Would you turn in your Bibles
to 2 Samuel 1. We're going to begin in 2 Samuel
1. Now, it came to pass after the
death of Saul, when David was returned from the slaughter of
the Amalekites, and David had abode two days in Ziklag, It
came even to pass on the third day that, behold, a man came
out of the camp from Saul with his clothes rent and earth upon
his head. And so it was when he came to
David that he fell to the earth and did obeisance. And David
said unto him, From whence comest thou? And he said unto him, Out
of the camp of Israel am I escaped. And David said unto him, How
went the matter? I pray thee, tell me. And he
answered that the people are fled from the battle, and many
of the people are also fallen dead, and Saul and Jonathan his
son are dead also. And David said unto the young
man that told him, how knowest thou that Saul and Jonathan his
son be dead? And the young man that told him
said, as I happened by chance upon Mount Gilboa, behold, Saul
leaned upon his spear, And lo, the chariots and horsemen followed
hard after him. And when he looked behind him,
he saw me, and he called unto me, and I answered, Here am I.
And he said unto me, Who art thou? And I answered him, I am
an Amalekite. And he said unto me again, Stand,
I pray thee, upon me, and slay me, for anguish has come upon
me, because of my life is yet whole in me. So I stood upon
him and slew him. Because I was sure that he could
not live after that he was fallen. And I took the crown that was
upon his head and the bracelet that was upon his arm and brought
them hither unto my Lord. Then David took hold on his clothes
and rent them. And likewise, all the men that
were with him, and they mourned and wept and fasted until even
for Saul and for Jonathan, his son, and for the people of the
Lord and for the house of Israel, because they were fallen by the
sword. And David said unto the young man that told him, Whence
art thou? And he answered, I'm the son
of a stranger, an Amalekite. And David said unto him, How
was thou not afraid to stretch forth thine hand to destroy the
Lord's anointed? And David called one of the young
men and said, Go near and fall upon him. And he smote him that
he died. And David said unto him, Thy
blood be upon thy head, for thy mouth has testified against thee,
saying, I have slain the Lord's anointed." Let's pray together. Lord, we come into your presence
in Christ's name. Lord, how thankful we are that
we can be heard and accepted and seen in thy blessed son.
And we ask in his name that you'd meet with us, that your gospel
would be preached in the power of your spirit, that you would
give us hearing ears and receptive hearts. And Lord, we pray for
forgiveness and cleansing. We pray that you'd give us the
grace to love you more. To love one another more and
truly to seek to be servants one to another. Now Lord, meet
with us for the Lord's sake. Be with all your people wherever
they meet together. In Christ's name we pray, amen. Now God had indeed anointed Saul
to be king. Look in chapter 10, verse 1. Then Samuel took a vial of oil,
1 Samuel chapter 10. Then Samuel took a vial of oil
and poured it upon his head and kissed him and said, is it not
because the Lord hath anointed thee to be captain over his inheritance? The Lord anointed Saul to be
king. Now, that being said, that ought
to be enough to make anybody afraid to touch the Lord's anointed
or to kill the Lord's anointed. God had anointed this man to
be king. And this man appears to be opportunistic as we'll
consider that. I mean, he came and said he brought
the bracelet and the crown of salt. He thought he was going
to get in the King's good graces. He thought, and he knew David
would be King because he did obeisance to him. And he thought
this is going to give me a good position. What was he in for
a surprise? David had him killed over this
because he had slain the Lord's anointed. Now, David was always
afraid to do anything like this. David feared doing anything to
him. Look in first Samuel 26. He was afraid to do anything
to Saul, even though Saul was trying to kill him. Look in verse
nine. And David said to Abishai, destroy
him not for who can stretch forth his hand against the Lord's anointed
and be guiltless. David said, furthermore, as the
Lord liveth, the Lord shall smite him, or his day shall come to
die, or he shall descend into the battle and perish. The Lord
forbid that I should stretch forth my hand against the Lord's
anointed. Now he's saying the Lord may take care of him, but
I'm not going to do anything. I'm not going to be aggressive
about this. I'm not going to touch the Lord's
anointed. Now back to first Samuel chapter
one. Now it came to pass after the
death of Saul and David was returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites.
