Wait For It

This week explores the ways Saul pursues David but also how David chooses to spare Saul’s life when the opportunity for revenge arises. This message also will put this into the context of the end of Saul’s life. (1 Samuel 24, 26, 31)

Sermon Outline

“I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry.” (Psalm 40:1)

David’s Mercy Over King Saul’s Life

  • David spares Saul’s life when Saul is relieving himself in a cave; David cuts a corner of Saul’s robe (1 Samuel 24)
  • David spares Saul’s life when Saul is sleeping in camp; David takes Saul’s spear and water jug (1 Samuel 26)

David’s Determined Course: Wait on God

  • David makes it clear he will not take Saul’s life, no matter what anyone says (1 Samuel 24:5-6; 26:9)
  • Saul is shamed before his followers and David’s followers (1 Samuel 24:17-21; 26:21, 25)
  • David lets God be the judge and not himself (1 Samuel 24:12)
  • David lets God be in control of Saul’s end (1 Samuel 26:9-11)
  • David lets God be in control of his own future (1 Samuel 26:20, 24)
  • Saul’s eventual end: death in battle (1 Samuel 31)

An Aside About Revenge

  • The One God of the Entire Bible: Grace and Truth, Holiness and Mercy
  • Vengeance belongs to God, not human beings (Deuteronomy 32:35)
  • Echoes of this into the New Testament (Romans 12:19; Hebrews 10:30)
  • Jesus the Lion and the Lamb, and the Vengeance of God

What It Means to Pursue God by Waiting

  • Waiting does not mean doing nothing
  • Waiting means continuing in God’s ways
  • Waiting means yielding to God’s shaping in our lives
  • Waiting means seeking God and God’s direction in prayer
  • Waiting means watching for where God will work
  • Waiting means entrusting our cause to God

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

  1. When have you had to wait for something important in life? What was it? How did you handle the waiting?
  2. This week we continue our summer sermon series, “The Pursuit of God: The Life of David” by exploring some key moments when David decided to wait on God while on the run from King Saul. This is recorded in 1 Samuel 24 and 26. Begin your study in prayer, asking God to speak to you through the Scripture, and then read those two passages aloud.
  3. These two stories parallel one another in many ways. In 1 Samuel 24, what is the opportunity by which King Saul falls into David’s hands? What does David decide to do?
  4. What stands out to you from David’s conversation with Saul in 1 Samuel 24:8-15?
  5. What do you think it means to let God be our judge (see 1 Samuel 24:12)?
  6. In 1 Samuel 26, what is the situation and opportunity by which King Saul falls into David’s hands and, again, what does David decide to do?
  7. What stands out to you in this episode from how David talks with Saul in 1 Samuel 26:17-24?
  8. When have you felt like you needed to wait on God for something? How did you wait? What helped you meet with God in the waiting?
  9. In 1 Samuel 31 we read of Saul’s death. What do you think it might have meant to the armies, his followers, and to the broader kingdom that David did not take Saul’s life? How might things have been different if David had killed Saul?
  10. What is one thing God speaking to you personally through this week’s study about the connection between our spiritual life and our circumstances? If you are with a small group, discuss that with one another and then pray about what you shared. If you are on your own, write it down, pray about it, and consider sharing your thoughts with someone this week.

DIG DEEPER

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The King's Honor