Bible Teaching

Calvary Temple Teaching Library

Turned Into Another Man Pt.3

Amen! Let's turn back to Samuel and continue with our comparison of these two kings and the identifying of ourselves in the Kingdom of God and where we fit at this time in our pursuit of fulfilling the call of God on our lives and seeing God glorified in us in these last days. We've watched the tragedy of King Saul, this young man who, when he was small in his own eyes there was a place for him. God could use him. Like so many of us, we have the ability to look back on our lives and see where God has brought us from. Isn't it amazing not only how soon, but how often we forget where we would be without Him in the journey, the warfare, the service that we're involved in, in the body of Christ and in the Kingdom of God? Many times we become weary in our well doing, in our pursuit, and in the war of daily taking up the cross, but where would you be without Him tonight? As we contrast the love of God and the great privilege and reward that awaits us for our faithfulness, it causes us to be jealous for that humble beginning and remember who we are and where we've come from, and that it's only the grace of God that has given us the privilege of serving in His kingdom, of accessing His throne by the blood of Jesus.

Saul was a young man that was small in his own eyes to the place where he was intimidated by the task that was before him and he hid in the stuff. Yet he was called out and anointed by the prophet of God and told that as long as he would keep the commandments, God would be for him, but if he took things into his own hands, God Himself would resist him. This morning, we saw the kingdom being rent from him because of the heart's motive of serving himself, looking for his own glory and not the glory of God. We find the transition then at this particular time, and as the kingdom was being rent from Saul, God then spoke to Samuel. He said, "I want you to anoint another king, I want you to anoint a man after My own heart." Saul, in chapter 15 verse 30, wanted to be honored before the elders and the people. God said, "I want a man who is not seeking his own honor and his own glory, but someone that will honor Me before the people and not want to be honored in My stead." He tells the prophet, "[I want you to go to the house of Jesse. Verse 3 of the next chapter] ...and call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will shew thee what thou shalt do." So often we've seen in this study, the men of God going out and not having full understanding of what they're supposed to be doing at this time. Samuel knew that he was taking his life into his hands, that Saul was capable of killing him. As Samuel moves under the admonition of the Lord, he comes into the region and begins to provide sacrifice and to have an altar built where God would be glorified in the region. He calls to Jesse and he says, "Bring your sons before me." That was all he knew at that time. He didn't know who it was supposed to be, he just knew it was going to be from the house of Jesse and he said, "I want to have your sons presented before me and I'm just waiting on God and I want to hear a word from the Lord."

Now, we remember how the last man was picked and it is how we so often pick people among ourselves. One thing that's very interesting, you look back and see how perverted it's become in our generation. We were talking about this the other day in one of the deacon's meetings. We were talking about a particular situation in our community here, someone who was in financial need and different things and it was ironic. I mentioned, "Now they're in financial need and these things, how come their children have braces?" How can you be in financial need and have braces? How can you be in financial need and be in a position to where you're buying coffee at Starbucks? I want to point out an image-type thing, and not only an image, but also a mentality of what we think we need in our society to be recognized as a success. Now there's truth to the fact that today in our society, if you bring two people in for a job interview, the person who is dressed right, the person who's attractive, the person that fits into the environment will most often have an advantage. We look at it in the entertainment world today, isn't it interesting? Look back in the forties and fifties and look at a lot of the entertainers and singers, and look how ugly they were. You don't see a lot of ugly successful people today. You don't see as many talented people either, but we're forgoing the talent for the appearance. We judge by the appearance in our society; we're image conscious. We look for the "Sauls" who are head and shoulders above everyone else, those who are "goodly" to look upon, and character and gifts, many times, are secondary. How do you respond? Has it affected you? You say, "No, if somebody comes to me, the best person is going to get the job, praise God. I'll hire the fat guy. I'll hire old Snaggletooth, I guess, if he's really more capable." How influenced are you? I think we need to examine our hearts because if we're affected that way, it's going to affect a lot of our judgments because we're judging by appearance. That's the point I'm trying to make. God doesn't choose based upon appearance. Men choose upon appearance, who appears to be righteous, who appears to be strong, who appears to have their act together. Do you know what? The guy who appears to be able to be trusted with the bag, Mr. Judas, is not always the man. We're beginning to see that we have to judge righteous judgment.

