1 00:00:01,600 --> 00:00:03,800 You're listening to the Bridgetown Church Podcast with 2 00:00:03,800 --> 00:00:06,840 Pastor Casey Kendall, where our vision is Jesus, our mission is 3 00:00:06,840 --> 00:00:09,760 people, and our cause is love. Thanks for tuning in. 4 00:00:10,040 --> 00:00:12,840 Let's dive in. We're in First Samuel chapter 5 00:00:12,840 --> 00:00:16,720 21, and if you have your Bible handy, we've been in a series 6 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:21,040 entitled Heart, and this title of The message is Under 7 00:00:21,040 --> 00:00:24,760 Pressure. I know your mind immediately you 8 00:00:24,760 --> 00:00:30,320 heathens went to David Bowie, but I, I want to talk to you 9 00:00:30,320 --> 00:00:35,120 today about living under pressure and what happens in our 10 00:00:35,120 --> 00:00:39,320 lives when we're under pressure. This is actually what happened 11 00:00:39,320 --> 00:00:45,840 to David in First Samuel chapter 21, beginning in verse 13. 12 00:00:46,320 --> 00:00:49,120 We'll go to the end of the chapter, but we will back up to 13 00:00:49,120 --> 00:00:52,960 the beginning of the chapter to set the tone in the scenario of 14 00:00:52,960 --> 00:00:57,360 what's happening around us. The Bible says in verse 13, So 15 00:00:57,360 --> 00:01:01,320 he changed his behavior, if you could just say changed his 16 00:01:01,320 --> 00:01:08,320 behavior before them. He fiend madness in their hands. 17 00:01:08,720 --> 00:01:15,320 He scratched on the doors of the gate and let his saliva fall 18 00:01:15,320 --> 00:01:20,520 down on his beard. This is the man who beat 19 00:01:20,520 --> 00:01:24,320 Goliath. This was the man who in his life 20 00:01:24,320 --> 00:01:27,720 was anointed and called to be the king of all of Israel. 21 00:01:27,960 --> 00:01:33,080 Then Akash said to his servants. Look, you see, the man is 22 00:01:33,080 --> 00:01:37,080 insane. Why have you brought him to me? 23 00:01:37,400 --> 00:01:42,440 Have I need of Mad Men that You have brought this fellow to play 24 00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:52,240 the madman in my presence? Shall this fellow come into my 25 00:01:52,440 --> 00:01:55,440 house? Lord, we pray that as we hear 26 00:01:55,680 --> 00:02:00,400 your word that you would Pierce our hearts, Lord, that You would 27 00:02:00,400 --> 00:02:07,200 give to us the power to remain under pressure and still be 28 00:02:07,400 --> 00:02:11,800 spirit filled and express the fruit of Your spirit to the 29 00:02:11,800 --> 00:02:14,960 world around us. Lord, we ask that in these 30 00:02:14,960 --> 00:02:18,920 pressure cooker moments that you would bring your strength, your 31 00:02:18,920 --> 00:02:21,960 hope to every heart that's in this place. 32 00:02:21,960 --> 00:02:26,480 And I pray Lord that you would do this in the name of Jesus, 33 00:02:26,480 --> 00:02:31,240 that you keep us in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on 34 00:02:31,240 --> 00:02:37,800 you because this morning we trust in you, O Lord, and we ask 35 00:02:37,800 --> 00:02:39,960 that you would do this work in Jesus name. 36 00:02:39,960 --> 00:02:44,080 And everybody said Amen. If you would, as we always do. 37 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:46,600 It's a habit here at Bridgetown. If you would just look at your 38 00:02:46,600 --> 00:02:48,960 neighbor and say neighbor, my neighbor. 39 00:02:50,240 --> 00:02:52,720 No, all of you say it. Neighbor, my neighbor. 40 00:02:54,000 --> 00:02:59,480 I'm under pressure. Yeah, Yep, I'm under pressure. 41 00:03:00,360 --> 00:03:04,480 It was the doctor's declaration to my wife and I when we were 42 00:03:04,480 --> 00:03:09,400 having our first son, Tyler, who's now 25 years old. 43 00:03:10,960 --> 00:03:14,040 Then he looked us in the eyes and he said these words. 44 00:03:14,040 --> 00:03:19,280 I want you to have clear expectations when you come into 45 00:03:19,360 --> 00:03:25,120 the labor and delivery room. And this is what I want you to 46 00:03:25,120 --> 00:03:30,160 know is that giving birth is beautiful, but it's also messy. 47 00:03:31,560 --> 00:03:33,560 Every mom should have said Amen right there. 48 00:03:35,640 --> 00:03:38,240 He said I don't want you to be overwhelmed, but here's what I 49 00:03:38,240 --> 00:03:44,040 want you to know, that new life is coming when you are 50 00:03:44,040 --> 00:03:51,800 overwhelmed with pressure. He once again told us that new 51 00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:57,920 life is coming when you are overwhelmed with pressure. 52 00:03:58,680 --> 00:04:00,920 I don't know if you've ever found yourself there. 53 00:04:01,800 --> 00:04:07,560 Maybe not in a hospital room, but possibly for you sitting in 54 00:04:07,760 --> 00:04:11,880 this place. You have found yourself here in 55 00:04:11,880 --> 00:04:15,000 this life. You wanted the privilege, but 56 00:04:15,000 --> 00:04:16,680 you really didn't want the pressure. 57 00:04:19,200 --> 00:04:24,840 If I would have known the pressure of having children, I 58 00:04:24,840 --> 00:04:26,320 think I would have been celibate. 59 00:04:27,640 --> 00:04:30,520 I wanted the privilege of having children, but I don't know if I 60 00:04:30,520 --> 00:04:34,520 wanted the the pressure of having children. 61 00:04:35,200 --> 00:04:39,520 Maybe you found yourself into this into this place today and 62 00:04:39,520 --> 00:04:44,960 you you find yourself that you are both compressed and crushed 63 00:04:45,080 --> 00:04:48,080 by the pressure. Maybe you've come into this 64 00:04:48,080 --> 00:04:51,600 place and it's through the heat of the moment that has left your 65 00:04:51,600 --> 00:04:56,240 heart with heaviness and emptiness in the pressure. 