The Christ Church Wednesday Bible Study Group is studying God's providence or divine providence in the lives of David and Joseph and how we can apply His providence in their lives to our lives today.
The providence of God or divine providence is the governance of God by which He, with wisdom and love, cares for and directs all things in the universe. Divine providence asserts that God is in complete control of all things. He is sovereign over the universe. He is in control of the physical world. He is in control of the affairs of nations. He is in control of human destiny. He is in control of human successes and failures. He protects His people.
The doctrine of divine providence can be summarized this way: “God in eternity past, in the counsel of His own will, ordained everything that will happen; yet in no sense is God the author of sin; nor is human responsibility removed.”
These are the notes to Session 5. David the hero, the one who calms Saul down when he is tormented, the best friend of Johathan, the heir apparent to the throne, David "the man after God's own heart" loses everything.
For our study we will be using Great Lives: David: A Man of Passion and Destiny, by Charles R. Swindoll, and The Hand of God by Alistair Begg. To study along with us you can purchase the books by clicking the Links here or the images after the notes.
The providence of God or divine providence is the governance of God by which He, with wisdom and love, cares for and directs all things in the universe. Divine providence asserts that God is in complete control of all things. He is sovereign over the universe as a whole, He is in control of the physical world, He is in control of the affairs of nations, He’s in control of human destiny, He’s in control of human successes and failures, He protects His people. Through divine providence God accomplishes His will.
Remember one of the things we said a few weeks ago about God’s selections are always being sovereign and sure, so be sensitive, so we should never presume how God would do something. When we presume and God doesn’t do things the way we thought he would or the way we would have done it we second-guess God. When we do that we forget that we that He is God and we are not.
We sometimes forget that God already knows what is going to happen in the future and we don’t. We can only control ourselves we can’t control anybody else, and we certainly can’t control God. If we knew the future especially when in it there would be some very tough times we may want to back out of God’s plan for us, What we need to do is to trust God to be with us today and not worry about tomorrow. There are two days in which we can’t do anything about and they are yesterday (the past), and tomorrow (the future).
God never changes but we do. We change where we live, we change jobs, we change relationships. Things happen in our lives that cause us to make changes. Some are good, some are bad. If we knew the bad stuff that was going to happen to us would become depressed and not deal with the stuff, we need to deal with today. We already know that God is going to cause whatever happens to work for our good.
Romans 8:28-30 NIV And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
Let’s take a look at our hero David. Last week we talked about the fact that Saul brought him into the palace to calm him whenever the evil spirit affected him.
1 Samuel 16:14-23 NIV Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him. Saul’s attendants said to him, “See, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you. Let our Lord command his servants here to search for someone who can play the lyre. He will play when the evil spirit from God comes on you, and you will feel better.” So Saul said to his attendants, “Find someone who plays well and bring him to me.” One of the servants answered, “I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play the lyre. He is a brave man and a warrior. He speaks well and is a fine-looking man. And the Lord is with him.” Then Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me your son David, who is with the sheep.” So Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread, a skin of wine and a young goat and sent them with his son David to Saul. David came to Saul and entered his service. Saul liked him very much, and David became one of his armor-bearers. Then Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, “Allow David to remain in my service, for I am pleased with him.” Whenever the spirit from God came on Saul, David would take up his lyre and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him.
We also know that he killed Goliath and as a result the Israelite army was victorious over the Philistines.
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1 Samuel 17:51-53 NIV David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine’s sword and drew it from the sheath. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword. When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran. Then the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines to the entrance of Gath and to the gates of Ekron. Their dead were strewn along the Shaaraim road to Gath and Ekron. When the Israelites returned from chasing the Philistines, they plundered their camp.
He also became a very good friend of Saul’s son Jonathan who was the heir apparent to the throne.
1 Samuel 18:1-4 NIV After David had finished talking with Saul, Jonathan became one in spirit with David, and he loved him as himself. From that day Saul kept David with him and did not let him return home to his family. And Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. Jonathan took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his tunic, and even his sword, his bow and his belt.
So, David is a hero, a friend of the heir apparent to the throne and in good with the king. Plus he knows that he will be the king because he had been anointed. Because, as we know David is a humble man because even after being anointed he went back to his job as a shepherd because he knew that there was already king and it was Saul.
That’s the good news but there is bad news coming and it’s a good thing David didn’t know it ahead of time. God in His grace and mercy did not give David a preview of what was ahead and He doesn’t give us a preview either. What did Jesus say?
Matthew 6:28-34 NIV “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
David had proved himself faithful among the sheep and on the battlefield went from the highest pinnacle of popularity to the lowest depression of despair. God was good not to tell David all that was coming his way.
God was always with David and never left him but he had to groom him to become what He wanted him to be which was to be Israels great king. That meant, for David, and often us He had to break David, although we know that David was humble He still crushed him through years of adversity.
It starts out great with him prospering
Because of his popularity Saul became jealous and then afraid.
1 Samuel 18:6-9 NIV When the men were returning home after David had killed the Philistine, the women came out from all the towns of Israel to meet King Saul with singing and dancing, with joyful songs and with timbrels and lyres. As they danced, they sang: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.” Saul was very angry; this refrain displeased him greatly. “They have credited David with tens of thousands,” he thought, “but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?” And from that time on Saul kept a close eye on David.
So now Saul is paranoid. When imagination is fueled by jealousy, suspicion takes over . . . and at that point, dangerous things occur. Saul’s great goal in life became twisted. Instead of leading Israel onto bigger and better things, he focused on making David’s life miserable and David had to live like a fugitive. . . for years. How gracious of God not to reveal to David the pain of those tragic years!
