Woodland Friends Church

We know the trajectory and David’s actions here won't surprise us. He’s taken Abigail. He’s taken more concubines and wives. He’s taken Michal back when he already had all the other women - he shouldn’t surprise us but… “the LORD sees not as man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart,” (1 Sam. 16:7). And Samuel said to [Saul], “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day, and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you, (1 Sam. 15:28). A heart once right before God, a neighbor better than Saul. But before our time here is done. . .

Recorded at a mid-week evening service, missionaries Samson and Priscilla Retnaraj, Indian nationals serving in Nepal, share about their long, ongoing work in Nepal. Find out more about them at friendsmission.com!

David’s a king, reigning like Jesus in both justice and righteousness. And, like Jesus, he's bestowing grace and kindness - raising one from his status as a crippled descendant of David's enemy to the king's table, while trying to bless another who resists and rebels against him. Some things never change.

Sermon originally preached March 12, 2017. If you’re looking for black or white answer to politics here, I don’t think you will find it. If you’re looking for peace with politics, I think you WILL find it.

The Lord does receive our Thanksgiving. Was David at fault to want to build God a house? I wouldn’t say at fault. I would point out there were prescribed ways of thanking God through the fellowship offerings. For God, His heart towards David? “It’s not about what you do for Me. It’s about what I’m doing for you!”

I like when this Promise comes. It comes not in or after chapter 11, when David’s stealing a wife and murdering her husband. And God has not been consistently with David through battle, and toil, and delivering those enemies into his hands, and delivering David out of these enemies, and giving him Jerusalem wondering, thinking the whole time, “When is payday?!" That’s not God’s heart!

“When I’m stuck in sermon prep, have I asked the question?” The question being, “How does this remind me of Jesus?” I couldn’t get over the image of a procession into Jerusalem. Where have I seen that before? Jesus’ Triumphal Entry of course. The biggest difference about David’s Triumphal entry into Jerusalem, and Jesus’ so many years later…? Is What David accomplishes when he comes to the tabernacle, reminds us of what Jesus does in His Temple. Although Jesus went to the Temple in Jerusalem and hung the proverbial out of order sign on the door, He still has a Temple, where like David, Jesus is giving bread for the masses.

We see over and over that "the LORD with with David!" And you say, “He’s David! King David! God had a plan for his life, he’s the king after God’s own heart, it was set in stone! It was meant to be! But not me. The Lord’s not with me.” And yes it’s God’s Word, it’s history, it’s come to pass, but the story was being written as David walked this earth. And the pages weren’t set in ink yet. And the reality is as Christians, we have the LORD with us as He did! Let it not be in vain!

This isn’t how David operates. Here’s why he doesn’t operate that way. I feel like some Christians want to distill our faith down to mere mysticism, and not reality. Some Christians want to stress human agency so much to the point of denying God any practical insertions into life. Don’t let God’s providence and omnipotence make you lazy, but don’t let man’s responsibility make you ignorant or begrudge God’s working. His providence and omnipotence.

Violence. Power. Force. “This is how I’m respected.” It makes no sense to some when David catches Saul in a cave relieving himself, and David has the ability right then and there to put an end to Saul. It makes no sense to Abishai when the entire army is sleeping, and Saul’s just lying there right next to his spear… and in both instances David does not fight the way Saul has fought. He chooses mercy. He chooses God’s Providence. But in that culture, and in ours sometimes, we say he’s choosing weakness. Powerlessness. Will David ever grow a backbone? Will he ever find that fierceness that led him to slay a giant? Or was it fierceness, power and strength then?

David’s supposed to be assuming the Throne! He’s been on this path for years! Anointed as a teenager! Chased by Saul! He was always nice to Saul! Never sought to kill him when he could, when had opportunity! And now that Saul has died, and now that Israel is open for a new leader, he’s facing THIS. More Saul-followers. Scheming commanders. Civil war. Two kingdoms. But he was promised! Yahweh through Samuel told him!

The saying goes in farmland, being in the barn doesn't make you a cow. So maybe you were raised in the church, maybe you said a sinner's prayer, maybe you were baptized? But are you saved as the Bible lays out?

CHRISTMAS KIDS PROGRAM HAPPENING AT WFC for 12/24/23. Here is recorded Friday (Dec 22)'s communion service sermon. What the Angels say that first Christmas twilight, “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” To you. He, Christ, was born unto You, to the Shepherds, "to His own," John says, and to all, to the world – John would say over and over in his gospel accounts. “God so loved the world.” And if He’s born for the Shepherds, for His own, for us – we must then receive Him. Jesus uses similar language when He says, "'This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.' And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, 'This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.'” (Luke 22:19,20).

"During the time of King Herod," is how Matthew frames the Nativity story. Knowing my Advent Scriptures very well, I knew Luke 2 began naming off some other names. Caesar Augustus. Quirinius. My clever preacher’s mind clicked, knowing especially that the Three Kings we sing of, have been pretty much proven through historical research, they were never really kings. Yes, they had an audience with King Herod, thus they must be some sort of social elites, but they were probably not kings. Herod, Quirinius, Augustus – these are the other three kings.

I guess my hope, and my desire this Christmas, and what I see as the Need for Christmas, is belief and rest. Belief in Christ is who He says He is. He has provided all the hope, redemption, grace, and satisfaction a soul will ever need, and He is our place of constant rest. His yoke is easy, and His burden is light.

To you. I want us to hear this. An angel shows up. Doesn’t happen everyday. The glory of the Lord shines about him. The angel declares in no uncertain terms, “Prophecy is being fulfilled! Words spoken by the prophets are finding their culmination!” The One, True, and Only God of the Universe, Star-breather, world creator, the One who made the deepest ocean trenches, and highest mountain-peaks, THAT Maker is becoming flesh! Vulnerable, fragile, frail flesh… The Deity, and He’s doing this, He’s coming, He’s condescending, “to you.” I don't know if I appreciate that as I should?

Conquered land. Some leaders are literally murderers. Economic stressors. It is in this setting, under these burdens, with this angst that "there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was looking for the consolation of Israel." Have you been there?

We have the prophet Isaiah here in verse 6 giving a direct injunction, “Cry out and sing,” who? Not "unsaved one." Not "citizen of another nation." Not "uninformed one." But… “O citizen of Zion.” Part of the Lord’s City! Philippians 3:20, where our citizenship belongs, in the Lord’s Kingdom! Isaiah is urging someone who should already know the Exalted Lord, and His greatness among us. But we don’t always know that… remember that, do we? Sometimes, we’re the pharisees. “When will your Kingdom come, Lord?”

Released from the Sermon Vault; Originally Preached November 13, 2016. "I’m so glad that I can stake my salvation on God, my Rock. I’m so glad that, unlike any other religion, that One True God that exists, that we serve is a God who doesn’t demand us to work, to do good, to be good, so that we might be saved. But quite the opposite, our God is so good, that He does and did the work, He crossed the great divide, He becomes our sin, and takes our sin, and gives us His righteousness, His salvation. There is no other God greater."

I still see it in my own boys, there seems to be understood from childhood if they’re being taught faith in Jesus, this fixation on good people, follow Jesus go to heaven. Bad people, don’t follow Jesus, go to hell. And that’s kind of our math as Christians. As if salvation is, “Yay, don’t go to hell! How nice.” And I feel like this is basic. This is too basic, and it misses the mark of what the Gospel is. It’s an easy-enough dichotomy perhaps as children, but I feel like some from the pulpit even still make it the primary truth. And is it the primary truth?