Sometimes I have some understanding
that my only completeness is in the Lord Jesus Christ. And
there are other times when I really believe that I'm complete in
Him. Is there a difference? I don't know, but it seems like
there is. I know this, when I really believe that all God requires
of me he looks to his son for, and when he sees me, he sees
his son. Oh, that makes me so happy, and
it makes me rest. 1 Samuel 22. I've entitled this message, Stressed,
In Debt, and Discontent. Would that not be an accurate
description of most people living in the United States of America?
Stressed out by so many things, too many irons in the fire over
their head, in debt up to their ears, and the stress of trying
to pay bills that they don't have the money for, where they've
overextended themselves. And discontent, dissatisfied,
disillusioned with life, embittered. Now, interestingly, these are
the people that were drawn to David while he was in this cave. People who were distressed, people
who were in debt, and people who were discontent. There was
something about David in this cave that drew these people to
him. And I want you to notice the
word everyone in verse 2 of 1 Samuel chapter 22. Everyone. that was in distress. No exceptions. Everyone that was in debt and
everyone that was discontented. No exceptions to this rule. Everyone
who fit this description was drawn to David. David's name means the beloved. They gathered themselves to him,
and he became their captain. He became their prince. He became
their ruler. And these men stayed loyal to
David throughout all his life. These were the mighty men of
David. Now, how did David get in this
cave? He has escaped and is in hiding in a cave. Just a few weeks before, David
was the most popular man in Israel. Just a few weeks before this,
he had defeated Goliath of Gath. You remember the story. And the
maids of Israel were singing his praises. Saul has killed
his thousands, but David has killed his ten thousands. He
was the most popular. And he was the most loved and
esteemed and powerful man in all of Israel. Where has his courage gone? He
flees. You remember that Samuel, I mean Saul, was after
David's life. Saul was jealous of David. And
Saul wanted him dead and tried to kill him on numerous occasions.
And David flees for his life. Now look in chapter 21 at verse
10. Where is David's courage gone? I mean, he was he came running
at Goliath, that giant, and defeated him. But all that courage he
had at this time seems to have dissipated. Look at him here
in verse 10. And David arose and fled that
day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath."
Now, this was a Philistine king. Remember, Goliath of Gath, the
Philistines? He went to the Philistines to
find refuge in fear of King Saul. Verse 11, "'And the servants
of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the king of the land?'
Did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul,
I slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands? Now, when
David hears these people tell the king of Achish, or Achish
was his name, the king of Gath, this, it scares him. He thinks
he's going to kill me. He's going to kill me. He thinks
I'm going to be out to gain because I'm the one who slew ten thousands
at the Philistine. So he's scared to death. So look
what he does. Verse 12. And David, laid up
these words in his heart, and he was sore afraid of Achish,
the king of Gath. And he changed his behavior before then. Question. Have you ever, through
the fear of man, changed your behavior? That's what he did. He was so
afraid he changed his behavior before then. Now remember who
this is. This is this man who some weeks
before had defeated Goliath. Now look at him. He feigns himself
mad in their hands. He acts like he's crazy. He's
scared to death. He won't act like he really is
because he's afraid he'll be killed if he does. So he feigns
himself a madman in their hands and he scrabbles on the doors
of the gate. He writes unintelligible things. And he let spittle fall
down his beard. Now, you think about this. This
mighty great man, all of a sudden, he's just letting spit run down
his beard, scrabbling on the wall, acting like a madman, scared
to death of this king. This one who once was so brave
now trembles in fear before this king. Now, what must this have
looked like? This is God's anointed This is
the man after God's own heart? This is the king of God's providing? Is this the same man that defeated
Goliath, so afraid that he changes his behavior before men, controlled
by the fear of man, letting spit fall down his beard, acting like
a madman? Verse 14, Then said Achish unto
his servants, See, this man is mad. Wherefore then have you
brought him to me? Have I needed a madman that you
brought me this? See how the word fellow is in
italics? You know what he means by this?
This nothing. This zero. He's not even fit
to be called a man. You bring this blank to play
the madman in my presence? Shall this Whatever he is, he's
certainly not a man. This fella come into my house. I guess he thought this man man
could do him no harm. So David verse chapter 22, verse
one, David therefore departed thence and escaped. I guess they just let him alone
and he was scared to death. He didn't know what was going
to happen to him. So he escaped and found refuge in the cave. And when his brethren and all
his father's house heard, they went down thither to him. I guess
they felt sorry for him. I mean, what has happened to
David? He was so brave, and now look at him. And then we have
this interesting, interesting passage of Scripture. Now think,
he went from the heights to the depths. He went from the top
to the bottom, and he winds up in a cave. And in this cave,
who comes to him? Everyone that was distressed,
everyone that was in debt, and everyone that was discontented. Now what a ragtag bunch. Everyone
that was distressed, Everyone that was in debt and everyone
that was discontented, embittered by life, they gathered themselves
to him and he became a ruler over them. He became their captain.