66 00:04:57,000 --> 00:05:00,080 Maybe for you, you've come into this place and it is the 67 00:05:00,080 --> 00:05:06,720 difficulty that has left you a little disturbed and coming in a 68 00:05:06,720 --> 00:05:12,400 lot depleted and unable to sing that the goodness of God is 69 00:05:12,400 --> 00:05:16,440 still pursuing after you. Maybe you've come into this 70 00:05:16,440 --> 00:05:21,320 place surrounded by lots of pressure. 71 00:05:21,640 --> 00:05:26,280 And here's the thing about pressure is pressure is not 72 00:05:26,440 --> 00:05:31,440 prejudice. It hits anyone at any time and 73 00:05:31,440 --> 00:05:34,920 in any place. I mean, you coming into this 74 00:05:34,920 --> 00:05:41,240 place, even this morning, there is physical pressure that some 75 00:05:41,240 --> 00:05:43,440 of you have been facing with your illness. 76 00:05:44,200 --> 00:05:46,440 For some of you, it's not physical pressure. 77 00:05:46,440 --> 00:05:50,400 There's there's been mental pressure that you've been facing 78 00:05:50,400 --> 00:05:54,400 of the depression and the anxiety and the fear that 79 00:05:54,400 --> 00:05:57,880 overwhelms your heart. Maybe it's not mental pressure, 80 00:05:57,880 --> 00:06:00,760 but some of you, you have marital pressure. 81 00:06:02,280 --> 00:06:05,480 Maybe you have occupational pressure. 82 00:06:05,800 --> 00:06:08,400 Maybe you have parental pressure. 83 00:06:08,640 --> 00:06:14,080 Maybe you have student pressure. Maybe you have teacher pressure. 84 00:06:14,320 --> 00:06:19,800 Maybe you have dating pressure. Lift your hand if you're single 85 00:06:19,800 --> 00:06:21,120 in this place. No, I'm just kidding. 86 00:06:21,120 --> 00:06:24,080 You don't have to. Maybe for you. 87 00:06:24,480 --> 00:06:28,440 I believe what has tripped us up many times is a statement as we 88 00:06:28,440 --> 00:06:32,000 follow Jesus. It's a statement that looks cute 89 00:06:32,000 --> 00:06:35,440 on coffee mugs but is not found in the Bible. 90 00:06:35,640 --> 00:06:39,240 And that is this is it. God will only give you what you 91 00:06:39,240 --> 00:06:45,760 can handle. That is oftentimes the most 92 00:06:45,760 --> 00:06:52,640 quoted but also the most misused statement because God often 93 00:06:52,640 --> 00:06:56,720 allows things that are more than you can handle. 94 00:06:57,520 --> 00:07:01,920 God will often in your life bring you to places that are 95 00:07:01,920 --> 00:07:06,200 like people in the scripture that are filled with things that 96 00:07:06,200 --> 00:07:10,160 just seem too much. Look at Job if you would with 97 00:07:10,160 --> 00:07:15,360 his tragedies, Abraham with the sacrifice of his son, Elijah 98 00:07:15,360 --> 00:07:19,680 with his depression, Jeremiah with his loneliness and 99 00:07:19,680 --> 00:07:24,320 rejection, Moses with the murmuring and complaining 100 00:07:24,320 --> 00:07:29,600 people, Hannah without a child, Naomi the loss of her husband, 101 00:07:29,800 --> 00:07:33,000 and Lazarus was dead. I don't know where you found 102 00:07:33,000 --> 00:07:37,000 yourself this morning experiencing something that you 103 00:07:37,000 --> 00:07:39,160 just think that you can't handle. 104 00:07:39,280 --> 00:07:45,280 Here is a biblical truth that God does not prevent pressure 105 00:07:46,520 --> 00:07:52,120 because pressure points to something. 106 00:07:52,840 --> 00:07:58,240 Pressure points to new life is coming when you feel an 107 00:07:58,240 --> 00:08:04,200 overwhelming sense of pressure, and I want to free us from this 108 00:08:04,440 --> 00:08:07,480 is it. God doesn't expect us to handle 109 00:08:07,480 --> 00:08:11,600 this, but he does expect us to hand this over to him. 110 00:08:12,720 --> 00:08:15,640 And I think it's important that we realize this because some of 111 00:08:15,640 --> 00:08:20,600 us, we are trying to rally our own strength rather than solely 112 00:08:20,600 --> 00:08:24,240 relying on the strength that God has given to us. 113 00:08:24,720 --> 00:08:28,600 I love what Charles Spurgeon said, the British preacher who 114 00:08:28,600 --> 00:08:33,320 once said these words. I pray I learn this quickly in 115 00:08:33,320 --> 00:08:36,720 my life, he said in regards to his depression. 116 00:08:36,919 --> 00:08:41,039 I have learned to kiss the wave that throws me against the Rock 117 00:08:41,039 --> 00:08:45,080 of Ages. Oh, how we need this because 118 00:08:45,080 --> 00:08:48,640 we're putting our hands and places and carrying weights that 119 00:08:48,640 --> 00:08:51,280 God has never called us to carry. 120 00:08:51,760 --> 00:08:54,760 He's bringing us to a spot that is so free. 121 00:08:54,880 --> 00:08:57,720 Yes, it might be painful, but it will be freeing. 122 00:08:57,920 --> 00:09:00,920 Listen, you're not the only one facing the pressure. 123 00:09:01,320 --> 00:09:03,880 I love what the apostle Paul said in Second Corinthians 124 00:09:03,880 --> 00:09:07,920 chapter one, verse 8 through 9. He said, we do not want you to 125 00:09:07,920 --> 00:09:11,320 be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we 126 00:09:11,320 --> 00:09:13,960 experienced in the province of Asia. 127 00:09:14,120 --> 00:09:18,000 Listen to what he says. We were under great pressure, 128 00:09:18,200 --> 00:09:23,080 far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of 129 00:09:23,080 --> 00:09:27,000 life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received 130 00:09:27,000 --> 00:09:29,960 the sentence of death. But this happened that we might 131 00:09:29,960 --> 00:09:36,040 solely rely not on ourselves, but on God who raises the debt. 132 00:09:36,600 --> 00:09:40,840 Listen what happened to the life of Jesus in Luke 22, the Bible 133 00:09:40,840 --> 00:09:44,840 tells us in verse 44. And being in agony, he prayed 134 00:09:44,840 --> 00:09:50,920 more earnestly. Jesus seated on the throne in 135 00:09:50,920 --> 00:09:57,240 humanity in agony. And some of you are in that spot 136 00:09:57,440 --> 00:10:01,320 this morning. It was even difficult for you to 137 00:10:01,320 --> 00:10:04,360 wake up. It was difficult for you to lift 138 00:10:04,360 --> 00:10:07,840 your head from the bed. The agony of what you are 139 00:10:07,840 --> 00:10:13,040 feeling has detoured and distracted your life to a place 140 00:10:13,240 --> 00:10:16,560 that when it is oftentimes said to get in community, you don't 141 00:10:16,560 --> 00:10:18,400 even want to be around community. 