So Samuel says, "I want to take a look at your boys and I don't know who it is that I'm looking for." Verse 6 says, "And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord's anointed is before him." Eliab, that's an interesting name. The name Eliab means the "God of his father" or one who recognizes the fatherhood of God. Either of those renderings, depending upon the context, is what this particular word could mean. I like to understand Eliab as one that means, "my God is Father." He looks on him and he says, "This must be the anointed of the Lord." "But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, [say it with me] but the Lord looketh on the heart" (1 Samuel 6:7). We're going to talk about God looking at our hearts tonight and not the image that we portray to everybody else in this room. Who are you? God knows. The fact of the matter is--lest any of you get uncomfortable and don't hear what we have to say for the next few minutes--you're here because He's chosen you. He's looked on your heart and He's chosen you. He's seen the good that's there. He's placed within you His grace and His faith and He's drawn you, but our hearts need to become one with the heart of God. All of these sons of Jesse were capable of being servants but only one was capable of being the king. Don't you want to rule and reign with Him tonight? Don't you want to be the best that you can be for the kingdom?

Samuel has the criteria now made very clear: it's not the outward. It's obvious then that Eliab was a good-looking young man, one who was obviously one of physical prowess. The other sons began to be called and Abinadab comes in. Abinadab had some great use in the kingdom; he could be a man like his brother, one who exalted the Fatherhood of God, one who talked about the goodness of God. If we look--in fact if you want to see, Eliab could be a man like we understand Barnabas to have been in the New Covenant. One who was a consoler, one who glorified God and portrayed the gentleness of God, and we need that among us. Abinadab talks about the one who is a liberal giver, a man of generosity. Doesn't Timothy 6 say we need that in our midst? We're to make sure that those that are rich among us are to be ready to do what? Distribute. We need willing givers; we need men and women of generosity with their material things, of their talents, etc. God says, "Yes, there's a place for this man, but it's not king. Abinadab's a good man but he's not going to be king."

"Then Jesse made Shammah [verse 9] to pass by [before him]." Shammah, the great orator. We need those of you who are big mouths, the gift of gab, and there's a place for you, but there has to be substance. Thank God for those who can articulate. Thank God for the orators, but they're not always king. "We need you, Shammah; we need your gift, but you're not to be king." As the men continued to pass, we find the other brothers. Nethaneel, the one who is gifted of God. What a talent! I mean, here's a guy who can just seem to do anything; he's the Mr. Fix-It, gifted of God. The jack-of-all-trades. We need that. Each one of us here is gifted differently and God has placed us in the body, the Scripture says, as it pleased Him. Don't despise your calling and don't despise your gifts because you're not king. The Lord has need of you as he did that little donkey to fulfill the prophecy. One little donkey was needed to fulfill the prophecy to let us see the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords come into Jerusalem and to cause the children to cry, "Hosanna! Glory to God in the highest!" On the scene for one moment, but a ministry that lasted forever. You can be used of God one time and affect the kingdom forever by touching one person's life. They go on to enter Jerusalem triumphantly and you're never heard of again. Are you willing to be used that way? Aren't you thankful for those, as you look back on your life, that have touched you, that have just spoken something into your life and you've never seen them again or heard from them again?

