When Trouble Does a Double Take
1 Sam. 26
Are familiar with the expression “déjà vu”? The phrase is French and literally means, “already seen”. Déjà vu describes the feeling that what is happening to you at this moment has happened to you before. (Repeat). When you feel as if life is doing a double take, that’s déjà vu. Not to be confused with “vuja de”= the feeling that what is happening to you has never, ever happened to you before, or, “déjà moo”= the feeling that you’ve heard all this bull before.
This morning I want to talk with you for a few minutes about what you could call a specific type of déjà vu: not just when life does a double take, but when trouble does a double take.
I’m talking about when those pesky persistent problems you thought were in your past come back to haunt your present. Do you know what I’m talking about?
Your first day back at school the teacher assigns you a permanent seat beside the one student whose last words before summer break were: “I hate your guts.”
That old boyfriend who broke your heart last year? He’s moved back- next door!
Monday morning you go to work, glad that you and your boss got that little misunderstanding cleared up last week, when she calls you into her office and you discover things are not quite as clear as you thought they were.
You visit the doctor who helped you finally feel better after that long illness, and he sits down and says, “I need to talk to you about some other problems you’re having…”
Do you get the idea? Some problems don’t go away- they reappear at the worst possible moment. It’s déjà vu all over again, and the trouble you hoped was finished starts all over. Very often in life, trouble does a double take.
David experiences this problem in 1 Sam. 26, where trouble did a double take in the person of King Saul. You may remember reading a couple of chapters earlier that Saul chases David up a mountain bent on killing him. David shows Saul mercy, which seems to touch the murderous monarch’s heart, and they leave on good terms with one another. But something happens to set Saul off again, and so once again, he sets out to seek and destroy David. David has to be asking himself, “I thought we had all of this settled. I thought this problem was behind me. How many times do I have to go through this? What do I do now?”
That is what I want to talk with you about this morning: what to do when trouble does a double take. (PRAYER)
In 1 Sam.26 I want to draw out 3 principles to keep in mind when trouble does a double take in your life:
I. BOLDLY FACE THE PROBLEM (v. 1-7)
Many years ago Olympic gold medalist Darrel Pace gave an archery exhibition in New York City’s Central Park. Shooting steel-tipped hunting arrows, Pace punctured bull’s-eyes without a miss. Then he called for a volunteer. “All you have to do,” said Pace, “is hold this apple in your hand, waist-high.” ABC correspondent Josh Howell took a bold step forward. He stood there, a small apple in his hand, a larger one in his throat. Pace took aim from 30 yards away as [everybody] all held [their] breath. Then THWACK-a clean hit exploded the apple before striking the target. Everybody applauded Howell, who was all smiles—until his cameraman approached with a hangdog look. “I’m sorry, Josh,” he said. “I didn’t get it. Had a problem with my viewfinder. Could you do it again?”
There are some things that happen to you that you really don’t want to repeat, even if they turn out OK the first time.
You may notice many similarities between the events of chapter 24 and chapter 26. Both times the Ziphites send word to Saul about David’s whereabouts. Both times Saul gathers a posse to seek out and destroy David. Both times David gets close enough to Saul to kill him, but instead spares his life. Both times Saul and David part ways in peace.
But there are some significant differences. The first time Saul stumbles into the cave where David and his men are hiding. This time, David boldly makes the first move, first by sending spies to locate Saul and his army. Once he discovers their location, he takes a volunteer- Abishai, David’s nephew- and they sneak into Saul’s camp at night. The Bible doesn’t tell us what David’s plans are- maybe his aim was to do exactly what he did- but one thing is clear: David does not run away from his trouble; he boldly faces the problem head-on.
The first principle to keep in mind when trouble takes a double take is don’t run away. I don’t mean you don’t need to be cautious; David didn’t go rushing into Saul’s camp swinging his sword and yelling, “Bring it on!” But he knew he couldn’t just keep running; he had to deal with this problem, using all the wisdom and courage he had.
You will never get anywhere by trying to run when trouble does a double take. The temptation to escape is sometimes stronger the second time you face a problem, because you remember how hard it was to deal with it the first time. You may still carry the scars of the last time you battled this difficulty, and the thought of going through that painful experience again may seem too much to bear. But if you’ve tried everything you know to avoid trouble and it still seems inevitable, then it’s not time to cut and run, but to stand and fight. When trouble does a double take, you have to make up your mind to boldly face it and, with God’s help, do the best you can do.
