Okay, go ahead and turn with me to 1 Samuel chapter 29, if you would please. 1 Samuel chapter 29. I titled this message, God's Roadblock.

You know, when I look back on my life, I see the divine intervention of God. And I didn't know it at the time. I thought it was other factors, other circumstances, consequence, good luck, bad luck. But it was God all along directing life's course. And by His grace omnipotent and His sovereign mercy and providential work opening and closing doors. It's God that opens and closes doors. He did so to bring me and to bring you to exactly where he intended us to be and us doing precisely what he intended us to do. No mistakes, no happenstances. And this is the case with all God's chosen people.

And in my life, God's opened many doors, but He's also put in place many roadblocks. That's what we have before us tonight in 1 Samuel 29, a roadblock by God. God's roadblocks. And when God blocks the road, that road's blocked. The child of God, thanks him for open doors, and they also thank him for his roadblocks. They should. For their roadblocks, a purpose, and for his people's good.

Sometimes God intentionally stops forward motion, and God blocks roads that would damage us. And God blocks roads to keep us from being what we shouldn't be and doing what we shouldn't do. We'll see that tonight in the life of David. I'm glad that God has roadblocks. Aren't you?

God blocks roads when our desires get ahead of our discernment. That happens a lot with us. We get our mind on something and we say we pray about it. We may mention it in passing under our breath to the Lord, but we usually go on and do it anyway without waiting on Him or getting some kind of confirmation in the heart, small, still voice, whatever. And I've learned over the years that we can be sincere and still be sincerely wrong.

When God's chosen people's rebellion outruns their obedience to him, God very often applies the brakes. I don't see him so much anymore. I've mentioned this many times, but I've seen the license plates and bumper stickers. My dad had one, said, God is my co-pilot. No, he's not. And we're not his co-pilot either. He's in the driver's seat, and he controls the pedals, the accelerator and the brakes.

And when the way forward closes, men usually do one of three or four things. They begin to manipulate and justify some way of going on and doing what they wanna do anyway, or they complain, or they retreat altogether, or they wait. And I suppose waiting is the hardest. because it strips us of any control. When we wait on the Lord, we understand that we don't have control over anything. He's the one that's got to do it, or He's the one that's got to close the door. He's the one that's got to open or close the door. We can't do it. And if we do pry it open and squeeze through it somehow or some way, usually we make a mess out of it.

God blocks roads to force dependence. God blocks roads to redirect, not to end. And God rarely blocks roads without rerouting. You know, Abraham was stopped from sacrificing Isaac. God told him to go and sacrifice his son, his only son, whom he loved, and Abraham was obedient. But before he carried it out, as he drew back that knife to sacrifice his only son, God put up a roadblock and he provided that substitute that he required. God did that. That's what God did for us. He provided the substitute that we need, the one who stood in our room and stayed. In Numbers 22, if you remember, God blocked Balaam with an angel, and Balaam thought it was the donkey. He thought the donkey was the problem, but God blocked the road to show Balaam that he was the problem. At the Red Sea, Israel, I've often thought about this, used to love that movie, The Ten Commandments, and when Israel got to the Red Sea, they had the enemy behind them, they had the water in front of them, total roadblock. That was a roadblock. Moses said, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. Why did God bring this roadblock to them? To show them that they had to trust in Him and Him alone. We've got to learn that.

God roadblocked Jonah with a storm and a fish. A block road exposes who you really trust. A blocked road forces dependence, not despair. A blocked road today may be the reason that you're not ruined tomorrow. Paul headed to Damascus with one purpose in mind, to persecute believers. And God set up a roadblock and shut him down. And he became the apostle that God greatly used. Has God ever set a roadblock for you? I bet he has.

In the verses tonight, God sets a roadblock for David. You read this chapter and you kind of think, well, what's the purpose of this chapter? What can we learn from that? Well, I hope that you and I see what that is. David's living among the Philistines, you remember? He's pledging allegiance to their king. In the first two verses of chapter eight, Look back there with me. The Philistines are marching to fight Israel, and David is marching with them. Look at verse 1 of chapter 28. And it came to pass in those days that the Philistines gathered their armies together for warfare to fight with Israel. And Achish said unto David, know thou assuredly that thou shalt go out with me to battle thou and thy men. And David said to Achish, surely thou shalt know what thy servant can do. David considers himself, And Achish said to David, therefore will I make thee keeper of mine head forever. You're my man, David, I believe you.