And David had abode two days in Ziklag. And it came to pass
on the third day that behold, a man came out of the camp from
Saul with his clothes rent and earth upon his head. And so it
was when he came to David that he fell to the earth and did
obeisance. Now he displays by that, that he knows David is
going to be king. You wouldn't do obeisance to
anybody else. I mean, he fell down on his face at his feet.
doing obeisance, he knew exactly what was going to happen. And
like I said, this appears to me to be very opportunistic. He was trying to get in David's
good graces. He knew that Saul had been David's
enemy and he brings back the crown. He brings back the bracelet
to show his allegiance to the king. And he thought this is
going to get me a higher position. I'm going to be in good shape
out of this. Verse three. And David said unto him, from
whence comest thou? And he said unto him, out of the camp of
Israel am I escaped. And David said unto him, how
went the matter? I pray thee, tell me. And he answered that
the people are fled from the battle, and many of the people
also are fallen and dead. You remember, they'd all fled
out of the cities. And Saul and Jonathan, his son, are dead also. And David said unto the young
man that told him, how knowest thou that Saul and Jonathan,
his son, be dead? And the young man that told him
said, as I happened by chance, I think it's interesting he uses
that kind of language, by chance. That's not the language of a
believer, is it? We know that God is absolutely sovereign in
all things, but he He demonstrates his heathenism, I guess. He's
an Amalekite, and the young man that told him said, I happened
by chance upon Mount Gilboa, and behold, Saul leaned upon
a spear, and lo, the chariots and horsemen followed hard after
him. Now, you'll remember from last week that Saul had killed
himself. He had fallen on his own spear. And here, this man is giving
a little bit different of account of what took place. Now, I don't
know if he was lying or whether we're just getting more information,
but we don't read in the last chapter of 1 Samuel when Saul
died that this Amalekite had killed him. We read where he
killed himself. And so this is either this Amalekite lying about
what took place so he could get into the king's good graces,
or we just didn't get all the information. A lot of times people
say, well, here's a discrepancy in the scripture. There are no
discrepancies in scripture. There are none. It might tell
just to give a little bit more information, and that's fine
if that's the way the Lord does it, but there are no discrepancies
in scripture. This is divine truth. But he gives a different
account, verse 7. And when he looked behind him,
he saw me and called unto me. And I answered, Here am I. And
he said unto me, Who art thou? And I answered him, I'm an Amalekite.
And I personally think that this is what took place because he
was an Amalekite. And I think it's fitting that
Saul is destroyed by an Amalekite. Remember, he refused to kill
the Amalekites and that's what made the Lord's anger against
him. And so justly, what he refused
to do, this is how he ends up being killed by an Amalekite.
Verse nine. And he said unto me again, stand
I pray thee upon me and slay me, kill me, for anguish has
come upon me because my life is yet whole in me. He was scared. He wanted to die. Now this is interesting. He wasn't
thinking about the wrath of God that he was going to face. He
just didn't want to have these Amalekites or the Philistines
abusing him. So he says, go ahead and kill
me. Verse 10, so I stood upon him, and slew him, because I
was sure that he could not live after that he was fallen. I took
the crown upon his head and the bracelet from on his arm, and
I brought them hither unto my Lord. I'm sure that he was going
to die, so I went ahead and slew him. And I came back and brought
all this stuff to you to show you." Now, he thought this was
going to help him. Verse 11, then David took hold on his clothes
and rent them. And likewise, all the men that
were with him And they mourned and wept and fasted until even
for Saul and Jonathan, his son, and for the people of the Lord
and for the house of Israel, because they were fallen by the
sword." Now, I want you to think about this. This man had been
trying to murder David for years. And how does David react to hearing
that he's been killed? Did he say, it's about time?
I'm glad God gave him what he got coming. No, he mourned and
he wept. Now, have you ever had someone
that had mistreated you or been mean to you and something bad
happens to them and you think, yes. Well, I have. How evil. How evil. I love the way David responds. Turn with me for a moment to
Proverbs 24. Verse 17. Rejoice not when thine enemy
falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth. Lest the Lord see, and it displease
him, and he turn away his wrath from him. 25, chapter 25, verse 21, Proverbs.
If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat. And if he be
thirsty, give him water to drink. For thou shalt heap coals of
fire upon his head, and the Lord shall reward thee. That's quoted
in Romans as well. Look in Proverbs 17. Verse five. Whoso mocketh the poor reproacheth
his maker, and he that's glad at calamities shall not be unpunished. Now don't you admire the way
David responds to Saul. Saul had been his enemy. Saul
wanted to kill him. He finds out God has finally
taken care of Saul. He doesn't rejoice. And think
about this. He knew he was going to be king
now. This could have been very good news to him. But from the
very depths of his heart, he mourns and he's so upset. Now there's something very base
about rejoicing over something bad happening to anybody. And
if we see it in ourselves, well, let's ask the Lord for mercy
on us and grace to not be that way. I admire David so much,
this man after God's own heart, the way he would not rejoice
at the fall of his enemy. But, you know, David said this
would come to pass. You remember that Saul had been
trying to murder David for years. I've already read that passage
of scripture where David said, I'm not going to touch him. Now the
Lord may deal with him. He may kill him. He may let his
enemies get him. The Lord may, the Lord's going
to take care of this. As a matter of fact, turn to first Samuel
24. Verse three. And he came to the sheep coats
by the way where was a cave and Saul went in to cover his feet.
