Redeemer Weekend Sermons

Teacher: Adam Barnett

When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.  - James 1:13-15

One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful, and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite. Then David sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her. (Now she was purifying herself from her monthly uncleanness.) Then she went back home.  - 2 Samuel 11:2-4

“Satan does not fill us with hatred of God, but with forgetfulness of God.”  - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

The woman conceived and sent word to David, saying, “I am pregnant.”  - 2 Samuel 11:5

When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him. After the time of mourning was over, David had her brought to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing David had done displeased the Lord.  – 2 Samuel 11:26-27

1 - Idleness opens the door to temptation.

So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!  - 1 Corinthians 10:12

2 - Sin should be confessed, not covered up.

If we confess our sins, **he is faithful and just** and will **forgive us our sins** and **purify us** from all unrighteousness.  – 1 John 1:9

Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them **finds mercy**.  – Proverbs 28:13

Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.” And you **forgave the guilt of my sin**.  – Psalm 32:5

3 - Invite the accountability of trusted friends. 

Teacher: Tim Mannin

“Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent.” -2 Samuel 7:2

Nathan replied to the king, “Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the Lord is with you.” -2 Samuel 7:3

“Go and tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord says: Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in? I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day. I have been moving from place to place with a tent as my dwelling. Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their rulers whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?”’” -2 Samuel 7:5-7

“‘...and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also give you rest from all your enemies. The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you: When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.’” -2 Samuel 7:11-13

"Saying no helps children learn how to delay gratification, manage impulses, and develop self-control — qualities essential for success in life.” -Dr. David Walsh

HOW DO WE DISCERN WHEN GOD IS SAYING NO?

There’s No Way Through

There’s No Peace Within

There’s No Counsel Confirming It

GOD’S WAYS ARE GENERATIONAL

Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and he said: “Who am I, Sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?” -2 Samuel 7:18

Teacher: Dave Brown

When they came to the threshing floor of Nakhon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God because the oxen stumbled. The Lord’s anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act; therefore God struck him down, and he died there beside the ark of God.

— 2 Samuel 6:6-7

What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us… We tend by a secret law of the soul to move toward out mental image of God. This is true not only of the individual Christian, but of the company of Christians that composes the Church. Always the most revealing thing about the Church is her idea of God, just as her most significant message is what she says about Him or leaves unsaid, for her silence is often more eloquent than her speech.

— A.W. Tozer

Holy Scripture posts Uzzah as a danger sign for us: “Beware the God.” It’s especially important to have such a sign posted in places designated for religious worship and learning. We enter a church or school to learn God, be trained in knowledge and obedience and prayer. And we get what we came for—truth that centers, words that command and comfort, rituals that stabilize, work that has purpose, a community of relationships that strengthen, forgiveness that frees. We find God. We change our ways. We repent and believe and follow. We rearrange our circumstances and reestablish our routines around what now gives meaning and hope. We take on responsibilities in the wonderful new world of worship and work. We advance in the ranks, and before we know it we’re telling others what to do and how to do it. All this is good and right. And then we cross a line—we get bossy and cranky on behalf of God. We begin by finding in God a way to live rightly and well, and then along the way we take over God’s work for him and take charge of making sure others live rightly and well. We get the idea that we’re important, self-important, because we’re around the Important. Religion is a breeding ground for this kind of thing. Not infrequently these God-managing men and women work themselves into positions of leadership. Over the years the basics with which they began, the elements of reverence and awe, the spirit of love and faith, erode and shrivel. Finally there’s nothing left. They’re dead to God. Uzzah is a warning. If we think and act as he did, we’ll be dead men and women, soon or late. Dead in our spirits. Dead to the aliveness of God.

