Fear No Fear

(All scripture from the World English Bible, ebible.org, all rights reserved)

“David struck them from the twilight even to the evening of the next day. Not a man of them escaped from there, except four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled. David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken, and David rescued his two wives. There was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither plunder, nor anything that they had taken. David brought them all back. David took all the flocks and the herds, which they drove before those other livestock, and said, “This is David’s plunder.” David came to the two hundred men, who were so faint that they could not follow David, whom also they had made to stay at the brook Besor; and they went out to meet David, and to meet the people who were with him. When David came near to the people, he greeted them. Then all the wicked men and worthless fellows of those who went with David answered and said, “Because they didn’t go with us, we will not give them anything of the plunder that we have recovered, except to every man his wife and his children, that he may lead them away and depart.” Then David said, “Do not do so, my brothers, with that which Yahweh has given to us, who has preserved us, and delivered the troop that came against us into our hand. Who will listen to you in this matter? For as his share is who goes down to the battle, so shall his share be who stays with the baggage. They shall share alike.” It was so from that day forward that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day. When David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the plunder to the elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying, “Behold, a present for you from the plunder of Yahweh’s enemies.” He sent it to those who were in Bethel, to those who were in Ramoth of the South, to those who were in Jattir, to those who were in Aroer, to those who were in Siphmoth, to those who were in Eshtemoa, to those who were in Racal, to those who were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, to those who were in the cities of the Kenites, to those who were in Hormah, to those who were in Borashan, to those who were in Athach, to those who were in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men used to stay.”
(1 Samuel 30:17-31)

“He sent from on high.
    He took me.
    He drew me out of many waters.
He delivered me from my strong enemy,
    from those who hated me; for they were too mighty for me.
They came on me in the day of my calamity,
    but Yahweh was my support.
He brought me out also into a large place.
    He delivered me, because he delighted in me.
Yahweh has rewarded me according to my righteousness.
    According to the cleanness of my hands, he has recompensed me.
For I have kept the ways of Yahweh,
    and have not wickedly departed from my God.
For all his ordinances were before me.
    I didn’t put away his statutes from me.
I was also blameless with him.
    I kept myself from my iniquity.”
(Psalm 18:16-23)

After trusting in the Lord to get him out of a sticky situation with the Philistine leaders, David goes home to find his city sacked. Everyone and everything taken, and the city burnt down. His men were so upset at the loss of their families that they were ready to stone him. But David strengthened himself in the Lord. He reminded himself of what his God was capable of. Of who his God was. And when his trust was strong again, he asked God what he should do. God said go get your families back. They did. They got back their stuff, their families, and they got all the stuff the raiders had sacked from other places. David got so much stuff he was able to send gifts of thank you to all the places in Israel that had harboured him during his years on the run. What looked like defeat became a great victory and blessing!

David focused on the Lord a lot. He always brought his thoughts back to the Lord. He usually didn’t take a step without consulting with God first. It wasn’t out of fear that he did this. He developed this pattern of trust when he was a shepherd and didn’t seek to change when his circumstances did. He didn’t just rely on the Lord. He also kept himself from following after his own ideas. He knew his temptations. He knew his temper. While he did not walk perfectly (none of us do), he expended effort keeping God’s command in his mind. He expended effort keeping the Word before him. He didn’t stop just because he left the Land. He brought his practises with him and took the time to follow them. He knew there was benefit in following God in all his ways.

Summary

Starting from the incident with Goliath in 1 Samuel 17, a general rule is that in whatever situation they found themselves in, Saul did the wrong thing and David did the right thing. Saul leaned into his weaknesses and walked away from the Lord and the Lord’s point of view. David leaned into the Lord’s moral character and tried to keep the Word foremost in his mind. Saul let his fears and the opinions of others rule his thinking. David strengthened himself in what God was capable of and what God said was the right thing. We, like David, will not be perfect in our walk with Jesus. But we, like David, should be taking every opportunity to seek the Lord. To find out His moral character as it is laid out in His Word. And to cultivate our love of God in our hearts – which leads to a natural obedience and desire to be like Him in every way that we can be.