A young man, Dave Hatton, ministered to me so effectively as a junior in high school. He lived his Christian testimony and was responsible for inviting me to church the first time that I went to church as a young man (other than when I went once at seven years old). I went the next time at seventeen as David invited me to his church. His dad was an old Pentecostal preacher. I think I shared not too long ago part of that testimony. It was an old Pentecostal church and we went in and they were preaching up a storm, bless God, sweating, and spitting, and dancing, and having a good time. I'll never forget, though, as I went up to that altar and Dave Hatton said, "Come up and let my dad pray for you." I thought, "Okay." He asked me, "Bob would you like to make Jesus the Lord of your life right now?" I said, "No, no, I'm not interested in that." He said, "Do you mind if I pray for you?" I said, "No, man, go for it." That gentleman laid his hands on me and he began to pray. I can still remember part of what he prayed. He said, "Lord, we know that You love this boy and, Father, I sense that You've separated him for Your glory. And I ask You to make yourself real in his life and I ask that your anointing would abide upon him, and I ask that You protect him, and I ask that You would separate him." It was the first time I ever experienced the anointing, the power of God. The power of God. It was shortly after that--and I shared with you the story of God speaking to me as I was with that young lady and God said, "That's enough of that!" I heard the voice of God. I wasn't even saved but I'd experienced the anointing and I heard the voice of God and at that time I obeyed. I wasn't even saved and God spoke to me and said, "No more drinking and no more women." And I thought, "Well, what is there?" But something was happening in me. I'd always believed in God but never had the guts to commit my life to serving Him. I was too interested in serving my own flesh. Then they moved and his dad went to assume the presidency of the Pentecostal Bible College in Livermore, California. Never saw Dave again until after I was saved. He didn't know I was born again. But I'd gotten born again and I saw in the newspaper a traveling quartet from Livermore Bible College and there was old Dave Hatton's mug, singing in this quartet in a place down in Fresno, California. So I dropped in the church. What a great time that was! After the ministry had gone forth and I walked up there and he looks at me and he takes a double take like this, and, "Bob?" "Yeah, man." Greeted me. "What's happened?" "I'm a new creature, man." We had a great time rejoicing in the Lord. Seed that he had sown just as a high school junior and here's some fruit. I hadn't heard from him in years, and years, and years, and then just last week an e-mail. "Found your web site."

Over the years he's heard some of the things that God's opened the doors for us to do around the world. Dave's not pastoring any longer. He worked as an associate with J. Vernon McGee. Can you imagine a Pentecostal dad and going to work for J. Vernon McGee? I called him and rebuked him for backsliding. He went back into the ministry and the fact of the matter is God just never separated him for ministry. He felt obligated because his dad was a preacher. His dad was the President of the Bible College. He felt obligated but he was never called. He's a businessman right now. Happy and serving God and his kids are serving God. Dave did a lot of things for the kingdom, but as far as I'm concerned, one thing he did was sufficient. He's out selling secular wares, but thank God that his gift was used to touch one life. I'm so thankful that he touched one life. Don't despise what God has called you to or how many you might be reaching. You never know who the one you reach might be and where it can compound itself. I rest in the fact content with where God's placed me. You'd love sometimes to have an opportunity to affect even more lives, but God in all of His wisdom put you exactly where He wants you. I'm content with where He's put me, and if He wants me to touch a life that will go on and touch a nation then so be it, praise God. But let's not try to move beyond our gift and let's be content with where God has put us.

So there is the gifted, there is the orator, there is the liberal, and there's the beautiful and lovely, but none of them were called to be king. Raddai comes and this is an interesting name, "domineering." Have you ever run into anybody who is domineering? I know a few folks like that--I'm related to some--and that's not a bad thing. We need people like that; we need people that can take charge. We need people that will run things through, praise God. David needed those mighty men that he could send forth and say, "There's the city, take it." And they would "establish domain." That's what domineering is all about. As long as the domain is the kingdom, as long as the jealousy is for God, as long as the purpose is to glorify God, we need people who are not just going to be stand-around folks, people with hands in their pockets, people that just go, "Well, I just really don't have much conviction one way or another." I do, bless God! But not king.

Ozem then is brought forth. The name here is an interesting word, "one which will hasten, one who is quick to do it." You've always got the people that want to sit around and analyze, and, dear God, we need those folks, especially with people like me. But pretty soon you've got to do something. Peter, I believe, is related to Ozem. "Let's do it! Let's get 'er done, man." Soon as you find something in the Bible, never saw it before. I know that's the way I was. I was reading through the Bible, saw tithing, and thought, "Okay." Started that. Casting out devils, "Yeah, let's go for it, praise God!" Whatever you see, you just say, "Let's do it, man! I will hasten, I will see that it gets done. We're going to do it right now, praise God! Immediately is almost soon enough." We need those kinds of people. But he wasn't to be king.

After all of these men had been looked upon, Samuel says, "Do you have any others? Is this it?" And he says, "Well, there's one, the youngest. But he's keeping the sheep. He probably doesn't smell real good right now and he doesn't always clean up real well." "And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come hither" (1 Samuel 16:11). And verse 12 goes on to say, "And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to. [I so identify with David.] And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him: [arise and anoint him] for this is he. Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brethren; and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward." David. The name means "loving." One who knows how to be loved and one who knows how to love. A young man that was going to be able to experience the heart of God. All you have to do is read the Psalms to know that he embraced the heart of God. This was a man that was enveloped in the love of God and as he communed in worship, and as he communed in praise, his heart was made one with God. We're not capable of loving until we've been loved. And I'm talking about especially in the agape understanding. It's true in all areas, but especially in agape.

