1 Let’s tie some things we studied together. Last week we learned our relationship to Jesus who is the firstborn of our kind and what that means as far as our relationship to Him goes. The week before that we studied John 15 and saw a little bit of what it means to abide in the Vine. Since we are studying how to know God, we certainly need to know what our relationship is to Jesus, and we need to see the value of “abiding” in the Vine.

2 When you know who and what you are, and who and what Jesus is, then abiding is our only clear course. But the problem we have is we forget both of those facets and we end up believing lies in the absence of the truth the Lord told us to preserve. Let’s make this very “hands on practical”. Some weeks ago we talked about how recognizing a growing hunger for the Lord is a pretty good indication that we are abiding in the Vine, and a lack of it indicates that we are abiding in ourselves.

3 We also saw in Rev 3:1-4 that Jesus warned the church as Sardis that they needed to go back to the principles that He taught them and hang on to them for all they were worth.

4 “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says this: ‘I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God. So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent. Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you. ‘But you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments; and they will walk with Me in white, for they are worthy.” Rev 3:1-4

5 Clearly they did not heed the warning since they vanished and left no impact. Jesus left 2000 years ago but His impact is still changing lives today. Since it is something we all struggle against, perhaps we should study the science of spiritual paralysis. One of the greatest contributors to the separation between the Vine and the branches is the notion that if I am abiding in the Vine, His blessing will be measured by the accomplishment of desirable things in my living experience. I should have no financial problems, have a great marriage, obedient children and a job I love.

6 So I should have all that I desire in my life, and very little of what I do not like – IF I am abiding in the Vine – Right? WRONG! Do you know why this is so terribly dangerous to the mind of a Christian? If we were to look behind behind the curtain, we would see that this kind of drive tries to tap the power of God to satisfy the desires of the flesh. What’s wrong with that idea anyway?

7 The problem is that if the Lord were to please my flesh, my flesh would constantly want more and better if it had influence over the power of God. I would end up FAR more deeply enslaved to my flesh if God granted it its desire, which is something He simply cannot possibly do. So clearly in the process of delivering us from the control and influence of the flesh, God is going to have to do things that our flesh is going to hate!

8 If God is going to deliver us from our flesh He is at least going to have to do the opposite of what pleases it. So – how do we find ourselves being sedated by our flesh, so that remaining in the Vine appears to be unnecessary? How do we find ourselves becoming comfortable with life when we are so dangerously surrounded by death? As we go through our text today, I want you to look for the principles that make a difference, and see if you can identify the shift to death.

9 “David then arose and came to the place where Saul had camped. And David saw the place where Saul lay, and Abner the son of Ner, the commander of his army; and Saul was lying in the circle of the camp, and the people were camped around him. Then David said to Ahimelech the Hittite and to Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, saying, “Who will go down with me to Saul in the camp?” And Abishai said, “I will go down with you.” So David and Abishai came to the people by night, and behold, Saul lay sleeping inside the circle of the camp with his spear stuck in the ground at his head; and Abner and the people were lying around him.” 1Sam 26:5-7

10 “So David and Abishai came to the people by night, and behold, Saul lay sleeping inside the circle of the camp with his spear stuck in the ground at his head; and Abner and the people were lying around him. Then Abishai said to David, “Today God has delivered your enemy into your hand; now therefore, please let me strike him with the spear to the ground with one stroke, and I will not strike him the second time.” But David said to Abishai, “Do not destroy him, for who can stretch out his hand against the Lord’s anointed and be without guilt?” David also said, “As the Lord lives, surely the Lord will strike him, or his day will come that he dies, or he will go down into battle and perish.” 1Sam 26:7-10 What difference in focus do you see between David and Abishai?

11 “So David and Abishai came to the people by night, and behold, Saul lay sleeping inside the circle of the camp with his spear stuck in the ground at his head; and Abner and the people were lying around him. Then Abishai said to David, “Today God has delivered your enemy into your hand; now therefore, please let me strike him with the spear to the ground with one stroke, and I will not strike him the second time.” But David said to Abishai, “Do not destroy him, for who can stretch out his hand against the Lord’s anointed and be without guilt?” David also said, “As the Lord lives, surely the Lord will strike him, or his day will come that he dies, or he will go down into battle and perish.” 1Sam 26:7-10 Abishai is tiring of a fugitive’s life and wants a position in the palace under David’s reign. But what do we see in David? Even though Abishai’s logic is extremely attractive to a weary and faithful man, David remains focused on the Lord, His will, work and even timing, rather than making life about what David wanted or what made Him comfortable. David is determined that relative to Saul and his reign as king, he will do nothing on his own behalf, but rather to allow the Lord to do as He would with respect to the throne of Israel. This is where a lot of Christians extricate themselves from God’s program. Their flesh gets weary of not getting what it wants and it decides that it can do much better in gaining comfort than what God is delivering, so it goes off on its own program of death.

