I'm not an angel, not holy, no
way, means, and size, No praise he would render, oh, help us
to see, He's only the spender of my pride and glee. Go back with me to 1 Samuel 25.
This story is a true story, as is
every story in this book. A story that is still taking
place today. This is the story of the truth. It's a true story and a story
of the truth, of the gospel as it is in the Lord Jesus Christ. His dealings with us. He who is king. David is king
here in this story. David is king. Now, all men don't
know it. All men don't believe it. Nabal
is one of them. He doesn't believe that David
is king. But that doesn't mean David is
not king. Just because Nabal says, I won't have you, I don't
acknowledge you as king, he will because he is king. And the Scripture
says, God reigneth, our God reigneth, whether men acknowledge him or
not. Scripture says that I have set
my King on my holy hill of Zion, speaking of Jesus Christ. And
every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess
of things in heaven, things on earth, things in hell, that Jesus
Christ is Lord, King of kings and Lord of lords to the glory
of God the Father. Thus it has been written, and
thus shall it be done. He's King. He's King. Oh, worship the King, all glorious
above, and gratefully sing his power and his love. Our Maker,
Defender, Redeemer. That's King. There's a fool in
this story. A man who's a fool. Verse 2 and
3 says he His possessions were in Carmel. He's a great man, meaning that
he had great possessions. He wasn't a great man. He just
happened to be a rich man who men thought was great because
he had riches. He's a fool is what he is. This
man's a fool because he's rich only in physical and material
things. And he's not rich toward God.
He's poor in spirit. He doesn't know it. Everything he has is soon to
be lost. His soul. He's going to lose
his soul. Worst of all. This man's a fool because he
doesn't give God the glory for his riches. Look at verse 11.
He says, Shall I take my bread and my water and my flesh that
I have killed? This man is a freewheeler. This
man does not give God all the glory, but he robs God of that
glory. My bread that I have earned. What a fool. Doesn't the Scripture
say a man can receive nothing except it be given him from above?
Doesn't the Scripture say that? Doesn't God say that? That what
do we have that we have not? receives and we should give him
the thanks for it? But God said, no, men are foolish.
They don't give him the thanks. This man is a fool because he
doesn't acknowledge the King. He doesn't bow to the King. And that's just his reasonable
service. We're going to see in a moment. Now that everything
this man had was protected by, that this man was hedged about
by the very one that he despises. And he wouldn't even acknowledge
him. What a fool. Bite the hand that feeds you
to reject the one who protects you. What a fool. What a fool. This man's a fool because he
will not listen to anyone. The word churlish means stubborn. It means obstinate. It means
hard and cruel and will not listen to anyone. It means stiff-necked.
And whenever somebody says anything to him, his servants say, we
can't talk to him. He won't listen to me. Whatever
they did, he went like that. He had a wise wife. He had a wise woman that he was
married to, a woman of good understanding, a kind woman we'll say, a very
generous woman, a woman who was very generous and kind. Now if he's like me, if he's like you men, at least half
of what he owned he could attribute to his wife. Right, Brother Stan? Brother
Henry? Where would we be? Huh? Where would we be? What would
we have? Right? I know you men. I know all of you. And I know
your wives. And I know myself. Where would we be? Where would
I be? A nothing, a nobody, a lone,
a poor, dead, dead broke, or poorly
married, or unhappily, or whatever. That's right. But he wouldn't listen to her. He wouldn't listen to her. He
wouldn't listen to anybody. He's a fool. He's a fool. He's a hard man, he's a cruel
man, and God's going to come down hard on him, real hard. This man's a fool because he
is at this moment under the wrath of the king. His life is in the
hands of the very one he rejects, and those telling him his need
for mercy And he won't listen. And he's eating and drinking
the very food that God gave him, eating and drinking himself senseless,
and he's going to die. That's the fool. I've played
the fool. Have you? Everyone in here. This message is not directed
at anyone in particular, but everyone in general. This message
is for me. I am Naibol. I am Mary Magdalene. I am the thief on the cross. I am a Fiddle ship. I am. How about you, Brother Wesley? All right, there's the fool.
What a fool! A fool says no God. A fool won't
give God the glory. A fool robs Him of the glory,
shares the glory, steals the glory. A fool won't worship God.