David, a man after God's own heart. It doesn't only mean he had the heart of God, it means he was pursuing or after the heart of God. He panted for the heart of God like the hart did the brook. Like John of the New Covenant, he was the one that wanted to come and lay his head upon the breast of Jesus and just hear the heart of God beat. To know His presence, to know that God is there. I just want to know that I'm in the heart of God and in the will of God. This is a man that loved the presence of God more than any of his contemporaries. We know that he wasn't perfect; we know that on numerous occasions his flesh was out of control, but as we study the Scriptures here and begin to look at this man, we'll see that he had a heart for God. He was a man that loved God; he was a man that was jealous for the glory of God. He was a young man that knew what he was without the presence of God. He was a man that stayed small in his own eyes.

Oh, pride rose up in him as he numbered Israel. Lust captured him as he pursued Bathsheba. His natural love for Absalom so overwhelmed him, as we saw this morning, that it shook the very foundations of the kingdom until his counselors were able to deliver him from his own emotions and his own commitment to his family. As we get ready with the call of David and the anointing of David to see who this guy really is and what his heart is, we're going to see that in these next couple of chapters. As we go through this, begin to contrast it back to Saul and put yourself in David's spot and ask, "Who am I really? Am I capable of being used for the glory of God and serving in the kingdom?" So we find the young man anointed. And Samuel departs, and the Bible says in Verse 14--it's interesting that as David was anointed--look what happened in Verse 14: "But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him." We know the teaching, don't we, that when demons are cast out, if we don't fill ourselves with the glory of God and the presence of God then what happens? The demon returns, and not just by himself but with [what?] seven worse than himself.

The kingdom was rent from Saul. He despised the presence of God and because of that, the Spirit of God departed from him and an evil spirit now possessed him. Those of you who have embraced the presence of God, those of you who know God. Some of you--we were talking about some children, some young people, that left and have gone into sin, others that have been deceived and think they're serving God in another realm. A young lady that went to School of the Prophets here, who was here for years and years that just left in the last number of weeks. It was interesting, their response to a person they met here in church, and it wasn't how great the church was they are now attending and all of the things that were so great. Their response was this: listen to this response. "Yeah, we're down there and they don't even have mid-week service, praise God! We're just growing in the Lord and we're so--oh, it's so good that God blessed us with no mid-week service. Isn't God good?" How many of you think maybe they're going the wrong direction? When you rejoice in how few times you can get together, how you now have the liberty to forsake the assembling of yourselves together even as the day approaches. "Isn't it good to be able to forsake the assembling?" We're now in an environment where nobody talks about the assembling of ourselves and how important it is as that day approaches us. Do you see the deception that comes in, beloved? It's a sad thing, and when the Spirit, once you move away from the Spirit of God--the point I'm making is this--He not only departs from you but Satan begins to possess you and bring you into darkness, and brings you into despair. What the unregenerated can enjoy, you can't go back out and enjoy. Any of us here that would turn our backs on God cannot go out there and enjoy it the way we did before we were saved. To deal, then, with the condemnation, there has to be a seven-fold corruption that even allows us to continue on as we dull our senses and try to destroy the knowledge of good that had been placed within us. Now the evil spirit from the Lord troubles him. He traded in the anointing for lust and corruption, self will, defiance of the truth. "And Saul's servants said unto him, [they were aware of it] Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee." He's under depression now; he's fearful, trying to satisfy all of the cravings that are insatiable within unregenerated man. "Let our lord now command thy servants, which are before thee, to seek out a man, who is a cunning player on an harp: and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit [the depression] from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well [you'll come out of this depression]. And Saul said unto his servants, Provide me now a man that can play well, and bring him to me."

One of the things that was very well known about Elvis Presley is that he would stay up all night with the Stamps Quartet, J.D. Sumner, Jake Hess, some of the others of those quartets and they would sing gospel songs all night when he was troubled, when he couldn't sleep. Elvis went to an Assembly of God church. He was a young man that grew up hearing the gospel, a man that grew up singing in an AG church. So was Jerry Lee Lewis. Young men that had heard the truth and traded in the Holy Spirit for an evil spirit sent from God.

