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Topic: David and Saul - By George Warnock
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Posted: 10/15/2009 at 7:16pm
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David and Saul - By George Warnock
(Note: This timely article is very helpful in understanding God’s desire for kingdom revival leaders attitude toward the passing lukewarm church.)
The Kingdom of Saul was not God’s way...
Nevertheless God ordained it...
Because the people wanted it...
They learned through bitter experience that God was right...
And God brought it all to naught...
In the meantime God was diligently preparing David and his company to be the true shepherds of Israel in the day of sudden calamity, which was sure to come. But let us learn from David what our attitude should be toward the kingdom of Saul:
Respect the anointing that God has put there.
Love God’s precious anointed ones who are doing what they can in the best way they know, and seeking to serve God in a tottering kingdom.
And do nothing to harass or hinder what they are doing.
But we know it is to be a short-lived regime, and we want to encourage those who are beginning to recognize that God must surely have a better way.
David never at any time sought to bring the faltering kingdom of Saul down. He had ample opportunity to do so. He knew God had a better plan, and he knew he was to be a part of God’s new order, even though in times of great stress and trial he often felt he was going to be wiped off the face of the earth. And when the old kingdom came falling down, and Saul and Jonathan were killed, it was a cause of great lamentation for David. He sincerely loved these two anointed ones in Israel, and it was not a case of mock humility as he sat down and composed "The Song of the Bow" in memory of Saul and Jonathan. He meant it. He loved the people of God... even the rebellious people of God. It was totally devastating for him to see how God’s anointed ones were slain in battle, and their kingdom shattered:
"The beauty of Israel
Is slain upon thy high places:
How are the mighty fallen! "I am distressed for thee, My brother Jonathan:
Very pleasant hast thou been unto me..." (2 Sam. 1:19, 26).
The inevitable had happened. And distressing though it was, it was the beginning of a new day for Israel. They were not to be scattered like Saul and his army upon the mountains of Gilboa, as sheep not having a shepherd. God had already been preparing a new kind of leadership, rejected and despised until that hour, but groomed of the Lord for a place of loving ruler ship in the kingdom of David. It was not a case of one self-willed regime giving way to another. It was a case of a rebellious leadership giving way to the leadership of the Holy One of Israel. For it is evident throughout all the prophetic psalms of David that his role as "shepherd of Israel" was to turn the hearts of the people unto the LORD, and not merely to regiment them for His own purposes.
Herein is revealed the fundamental weakness of the present Church system. It operates much the same way as in the world. The leaders are dependent upon the people for their support, voted in and out by the people, and answerable to the people for whatever they want to do. And because they are subject to the pressure of the people in so many cases it seems they must compromise if they are to keep the people contented. To maintain a semblance of unity in his kingdom, Saul had to yield to the pressure of the people. He was suited for the task, and I believe that is why God set him up as king. The people were minded that way, and God simply gave them a king who would be compatible with the erring reins of their own hearts.
Nevertheless there were many God-fearing men in Israel who longed for something better. All the true ones did not forsake Saul for David. Many of them remained with Saul to the bitter end. But as the old kingdom came crashing down they recognized what God was doing and they began to gravitate in large numbers to the kingdom of David. The same thing is evident throughout the land today. There are many out there who truly love God, but they cannot find true rest in that old regime. Many are growing weary of it all but they seem to know of no other way but the one they were born into. If their hearts are open they will find their true placement in the Body of Christ, in the Kingdom of God, where they too will be able to come into His sanctuary, and sit before the Lord, and say--
"One thing have I desired of the LORD, That will I seek after..." (Ps. 27:4).
Please understand then, in all that we are saying in this writing, that it is not by way of criticizing any of God’s servants who are faithfully doing what they feel God has told them to do. But God wants us to know that the present system in the Church is not His way, and He is going to bring it to naught. God’s heart is grieved with the way man has usurped the authority of the Holy Spirit, and robbed Christ of His Lordship in the midst of His people. He wants us to know He is arising out of His holy habitation to deal with the self-will and the rebellion of His people. He comes in great power and anointing--"to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down." But that is not the end of it. God’s purpose is very positive: "TO BUILD, AND TO PLANT" (Jer. 1:10).
To build a temple for His glory, and--To plant a garden that will flourish with the fruit of His Spirit.
"I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it..." (1 Jn. 2:21).
For truth imparts life every time it goes forth; and knowledge must give way to the truth before it can be meaningful and liberating. If it is a mere repetition of knowledge, it will slay more and more; but if, like the rain and the sunshine, it comes to your heart in the seasons of growth, it will nurture and bless and unfold in your life with the beauty of the living Christ.
FOR THIS IS GOD’S TOTAL PURPOSE IN SENDING FORTH THE WORD OF TRUTH.
George H. Warnock |
Edited by Moderator on 10/15/2009 at 7:16pm
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