142 00:10:19,360 --> 00:10:22,760 You just want to in your own life, find that you can just 143 00:10:22,960 --> 00:10:28,200 isolate yourself. Listen, this is the agony that 144 00:10:28,200 --> 00:10:34,040 David is in in chapter 21. If we were to subtitle title the 145 00:10:34,280 --> 00:10:39,000 chapter of First Samuel 21, it would be under pressure. 146 00:10:39,520 --> 00:10:44,320 David is under pressure. David, as you know, all of 147 00:10:44,320 --> 00:10:48,120 Samuel is wrapped up telling the tale of three kings. 148 00:10:48,120 --> 00:10:52,720 In First Samuel we know that the Bible declares to us that there 149 00:10:52,720 --> 00:10:58,520 was that Israel asked for a king by the name of Saul who then 150 00:10:58,520 --> 00:11:00,800 forsook the Lord and disobeyed the Lord. 151 00:11:00,800 --> 00:11:05,680 That led into God anointing King David and David points us to the 152 00:11:05,680 --> 00:11:08,680 greatest king of all and that is Jesus. 153 00:11:08,680 --> 00:11:13,040 At this point in time of the story in First Samuel 21, David 154 00:11:13,040 --> 00:11:16,800 has defeated Goliath. David now defeating Goliath has 155 00:11:16,840 --> 00:11:21,400 everybody singing his hit song on OK love and that is this. 156 00:11:21,720 --> 00:11:25,960 Saul has slain his thousands, but David his 10s of thousands. 157 00:11:26,680 --> 00:11:30,280 You think that Saul is king would be excited and he's 158 00:11:30,360 --> 00:11:33,720 stricken with extreme jealousy over Davidde life. 159 00:11:34,440 --> 00:11:38,840 Saul seeks to kill David, not to lift David up. 160 00:11:39,320 --> 00:11:41,320 You remember he throws Spears at David. 161 00:11:41,720 --> 00:11:44,520 He now seeks out through Jonathan to kill David. 162 00:11:44,640 --> 00:11:48,480 He seeks out through his own army to wipe out the man who 163 00:11:48,480 --> 00:11:51,480 brought the greatest victory to the nation of Israel at this 164 00:11:51,480 --> 00:11:54,920 time in the valley of Elah. And here is David. 165 00:11:55,040 --> 00:11:59,000 He's not reigning as king, although he's anointed to be 166 00:11:59,000 --> 00:12:01,720 king. He is running for his life. 167 00:12:01,960 --> 00:12:06,600 The king has become the fugitive, and here is David in 168 00:12:06,600 --> 00:12:10,920 this point in time, not in the palace, but in pain. 169 00:12:11,120 --> 00:12:14,120 He has the calling, He has the anointing. 170 00:12:14,280 --> 00:12:18,720 But Saul wants him killed. This is the dry season. 171 00:12:18,880 --> 00:12:25,200 This is 10 to 12 years of David's life running for his 172 00:12:25,200 --> 00:12:31,160 life, trying to catch a breath because one thing after another 173 00:12:31,280 --> 00:12:35,120 keeps on hitting him. He lost everything. 174 00:12:35,520 --> 00:12:39,360 David lost the respect of King Saul. 175 00:12:40,000 --> 00:12:45,760 He lost Michael, his wife. He had to leave Jonathan, his 176 00:12:45,760 --> 00:12:48,200 best friend he had to turn away from. 177 00:12:48,720 --> 00:12:55,720 And now David finds himself in this pressure moment, sitting 178 00:12:55,720 --> 00:13:01,920 and not just waiting, but he's now acting in fear. 179 00:13:02,880 --> 00:13:09,320 They say that pressure makes diamonds. 180 00:13:09,320 --> 00:13:13,920 Isn't that a cool slogan? Pressure makes diamonds. 181 00:13:13,920 --> 00:13:15,480 We say things like that all the time. 182 00:13:16,200 --> 00:13:17,760 Pressure not only makes diamonds. 183 00:13:17,760 --> 00:13:24,360 Pressure makes dumb decisions. Pressure can cause people 184 00:13:24,640 --> 00:13:27,200 seeking for a divorce when there's no reason to get a 185 00:13:27,200 --> 00:13:30,360 divorce. Pressure will make you a proud 186 00:13:30,360 --> 00:13:36,680 owner of a timeshare, David. His dreams are deferred, his 187 00:13:36,680 --> 00:13:39,800 hope is dashed. In this moment, he's filled with 188 00:13:39,800 --> 00:13:44,720 the crushing pain, the unspeakable pain, and he makes 189 00:13:44,720 --> 00:13:47,040 poor decisions. In chapter 21. 190 00:13:47,320 --> 00:13:50,840 Isn't it good that God highlights the reality of the 191 00:13:50,840 --> 00:13:55,480 real story of people's lives? They're not hidden from us. 192 00:13:55,600 --> 00:13:59,200 We're not just seeing David's highlight roles on Instagrams or 193 00:13:59,200 --> 00:14:04,320 his cool messages on X. We're we're not seeing his cool 194 00:14:04,320 --> 00:14:06,600 Snapchats or whatever it might be. 195 00:14:06,600 --> 00:14:12,360 We are seeing the reality of David's life and he makes some 196 00:14:12,360 --> 00:14:17,480 very poor decisions. He is at this place and I 197 00:14:17,480 --> 00:14:19,480 believe some of you are at this place. 198 00:14:19,680 --> 00:14:23,640 And I want this to be a warning. I want this to be a guardrail. 