A fool won't thank God. A fool won't give to God's cause. A fool won't support his cause,
the king's men. A fool won't listen to, though
maybe join to, wise people. A fool, under God's wrath, won't
give God a thought. Here's the king's word to a fool
in his house, verses 4 and 5. The king sent word to Nabal,
verses 4, David heard, he was shearing sheep, and sent ten
young men. And David said, Get to Carmel,
go to Nabal, greet him in my name. The king sent ten young
men and said, Thus saith King David, and went on to tell Nabal,
that these ten young men come in peace. Look at it, verse 6. Say to him that liveth in prosperity,
him that hath all these things, hath all this goodness, all this
prosperity, say peace to you, peace to your house, peace be
unto all that thou hast. How many men has God sent over
the years? He hath not left himself without
a witness in every generation as represented. Sending prophets,
the Scripture says, day and night, always, and even now. Even now. Did not left himself without
a witness. Ten young men. At any rate, how many has God
sent in the name, thus saith the Lord. They all come in the
name of the Lord. Preaching his word. Not their
opinions, but what the King says. How many still come in the name
of the Lord Jesus Christ? Thus saith he that reigneth by
God. Thus saith the King of kings
and Lord of lords, the Lord Jesus Christ. Here's what he said.
And here was the announcement when the King came. Peace on
earth. Goodwill toward men. God who
is angry with the wicked every day. God who provides all things. God who is the Savior of all
men. Keeps, protects all men. Savior of the world, Scripture
says. God who kills. God who makes
life. Savior of all men. Peace. Peace. Now, we don't say peace,
peace to men who hate God. We don't say that. When there
is no pain. We don't say that. We don't say,
God loves you. Everything's alright. No, we're
not saying that at all. Not saying that he died for you
and now he who is peace. We're not saying that at all. But what we do say is, there
is peace to be had with God. We may be reconciled with God. There is reconciliation, there
is peace with God. For all who, everyone who bows
the knee and confesseth, believeth with the heart that Jesus Christ
is Lord, and asks him for mercy, and thanks him for the bread,
the reasonable services, That's what they ought to do, isn't
it? Amen. Every single one. It doesn't matter who it is,
what they've done, where they've gone. It doesn't matter when they do
that. If they bow their knees, if they
come to the King for mercy, we've got a good message. Peace! He won't be angry with you. He'll
accept you. Every single one. Oh, my. Because our God is good. God
is merciful. He will show mercy. Now look at verse 7. They came
and said to Nabal, verse 7, they said, all that you have, we protected,
we watched over everything. Nothing missing. You know, the
Lord's, Scripture says, the Lord's tender mercies are over all His
work. It says the rain falls on the
just and the unjust. A man who is out there plowing his field rather than
worshiping God. The very field God gave him,
the strength to do it, God still makes His rain come down on that
man and grows his corn. That's why the Lord said, the
plowing of the wicked is evil. Even plowing, because they're
not giving me the glory. Mercy is over all his work. Verse
8, now he said, the king through these young men said to Nabal,
let the young men find favor in thine eyes. We come, this
is a good day. This is a good day. Are you with
me? He said this is a good day. And I've sent in ten young men
who have watched over everything you have, protected you. This
is a good day. Good news. Peace. Now give. These men have traveled
all this way to tell you good news and to watch over your field
and your people and be kind and merciful and gracious to you,
giving, giving, giving, giving, saved, watched over you. Now,
just give a little bit, just a little bit to support them. Out of gratitude and thanksgiving. Just return a little bit of that
which was given to you. And you're doing it not to them,
but you're doing it to me, David said. What you do to these young
men, you do for me. Does all this sound familiar? And what do we have? Isn't it our reasonable servant?
This is a good day. Today is the day of salvation. Whenever the gospel is preached,
whenever God's Word goes forth, it's a good day. Today is the
day of salvation. If you'll hear His voice, hearken.
