God takes care of his own. We see that in the account before us in the life of David. For God maneuvered a Philistine army to take the heat off of his anointed king. We see that beginning in chapter 23 and verse 24. Then they arose and went to Ziph before Saul. Now David and his men were in the wilderness of Man in the Arabah to the south of Jeshamon. When Saul and his men went to seek him, they told David he came down to the rock and stayed in the wilderness of Man.
When Saul heard it, he pursued David in the wilderness of Man. And Saul went on one side of the mountain, and David and his men on the other side of the mountain. And David was hurrying to get away from Saul, for Saul and his men were surrounding David and his men to seize them. But a messenger came to Saul, saying, Hurry and come down, for the Philistines have made a raid on the land. And so Saul returned from pursuing David and went to meet the Philistines.
Therefore, they called that place the Rock of Escape. God delivered his own. And again we see King Saul pursuing his prey. This word pursue in verse 28 means to be hunted like an animal. In chapter 26 verse 20, in fact, David uses the very same phrase regarding his situation. He says to Saul, You are hunting me just as one hunts or pursues a partridge, not in a pear tree, but in the mountains. And so he says, You've pursued me. You've hunted me like a wild animal.
And that is the word used in chapter 23 as well. There are eight Psalms whose inscriptions indicate that they were written during this time of cave dwelling. That is, when David would live in one cave, then run to a forest, and then back to another rock and then to a cave, as he eluded Saul. They are Psalms 34, 52, 54, 56, 57, 59, 63, and 142. Those eight Psalms were said to be written during this time. And then came David's chance, his chance to be rid of Saul.
Look in chapter 24. It came about when Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines. He was told, saying, Behold, David is in the wilderness of Engedi. And Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel and went to seek David and his men in front of the rocks of the wild goats. And he came to the sheepfolds on the way, where there was a cave, and Saul went in to relieve himself. Now this is a rather tender subject.
I did a little research on that word to see what it really meant, and it really means what it says. Now if you can just kind of get the picture in your mind, it says, David and his men were sitting in the inner recesses of the cave. I think this is an extremely humorous incident. For here is the arrogant, wild King Saul, the warrior out seeking his prey, caught in the most humble and embarrassing of circumstances, and he doesn't even know it.
And the men of David said to him, Behold, this is the day of which the Lord said to you, Behold, I am about to give your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it seems good to you. And so they quoted what the Lord had said, or did they? You will search the Old Testament in vain to find this statement. What they did was to presume upon what God had revealed. For God had never said this to David. We have to be careful of doing that, don't we?
Of presuming what the Scriptures say when they may not actually say that. David arose nonetheless and cut off the edge of Saul's robe secretly. And it came about afterward that David's conscience bothered him. That tells you a lot about him. Because he had cut off the edge of Saul's robe, and so he said to his men, Far be it from me, because of the Lord, that I should do this thing to my Lord, the Lord's anointed, to stretch out my hands against him, since he is the Lord's anointed.
You notice how David calls him the Lord's anointed? He was, of course. But he was also the Lord's rejected. And he was David's sworn enemy, the man who was seeking David's life. And still David would not reach out to touch King Saul, because he was the Lord's anointed. David persuaded his men with these words and did not allow them to rise up against Saul. And Saul arose and left the cave and went on his way.
Now afterward David arose and went out of the cave and called after Saul, saying, My Lord, the King. When Saul looked behind him, David bowed with his face to the ground and prostrated himself. David said to Saul, Why do you listen to the words of men, saying, Behold, David seeks to harm you? Behold this day your eyes have seen that the Lord has given you, today, into my hand in the cave. And some said to kill you, but my eye had pity on you.
I'm just wondering what all went through Saul's mind at that point. And I said, I will not stretch out my hand against my Lord, for he is the Lord's anointed. Now my Father, see, indeed see the edge of your robe in my hand. For in that I cut off the edge of your robe and did not kill you, no one perceived that there is no evil or rebellion in my hands, and I have not sinned against you, though you are lying in wait for my life to take it. May the Lord judge between you and me.
