So, we are in 1 Samuel chapter 24 this morning. So, if you would be turning there while we go through the introduction here. So, this may come as no surprise to you, but in this fallen world, people actually sin against one another. It may be a shock to you. And whether this sin is severe or minor or simply misunderstood words or actions, it often leads to resentment between people. In our pride and in our anger, we become warriors for our own cause, righteously defending ourselves. And often the top pursuit of the wronged individual becomes revenge at some level. There's something about seeing someone pay for their crimes against us that just makes an angry heart glad. Now, some say that revenge is a dish best served cold. Some say they deserve what they got. They deserve to pay for what they did. It's just karma serves them right. Or so the attitude of vengeance goes. But here's a question. Does it ever actually deliver on what it promises? Paul writes in Romans 12, verse 19, Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God. For it is written, vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. And from that one verse, we can learn two things. First, we are forbidden from ever taking vengeance on others. There is never a time where a Christian is allowed to seek after revenge. And second, there is a judge who will repay evil in the end. No wickedness will ever go unpunished by the Lord, who is the perfect judge over all the earth. Therefore, we must leave it vengeance to the Lord. Because God is just, you must leave judgment to Him. With that introduction, let's read 1 Samuel chapter 24, verses 1 through the end of the chapter. When Saul returned from following the Philistines, he was told, Behold, David is in the wilderness of Engedi. Then Saul took 3,000 chosen men out of all Israel and went to seek David and his men in front of the wild goats' rocks. And he came to the sheepfolds by the way, where there was a cave, and Saul went in to relieve himself. Now David and his men were sitting in the innermost parts of the cave. And the men of David said to him, Here is the day of which the Lord said to you, Behold, I will give your enemy into your hand and you shall do to him as it shall seem good to you. Then David arose and stealthily cut off a corner of Saul's robe. And afterwards, David's heart struck him because he had cut off a corner of Saul's robe. He said to his men, the Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my Lord, the Lord's anointed, to put out my hand against him, seeing he is the Lord's anointed. So David persuaded his men with these words and did not permit them to attack Saul. And Saul rose up and left the cave and went on his way. Afterward, David also arose and went out of the cave and called after Saul, my Lord, the king. And when Saul looked behind him, David bowed with his face to the earth and paid homage. And David said to Saul, Why do you listen to the words of men who say, Behold, David seeks your harm? Behold, this day your eyes have seen how the Lord gave you into my hand in the cave, and some told me to kill you, but I spared you. I said, I will not put out my hand against my Lord, for he is the Lord's anointed. see my father see the corner of your robe in my hand for by the fact that i cut off the corner of your robe and did not kill you you may know and see that there is no wrong or treason in my hands i have not sinned against you though you hunt my life to take it may the lord judge between me and you may the lord avenge me against you but my hand shall not be against you as the proverb of the ancient says out of the wicked comes wickedness But my hand shall not be against you. After whom has the king of Israel come out? After whom do you pursue? After a dead dog? After a flea? May the Lord therefore be judge and give sentence between me and you and see to it and plead my cause and deliver me from your hand. As soon as David had finished speaking these words to Saul, Saul said, Is this your voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his voice and wept. He said to David, You are more righteous than I, for you have repaid me good, whereas I have repaid you evil. And you have declared this day how you have dealt well with me and that you did not kill me when the Lord put me into your hands. For if a man finds his enemy, will he let him go away safe? So may the Lord reward you with good for what you have done to me this day. And now behold, I know that you shall surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand. Swear to me, therefore, by the Lord, that you will not cut off my offspring after me and that you will not destroy my name out of my father's house. And David swore this to Saul and Saul went home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold. So, we'll walk through three points as we walk through this text this morning. First point is wrestling. It's actually wrestling with temptation is really the full title. So, in the previous chapter of 1 Samuel, Saul pursued David and he nearly caught him. David and his men had been surrounded on the mountain with Saul in hot pursuit. Saul had surrounded him and David had no hope of escape. But then the Lord delivered David through his providence. And just as Saul was about to capture David, a report came in that the Philistines were raiding in the country. And so, Saul was forced to give up capturing David in order to defend his country. And after going and successfully dealing with these invaders, Saul again picked up the pursuit of David and traveled down to the wilderness of Engedi to find him. Saul wanted to kill David, but we can't really say it was out of a desire for vengeance or revenge. Because for it to be revenge, David had to first wrong Saul in some way. And that had not