Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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The Piece of Cloth
It’s amazing the power of a symbol.
Many of you wear a wedding ring on your finger.
This symbol not only is a reminder of your commitment to another person, but is also a sign to others that you are off limits.
Steeples rise high in the air.
The sight of a cross on top of that steeple points people to God.
A steeple is a very powerful symbol.
I am cutting down, but I have been known to eat Little Debbie snacks.
Sometimes I sneak them.
I don’t want my wife to know that I have been consuming weight inducing, cancer causing, calorie rich sugar snacks.
She doesn’t think they are very good for me.
She has been known to go through my pockets, pull out a wrapper and ask the question “What’s this?”
At that very moment my goose is cooked.
I have been busted.
The presence of that wrapper makes lying, denying, excusing or any other face-saving task absolutely useless.
That wrapper becomes proof positive of my dastardly deed.
It becomes a symbol of my guilt.
What was a 50 cent purchase is now a priceless piece of evidence in the courtroom displaying my guilt.
Saul was hit with a similar symbol of his guilt: a piece of cloth.
Saul wanted David dead.
He knew in his heart that David was after his throne.
David was immensely popular and Saul was not.
Saul heard that David was in Engedi, he took 3000 of his best fighters and went after him.
He stopped near the Wildgoats’ Rocks.
He went into a cave to relieve himself.
What he didn’t know was that David was in the same cave.
David’s men wanted him to kill Saul, but David snuck out and cut a piece off from Saul’s robe without him knowing it.
When Saul left the cave, 1 Samuel 24:8-22 relays what happened.
The corner of the robe!
The corner of the robe in David’s hand; the corner of the robe in front of the army of Saul, the corner of the robe before David’s companions; the corner of the robe was a symbol of David’s innocence.
If David was innocent, it is obvious that he was falsely accused.
He was falsely accused because of fake news.
He was falsely accused because of misguided assumptions.
How did he react to these false accusations?
He acted with humility
1 Samuel 24:8,14
He acted with faith
1 Samuel 24: 10,12
He acted out of his godly character.
David did not want to be overcome by evil, but he wanted to overcome evil with good.
What was the result?
What happens when we trust God and take the higher road?
This is a proverb, so though it is generally true, it is not a promise.
Many people who have lived to please God have died.
Yet, this is a benefit of living to please God.
God created us.
He loves us.
He has given us this verse in proverbs as well as the illustration from the life of David for us to see how it works out.
David was falsely accused.
Saul jumped ahead on unwarranted assumptions.
David’s life was in turmoil.
He ran from his home and family, living as an exile and always in danger of someone turning him in to Saul to win Saul’s favor.
David decides to let God take care of Saul.
He does not want this wickedness to be in his heart.
As a result, he takes the high road.
Notice what happens when David stands in front of Saul with a piece of his garment in his hand.
Saul is in front of a lot of people who have heard him put David down.
As David stand there with the piece of cloth in his hand, he comes to a realization that he has been very wrong.
He is very thankful that his life has been spared.
He doesn’t deserve it.
He deserved to be killed by the man he was unjustly trying to kill.
Instead of judgment, he received mercy.
He prays that the Lord will reward David with good for what he has done.
What a turn around!
This never would have happened if David hadn’t decided to please the Lord in all he did.
Saul continues.
What a hard thing to admit.
He wants protection for his family.
David promises to give it and he does.
This is not the end of conflict for David.
Because he pleased the Lord in how he handled these circumstances, he gets a break from the battle.
There are two sides in this story.
First, Saul listens to the wrong people, jumps to conclusions, makes assumptions and goes after David.
May God help us to slow down in our attacks on other people until we are sure of the truth.
Second, when we know the truth, as David did, both about himself and Saul, we are to respond in a godly fashion.
We can all use a good dose of humility, faith and character.
Don’t let human battle cause us to lose the spiritual battles.
We make no promises, but taking the higher road gives us the best chance of making peace.
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