Saul, David & Goliath

[Lou Newton]

I would like to start a study about Saul, David & Goliath but I need your prayers and help.

I have learned in life that one can go along for some years without losing much energy to aging and then in only a few years experiences a large drop in energy. I need to exercise every other day to keep my blood pressure down, but the next day I find myself needing a lot of sleep. I keep getting really sleepy while trying to write. My spirit is willing but my body has no energy.

I really desire to start a study of Saul, David, and Goliath but first of all I need to know that someone would be interested enough to read it and participate by posting replies of some kind.

The life of Saul, David and Goliath reveals what is happening in the nation today and why.

If you would take part in this please post a reply even if it is only one word. You can say -will read - will reply - sounds interesting - will take part , etc

[Baruch]

I'm in. And I'll pray for God to uphold you, brother, and for all hindrances to be removed. This study should be very interesting and a blessing.

[Lou Newton]

I'm in. And I'll pray for God to uphold you, brother, and for all hindrances to be removed. This study should be very interesting and a blessing.

Thanks for your prayers and your participation Barry.

[Lou Newton]

Still looking for replies to this thread. Thanks

[redsoxmaloney]

Already in wonder about the connection between that story and the modern church.

[Steve Hollander]

Hi Lou,
I must have missed this thread as I am not frequenting the forum as often do to my current work situation and some other stuff, but I am very interested in this study and would hope to be involved Lord willing.

[Lou Newton]

Already in wonder about the connection between that story and the modern church.

Thanks for the reply Tom.

Of course you should know that anyone who responds and then fails to participate will be given three lashes with a slice of wet baloney. It is just a coincidence that baloney rhymes with Maloney - well maybe not.

[Lou Newton]

Hi Lou,
I must have missed this thread as I am not frequenting the forum as often do to my current work situation and some other stuff, but I am very interested in this study and would hope to be involved Lord willing.

Thanks Steve - look forward to your questions and comments.

[redsoxmaloney]

So I'm thinking you might say that Saul is a connection to today's church because he seemed to be concerned more with appearance instead of substance, and David seemed to be more focused on what the right thing to do. At least for much of his life. And now I'm remembering that God never lets a person hold more than one office, like say king and prophet. It says in corinthians that 2 or 3 prophets should lead the congregation not one. So a king can be checked by his prophet and vise versa.

[Steve Hollander]

Yes well doesn't power usually corrupt and absolute power corrupts, absolutely? Saul was a poor shepherd and the next thing you know he is the richest man in Israel overnight with authority and power. That ruined him instead of making him better. So after that it took David many years to realize the promise that he would supersede Saul. He waited patiently for all of the glory and he received it eventually and held it with integrity, for the most part. But Saul went bad from the get go when he was impatient and didn't wait for Samuel. He was a bad choice to lead because he was selfish. David began as an unselfish leader.

[Lou Newton]

So I'm thinking you might say that Saul is a connection to today's church because he seemed to be concerned more with appearance instead of substance, and David seemed to be more focused on what the right thing to do. At least for much of his life. And now I'm remembering that God never lets a person hold more than one office, like say king and prophet. It says in corinthians that 2 or 3 prophets should lead the congregation not one. So a king can be checked by his prophet and vise versa.

You are on the right track, Tom.

[Lou Newton]

Yes well doesn't power usually corrupt and absolute power corrupts, absolutely? Saul was a poor shepherd and the next thing you know he is the richest man in Israel overnight with authority and power. That ruined him instead of making him better. So after that it took David many years to realize the promise that he would supersede Saul. He waited patiently for all of the glory and he received it eventually and held it with integrity, for the most part. But Saul went bad from the get go when he was impatient and didn't wait for Samuel. He was a bad choice to lead because he was selfish. David began as an unselfish leader.

Good comment Steve. Yes, power corrupts, that is if you are a man of flesh.

Men of flesh seek power and it only corrupts them. But spiritual men never sought power. The prophets went around in rags compared to the men of worldly power who lived in luxury.

Hebrews 11
³² And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets, ³³ who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions,³⁴ quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword;whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. ³⁵ Women received back their dead, raised to life again. There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection. ³⁶ Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. ³⁷ They were put to death by stoning;they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins,destitute, persecuted and mistreated— ³⁸ the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground.

Ecc 10
⁵ There is an evil I have seen under the sun,
the sort of error that arises from a ruler:
⁶ Fools are put in many high positions,
while the rich occupy the low ones.
⁷I have seen slaves on horseback,
while princes go on foot like slaves.

This is the result of Kings who seek power instead of seeking God.

But David did NOT wait to become the King of Israel. He did wait for the people to recognize him as the King.

He was out in the fields watching the sheep when a brother came to take his place so that he could go home and meet Samuel.

God told Samuel, this is the man, and Samuel anointed him King.

From that day on David was King of Israel, BUT the no one recognized him as King except The Lord. Not even Samuel picked David, but was totally surprised that God chose him.

BUT when the enemy attacked Israel, Saul, who the people recognized as King, hid in his tent when he seen Goliath. It was his job to protect Israel and God gave him his chance to do so. But he was afraid.

It was The Lord that sent for David who was out in the fields. His father, Jesse, thought he was sending David to take his brother food and bring back news of the war to him.

When David arrived at the site where Goliath was speaking insults to God and Israel, he was angry to hear this heathen being permitted to speak such things.

His own brothers seen David anointed by Samuel, but did not recognize him as King. But David proved to all, including Goliath and the Philistines, who was King when he defeated Goliath with a shepherds sling and a stone.