And David and his men remained in the sides of the cave. And
the men of David said unto him, Behold, the day which the Lord said unto
thee, Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thy hand, that
thou mayest do to him as it shall seem good to thee. Then David
arose and cut off the skirt of Saul privily. And it came to
pass afterwards that David's heart smote him. Because he'd
cut off Saul's skirt, and he said unto his men, the Lord forbid
that I should do this thing unto my master, the Lord's anointed,
to stretch forth mine hand against him, seeing he is the anointed
of the Lord. Look in 1 Samuel 26, verse eight. Then said Abishai to David, God
hath delivered thine enemy into thy hand this day, now therefore
let me smite him, I pray thee, with the spear, even to the earth
at once. And I'll not smite him the second time, he won't be
needed, he'll be dead. And David said to Abishai, destroy
him not, for who can stretch forth his hand against the Lord's
anointed and be guiltless? David said, furthermore, as the
Lord liveth, the Lord shall smite him. or his day shall come to
die, or he shall descend into battle and perish. The Lord's
going to take care of this, but the Lord forbid that I should
stretch forth mine hand against the Lord's anointed. But I pray
thee, take thou the spear that's in thy bolster in the crucible
of water, and let us go." Now see, he would not do this. Even
when it seemed like the Lord in his providence gave him this
opportunity to do it, he would not do it. Now, David knew that
Saul was doing him wrong, But he still didn't do anything about
it. He knew the Lord would take care
of it. Now, I would like to learn from this to wait on the Lord. I don't know what kind of illustration
this is, but last week Lynn and I were getting ready to go into
a place and there was a dead hummingbird and a live hummingbird
laying on the sidewalk. I asked Lynn, the one I thought
was going to die, I said, you want me to go ahead and step
on it and put it out of its misery? And she said, no, no, don't do
that. And I thought it was an act of
mercy. I mean, I was looking at it, but she didn't look at
it that way. So when we came back out, that little Hummingbird
was gone. It lived, and I guess it got
stunned and flew off. And if I would have gone ahead
and been merciful to it, I would have killed it. But because I
just kind of, through Lynn's kind advice, I wasn't aggressive. I just waited to see what happened.
it went. Now wait on the Lord. That's
the point. Wait on the Lord. He'll do whatever
needs to be done. You don't need to take matters.
I don't need to take matters in my own hand about anything.
Wait on the Lord. Really believe that he's in control
and whatever he does is right. He's going to take care of it
all. You don't have to protect yourself. You don't have to avenge yourself.
You don't have to make things right. Just wait on the Lord. Certainly don't try to, the souls
that are against you, don't you do anything about it. Wait on
the Lord. Wouldn't it be a blessing if
we just wait on the Lord? Turn with me for a moment to Psalm
27. Psalm 27, verse 13. David said, I had fainted unless
I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the
living. I don't see it right now, but I believe I will. And
then he gives us this wise counsel, wait on the Lord. Be of good
courage and he shall strengthen thine heart. Wait, I say on the
Lord. Psalm 37. Verse one, fret not thyself because
of evildoers. Neither be thou envious against
the workers of iniquity, for they shall soon be cut down like
the grass and wither as the green herb. Trust in the Lord and do
good. So shalt thou dwell in the land,
and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the Lord,
and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way
unto the Lord. Trust also in him, and he shall
bring it to pass. And he shall bring forth thy
righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.
Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him. Fret not thyself because
of him who prospers in the way, because of the man who bringeth
wicked devices to pass. Cease from anger, and forsake
wrath. Fret not thyself in any wise
to do evil, for evildoers shall be cut off. You don't have to
worry about doing anything to them. But those that wait upon the
Lord, they shall inherit the earth. For yet a little while,
and the wicked shall not be. Yea, thou shalt diligently consider
his place, and it shall not be. But the meek shall inherit the
earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance. of peace. Look
down in verse 34 of the same chapter. He says again, wait
on the Lord. That's what David did. He waited
on the Lord. This young Amalekite didn't wait on the Lord. He went
ahead and took matters into his own hands and look what happened
to him as a result. Wait on the Lord and keep his
way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land. When the
wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it. I've seen the wicked
in great power and spreading himself like a green bay tree.