Reports the DENVER POST: “Like many sheep ranchers in the West, Lexy Fowler has tried just about everything to stop crafty coyotes from killing her sheep. She has used odor sprays, electric fences, and [other products.] But [still]the southern Montana rancher…lost scores of lambs—fifty [in one] year alone. Then she discovered the llama—the aggressive, funny-looking, afraid-of-nothing llama... “Llamas don’t appear to be afraid of anything,” she said. “When they see something, they put their head up and walk straight toward it. That is aggressive behavior as far as the coyote is concerned, and they won’t have anything to do with that... Coyotes are opportunists, and llamas take that opportunity away.”
There are problems you can deal with by just walking away. But often, when trouble does a double take, running away is not the answer. You have to steel up your nerve, and boldly face the problem and do the best you can. But what does “doing the best you can” involve? David demonstrates 2 things you must do when trouble takes a double take:
II. CONTINUE TO DO WHAT’S RIGHT (v. 8-12)
Harvey was celebrating his 110th birthday when someone asked him “How do you account for your longevity?” “You might call me a health nut,” Harvey replied. “I never smoked. I never drank. I was always in bed and sound asleep by ten o’clock. And I’ve always walked three miles a day, rain or shine.” The other person replied, “But I had an uncle who followed that exact routine but he died when he was only 62. How come it didn’t work for him?” “All I can say,” replied Harvey, “is that he didn’t keep it up long enough.”
One of the temptations you face when trouble does a double take is to try and figure out what to do differently. You may think I obviously didn’t handle this right the first time, or it wouldn’t happen again. That’s not always true; often the best way to handle trouble that does a double take is to keep doing the right thing.
As David and Abishai slip into the enemy camp, once again there is Saul is helpless as a sleeping baby, on the ground before David. Abishai whispers God has given you a second chance to settle this score once and for all. If you don’t want to do it, let me. I won’t need but one shot and my spear will take care of the Saul problem. Don’t you imagine that it had to be tempting? David showed mercy to Saul once, and that didn’t seem to work. Maybe there really is no other way to get rid of this problem except to kill King Saul.
But David resists that temptation. Once again, David swipes something close to Saul- this time a spear and a water jug- and leaves Saul unhurt and safely snoozing away. Once again, when trouble takes a double take, David does the right thing.
It’s not always easy to keep doing what’s right. Sometimes when trouble does a double take you will be tempted to try something else, something different, something not quite right to handle your problem.
Last time he made that smart remark you stayed calm and ignored it. This time you’ll give him a piece of your mind. Last time you told the truth it got you into trouble. This time you wonder if a little lie might be smarter. Last time you did the right thing, and where did it get you? This time you wonder if doing wrong might be a better option. If doing right doesn’t do the trick, maybe doing wrong will at least make sure that this trouble won’t do a double take.
When you get to thinking this way is when you need to remember a special nugget of wisdom from God’s Word which tells us:
Proverbs 14:12 There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.
There’s an old song that puts it this way: you can’t do wrong and get by. It is never a good idea to sin, even when it seems logical, even when it seems reasonable, even when it seems unavoidable. You will always live to regret doing the wrong thing: you will always live to be glad you did the right thing. When trouble does a double take, if you are wise, you will do what is pleasing to God, not what pleases you.
If you did the right thing the first time around, that means you need to do the right thing again. If you did the wrong thing the first time, then you have a second chance to get it right. But whatever you do, don’t make the foolish mistake of choosing sin as your way out. Sin is always just only another road to more trouble.
Two hunters came across a bear so big that they dropped their rifles and ran for cover. One man climbed a tree while the other hid in a nearby cave. The bear sat down between the tree and the cave, and suddenly the hunter in the cave came rushing out, almost ran into the waiting bear, then turned around and dashed back in again. The same thing happened a second time. When he emerged the third time, his companion in the tree frantically called out, “Woody, are you crazy? Stay in the cave till he leaves!” “Can’t,” panted Woody, “there’s another bear in there!”