May the Lord avenge me on you, but my hand shall not be against you. As the proverb of the ancients says, Out of the wicked comes forth wickedness, but my hand shall not be against you. After whom has the King of Israel come out? Whom are you pursuing? A dead dog? A single flea? He was certainly scratching Saul where he itched, because you see, Saul was concerned that David was going to kill him, going to take the throne away. That was where he itched, so David just scratched him there.
He says, I'm not after you. The Lord therefore be judged and decide between you and me, and may he see and plead my cause and deliver me from your hand. And it came about when David finished speaking these words that Saul said, Is this your voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his voice and wept. I think that we have to find some pity in our hearts for Saul, for he was a desperate man, and he was torn with inner battles.
And he said to David, You are more righteous than I, for you have dealt well with me, while I have dealt wickedly with you. You've declared today that you have done good to me, that the Lord delivered me into your hand, and yet you did not kill me. For if a man finds his enemy, will he let him go away safely? May the Lord therefore reward you with good in return for what you have done to me this day. Now behold, I know that you shall surely be king. Now notice what he says in verse 20.
What an interesting statement this is from Saul. I know that you shall surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand. So now swear to me by the Lord that you will not cut off my descendants after me, and that you will not destroy my name from my father's household. David swore to Saul, and Saul went to his home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold. They went back into the wilderness. But it's all over now, right? Saul has patched it up.
He understands David's true heart, right? No. The same thing happens again in chapter 26. We'll look at it quickly. Then the Ziphites came to Saul at Gibeah, saying, Is not David hiding on the hill of Hakkala, which is before Jeshumun? So Saul arose and went down to the wilderness of Ziph, having with him 3,000 chosen men of Israel to search for David in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul camped in the hills of Hakkala, which is before Jeshumun, beside the road.
And David was staying in the wilderness. And when he saw that Saul came after him to the wilderness, David sent out spies, and he knew that Saul was definitely coming. And 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 the army. And Saul was lying in the circle of the camp, and the people were camped around him. So get this picture in your mind. They're here in an opening.
There's a circle of soldiers. In the middle is Saul. And they're all sleeping. David answered and said to Ahimelech the Hittite and to Abishai the son of Zariah, Joab's brother, saying, Who will go down with me to Saul in the camp? Abishai said, I'll go. 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.
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. No three strikes and you're out here, you see. One strike would do it. And 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 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. 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's go. Let's get out of here. How prone we are to rush ahead of God and take care of that troubling person or to deliver ourselves from those circumstances that seem so hard.
But David patiently waited for God's way and God's time. And so they took those two items that were mentioned. David crossed to the other side of the valley and stood on top of the mountain at a distance. And David called and he said, Abner, and he said, Who's calling the king? David said, Are you not a man? And who's like you in Israel? He was a mighty warrior, you see. 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. You see, Abner was in a lot of trouble because someone was supposed to be awake guarding the king. And Saul recognized David's voice and he said, Is this your voice, my son David? It sounds like a rerun, doesn't it? David said, It's my voice, my Lord the king.
He said, Why then is my Lord pursuing His servant? What have I done? What evil's in my hand? Please let my Lord the king listen to the words of His servant. If the Lord has stirred you up against me, let him accept an offering. But if it is men, cursed as they are before the Lord, for they have driven me out today that I should have no attachment with the inheritance of the Lord, saying, Go and serve other gods.
Now then do not let my blood fall to the ground away from the presence of the Lord, for the king of Israel has come out to search for a single flee, just as one pursues a partridge in the mountains. And Saul said, I've sinned. I've sinned. And so once again he seems to kiss and make up as it were, but David knows better and they go their separate ways once more. Now the question that I want to pose is this. Why did Saul so persistently pursue David? David explained his heart.
He gave actual evidence that he had no malice toward the king. He did not desire to kill Saul. Why did Saul go so persistently after David? I think that there is a reason. And that reason is that there was apparently at least one counselor to King Saul who was a liar. And he constantly fed Saul a line of lies about David. And Saul believed it. You see, now where do you get that? Well, look at verse 19, what David says. In the middle of the verse, if it is men, if it is men what?