Yet he passed away, and lo, he was not. Yea, I sought him, but
he could not be found. Mark the perfect man, and behold
the upright, for the end of that man is peace. But the transgressors
shall be destroyed together, the end of the wicked shall be
cut off, but the salvation of the righteous. is of the Lord. Salvation's of the Lord. He is
their strength in time of trouble. And the Lord shall help them
and deliver them. He shall deliver them from the wicked and save
them because they trust in him. Now go back to our text in 2
Samuel 1. Verse 13. And David said unto the young
man that told him, Whence art thou? And he answered, I'm the
son of a stranger, an Amalekite. Now what that means is he was
a resident Amalekite. His father had been in the land
as a resident Amalekite. He had grown up in the land of
Israel as a resident Amalekite. But he was in Israel. And so
David asked him this question. When David found that out, David
said to him, how was thou not afraid to stretch forth thy hand
to destroy the Lord's anointed? What a question. How is it that
you presumed to do this? What made you think you had the
right to do something like this? You grew up in Israel. You knew
this was the Lord's anointed. You knew it was a great evil
to do what you've done. Why did you do it? This is a side note. I guess
this says something about euthanasia, doesn't it? Killing people. I remember one time I had a class
in college on death, dying, and quality of living, and they talked
about euthanasia, and all I thought about was euthanasia. I didn't
know what it meant. But this says something about
that issue, doesn't it? This guy was going to put Saul
out of his misery, David said it was wrong. But we just don't
have the right to make decisions like this. And David's saying,
do you have that high opinion of yourself that you would make
a decision like that for yourself to put somebody out of his life
when you know God's in control of everything? You don't have
any right to do anything like this. Do you have such a low
opinion of the Lord that you don't feel a need to wait on
him for him to do whatsoever he's pleased to do? That's what
we're to do. Wait on the Lord. Don't take
matters into your own hand. Don't think you can do something
like this. Whatever this man has done, he's
still the Lord's anointed, and how dare you? Were you not afraid?
What this demonstrates is an absence of the fear of the Lord. Now the fear of the Lord, I love
that scripture, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. The fear of the Lord, the respect,
the reverence, the awe of the Lord, it's the fear of the Lord
that makes us afraid of sin. That's why we're afraid of sin,
because of what he thinks of it. It's the fear of the Lord
that makes us afraid to come into God's presence in any other
way than Christ. If you have any respect of the
Lord, you won't dare come to Him in any other way but in the
righteousness and merits of Christ, not claiming anything about yourself.
You're looking to Him alone. Now this man demonstrated that
he had no true fear of God, didn't he? Verse 14, and David said
unto him, how was thou not afraid to stretch forth thine hand to
destroy the Lord's anointed? And David called one of the young
men and said, go near and fall upon him. And he smote him that
he died. And David said unto him, thy blood be upon thy head,
for thy mouth has testified against thee, saying, I have slain the
Lord's anointed. Now this man had carefully engineered
a way to get into David's favor, didn't he? but how miserably it backfired. Now, any kind of scheming and
manipulating and engineering we do to make certain things
come to pass, it's always wrong. It's always wrong. It's contrary
to waiting on the Lord. And David said regarding this
man who he had killed, your blood is on your own head. The very
words of your own mouth will condemn you. You're the testimony. Now, He says, this is all your
fault. You can't blame me. This is all your fault. Me having
you put to death, it's all your fault. Now, here's what I'd like
to be able to say. First, with regard to judgment,
there is such a thing. There is such a thing as judgment. And everybody is going to stand
before God and be judged. And if God condemns a man, that
man is getting exactly, precisely what justice calls for. If God
sends a man to hell, that man is getting exactly what he deserves. If God sent you to hell, would
you be getting what you deserve? Would God be just if he passed
you by? Would God be right if he passed
you by? Yes. Whatever God does is right. Shall not the judge of the earth
do right? There is such a thing as judgment.
And when men are condemned, like this man was, he's getting exactly
what he deserves. With God, the punishment always
fits the crime. Amen? That's absolutely true. That being said, how thankful are you that there's
such a thing as mercy and grace and the forgiveness of sins?
How God freely forgives. It's who He is. Yes, He's just. And this man was getting exactly
what he deserved. There's no question about that.
He was an opportunistic man. It was an act of presumption
for him to think he could take it upon himself to go ahead and
kill Saul, even if Saul asked him to do it. It was still wrong.
He should have waited on the Lord. And his punishment is just. But what would happen to me if
God gave me what I deserve? I know exactly what would happen
to me. And how thankful we are. For the free forgiveness of sins
for Christ's sake. God is merciful. God is gracious. He delights in mercy. Yes, God
is just. And we love him for his justice.
You know, I really am glad that all sin will be punished. Everybody
else's sin and my sin. I'm glad all sin will be punished,
but here's the issue. My sin was punished in Christ,
in my substitute, in my Savior. I admire God in the sense that
no sin is going to be unnoticed by Him. He's going to punish
all sin. I admire that. That's glorious
because of who He is. But I know this, oh, that I may
win Christ and be found in Him. Not having my own righteousness,
which is of the law, but that which is through the faithfulness
of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith." Well, may the Lord teach you
and I not to take matters in our own hands, to wait on the
Lord, see what He does, and may we be quick to ask for mercy
at all times.