A couple of things we can learn here. Have you ever noticed, have you ever found yourself in that place where your life is out of order and yet you can put in some worship tapes and it kind of calms you down? It doesn't change your course, there's no repentance, but it soothes you. Don't be deceived by the calming of the spirit if there's not a brokenness of the heart. "A broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise" (Psalm 51:17). But the fact that in worship, the fact that you can put on some CDs and be calmed does not mean that the Holy Spirit is abiding in you. It's obedience and not sacrifice. Saul was incapable of that. So they called for someone that can keep him out of his depression so that he can function on the throne. He became dysfunctional, suicidal. In fact, that's how his life is ended, in suicide. We find that here is a man who was given the opportunity to know the presence of God and ends up killing himself, dying on the battlefield. Listen, listen to the irony: at the hand of an Amalekite. You say, "I thought you said he killed himself." He fell upon his own sword, he wounded himself mortally. But just to put a little bit of a sting into the whole thing--it's interesting. Turn to the 31st chapter here. This is off-course but it's worth the trip. "And the battle [verse 3] went sore against Saul, and the archers hit him; and he was sore wounded of the archers. Then said Saul to his armourbearer, Draw thy sword, [verse 4] and thrust me through therewith: lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through and abuse me. But his armourbearer would not; for he was sore afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword and fell upon it. And when his armourbearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell likewise upon his sword, and died with him." An arrow from the Amalekites. Who were the Amalekites? Do you remember who they were from this morning? Should there have been any of them left? Your sin will come back and get you if you don't totally dispose of it. The very thing that you keep will rise up and kill you.

So here is Saul, and the Scripture tells us, "Then answered one of the servants, and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, that is cunning in playing, [verse 18] and a mighty valiant man, and a man of war, and prudent in matters, and a comely person, and the Lord is with him" (1 Samuel 16:18). His reputation has already begun to be known. Saul sends for him, and verse 21 says, "And David came to Saul, and stood before him, [the king] and he loved him greatly; and he became his armourbearer. And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he hath found favour in my sight. And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him." Many of us are deceived; the spirit departs from us when we hang around people that have the anointing and we think we're okay. It was the anointing on David that drove that spirit out; it had nothing to do with Saul. Many of us, because of the environment that we're in, the people that we hang with, the anointing is there and it keeps us calm; and many times provides us with blessing and victories. But we need to ascertain, beloved, whether the anointing abides in us or we're just experiencing residual effects.

Here is young David fulfilling the role that God had called him to. The story goes on and we find now that the conflict comes with the very familiar story that all of us have heard about, even some of you as young people in Children's Church. The great story of David and Goliath. We always hear about David killing the giant but we don't really spend a lot of time always looking at what prepared him to kill the giant. "Well, it was the anointing of God; the Spirit of God came upon him. We all know as little kids in Children's Church, that the Holy Ghost just supercharged that rock." But the question isn't how God killed the giant; the real question is how did David get there in the first place? What brought him on the scene? I want to look at the character that is found in us to be able to put us in the place that God wants us in His proper time. David would periodically go back to his father's house. He would come--he was lent of the Lord--he would come and minister to Saul. It was a time when David was back ministering and Saul gathers to war with the Philistines. We know the story, and we won't go into the big details of it, but we do find out that as the armies of Israel are being challenged by the Philistines, they send out their champion [verse 4 says] Goliath of the Philistines, the man of Gath. Six cubits and a span. There's a lot of discrepancy on how tall that would have made him, but my calculations are that he's 11' 4". If you take your standard cubit of 18 inches and a span of 10 inches, he makes Shaq look like a midget. It says he had a coat of mail that he would wear and his armor was 5,000 shekels of brass. Just his little mail, the armor plate that he had on, was 200 pounds. The spearhead weighed ten pounds. Have you ever thrown a ten-pound shot put? Eight pounds when you were in Junior High, ten pounds on Junior Varsity, sixteen pounds for the big boys. I've always tried to envision this spearhead, a ten pound spearhead. What are you going to do, throw it and hit the guy's foot? It's tough to throw ten pounds a long way. This guy has got a spearhead that weighs ten pounds. He's a bad dude. Everybody's afraid, "...dismayed, [verse 11 says] and greatly afraid."

