Victory For David (1 Chronicles 14:8-17)

WEBVTT 1 00:00:01.639 --> 00:00:05.440 If you are able, please remain standing and let's hear God's word now, 2 00:00:05.480 --> 00:00:17.190 from first chronicles, chapter fourteen. First chronicles fourteen, verses eight through seventeen. 3 00:00:20.589 --> 00:00:26.579 This is God's word. Let's give our attention to it. When the 4 00:00:26.660 --> 00:00:32.219 Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines 5 00:00:32.299 --> 00:00:37.009 went up to search for David, but David heard of it and went out 6 00:00:37.049 --> 00:00:42.210 against them. Now the Philistines had come and made a raid in the Valley 7 00:00:42.289 --> 00:00:47.090 of Rephaim, and David inquired of God. Shall I go up against the 8 00:00:47.170 --> 00:00:51.960 Philistines? Will you give them into my hand? And Jehovah said to him 9 00:00:52.240 --> 00:00:56.399 go up and I will give them into your hand. And he went up 10 00:00:56.479 --> 00:01:02.000 to Bayll Pezzarim and David struck them down there, and David said God has 11 00:01:02.079 --> 00:01:07.269 broken through my enemies by my hand like a bursting flood. Therefore, the 12 00:01:07.310 --> 00:01:12.829 name of that place is called Bay all perizeem. And they left their gods 13 00:01:12.909 --> 00:01:19.140 there and David Command, gave command, and they were burned and the Philistines 14 00:01:19.180 --> 00:01:23.980 yet again made a raid in the valley. And when David inquired of God, 15 00:01:23.260 --> 00:01:27.500 God said to him you shall not go up after them, go around 16 00:01:27.739 --> 00:01:33.569 and come against them opposite the Balsam trees, and when you hear the sound 17 00:01:33.650 --> 00:01:37.730 of marching in the tops of the Balsam trees, then go out to battle, 18 00:01:38.250 --> 00:01:41.609 for God has gone out before you to strike down the army of the 19 00:01:41.650 --> 00:01:47.519 Philistines. And David did as God commanded him, and they struck down the 20 00:01:47.599 --> 00:01:53.359 Philistine army from Gibbeon togetherer, and the fame of David went out into all 21 00:01:53.439 --> 00:02:00.430 lands and Jehovah brought the fear of him upon all nations. You may be 22 00:02:00.510 --> 00:02:13.710 seated. Ever since God began to form a people for himself, is people 23 00:02:13.949 --> 00:02:22.620 have faced enemies. Sometimes they were very close, like the serpent and the 24 00:02:22.699 --> 00:02:29.740 garden, or like Abel's brother came. Other Times the enemies of God's people 25 00:02:29.819 --> 00:02:35.169 were miles and miles away, like the Assyrians or the Babylonians, encroaching, 26 00:02:35.289 --> 00:02:42.409 getting closer and closer, and yet also distant in some ways. One of 27 00:02:42.409 --> 00:02:46.280 the most common enemies that God's people faced in the early days of the monarchy 28 00:02:46.400 --> 00:02:51.360 were the Philistines. We hear of them often in these this portion of scripture, 29 00:02:51.520 --> 00:02:58.439 particularly under Saul and under David. The Philistine people live along the coastal 30 00:02:58.560 --> 00:03:04.030 and southern border of Israel. They were made up of small communities and larger 31 00:03:04.229 --> 00:03:07.870 city states. You may have heard of some of them, like Gaff Ekron, 32 00:03:08.270 --> 00:03:14.500 Gaza Ashkelon. And one of the first encounters of the Philistines that we 33 00:03:14.580 --> 00:03:20.620 read in the Bible is when Samson was lured by Philistine women and his own 34 00:03:20.699 --> 00:03:28.169 lusts to go and unite with them. Eventually they get the better of him, 35 00:03:29.250 --> 00:03:34.090 but things will turn around and after much embarrassment and the even the cost 36 00:03:34.169 --> 00:03:38.530 of his own life, they are, I'm brought to some measure of destruction. 