DJW

Q3. (2 Samuel 1:19-27; 1 Chronicles 10:13-14) David is gracious in his memorial psalm. How does he remember Saul’s life? How does the Chronicler remember Saul’s life? How do you think God evaluates Saul’s life? What do we learn from this? He points out that Saul was a great warrior and that he provided amply for his people .... he keeps focus only on the positive attributes of Saul's life. The Chronicler simply records the facts that Saul did not obey the Lord and he paid the price ... the kingdom was handed to David I think God evaluates Saul's life in the same way he evaluates everyone's life. Saul is accountable for the decisions Saul made. I learn that God is sovereign, that his plans and his will overcome everything. There is nothing else!

Q1. (1 Samuel 30:1-6) Why do the men blame David? Why is the situation so explosive at this point. What does David do in the situation? What is David feeling? Why doesn’t he act immediately? The men had been following David who had most certainly prepared them for battle with the philistines and now they were not welcomed or considered allies and were essentially retreating now to find their 'home' had been raided and their loved ones taken hostage. David felt fear and turned to the Lord in obedience, for courage, guidance and if it be God's will, restitution. I think David would have had a lot going on both emotional and politically, so he would have needed time to reflect and pray to enquire of the Lord and disseminate his instructions.

Q4. (1 Samuel 28:7-14) Why do you think God condemns occult practices of communicating with the dead and channelling spirits of the dead? How might such practices open Christians to victimisation and oppression by evil spirits? What should you do if you’ve been involved in such practices in the past? I'm quite sure that to attempt communication with the dead and occult practices is to call on 'other god's' which is sin. Even the medium in the text called Saul a god because that is how she saw spirits. Our relationship is with God as Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, and God is God, he is number one! There is no other. It is because of this that many have stumbled and fallen. The devil and his demons have no actual power. All they have is deception manifest as fear, ignorance and darkness. When a christian takes their eyes off the Lord they fall into traps in that darkness. We have all been in the darkness because we are of the world. We keep our eyes on God, we seek is will and we obey because we have been washed anew with the sacrifice of Jesus and the forgiveness of God. Man, that is just so Awesome! Praise God!!!

Q1. (1 Samuel 24:1-15) Why doesn’t David kill Saul when he has the chance? What motive do he and his men have for killing a king who is trying to kill them? What is David’s rationale for sparing Saul? What does this tell us about David’s character? About his faith? What does it say about David’s leadership ability that he is able to dissuade his men from killing Saul? David was focused on both guidance from the Lord doing the Lords will. Although he did not know the outcome, he did know that it would not be the Lords will for him to kill Saul. Interesting because obviously David had no problem at all with murder. I think by sparing Saul God remained at the center of David's service. Killing Saul would have also been a bad move politically because he would have taken the throne by force, not by the hand of God, which had been his promise. David clearly lead from the top down, meaning God first, #1 for instructions before either waiting or implementing an instruction given. David had the ability to sensitively handle all sides of each scenario as it played out. It is clear that God prepared David for each step of advancement in leadership and faith that he took in his life.

Q3. (1 Samuel 23:14-18) Why does Jonathan visit David in the wilderness? What risk is there for David? What risk is there for Jonathan? What do you think it meant to David? Have you ever received a visit from a friend when you needed it most? I keep thinking that if Jonathan could find David so could Saul. What must be happening here? The way I see it, Saul was certainly afflicted with 'metal illness' (as we would call it today) brought on by his disobedience to God. But his mental illness was not always affecting his emotional responses ( anxiety, paranoia etc..) so when that was the case he would have wanted to obey God and do what was best for his kingdom. The clue here is verse 17 'and he said to him, "Do not fear, for the hand of Saul my father shall not find you,. You shall be king over Israel, and I shall be next to you. Saul my father also knows this." My interpretation of what Jonathan is saying is - 'my father, when sane, knows the Lords will, and I have come to assure you of that' The risk to them both to meet up in this way is exposure. Especially if their timing was wrong and Saul was having a psychotic episode. Jonathan's visit would have brough great comfort to David. I also think the Lord sends different friends, at various times for different reasons. Certainly the Lord has sent me friends for comfort, but also instruction and (deserved) rebuke at times.