Who have stirred you up against me. Do you see that? He says, if it's men who have done this, they're cursed. Back up to chapter 24 and look at verse 9. David says to Saul, why do you listen to the words of men saying David seeks to harm you? So David knew that someone in Saul's court was a liar and was giving Saul bad information regarding David. You say, who in the world was that? Well, the text in these books, these historical books, has no name.
But I think that we find the answer to it, this is my opinion, in Psalm 7. Would you turn there please because we'll be spending most of the rest of our time in Psalm 7. The inscription I would point out to you, it says a shigion. Now that is a term that is difficult to know the meaning of. It's one of these fooms that we'll have to let Dr. Benham research this for us and let us know what that means. But it says that it is that which David sang to the Lord concerning Cush, a Benjamite.
I believe that Cush was the liar. Now it's interesting to notice that he was a Benjamite because so was Saul. And who would be the most likely counselor that Saul would depend upon? One of his own tribe. Therefore he listened to this Benjamite, one of those that he felt he could trust, but this man Cush was a dishonest person. How do you handle something like this? What do you do when there is somebody in the office who spreads lies around about you?
Well, what do you do when someone in your Sunday school class, in your church, in your neighborhood, at the PTA, in your school, begins to tell lies about you? How do you handle a liar? I believe that David gives us some answers to that question. Now you may not be the object of a liar's tongue tonight, but it will be an amazing feat if you get through the years of your life without facing at least one of them. How do you handle a liar?
I believe first of all that we need to follow David's example and declare the truth to the third party. That's the first answer to that question. We handle a liar by declaring the truth to the third party to whom the lie has been told. In this case, it was Saul. You notice that David carefully explained to Saul verbally what his attitude was, and he showed it by his action as well. You say, wait a minute, I thought that we're never supposed to defend ourselves.
In general, that's not a bad principle, but it's not always applicable either. There are times when it's best not to defend ourselves, but David defended himself here. I think we have to look at the circumstances of the situation to find out if a self-defense is appropriate.
The apostle Paul felt that a defense was appropriate, for in 2 Corinthians he writes at length regarding his honesty as a genuine apostle of Christ, and he accuses those false apostles who were trying to undermine his authority in Corinth of being deceitful and calls them the messengers of Satan. There are times when we have to defend ourselves. I think an example of a man defending himself is Jerry Falwell at the present time.
He is another man that I admire because he very seldom answers his critics. He does not usually attack those who attack him. If he did that, he would have no time for anything else for sure because he has many critics. Why then has he filed a suit against Hustler magazine and its publisher, which apparently was initially settled last night? Why was the suit filed? Why did he choose to defend himself in this case?
For this reason, because what was said about him in that magazine not only was slander against his character, although perhaps not legally, technically legally so, according to the jury, but most important it was an attack against his ministry and what he stands for. It seems to me that that is the line which when crossed necessitates on our part a defense.
If the Lord's work is implicated in the lie, then the truth, listen carefully, the truth should be explained in a forum that is appropriate to the situation. If the Lord's work is implicated in the lie that is being told, then the truth should be explained in an appropriate forum. I think that Jerry Falwell has done that in his lawsuit because that magazine was public, it was nationwide and available to everybody. The forum that he chose was the law court and I think appropriately so.
But there are times when the forum may be less. In those occasions it is important to declare the truth to those who have received the lie. Now in David's case it was important for him to defend himself because he was going to be the next king. He had to counteract the lie so that those who were loyal to Saul would later feel free to transfer their loyalty to him. So you see it was very important for the Lord's purpose that David defend himself in the manner in which he did.
He had to declare the truth publicly and notice the forum that he chose to do it. It was to Saul directly, but it was also to those who were closest and most loyal to Saul his soldiers. They had to hear the truth. Now there are certain questions I think we need to ask ourselves when we are considering if and how to do this. The first question is this, is this my pride or God's glory I am seeking to establish? Why am I defending myself?
Is it because of my pride or is it for the work, the glory of God? Secondly, will the response I make only further spread the untruth? There are times when trying to defend yourself is like pouring water on oil. It only spreads it and it may not be wise. Third, what approach and time would best serve to tell the truth and thus squelch the lie? Choose carefully how to do it. But please do not be threatened by every false thing that is said about you. Do not be threatened by that.
