Gary Gleans

Our actions reveal what is in our heart.  Saul has a hart that is full of fear and hatred so he acts on this condition of his heart by chasing after David in an attempt to take his life.  David’s heart is full of confidence and loyalty so he refuses to take matters into his own hands and take Saul’s life.  There is a clear contrast between these two men and it becomes more and more obvious why God rejected Saul and why David is called a man after God’s own heart.  We must faithfully and carefully examine our actions so that we will be aware of the condition of our heart. SAUL SEEKS DAVID’S LIFE: Just recently Saul had been chasing David with three thousand men, but when David refused to kill Saul in the cave; Saul admitted that he was wrong and left David alone.  This was a change of mind for Saul, but this chapter reveals to us that Saul’s heart had not changed.  He is still driven by his lust for power and his fear of David instead of a desire to please God and serve his people

Impulsiveness is a very dangerous trait that all of us tend to possess at times.  We have a tendency to react to the circumstances we face without truly thinking through our options or even stopping to consider the will of God.  In this passage we see two impulsive men that are running full speed ahead towards a collision that would have been catastrophic.  Fortunately there was a wise woman who had the good sense and the courage to stand between the two of them and avert the impending disaster.  We must be careful not to be controlled by our emotions and make decisions based on our feelings instead of stopping, asking for God’s wisdom and the doing the right thing. NABAL’S IMPULSIVENESS MAKES HIM UNAPPRECIATIVE: Nabal raised sheep in the wilderness and had a large and productive herd.  When it came time for him to sheer his sheep, it was like harvest time for him as it was when he got paid for his work.  David and his men had been with Nabal’s shepherds in the wilderness and had

We are often tempted to take matters into our own hands.  David has been anointed the future king of Israel; Saul has been chasing him all over the country and repeatedly tried to kill him.  David has every logical reason in the world to kill Saul, but David makes it very clear that the “war” between him and Saul is a one way street and that he will have no part in bringing harm to the person that God has ordained to be his king.  David has a clear understanding of authority and the sovereignty of God.  He wants no part of taking down the authority that God has established.  When we find ourselves under authority with which we do not agree; we must not be a part of taking matters into our own hands.  God calls us to obey and honor authorities because they have been established by Him. SAUL RENEWS HIS QUEST TO KILL DAVID: Saul was temporarily distracted from David by the attack of the Philistines, but as soon as the battle was over; Saul renewed his quest to kill David.  He has th

We would normally say that the enemy of my enemy is my friend.  However, in this circumstance it appears that Saul is very far from normal.  David and Saul have a common enemy in the Philistines, but no matter how faithful and valiant David is in defeating the Philistines, Saul continues to try to kill David.  Saul is blinded by his hatred and cannot seem to see that he is not only fighting against the Philistines and David but he is fighting against the very hand of God.  We must learn to seek out what God is doing in this world and then do all we can to cooperate with His work.  Instead we often get so wrapped up in our own agendas that we lose sight of God and His will. DAVID DELIVERS KEILAH FROM THE PHILISTINES: David continues to demonstrate his loyalty to God and the nation of Israel by going out and fighting against the Philistines.  David is safely hidden away from Saul where he is; however, when he hears about the plight of the city of Keilah he wants to go protect them.

Today we see two leaders that are going in two complete opposite directions.  David, up until this time, has been running by himself and having to act crazy just to try to stay alive.  Saul has been established as king over Israel with the resources of the nation at his disposal.  However, the tide begins to change in this chapter as David returns to Israel and people begin to gather around him.  At the same time, in becomes obvious that Saul is beginning to lose his power and the respect of the people.  We can clearly see two very different leadership styles and an obvious contrast in the character of these two leaders. DAVID LEADS IN HUMILITY: David recognizes who he is and knows that his life is in the hands of God.  He is confident in abilities that God has given him and he trusts God to provide for Him and protect him.  As he returns to Israel, his brothers and extended family come to him and a group of oppressed and offended people begin to gather around him.  Soon he has a

Desperate times call for desperate measures, and David is certainly facing desperation.  He is alone and running from the king who wants to kill him.  He cannot return to his home for that is the first place that Saul would look.  He is famous throughout the land so there is no way that he can simply blend in to the society and not be discovered.  He is a man without a country and no place to hide.  His only option at this time is to trust the Lord.  Certainly during these times of desperation David was looking to the Lord, wrestling with the Lord and forging a trust in the Lord that would help him walk with God and continue to trust God throughout his life.  The Lord will often allow us to go through times of desperation in order to build our character and help us learn to trust Him as a way of preparing us for what He has planned in our lives.  No matter how dark the days or how desperate we may become, we must remember to place our trust in the Lord. GOD PROVIDES RESOURCES FOR

