Harps, Swords, and Chasing Applause
(6 minutes)
And so it was, whenever the spirit from God was upon Saul, that David would take a harp and play it with his hand. Then Saul would become refreshed and well, and the distressing spirit would depart from him. (1 Samuel 16:19-23)
David was so anointed he could play a harp and evil spirits would have to leave because of the presence of God. David has an opportunity to use this gift in front of King Saul and Saul is greatly impressed. This is the very first moment that David's gift is put on display for someone to see.
Then David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.” But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep his father’s sheep, and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, I went out after it and struck it, and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it. Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.” Moreover David said, “The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!” (1 Samuel 17:32-37)
We all know this story well. David goes out on the battlefield and kills the giant. This was the second opportunity David had to use his gift in front of others. This display didn't just leave King Saul impressed, but the entire nation of Israel. King Saul goes on to appoint David as commander over the men of war. And scripture says that David "was accepted in the sight of all the people and also in the sight of Saul's servants." As King Saul and David returned to the city after defeating the Philistines, all the women poured out into the streets, singing and dancing, saying, "Saul has slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands."
We have two stories here of David using his gifts. One sent evil spirits running and the other garnered him the applause and the acceptance of people. Which one did he choose to pursue for the rest of his life? From that day on David put his harp down, and picked up a sword.
"Why? Why did he choose to put the harp down and pick up a sword? Remember, David isn't making the decisions in his life just like you're not making the decisions in yours. Your broken heart is making the decisions, and David's broken heart was making his decisions, too." (Pastor Tim)
The heart-shot that David suffered in his youth is staying with him. Because his heart was broken and emptied of all love and acceptance, he ran into the arms of a nation that accepted him because he could kill giants. He devoted his entire life to conquering, killing, and shedding blood. Why? That wasn't what David was uniquely designed to do. That was what bought him the affection that his heart longed for because it wasn't healed.
How many of us are doing things right now only because we learned it could buy us the affection that we were starved for? How many decisions are we making from a broken heart? How many of us have laid down our harps and picked up swords, because that's what made someone else happy?
Do you see why Abba is so fiercely coming after our hearts? Do you see why He's coming after everything that hinders love?
St. Augustine famously said, "Our heart is restless until it rests in You." This is just another way of saying that our hearts are broken and starved for affection and they will chase after anything that looks remotely similar to the affection that our heart was made for. And until we let Abba heal our hearts and lavish His affection on us, we will be restless.
Beloved One, only one thing will satisfy the deepest longings of your heart - the arms of a loving Father. Be filled up with His love, affection, and approval, and you'll never have to worry about collecting it from any other source ever again. The flow of His love rushing towards you is endless. This is what He meant when He said, "You will never thirst again." You were called to the harp, not the sword.
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Worship: "Never Gonna Leave Me Dry" by UPPERROOM
Honor: Give Online to The Wilderness Place
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