Identity - Who am I - King David
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Who am I? Who are you? Are you the sum of your actions? Are you what you do now - your role in this world? I hope as we’ve look at the life of John the Baptist and the apostle Paul you have seen their dealings with their identity and it has helped you in yours.
Paul started his life as a Pharisee and a very good one at that. He had an encounter with Christ that changed who he was. He finally was able to see who he was in God’s eyes and his identity no longer came from how much he knew or how zealous he was, his identity was in Christ. In his final words to King Agrippa at his defense, he hoped the king and all who listened would come who Paul was - a follower of Christ.
Last week, we looked at John the Baptist. His identity in Christ was given before his birth by angels to his dad. John knew nothing else but being someone set aside as one who would prepare the way for the Lord. Others tried to label John as something else, but he stayed true to who he was. I used this crescent wrench as an analog that some might use it as a hammer, but that robs the wrench of it’s purpose. We can’t fulfill our purpose unless we know our identity. If we don’t know who we are, any purpose will do and often others will define our purpose for us.
Today we are going to look at the life of David. His life is so fascinating in that he did such good things and also such bad things. One thing that David knew about himself is who he was with God on his side. As we’ve done the last few weeks, we are going to read quite a bit of scripture so we can get a good idea of what the Bible says about David’s life. Let’s start in 1 Samuel 16.
At this point, the nation of Israel now has a king. They asked Samuel to anoint a king. The nation followed the Lord through the leading of God’s prophets up to this point, but they were not impressed by the generation that was to follow Samuel, so they wanted a king. Samuel with the Lord’s leading anointed Saul as king.
Fast forward a bit and Saul did not follow the specific instructions he was given and lost the favor of God. Pride crept in and Saul thought he knew better. Then we come to chapter 16 where we will read about Saul’s replacement...
1 The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.”
2 But Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me.”
The Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ 3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what to do. You are to anoint for me the one I indicate.”
4 Samuel did what the Lord said. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town trembled when they met him. They asked, “Do you come in peace?”
5 Samuel replied, “Yes, in peace; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Consecrate yourselves and come to the sacrifice with me.” Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
6 When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord.”
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab and had him pass in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, “The Lord has not chosen this one either.” 9 Jesse then had Shammah pass by, but Samuel said, “Nor has the Lord chosen this one.” 10 Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, “The Lord has not chosen these.” 11 So he asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?”
“There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered. “He is tending the sheep.”
Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.”
12 So he sent for him and had him brought in. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features.
Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.”
13 So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David. Samuel then went to Ramah.
Verse 7 gives us an insight into how the Lord looks at us. This world considers appearance, but the Lord is more concerned about the heart. David had the heart God was looking for. David at this point was likely just 12 or 13 years old. I wonder how his older brothers took this news…Let’s jump down to chapter 17.
Saul is at war with the Philistines and a large man named Goliath was mocking the army and taunting them. No one from Saul’s army dared to challenge. In comes David onto the scene and he makes an offer to Saul to kill the giant. Saul at first looked only at his appearance and thought this would be impossible.
***Just a little side note. When God is in something, the impossible becomes possible. We must be willing to inquire of the Lord about what He is up to. If He is leading and directing, who would dare to get in His way?
In verse 34 David replies to Saul’s objection:
34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, 35 I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. 36 Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. 37 The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”
Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you.”
Notice that David recognizes who ultimately did the work in killing the lion and the bear. It may have been David’s hand, but it was God who made it possible. David knows who he is in the Lord and what he is able to do with the Lord’s help.
Look what happens next...
38 Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. 39 David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them.
“I cannot go in these,” he said to Saul, “because I am not used to them.” So he took them off. 40 Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.
Just like John the Baptist last week, someone tries to get David to be something he is not. You can’t know what or who you are not unless you know who you are. David knew he could not face the giant as something other than who God made him to be.
Indeed, he faced that giant and prevailed.
These events early in David’s life gave him the foundation he needed to follow God in all that he did. Fast forwarding a bit to 2 Samuel 12. David is now living in the palace in Jerusalem. He’s killed Uriah after having an affair with Bathsheba and Nathan the prophet comes for a visit.