Friendship is a blessing from God and can be used to help encourage and protect us.  The friendship between Jonathan and David is clearly from God and is evidence of the character of both men.  Jonathan has more reason then Saul to want David dead because it is obvious that Jonathan knows that David will be then next king and not himself.  David has every reason to distrust Jonathan for this same reason, but it is clear that both men are loyal to one another and recognize that God is behind what is going on their lives.  The both trust what God is doing and are determined to be loyal to Him and to one another.  Certainly our friendships should be centered on the will and work of God in our lives and not our own agendas.  We should not use our friendships for self promotion or interest but we must focus upon the kingdom of God and how our relationships can bring glory to Him. DAVID CONVINCES JONATHAN OF SAUL’S ATTEMPTS: It must have been hard for David to have to tell his best fri

The protection of God is a wonderful and amazing blessing that He bestows on His children.  Saul is the king of the land and has decided that he wants to kill David.  Saul has his entire army at his disposal and holds the most powerful position in the nation.  He would normally just be able to kill anyone that he wanted, but God has determined to protect David and provide for his safety.  It is a futile thing to fight against God.  Saul ends up just looking foolish and powerless.  We can rest in God’s power and protection, knowing that He is able to protect us from the most powerful enemy in the most dangerous of circumstances.  God is always able to deliver us no matter how dark and difficult things may become.  We can see this illustrated through the people that God uses to protect David. GOD PROTECTS DAVID THROUGH JONATHAN: Of all the people that we would expect to want David dead, Jonathan is the most likely to join his father in the quest to eliminate David.  Jonathan had th

Jealousy is a very dangerous thing in the heart of men, especially in the heart of a leader.  David becomes more and more successful in his service for Saul and even though he has been nothing but loyal to Saul, his success brings about great jealousy on the part of Saul.  It becomes obvious that the hand of God is upon David and Saul can see it plainly.  It also is plainly clear that the Lord has left Saul and the result is a very tormented, bitter and jealous leader who is trying to kill his best soldier.  This is contrasted starkly by David’s faithfulness, dedication and the love of the people and even the rest of Saul’s family for David.  This passage demonstrates the difference between those who are led by the Lord and those that are controlled by the flesh. THE SPIRIT PRODUCES LOVE: As soon as Jonathan, Saul’s son and heir to the throne, hears about David; his heart is full of love for him.  Jonathan sees in David a kindred spirit who loves the Lord and trusts the Lord in a

This is likely one of the best known stories in all of Scripture, but it serves to remind us of the power of God and His ability to meet any need no matter how difficult the circumstances may be.  The power of God, the courage and faith of David as well as the cowardice of the army of Israel and King Saul are all on vivid display in this chapter.  We clearly see God controlling the circumstances so that David shows up at just the right time and then directing David and the stone from his sling to just the right place.  It just one of those “God things” that we just stand back in awe and amazement as He works His will.  It also demonstrates just how amazing it is to be an instrument in the hands of God.  God will put us in some very difficult circumstances that may be very hard for us to face but when we trust Him and He starts to work the experiences are fantastic.  This is the way that we should live our lives.  There is so much on which we could focus, but I would like to look at t

God’s perspective of people and the events of history is far different from our perspective.  Our vision is very limited and is often obstructed by our circumstances and our personal opinions.  This is why trusting God is so vital to every step of our lives.  We cannot see the whole picture.  We do not know the future; nor do we know the implications that our present choices will have on the future.  But there is a God in heaven who know all of that and He calls us to trust Him and make our decisions based on what He would has revealed to us and not based on our own perception or understanding.  God is in the process of starting a transition in leadership and is about to identify the next king of Israel.  This involves a very difficult process of stripping Saul of the throne and then putting his successor in place.  We might be able to come up with a dozen ways to do this, but God puts His plan into action through Samuel and this process is long, drawn out, dangerous and goes against