37 00:03:38.090 --> 00:03:45.159 God's people are saved. Other notable encounters at the Philistines include the capture 38 00:03:45.199 --> 00:03:49.680 of the ARC and, perhaps most famously of all, a boy's defeat of 39 00:03:49.759 --> 00:03:55.110 one of their mighty warriors, a great man named Goliath. Now, one 40 00:03:55.110 --> 00:04:01.750 day this boy named David would become king, the king that we read about 41 00:04:01.789 --> 00:04:06.830 here in first chronicles fourteen. But at that time, when he was a 42 00:04:06.949 --> 00:04:12.539 boy that is, he was not the one God's people were looking to for 43 00:04:12.659 --> 00:04:18.180 victory over God's enemies, over the Philistines in particular. They were hoping in 44 00:04:18.300 --> 00:04:24.449 a man named Saul saw, whom we've heard about already in first chronicles, 45 00:04:24.490 --> 00:04:30.850 back in First Chron mircles ten. When we revisit that chapter in light of 46 00:04:30.930 --> 00:04:34.129 what we have here, we find that the chronicler is setting up this great 47 00:04:34.290 --> 00:04:40.639 contrast before us, a story of two kings, a good one and a 48 00:04:40.800 --> 00:04:46.000 bad one. Saul was the bad one, the first King of Israel. 49 00:04:46.279 --> 00:04:53.230 Things seemed to start out somewhat well, at least in terms of how he 50 00:04:53.389 --> 00:04:58.629 looked. Things were well. He was regal, he was handsome. The 51 00:04:58.709 --> 00:05:03.430 Bible describes him as a head taller than all those around him. But when 52 00:05:03.430 --> 00:05:09.259 it came time for him to rule and defend God's people, he forgot the 53 00:05:09.379 --> 00:05:15.540 most important thing, God. God is the most important thing among God's people 54 00:05:15.579 --> 00:05:24.050 and indeed everywhere. To rule as king under God was to rule on God's 55 00:05:24.089 --> 00:05:30.449 behalf. which men Saul and all other kings like him were to follow his 56 00:05:30.569 --> 00:05:35.879 law, follow God's words, follow God's directions, and this makes sense. 57 00:05:35.959 --> 00:05:40.879 Of course. God loves us, He loves his people and he would never 58 00:05:40.920 --> 00:05:46.079 let someone rule over them in his place without having without being in control. 59 00:05:46.079 --> 00:05:53.949 We have absent fathers and absent rulers in our families and societies, but God 60 00:05:53.990 --> 00:05:58.470 has never an abso in God he never disappears for a while or checks out 61 00:05:58.589 --> 00:06:03.110 for a while or takes a vacation. He's always in charge, he's always 62 00:06:03.339 --> 00:06:09.779 ruling over his people because he loves them, and so the Kings who were 63 00:06:09.819 --> 00:06:15.379 under him were had this most important task. Those who ruled in his name 64 00:06:15.500 --> 00:06:20.730 were to seek him, to obey him. Well, this is the exact 65 00:06:20.970 --> 00:06:27.370 point at which Saul failed. Listen to the end of first chronicles ten, 66 00:06:27.810 --> 00:06:34.360 where this is summarized in verses thirteen and fourteen. So Saul died for his 67 00:06:34.519 --> 00:06:40.480 breach of faith. He broke faith with Jehovah in that he did not keep 68 00:06:40.600 --> 00:06:47.029 the command of Jehovah and also consulted a medium seeking guidance. He did not 69 00:06:47.350 --> 00:06:55.069 seek guidance from Jehovah. Therefore, Jehovah put him to death and turned the 70 00:06:55.110 --> 00:07:02.019 kingdom over to David, the son of Jesse. This is the reason behind 71 00:07:02.180 --> 00:07:06.019 the story that I'm going to remind you of in just a moment. In 72 00:07:06.180 --> 00:07:11.939 first chronicles ten, the chronicler puts this as an end, as it's an 73 00:07:12.019 --> 00:07:15.930 explanation of why things happened, of why Saul died of the way he did. 74 00:07:17.129 --> 00:07:21.329 I won't read all the verses which is versus one through ten, but 75 00:07:21.449 --> 00:07:27.050 just summarize it for you, in a very similar way, the Philistines come 76 00:07:27.129 --> 00:07:32.240 out against Israel, they fight against Israel and there is on this battle. 