When you keep doing what’s right sometimes you may feel stuck between a rock and a hard place. It is always easer to do the wrong thing than the right thing. But let me encourage you to always do what’s right, and you won’t be sorry.
Galatians 6:9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.
When trouble does a double take, you must boldly face the problem by first of all making up your mind to do what is right. But you must also make another choice: you must choose to
III. KEEP YOUR TRUST IN GOD. (v. 13-25)
I recently read of an exercise program that promises to help you build up your arm and shoulder muscles. You are supposed to practice it three days a week. Begin by standing straight, back against a wall, with a 5-LB. potato sack in each hand. Extend your arms straight out from your sides and hold them there as long as you can.
At first, try to reach a full minute. Relax for two minutes. Then repeat the exercise one more time.
After a two months of steadily increasing the holding time in increments of one minute every four-five days, move up to 10-LB. potato sacks, a week or two later try 20-LB. potato sacks, then a couple of weeks later try 50-LB. potato sacks. Eventually you get to the point where-believe it or not-you can actually lift a 100-LB. potato sack in each hand and hold your arms straight out for more than a full minute. At this point, you can probably start putting a couple of potatoes in the bags.
This kind of physical exercise is how some of us exercise our faith in God. Many people’s trust in God seems pretty strong, until you’re dealing with something really heavy or important. You really discover how strong your faith in the Lord is when it comes to dealing with trouble that does a double take.
You may notice that Saul has taken an extra precaution after his last encounter with David: he’s got himself a personal bodyguard named Abner. Abner is Saul’s cousin, the chief general of the King’s forces, and the man personally responsible for Saul’s safety. In vs. 15-16, David ridicules Abner for his lack of security. In contrast, David declares in v. 23-24 where he has put his trust for safety:
1 Samuel 26:23-24 23May the LORD repay every man for his righteousness and his faithfulness; for the LORD delivered you into my hand today, but I would not stretch out my hand against the LORD’s anointed. 24And indeed, as your life was valued much this day in my eyes, so let my life be valued much in the eyes of the LORD, and let Him deliver me out of all tribulation.”
Saul’s trust is in his power, and the strength of his army; David’s trust is in the Lord, even when trouble takes a double take. Is that where your trust is this morning?
If I were to ask every person in this room, “Do you trust God with all your heart?’ you would most likely answer yes. But I stand here today and tell you that many of us do not trust God like we should. Let me tell you how you measure your trust in God:
You measure your trust in God by whether or not you have committed your life to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. If you do not trust God in the area of your soul, and the forgiveness of your sins, you do not trust Him at all.
You measure your trust in God not by what you say, but in what you do. You read His Word, the Bible, and see if you are doing what He commands you to do. You can talk all day about trusting God, but if you do not obey Him, you do not trust Him.
You measure your trust in God at how you handle trouble when it does a double take. When trouble comes- the first time, the second time, the hundredth time- and you refuse to panic, and instead face your problems with your faith in God, determined to do what is right, then you are trusting God. When you can say with David what he sang in this psalm:
Psalm 56:11 In God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?
Psalm 27:1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalm 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
Haddon Robinson tells of years ago, Monroe Parker was traveling through South Alabama on one of those hot, sultry Alabama days. He stopped at a watermelon stand, picked out a watermelon, and asked the proprietor how much it cost. “It’s $1.10,” he replied. Parker dug into his pocket, found only a bill and said, “All I have is a dollar.” “That’s OK,” the proprietor said, “I’ll trust you for it.” “Well, that’s mighty nice of you,” Parker responded, and picking up the watermelon, started to leave. “Hey, where are you going?” the man behind the counter demanded. “I’m going outside to eat my watermelon.” “But you forgot to give me the dollar!” “You said you would trust me for it,” Parker called back. “Yeah, but I meant I would trust you for the dime!” “Mack,” Parker replied, “You weren’t going to trust me at all. You were just going to take a ten-cent gamble on my integrity!”
Listen! When you trust God, there is no gamble, because He always fulfills His Word. You can trust Him to love you, and do what’s best no matter what happens. Do you believe that? Do you trust Him today with all of your life- including those times when trouble does a double take? That is the question I want you to consider as we pray.