Harden not your heart as in the day of provocation. Don't be
a fool. Today is the day of salvation when the gospel is being preached,
the message of peace. There's peace with God. David is going to come through
Wipe them all out. David is love. David is mercy. David is grace. David is a kind
man, a man after God's own heart. David's a fine man. He's merciful
to all that will call on him. And yet, David said, I'm going to kill
them all. How can that be? How can God
be love? and yet just. He is both. Totally. The consuming fire. Christ. Mercy. The very mercy and love
and grace of God is in Jesus Christ. And yet, he's a consuming fire. Give. Give, he said. Will a man
rob God? Yeah, he will. Will a man get
away with it? No, he won't. The Lord's going
to take everything this man had. Everything that belonged to the
Lord. I'm going to tell you back. The
Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away. Blessed be the name of
the Lord. The king's wrath. He said, gird
on your sword. The fool hath said, no, God. Scripture says, he that believeth
not, the wrath of God abides upon him. Judgment, destruction
is coming. All have sinned. This is not
just doctrine. This is true. All have sinned
and come short of the glory of God, and the wages of that sin
is death, and God shall take what is His. All souls are mine,
he said. The Lord looked down from heaven
to see if there were any that did understand. He said, none. There are none that understand
it. There are none that calleth on me. But God. There is someone in this story
who understands. Abigail. Melanie, is this story
precious to you? You named your child for that
reason. There is a young woman who has
understanding. The Lord has given her an understanding. She didn't always have understanding.
She wasn't always a woman of understanding and wise and all
that. She married a fool, didn't she? That made her a fool. But God. We're not born wise. We're not
born knowing God, seeking the Lord. But God, rich in mercy. For His great love wherewith
He loved His people, His elect, His chosen, His certain ones,
quickens them in the day of Christ Jesus. the gospel at the hands
of young men and they believe. And they bow to the King. And
they're so grateful. And they show that gratitude. They
prove the sincerity of their love to the King for his mercy
and his grace and his loving kindness and his protection and
his salvation. And they love those that bring that message.
They love the message. They love the one of whom it
speaks and the one who tells it. And they themselves are merciful
and kind, like Abigail. Abigail, my, my, what a wise
woman. She's wise because she knows
the King. She's wise because she knows
the King has been good to her and merciful to her and her house.
She knows the King is angry and she comes to the King for mercy.
She comes to the King for mercy. Look at it. Verse 18. She made
haste. If Abigail were alive right now,
and she is, she said, hurry, we've got to get to the Lord's
house and hear this message of mercy because I've sinned. She made haste. And she came
to the king for mercy, not only for her, but for her house. She
had a burden for her house, her children, those that were with
her, her friends. She had a burden for all of them.
And sure as she came, it was on their behalf too. And Scripture says, he that believeth,
really believeth, with a heart man believeth, and he that believeth
shall make haste. Hurry! This is urgent. Was it
life and death? This is a true story. This is a true story. Was it
life and death for her? Hannah, was it life and death?
She's going to die and everybody in her house is going to die
unless she hears from the King Himself. Unless the King tells
her Himself. Dan, is this a true story? Is
what I'm telling you about Jesus Christ a true story? Heaven and
earth shall pass away, but not one word of this story shall
pass away. Our Lord said it. It's all true. It's truth. It's
true. She made haste. He that believeth
shall make haste. Today is the day of salvation.
The gospel is preached. Why will you die, our Lord said
through the prophet, through all of his prophets? Why will
you die? Why will you die? Mercy for every sinner that comes. Every sinner that comes there
is mercy. Christ, every sinner that comes like Abigail. She
brought blood. She brought bread. She brought
wine. She brought fruit, leek for repentance.
She came to the King for mercy and she was in a hurry to give
it. And she brought that which the King accepted, which the
King loved. And there is mercy for every
sinner that comes through Christ's blood and His righteousness.
Every sinner that comes for mercy. Every sinner that comes in thanksgiving
and praise to the King for protecting them, for giving them everything
they have in the name of Jesus Christ. And bows the knee and
confesses with it. There is mercy. Peace. And God, when the overflowing
scourge of His wrath comes through, it will not come nigh thee. He'll
pass by you when He sees the blood. Every person that comes
to Jesus Christ. Look at it. Verse 23, Verse 23, she hasted, lighted
off the ass, fell before David on her face, bowed herself to
the ground, fell at his feet, and said, on me, on me, let it
all, I'm guilty. I'm guilty. It's said in verse 19, she didn't
tell her husband she was going. He may have prevented her from
coming. He may have not wanted her to give what he thought was
his. But she's a wise woman. She's
a desperate woman. And she says, I'm not going down
with him. I've got to get to the king. And my house has got to get to
the king. We're all going to die. This is true. So help me God,
this is true. This ain't just a story. This
ain't just preaching. As Scott said, I'm telling you
the truth. Our lives and our children's
hang in the balance. If this ain't true, I'm a fake. What you're believing is a fake.