77 00:07:33.480 --> 00:07:38.560 But because, as we read in verses thirteen and fourteen, Saul did not 78 00:07:38.759 --> 00:07:42.839 seek the Lord, did not obey, the Lord did not find guidance from 79 00:07:42.839 --> 00:07:48.350 the Lord, he was overcome. The philistines overtook Saul and his sons. 80 00:07:49.269 --> 00:07:57.310 They eventually kill him and his sons. They even be head Saul and we 81 00:07:57.470 --> 00:08:03.860 read that his head and his armor are taken and presented to their idols, 82 00:08:03.740 --> 00:08:11.459 into their gods, in their temples. We have this great tragedy. Really, 83 00:08:11.379 --> 00:08:15.930 this king is supposed to rule, he is supposed to seek God, 84 00:08:16.129 --> 00:08:20.370 seek his wisdom, follow his commands and in that God rides out through his 85 00:08:20.529 --> 00:08:26.759 king victoriously. But because, because Sault doesn't do these things, he's defeated, 86 00:08:26.839 --> 00:08:33.960 the people are defeated and these idols receive a certain measure of penultimate glory. 87 00:08:37.480 --> 00:08:41.320 God was not satisfied with this result, as we read. Therefore, 88 00:08:41.830 --> 00:08:45.950 he was put to death and turned the kingdom over. God turned the kingdom 89 00:08:45.990 --> 00:08:50.269 over to David. He would not let God would not let human failing and 90 00:08:50.389 --> 00:08:54.860 false idols and out over his people. God had another king in mind, 91 00:08:54.899 --> 00:08:58.899 and he had for some time, and it was then that he brought the 92 00:09:00.019 --> 00:09:05.820 boy that had killed Goliath, the Philistine giant, to the throne. Now 93 00:09:05.940 --> 00:09:09.409 this is where the contrast comes in. Is, I hope you've already noticed, 94 00:09:09.450 --> 00:09:15.850 David is very, very different from Saul. He was one who, 95 00:09:15.850 --> 00:09:20.009 since he was a boy, had sought after God, had obeyed God. 96 00:09:20.330 --> 00:09:24.600 The heart of Dave Fid can be heard throughout many of the songs that appear 97 00:09:24.759 --> 00:09:30.320 in the psalms. When we read those psalms, we find very quickly that 98 00:09:30.360 --> 00:09:35.120 David is not putting on a show. His obedience to the Lord is not 99 00:09:35.600 --> 00:09:41.350 a some kind of political maneuver to gain people through some kind of game, 100 00:09:41.309 --> 00:09:48.230 the commitment of people through some kind of religious fervor. Now, David really 101 00:09:48.269 --> 00:09:54.580 believes, he really seeks, he really trusts. When he's alone and on 102 00:09:54.700 --> 00:09:58.860 the run and in the desert, he cries out to his God. He 103 00:09:58.019 --> 00:10:03.899 seeks God as his shield, as his armor, as his hiding place, 104 00:10:03.940 --> 00:10:09.850 as his food. One example of this psalm sixty three. Oh God, 105 00:10:11.169 --> 00:10:16.250 you are my God. Earnestly I seek you. My Soul thirsts for you, 106 00:10:16.490 --> 00:10:20.440 my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where 107 00:10:20.480 --> 00:10:28.840 there is no water. David describes his desire for the Lord, his God, 108 00:10:30.240 --> 00:10:39.509 as one who is dying of thirst and really hungry. He wants God 109 00:10:39.549 --> 00:10:46.350 that bad he seeks after that, after God that earnestly. This is his 110 00:10:46.629 --> 00:10:54.100 heart. