Saul decided to go after David again. He gathered 3,000 of his most elite troops (again) to track and kill David. You would think that after David spared his life that Saul would well-enough alone, but that’s how people are sometimes. Even after you show them kindness, they still try to stab you in the back.
Saul took his men into the wilderness, close to where David was hiding and set up camp. David got wind of it and decided to go on a recon mission with just two of his men. While Saul and his men were sleeping, David and his recon team slipped into the enemy’s camp under cover of darkness. David found Saul sleeping in the middle of a circle of men, next to his commander, General Abner. David asked Ahimelech and Abishai — the only two men with him inside of a camp of 3,000 armed guards — “Who will go with me inside the circle?” Abishai replied, “I’ll go.” So David and Abishai went right next to Saul while the king was fast asleep. Saul had his royal spear stuck in the ground beside his head. Abner and the other Soldiers were lying asleep around him.
Abishai whispered, “God has surely handed your enemy over to you this time! Let me pin him to the ground with one thrust of the spear; I won’t need to strike twice!” But once again, David would not do it. David said, “No! Don’t kill him. For who can remain innocent after attacking the LORD’s anointed one? Surely the LORD will strike Saul down someday, or he will die of old age or in battle. The LORD forbid that I should kill the one he has anointed! But take his spear and that jug of water beside his head, and then let’s get out of here!”
David and Abishai got away without anyone seeing them or even waking up because the Bible says that “The LORD had put Saul’s men into a deep sleep.” And when David and Abishai were at a safe distance, David started shouting to wake everyone up. This was still a dangerous move because it was 3 vs. 3,000. But David was confident in the protection of the Lord. David then taunted General Abner for not having protected his king, and he made it clear to Saul that he had spared his life yet again, showing him the royal spear and jug of water that was by his head.
I love what happened next. David said to Saul, “Let my lord the king listen to his servant. If the LORD has stirred you up against me, then maybe my sacrifice will change His mind. But if this is simply a human scheme, then may those involved be cursed by the LORD.” Saul had to admit that the Lord was not behind his actions. Saul confessed, “I have sinned. Come back home, my son, and I will no longer try to harm you, for you valued my life today. I have been a fool and very, very wrong.”
David sent the spear and jug back with one of the Soldiers and said, “The LORD gives his own reward for doing good and for being loyal, and I refused to kill you even when the LORD placed you in my power, for you are the LORD’s anointed one. Now may the LORD value my life, even as I have valued yours today. May he rescue me from all my troubles.” Saul said to David, “Blessings on you, my son David. You will do many heroic deeds, and you will surely succeed.” Then David went away, and Saul returned home.
So what does this mean for you today? A few things:
1. When your full trust is in the Lord, you operate with fearless confidence.
— David and two scouts went into Saul’s camp. It was 3 vs. 3,000, but since the 3 had God with them, the 3,000 never stood a chance. It does not matter what the odds are or how stacked the deck is against you, if the Lord is leading you to do something, then do it, with all your confidence in Him! You + God = VICTORY!
— If God leads you to do something and weapons are formed against you, the weapons will not prosper (Isa 54:17). If the weapons/schemes formed against you looks like they are working, then it is because God is going to turn the situations around for your good. So keep your confidence in God and don’t allow yourself to be moved by attacks or attackers. David had to deal with a constant barrage of opposition, but he maintained his peace and his integrity. If you do the same, you will come out on top like David did.
— Keep your confidence in God. He will never let you down!
2. The Lord is your shield!
— While David and his two-person recon team were in the enemy’s camp, the Bible says: “The LORD had put Saul’s men into a deep sleep.”
— David and his team were walking around while 3,000 men were sleeping. Not one guard saw them because God saw too it that every enemy stayed asleep while they did what they needed to do.
— We serve a God who will be your shield and defense. God can blind your enemies, He can confuse them while they are plotting/planning against you, or He can simply move them out of the way! My point here is that when your confidence is in God, you have NOTHING to fear!