He became their, the Hebrew word is translated chief, general,
governor, keeper, lord, master, prince. ruler, steward, and these
men, this ragtag bunch, these are the men that remained loyal
to David throughout all his trials. They wouldn't leave him. They stayed with him. And this
was a relatively small number, 400, or about 400, maybe 397,
maybe 402, I don't know, but it was a relatively small number,
seemingly who would have no influence and no ability, a small number. And you know, God's people are
always a small number in the earth. They are. They're always
a remnant. What the world would consider
an insignificant number. But they're God's people, nonetheless.
A small number described as in distress, in debt, and discontent. Now, this is an Old Testament
story, and this, as all Old Testament stories, is just another way
of telling the same old story. The gospel is in this passage
of Scripture so clearly and so beautifully, and would to God
that we would be enabled to hear the gospel. Now, in this story,
David is a type of Christ. And these people are a type of
His people. The distressed, those in debt,
and those who are discontented. These are the people who actually
come to Christ and are saved by Him. Those who are distressed,
those who are in debt, and those who are discontented. Now you think where David begins. David begins as the toast of
Israel. He's the most popular man in
Israel. Everybody is singing his praise. I understand why. But what I
think about is I think about the Lord Jesus Christ before
his incarnation. Think about him in heaven. Think
about him and the relationship he had with his father. He said,
At thy right hand are pleasures forevermore. His father said
to him, Thy throne, O God, is forever. That's what his father
said to him. He had the worship of angels.
Oh, the darling of heaven is the Lord Jesus Christ. And I
don't even know what I'm talking about when I say that. I wish
I could describe that the way it ought to be described. I feel
so frustrated trying to describe that, but I can't do it. But
I know this. He's everything to the Father. He's everything
to me, but he's everything to the Father. And I know he's everything
in heaven. Now, you think David went from
the top. He's unjustly accused by Saul. And Saul's out to get him. And
our Lord Jesus Christ was unjustly accused. in so many different
ways. And verse 13, and he changed
his behavior before them. Now, I let that word change up
in the Hebrew dictionary and it gave as its definition to
transmute. To transmute. to change from
one form or substance to the other. And this is something
that there's no way we can we can. I can just say what the
truth is and I can't explain it. I'll just tell what it is. Christ changed. Now, he never ceased to be who
he was. He never ceased to be holy. He never ceased to be the
son of God. He never ceased to be one who
never sinned. He never ceased to be righteous.
He never ceased to be holy. He never ceased to be what he
was. But he was changed into what he was not. He was transmuted and what that's
referred to, I don't have any doubt, is what happened to our
Lord in Gethsemane's garden and what happened to him on the cross
when he was made sin. And who knows what all that means?
Nobody does. But it's a whole lot worse than
we have any imagination. He was made sin so that just
as this king, Achish, said this fellow, this nothing, he's not
even fit to be called a man. I want you to think about what
the Lord said about himself when he was on the cross. Psalm 22,
verse 6, he said regarding himself, I am a worm. Can you get hold of that? It's
easy for me to say that, but this is the son of God as he's
hanging on the cross, he says, I am a worm. And no man, not even fit to be
called a man. Now, was this just rhetoric or
is this what he really felt, what he really experienced on
the cross? Truly, he was made seeing so
much that he said, I am a worm, not even fit to be called a man. That's how low he became. Now, how much of this do you
and I understand? None of it. We just believe. We just believe. And as David
went into a cave, our Lord went into a cave. He went into a tomb. That's where he ended up. He
went from the heights of glory into this tomb. And you see how
David is such a type of the Lord Jesus Christ here. He goes down
into this tomb. And who is it that comes to him? In this tomb. Now this tomb represents
his death. And there's something about the
death of the Lord Jesus Christ that draws God's people. There's
something glorious about his death. This is what this is a
reference to. Him going into the tomb. It's his death. Now why
did he die? Why did he die? There's only
one reason for death. Sin. That's the only reason for
death. There are no other reasons. He
was made sin, God killed him. But there's something very special
about his death. It's unlike any other death.