Leave vindication in the hands of God because ultimately the truth will be established. Now I think that we see something else from David's example as to how to handle a liar. We see this in Psalm 7 verses 1 and 2. He says, Oh Lord my God, in thee I have taken refuge. Save me from all those who pursue me and deliver me, lest he tear my soul like a lion, dragging me away while there is none to deliver.
David placed his faith in God as his refuge and that's something that we need to learn to do when confronted by a liar. Place your faith in God as your refuge. Do not try to wrap yourself in your own reputation. It's far too fragile for that. Rather give your reputation to God. He can take better care of it than you can. The Christian leader was asked by a friend to answer his critics because they seemed to be doing harm to the work for which he had sacrificed many years.
Christian leaders response was, I will not respond. My friends do not need my reply and my enemies won't believe me anyway. He placed his faith in God as his refuge and left it to the Lord. There are several examples of Psalms which express this. Just turn over a few pages of Psalm 27 as one example and I'll give you other references if you're interested. But in Psalm 27, notice again what David says. The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the defense of my life.
Notice that. Whom shall I dread? Then drop down to verse 12. Do not deliver me over to the desire of my adversaries for false witnesses have risen against me and such as breed out violence. I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord, be strong and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for the Lord. You see David's refuge was the Lord.
The Lord was his defense even against false witnesses who were his adversaries. Now just jot down a couple of other references from the Psalms. Psalm 35 verses 9 to 17. And don't you dare turn there and read. Psalm 94 verses 17 to 23. Two other references that I want you to look at on your time and study this thing out, that the Lord is to be the place of our refuge. That is what Jesus did when he stood before the high priest of Israel.
For when he was asked regarding the statements he had made, he remained quiet, making the Lord his refuge. Until he was directly asked, are you the Christ? And then he said, you said it. You said it. And for that he was struck on the face. He committed himself to the Lord and took refuge in him. Number three, in handling a liar, search to find whether there is any basis for the accusations or statements which you consider false.
It seems to me that David may do this in Psalm 7 when he says, oh Lord my God, verse 3, if I have done this, if there is injustice in my hands, if I have rewarded evil to my friend, or have plundered him who without cause was my adversary, let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it. And let him trample my life down to the ground and lay my glory in the dust. It seems to me that David is searching his heart here. Now he apparently found himself innocent and affirms that in what he says.
But I think it's wise if we will be humble enough to see if perhaps there may be oversights on our part or misunderstandings we have created which need to be corrected. And so when handling a liar, do that. Search yourself. Any of us can have a blind spot. It takes humility and it takes a gut level honesty to do this. I think it's vitally important. Get someone else's perspective too. Someone you trust who will tell you the truth about yourself and about what's being said.
And if in fact you find some basis for the statements that have been made, go to that person who has lied or whom you thought had lied and get that whole situation cleared up with him. Number four, in handling a liar, follow David's example in verses 6 through 16. Commit judgment to the righteous judge. Arise, O Lord, in thine anger. Strip thyself against the rage of my adversaries and arouse thyself for me. Thou hast appointed judgment.
And let the assembly of the peoples encompass thee, and over them return thou on high. The Lord judges the people. Vindicate me, O Lord, according to my righteousness and my integrity that is in me. O, let the evil of the wicked come to an end. But establish the righteous, for the righteous God tries the hearts and minds. My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart. God is a righteous judge and a God who has indignation every day. If a man does not repent, he will sharpen his sword.
God will sharpen his sword. He has bent his bow and made it ready. He has prepared for himself deadly weapons. He makes his arrows fiery shafts. Now in verse 14, it goes back to the dishonest person. It says, behold, he travails with wickedness, and he conceives mischief and brings forth falsehood. You see, he is giving birth, as it were, to lies. He has dug a pit and hollowed it out and has fallen into the hole which he made.
His mischief will return upon his own head, and his violence will descend upon his own pate. So David committed judgment to the Lord, the righteous judge. He will defend his own in his own way and time. David says in verse 10 that God is a shield to his own. When we place our trust in the Lord, he becomes our refuge when we are attacked by liars. He becomes a shield to us. And when he is ready, in the way in which he has prepared, he will vindicate his own.