199 00:14:23,760 --> 00:14:27,760 I want this to come alongside of you as a as a trusted friend and 200 00:14:27,760 --> 00:14:31,080 bring some truth in your life. When you are in a pressure 201 00:14:31,080 --> 00:14:35,200 moment. What should we be aware of? 202 00:14:36,040 --> 00:14:38,480 What should we be aware of because a lot of us are waiting 203 00:14:38,480 --> 00:14:42,400 for something to change. I was helping a friend move just 204 00:14:42,400 --> 00:14:47,920 yesterday and he said to me, he said the elevator is slow and it 205 00:14:47,920 --> 00:14:50,840 is slow. And if you know me, I am very 206 00:14:50,840 --> 00:14:57,160 claustrophobic and every elevator, I never want it to 207 00:14:57,160 --> 00:15:02,560 break because the door is going to take a long time to open. 208 00:15:04,200 --> 00:15:07,760 And so I said to them, I got it. I'll take this down myself. 209 00:15:08,960 --> 00:15:15,280 I hit on Level 3, I hit the button 1 and I'm waiting and I'm 210 00:15:15,280 --> 00:15:22,240 waiting and I'm waiting and I'm waiting and I'm waiting and I'm 211 00:15:22,240 --> 00:15:24,760 waiting. Then now I'm waiting and 212 00:15:24,760 --> 00:15:28,200 sweating. I'm waiting and sweating. 213 00:15:28,640 --> 00:15:30,840 I'm waiting and sweating. I'm waiting. 214 00:15:30,840 --> 00:15:34,160 It felt like forever and it was only like 3 minutes but it felt 215 00:15:34,160 --> 00:15:36,280 like forever. Then I'm waiting, sweating, and 216 00:15:36,280 --> 00:15:40,520 then panicking. And then not only was I 217 00:15:40,520 --> 00:15:43,280 panicking, I was looking for somewhere where I could be 218 00:15:43,280 --> 00:15:49,520 exiting. I had to get out of that place 219 00:15:50,640 --> 00:15:55,760 and all I wanted was for the door to open and I could breathe 220 00:15:55,800 --> 00:15:59,520 in some fresh air. And some of you right now you've 221 00:15:59,520 --> 00:16:03,000 been waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting, and now 222 00:16:03,000 --> 00:16:05,760 you're waiting and sweating. Now you're waiting and 223 00:16:05,760 --> 00:16:09,320 panicking, and now you're waiting looking for an exit. 224 00:16:09,320 --> 00:16:12,640 But it's the same place you need to stay because it's in that 225 00:16:12,640 --> 00:16:15,520 spot that God is going to do His greatest work. 226 00:16:16,600 --> 00:16:21,320 And I think sometimes, sometimes we quickly get out of situations 227 00:16:21,320 --> 00:16:24,640 simply because we don't like the pain or the pressure that we're 228 00:16:24,640 --> 00:16:26,760 in. And what that births in our 229 00:16:26,760 --> 00:16:31,680 lives is we cut and negate the new life that God wants to bring 230 00:16:31,880 --> 00:16:35,280 because we want to escape quickly out of pressure and 231 00:16:35,280 --> 00:16:38,560 painful moments. And that is exactly what David 232 00:16:38,560 --> 00:16:41,120 does. David finds himself at this 233 00:16:41,120 --> 00:16:42,960 place. And we would look at the end of 234 00:16:42,960 --> 00:16:47,920 the chapter, he is acting crazy. But if we go all the way through 235 00:16:47,920 --> 00:16:51,000 this chapter, we're going to learn David does some things he 236 00:16:51,000 --> 00:16:54,280 shouldn't have done in the midst of his pressure. 237 00:16:54,400 --> 00:16:57,920 The first thing he did was this, write this down. 238 00:16:58,640 --> 00:17:01,000 This is going to be important that you real you live this out 239 00:17:01,000 --> 00:17:04,800 on Monday. David, number one in pressure 240 00:17:05,000 --> 00:17:07,440 says things he should have never said. 241 00:17:08,960 --> 00:17:14,040 David under pressure says things he should have never said. 242 00:17:14,200 --> 00:17:16,839 Notice this Jonathan is now gone. 243 00:17:17,000 --> 00:17:23,200 David now he came to Knob to Ahemalek the priest. 244 00:17:23,359 --> 00:17:28,840 And Himalek was afraid when he met David and said to him, Why 245 00:17:29,000 --> 00:17:32,960 are you alone and no one is with you? 246 00:17:33,360 --> 00:17:39,800 And so notice this, David said to Himalek, the priest, excuse 247 00:17:39,800 --> 00:17:44,480 me, the king has ordered me on some business and said to me, do 248 00:17:44,480 --> 00:17:48,680 not let anyone know anything about the business on which I 249 00:17:48,680 --> 00:17:50,600 send you or what I have commanded you. 250 00:17:50,960 --> 00:17:55,560 And I have directed my young men, he says, to such and such a 251 00:17:55,640 --> 00:17:59,280 place. David flees from Jonathan, but 252 00:17:59,280 --> 00:18:04,640 then he goes from where Jonathan is at to a city called Nob. 253 00:18:04,800 --> 00:18:09,440 Now Nob is known as the Priestly City. 254 00:18:09,720 --> 00:18:14,240 It's in this spot of Nob, if you're taking note that 85 255 00:18:14,240 --> 00:18:23,640 priests are there, and David seeks quick refuge and Nob and 256 00:18:23,640 --> 00:18:26,240 he runs into a man named Ahimelech. 257 00:18:26,240 --> 00:18:31,280 The priest Ahimelech was related to Eli. 258 00:18:32,680 --> 00:18:37,600 And there at this spot, Ahimelech, the Bible says, was 259 00:18:37,600 --> 00:18:41,320 afraid because he knew that David should have been 260 00:18:41,320 --> 00:18:44,560 surrounded by men. But David's not surrounded by 261 00:18:44,560 --> 00:18:46,960 men. He's alone. 262 00:18:48,200 --> 00:18:51,840 That's where fear will often lead me. 263 00:18:52,760 --> 00:19:01,160 Alone, alone, isolated. And no one, he says, is with 264 00:19:01,160 --> 00:19:04,600 you. And then the Bible says that 265 00:19:04,600 --> 00:19:09,920 David said, now this is a man after God's own heart. 266 00:19:10,680 --> 00:19:15,840 This is the king of Israel. This is the same man who wrote 267 00:19:16,280 --> 00:19:20,400 the majority of the Psalms. In the book of Psalms. 