Today, I’m wrapping up my Sunday series on salvation stories from the Old Testament. There are several I haven’t mentioned – the scarlet cord and Mephibosheth feasting at the king’s table, for example. Still, today I want to focus on the very familiar story of David and Goliath. As children, the focus was on David,…
It was common in Israel for a new king to annihilate the previous king’s family. But David was different. David made a promise to Saul that he would not kill his descendants. He also promised Jonathan, Saul’s son, that he would be loyal to his family forever. So when David returned from war and was…
Lord, you light my lamp;my God illuminates my darkness.With you I can attack a barricade,and with my God I can leap over a wall.God—his way is perfect;the word of the Lord is pure.He is a shield to all who take refuge in him. Psalm 18:28-30; 2 Samuel 22:29-31 Introduction I love this image of David running towards…
Ever since God banished Adam and Eve from the garden, we have all had to work through various seasons in the wilderness. The Bible doesn’t say “if” you experience this; it instead says, “when!” Listen to the Lord who created you, “Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are…
“Stories are often wrongly regarded as a poor person’s substitute for the ‘real thing’, which is to be found either in some abstract truth or in statements about ‘bare facts’. … Stories are a basic constituent of human life; they are, in fact, one key element within the total construction of a worldview…. Tell someone to…
In reading through the books of Samuel over the past few days, I was struck by this repetitive phrase – “David asked the Lord … ” Notice these verses- David asked the Lord, “Should I go and attack them?” “Yes, go and save Keilah,” the Lord told him. (1 Sam 23:2) NLT So David asked the Lord again, and again the Lord replied, “Go down to Keilah,…