Years ago, I read a report from Archaeologists in Israel that they found a very old skull that was very very large. They said it measured to be from a man over 10 feet tall. It had a hole in the skull right between the eyes that went all the way through the skull. It had been severed from the body with a very sharp instrument, like a sword. The place where they found it was thought to be the site of the battle between Israel and an enemy. This never made the main media because this is not the kind of thing they want to report, but instead they hide.

Out of all the thousands of men at that battle site, NOT ONE would have chose David to lead them. But God chose David and David led them to victory.

I have heard men preach that we should be a HERO for God, like David was.

DAVID WAS NOT THE HERO HERE.

The Lord was the hero who gave them victory.

If God had preformed this victory through Saul, Saul would have taken the credit.

That is why God chose David, because he gave the credit to the Lord.

[Steve Hollander]

David was a sinner too and wound up being as selfish as Saul was when he killed his very good friend for a woman. He not only stole the mans life but he stole his wife too. So I am well aware that David was not a hero and could never have done any of the great accomplishments he did if the Holy Spirit did not do it through him. He was a man. But somehow he pleased God and so God blessed him and it even is written that David will rule under Christ again in the future. I know that victory is with God not anything else. Not by might but by His spirit.
So, who is a type of the Church, Saul? The world is the Philistines? And David is a type of Christ? I'm not sure I am seeing it right.

[Lou Newton]

David was a sinner too and wound up being as selfish as Saul was when he killed his very good friend for a woman. He not only stole the mans life but he stole his wife too. So I am well aware that David was not a hero and could never have done any of the great accomplishments he did if the Holy Spirit did not do it through him. He was a man. But somehow he pleased God and so God blessed him and it even is written that David will rule under Christ again in the future. I know that victory is with God not anything else. Not by might but by His spirit.
So, who is a type of the Church, Saul? The world is the Philistines? And David is a type of Christ? I'm not sure I am seeing it right.

Amen Steve. But before we tackle of of these very good questions, let us go to the scriptures as see what they say about this:

We remember that Ely had let his sons do terrible things in the Temple service and as a result they lost the Ark of God to the Philistines. That brought a plague to the Philistines and they returned the Ark to Israel to stop the plague. Now we continue:

1 Samuel 7New International Version (NIV)

7 ¹ So the men of Kiriath Jearim came and took up the ark of the Lord. They brought it to Abinadab’s house on the hill and consecrated Eleazar his son to guard the ark of the Lord. ² The ark remained at Kiriath Jearima long time—twenty years in all.

Samuel Subdues the Philistines at Mizpah

Then all the people of Israel turned back to the Lord. ³ So Samuel said to all the Israelites, “If you are returning to the Lord with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the Lord and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.” ⁴ So the Israelites put away their Baals and Ashtoreths, and served the Lord only.

NOTE: God's people were claiming to worship Him, BUT they were calling things that were NOT Him to be Him. Today we have the same thing in the church today. They claim to worship God, but are calling Him things that are not true. That is idolatry. That is when we worship something that we build with our hands OR our minds that is NOT God. We can only worship God in TRUTH, for He is TRUTH.

⁵ Then Samuel said, “Assemble all Israel at Mizpah, and I will intercede with the Lord for you.” ⁶ When they had assembled at Mizpah, they drew water and poured it out before the Lord. On that day they fasted and there they confessed, “We have sinned against the Lord.” Now Samuel was serving as leader of Israel at Mizpah.

NOTE: Here there is forgiveness with God for they confessed their sin, instead of denying their sin

⁷ When the Philistines heard that Israel had assembled at Mizpah, the rulers of the Philistines came up to attack them. When the Israelites heard of it, they were afraid because of the Philistines. ⁸ They said to Samuel, “Do not stop crying out to the Lord our God for us, that he may rescue us from the hand of the Philistines.” ⁹ Then Samuel took a suckling lamb and sacrificed it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord. He cried out to the Lord on Israel’s behalf, and the Lord answered him.

NOTE: Israel continues to humble themselves before God.

¹⁰ While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to engage Israel in battle. But that day the Lord thundered with loud thunder against the Philistines and threw them into such a panic that they were routed before the Israelites. ¹¹ The men of Israel rushed out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, slaughtering them along the way to a point below Beth Kar.

NOTE: here we see the Lord delivers Israel with a miracle.

¹² Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer,^[b] saying, “Thus far the Lord has helped us.”

¹³ So the Philistines were subdued and they stopped invading Israel’s territory. Throughout Samuel’s lifetime, the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines. ¹⁴ The towns from Ekron to Gath that the Philistines had captured from Israel were restored to Israel, and Israel delivered the neighboring territory from the hands of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.

¹⁵ Samuel continued as Israel’s leader all the days of his life. ¹⁶ From year to year he went on a circuit from Bethel to Gilgal to Mizpah, judging Israel in all those places. ¹⁷ But he always went back to Ramah, where his home was, and there he also held court for Israel. And he built an altar there to the Lord.

So we see the truth of this scripture:

2 Chron 7
¹⁴ if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

God can not lie. Any time our land is not healed, then it is because of the idolatry of the people who are called by His name.

[Steve Hollander]

Amen Lou, like I was telling Karl in another thread; we should never give up hope in God because He never doesn't come through. He is always the savior. And we never know how He will do it but He does it every time we call out to Him for help. Even when we are the fault and the problem is due to our sin, if we confess it and repent He helps us get through it. He delivers us somehow no matter how bleak it is.