I Samuel 29

I. The Lord keeps David in the grip of His grace to deliver.
-II Cor. 4:7-15

II. The Lord displays His absolute authority using the enemy as agents of deliverance.
-Two ironies
1. David is defended by the man he has deceived and objects to the deliverance he is receiving.
-Davis " The deceived defends his deceiver, and the relieved disputes his relief."
2. The agents of deliverance for David will be the agents of death for Saul.
-Prov. 21:1, Ezra 6:22
-One sad contrast
1. David has been given deliverance and leaves in the light. Saul has been given the promise of death and leaves in the darkness.

III. The Lord is worthy of all our trust.
-Ps. 18
-Rom. 11:30-36

I Samuel 28:3-25

I. In times of distress, be careful what actions we take.
a. Saul is willing to violate the Torah to gain direction.
b. Saul sees no contradiction in giving a promise in the name of the Lord while violating the Word of the Lord.
-Lev. 20:6, 27 (Lev. 19:31, Deut. 18:10-12)
c. Saul seeks direction from the Lord without concern for his need for repentance.
d. Saul continues to believe that the Lord is a god like those of the nations.

Lessons to apply
1. We cannot compromise God's Word.
2. We must continue to seek, ask, and knock of the Lord.
-Ps. 13; Matt. 7:7, John 6:66-67
3. We need to be more concerned with knowing the divine Guide than with gaining guidance.
-H.L Ellison "Saul, like not a few others, had to have guidance not out of love for God but for fear of making mistakes.”
-Dale Ralph Davis "If anything, Saul’s quest should have been to face Yahweh, not to seek Samuel. His need was not for information but communion, not so much to prepare for battle but to recover God’s presence. Saul, it seems, wanted the results of God’s favor more than he wanted God’s favor.”

Matthew 27:45-46, 28:1-10

I. What does it mean that Jesus was forsaken?
-Ps. 22:1
-forsaken = azeb (Hebrew) = depart from, leave behind (leaving the presence of)
-forsaken = egkataleipo (Greek) = abandon, desert, leave
-not an ontological change, Jesus did not cease being second person of the Trinity
-MacArthur "Jesus did for a while cease to know the intimacy of fellowship with His heavenly Father"
a. Jesus was "smitten" of God.
-Is. 53:4; smitten = struck down.
-Acts 2:23
b. Jesus became our substitute.
-I Pet 2:22
-Rom. 5:8, Gal. 3:13, I John 3:16
c. Jesus became sin for us.
-II Cor. 5:21, Rom. 4:25
-Habakkuk 1:13

II. What is the significance of the Resurrection?
-John 10:18
-John Chrysostom "But mark thou, I pray thee, how He made use of their wickedness for our salvation. For after the blow the fountains of our salvation gushed forth from thence."
The Resurrection signifies:
a. Victory over:
i. the power of sin.
-Rom. 5:12
ii. the power of death.
-Rom. 5:14
-Acts 2:24, I Cor. 15:54-57
b. Cancellation of:
i. the fall.
-Rom. 5:14-18
ii. the slavery resulting from the fall.
-Rom. 6:16-18
-Dietrich Bonhhoeffer "Cheap grace means the justification of sin without the justification of the sinner...which amounts to the justificatino of sin with the justification of the repentant sinner who departs from sin and from whom sin departs."
c. Declares that Jesus is:
i. the first fruits of the resurrection.
-I Cor. 15:20-23
ii. the Exalted Son of God.
-Acts 3:13-16
-Acts 5:31, Phi. 2:9-11

I Samuel 27-28:2

I. Don’t allow stressful situations dictate your actions.
-perish = 12:25 swept away, 26:10 perish
a. Evaluating circumstances from a human perspective leads to God-less decisions.
b. God-less decisions often lead to more God-less decisions.
c. Continuing the pattern ends in being the servant of someone other than God.
-bodyguard (28:2) = keeper of my head

II. Be careful to develop discernment.
-Questions to ask for discernment
a. Have you asked the Lord?
b. What is consistent with God’s word?
-John 14:15; Psalm 1:1-3
c. What will glorify God?
-I Cor. 6:20, 10:31, Phil. 1:27
d. What advice do godly people give?
-Prov. 15:22
e. Pray that God will accomplish His purpose in our lives.