Power and pride can ruin a person so quickly.  Saul started out as a humble king who did not seek credit or care about what people were saying about him.  However, all of that has now changed, he is now full of pride and is seeking to attract attention to himself.  Most significantly, he has chosen to rebel against the command of God and is simply following his own way with a complete disregard for what God wants.  When we begin to live for ourselves we will inevitably live in rebellion against God.  When we rebel against God we lose the privilege of serving Him and being used by Him.  God is looking for humble servants He can use to further His work in this world; not egotistical rebels who are only interested in serving themselves. SAUL RECEIVES CLEAR INSTRUCTIONS: God sent word to Saul that he was to go and completely destroy the Amalekites and all that they owned.  This people had gone to war with Israel in the desert and they had been an evil idolatrous nation that God wante

Confusion and distraction can be tools of God used against those who do not fear God; or they can be tools of Satan used against the servants of God.  The children of Israel have been hiding in fear as the army of the Philistines gathers and grows.  God uses great confusion in order to defeat them and deliver Israel.  However, there is a great deal of distraction within Israel due to an imprudent vow made by Saul.  We must be very careful as we serve the Lord not to allow confusion and distraction to make us ineffective in our work.  We must carefully look at God’s Word and follow it closely and not try to do things according to our own understanding.  We must trust God and allow Him to work in and through us without becoming puffed up or proud.  We can learn from the various stages of this battle as it is described for us. GOD DIRECTS JONATHAN: Jonathan gets tired of just sitting around and decides to go out with his armor bearer and scout out the situation.  When he sees a comp

Rationalization is a very dangerous habit into which many of us fall on a regular basis.  When we face difficult circumstances it is an especially easy time for us to begin playing the “rationalization game.”  Saul has won some great battles and has been established as king.  He and his son are leading the troops into battle but he faces an army that is many times larger and much better equipped than his.  In the face of these circumstances Saul begins his downfall and rationalization had a big part to do with it.  There are three contributing factors that facilitate Saul’s failure in this passage.  Unfortunately, these factors are often present in our lives as well. EXCESSIVE PRIDE: Before Saul became king he was a very humble man who had no ambition to become king whatsoever.  Even after Samuel told him he was to be king he could not believe it.  However, once he was established as king and had his first victory we can see pride beginning to creep into his heart and life.  He a

One of my greatest desires in life is to be able to finish well.  We don’t know when then end will be as Christ’s return is imminent or our lives could come to an end at any time.  However, apart from the rapture or death, I would love to be found faithful as I celebrate my 100 th birthday.  Samuel was old and had lived a long live is service of the Lord.  He had started to sever the Lord at a very young age, he had been faithful to serve the Lord through the prime of his life and now at the end of his life he could stand before the people as a faithful servant of the Lord.  I would love to be able to follow in those footsteps.  Samuel had not had a very good role model in Eli, the people he led were a difficult people and the enemies of his people were constantly attacking; yet Samuel had remained faithful despite these difficult circumstances.  As Samuel prepares for the final stage of his ministry he stands before the people and opens his heart. SAMUEL’S EVALUATION: It is goo

Trials, threats and even the attacks of our enemies are often used by God to bring about His will in our lives and make us grow.  This is true of us as individual as well as a nation.  In today’s passage Saul has already been anointed and presented as king in Israel.  However, some of the people were divided within the nation and it seems that Saul himself is not too sure what he should be doing as king so he is out plowing in the fields.  Nothing against plowing, but it seems that there were more urgent matters at hand for the king to handle.  The Ammonites are concerned by the rumors they hear about a new king so they come on the attack and their conditions of surrender are hideous.  This threat becomes a rallying point for Saul and the nation and wakes everyone up to the reality of their situation.  God used the trial to unify and focus His people once again. THE PURPOSE OF ADVERSITY: None of us likes to face adversity in our lives.  We much prefer to be comfortable and safe. 

Imagine what it must have been like for Saul to go from a man who was out looking for his father’s donkeys to being anointed by Samuel as the first king of Israel.  His head must have been spinning and I imagine that he had the strange sensation that he was dreaming and thought that he would wake up any second to find out that none of it was true.  However it was true and God had really called Saul to be the king that the people were seeking.  As we saw yesterday, he had many essential qualities for leadership.  Today we see the process by which God called Saul into this position.  The Lord is still separating people for service today.  We should not look at the experience of Saul and hold it up as a pattern that God will always follow.  This was simply Saul’s experience of how God worked in his life.  There are a few basic principles that we see taking place in this narrative the God commonly uses when He calls people into His service. GOD INFORMS US AND CONFIRMS HIS CALLING TO