1 The Lord sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said, “There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. 2 The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, 3 but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.
4 “Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him.”
5 David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, “As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this must die! 6 He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity.”
In hindsight, this story that Nathan tells should have gotten David’s attention to his own situation, but David misses it and has a very strong reaction to the wrong committed without grasping quite yet that the story was about him. Then Nathan let’s him have it. Notice that Nathan takes the opportunity to remind David of where he came from and how God placed him there.
7 Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. 8 I gave your master’s house to you, and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you all Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. 9 Why did you despise the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. 10 Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’
11 “This is what the Lord says: ‘Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. 12 You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’ ”
Anyone who is confronted with sin will have one of three reactions:
Denial - Say it never happened even though it did. I’ve always said to my own children that the truth will always be revealed. If you lie about it, then you have double the consequence. One for the original wrong and two for lying.
The second reaction might be justification - That did happen, but there was a good reason…Both of these reactions to being confronted with sin or with a wrong done will only delay the healing and restoration process.
Fortunately, David chose the third: Unqualified admission of guilt:
2 Samuel 12:13 (NIV)
13 Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”
David’s sin was primarily against the Lord and he takes responsibility. This might be one of the hardest things for people to do. To recognize our shortcomings and flat out rebellion against God’s will for us is where we need to start though.
David is not coming from a place of not know who God is and then realizing his need and coming to God, he was already in relationship with God. He knew that God was with him and for him. He knew what God’s commands are and yet he chose to willfully go against God because of temptation.
He immediately recognizes his sin and confesses. Here is Nathan’s response:
2 Samuel 12:13–14 (NIV)
Nathan replied, “The Lord has taken away your sin. You are not going to die. 14 But because by doing this you have shown utter contempt for the Lord, the son born to you will die.”
Two things happen here.
1. David is forgiven. This is important. I know for me personally, I can spend so much time punishing myself when I’ve been forgiven. Forgiving ourselves is hard to do, but God’s word tells me that I am forgiven. I am not forsaken. I need to remind myself of this when I find it hard to forgive myself.
2. David has to face a natural consequence of the sin.
There is an earthly consequence that follows sin. That doesn’t mean God hasn’t forgiven if we are facing a consequence, it means God is allowing us to deal with the mess we’ve gotten ourselves into.
This sin did not changed David’s identity in the Lord no more than a scar changes who we are. David wrote several psalms that speak to this topic of repentance and forgiveness. Often Psalm 51 is quoted, but I want to read Psalm 32 and add a few more I am’s to our identity in the Lord:
Of David. A maskil.
1 Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.
2 Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit.
3 When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.
4 For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer.
5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.” And you forgave the guilt of my sin.
6 Therefore let all the faithful pray to you while you may be found; surely the rising of the mighty waters will not reach them.
7 You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.
8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.
9 Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you.
10 Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the one who trusts in him.
11 Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!
Verse 1 and 2 tells me that I am blessed by forgiveness and honesty.
You are blessed.
Psalm 32:1-2
Verse 5 tells me that I am forgiven by acknowledging my sin, not covering it up and confessing to the Lord.
You are forgiven.
Psalm 32:5
Verse 7 tells me that I am protected from trouble and surrounded by songs of deliverance.
You are protected and surrounded.
Psalm 32:7
Verse 11 says that I am righteous and upright in heart. Rejoicing and songs flow from who I am in the Lord.
You are righteous and upright in heart.
REJOICE and SING!
Psalm 32:11
We will all likely experience a moment of poor choices and actions that result in sinful behavior. But like David, that should not define us - it didn’t define David. Others might want to label us a certain way, but our God does not see us that way. He sent his son Jesus to pay the price for my sin, for your sin. We need only to approach God with repentant hearts, ask forgiveness and place our trust, our faith and our lives into Jesus.
This is a great lead into communion. As part of the instruction about communion in 1 Corinthians 11, we are told to examine ourselves before taking the elements. Let’s turn there now as we have communion and close out the service.