Now, is this the same person who is called a man after God's own heart? Is this the same David that Samuel anointed the future king of Israel? Is this David, Israel's sweet psalmist, the one who wrote all those wonderful psalms unto the Lord? Is this David that had defeated Goliath, who said, who is this uncircumcised Philistine that defies the armies of the living God? Is this David who would not allow these same Philistines that he now marched with to defy his God and fought them many times? Is David just pretending here? You know, before I read chapter 29, I thought, that must be what he's doing. He's just pretending and he's gonna turn this around and he's gonna, you know, he's... Where does his true devotion lie? Is David in his fear for Saul falling this far? Well, it's not above any of us to do so. I'll tell you that. If there's anything that I've learned, it's that if God withdraw His hand from me, but for a second, I'm capable of doing the most terrific things.

Now, chapter 29, verse 1. Let's read this chapter 11 verses, and then we'll make our comments.

Now the Philistines gathered together all the armies of Aphek, and the Israelites pitched by a fountain, which is in Jezreel. And the lords of the Philistines passed on by hundreds and by thousands, but David and his men passed on in the rearward with Achish."

Oftentimes the king, you know, rode in the back, you know. And then said the princes of the Philistines, what do these Hebrews hear? And Achish said unto the princes of the Philistines, these military commanders is what they were, heads of the Philistine tribes. I don't know if they were much like Israel's, but these were some bodies in the Philistine army.

And they said, is not this David the servant of Saul, the king of Israel, which hath been with me these days or these years? And I have found no fault in him since he fell unto me unto this day. He used to be the servant of Saul, but he's my servant now. He's proven himself. He'd been with Achish 16 months, a year and a few months.

And the princes of the Philistines were wroth with him, that being Achish, and the princes of the Philistines said unto him, make this fellow return, that he may go again to his place where thou hast appointed him, which was Ziglag, and let him not go down with us in battle, lest in the battle he be an adversary for us. For wherewith should he reconcile himself unto his master, should it not be with the heads of these men? Is not this David, of whom Israel sung one to another in dances, saying, Saul slew his thousand and David his ten thousand? Have you so quickly forgotten who this is?

Then Achish called David and said unto him, Surely, as the Lord liveth, thou hast been upright, and thy going out, and thy coming in with me, and the host is good in my sight, and I've not found evil in thee since the day of thy coming unto me, and to this day. Nevertheless, the Lord's favor thee not. Wherewith now return, and go in peace, that thou displease not the lords of the Philistine.

And David said unto Achish, but what have I done? And what hast thou found in thy servant, so long as I've been with thee into this day, that I may not go fight against the enemies of my Lord, the king? David's saying, what have I done that I can't go fight against my people who are now my enemies and your enemies?

And Achish, verse nine, said to David, I know that thou art good in my sight, and as an angel of God, notwithstanding the princes of the Philistines have said, he shall not go up with us to battle. Wherefore now rise up early in the morning with thy master's servants that are come with thee, and as soon as ye be up, be up early in the morning and have light, depart.

So David and his men rose up early to depart in the morning to return unto the land of the Philistines, And the Philistines went up to Jezreel, God's roadblock.

David, who had years before slain Goliath, David who fought against the king of Gath, David who was known to be a faithful servant of Jehovah, David who had not long before declared to be a sworn enemy to the Philistines, now, all of a sudden, says to their king, I want to stay with you. I want to fight against Israel. They're your enemy, and now they're my enemy, because they're your enemy.

And so what are we to conclude here? You know, if we had not known the things that we knew beforehand about David, we wouldn't believe that David was a man after God's own heart, would we? Would we believe that David would God's true appointed and anointed future king? I think we'd have our doubts if we could have looked ahead and saw what's going on here. Was he for Israel or was he against them?

Honestly, I would have been suspicious of David too if I was this Philistine, these Philistine warriors. And friends, here's the thing, if God removed His hand from us, as I said, just for a second, we'd be like David, capable of doing this very thing. Turning our back on our own family or our own people. Oh, may God keep His hand on us. Or we too would put ourselves into question and under suspicion.

