22:4 - Why would he take his parents to Moab? Well, if you can remember, Jesse's grandmother Ruth came from Moab...they probably had some family connections that hooked them up with the king.
22:17 - This is tragic. The priests state the case of their innocence, yet Saul is deaf to their words and makes an evil judgement on them. Hope you are enjoying the kingship you asked for people of Israel...this is what they do...they get corrupted by power and do evil (Even David is corrupted by the power of the kingship eventually). Saul says, "Kill the priests of the Lord..." - is he not insane?! He knows these men are God's priests and he still orders them killed...the only god Saul worships at this point is the god of self.
23:2, 10-12 - David a true man of God inquires of the Lord before doing anything. It is refreshing to see a leader in Israel who is in tune with God. He is totally reliant on God and will not act without an understanding that he is working within God's will. How are you doing in that department?
23:16 - "Strengthened his hand" means that Jonathan came and encouraged David. In his time f greatest need...Jonathan is willing to leave the army o his father and go t his friend for lift him up. Do you have friends like these? You need to get some!
23:21 - My stomach kinda turned with disgust after reading this verse. How sick is it that Saul, a man who just slaughtered God's innocent priests, would dare to speak blessing from God over people?
23:28 - Saul's jealousy has so blinded him that he is ignoring his duty as a leader to try to chase David down. Have you ever allowed jealousy and obsession to derail the focus of your life?
24:5ff - Even though David knows that Saul is evil and living in open rebellion towards God...David loves God so deeply that he refuses to kill a man that God has anointed as king. This really highlights the difference between Saul and David.
24:12 - Though he lets Saul live, David does not completely let Saul of the hook. He calls him out in front of all the men there. He states that Saul has done evil against him, but he is willing to let God be the judge, not himself. Many Christians have a difficult time with this concept of allowing God to be the judge and avenger...we fall into the same desires to get revenge that plagues all of human kind. We can learn alot from David at this point in his life.
24:16ff - Somewhere deep inside, Saul knows that he is absolutely wrong...he knows the righteousness of David...we even see that he feels guilt - his heart is momentarily broken because of what he is doing. But eventually he chooses to let his jealousy cloud his judgement over right and wrong again. There have been times in my life where I was dealing with sin struggles that constantly left me feeling guilty and vile...I would feel remorse and hate the sin, yet when refused to deal with the root of the problem - I would always return to the sin again. We have to be willing to take drastic steps to seek righteousness...if we let the lies and temptations remain in our lives - they will eventually blind our judgement.
2 comments:
I love 22:14-15 when Saul confronts the priests about "betrayal." The priests are clear about their intentions and unhindered in the way they speak to Saul. While treating Saul with the respect a King deserves, they do not abandon their stance. How far up the "totem pole" are we willing to stand up for Christ?
Nice to see you Ish...nice comment.
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