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Return to Learning to Wait on God Series Return to Wed. Bible Study Series
1 Samuel 23
“In Danger But Not Fearful”[1] Series:
“Learning to Wait on God: The Life of David Before
He Became King”
1 Samuel 16-31 Think
about it:
Is it possible to be in danger yet not fearful?
David penned these words, "Though I walk through the valley of the
shadow of death, I will not fear." Did
David have reason to fear? Humanly
speaking, yes! Many times, as we'll
see in 1 Samuel 23. What enabled him
to overcome fear when facing danger? "I
will not fear FOR Thou art with me." God's
presence was real to David.
We see this in 1 Samuel 23. David
had reason to be afraid. He faced a
series of dangerous circumstances. Lessons:
(from last week) 1.
Sin is a downward progression. The
first step(s) may be a small one, yet the destination is always the
same--destruction. Just ask Saul. 2.
We must determine to stay close to the Lord, to obey Him in every detail. 3.
God doesn't reward those who start well, only those who finish well. 4.
People who run from God hurt not only themselves, but those around them.
Key: God's objective is not
to remove the trials from our lives, but to enable us to be His kind of person
while in the midst of the trial.
To see this in David's life, let's look at 1 Samuel 23.
David moves from danger to danger. Before
looking at the situations themselves, let's trace the geographical movement in
this chapter. Where did David go?
(see map)
Keilah
(23:1, 5)
Horesh,
in the
Horesh,
in the
--called Sela Hammahlekoth, "rock of parting"
(28)
En Gedi
(29) Purpose
of 1 Samuel: 1.
It enables us to get to know God better. 2.
It provides us with a model of God's kind of person, namely David. A
Closer Look at 1 Samuel 23: David faced three dangerous
situations... I.
Dangerous Situation #1 (1-6) Consider 3 questions...
A. Where did David encounter
the danger? (1)
Border cities had trouble all the time.
In this case, it was Keilah. Keilah
was 15 miles sw of
B. Who was the threat? (1-3)
1. The Philistines
Q: What were the Philistines
doing? V1
Q: What did God tell David to
do? V 2
2. David's men
Q: Why were David's men (the
400+ "misfits") afraid? V
3
C. How did David respond to
the danger?
1. He inquired of the Lord
(4).
Q: How did David inquire of
the Lord? V 6 gives us a clue.
He used the "ephod." What
was the ephod? A
"decision-making" device given by God to the priests (like casting
lots) (see Ex 28:6; see also 28:15 for the ‘breastpiece worn for making
decisions’; see also 28:30 for the Urim and Thummim; see NIV
Study Bible footnote on Exodus 28:30 for explanation).
2. He acted in obedience to
the Lord (5).
Q: What did David do?
Notice that while running from Saul, David did more than hide out.
He fought in behalf of the people God had anointed him to rule.
Discuss: What stands out
about how David responded to this first dangerous situation?
Q: How did the people of
Keilah "repay" David's kindness? We'll
see next... II.
Dangerous Situation #2 (7-13)
A. Where? (7)
At Keilah
B. Who was the threat?
1. Saul (7-8)
Q: What did Saul discover?
V 7
Q: What did Saul do in v 8?
Called the people to war against David
Q: What did David discover in
v 11?
2. The citizens of Keilah
(12)
Discuss: How do you think
David felt when he learned the news of v 12?
C. How did David respond to
the danger?
Observation: We would expect
David's mind to be swarming with questions at this point.
Yet he exhibits confidence in the midst of a very uncertain situation.
Not self-confidence, but confidence in the Lord.
He looks to the Lord for direction (10), and for protection (15).
David's response was threefold:
1. He called for the priest
and the ephod (9).
2. He inquired of the Lord
(10-12).
3. He left the city (13).
Note: The group has grown
(according to verse 13) to 600 men. III.
Dangerous Situation #3 (14-29)
A. Where? (14) David hid in the wilderness/desert of
Ziph.
B. Who was the threat?
1. Saul (14)
Q: David continually outfoxed Saul. What was his "secret"?
V 14 "God delivered"
Q: Who came to encourage
David in v 16? How did Jonathan find
him??
Q: What prophetic word did
Jonathan give David? V 17 You will
be king. Then, just when it seems like things
might go better for David, he faces another obstacle.
What was that? V 19
2. The Ziphites (19-20)
Q: What words would you use
to describe the Ziphites? Self-seeking
Q: What is ironic, and even
blasphemous, about Saul's response in v 21?
Notice his flippant use of the Lord's name (takes God's name in
"vain"; in an "empty" way)
Q: In what way does Saul
distort the truth in vv 22-23? Makes
David sound like a low-down criminal
David was in a real jam...
C. How did David respond to
the danger?
1. He took the defensive, and
did all he could to avoid Saul (26).
2. He waited on God's
intervention (27-28).
3. He went to a place of
security (29).
Note: David wrote Psalm 54
out of this experience.
Discuss: Based on what
we’ve seen in 1 Samuel 23…
--What do we learn about God?
--What can we learn from David's example in 1 Samuel 23? Lessons: 1.
David was a man who looked at obstacles as opportunities to glorify God.
So must we. 2.
David's focus was not on getting rid of the trial, but on being God's
kind of person in the midst of the trial. That
must be our focus, too. [1]
These are unedited
teaching notes used initially for a Wednesday evening Bible study at
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