Why are we doing this? Let's eat and drink and be merry
like old Nabal, for tomorrow we die. But it is true. It's desperate. It really is.
You know, every message, Brother Mike, every message is vital.
There's life. There's salvation. If the Lord
wills it, it will work. Us and our children. Well, she came. You know what
the king did? The king who was determined to
kill them all. You know what David did? He had
mercy. It says that he accepted her
person. He accepted what she brought. Verse 35, David received of her
hand what she brought, that anyone who comes to God by Christ accepts
in the beloved. He said, see, see. But Sam, see
now. The king says, I've accepted
thy person. You come through Christ, you're
accepted. I'm not angry with you. As a
matter of fact, the king loves you. The king who should kill us. He's a merciful king, isn't he? The old pagan king said, I hear
that the kings of Israel are merciful. Oh, you haven't heard?
The half hasn't been told of this king's mercy. The half has
not been told. I can't tell it. I'm trying desperately. I can't do it. You know this woman, let me just
say this. I've got to show you this. Abigail
here is every believer that comes to Christ, bows the knee to Christ,
they're accepted. Everyone that comes bringing
the blood, belief, faith in the blood, the righteousness of Christ,
fruit, has been born again and regenerated, find mercy. But
Abigail here is a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ, isn't
it? Isn't she? Christ is all. And in all, Abigail is a picture
of the only intercessor, the only mediator between God and
men, the man, Christ Jesus. This woman represents the man,
Christ Jesus. She came on behalf of these men,
not Nabal. Not Nabal. Christ didn't come,
He said, I don't pray for the world. No, no. But she came on
behalf of the men who came to her. Those men, you read it with
me, those men came to her, the servant, the shearers came to
her and said, Oh my, we're in danger. They came to her and
said, these men were good to us. They came to her and said,
what are you going to do for her? You're going to have to
do something. Didn't they, John? They came to her and said, Abigail,
you're going to have to do something. You're going to have to go to
the king for us and plead with him for our lives. Jesus Christ. is the mediator between God and
man, the daismon, the intercessor between all centers. Lord, you're
going to have to do something for me. You have to go to God
for me. You have to plead with me. And
he says, I will. And so she came, and the king
accepted her and what she brought. And Christ did too. He came. He lived. He died. He arose. And he ever lives. to make intercession for the
transgressors. And God always hears him and
accepts us in him. Well, this story has a wonderful
end. It's not wonderful for Nabal.
Verse 37 and 38. It came to pass, Nabal and wine
was gone out of him, what it was that he was all consumed
with, ended. His heart died, the heart of
stone. It came to pass shortly thereafter
the Lord smoked Nabal and he died. But the end for Nabal is just
the beginning for Abigail. A terrible end for a fool. Terrible end. But for all those
who come to God for mercy through the Lord Jesus Christ, it's just
the beginning. And the David sent word again
through his servants. Go tell Abigail, I'm going to
marry her. Go tell Abigail that the king
sends for you. And he's to marry you, and you're
to be his wife, and abide with him forever. And thus said the
Lord, Nancy Parks, the King cometh and calleth for you. Mary, the
King cometh and calleth for you. And says unto you, and says unto
his men who come, Thus saith the King, and will say to his
angels some day, Gather mine elect from the four corners of
the earth, and bring them to the marriage supper of the Lamb.
And they will be feasting, and she and they will live with me
happily ever after. Thus saith the King." It's just
the beginning. The marriage supper of the Lamb. The end for all who don't know
Him, who don't acknowledge Him, the end of fools is death. But for the righteous, say ye
to the righteous, it shall be well with them. It is well. Okay, we're going to sing number
16. Number 16, in closing, is a wonderful hymn. that goes with
this. Number six stainless. Stand as
we sing this.