David
The strength of the servant king
Audio at
http://jubilee-church.org/sermons/2004/02/series-on-david.htm
How can we make it*
* What was it that gave David strength to be the servant King*
* How can we learn from his example today in the situations we face*
Psalm 18
* Heading ’A Psalm of David, the servant of the Lord, who addressed the words of this song to the Lord on the day when the Lord rescued him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul.’
What gave David strength
* He saw himself as the servant of the Lord
* A servant doesn’t demand things of his master
* A servant remains in the background whilst his master is honoured
* A servant doesn’t tell his master what he should do and when he should do it
* Have you made God the boss of your life and told him he can do whatever he wants with you*
* When things were going badly David still trusted God
What gave David strength?
* He saw himself as the servant of the Lord
* He knew that however bad things got, sooner or later God would always rescue him
* He cared more about what God thought than people
* "For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God* Or am I trying to please man* If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ. " (Galatians 1:10, ESV)
* He saw having enemies as a fact of life
* Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted (2 Tim 3:12).
* He knew that God was stronger than his enemies
What gave David strength?
* Ultimately the LORD did
* V1 ’I love you, O Lord, my strength.’
* David loved God not what God did for him
* Psalm 18- A praise sandwich
* V1-3 praise
* V4-6a The predicament
* V6b-19 The salvation
* V 20-24 The character of the king
* V 25-50 praise
The predicament
* David knew being forgotten and shunned by his brothers
* Being the kings harpist
* Being laughed at for wanting to attack Goliath
* Being at the very centre of things
* Then being an outcast and treated as an enemy
* Then seeing increasing power
* Then being crowned as king.
The predicament
* The hidden ways of God
* Times when God seems distant
* Are things
* Getting better*
* Getting worse*
* Going nowhere*
* In family* In work* In church*
How do we respond to trouble*
* The essence of all cognitive theories is that we are not controlled by events,but by the meanings we give to events. (Core Psychiatry)
* How do you find meaning in events*
---Are you ’damaged’ by your experiences*
---Have you missed God’s perfect will of so-called instant prosperity that someone told you was your ’birthright’ as a child of God*
----Have you sinned and are being punished*
----Are you the helpless victim of the devil or those who are your enemies*
God is in charge - so trust him!
* ’We know that for those who love God all things work together for good.’ (Ro 8:28 ESV)
* ’If God is for us, who can be against us*’ (v31)
* Joseph- "You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good" (Gen 50:20)
* Trust in God but keep your powder dry
* Begin by prayer and trusting God, then move into doing what you can do and trusting him to intervene for the rest!
How to respond
* We tend to ask ’How are you feeling*’ sometimes it is more appropriate to ask ’How are you doing*’ and ’What do you need to do*’
* Don’t just sit there praying- get up and do something!
* Passivity is a killer- ’Unemployment is associated with early death, divorce, family violence, accidents, suicide, higher mortality rates in spouse and children, anxiety and depression, disturbed sleep patterns and low self-esteem’ (Smith,1992)
Not under the circumstances
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Ro 8:37-39)
The salvation (v6b-19)
* Figurative language
* Reflects God’s normal way of doing things
* And suddenly God intervenes
* Like the movies!
* Are you in a phase where God is acting secretly and slowly or dramatically and fast?
