Life of David Part 5: 1 Samuel 26
This Life of David series outlines my study for my current Sunday morning series for the middle school youth group I lead. This writing series will show how I broke down each chapter and what general points I used in teaching this to middle schoolers. Hopefully, it will help you in teaching something on the life of David.
Each one of us will face temptations, but it's what we do with them that defines us. In this chapter Saul and David both face similar temptations but handle them in drastically different ways.
1. Two Different Temptations (v. 1-12)
The chapter begins with Saul responding to a report regarding David's whereabouts. As soon as Saul has the slightest inclination as to where David is, he jumps on it without hesitation. At this point, Saul's jealousy is so strong that he will blindly pursue any opportunity to fight David. In contrast, when David learns that Saul is near, he takes a much more calculated approach. He first verifies for himself that Saul is actually near and then takes just two men with him to check out the camp.
David's temptation comes when they sneak into the middle of Saul's camp and find him asleep with his spear right next to him. Abishai, one of David's loyal men, interprets this as God finally delivering Saul into David's hands. David had already spared Saul once, but this time, Abishai offers to kill Saul himself, leaving David blameless. It's hard to imagine how strong a temptation like that would be. David's greatest adversary could now be defeated and all David needed to do was give the word. Here, David does what Saul failed to do. David battles temptation with truth. David's answer is not that Saul didn't deserve to die or that Abishai couldn't pull it off, he responds by saying God anointed Saul and he had no right to mess with that.
Temptation normally asks us to blur the lines between what God gets to control and what we get to control. Envy makes us think we should control who gets what things. Lust makes us think we should be able to use people as we see fit. Pride makes us think we should simply control everything. But David knew he didn't have control over Saul's life; only God had authority over Saul. This is the only sure way to fight temptation, to remember what God's response to a temptation would be.
2. David's Response Toward Saul (v. 13-20)
After sparing Saul, David wants to talk with him about their present situation. First, David rebukes Abner for doing a poor job of defending the king. This calls out that which Saul had been trusting in. Throughout the chapter, the theme emerges that Saul is looking only to trust in other people but none of them can provide what he really needs. Saul trusted the men of Ziph who gave the tip about David's location, but he does not see David until this moment. Saul also trusted Abner to keep him safe, but he also was unable to deliver. The great contrast is David, the man presenting Saul with his personal belongings to prove the damage he could have inflicted but lovingly chose not to. Sometimes, sin makes us trust everyone except the people working for our good.
This passage naturally makes us wonder how David could have been so generous and merciful. The answer becomes clear in verse 20. David did not see himself as anything great, asking Saul why he would spend all this time chasing after "a single flea" like him. When we feel wronged, we normally start with a grand view of ourselves. We ask "how could you do that TO ME?", as though we were someone great. In this chapter, the only one who thinks great things of himself is Saul. David was able to keep a level head because he thought little of himself.
3. Saul's Response Toward David (v. 21-25)
This act of kindness begins to get through to Saul as he apologizes for his errors in verse 21. Once again, everything Saul says is about David, another person he can look at and trust in. David responds only by looking to God. He doesn't ask that Saul would view him differently, he only asks that God would value him.
This is one of the great keys to facing temptation. Living a set apart life for Jesus will do just that, set us apart from the people around us. If the way others value us determines our faithfulness, we will not be very faithful. For David, his highest goal was having God value him. When this is our goal, fighting temptation becomes possible.
Though David was not going to bring an end to Saul himself, he trusted that God would in due time. You may feel like you are unable to bring an end to different temptations you face, but you can trust that God will be faithful to you. Temptation is a normal part of life, and like any other part, God does not ask it to figure it out on our own. Through the power of the Holy Spirit and the help of good, Christian community, we, like David, can overcome temptation.