268 00:19:21,120 --> 00:19:24,000 He says to him, elect the priest. 269 00:19:24,320 --> 00:19:32,920 The king has ordered me on some business, lie #1 #2 And he said 270 00:19:32,920 --> 00:19:36,200 to me, Do not let anyone know anything about the business 271 00:19:36,200 --> 00:19:40,840 which I send you. Lie #2 Then he says these words, 272 00:19:41,640 --> 00:19:46,440 or what I have commanded you, and I have directed my young man 273 00:19:46,440 --> 00:19:53,360 to such and such a place, which is lie #3 Notice this David, the 274 00:19:53,360 --> 00:20:00,720 man after God's own heart is a man who lies. 275 00:20:01,280 --> 00:20:03,560 Three lies. The king sends me on some 276 00:20:03,560 --> 00:20:06,080 business. Don't let anyone know. 277 00:20:06,280 --> 00:20:10,080 And I've directed my young man to such and such a place. 278 00:20:10,320 --> 00:20:12,400 I want you to see this because I want you to see. 279 00:20:12,400 --> 00:20:15,520 David's difficulty led to David's deception. 280 00:20:16,920 --> 00:20:21,200 And in this deception, because of David's languish, he lies. 281 00:20:21,680 --> 00:20:27,160 He adopted what is commonly known as situational ethics, and 282 00:20:27,160 --> 00:20:31,800 that is situational ethics is what is the best option in the 283 00:20:31,800 --> 00:20:35,400 midst of this. But notice this, the lie meets 284 00:20:35,400 --> 00:20:38,320 the immediate needs but has a horrible end. 285 00:20:40,600 --> 00:20:46,960 David, as John MacArthur said, lied and because he was in a 286 00:20:46,960 --> 00:20:54,400 tough spot, the lie could not be excused because of the pressure 287 00:20:54,560 --> 00:20:57,800 that he was under. And this is often times what 288 00:20:57,800 --> 00:21:02,120 happens in every one of our lives is this. 289 00:21:02,240 --> 00:21:07,440 Like David, our speech is driven by the stress and the situation. 290 00:21:08,760 --> 00:21:12,600 I believe because we see things that seem to be out of control, 291 00:21:12,840 --> 00:21:18,360 it leads to often times how we communicate to other people. 292 00:21:18,600 --> 00:21:23,360 Pressure on the outside will often push up what is on the 293 00:21:23,360 --> 00:21:26,640 inside. And there we say things that we 294 00:21:26,640 --> 00:21:31,320 later regret to people that we say we truly love, that leads to 295 00:21:31,320 --> 00:21:33,760 hurting people that we say we're wanting to protect. 296 00:21:35,040 --> 00:21:39,760 And listen, if you would, in pressure, we say things that we 297 00:21:39,760 --> 00:21:42,800 shouldn't say. But I want you to hear this 298 00:21:42,800 --> 00:21:48,400 today. What comes out of your mouth 299 00:21:48,640 --> 00:21:53,480 matters. Can I just say that again, what 300 00:21:53,480 --> 00:21:59,760 comes out of your mouth matters? You remember I told you that 301 00:21:59,760 --> 00:22:04,120 story of that guy at the stoplight when I'd stopped and I 302 00:22:04,120 --> 00:22:05,920 was looking to my right and to my left. 303 00:22:05,920 --> 00:22:09,080 And I looked over to my left and there's this older gentleman in 304 00:22:09,080 --> 00:22:14,080 his car and, and I just just looked at him and all of a 305 00:22:14,080 --> 00:22:18,560 sudden he pulled his top denture piece out of his mouth. 306 00:22:20,520 --> 00:22:24,160 What comes out of your mouth matters, He then began, as he 307 00:22:24,160 --> 00:22:27,640 was waiting for the light to turn green, he began to pick at 308 00:22:27,640 --> 00:22:32,240 the dentures. And then he licked his dentures. 309 00:22:33,680 --> 00:22:38,840 And then he rubbed his dentures on his shirt, and then he stuck 310 00:22:38,840 --> 00:22:41,120 his dentures back into his mouth. 311 00:22:42,720 --> 00:22:46,200 What comes out of your mouth matters. 312 00:22:48,040 --> 00:22:55,400 And we say that's disgusting, but why does my sin always look 313 00:22:55,400 --> 00:23:00,360 worse on other people? Because what's coming out of my 314 00:23:00,360 --> 00:23:03,920 mouth could also be very disgusting. 315 00:23:03,920 --> 00:23:07,280 I want to say this with all grace, but I want to say this 316 00:23:07,280 --> 00:23:10,240 truthfully. Christianity and cussing don't 317 00:23:10,240 --> 00:23:17,000 go hand in hand. I just want you to hear that you 318 00:23:17,000 --> 00:23:20,680 claim to be a Christian and your mouth is full of cursing. 319 00:23:21,920 --> 00:23:27,480 It doesn't match up, it doesn't go together. 320 00:23:28,280 --> 00:23:32,560 If God has changed someone's heart, he changes somebody's 321 00:23:32,560 --> 00:23:35,440 mouth. And let me just take it a little 322 00:23:35,440 --> 00:23:37,520 bit further because I feel like I can. 323 00:23:39,560 --> 00:23:44,800 There's something called Christian cussing and that is we 324 00:23:44,800 --> 00:23:50,000 only say the 1st letter of the word or we use words like 325 00:23:50,000 --> 00:23:58,000 freaking let us be men and women of character that our mouth 326 00:23:58,000 --> 00:24:01,640 matches what's going on inside of our heart. 