Interesting thing that's taking place here. The sons of Jesse, verse 13 says, "And the three eldest sons of Jesse went and followed Saul to the battle.... And David was the youngest... [verse 14, the Scripture says.] But David went and returned from Saul to feed his father's sheep at Bethlehem." He was pulling double duty. We're talking about a diligent young man. We're talking about a man who has been elevated to the king's palace. Now I want to talk to some of you young people for just a second. He was elevated to the king's palace, but he's not too big for his britches that he can't go back and take care of Dad's sheep. He remembers where he came from. It says that he went back to care for the sheep in Bethlehem and the Philistine would come forth morning and evening and taunt and mock the armies of God. This went on for forty days. In this process, when David is back home, Jesse says, "Look, I want you to go and take these provisions to your brothers that are up on the front lines [verse 18] "And carry these ten cheeses." What we see right here, then, is David fulfilling a servant's role. Having tended to the sheep, he is now running errands to his brothers who are involved in the fray. Now, they're all sitting there scared, but suppose.... These are the men that have gone to war; these are the heroes of Israel. You're just a snotty-nosed kid. Paul said to Timothy, "Let no man despise thy youth" (1 Timothy 4:12). I want to talk to you youth here, and understand that some of the greatest battles, some of the greatest victories that have been won were won by teenagers. People that were young people, young adults. Our society tries to hold young people down, and we have "rights of passage." But God isn't swayed by age. Little Mary, as she was overshadowed by the Holy Ghost and used mightily in the incarnation. Are you available to be used of God? If God does put His hand on you, young person, you're not good big to go back and take care of dad's sheep. Don't forget where you came from. When you're asked to run the errand with the cheese, then rejoice in the privilege to serve and be great among us by being servant of all.

As [David] gets ready to go, look what he does. He doesn't just say, "Praise God! Opportunity to run to the front, man, to go check out what's happening down with the group!" What the Scripture says he did at this time was, "And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper." Look at the responsibility of this young man. So many youth are taken up with the immediate, the moment. They forget--an opportunity that arises and they'll run right out from under the paintbrush to go get it done. Right in the middle of a stroke. Be responsible, be diligent. Accomplish the tasks that you've been given, be faithful as a steward and God will make you a ruler over many things. It says he "...left the sheep with a keeper, and took, [the cheese then] and went, as Jesse had commanded him." Now he's pulling down three jobs. How diligent are you in your pursuit to be used up for the glory of God and the kingdom of God? Are you too busy to hold down three jobs for the kingdom? The Scripture says, then, that when he arrives [verse 22] "And David left his carriage in the hand of the keeper of the carriage, and ran into the army, and came and saluted his brethren." He was to meet them; he was to bring about the message from his father. This is a man that had the inroads to the king's tent. How many of us would like to be seen walking into town, and we're carrying out dad's mandate to bring the cheese, and we take it and leave it with the keepers. We know we have a message for the brothers but we want everybody to see us walking into Saul's tent. Just go in and make it known that we're back. "You know, I'm the armourbearer of Saul, after all now, and one that can be recognized as the sweet player of Israel." He was told to greet his brethren first. You'll never be able to serve in leadership until you realize who you are, the common man of the body of Christ, and that's what we all are. No matter where God will put you in life, everything we have we've received of God. He chose us because we're the least, not because we're the greatest, so that His glory can be seen in us. [David] is responsible to go and carry out the task. We see that he was faithful. We see that he was obedient; we see that he was diligent, and we see that he was responsible. Get those character traits because we're going to see them continually arising in the life of David as we're contrasting him with King Saul.

As he talked with his brothers, there came up the champion, Goliath. Everybody flees and they were all afraid. "And the men of Israel said, Have you seen this man... [this one who has come to defy Israel?] ...and it shall be, that the man who killeth him, the king will enrich him with great riches and will give him his daughter, and make his father's house free in Israel." Listen to the reward that's being offered, and yet men were so fearful that with all of these things being provided, not one person would make a move. Not one person would accept the challenge. "And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine and taketh away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?" Well, we told you what the reward is. And Eliab, his brother, said after his anger was kindled toward David, "What are you doing here in the first place? And who have you left those few sheep with in the wilderness?" Listen to this, I love this. "I know thy pride, and naughtiness of thine heart; for thou art come down that thou mightest see the battle." Well, we learn a little bit about David here don't we? This is a kid of action. He wants to be where the action is. His brother is blowing the whistle on him, no question. But he's misjudging him. The little snotty-nosed brother that he knew changed when the anointing came on him. The pridefulness of David was turned into a humility. When you encounter God, you're undone and you get a proper perspective of yourself. There's no question that David was a man of confidence, that David was a man of ability, but that anointing changed him. His brother is judging him out of his own heart.