3. The Lord honors integrity.
— Twice now, David had the chance to kill Saul, but he refused to do so, because he believed it was not his place. Unless the Lord was involved in it, David did not want to be a part of it.
— It takes integrity to withhold from doing things that will clearly benefit you (at least in the short term) but that you are not being led to do.
— A person of integrity puts God first, even when it costs them to do so. But fret not, whatever you sacrifice for the Lord turns into seed, and our God (the Lord of the Harvest) will see to it that you reap a harvest on every seed sown!
4. The life of faith is not for cowards.
— David drew ‘a line in the sand.’ He made a public declaration that if the Lord was helping Saul track him down, then he would attempt to find grace and mercy with the Lord through his sacrifices because he was on the wrong side of God. But if what Saul was doing was merely a human scheme, David pronounced a curse on all those involved. It takes courage to both accept the wrath of God (if you are wrong) and to release the wrath of God on someone else (when they are wrong). This is a side of God and Christianity that people don’t like to acknowledge. The same God who is a loving, caring, and sharing Heavenly Father, is also a Righteous Judge who judges sin and who comes against those who fight against His plans, His purposes, and His people!
— Spiritual power is real power. David pronounced a curse over Saul. This is not a joke. David was saying, “Hey! If I am wrong, I will ask God for mercy. But if you are wrong, I release a curse over you! I am tired of dealing with your foolishness!” The Blessing and The Curse are real. The good news is that if you are Born-Again, no curse, hex, vex, spell, work of sorcery, witchcraft, voodoo, or any other demonic attack has any power over you.
— The point I am making here is that you cannot be a coward. Stand your ground like David did. Plead the Blood of Jesus over your family. Don’t back down from any devil, demon, or demonic influence. If God is for you, nothing can harm you! Jesus said that He has given us authority over ALL the power of the enemy, and NOTHING shall be able to harm us (Luke 10:19). If you truly believe this, you should have confidence and boldness. You can’t believe God and be a coward at the same time!
5. Never get tired of doing what is right!
(Gal 6:9 NLT)
So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.
(Gal 6:9 TPT)
And don’t allow yourselves to be weary or disheartened in planting good seeds, for the season of reaping the wonderful harvest you’ve planted is coming!
— David kept doing the right thing, over and over again. I am sure it was getting old. I am sure he was getting retired of Saul’s attacks. But the Bible teaches us that if we REFUSE to get tired of doing what is right, WE WILL REAP A HARVEST when the time for the harvest comes DUE. This will happen because we refused to quit.
— It is the HOPE of the HARVEST that keeps us going and keeps me declaring that GREATER IS COMING FOR YOU!
— I know what it is like to get tired. Believe me, I do. I have been there. I am there right now! You know you heard from God. You are doing what you believe to be the right thing, day-in and day-out, and still, your breakthrough is not coming. Not only that, but it seems like the enemy is relentless. He is coming after you in a wave, after wave, after wave. You get frustrated. You sometimes want to quit. You get upset with God. You talk to God, and sometimes you ‘lose your cool’ with Him. But when it is all said and done, you honor God too much, and you are too close to the Holy Spirit to actually GIVE UP. You get up, wipe your tears, brush yourself off, and you keep doing, knowing that it is only a matter of time before you have what God promised. You know, deep down in your heart, that God will not fail you. You are confident that GREATER IS COMING FOR YOU!
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I thank You for giving me holy boldness. I am not a coward. I do not faint at the sight of opposition. I do not shrink when it is time to take a stand. I seek to fulfill Your Kingdom plans and purposes for my life and I do so with fearless confidence. Regardless of the odds against me, when You lead me to do something, I do it, with my full trust and confidence in You and Your divine protection. You are my shield, my rock, my fortress, and my refuge. Since my confidence is in You, I have an internal peace that cannot be disturbed. When I know I am doing Your bidding, I know that no man can stop what has been divinely initiated. For now, I refuse to get tired of doing what is right in your sight. I live with a divine HOPE of my HARVEST. There is a season when my HARVEST will COME DUE! GREATER IS COMING FOR ME! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