327 00:24:02,760 --> 00:24:06,800 Because the pressure's not changing you, it's only 328 00:24:06,800 --> 00:24:10,160 revealing you. And we think, well, the 329 00:24:10,160 --> 00:24:13,760 pressure's just changed me. And here's what I, I will often 330 00:24:13,760 --> 00:24:15,880 do. And here's what we will often 331 00:24:15,880 --> 00:24:20,400 say to people. It's often times because of 332 00:24:20,400 --> 00:24:25,080 what's happened to me that that's actually why I said this. 333 00:24:25,080 --> 00:24:29,480 But but, but listen, my words coming out of my mouth could 334 00:24:29,480 --> 00:24:33,160 just be as disgusting as the event that I saw. 335 00:24:33,240 --> 00:24:38,480 And I was grossed out in my car looking at a man who was pulling 336 00:24:38,480 --> 00:24:40,800 something out of his mouth that actually should have stayed 337 00:24:40,800 --> 00:24:43,920 inside of his mouth. And maybe your words should just 338 00:24:43,920 --> 00:24:48,240 stay inside of your mouth. Maybe our word should just stay 339 00:24:48,240 --> 00:24:51,280 inside of our mouth. Maybe you might think it, but 340 00:24:51,280 --> 00:24:53,400 that doesn't mean you actually have to say it. 341 00:24:54,440 --> 00:24:58,320 And maybe in this moment, what's happening in our lives is what 342 00:24:58,320 --> 00:25:02,160 the poem once said. I know my diet is not the best, 343 00:25:02,160 --> 00:25:05,600 but it really is the words that you have spoken that I cannot 344 00:25:05,600 --> 00:25:09,320 digest. We begin to believe that it's OK 345 00:25:09,840 --> 00:25:14,280 to cuss because of our crisis. We say things like this. 346 00:25:14,920 --> 00:25:19,240 That's the stress speaking or I'm going to get myself in 347 00:25:19,240 --> 00:25:22,920 trouble. It's because of the menstrual 348 00:25:22,920 --> 00:25:29,120 cycle. It it's actually because things 349 00:25:29,120 --> 00:25:33,040 are hard at work that I come home saying these things. 350 00:25:33,640 --> 00:25:39,240 It's actually because of my bad day that I have a bad mouth. 351 00:25:39,240 --> 00:25:40,680 No, no, no, no, no. Listen. 352 00:25:41,000 --> 00:25:46,680 If we shake the cup, what comes out is what's inside of the cup. 353 00:25:48,240 --> 00:25:55,800 What's already in there is what has come out and defiled the man 354 00:25:56,160 --> 00:25:59,480 or the woman. Listen, we might say, how did 355 00:25:59,480 --> 00:26:04,120 David sin with Bathsheba? How did that all happened all at 356 00:26:04,120 --> 00:26:06,280 once? I don't believe that happened 357 00:26:06,280 --> 00:26:10,520 all at once. I believe this happened as a 358 00:26:10,520 --> 00:26:14,080 small factor in First Samuel chapter 21. 359 00:26:14,080 --> 00:26:21,160 David began to lie and thus the effect now reaches Second Samuel 360 00:26:21,160 --> 00:26:25,000 Chapter 11, that it actually started in First Samuel chapter 361 00:26:25,000 --> 00:26:27,280 21. And you might say, well, I just 362 00:26:27,280 --> 00:26:29,160 lied just a little bit about that. 363 00:26:29,560 --> 00:26:33,080 And it leads to greater and greater and greater and greater 364 00:26:33,240 --> 00:26:38,000 devastation in our lives. These are the words that we say 365 00:26:39,440 --> 00:26:45,520 I hate you. These are the words we say, I 366 00:26:45,520 --> 00:26:48,040 wish I was never a part of this family. 367 00:26:50,040 --> 00:26:54,760 These are the words that we say, How could I have ever thought to 368 00:26:54,760 --> 00:27:00,400 marry a man like you? How could I have ever have 369 00:27:00,400 --> 00:27:06,560 thought in my life to have a wife like you? 370 00:27:08,960 --> 00:27:14,720 Students, teenagers to their parents, you're just a horrible 371 00:27:14,720 --> 00:27:16,360 parent. Why? 372 00:27:17,760 --> 00:27:22,440 Because you're so strict. And because you're so strict, 373 00:27:22,440 --> 00:27:26,600 you're horrible. Did you know someone else could 374 00:27:26,600 --> 00:27:31,120 have done a lot better than you? We say things like I will never 375 00:27:31,120 --> 00:27:35,560 forgive you. We say things like we should 376 00:27:35,560 --> 00:27:39,800 have never gotten married. We say things like this, I can't 377 00:27:39,800 --> 00:27:49,600 stand it to be here. We tell people to go to How 378 00:27:49,600 --> 00:27:54,600 could someone who's going to heaven tell someone that 379 00:27:54,600 --> 00:28:01,000 statement? We say things like you're an 380 00:28:01,000 --> 00:28:04,800 idiot. I wish you were never born. 381 00:28:06,640 --> 00:28:12,480 And here's in this moment that we have a choice to use our 382 00:28:12,480 --> 00:28:16,320 mouth in three ways. We could use our mouth to 383 00:28:16,320 --> 00:28:19,720 direct. We can use our mouth to direct. 384 00:28:19,720 --> 00:28:23,360 David could have been honest in this situation. 385 00:28:23,640 --> 00:28:28,160 We could speak truth in love and we can help the situation and 386 00:28:28,160 --> 00:28:31,600 not harbor or hinder the hurt in the situation. 387 00:28:32,120 --> 00:28:34,280 We can use our words to delight people. 388 00:28:34,280 --> 00:28:37,480 We can speak the truth in love, and love gives birth to 389 00:28:37,480 --> 00:28:40,800 encouragement, but maybe in delighting you don't just make 390 00:28:40,800 --> 00:28:43,320 strong state statements. Maybe we're going to ask great 391 00:28:43,320 --> 00:28:47,640 questions. Maybe honesty needs to be seen 392 00:28:47,640 --> 00:28:51,120 as something that's going to be refreshing or you can destroy. 393 00:28:51,120 --> 00:28:54,040 Do you know what happened in Nob with David's lie? 394 00:28:54,800 --> 00:28:59,520 85 priests were slaughtered in that city because of David's 395 00:28:59,520 --> 00:29:03,280 actions. I was looking up for the city of 396 00:29:03,280 --> 00:29:07,200 Nob, what it meant in the history behind Nob, and I just 397 00:29:07,200 --> 00:29:11,240 kept getting the slaughter of Knob, the slaughter of Knob, the 398 00:29:11,240 --> 00:29:18,400 slaughter of Knob, all stemming from David's lie in Knob. 399 00:29:18,400 --> 00:29:25,400 All that we would see that our speech could be something that 400 00:29:25,400 --> 00:29:28,960 is slaughtering. And I think when we say things 401 00:29:28,960 --> 00:29:32,040 in pressure, we say things we later regret. 