"And David said, What have I now done? Is there not a cause? And he turned from him toward another, and spake after the same manner...." His brother wouldn't listen to him. "A prophet is not without honor, but in his own country" (Mark 6:4). We get so familiar with people, we forget that they speak as the mouthpiece of God. "And the people answered him again after the former manner. And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul...." Why didn't somebody go out there and take this guy on? Who is this guy that's defying the armies of God? And so they rehearsed it to Saul. "And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of [this man]; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine." Forty days, the greatest champions of Israel, the man who is head and shoulders above all his contemporaries, everybody shaking in their boots and this little guy comes up and says, "I'll go up there and whip him for you." That's my kind of guy.

I want to share something with some of you parents. Don't you look down on your kids when they say, "Hey man, I'll go do it, bless God, I'll believe God. I'm willing to go out there and believe God." "You can't go out and do that. You're not able to do that. You're my itsy, bitsy little baby. You can't..." Trying to hinder the call of God on our kids because of our understanding that God has separated them by His anointing. Despising our own children because of their youth, because we know their frailties, because we know their natural tendencies. Was David's natural tendency toward pride? Of course it was. We just saw that revealed. Was he a man of action, somebody who was willing to go out and take on causes? Of course he was; we see that by his very nature. But the fact of the matter is, God has put His hand upon him and is using him for this and we don't have any business trying to get in his way. [David] comes and says, "I'll go up there and whip him for you." I love that spirit. "And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth." I want to tell you one thing, beloved. You need faith; you don't need experience. You get experience by walking in faith. You get experience by being obedient; you get experience by going and doing, and getting out of the boat, not sitting in school and studying about other people's wars and victories. You don't get it by reading about John Garlock; you get it by going to Africa in faith. You get out of the boat yourself when the storm is raging. You go down and make the proclamations.

Tony was trying to encourage Nimrod. [Nimrod] had numerous people in his family just dying as he made choices to move toward better fulfilling God's call in his life. All of a sudden, people very close to him just began dying. You know the superstitions in Africa; he began to be very fearful that somebody had put a curse on him. Tony said he was able to encourage him some. I know he was encouraging him with what we went through in Haiti as we were down there. Curses are very real. Demonic powers are real. But only one thing makes them work and that's fear; it's believing in them. People don't know what to do when you just stand up. When we were in this--when we were in Duvalville, and Steve will remember this. (I think Steve Robinette was with us down there also.) We got up publicly and they had told us that the witch doctor had cursed me, and they had put this curse on me and all of the voodoo dolls. Back then I liked to joke about the fact that I would like to have seen that little voodoo doll with the "Fro" and the golf shirt on. They had this voodoo and they had cursed me, and everybody from the village had come out that night to watch me die. I stood up in that particular town and denounced his curse and proclaimed the victory in the blood of Jesus. I revealed to them that we had no fear for there is no weapon formed against us that can prosper, and that we've been given all power and all authority over all the power of the devil and nothing shall by any means harm us. The people came out there to watch the preacher die but they saw something else that night: the witch doctor got saved, praise God! That was an exciting night! We saw some miracles that night. (And there was a sale on little dolls with golf shirts.) Principalities and powers are real, demons are real, and curses are real. But as a youth when you step out in faith, you'll get some experience in dealing with devils. You'll get some experience in dealing with the natural tendencies of fear and experience the fact that if God is for you, surely nobody can be against you.

But David had an answer for [Saul]. He said, "[Hey! Let me tell you something, King. I've been faithfully watching my father's sheep since I was just a lad. There was a time when] ...there came a lion and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock: [I love this wording] And I went after him and I smote him, and I delivered [the lamb] out of his mouth." Can you see him reaching down that lion's throat? What does the Bible say? Res

Back to Top | Audio   |   Purchase Audio   |   Bible Teachings   |   Print