In today’s passage we are introduced for the first time to Saul.  We know that he was the first king of Israel and that he was a king who much potential that unfortunately was wasted.  However, in this text we can see that Saul possessed several qualities that truly made him be a great candidate for king.  The text starts out by describing his appearance; he was handsome, large and very tall.  His physical presence commanded respect and drew the admiration of the people.  Certainly these physical characteristics are not the most important aspect of his qualification but they did attract the people to him.  The story of today’s chapter also shows us some other qualities that we would all do well to emulate. AVAILABILITY: Saul was an obedient and trustworthy son.  His father’s donkeys have run away and he is willing to go spend several days going from place to place in order to find them.  He was willing to work hard and his father trusted him with this task.  He demonstrates great

We all have a tendency to want to “belong” or be like those who are around us.  In this case the nation of Israel wants to be like the other nations and have a King instead of a Judge that had been appointed and established by God.  This was a direct rejection of what God had established as His form of leadership for the nation of Israel, but He permitted it as it apparently was part of His plan for the future, the problem was that the people were asking for a king before the Lord desired to establish a king in Israel.  It is a dangerous thing to run ahead of God.  However, there are several factors that contributed to this failure on their part. UNFAITHFULNESS OF THE CURRENT LEADERSHIP: A big part of the problem was the nation’s dissatisfaction with the new leadership that Samuel tried to establish in his sons.  Samuel had not raised them properly and they did not have the same character that he had demonstrated.  They took advantage of their position and accepted bribes.  They

Repentance in the heart of man moves the hand of God.  Years have passed since the Ark was captured and Eli died.  Samuel was growing up and judging the land making his rounds and calling the people to return to the Lord.  The people were living in fear of the Philistines and felt powerless while living in the land that the Lord had given them.  These are the consequences of idolatry and immorality but God is faithful to His people and is using His servant Samuel along with the pain of sin to bring the nation back to the Lord.  It is amazing to see the grace of God at work in the nation and so encouraging to see the grace and patience of God because I am constantly in need of this same grace, mercy and patience.  We can observe the steps towards forgiveness being taken within the hearts of the members of the nation of Israel. REGRET LEADS TO REMORSE: Certainly the consequences of sin brought about regret on the part of the nation.  The regretted the suffering they were experienci

Object lessons are powerful teaching tools.  God had used some very powerful lessons in Egypt when He set the children of Israel free be plaguing the nation until Pharaoh was willing to let the people go.  Pharaoh’s hard heart caused so much needless pain, suffering and death to his people that his reputation spread to other nations and has been known throughout history.  The Philistines were now receiving another painful lesson from God and they quickly realized that they did not want to be a sequel to the catastrophes of Egypt.  They knew God was not pleased with them and that the Ark seemed to be the point of contention so they sought to be rid of it as soon as was possible.  Their actions demonstrated that they had learned from the object lessons of Egypt but unfortunately they did not apply the lesson in the correct way.  Today we see illustrations of doing something right but not in the right or complete manner. THE PHILISTINES RETURNED THE ARK WITHOUT REPENTANCE: The Phili

The power of God is an amazing and fearful reality.  God allowed the Philistines to be victorious over Israel, kill the sons of Eli and capture the Ark.  However, when they put the Ark in the temple to the Philistine god Dagon God made it very clear that He was still all powerful and that the Ark was nothing to be trifled with.  The name of God is to be reverenced and feared.  The Philistines learned this “the hard way” and many others have had to do the same throughout the history of this world.  In the end, every knee will bow before God and worship Him when all men from all periods of history see Him for who He truly is and He is revealed in all of His glory.  Unfortunately, for many it will be too late and they will pass into an eternity separated from God.  It is important for us to recognize the implications of the presence of God that are revealed in this narrative. THE PRESENCE OF GOD IS POWERFUL: The Philistines worshiped a god they called Dagon.  They had a temple where

Sin has consequences.  These consequences spread from individuals to families and on to an entire nation.  Eli’s sons were immoral and irreverent, they had taken advantage of the people for years and Eli stood by and let them live their lives without restraint.  Year after year it seemed like sin was without consequence but on this day all of that changed.  The family and nation would suffer the wrath of God and their enemy.  It is important for us to remember that we must always be aware of the consequences of sin.  They are rarely immediate as God almost always allows for time to repent, but when they do come they come with a completeness that should put fear into our hearts and reason into our heads.  It is much better to obey and avoid these consequences. THE CONSEQUENCE OF DEFEAT: The army of Israel was at war with the Philistines and Israel was soundly defeated and was wondering why they were unable to win their battles.  They came to the conclusion that they needed the Ark