happened, at least not in a major way. On the other side of things, David was being sinned against by Saul over and over as Saul pursued him. He never committed any real crimes against Saul, especially not disloyalty. But Saul was wickedly pursuing him, giving him, at least according to worldly eyes, every right to self-defense. Some might even say he had the right to seek revenge in this case. So what would David do? If the Lord brought Saul before him helpless and without his guards? Well, this passage actually answers that question. Saul and his men, they were seeking for David. They were traveling through the area searching for him. But then Saul needed a bathroom stop on the journey and he found a nice cave in which to do his business. And in God's providence, Saul walked into the very cave where David and his men were hiding. Now Saul may have been a king, but even he went to the bathroom alone. He was quite literally indisposed, exposed, and helpless here. And aside from possibly being asleep, there can't be an easier time to kill someone than this. Now imagine the shock of David and his men. They're sitting in the cave, waiting, hiding, and then the leader that is seeking to kill them walks right in there, right within their reach. God's providence had delivered Saul over to them gift-wrapped with a bow on top. But what did this mean? Should they kill Saul? Well, David's men certainly seem to think so. They looked at the providence of these events and they inferred that the Lord was giving David his chance to kill Saul and take the throne finally. And verse four, they said, here's the day of which the Lord said to you, behold, I will give your enemy into your hand and you shall do to him as it shall seem good to you. Now, imagine being hunted by Saul, hunted by the king of Israel, knowing that you are the anointed future king of Israel. You know that Saul has been rejected by Yahweh and is without the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Surely David's men were right in this situation. God had literally dropped this situation into David's lap. And so, David, he went and he cut the corner of Saul's robe, which the king had likely taken off and set down when he came into the cave. Now, remember here the significance of robes in the ancient Near East and in Israel. They were signs of kingship. They were signs of authority and rule. So, this act signified David cutting away part of Saul's kingdom and transferring it to himself. It represented this transfer of power from Saul to himself and the delegitimizing of Saul's claim to kingship. This was a first necessary step in taking Saul out. Take the symbol of kingship and then kill the evil king. Now, if you ever played capture the flag as a kid, this is like sneaking out with the flag. No one sees you leave the enemy base. And then you hold up the flag for all to see before verbally declaring victory in the game. So here, David takes the sign of kingship in Israel, and then he's free to eliminate the defeated rival. But before David could go on to the second step of killing Saul, his conscience struck him. He realized that what he was doing was wrong. And as a reader, you may say, but wait, didn't the oracle that the men spoke to him allow him to kill Saul if he wanted? Now, if you take some time to research and find this oracle, you're going to find something very interesting. And by that, I mean, you won't find anything at all, actually. There was no divine oracle telling David to do whatever he wanted to Saul. That never happened. There's no place in scripture where God promised this to David. So, why did the men say this to David and why did he begin to follow their oracle? Well, here we need to note a difference. Divine providence is not the same thing as divine revelation. Because of their situation and Saul's persecution of them, they interpreted divine providence in their situation to mean a certain thing. We are quick to misinterpret the events in our lives based on our own wants and desires and experiences. And that creates a problem. So how then can we be certain we are doing what God wants us to do if we can't read the situation easily, if things are not clear based on the situation? Well, here's a solution. It is much more difficult to misinterpret scripture. In Deuteronomy 32, 35, the Lord says, vengeance is mine, meaning it's not yours. So after cutting the hem of Saul's robe, David was struck by the reality of what his actions towards Saul actually meant. Killing Saul may have fit the situation, but it went against God's word, meaning it couldn't be done. And our situation can never trump the commands of the word of God. So in the moment of temptation, the spirit accused David of what he was about to do. So whether that verse from Deuteronomy or the knowledge simply that God had selected Saul and made him king, David knew he could not kill God's anointed king, rejected or not. But he knew what his men expected of him here in this situation. They were on the run, too. They had been persecuted and oppressed by Saul, just as David had been. And yet David was somehow able to convince them that killing Saul was wrong. Now, the word for persuaded in verse 7, at least how the ESV reads, it may mean more than simply convincing. It could imply some more intensity in their exchanges. David may have even had to physically restrain some of his men to try to hold them back. But in the end, we see that his leadership won out and his command not to harm Saul was obeyed. So, Saul. who was a sitting duck before David and his men. He arose, he walked out of the cave unharmed and completely oblivious to the danger. And through these events, we see a very helpful pattern in this text. David was presented with a situation in his life where he can make