As the Lord's military leaders of the Philistines traveled by the hundreds, it says, and thousands, David and his band of men passed on the rear guard with King Achish, and Achish being, as I said, one of the kings who traveled back, David was with him, war was about to take place, and David and his men were in the mix.

So would have David really fought Israel? Just about every commentator that I read on this said that he wouldn't have. But you know, I don't find anything in the Scriptures that suggests that he wouldn't have. God's Word suggests that he would have.

But because many of these princes of the Philistines became angry with Achish over David being with them, telling them to make David to return back to where Achish had put him up. Achish does so. And David asked why. I mean, if he was really for Israel and had some kind of a plan of attack against the Philistines, why wouldn't he have just said, okay, okay, we'll go back. But he says, I wanna be with my Lord, the King. That's what he says to the Philistine king. He implies that he wants to fight Israel. He seems to be wholeheartedly with the Philistines.

And there's nothing by nature that any of us wouldn't do if God leave us to ourselves. Now, do you believe that? What a humbling thought that is. And yet we know it's true. And any believer that would say that a believer wouldn't do what David still, still doesn't fathom the depth of depravity of our nature. There's no sin that you and I would not commit apart from the restraining grace of God.

Remember David, he's in a dark place. He'd been chased by Saul for years. His body's worn out, his mind is frazzled. He's not in a good place. He thought in chapter 27 that nothing was better for him than to escape to the land of the Philistines. And this is already, I mean, this was after David, Saul had already just said, okay, you know, I'm done. I'm gonna leave you alone. For 16 months. David dwelt in the land and served the king that worshiped Dagon. You remember him? He was the fish-headed God, had a fish head and a man, no, maybe, I can't remember. Did he have the man's head and fish body or it doesn't matter. He was an idol. And he dwelt among a people that hated Jehovah, David's God. And he lived in the midst of idolatry and just went along with it and said nothing for 16 months.

Now, on this day, David says, I'm with you. I'm going to fight against your enemies because you're my Lord, you're my King. So what would you conclude about David? The same that I would conclude about you and me. prone to wonder, prone to leave the God that we claim to love.

The other Philistine lords thought that David might turn on them. They didn't trust him. But it's here that we see one of the most beautiful displays of the Lord's wonderful providence in preventing David from committing this awful sin against God and against Israel. And that's exactly what it is. It's God who intervened in the hearts and the minds of these Philistine soldiers, showing us again that God is capable of using the wicked to accomplish His will and purpose. God did that. God does not speak in this chapter. There's no prophet or angel that speaks. God causes and uses the suspicion and the objections of unbelievers to accomplish His will.

Going back to what we said in the beginning, sometimes God saves through a closed door. Sometimes God saves through a denied opportunity. Sometimes God saves through the resistance of others. Sometimes God's deliverance can feel like rejection. David sent away. And it seems to me that he was disappointed about it. You're not gonna let me go and fight? This was humiliating to David, but it was actually a rescue. David rises early and he leaves no argument, no protest, and the chapter ends somewhat quietly. But God has just saved David from a great sin. God has just saved David from bloodshed of his own kindred. God had just saved David from lifelong regret.

So let me give you four quick things that we can learn if God enabled us. First, God is faithful even when his servants aren't. Aren't you glad about that? We're so unfaithful, we're so fickle. David's not seeking God here. But God is caring for David regardless. Why? Because he's God's chosen. Grace doesn't wait for perfection. Grace intervenes to prevent destruction. God's faithful even when we aren't.

Secondly, God often delivers through divine roadblocks. We love open doors, but by grace we learn to love closed doors too. If David would have had his way, he would have ruined himself. God's roadblock was actually protection for him. Isn't that something? God knows what he's doing. We don't know what we're doing, but God knows what he's doing. And this should give us some needed understanding to the words of Solomon, who said, there's a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. We quote that scripture all the time. What does that mean? It simply means we need divine intervention. We need God to show us the way. We need God to open doors and to close doors, to put up roadblocks. We need God's divine roadblocks.

