What event do you remember best
about David of the Bible? No doubt, his heroic contest with the giant Goliath.
Do you remember any other incidents in David’s life? Perhaps you recall his
sinful behavior many years later concerning Bathsheba, leading to adultery and
murder. These, surely, were the high and low points of David’s life. But the
Bible tells us much more about the life of David between these two points in
time. If we trace his history, we will find it to be like a roller coaster.
Here is an outline of David’s life
between Goliath and Bathsheba. Up and down arrows indicate which part of the
roller coaster track David is on.
Depends upon the LORD, kills Goliath (1 Sam. 17:34-51).
Behaves himself wisely (18:14).
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Asks Jonathan to tell a lie for him (20:6).
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Lies to Ahimelech the priest (21:2).
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Lies again to Ahimelech (21:8), ultimately resulting in the death of Ahimelech
and 84 other priests of Israel (22:9-19).
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Foolishly flees with Goliath’s sword to Gath, the former home of Goliath
(21:10).
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Pretends to be a madman (21:13,14).
Inquires of the LORD (23:2)
Inquires of the LORD (23:4).
Inquires of the LORD (23:10,11).
Inquires of the LORD (23:12).
Spares Saul’s life (24:3-7).
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Vengefully determines to kill Nabal and all the men in his compound
(25:13,21,22).
Humbly listens to Abigail’s advice (25:32,33).
Spares Saul’s life again (26:8-11).
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Faithlessly despairs of his life (27:1).
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Lies to Achish (27:10).
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Slaughters innocent people to cover up his lies to Achish (27:9,11).
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Pretends to join the Philistines in fighting against Israel (29:1-8).
Inquires of the LORD (30:8).
Inquires of the LORD (2 Sam. 2:1).
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Takes more wives (3:3).
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Takes Michal away from her husband to be his wife (3:13-16).
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Takes even more wives and concubines (5:13).
Inquires of the LORD (5:19).
Inquires of the LORD (5:23).
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Is displeased with the LORD (6:8).
Worships the LORD (7:18-29).
Shows kindness to the house of Saul (9:1-7),
Tries to show kindness to Hanun, king of Ammon (10:1-4).
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Commits adultery with Bathsheba and has her husband Uriah killed (11:2-17).
Every time David took matters into
his own hands he humiliated himself, he behaved foolishly, he told lies, he
caused misery to come upon himself and others, and he even caused the death of
others.
Every time he humbled himself,
depended upon the LORD, and asked the LORD for directions, the LORD blessed
him, protected him, gave him back what had been taken away, gave him victory
over his enemies, and even gave him the kingdom.
Is your life like a roller
coaster? Perhaps you need to stop doing your own thing (Isa. 53:6) and stop
taking matters into your own hands. And it is almost certain that you need to
humble yourself, depend upon the Lord, and ask the Lord continually for
directions in your everyday life.
Keep your focus continually on
Christ. Each morning when you get out of bed, remember what the Lord Jesus
Christ suffered for you on the cross and thank him afresh for His sacrifice for
you. Remember His great love for you. You will find that the love of Christ for
you is powerful. It will compel you and motivate you to live the day for Him
who died for you and rose again, and not to live unto yourself (see 2 Cor.
5:14,15).
Finally, we notice in Acts 13:22
that the Lord calls David—in spite of all his failures—"a man after My own
heart." This, I believe, was due to David’s keen awareness of his
failures, leading him to confess and repent of those sins to the LORD (2 Sam.
12:13; 24:10; Psa. 32:5; 51:1-19; 139:23,24).
May the Lord help every one of us
to keep our focus consistently and continually on Himself. May we in this way
be delivered from roller coaster lives, and may we live before the Lord in such
a way that He will be pleased to regard us as men and women after His own
heart. May we "do all to the glory of God" (1 Cor. 10:31).