The Going in the Mulberry Trees
By Pastor Jim May
2 Samuel 5:3-4, "So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and king David made a league with them in Hebron before the LORD: and they anointed David king over Israel. David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years."
2 Samuel 5:10-12, "And David went on, and grew great, and the LORD God of hosts was with him. And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and carpenters, and masons: and they built David an house. And David perceived that the LORD had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for his people Israel’s sake."
2 Samuel 5:17-25, "But when the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, all the Philistines came up to seek David; and David heard of it, and went down to the hold. The Philistines also came and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. And David enquired of the LORD, saying, Shall I go up to the Philistines? wilt thou deliver them into mine hand? And the LORD said unto David, Go up: for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into thine hand. And David came to Baalperazim, and David smote them there, and said, The LORD hath broken forth upon mine enemies before me, as the breach of waters. Therefore he called the name of that place Baalperazim. And there they left their images, and David and his men burned them. And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. And when David enquired of the LORD, he said, Thou shalt not go up; but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon them over against the mulberry trees. And let it be, when thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself: for then shall the LORD go out before thee, to smite the host of the Philistines. And David did so, as the LORD had commanded him; and smote the Philistines from Geba until thou come to Gazer."
If you know anything about the life of David, you know that he was known as a man after God’s own heart. There is no one in God’s Word that can compare with David. He was truly a mighty man of God and did great exploits for God and for Israel. But this mighty man of God had his ups and downs just like all of us, except that his faults and failures were recorded by the Holy Ghost for the whole world to read until the end of time.
I am reminded of the saying, “With great power comes great responsibilities”. David is constant reminder that those words, though they are not a quote from the Word of God, are still true.
David’s life is set forth as an example, not for us to condemn him when he falls, or praise him when he succeeds, but as an example of what happens in the life of every Believer as he faces his own failures and successes.
David was anointed King of Israel! At that moment I am sure that he was on top of the world. He was to become one of the wealthiest and most powerful kings that the world has ever known, but for now he was the new king and all of Israel rejoiced with him. Verse 10 indicates to me that David felt secure and independent because he was in his fort and he knew that this was his place of destiny and power. He was depending upon the arm of the flesh to defeat his enemies.
Isn’t it a wonderful thing to see someone become a brand new born again Child of God? I can’t think of anything I would rather see other than the Second Coming of Jesus to take His church away! Whoever that person is suddenly becomes a new creation as God washes away their sin, and gives them His new robes of righteousness.
It would certainly be wonderful if the rest of our lives could be lived in that wonderful moment when we first accept the sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross and we are made brand new in Him. But that moment doesn’t last for long.
It doesn’t take long until Satan’s battle forces are arrayed against you. The devil doesn’t give up easily. He still wants you back and it doesn’t matter how long you have been saved or how spiritual you are, you are still vulnerable to the attacks of the devil, so keep your guard up.
The Philistines didn’t like the idea of David being anointed as King so they decided to do something about it before David could settle into the job. In verse 10 David seems to be on top, rejoicing in his Kingdom and power, and suddenly, in verse 17, we see him hiding in the stronghold of his palace from the power of the enemy.
The Philistines were there in an overwhelming show of force. The Bible says that they were spread out all over the Valley of Rephaim, which means the “valley of the giants.” David was fearful now. This was his first real test of his ability as King of Israel and this was no time to hide.
Have you seen your enemy, the devil, spread his demonic forces before you like giants before? Everything seems to be just fine and suddenly you are blind sided by an attack of the devil and it seems so strong that you can’t overcome it.
Satan never fights fair! He always waits for the opportune time to strike; when your down physically or emotionally; when you are least expecting him; or when you get too overly confident that he can’t touch you anymore.
I’ve seen Christians get to the place where they think that they have arrived spiritually. They are fully convinced that they are untouchable and so filled with the pride of their own commitment to Christ, that they are willing to look the devil in the eye, point to their wonderful spirituality and faith and say, “you can’t touch this”. That’s when the devil just reaches out and grabs your life and shakes the very core of your faith in God. It’s time to either shut up or put up!