Human judgment and self-directed paths are unreliable and they lead to destruction. Have you ever had to cancel a vacation? Have you ever had to been delayed in traffic? Oh, I know you have. You ever been upset because a certain event that you look forward to was postponed? You know what? It may have been a roadblock. Hell, it was a roadblock, but it may have been a much needed intervention. And no matter how righteous or logical our choices, men and women are, if it's made apart from God's guidance, it most definitely can end in spiritual death and eternal separation from God. No doubt that would have been the case if God hadn't intervened in chapter 29 with David. That's what Paul warned us in Romans chapter three. He said, as it is written, there's none righteous, no, not one. There's none that understand it. There's none that seek it after God. They're all gone out of the way. They are together become unprofitable. There's none that doeth good, no, not one. We can't trust ourselves to do what's right. Salvation is in and by and through Christ. Salvation is repentance and total reliance upon God. Salvation calls for humility, a turning from self-dependence.

Thirdly, God can use unlikely means to accomplish His will. Here it was through Philistine commanders. Here it was by rulers who were enemies that God made suspicious. You know, I think about Pharaoh. Isn't that what God did with Pharaoh? God used Pharaoh's stubbornness and pride to demonstrate his power and deliver Israel from slavery. Even though Pharaoh was ungodly, God used his hardened opposition to accomplish Israel's salvation. Nebuchadnezzar, what about Nebuchadnezzar? He was a pagan king, he was prideful, he was often cruel. God used him to discipline Israel through exile, but also to reveal his power and sovereignty. You know, God raises men up to show that he can, he's the one who raised them up and he can bring them down. That's what he said about Pharaoh, that the scripture saith unto Pharaoh that the whole world may know who I am, who God is, that God's in control.

God can use ungodly rulers to accomplish his will, even in correction and salvation. Cyrus, remember Cyrus, the Persian king? He was a Gentile king who didn't worship the God of Israel. But you know what God called him? God called him his appointed, his anointed. And he used him to decree the release of the Jews from Babylonian exile. And through Cyrus, God allowed the temple to be rebuilt and his people restored. And he wasn't even a believer. God can use someone who doesn't even know Him to fulfill His promises and save His people. And still at the same time, condemn that person.

Judas. Judas Iscariot. He betrayed the Lord for money. What was it, 30 pieces of silver? 20 or 30. His actions set in motion the events that led to the Lord's crucifixion. which was necessary for the salvation of God's elect. If Christ hadn't gone to the cross, none of us could be saved. Even betrayal and evil intentions can serve God's redemptive purpose. God's sovereignty is never limited by human morality. God takes the plans, the pride, the evil intentions of the most ungodly and redirects them to bring about salvation, justice, and the fulfillment of his purpose.

And then the last thing, silence from God does not mean absence from God. If the heaven's gone brass on you or you're not hearing from the Lord, wait on it. Doesn't mean he's gone. God never speaks in this chapter, but he's active in every single verse. When we don't hear him, doesn't mean that he's left us. He was with David here every step of the way, and he'll never leave us nor forsake us. That's what he promised. He's not a man that he should lie. He's not a son of man that he should repent. He's faithful, they're promised. Our God is faithful, they're promised. Are we gonna be faithful to believing?

So what's the gospel connection in this chapter? Well, David is spared from shedding innocent blood. The Lord Jesus Christ would not be spared. David was sent away from battle. Christ met the battle head on. Concerning David, the commanders objected. In the case of Christ, the commanders persisted. With David, the door was closed by God. With Christ, God opened the door wide. David was given escape. No escape was given for the spotless Lamb of God. He must go to the cross in order for us to be saved. David's removed from danger. Christ is sent to the cross. Why? So those who deserve divine judgment and wrath and condemnation could receive mercy. What a God. What a salvation. David's deliverance points to the great deliverer. He's the one who does not avoid the fight. He wins the fight through the shedding of his own blood.

David was on his way to shed blood. The Lord Jesus fought through the shedding of his blood. So maybe we ought to stop calling every closed door a setback. Well, I had a little setback. Or was it a divine roadblock? Some of these closed doors are not setbacks, they're actually rescues, if we only knew. Someday we will. Sometimes God plants roadblocks and closes doors that we would foolishly walk through. How many times have we tried to bust them? God closes the door and we're just right up banging it and trying to open it. But in and by and through His sovereign grace, He refuses to let us go any further. What's it called? God's roadblock. Thank God, we're at a roadblock.