Q2. (1 Samuel 22:20-23:12) What did Abiathar and the ephod have to do with “inquiring of the Lord?” Why did David inquire of the Lord? What huge advantage does the person have who seeks God’s will before acting? How can you find God’s will at key points in your life? Abiathar was the closest connection/in line to the priests that Saul had killed. He had brought the ephod with him into David's safe haven, so this was how David wanted to enquire of the Lord. He was seeking help you know what the Lord was answering his questions. David was unsure what battles to fight and how to proceed. He was actually trying to be obedient to the Lords will within the complications of his circumstances. He was taking specific time out to enquire of the Lord and making a ritual out of it as well to ensure the involvement of all within his care I would think. A person who seeks God always before acting comes into alignment with Gods will for their life! This is the profound advantage. The ability to be obedient at each and every step. Try and spend 100% of time God aware and focused. Before acting, surrender the situation to God for his will to be done. Pray to God and listen for him to speak by thought and circumstance. Read and Study his word and seek out fellow believers for worship, sharing and council.

Q1. (1 Samuel 22:2) Why were David’s men attracted to him? What did they have in common? What kind of men were these? What difficulties do you think David probably had in leading them? David was an outcast and as such other people who were or felt they were outcasts were attracted to David's leadership. David was a natural leader and God had already established his path, so in this sense I believe these men, (and I assume many women and children) sought a kind of a refuge and an identity being together under his leadership. David's difficulties leading them would have been great, often and many. Herding cats comes to mind. The way I see it is that David was focused on the Lord. He was putting all situations before the Lord and being obedient to the Lords commands. I think in this way he was focused not on his leadership, but on the leadership of God of and for all who sought that identity and refuge with David.

Q4. (1 Samuel 20:35-42) What is the nature of the covenant between David and Jonathan? What does David receive? What does Jonathan receive? Who benefits the most from this covenant? Is it self-serving – or not? What is the significance that God is witness to the covenant? David and Jonathan had a close and mutual understanding of Saul's 'issues' .... I've been thinking a lot about this, that Saul had some kind of mental/emotional issues that would have been very transparent to these two. Today we would call it 'mental illness'. Obviously Saul's disobedience to God is his key problem, but it would have manifested with random emotional outbursts and crazy actions which would, by way of 'Folie à deux' have been effecting many many people surrounding and close to the king. David receives both confirmation and insight which will help with his discernment as he proceeds from that moment. Jonathan receives a reality check and relief to know he is not crazy and he has helped his dear friend. I think they both benefit although very differently, equally. I think it is simply them trying to work their way through their respective situations and be obedient to God in that quest. Because they are obedient to God, it is implicit in their oath to each other to refer to the Almighty. I would have expected nothing less of these men.

Q3. (1 Samuel 19:18-24) What does it tell us about Saul’s faith that he pursues David even when he has sought the sanctuary of the prophet Samuel? Why do people prophesy when the Holy Spirit comes upon them? What is the relationship between this incident and the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2)? He seems confused or misguided in his understanding or belief in God's reality. His faith is actually very small, yet his dabbling with the spiritual is profound. I think the Holy Spirit is the binder between our spirit and God so it can overwhelm people and be used as a vehicle for God to speak. It can also provide discernment to identify when God does speak or when its a false demon and not the almighty God or Jesus. the relationship is the similarity of God having his way through the Holy Spirit and communicating through and to various people. The power of the Holy Spirit was on display to be witnessed and written about as an informative and instructive component of Gods word to us. The Bible!

Q2. (1 Samuel 18:18-22) Which of the following is David’s chief motive for marrying Michal, in your opinion? Argue for the motivation that makes the most sense to you: (1) pride in his military prowess, (2) obedience to Saul’s desires, (3) love or desire for Michal, or (4) enjoyment in killing Philistines. I think it's #2 obedience to Saul's desires. David was working out how he would be king in the future. He held Saul in high esteem and as such was probably thinking this was Gods instruction to him through Saul. I also think that he would have had desire for Michal, but not overwhelming passion/love for her because she was not his first choice.

Q1. (1 Samuel 18:13-16). Why does Saul send David into battle? What is the result? To what does the narrator attribute David’s success? Saul sends David into battle (the thick of it) in the hope that an enemy will do him in. Saul arrogantly believes that he can have someone else do his dirty work and keep his "reputation" intact" in the process. The result was that rather than meet his end, David prospered and performed extremely well, thereby compounding the problem and confusion in Saul's mind. "The Lord was with David". Upon refection it seems to me this is mostly about obedience to God, who loves us, all of us. David was being obedient to God by putting God first in everything, but Saul was putting Saul first. Success ultimately is the ability to be close to God, to be able to hear him clearly and with his help to be able to be obedient to him.