12 “The Lord forbid that I should stretch out my hand against the Lord’s anointed; but now please take the spear that is at his head and the jug of water, and let us go.” So David took the spear and the jug of water from beside Saul’s head, and they went away, but no one saw or knew it, nor did any awake, for they were all asleep, because a sound sleep from the Lord had fallen on them. Then David crossed over to the other side and stood on top of the mountain at a distance with a large area between them. David called to the people and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, “Will you not answer, Abner?” Then Abner replied, “Who are you who calls to the king?”

13 “The Lord forbid that I should stretch out my hand against the Lord’s anointed; but now please take the spear that is at his head and the jug of water, and let us go.” So David took the spear and the jug of water from beside Saul’s head, and they went away, but no one saw or knew it, nor did any awake, for they were all asleep, because a sound sleep from the Lord had fallen on them. Then David crossed over to the other side and stood on top of the mountain at a distance with a large area between them. David called to the people and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, “Will you not answer, Abner?” Then Abner replied, “Who are you who calls to the king?” Is there any indication that the Lord is at work, accomplishing His desire in David or in his men?

14 So David said to Abner, “Are you not a man? And who is like you in Israel? Why then have you not guarded your lord the king? For one of the people came to destroy the king your lord. This thing that you have done is not good. As the Lord lives, all of you must surely die, because you did not guard your lord, the Lord’s anointed. And now, see where the king’s spear is and the jug of water that was at his head.” Then Saul recognized David’s voice and said, “Is this your voice, my son David?” And David said, “It is my voice, my lord the king.”

15 He also said, “Why then is my lord pursuing his servant? For what have I done? Or what evil is in my hand? …Then Saul said, “I have sinned. Return, my son David, for I will not harm you again because my life was precious in your sight this day. Behold, I have played the fool and have committed a serious error.” 1Sam 26:11-21 What was God accomplishing in this account? Without God, even one soldier opening his eyes and seeing David would have sounded the alarm and ended in his death, but God caused even the one with guard duty to fall soundly asleep. True to His form God is doing a deeper work of faith in David and Abishai, and even impacting Saul and all of his soldiers.

16 He also said, “Why then is my lord pursuing his servant? For what have I done? Or what evil is in my hand? …Then Saul said, “I have sinned. Return, my son David, for I will not harm you again because my life was precious in your sight this day. Behold, I have played the fool and have committed a serious error.” 1Sam 26:11-21 God showed Himself absolutely trustworthy AGAIN! Saul could have said, “Thanks for not killing me again” and shouted “Get him!” David was close enough to have been caught. God did a work in Saul’s heart. The king was sleeping on the ground, away from his comfortable palace for the sole purpose of killing David, who he knew would take the throne from his own son.

17 He also said, “Why then is my lord pursuing his servant? For what have I done? Or what evil is in my hand? …Then Saul said, “I have sinned. Return, my son David, for I will not harm you again because my life was precious in your sight this day. Behold, I have played the fool and have committed a serious error.” 1Sam 26:11-21 Can you imagine what Abishai must have thought to see David’s faith in God, even to the point of risking certain death had Saul awakened ill- tempered and determined to fill his purpose? I’m certain that he and David walked away and Abishai shook his head with a huge smile on his face, and from that point on would never question the leadership of David because of that faith and tenacity in it.

18 “David stayed in the wilderness in the strongholds, and remained in the hill country in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day, but God did not deliver him into his hand.” 1Sam 23:14 Long before this event the Father has established a history of directing, empowering and protecting David, which should have been well known to him, and it HAS to this point been flawless. But something popped in the heart of David after this last event and we need to see what it was so we can avoid it.

19 “Then David said to himself, “Now I will perish one day by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than to escape into the land of the Philistines. Saul then will despair of searching for me anymore in all the territory of Israel, and I will escape from his hand.” So David arose and crossed over, he and the six hundred men who were with him, to Achish the son of Maoch, king of Gath.” 1Sam 27:1-2 WHAT?!!! What just happened to David and his faith and how did it happen to him? Where in the world did this explosion of unbelief come from – especially after yet another spectacular demonstration of God’s faithfulness?