Relevance for Us Today
First, not knowing the future forces us to take one day at a time. That’s the sum and substance of the life of faith.
Hebrews 11:1-3 NIV Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.
Second, having an intimate friend helps us face whatever comes our way.
David had a good friend Jonathan who realized that David had God’s favor on his life, and he provided David with a lot of support even to the point of it creating problems with Saul his father.
1 Samuel 19:1-5 NIV Saul told his son Jonathan and all the attendants to kill David. But Jonathan had taken a great liking to David and warned him, “My father Saul is looking for a chance to kill you. Be on your guard tomorrow morning; go into hiding and stay there. I will go out and stand with my father in the field where you are. I’ll speak to him about you and will tell you what I find out.” Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father and said to him, “Let not the king do wrong to his servant David; he has not wronged you, and what he has done has benefited you greatly. He took his life in his hands when he killed the Philistine. The Lord won a great victory for all Israel, and you saw it and were glad. Why then would you do wrong to an innocent man like David by killing him for no reason?”
Proverbs 18:24 NIV One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.
An intimate friend is willing to sacrifice. You don’t have to beg a close friend for a favor.
1 Samuel 18:4 And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, including his sword and his bow and his belt.
An intimate friend is a loyal defense before others. He’s not a fair-weather friend. He won’t talk against you when you’re not around.
We already read that Jonathan stood up to his father and said, “Dad, you’re wrong about David.”defended his friend,
Intimate friends give each other complete freedom to be themselves. When you’ve got a friend this close, this knitted to your own soul, you don’t have to explain why you do what you do. You just do it. You can be yourself you don’t have to put on airs.
1 Samuel 20:41 David rose from the south side and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed three times. And they kissed each other and wept together, but David more.
When a good friend is hurting, let him hurt. If a good friend feels like weeping, let him weep. If a good friend needs to complain, listen. An intimate friend doesn’t bale; he’s right there with you. You can be yourself, no matter what that self looks like.
An intimate friend is a constant source of encouragement.
1 Samuel 23:15–16 Now David became aware that Saul had come out to seek his life while David was inthe wilderness of Ziph at Horesh. And Jonathan, Saul’s son, arose and went to David at Horesh, and encouraged him in God.
If you don’t have a friend, ask God to give you one—someone you can relate to and who will be a source of encouragement and support.
Third, being positive and wise is the best reaction to an enemy.
When you see your enemy coming, don’t roll up your mental sleeves, deciding which job you will throw. Remember how David handled Saul. David just kept prospering—just kept behaving himself wisely. And when the heat rose, he fled the scene. He refused to fight back or get even.
David had two opportunities that we know of.
1 Samuel 24:1-4 NIV After Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, “David is in the Desert of En Gedi.” So Saul took three thousand able young men from all Israel and set out to look for David and his men near the Crags of the Wild Goats. He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men 8were far back in the cave. The men said, “This is the day the Lord spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’ ” Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.
1 Samuel 26:2-3, 5-11 NIV So Saul went down to the Desert of Ziph, with his three thousand select Israelite troops, to search there for David. Saul made his camp beside the road on the hill of Hakilah facing Jeshimon, but David stayed in the wilderness. When he saw that Saul had followed him there, Then David set out and went to the place where Saul had camped. He saw where Saul and Abner son of Ner, the commander of the army, had lain down. Saul was lying inside the camp, with the army encamped around him. David then asked Ahimelek the Hittite and Abishai son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, “Who will go down into the camp with me to Saul?” “I’ll go with you,” said Abishai. So David and Abishai went to the army by night, and there was Saul, lying asleep inside the camp with his spear stuck in the ground near his head. Abner and the soldiers were lying around him. Abishai said to David, “Today God has delivered your enemy into your hands. Now let me pin him to the ground with one thrust of the spear; I won’t strike him twice.” But David said to Abishai, “Don’t destroy him! Who can lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed and be guiltless? As surely as the Lord lives,” he said, “the Lord himself will strike him, or his time will come and he will die, or he will go into battle and perish. But the Lord forbid that I should lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed. Now get the spear and water jug that are near his head, and let’s go.”
People who do this reveal the smallness of their hearts. Small people belittle others, thinking it will make them feel better.
But great people make other people feel great. King David was a pro at this. He knew what it meant to be attacked emotionally, verbally, and physically. As a young man, he was anointed by the prophet Samuel to be the next king of Israel, but David spent two years running from his predecessor, King Saul, who wanted to kill him. He hid in caves while being criticized constantly behind his back.
Yet David never said a bad word against Saul; he never retaliated. God was preparing David to be a king after his own heart.
David says in Psalm 23:5, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows” (NIV).
David recognized God’s goodness to him. God anointed his head with oil, which says to the world, “This is my guy! Back off! He is going to be the next leader.” David’s cup overflowed, which meant God kept blessing him, even when others attacked him.
Does it sound like David was stressed out? No! He didn’t have to use up all his energy defending himself because he trusted God to be his defender.
It takes a lot of faith and humility to rest and trust God when you’re under attack, when you’re misunderstood, and when rumors are spreading about you. When that happens, it’s tempting to want to do something about it.
But you are most like Christ when you remain silent under attack. Jesus was constantly attacked, yet he never retaliated—even on his way to the cross. He remained silent before his accusers because he had entrusted himself to the care of the Father.
The Bible says, “If you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you” (1 Peter 4:19 NLT).
God won’t let you down. Trust him to be your defender today.
Walking in victory is the difference between what pleases us and what pleases God. Like David, we need to stand fast, to do what is right without tiring of it. Plain and simple, that’s what pleases God. That’s why David was a man after God’s own heart.
Bible Study Audio
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