Now, his death, first of all, was
amazing that he died because of who he is. He's the God man. He's life. How did life die? I don't know, but he did. Isn't
it mysterious how the God-man could die? I remember one time
a guy wrote me and he said, well, he died as man, but he didn't
die as God. And I thought, what in the world is that supposed
to mean? I don't understand how the God-man died, but the God-man
died. It wasn't just the man that died,
the God-man died. Isn't that mysterious how that
could happen? His death is amazing in that he died in the first
place. His death is amazing in that what he accomplished by
his death. Now, what would be accomplished by my death? If
I die and if God would send me to hell, you know how long hell
would last? Forever. And there's one reason why hell
would last forever. It's because God's justice is
never satisfied. Now, the best illustration I
can think of this is if you have a child that you love and somebody
brutally murders that child, Will life in prison be enough
to satisfy you? You say, well, I'm satisfied
with what they did. I'm satisfied. No, you'd never
be satisfied. You'd never be satisfied. Sin
is such an infinite evil that God cannot be satisfied with
the death of the sinner. That's why hell is eternal. It's
never enough. It's never enough. But when our
Lord died, there's something he did that nobody else could
do. He satisfied God. Complete satisfaction so that
God can say regarding me, I can ask no more of him. I'm satisfied
with him. I'm satisfied with everything
about him. Now, that's what the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ
did. And there's something about his death that we're drawn to.
I mean, we're just irresistibly drawn to his death. This is what
we find comforting. Now, I'm drawn to his resurrection,
too. I'm drawn to his ascension. I'm drawn to all these things
about him. But we preach his death. Christ crucified is our
message. What is our assurance? Who shall
lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It's God that justifies.
Who is he that can condemn? It's Christ that what? Died. Yea, rather that's risen again,
who's even at the right hand of God. Now, here's what I'm
drawn to. The accomplishments of his death.
This one who died. This ragtag bunch. They're drawn to him in this
cave. Now, I don't believe they were
drawn to him before this. But once he's in this cave, this
ragtag bunch are drawn to him and they identify with him in
his death. Now, there is a threefold description
of these people who are drawn to the Lord Jesus Christ. And
I can tell whether I'm a believer, whether you're a believer, whether
you're someone who is drawn to Christ by, if you and I fit this
description. Distressed. In debt. And discontent. Now let's consider these one
at a time. Distressed. The Hebrew dictionary
defines this word as anguish. Disability. the anguish that
comes from being disabled. And you think of what anguish
it would be to be disabled. Can you imagine what it would
be to be blind? You're unable to see, you're
disabled. Or to be deaf, you're unable
to hear. Or to be a paraplegic, where
you're unable to walk. I mean, think of Disabilities,
how terrible, how difficult they are. These people were people
with disabilities and the anguish that comes as a result of disability. Disability is lack of ability. It's inability. Now, this is
what this thing of being distressed means. Stressed out, put in a
strait because of disability. As long as you have some ability,
you'll never come to Christ. If you even have the power of
free will, you'll never come to Christ. The only people who
come to Him are the people who can't come. And everybody who
can come doesn't come. If you think you can come, you'll
never come. If you think you have the ability
to come to Christ, you'll never come. But if you're someone disabled,
you will get to him. You'll get to him and identify
with him in his death. Now, what is meant by disability? At least these three things.
First of all, you cannot keep God's law. You cannot not sin. The carnal mind is enmity against
God. You cannot keep from sinning. You're unable to. You're unable to think a pure
thought. You're unable to do a righteous act in and of yourself. You're disabled. You cannot receive
or understand the kingdom of God if you're disabled. You're
unable to. The natural man receiveth not
the things of the spirit of God, neither indeed can he know them,
because they're spiritually discerned. You lack the ability to see these
things. You're totally dependent upon
God to do something for you, and you understand that. You
realize you can't even come to Christ. John 644 says no man
can come to me except the Father which has sent me, draw him.
Now, ironically, as I've already said, all who cannot come to
Christ do. And all who can, don't. You can just write that down. Only the disabled come to Christ. Like that leopard. I refer to
that leopard probably once a week. I love it. He said, Lord, if you will, you
can make me clean. This I know. I cannot make myself
clean. And the only way that I can be
made clean is if you make me clean. It's utterly up to you. If you will, you can make me
clean. Now, who is it that Who came
to David? First of all, the disabled. Those stressed and in anguish
over their disability. Secondly, who came to Christ
or who came to David while he was in this cave? Everyone who
was in debt. Everyone who had a creditor and
could not pay for their debt. unable to pay for their debt.
And so they came to David in this cave. Now, everybody who believes in human
ability makes God a debtor. Understand what I'm talking about.
If you think there's something you can do that would obligate
God to save you, I don't care what it is, if you think there's
something you can do that will make Him save you, that means
you believe God is indebted to you, to Him that worked it. is the reward, not reckoned of
grace, but of debt. But if you're indebted and you
can't pay the debt, there's nothing you can do to get yourself out
from under this debt. You're bankrupt and it's all
your fault. You're in His hands. Everyone
that was in debt came to Him in this case. I understand this. I'm in debt because of my sin. And it's all my fault. I'm not blaming Adam. I'm not
blaming you. I'm not blaming my mom and dad.
All my sin is all my fault. I'm in debt. I can't pay for
it. And the only thing I know to
do is come to Him in His death. And you know what? In coming
to Him, I find out that all my debts are cancelled, paid in
full. That's what He did by His death.