What should we do as a church when people say things that are not true about us? Should we buy some ads in the Tribune and print the truth? No. Probably not. That would be a pretty rare case. What we ought to do is just trust the Lord. Because in the end, the truth will be borne out. The Lord will be our shield. But notice in verses 12 to 16, God is a sword, not a shield, a sword to the wicked. His bow is ready. His fiery shafts are aimed. And he will bring the wicked down.
The liar with his own tongue has dug a hole into which he himself will fall. Great judgment to the righteous judge. And finally, in handling a liar, fill your life with praising God, not with harboring bitterness. Notice David's words in verse 17. I will give thanks to the Lord according to his righteousness and will sing praise to the name of the Lord most high. David is not bitter at Cush.
He holds no resentment toward him, even though it cost David years of heartache, of trouble, of discomfort. But rather than being angry and bitter at Cush, he filled his heart, his life, with singing praises to God. You see, your bitterness, my bitterness at the liar, will not in the least bit hurt him. It will only eat us away. And that bitterness can become a root in our lives which will bear ugly fruit eventually.
Rather what we must do is by the grace of God forgive outright that person who has lied. Even though that person may not admit it, even though the lie still may be echoing back and forth in the community or in our circle of friends or the office, we are to outright forgive that person and sing praises to the Lord. Now that is an attitude that's unbeatable. The devil does not handle that. In fact, he can't. Charles Swindoll in his very excellent book, Dropping Your Guard, relates this story.
I have a close personal friend whose father has been a pastor for many, many years. The father was a man of faithfulness and consistency, but a tragic event occurred in the mid-years of his ministry. He was falsely accused of adultery by the vicious tongues of several gossips. The man, though completely innocent, became the object of scandalous words which followed him like his own shadow for years. There was nothing he could say or do to vindicate himself.
His son, my friend, says Swindoll, watched during his young adult years as the unfounded lies took their toll on the lives of his parents. With silent heroism, they continued to serve, trusting God to confound the critic and in his time vindicate the minister. Finally it happened. It had taken ten long years, but early one morning, unannounced, the person responsible for the false accusations appeared on the doorstep of the pastor's home.
As he opened the door, he stood face to face with the one who had started the rumor. Others ran down the cheeks of the critic, now broken in spirit. Pleading for forgiveness, the individual openly confessed the transgression, fully admitting guilt and blaming no one else. That person, by the way, had been under such deep conviction and turmoil that there had been no freedom to serve others or find any relief within.
Graciously and tearfully, the pastor expressed his forgiveness and assured the guilty party that there was absolutely no bitterness in his heart. He and his wife had worked their way through all that pain many years earlier. Now that he was finally vindicated, the offense had long been diffused. You may be struggling tonight with that kind of anger, the kind of anger and bitterness that festers in the heart when you've been lied about. Can you honestly say to the Lord that you have forgiven?
You say, well, I can forgive, but I can't forget. Again Swindoll quotes Amy Carmichael, who wrote, if I say, yes, I forgive, but I cannot forget as though the God who twice a day washes all the sands on all the shores of all the world could not wash away such memories from my mind that I know nothing of Calvary love. Do not allow that bitterness to remain in you.
And if I'm speaking to someone who has been on the other side, who has been the gossip, who has spread the lie, then you have a special responsibility before God and to that person that you've sinned against to confess it and to get it right. It may take time, it may cost you money and long distance calls or a personal trip somewhere, but you will have no freedom of spirit until you do it. Let's pray. Father, we want to be people who walk in truth and who put away lies.
I pray that you would deliver our tongues from lying. Word set a watch upon our lips that we share nothing of a dishonest nature, that we be not gossips and tale bearers. And wherein there may be some of us who have some ragged edges in that part of the heart, I pray that you will do what needs to be done to clean that up and give us hearts broken and repentant that are willing and obedient.
And I pray, Father, for those in our church family who are passing through the wilderness as was David, a wilderness that seems so unnecessary but created by a liar, give those dear people an understanding of how to handle that and to follow David's example. And I pray that above all we will trust you and make you our refuge every step of every day. In Jesus' name, amen.