— Eugene Peterson

In olden days men of faith were said to “walk in the fear of God” and to “serve the Lord with fear.” However intimate their communion with God, however bold their prayers, at the base of their religious life was the conception of God as awesome and dreadful. This idea of God transcendent rims through the whole Bible and gives color and tone to the character of the saints. This fear of God was more than a natural apprehension of danger; it was a nonrational dread, an acute feeling of personal insufficiency in the presence of God the Almighty. Wherever God appeared to men in Bible times the results were the same-an overwhelming sense of terror and dismay, a wrenching sensation of sinfulness and guilt.

—A.W. Tozer

Fear is no longer the word I use to describe how I feel about God. Now I use words like reverent intimacy. I still fear God, and I pray that I always will. The Bible emphasizes the importance of fearing God…Our culture severely lacks the fear of God, and many of us are plagued with amnesia. But for a long time, I narrowly focused on His fearsomeness to the exclusion of His great and abounding love.

— Francis Chan

So David went to bring up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing. When those who were carrying the ark of the LORD had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf. Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the Lord with all his might, while he and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets.

— 2 Samuel 6:12b-15

Teacher: Adam Barnett

"‘Now I hear that it is sheep-shearing time. When your shepherds were with us, we did not mistreat them, and the whole time they were at Carmel nothing of theirs was missing. Ask your own servants and they will tell you. Therefore be favorable toward my men, since we come at a festive time. Please give your servants and your son David whatever you can find for them.’”  - 1 Samuel 25:7-8

David said to his men, “Each of you strap on your sword!” So they did, and David strapped his on as well. About four hundred men went up with David, while two hundred stayed with the supplies.  – 1 Samuel 25:13  

Unchecked anger leads to destructive choices (which could include permanent consequences).

32 David said to Abigail, “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who has sent you today to meet me. 33 May you be blessed for your good judgment and for keeping me from bloodshed this day and from avenging myself with my own hands. 34 Otherwise, as surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, who has kept me from harming you, if you had not come quickly to meet me, not one male belonging to Nabal would have been left alive by daybreak.” 35 Then David accepted from her hand what she had brought him and said, “Go home in peace. I have heard your words and granted your request.”  - 1 Samuel 25:32-35

38 About ten days later, the Lord struck Nabal and he died. – 1 Samuel 25:38

When conflict occurs, put down your sword and trust the Lord.  

Teacher: Leanne Benton

Revenge is the act of hurting or punishing someone in return for something they did to you.

Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.

-Confucius

After Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, “David is in the Desert of En Gedi.” So Saul took three thousand able young men from all Israel and set out to look for David and his men near the Crags of the Wild Goats. He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men were far back in the cave.

The men said, “This is the day the Lord spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’” Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.

-1 Samuel 24:4

David chose restraint over revenge

Opportunity is not permission

Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe. He said to his men, “The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, or lay my hand on him; for he is the anointed of the Lord.” With these words David sharply rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul. And Saul left the cave and went his way.

-1 Samuel 24:5-7

David’s character was developed in the cave

The Lord is my light and my salvation; Who shall I fear?

The Lord is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?

He continues singing:

One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock.

-Psalm 27:1; 4-5

Then David went out of the cave and called out to Saul, “My lord the king!” When Saul looked behind him, David bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground. He said to Saul, “Why do you listen when men say, ‘David is bent on harming you’? This day you have seen with your own eyes how the Lord delivered you into my hands in the cave. Some urged me to kill you, but I spared you.

-1 Samuel 24:8-10

May the Lord judge between you and me. And may the Lord avenge the wrongs you have done to me, but my hand will not touch you. As the old saying goes, “From evildoers come evil deeds,” so my hand will not touch you.

-1 Samuel 24:12-13

The Lord is our Judge

The Lord is our Defender

The Lord is our Avenger

When David finished saying this, Saul asked “Is that your voice, David, my son?” And he wept aloud. “You are more righteous than I,” he said. “You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly…I know that you will surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel will be established into your hands. Now swear to me by the Lord that you will not kill off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father’s family.” So David gave his oath to Saul.”