I’ve seen some mighty big giants go down in my battles with the devil but there is always one more giant to fight. Satan has his forces spread before each of us in battle array and he means to destroy us once and for all. Thank God that Jesus is greater that all my enemies.
If we would learn to do what David did at this moment of his greatest worry and fear; I believe we could see a lot more victory in our lives. David went to God in prayer to seek God’s direction and will for the battle ahead. David knew he couldn’t run from this fight. It was a win or die battle and he wanted to make certain of the outcome before he went charging at the Philistines.
David fought and won the first battle. The Philistines were defeated. They fled leaving their idols behind and David and his soldiers purged the battlefield by burning every one of them. But it wasn’t over yet.
Just about the time that you think your battle is over and the victory is finally won over some bad habit, or over your doubt, worry and fear, the devil will come back at you again, this time with even more giant battles to fight.
The first time God had told David to go straight at the Philistines. He was not to skirt around their camp or to play around with them. God was fighting this battle and He didn’t have to worry about battle plans for it took was one word from his mouth and the Philistines were defeated. But this time it was different. This time David would have to win his battle with God’s help.
God may fight your battles for you but there are times when He expects you to do your part in the fight too. Sometimes it takes a greater determination to remain faithful against the great odds that face us. Sometimes its harder to win when your best efforts have already failed.
God told David to not attack his enemy head-on this time. That’s what the Philistines were expecting and they were ready.
The devil might think he has you all figured out. He might think that you are an easy target. But what He seems to always forget is that you can’t put God in a box. God loves to break out of boxes that we try to put him into.
David always did one thing right though. No matter how many times he won the battles against his enemy, or no matter how many times he lost the battle, he never forgot to seek the face of God for answers.
This time he was to simply wait for the “going in the Mulberry Trees”. What does that word “going” mean? It means the wind. When David heard the wind moving through the mulberry trees, it was time to get stirred up, and it was time to get on with the battle and win the victory.
What does that say to you and I? That “going in the Mulberry Trees” can mean nothing other than the moving of the wind of the Holy Ghost in your heart!
You see; we can win no battles without that “going in the Mulberry trees”. We can’t build a church without that “going in the Mulberry trees”. We can’t see souls won to the Kingdom of God, or people healed of their sicknesses and diseases, or ministries in the church grow and accomplish anything without that “going in the Mulberry Trees”.
We need the moving of the wind of the Holy Ghost in us and in our church! We need to see and feel the moving of the Holy Ghost in our heart and in the church before we step out to defeat the devil. We have to realize that what Zechariah says is true.
Zechariah 4:6, "… Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts."
I need that “going in the mulberry tree” to lead this church into a deeper place in the Lord. You need that “going in the mulberry tree” before you can follow me into the place where God wants us to go.
It was that “going in the mulberry tree” that blew through the Upper Room on the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Ghost was poured out upon mankind.
It was that “going in the mulberry tree” that blew through Asusa Street in California to strike the fires of the Pentecostal message one more time.
It was that “going in the mulberry trees” that blew through your soul and mine on the day that you were baptized in the Holy Ghost and fire!
And it’s that going in the mulberry tree that we need right now so that we can all have a fresh anointing and a fresh renewal of the power of God in our soul!
I’m looking for the “going”! I’m looking for the wind of the Spirit to blow once again! I’m looking for a revival of Pentecost where the fire of God will fall and burn away everything that isn’t supposed to be there!
David waited upon the wind in the mulberry trees and then went out to do battle. He was given that fresh induction of power from on High. He chased the Philistines for miles until they were gone from the land and recaptured the Ark of the Covenant. He won a great victory that day because of the “wind” that God sent, and that’s the way we will win our victories as well.
God help us to watch for the “going in the mulberry tree” and then strike while the Holy Ghost is hot within our soul!
