24th November 2023

24th November 2023


Pray (ACts)


Read - 1 Samuel 19


Message Alan Burke 


But by the grace of God go I. You may even have used those words yourself because like me you know your propensity to sin and it is expressing your gratitude for the grace of God in your life that has kept you from what could have been a very different path. Sin is such that it deceives, entices and when a starts we can think to ourselves that this is enjoyable but the problem is that sin that began can grow and devour us. Saul is one of those men for whom it could have been very different but sin had got its hold of Saul and his son Jonathan was doing all that he could to prevent his fathers sinful desire to kill David to come about. 


There is lots left in this passage that we are not going to get to draw out this week but I want you to notice a few things today. Firstly how Jonathan convinces Saul and Saul listens vowing not to kill David (7). This is a wonderful turn of events but in the ensuing verses we learn of David’s victories, how an evil comes on Saul which was part of God’s judgement upon Saul, what we may miss is that we can face judgment here and now for our sin not only for eternally and God brought this about in Saul for he had rejected the Lord. Then Saul attempts again to kill David, sending men to kill him, now Saul’s daughter disobeys her father lying to his men and her father. This is grim, the cycle of the fathers sin is reading havoc in this family and David is forced to flee to Samuel at Ramah. 


This is the bit that today I want to focus on. For the most striking thing that is recorded in this entire chapter comes in these closing verses. David goes to Samuel at Ramah hoping for sanctuary, but there is no where safe from Saul and they go to Naioth but word came to Saul that this is where they were and he sent men after them. The first group that were sent with Samuel standing there with a group prophesying the Spirit of the Lord comes upon them and they also prophesied. Saul was told, sent more men then and the same thing happened, then a third time and finally Saul went and Saul prophesied. 


It didn’t matter where David fled to he was never out of reach of the strong arm of Saul or so Saul though. For rather than letting Saul capture or kill his anointed the Lord intervened in a very real way so much so that the people were left saying “is Saul also among the prophets”. 


Saul became one whom the people asked was he among the prophets. There is an application here which we may not think is relevant but I’ll drive it home in a moment or two and it's this; Just because someone is ministering in the name of the Lord, someone is speaking for him locally or internationally does not mean that they are saved. In Matthew 7 Jesus says 21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ (Mt 7:21–23). 


Just because someone is involved in ministry, or is a minister in the Presbyterian church of Ireland, in the local Baptist Church or the Free Presbyterian, Reformed Presbyterian what ever it may be is no proof. Unless we have trusted in the Lord for our salvation then we are lost, we trust in Jesus for our salvation not in what we do in his name. 


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC
Q105 What do we pray for in the fifth petition?
In the fifth petition, (which is, And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors, (Matt. 6:12)) we pray, That God, for Christ’ s sake, would freely pardon all our sins; (Ps. 51:1–2,7,9, Dan. 9:17–19) which we are the rather encouraged to ask, because by his grace we are enabled from the heart to forgive others. (Luke 11:4, Matt. 18:35)
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