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want or Psalm Twenty 111 00:10:54.139 --> 00:10:58.139 one. Oh Jehovah, in your strength, the king rejoices, and in 112 00:10:58.299 --> 00:11:05.250 your salvation, how greatly he exults. This is David's heart. It's what 113 00:11:05.330 --> 00:11:09.289 gave him confidence when he went before Goliath. You remember how it goes. 114 00:11:09.929 --> 00:11:13.529 He goes into the army, among the armies of the Lord, and he 115 00:11:13.610 --> 00:11:18.279 says, who is this dog who is calling out against the Lord? And 116 00:11:18.440 --> 00:11:22.240 his armies and his brothers are saying, go, Oh, what are you 117 00:11:22.320 --> 00:11:26.200 doing here? You come to see a fight, and David persists. He 118 00:11:26.279 --> 00:11:31.320 Says No, the Lord can defeat him, and he does through David. 119 00:11:31.990 --> 00:11:37.710 So when it came time for David to be king, he acted in accord 120 00:11:37.870 --> 00:11:41.429 with what was in his heart. He sought God and he obeyed him, 121 00:11:41.470 --> 00:11:46.620 and that is what we have happening here on the ground on the battle ground 122 00:11:48.100 --> 00:11:52.980 of first chronicles fourteen. The PHILISTINES here about the new king and they want 123 00:11:54.019 --> 00:12:00.899 to establish themselves over Jehovah and his king. They want to make it known 124 00:12:01.139 --> 00:12:05.490 that they are in control of this region, perhaps a press their boundaries a 125 00:12:05.529 --> 00:12:11.450 little further. And you know what David Does? Instead of running away from 126 00:12:11.490 --> 00:12:16.600 the Lord, instead of ignoring God, not seeking his guidance, the first 127 00:12:16.759 --> 00:12:24.799 thing that happens is he inquires of God. That's not a complicated question. 128 00:12:26.440 --> 00:12:31.429 Shall I go up against the Philistines, yes or no? Will you give 129 00:12:31.549 --> 00:12:35.909 them into my hand? What does God say to him? He says go 130 00:12:37.110 --> 00:12:39.669 up and I will give them into your hand. And What is David Do? 131 00:12:41.909 --> 00:12:46.139 He goes up, and what happens? God gives them into his hand. 132 00:12:46.700 --> 00:12:52.100 It's so simple, isn't it? It's so beautifully simple. It's so 133 00:12:52.340 --> 00:12:58.490 often that sin is what makes things complicated, messy and Yucky and ethically difficult. 134 00:13:00.529 --> 00:13:03.250 Of course that's not true all the time. The world is a complicated 135 00:13:03.330 --> 00:13:09.730 place, but so often, so often, the Lord is simply asking for 136 00:13:09.929 --> 00:13:16.080 obedience, and that's what David gives here. He seeks God, he obeys 137 00:13:16.200 --> 00:13:20.399 God, he trusts God, and God is king over the people and God 138 00:13:20.440 --> 00:13:26.759 has promised to David to be a to be his warrior, to be a 139 00:13:26.879 --> 00:13:33.230 defender of his people. David is not asking presumptuously, he's not seeking to 140 00:13:33.389 --> 00:13:39.309 know something that is beyond what God has promised. God has called his king 141 00:13:41.149 --> 00:13:45.500 to seek him and to gain instruction for him and from him, and that 142 00:13:45.659 --> 00:13:52.500 is what David does. He does it again, well again, and it's 143 00:13:52.539 --> 00:13:58.090 important too. Not only does the repetition help a affirm David's confidence in his 144 00:13:58.289 --> 00:14:03.049 actions. That's not a one time kind of thing, but in the differences 145 00:14:03.090 --> 00:14:07.289 as well. We see that God trusts or, sorry, David Trusts God. 146 00:14:09.250 --> 00:14:13.679 He doesn't simply assume that things because they were once one way, that 147 00:14:13.720 --> 00:14:16.919 they will be another. He inquires again of God. God says this is 148 00:14:18.000 --> 00:14:20.799 the way you shall do it. It'll shall be different, and it all 149 00:14:20.879 --> 00:14:28.909 works out again, and the result is amazing. The PHILISTINE army is routed 150 00:14:28.990 --> 00:14:33.149 and the fame of David goes out into all the lands. The fear of 151 00:14:33.429 --> 00:14:41.259 David is brought upon all the