-1 Samuel 24:16-22

I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

-Psalm 27:13-14

If you’ve got it in you, get along with everybody. Don’t insist on getting even; that’s not for you to do. “I’ll do the judging,” says God. “I’ll take care of it.”

-Romans 12:18-19 - MSG

We make choices all the time without even being aware of the fact we are doing this… to brood over something…to clutch on to something… to hide. We sin and then we justify not confessing our sin or making things right. Then we find a way to bury that thought so that we forget. Sin after sin compounds, moment after moment, like some kind of terrible interest on our souls.

Teacher: Adam Barnett

Saul had a spear in his hand and he hurled it, saying to himself, “I’ll pin David to the wall.” But David eluded him twice.  - 1 Samuel 18:10b-11

David took his men with him and went out and killed two hundred Philistines and brought back their foreskins. They counted out the full number to the king so that David might become the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave him his daughter Michal in marriage. – 1 Samuel 18:27

“What have I done? What is my crime? How have I wronged your father, that he is trying to kill me?” – 1 Samuel 20:1

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me.”  - Psalm 23:4

Even as a fugitive, David was not forsaken. God blessed him with a friend.

After David had finished talking with Saul, Jonathan became one in spirit with David, and he loved him as himself. From that day Saul kept David with him and did not let him return home to his family. And Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. Jonathan took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his tunic, and even his sword, his bow and his belt.  – 1 Samuel 20:1-4

1 - Jonathan's soul was bound together with David’s soul.

“Jonathan saw that David viewed life from the same divine perspective (God is sovereign and does as He pleases, and all of life is to be lived for Him). And when he saw this, his soul reflexively clung to David’s. Christian friendship exceeds anything that exists between nonbelievers — for such a friendship is founded on a supernatural mutuality of soul. The Holy Spirit makes your souls chorus the same cries. You assent to the same authority. You know the same God. You are going the same way. You long for the same things. You dream mutual dreams. You yearn for the same experiences of holiness and worship. Jonathan’s soul bound itself to David’s soul. You know when this happens, and it is wonderful." – Kent Hughes

2 - Jonathan put spiritual kinship over personal gain.

“True friends don’t compete. They complete.”  - Tim Keller

3 - Jonathan’s love was sacrificial and dangerous.

“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” — John 15:13

Teacher: Dave Brown

Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.

—1 Samuel 18:7; 21:11

Saul was very angry; “they have credited David with tens of thousand,” he though, ‘but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?” And from that time on Saul kept a close eye on David.

— 1 Samuel 18:8-9

David went to Nob, to Ahimelek the priest. Ahimelek trembled when he met him, and asked, “Why are you alone? Why is no one with you?” David answered Ahimelek the priest, “The king sent me on a mission and said to me, ‘No one is to know anything about the mission I am sending you on.’ As for my men, I have told them to meet me at a certain place.”

— 1 Samuel 21:1-2

The king ordered Doeg, “You turn and strike down the priests.” So Does the Edomite turned and killed eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod. He also put to the sword Nob, the town of the priests, with its men and women, its children and infants, and its cattle, donkeys and sheep.

— 1 Samuel 22:18-19

But one son of Ahimelek…named Abiathar, escaped and fled to join David. He told David that Saul had killed the priests of the Lord, Then David said to Abiathar, “That day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, I knew he would be sure to tell Saul. I am responsible for the death of your whole family.

— 1 Samuel 22:20-22

If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.

— John 15:18-20

The story of David isn’t set before us as a moral model to copy. David isn’t a person whose actions we’re inspired to imitate. In the company of David we don’t feel inadequate because we know we could never do it that well. Just the opposite; in the company of David we find someone who does it as badly as, or worse than, we do, but who in the process doesn’t quit, doesn’t withdraw from God.

— Eugene Peterson

God’s will for our lives can be divided into two parts:

1 - General will — Loving God and loving others

2 - Specific will — “The place were your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.”