402 00:29:33,440 --> 00:29:35,680 Maybe that's not you. Maybe you're not saying things 403 00:29:35,680 --> 00:29:39,000 that you shouldn't be saying, but maybe in pressure, if you 404 00:29:39,000 --> 00:29:42,760 take no, write this down. In pressure we take things we 405 00:29:42,760 --> 00:29:46,360 shouldn't take. In pressure we take things we 406 00:29:46,360 --> 00:29:49,960 shouldn't take. The Bible says in verse 3, David 407 00:29:49,960 --> 00:29:52,200 says, now therefore what have you on hand? 408 00:29:52,200 --> 00:29:55,640 Give me 5 loaves of bread in my hand, which was the show bread 409 00:29:55,880 --> 00:29:59,640 for the priest or whatever could be found. 410 00:29:59,640 --> 00:30:02,360 And the priest answered David and said, there's no common 411 00:30:02,360 --> 00:30:06,520 bread on hand, but there is holy bread if the young men have at 412 00:30:06,520 --> 00:30:08,280 least kept themselves from women. 413 00:30:08,520 --> 00:30:11,240 And then David answered the priest and said to him, truly 414 00:30:11,240 --> 00:30:15,080 women have been kept from us about 3 days since I came out, 415 00:30:15,240 --> 00:30:18,200 and the vessels of the young men are holy, and the bread is in 416 00:30:18,200 --> 00:30:22,160 effect common, even though it was sanctified in the vessel 417 00:30:22,280 --> 00:30:24,120 this day. So the priest gave him holy 418 00:30:24,120 --> 00:30:27,320 bread, for there was no bread there but the showbread, which 419 00:30:27,320 --> 00:30:31,280 had been taken from before the Lord in order to put hot bread 420 00:30:31,280 --> 00:30:34,920 in its place on the day when it was taken away. 421 00:30:35,120 --> 00:30:38,360 And now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that 422 00:30:38,360 --> 00:30:43,600 day detained before the Lord. And his name was Doeg the and 423 00:30:43,600 --> 00:30:47,720 Edomite, the chief of the herdsmen who belong to Saul. 424 00:30:47,920 --> 00:30:52,640 And David said to him, Alec, is there not here on hand a spear 425 00:30:52,640 --> 00:30:55,240 or a sword? For I have brought neither my 426 00:30:55,240 --> 00:30:58,280 sword nor my weapons with me, because the King's business 427 00:30:58,480 --> 00:31:03,080 required ace another lie. So the priest said, the sword of 428 00:31:03,080 --> 00:31:06,720 Goliath at the Philistine whom you killed is in the from the 429 00:31:06,720 --> 00:31:09,080 valley of Elah. There it is wrapped in a cloth 430 00:31:09,080 --> 00:31:12,640 behind in the ephod. If you will take that, take it, 431 00:31:12,800 --> 00:31:15,560 for there is no other except that one here. 432 00:31:15,680 --> 00:31:18,760 And David said there is no, none like it. 433 00:31:18,760 --> 00:31:23,360 Notice this. Give it to me. 434 00:31:24,160 --> 00:31:26,680 Look at, look at twice this word. 435 00:31:26,680 --> 00:31:30,920 Notice this, this word we begin to take things we shouldn't 436 00:31:30,920 --> 00:31:33,880 take. Notice verse 3 David says give 437 00:31:33,880 --> 00:31:37,800 me 5 loafs. Now notice if you would 438 00:31:38,120 --> 00:31:44,880 following here in this chapter at the end of verse 9, give it 439 00:31:45,160 --> 00:31:49,520 to me now. Commentaries disagree on if it 440 00:31:49,520 --> 00:31:53,840 was OK if David should have taken the showbread from the 441 00:31:53,840 --> 00:31:58,080 temple and from the priest. They say Jesus used it as an act 442 00:31:58,400 --> 00:32:01,000 of showing mercy. Some say that Jesus was being 443 00:32:01,000 --> 00:32:05,360 sarcastic with the Pharisees in regards to them trying to keep 444 00:32:05,520 --> 00:32:09,040 the the minute things and the legalism that they were trying 445 00:32:09,040 --> 00:32:11,640 to hold on to, whatever it might have been. 446 00:32:11,640 --> 00:32:16,600 This was to represent and to be a place of worship. 447 00:32:17,800 --> 00:32:22,640 And David begins to take things that he shouldn't take. 448 00:32:22,680 --> 00:32:29,480 And this is his word. Give it to me once in verse 3 449 00:32:29,640 --> 00:32:34,360 and once in verse 9. Notice the word give there means 450 00:32:34,360 --> 00:32:42,280 to hand this over. Hand this over to me and here's 451 00:32:42,280 --> 00:32:45,400 what I want to remind you of today and pressure. 452 00:32:45,800 --> 00:32:50,120 He sought his own way to get provision rather than God's. 453 00:32:51,000 --> 00:32:55,320 And I think we fall into this trap and that is this, that we 454 00:32:55,320 --> 00:33:03,680 think that immediate fleshly pleasure takes away external 455 00:33:03,680 --> 00:33:06,560 pressure. It doesn't. 456 00:33:07,640 --> 00:33:14,480 If we think that outside sin and us getting that sin will bring 457 00:33:14,920 --> 00:33:20,440 the release of pressure, it only adds to the pressure. 458 00:33:21,000 --> 00:33:25,080 And here's what the enemy does. He says, act like this. 459 00:33:25,080 --> 00:33:29,200 Do this and you can find within yourself that you will be 460 00:33:29,200 --> 00:33:34,480 absolutely free. That's the exact thing that Eve 461 00:33:34,760 --> 00:33:43,280 and Adam did in the garden. Take the enemy set, eat, for 462 00:33:43,280 --> 00:33:50,760 then your eyes will be open. Notice this. 463 00:33:50,840 --> 00:33:57,080 The lie is this is that we truly believe that fleshly pleasure 464 00:33:57,480 --> 00:34:02,440 can take away internal and external pressure. 465 00:34:03,160 --> 00:34:10,520 And I am reminded constantly of the tragic life story of Ravi 466 00:34:10,600 --> 00:34:20,920 Zacharias, a man who was the apologist of the century, who 467 00:34:20,920 --> 00:34:26,880 spoke for Jesus, who defended Jesus. 468 00:34:29,080 --> 00:34:32,400 But come to find out, he really didn't live for Jesus. 