Isn't this wonderful? He paid in full all my debt,
so I don't know anything. I stand before God perfect by
that one laying in a tomb what He accomplished for me. And every one that was discontented disillusioned, embittered with
themselves, first with themselves, not somebody else, but with themselves,
with religion, with this world, the lust of the flesh, the lust
of the eyes and the pride of life. are seen to be what they
are and they lose their glitter. They lose their glitter. The values and philosophies of
this world have lost their appeal and this person who is discontent
is utterly dissatisfied with man's religion. With works, religion,
they can't find any confidence. They can't find any comfort.
They've never done enough. They're always dissatisfied. They're always discontented. Now, these people. Were drawn
to the Lord Jesus Christ. Everybody that fits that description.
Disabled. With a debt that you cannot pay.
and discontent and disillusion with yourself. These people are
all drawn to the Lord Jesus Christ, and he becomes your captain,
your Lord, your general. And here's what happens to these
people. I'm one of them. I'm one of these people who are
disabled. I'm speaking from experience.
I'm speaking from something I know. I'm not just talking about something
I read in a book. I'm talking about something I
know. I am disabled. In myself, I can't do anything
but sin. I can't pay my debts. I know
that. There's no way. I don't have
any way of paying the debt. Somebody's got to pay for me.
And I'm disillusioned. Disillusioned with myself. Disillusioned
with all that this world finds appealing. I'm disillusioned
by it. Everybody like that. They come to the Lord Jesus Christ,
and here's what happens. Those who are disabled find themselves
enabled. Beloved, I do believe. There was a time when I didn't. And I couldn't. I didn't decide
to believe. I found myself believing because
I was enabled by divine grace. There was a time when I did not
love God, and I do now, and it's because I have been enabled by
divine grace. There was a time when repentance
was so mysterious to me. What does it mean to repent?
And then I found myself repenting, and I'm still doing it now. I've been enabled. The disabled
find themselves enabled. And those who are in debt, they
come to the Lord Jesus Christ in this cave. pleading nothing
but his debt, and they find out in coming to him that all of
their debts have been cancelled, and they owe nothing. Children of God, believe this. You don't owe anything to God
other than gratitude. All your sins have been paid
for. They've been blotted out. They've been washed away. You
have no sin. You have no debt. When God looks
at you, when He looks into your heart, He sees that which is
well-pleasing in His sight. In Christ, you have all. You
have no debt. And content. The discontent become content. They become satisfied. They're not looking for anything
else. Now, once again, I'm speaking
from experience. I know something about being
disabled and enabled. I know something about debt that
I can't pay and Christ paying it for me. And I know something
about satisfaction and contentment. I am satisfied to be saved by
the Lord Jesus Christ. I'm satisfied with His righteousness. I'm satisfied with His grace.
I'm satisfied with the payment of His blood. What God is satisfied
with, I'm satisfied with. Is God satisfied with Christ?
And you think of the infinite satisfaction that the father
has with his son. That's the satisfaction the believer
has. As God is satisfied with him,
as God is satisfied with what he did, I'm satisfied too. Paul said, I've learned in whatsoever
state I am therewith to be content, to be satisfied. I don't care
what that state is. Paul said, I know both how to
abound and how to be abased. You know, when the Lord causes
me to abound, and everything seems wonderful. Sometimes it's
like that. You think, can it get any better?
The Lord's grace to me? You know, when I'm able to abound,
and I know God's favor toward me, and I know God's love toward
me, and I feel such confidence to come boldly into his presence,
and what a great blessing that is, I know how to abound. I know
it's only because of Christ. It has nothing to do with me.
I know the only way I come into His presence is through the blood
of the Lord Jesus Christ. I know how to abound. It's only
because of Christ. And I know how to be abased.
I understand something about how to be abased in this sense. When the Lord causes me to see
I'm nothing but wounds and bruises and putrefying sores, And I see
the truth about myself, and I see that there's nothing to me but
sin. That's all I am. It's easy to trust the Lord Jesus
Christ as my only righteousness before God. I know how to be
abased. When I'm abased, I'm to look
nowhere but Christ, and I am satisfied as God is my witness,
and I say that very carefully. I am content with Christ. In him dwells all the fullness
of the Godhead in a body, and you are complete, full. lacking nothing in him. And I am just satisfied with
it. Content, as the songwriter said,
content with beholding his face. My all to his pleasure resigned. No changes of season or place
would make any change in my mind. When blessed with a sense of
his love, a palace, a toy would appear, and prisons would palaces
prove if Jesus would dwell with me there. I'm a content man. What a blessing. Everybody who's
distressed, everybody who's in debt, everybody who's discontented,
they come to Him in His death And they're enabled. Their debts
are cancelled. And they become contented with
the Lord Jesus Christ. Let's pray.