The question arises: Under what rules does the covenant keeper operate? David already showed us that you keep first things first - God and His commandments, like the commandment to exterminate the inhabitants of Canaan. Saul had not been entirely obedient regarding that commandment like David. But that's not the only way in which David operated differently.
David had been anointed the successor to Saul by Samuel in I Samuel 16, where God told Samuel that He had rejected Saul as king and Samuel was to anoint another person - someone better than Saul. I Samuel 15:28. Yet Saul remained in his position as King; he was King the entire time he was chasing David, having suspected that David was his replacement. From chapter 18 of I Samuel until chapter 27, an undefined period perhaps of years, David fled for his life from Saul. As described in Post "The Victory of the Christian 3 - It's not Fair," David employed some pretty ruthless tactics for survival. But he refused to do one thing - kill King Saul, "the Lord's Anointed." He had the chance to do so with impunity more than once.
In I Samuel chapter 24, David could have killed Saul in a cave, separated from Saul's army and armed guards. David told his own bodyguard, Abishai and his other men:
"And the men of David said unto him, Behold the day of which the LORD said unto thee, Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thine hand, that thou mayest do to him as it shall seem good unto thee. Then David arose, and cut off the skirt of Saul's robe privily. And it came to pass afterward, that David's heart smote him, because he had 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. So David stayed his servants with these words, and suffered them not to rise against Saul. But Saul rose up out of the cave, and went on his way."
I Samuel 24:4-7. David felt guilty about cutting a corner of the robe of the Lord's anointed. He had a sincerely sensitive conscience about killing the Lord's Anointed, even if not doing so meant continuing to face the risk of being murdered by Saul. His respect for the reigning king, no matter how flawed or even rejected by God, is unweakened by the fact that David has been anointed the new king, something David knows will result in his becoming king one day. But he was willing to wait for the formal installation before presuming on that anointing. David's stand was a stand of faith, as he makes clear to Saul in his speech to him afterwards.
"The LORD judge between me and thee, and the LORD avenge me of thee: but mine hand shall not be upon thee. As saith the proverb of the ancients, Wickedness proceedeth from the wicked: but mine hand shall not be upon thee. After whom is the king of Israel come out? after whom dost thou pursue? after a dead dog, after a flea. The LORD therefore be judge, and judge between me and thee, and see, and plead my cause, and deliver me out of thine hand."
I Samuel 24:12-15. Am almost identical opportunity presented itself on another occasion.
"The LORD render to every man his righteousness and his faithfulness: for the LORD delivered thee into my hand to day, but I would not stretch forth mine hand against the LORD'S anointed. And, behold, as thy life was much set by this day in mine eyes, so let my life be much set by in the eyes of the LORD, and let him deliver me out of all tribulation."
I Samuel 26:23-4. David's faith was not in his spear or bow or sword (I Samuel 17:45-7); his faith was in the covenant keeping God of Israel.
Where is our faith when engaged in politics? In the Constitution? Our wisdom and high paid political consultants? Our money raising ability? How long will it take for the Church to realize that our strength, our source of success, our victory is found only in our faith in our covenant keeping God, in whom we should show our faith by keeping covenant - like David. If you tell yourself and others words like: "That's just too extreme." Or: "No one will accept us if we stand on the bible." Or: "It's not practical." Or: "What about separation of church and state?" Or: "There too many of THEM." Get ready to keep losing; you're playing by the enemy's rules. And you're not putting your faith in the God who is the sovereign ruler over all and will give victory to those who put their trust in Him and His word. The question is not who will win. The question is: Do you have faith in His Word? His rules? Do you even know them?
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