469 00:34:34,760 --> 00:34:39,840 In the testimonies of his life coming from the women that he 470 00:34:39,840 --> 00:34:45,320 involved himself with, he would cry out in those rooms. 471 00:34:45,520 --> 00:34:52,120 They said, you don't know what kind of pressure I'm under. 472 00:34:54,679 --> 00:35:00,840 And I think that's the excuse that we use when we go and we 473 00:35:00,840 --> 00:35:09,840 find ourselves drinking another cup of alcohol to just calm 474 00:35:09,840 --> 00:35:14,000 ourselves down. I think that's what we do when 475 00:35:14,000 --> 00:35:18,080 we go to the drugs, when we go and have this relationship with 476 00:35:18,080 --> 00:35:20,040 food. And we think that that's going 477 00:35:20,040 --> 00:35:23,800 to be freedom or we enter into another relationship because we 478 00:35:23,800 --> 00:35:27,520 think that if we do that, then our eyes will truly be open. 479 00:35:27,520 --> 00:35:31,040 And this is what happens. You take things you shouldn't be 480 00:35:31,040 --> 00:35:35,440 taking. The showbread, the sword. 85 481 00:35:35,520 --> 00:35:40,320 lives of priests who represented God. 482 00:35:40,400 --> 00:35:43,680 Oh, that we would set in our motion that pressure is coming. 483 00:35:44,400 --> 00:35:47,880 And I think we love to talk about the promises of God, but 484 00:35:47,880 --> 00:35:50,920 we don't like to talk about how God allows pressure to happen in 485 00:35:50,920 --> 00:35:54,120 our lives. Oh, that we would see that it it 486 00:35:54,120 --> 00:35:57,760 is coming or maybe it's even there, but you don't have to 487 00:35:57,760 --> 00:36:01,840 respond that way anymore. Listen, maybe the third thing, 488 00:36:01,840 --> 00:36:04,240 and I'm just going to wrap this up because I'm going too long, 489 00:36:04,480 --> 00:36:07,880 is this it is We go to places we shouldn't go. 490 00:36:08,600 --> 00:36:12,400 We go to places we shouldn't go. Listen, what happens to David? 491 00:36:12,800 --> 00:36:16,160 David arose and he fled that day before Saul and went to Akash, 492 00:36:16,160 --> 00:36:18,960 the king of Gath. And the servants of Akash said 493 00:36:18,960 --> 00:36:21,600 to him, is this not David the king of the land? 494 00:36:22,160 --> 00:36:24,680 Did they not sing of him to one another? 495 00:36:24,680 --> 00:36:27,920 And dances, saying, Saul is slain to his thousands, David is 496 00:36:27,920 --> 00:36:31,080 10s of thousands. And now David took these words 497 00:36:31,080 --> 00:36:34,400 to heart, and he was very much afraid of Akesh, the king of 498 00:36:34,400 --> 00:36:37,360 Gath. Gath is in the country of the 499 00:36:37,360 --> 00:36:42,440 Philistines. The Philistines are the enemy of 500 00:36:42,440 --> 00:36:49,720 the people of Israel. And David goes down, and then he 501 00:36:49,720 --> 00:36:52,120 changed his behavior before them. 502 00:36:52,640 --> 00:36:56,000 Just like us, when we're around certain people, we'll often 503 00:36:56,000 --> 00:37:00,800 change our behavior to meet the criteria that they are at 504 00:37:00,800 --> 00:37:02,480 instead of what God is calling us to. 505 00:37:03,920 --> 00:37:07,880 And there he finds himself in the enemy's territory. 506 00:37:08,160 --> 00:37:13,960 And then the Bible says that David fiend madness scratched 507 00:37:14,600 --> 00:37:18,560 the doors of the gate and let his saliva fall down on his 508 00:37:18,560 --> 00:37:20,560 beard. And then Akash said to his 509 00:37:20,560 --> 00:37:23,200 servants, Look, you see, the man is insane. 510 00:37:23,200 --> 00:37:27,160 Why have you brought him to me? Why have you brought him to me? 511 00:37:27,440 --> 00:37:31,680 David goes to a place he shouldn't go. 512 00:37:32,520 --> 00:37:35,960 And maybe as you've come into this place today, you are going 513 00:37:35,960 --> 00:37:40,480 to places that you shouldn't be going to, websites you should 514 00:37:40,480 --> 00:37:43,880 not be going to, friends you shouldn't be going to. 515 00:37:50,240 --> 00:37:54,880 And it's God's heart to bring you back to his land. 516 00:37:58,080 --> 00:38:03,280 Isn't it amazing that First Samuel 21 isn't the end of 517 00:38:03,280 --> 00:38:06,840 David's story? It's just a part of David's 518 00:38:06,840 --> 00:38:11,240 story. The pressure will not last 519 00:38:11,240 --> 00:38:18,360 forever, but what comes from that pressure and how it forms 520 00:38:18,360 --> 00:38:29,440 us could last forever. And David runs in fear for his 521 00:38:29,440 --> 00:38:32,560 life. And maybe today you've been 522 00:38:32,560 --> 00:38:36,520 running in fear for your life. Fear of that husband, fear of 523 00:38:36,520 --> 00:38:39,800 the situation, fear of that wife, fear of the job, fear of 524 00:38:39,800 --> 00:38:41,880 the financial pressure that's coming your way. 525 00:38:41,880 --> 00:38:46,440 Fear has LED you to this place of staying longer than you've 526 00:38:46,440 --> 00:38:50,120 ever wanted to stay and paying more than you've ever wanted to 527 00:38:50,120 --> 00:38:52,920 pay. And Jesus, out of his grace and 528 00:38:52,920 --> 00:38:57,400 mercy, like David, calls you to come, come back to the land 529 00:38:57,840 --> 00:39:01,800 that's governed by God, that your decisions are governed by 530 00:39:01,800 --> 00:39:05,160 God, and see what I will do in the midst of this situation. 531 00:39:05,160 --> 00:39:08,840 Will you pray with me? We hope you enjoyed this message 532 00:39:08,920 --> 00:39:11,920 and we'd love for you to join us in person every Sunday at 10:30 533 00:39:12,000 --> 00:39:13,600 AM. For more information and 534 00:39:13,600 --> 00:39:15,760 updates, visit wearebridgetown.com. 535 00:39:16,080 --> 00:39:18,080 Thanks for tuning in and we'll see you next week.