nations. So it's the story, as I 152 00:14:41.259 --> 00:14:45.899 say, is a complete reversal of what had happened earlier. Obedience instead of 153 00:14:46.019 --> 00:14:50.860 disobedience the victory instead of defeat, the glory of God instead of the glory 154 00:14:52.059 --> 00:14:58.570 of idols. But though David was very much not like Saul, in other 155 00:14:58.610 --> 00:15:03.610 ways he was also very much like him. Indeed, David was a good 156 00:15:03.769 --> 00:15:09.879 king, but he was not a perfect king. That way, David is 157 00:15:11.159 --> 00:15:18.320 like you and like me. Saul is like you and like me. David, 158 00:15:18.440 --> 00:15:22.470 like Saul, would fail at some very important and critical moments in his 159 00:15:22.629 --> 00:15:28.070 life. His life, like Saul's and like ours, shows that he ultimately 160 00:15:28.269 --> 00:15:33.710 was not sufficient in himself. Now this is plain enough from first chronicles. 161 00:15:33.870 --> 00:15:37.139 Four team, the Lord being the one victorious, the want the Lord knowing 162 00:15:37.740 --> 00:15:43.860 what shall and shall not be. But nevertheless, David sin gets the better 163 00:15:43.899 --> 00:15:48.860 of him at times and we find that he needed God's victory, not over 164 00:15:50.450 --> 00:15:58.370 Israel's external enemies, but her internal ones as well. Heart Enemies, Life 165 00:15:58.610 --> 00:16:07.200 Enemies, mortal enemies, sin and death. It's not a jump at all 166 00:16:07.399 --> 00:16:11.720 to think about things like sin and death as enemies of the people of God. 167 00:16:12.159 --> 00:16:17.000 Not only are they called as much in scripture, but there are many, 168 00:16:17.480 --> 00:16:19.950 but there are, in many ways, the things that make God's enemies 169 00:16:21.990 --> 00:16:26.590 God's enemies. In other words, God is a good God. He is 170 00:16:26.669 --> 00:16:33.340 not an arbitrarily in choosing who is against him and who is afore him. 171 00:16:33.379 --> 00:16:37.659 Who is against him and who is for him is based on his goodness, 172 00:16:37.580 --> 00:16:44.580 and therefore it is sin. It is sin that is against God, and 173 00:16:44.740 --> 00:16:48.929 the man who sins, who is against God. Man is an enemy of 174 00:16:49.049 --> 00:16:55.769 God because he sins against the good of God. Where man is a friend 175 00:16:55.850 --> 00:16:59.889 of God, it is because he has been forgiven by the mercy of God 176 00:17:00.730 --> 00:17:06.680 so as to be made good. And so sin, the darkness of evil, 177 00:17:07.480 --> 00:17:11.240 the absence of good, transgression, all of these things must be to 178 00:17:11.400 --> 00:17:18.910 be defeated if God's people are to be good, if the relationship between him 179 00:17:18.950 --> 00:17:25.309 and his children is to be holy, and not approximately holy or kind of 180 00:17:25.390 --> 00:17:30.019 holy or mostly holy, but holy, holy, perfectly holy and clean. 181 00:17:32.700 --> 00:17:37.700 Sin Cuts against this, though. Sin Cripples us from the inside in the 182 00:17:37.779 --> 00:17:45.809 way that external army is can cripple us from the outside. It makes fear, 183 00:17:45.769 --> 00:17:52.769 it makes guilt, it makes shame, it takes our wills and perverts 184 00:17:52.890 --> 00:17:57.920 them and twists them and bends them to do all other kinds of sinful things. 185 00:18:00.559 --> 00:18:04.599 It brings about God's curse on us. It makes us his enemies, 186 00:18:07.440 --> 00:18:15.630 it brings about our death. And David had sin in him, just as 187 00:18:15.670 --> 00:18:21.390 his people did, just as salt did, and because of that it meant 188 00:18:21.430 --> 00:18:26.660 that someone greater than David would need to come, someone greater than David would 189 00:18:26.700 --> 00:18:33.299 need to come and defeat these enemies, the greater enemies, not just the 190 00:18:33.539 --> 00:18:41.730 sinful Philistines, but sin itself. But what King could defeat that enemy? 