David Encouraged Himself in the Lord
April 11, 2022
1 Samuel 30:6 (KJV) 6 And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God.
We are looking at the role of faith in God as it relates to living as supernatural people in the natural world. Faith in God and in his written Word is a major part of our foundation in Christ. If we are going to walk in the supernatural, we need a supernatural foundation.
Hebrews 11:1 says faith is the substance of things we hope for and the evidence of what we cannot see. Hope is possibility. With God, all things are possible. Hope is also intangible and always future in nature. Faith takes hope and makes it something more tangible. It receives what we hope for in God as true now even though we may not yet see a manifestation in the natural world. Faith is my evidence that what I hope for is real. Romans 10:17 tells me faith comes from hearing the Word of God. Therefore, the Word of God is the substance of my hope and the evidence that God will do what he said he would do.
I want to take a few moments to look at someone who often had to apply this kind of Faith. He eventually became the king of Israel, but in his early life, he had many trials. He had to learn what it meant to receive the promise of God by faith.
In 1 Samuel 30:1-8, we read about a particularly difficult time in David’s life. He is living with the enemies of Israel because King Saul is trying to kill him. There is a war and David is in a very difficult situation. He cannot afford to appear disloyal to the king protecting him. He cannot go to the Israelites because Saul will kill him. He decides to go out to the battle and believe that God will make a way for him to keep his integrity with the king but not have to fight his countrymen.
The other leaders of the enemy army do not trust David and his band. Because of this, the king is forced to send David away. It would seem everything has worked out just as David hoped until he gets back to his home in a place called Ziklag. While David and his men were away, another army attacked his home. They destroyed everything and carried the families of David and his men away.
They react much as we would. David is devastated. God has just answered his prayer and now the enemy has come against him in another way. I want to remind you that the time after a faith victory is often the time the enemy tries to attack. We have won a victory but that usually means we want to relax. We have had to stand for something by faith and the answer comes. The devil is not an honorable enemy. He will often try to bring something else against us at that very moment.
This is what happens to David. I cannot imagine a more distasteful thing to David than to fight against his own people. If Saul had not had such a sinful attitude toward David, he would have been leading Israel’s army against the enemy king himself. Because of Saul’s paranoia, David is in exile. What a tremendous victory it must have been to hear the king say, “David, I know you want to fight for us, but my commanders don’t want to take the chance. I’m going to have to send you home.”
I can see David expressing regret to the king while in his heart rejoicing at the goodness of God. David’s band returns home rejoicing over the faith victory they have won. When they come in sight of the city, they see smoke. They rush to the city and find that while God was protecting them on one front, the devil had attacked on another. What are they going to do now?
Many of us would feel sorry for ourselves. We would wonder why God would allow such a thing. That is what David’s men did. They needed someone to blame, and David was the leader. Never mind that they had all been broken men when they came to David. Never mind that it was David’s care for them and confidence in them that had caused them to be known as mighty men of valor. Their only thought in their grief was, “This is David’s fault. If he hadn’t left to make a show for the king our families would be here, and our lives would be intact.”
David himself was in great distress over the loss of his family. He was discouraged because the people blamed him for the tragedy. I am a leader, I know how it feels when you have poured out your life for people, and then they turn on you. David was deeply distressed. What he does next is a key to walking by faith and walking in the supernatural. This verse says he encouraged himself in the Lord.
I believe we should encourage one another. I believe walking by faith and in the supernatural requires that we be in relationship with other believers primarily in a local church. However, there are times when there is no one to encourage us. There are times when only God will understand how you feel. At those times it is critical that we learn to encourage ourselves in the Lord. We cannot wait for anyone else to do it for us.
How did he encourage himself? I believe he began to praise God. As he did, hope began to arise in his heart. We know this because he asks God if he should pursue the enemy. The tendency in such a situation would be to assume they were too far away. Emotionally a person facing what David faced would be immobilized. However, David has begun to hope in God. He is remembering all the times God had given him victory. He remembers the lion and the bear he killed in his days as a shepherd. He remembers when he killed the giant, Goliath.
As he rehearses all the times God had delivered him, hope begins to arise in his heart. He stops feeling sorry for himself. He shuts out the criticism of his men. He turns to the high priest and enquires of the Lord. What is he looking for? He does not have the written Word as we do but he is looking for the Word of God to give substance and evidence to his hope.
When we face difficult situations, our emotions will want to run wild. It will feel natural to want to sit down and grieve. We may be immobilized. We may look for someone to blame for our circumstances. None of these things will help. David had to resist his natural tendencies and do something that is as difficult as it is powerful. He had to encourage himself in the Lord.
If you are facing a challenge that is what you must do. God has done something good in your life. If you cannot think of anything else, remember that you are not going to hell. That may not seem very important right now, but it is the most important truth of your life. It is the one thing that will matter eternally.
Begin to encourage yourself that God loves you. In Romans 8, we read about Paul. He lists all the trials that came against him. At the same time, he declares, “I am more than a conqueror through Jesus. Even though I face all these difficult things, I know that nothing can separate me from his love.”
Do you think Paul’s emotions always agreed with that point of view? Read his letters and you will find they did not. However, Paul knew what he believed just as David did. When they were under pressure, they knew that without hope they could not have faith. They encouraged themselves in the Lord by rehearsing what God had done in their lives and hope arose.
This is a day of trial for many. However, God has done great things for you in the past. Begin to praise him. If you cannot think of anything to praise him for praise him because of who he is. Worship him. Thank him for saving you. Thank him for giving you the privilege of being in covenant with him. Hope will rise. Then you can “enquire of the Lord” in his Word. Then you will find a promise to give substance to your faith.
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