The Story Behind The Story

The Story Behind The Story

10/12/08 PM

Text: Various

INTRODUCTION:

Introduction: Last Sunday I preached a lesson drawn from a story that many are familiar with, one that I pointed out is taught beginning in the youngest of bible classes; the story of Noah. But the lesson went behind the story of the ark and the animals, the flood and the rainbow to focus on the elements which resulted in the salvation of Noah, the same things which save us today: Grace, Faith, and Obedience. There are many stories in the Bible which many of us learned from the same viewpoint as we learned the story of Noah, the viewpoint of what is interesting to children and what we were taught in those early bible study classes. But there is often is a story behind the story that is missed and of which we should be aware. In this lesson I’d like to consider some examples.

I.The Story of Noah

A.The story

1.The story of the ark, the animals, the flood, the dove, and the rainbow. I can almost see the felt-board cutouts used in my first grade bible class to tell the story.

B.The story behind the story

1.We went behind the story last week to focus on those elements which made the whole story possible. The Grace of God, the faith of Noah which led to his obedience to God.

a.By the faith of one man, Noah, the future of all mankind was assured on this world. By faith in one man, Jesus, the future of all mankind is assured in eternity.

Acts 4:12 (NASB) “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

b.John 14:6 (NASB) Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.

II.The Story of David and Goliath.

A.The story

1.In 1 Samuel 16, Samuel anointed David the son of Jesse to be the King of Israel. Saul is still reigning and will continue for the next several decades.

2.David is still a young boy. But in 1 Samuel 17, David goes out to check on his brothers on the battlefield with the Philistines.

a.He found the army of Israel backed down by a giant named Goliath.

b.Saul was leading the army against the Philistines, but he lacked faith in God. He was an ungodly man.

c.David convinced King Saul and his commanders to let him go out and fight Goliath.

d.David said to the monster of a man, “You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a shield, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.” (17:45.)

3.We have heard this story from this angle repeatedly from childhood.

a.This battle between the young lad David and the giant Goliath has become a proverb and a parable.

b.It represents any conflict between good and evil when the evil seems to be so great to overcome, but the young and seemingly impossible task is accomplished by faith in God.

B.The story behind the story

1.While all of that is true, the story behind the story is the contrast between Saul hiding behind the rocks and the young King, David going out to meet the giant.

2.It is the story of faith and unbelief.

a.David is the right kind of king; Saul was like the kings of the nations around Israel.

b.God warned the people when they demanded a king that they might have one like Saul to rule over them.

c.In the NT, Paul recounted this history:

Acts 13:21 - 23 (NASB) “Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. “After He had removed him, He raised up David to be their king, concerning whom He also testified and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My heart, who will do all My will.’

3.This bold statement said about King David is derived from the words which the prophet Samuel said to Saul about David,

1 Samuel 13:14 (NASB) “But now your kingdom shall not endure. The LORD has sought out for Himself a man after His own heart, and the LORD has appointed him as ruler over His people, because you have not kept what the LORD commanded you.”

a.This is the real story. It is the story about the kind of Kingdom and people the Lord wants today.

b.Proverbs 6:16 - 19 (NASB) ”There are six things which the LORD hates, Yes, seven which are an abomination to Him: Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood, A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that run rapidly to evil, A false witness who utters lies, And one who spreads strife among brothers.” – and Saul did every one of these things.