191 00:18:42.970 --> 00:18:51.930 Who among US would go up against death or sin or the wrath of God? 192 00:18:52.930 --> 00:18:57.000 What King could rule not only a people but also the hearts of the 193 00:18:57.160 --> 00:19:03.400 people? Well, no human king, that is, of course, unless 194 00:19:03.400 --> 00:19:10.309 he's divine. And so that's what God did. The end of days. 195 00:19:10.670 --> 00:19:15.029 David's greater son would not only be his son, but he would be the 196 00:19:15.150 --> 00:19:22.190 very son of God, Jesus, of course, our Lord and our King, 197 00:19:22.950 --> 00:19:27.900 and this king, human and divine, who was not crippled by sin, 198 00:19:30.220 --> 00:19:36.779 would be sent to rule over his people. He was like David and 199 00:19:36.859 --> 00:19:41.890 that he sought after God and obeyed him, but he was unlike David and 200 00:19:42.009 --> 00:19:48.650 that he did this perfectly and completely and finally for God's people and against their 201 00:19:48.690 --> 00:19:55.440 enemies. When you consider David's obedience as being great in many ways, but 202 00:19:55.599 --> 00:20:00.759 still so far and incomplete from God's perfect, holy will. And then you 203 00:20:00.839 --> 00:20:07.789 consider Jesus. Is Obedience perfect in every way, at every moment, in 204 00:20:07.950 --> 00:20:12.230 his heart and his mind and his actions in every difficult situation, every word 205 00:20:12.349 --> 00:20:18.029 that he spoke, every thing that he did, was always executing perfectly, 206 00:20:18.589 --> 00:20:25.619 but God had sent him to do. When we consider the example of Jesus's 207 00:20:25.660 --> 00:20:30.500 obedience, it puts even the most godly among us to shame. He sought 208 00:20:30.619 --> 00:20:34.809 and obeyed God like no one who had ever come before him. He's entire 209 00:20:36.210 --> 00:20:42.490 life was completely devoted to this one thing. Sometimes, when we hear the 210 00:20:42.609 --> 00:20:48.329 command of you know that we are to obey God, love him with all 211 00:20:48.410 --> 00:20:51.880 of our heart, all of our soul, all of our mind, all 212 00:20:51.920 --> 00:20:56.599 of our strength, we kind of, I think always sort of lower the 213 00:20:56.680 --> 00:21:00.240 bar a little bit because we know how impossible that is. We kind of 214 00:21:00.359 --> 00:21:04.829 say in our hearts and in ourselves, well, I'll try really hard anyway. 215 00:21:07.390 --> 00:21:15.470 But imagine someone, remember someone who actually did that, who is entirely 216 00:21:17.190 --> 00:21:26.660 devoted, loving to God in every aspect of who he was and everything that 217 00:21:26.819 --> 00:21:37.130 he encountered. And this is the obedience that brought about victory. God would 218 00:21:37.130 --> 00:21:41.609 be victorious through his obedience much like he was with David, only here, 219 00:21:41.769 --> 00:21:48.519 instead of routing a few armies and making this king's name famous throughout the land, 220 00:21:49.119 --> 00:21:56.279 God would make Jesus's name famous throughout the whole world. You remember what 221 00:21:56.559 --> 00:22:04.230 Philippians says, that upon Jesus is obedience, even obedience unto death and death 222 00:22:04.309 --> 00:22:07.349 on a cross, that God would glorify him, and did glorify him, 223 00:22:08.109 --> 00:22:11.990 so that, at the name of Jesus us, every knee would bow, 224 00:22:14.390 --> 00:22:22.940 the whole world would submit to this great king. And he does this by 225 00:22:22.140 --> 00:22:27.740 casting off the curses that were on his people, by overcoming death in the 226 00:22:27.859 --> 00:22:34.730 Resurrection, by forgiving sin. We see little foretastes of this throughout King Jesus's 227 00:22:34.890 --> 00:22:40.930 