Q3. (1 Samuel 17:47) Why do we so often forget that “the battle is the Lord’s”? What does that phrase actually mean? How can we avoid the arrogance of pulling God into our battles (“God is on my side”), rather than engaging in His battles (“I am on God’s side”)? We live in 'time' and God does not. He is all knowing and omnipresent. God has explained to us through his word that his divine plan is being executed, so all divine battles are his battles. Our task is to listen and obey and if we do that then God is fighting all the battles and using us for his purposes. If we fight for ourselves, or even try and enlist God in our own chosen battles we are not being obedient to him and are in fact being rebellious, serving ourselves or a false god. So even with good meaning we must be sure to remember that in all things and in all ways we must put God first. He is number 1 always!

Q1. (1 Samuel 17:26-30) Why is David so upset about Goliath’s taunt? Why is Eliab, David’s brother, so upset with David? What does this teach us about David’s faith? What does it teach us about Eliab’s character? David had already been anointed to be king and the spirit of the Lord had come upon him and was with him as told to us in 1 Samuel 17:20. These events set the scene. The spirit in David was aggrieved (and David also no doubt) with goliath's taunt which was blasphemous. I think Elian was jealous of David in a variety of ways and didn't want him around. David, clearly had his trust firmly in God and was committed to obeying the spirits prompting in him. He knew that he had been prepared for this fight with practical skills and tactics, and he also knew that the fight had already been won by the Lord and that he was just the instrument of God in this situation. Eliab seemed hurt and defensive, I would suggest that he saw everything that was happening to his little brother as quite unfair because he was focused on, and drawing his identity from the world around him. He was not focused on God and a consequence he could not see that David was been led by God.

Q4. (1 Samuel 16:14-23) From Saul’s perspective, why is David summoned to court? From God’s perspective, what seem to be the reasons for this service in Saul’s court? What things tend to prevent us from learning from God in the midst of the circumstances in which we find ourselves? What might make us more teachable? There is a very clear sequence of events to bible is able to show us that would not have been objectively understood at the time. The Lord often uses the ungodly for his will and purpose and as Saul was not seeking God he used Saul's very discomfort in all it's manifestations to be introduced to David who had already been anointed to replace Saul. I think our/my extremely simple, human and naïve understanding and willingness to surrender totally to the awesome power and love of God mean that we/I try and interpret our circumstances and what that might mean for God's plan and kingdom. I think it is only by listening/seeking to be obedient that makes me teachable. Left to my own devices and self I know nothing, nothing at all.

Q3. (1 Samuel 1:13) What is the significance of Samuel anointing David? What is the significance of the Holy Spirit coming upon David? How does this explain his success? How is the Holy Spirit upon us vital for our own success as disciples? 1 Samuel 16:13b "And the spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward". The significance of Samuel anointing David was far more than symbolic. It was an instruction made by God. No doubt the spirit of the Lord rushing upon David would have been witnessed by others as well as been experienced by David. I think this reality would have helped him to identify and have a relationship with the spirit throughout the rest of his life, thus enabling his many successes, pulling him through his many darkened human times of sin, and bolstering his desire for obedience and service to God. In exactly the same way we have the holy spirit living with us and we should always seek to have a closer instantaneous relationship with the holy spirit who is miraculously God and our advocate to God as we are transformed to me more like Christ.

Q1. (1 Samuel 15:22-23). What is rebellion? In what way is rebellion as bad as witchcraft or occult practices? What does rebellion have to do with arrogance? What can we do when we find rebellion against God in our hearts? What happens if we do nothing? Rebellion as I see it is going my own way (humans going their own way) and not in obedience to God. This can be unwittingly yet it is still rebellion because we are of this world. To seek God, to hear his voice and then to translate that into ongoing obedience is such a challenge. To not do so is arrogance, because we know we must do our best to be obedient seeking God for help constantly. Witchcraft and occult practices are simple anything that worships or gives reverence to any lie or falsehood that is not the one true God. This again is so easy to unwittingly engage in, because we live in a world in which the evil one and his crew only have the 'power' of deception and lies. They are the actual losers and they have already lost! If we do not seek God constantly with an acute awareness of his reality we become frail and subject to falsehoods and lies fostering rebellion in our hearts. We must use our consciousness to seek God who will protect, guard, strengthen and change our hearts.