David isn’t an ideal life bit an actual life. We imaginatively enter the company of David not to improve our morals but to deepen our sense of human reality: this is what happens in the grand enterprise of being human. Reentering through my believing imagination the world of David, I’m more myself—free to be myself and able find God in the middle of what’s going on right now.

— Eugene Peterson

Teacher: Adam Barnett

A champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out of the Philistine camp. His height was six cubits and a span. He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor of bronze weighing five thousand shekels; on his legs he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back. His spear shaft was like a weaver’s rod, and its iron point weighed six hundred shekels. His shield bearer went ahead of him.   - 1 Samuel 17:4-7

Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, “Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me. If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and serve us.”   - 1 Samuel 17:8-9

On hearing the Philistine’s words, Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified.    - 1 Samuel 17:11

David said to Saul, “Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.”    - 1 Samuel 17:32

Saul replied, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.”  - 1 Samuel 17:33

But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.” Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you.”  - 1 Samuel 17:32-37

He looked David over and saw that he was little more than a boy, glowing with health and handsome, and he despised him. He said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. “Come here,” he said, “and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals!”   - 1 Samuel 17:41-44

David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.”  - 1 Samuel 17:45-47

As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground. So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him. David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine’s sword and drew it from the sheath. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword. When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran.  – 1 Samuel 17:48-51

1) Life guarantees giants.  

2) Battles require faith.

The story of David and Goliath is about keeping spiritual perspective and acting in faith.

2A) David remembered the past.

2B) David trusted in the present.

3) Prayer is our best weapon.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. – Ephesians 6:12

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.  - Philippians 4:6-7

Teacher: Adam Barnett

“Through writing and reflecting, journaling keeps you alert to God’s presence and activity in, around, and through me.” – Adele Calhoun

“David’s story isn’t a stain-glassed window of a saint, but a cracked mirror in which we see ourselves and the God who loves us anyway.”  - Eugene Peterson

But Samuel replied: “Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. - 1 Samuel 15:22

“Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you as king.”  - 1 Samuel 15:23b

Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned. I violated the Lord’s command and your instructions. I was afraid of the men so I gave in to them.” – 1 Samuel 15:24

Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to one of your neighbors—to one better than you.”  - 1 Samuel 15:28

Until the day Samuel died, he did not go to see Saul again, though Samuel mourned for him. And the Lord regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel.  – 1 Samuel 15:35

The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.” But Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me.” The Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what to do. You are to anoint for me the one I indicate.” – 1 Samuel 16:1-3

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”  - 1 Samuel 16:7

So he asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?” “There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered. “He is tending the sheep.” Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.” So he sent for him and had him brought in. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.” So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David. Samuel then went to Ramah.  – 1 Samuel 16:11-13

Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.  – 1 Corinthians 1:26-29

1. David loved God – “The Lord has sought out a man after his own heart…”  - 1 Samuel 13:14

2. David was faithful – Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much. – Luke 16:10

3. David had integrity – He chose David his servant and took him from the sheep pens; from tending the sheep he brought him to be the shepherd of his people Jacob, of Israel his inheritance. And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them.  – Psalm 78:70-72

Teacher: Adam Barnett

“David’s story isn’t a stain-glassed window of a saint, but a cracked mirror in which we see ourselves and the God who loves us anyway.” – Eugene Peterson

In God’s kingdom, people purposefully resist isolation and intentionally prioritize community.

1) Isolation contradicts the nature of love.  

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.  – 1 John 4:7-8; 11-12

2) Isolation makes you vulnerable to sin.

“Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devoir.  – 1 Peter 5:8b

3) Isolation hinders your spiritual fervor.

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.  -  Hebrews 10:24-25

1) Community fosters growth and maturity.

Proverbs 27:17, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.”

2) Community strengthens our purpose and mission.

Calling the Twelve to him, he began to send them out two by two… - Mark 6:7a

3) Community offers practical support and compassion.

Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.  – Galatians 6:2