life, as demons are cast out of people and the evil one is overcome 228 00:22:41.130 --> 00:22:47.079 and routed, as he forgives the sins of people who are sinful, as 229 00:22:47.119 --> 00:22:52.119 he lifts curses off of people who have been cursed for years, as he 230 00:22:52.240 --> 00:23:02.470 makes unclean people holy. But ultimately, all this obedience would indeed be a 231 00:23:02.670 --> 00:23:07.789 come to, a kind of consummation on the cross. And as we consider 232 00:23:07.869 --> 00:23:15.420 that, let us remember that it was not easy. Sometimes you no doubt 233 00:23:15.619 --> 00:23:21.940 face moments of temptation where you are at least aware of it enough in your 234 00:23:22.059 --> 00:23:27.809 heart that you confess to yourself and hopefully to God. This is really hard. 235 00:23:29.930 --> 00:23:32.369 I don't know if I can do this. I don't know if I 236 00:23:32.410 --> 00:23:38.049 can withstand the desire to do the evil thing. Jesus faced that as well. 237 00:23:40.250 --> 00:23:42.480 He faced it so strongly, in fact, that we read that in 238 00:23:42.559 --> 00:23:48.799 the garden before he was in the garden of Cassemite, before he was crucified, 239 00:23:48.599 --> 00:23:55.359 he even prayed to God that he that God might take the cup of 240 00:23:55.480 --> 00:24:00.630 Wrath that was coming against him from him, if it were possible, didn't 241 00:24:00.630 --> 00:24:07.549 want to face it. Heave and bled great drops of blood as he prayed 242 00:24:07.509 --> 00:24:15.980 and fought against temptation. He would have to suffer and he would die because 243 00:24:17.099 --> 00:24:22.220 this great sin that was in the hearts of his people had to be paid 244 00:24:22.339 --> 00:24:29.650 for, it had to be atoned for. Victory would come, but it 245 00:24:29.690 --> 00:24:34.809 would come only through sacrifice, and that's what Jesus did. When Jesus faced 246 00:24:34.890 --> 00:24:41.319 the great enemy of sin and death and curse and wrath, he didn't do 247 00:24:41.480 --> 00:24:48.039 it from a distance. In fact, he was the onely one fighting, 248 00:24:51.680 --> 00:24:55.109 and so we have a story here in first chronicles fourteen, not only of 249 00:24:55.230 --> 00:25:00.829 two kings, but of three. I tell you this story so that you 250 00:25:00.950 --> 00:25:07.819 know who it is we follow when we sit alone in our thoughts, when 251 00:25:07.859 --> 00:25:14.660 we, like David and Saul and Jesus, face moments of temptation, when 252 00:25:14.660 --> 00:25:19.819 we decide, are making decisions about who we ought to seek, let us 253 00:25:19.819 --> 00:25:26.930 remember the king who is greater than Saul and greater than David, because we 254 00:25:26.049 --> 00:25:30.130 have a king over us who has already given us a victory over these things. 255 00:25:32.210 --> 00:25:34.089 We have one who has not only given us an example of what it 256 00:25:34.289 --> 00:25:38.920 means to seek and follow after God, who has done that so that we 257 00:25:40.079 --> 00:25:44.480 can be free from our sin, so that we don't longer have to fear 258 00:25:45.160 --> 00:25:51.509 God's wrath and belong on the side of enemies, but instead be counted as 259 00:25:51.589 --> 00:25:57.269 his friends. We are those who have been known by Jesus, who have 260 00:25:57.390 --> 00:26:02.789 been saved by him. We have, in other words, a king who 261 00:26:02.789 --> 00:26:08.380 has given US victory through his own life so that we might live. At 262 00:26:08.500 --> 00:26:17.779 one time, we were Philistines on the wrong side of the border, fighting 263 00:26:17.859 --> 00:26:23.529 against God, but now, because of Jesus, we belong to Israel and 264 00:26:23.690 --> 00:26:30.890 we have his protection and his guidance. Let us learn to seek it in 265 00:26:30.089 --> 00:26:34.720 obedience and by faith. Let us pray