a choice between two options. One was the easy path, which seemed to fit the circumstances well. And the other option was a far more difficult path that did not seem to fit the situation. But when David was faced with the decision, the Spirit prodded him and guided him through it. First, he read the situation and began to respond to what he saw. But as the Spirit spoke to his heart, he looked beyond those visible circumstances to the will of God. And it was from the word that he realized that the easy path here was the wrong path. And finally, he had to convince those with him of the same reality, that God's will for them was different than what they had originally thought in that situation. So, to summarize this point, David really wrestled with three things here. First, he wrestled with his situation. Second, he wrestled with the word of God. And third, he wrestled with his men until they, too, saw the truth, what was right in that situation. And that's a useful pattern for you to follow in your life as well. Because when events happen in your life and decisions need to be made, the question is, do you wrestle through them? Do you give in to temptation and just take the easy path or do you wrestle through that situation by what the word teaches you to do? and convince yourselves and others at times that it is the right decision in the end. Do you claim to the Lord in those times, refusing to let go until you understand like Jacob did when he wrestled with God? The easy way is rarely the right way. Proverbs 14, 12 says that there's a way that seems right to a man, but his end is the way to death. Well, let's keep moving on to point two. So, point two is entrusting, and the full thing is entrusting your situation to God, entrusting your situation to God. So, after wrestling through his situation, David decided not to take matters into his own hands. And so Saul got up and walked out of the cave. And no doubt, many of his men were not happy about that decision. They were letting their top enemy walk out unharmed. But hey, at least they were still safely hidden. Saul didn't know they were there. The troops didn't know they were there. It was all fine, right? But they never would have guessed what David was going to do next. Because as Saul left the cave, David got up, came out of hiding, followed him out, and revealed himself to Saul. Now, the shock of such a move is only surpassed by the way that David approached Saul in this moment. Both his words and his actions were those of a humble servant before a master. He said, my Lord, the king, and bowed with his face to the ground before the king of Israel. There was no irony here, there was no sarcasm, but true respect for the sitting king. And yet we see that despite that respect, David did not shy away from confronting Saul over his sin in this passage. What we'll see here actually in verses 8 through 21 is that these are the longest quotes for both David and Saul in the entire book of 1 Samuel, meaning there is some importance to these words that we see here. David uses his words to confront Saul. And he did so with great wisdom and skill. And he started, instead of directly accusing Saul, David softened the blow of his words by pinning some of the blame on the bad advisors that Saul had. However, we know quite well that it was mainly Saul actually accusing David of seeking his life. Saul may have used this as a false pretense, as a lie to entice men to kill David, or in his delusions and paranoia, he may have actually believed it himself that David was out to kill him. But now, as David confronted Saul, he had the proof that he was innocent of this accusation of wanting to harm him. I noticed in David's words how he had come to a correct understanding of God's providence in these events. His men had assumed that God led Saul into the cave so David could kill him. But David realized that the Lord had something far better planned for this situation. In verse 10, David said, Yahweh gave you today into my hand in the cave. Some told me to kill you, but I spared you. I said, I will not put out my hand against my Lord, for he is the Lord's anointed." Notice that David explains things correctly here. God led Saul in, yes, but it was fallible men who said to kill Saul. Meanwhile, David followed the word of the Lord who allowed for this chance not to kill Saul, but to confront Saul. David continuing to show respect to Saul, calling him my father, showed him the sign that confirmed his words in this conversation. So the corner of Saul's robe that David had taken served not to show how the kingdom had been wrested away from his defeated foe, but to display his innocence towards the king. What David did next only occurred because he had already wrestled through this situation. He didn't trust Saul to make things right any more than he had trusted himself to execute justice on Saul personally. David entrusted himself and the entire situation to the Lord and his justice. Says in verse 12, may Yahweh judge between me and you and may Yahweh avenge me against you, but my hand shall not be against you. Following the Torah's teaching on vengeance, David gave over everything to the Lord. And this closely matches the imprecatory Psalms, where the writers call on God to execute justice on the wicked. The psalmists are not personally seeking revenge in those psalms, but asking for God to judge justly. It was not David's job, even as the anointed future king, to exact his own revenge. The Lord wanted David to continue to trust in his perfect plan. God wanted David to rely on the fact that he was just and that no sin would go unanswered before him. And that is what David did before Saul. And he further proved his innocence by quoting this ancient proverb in verse 13 that says, out of the wicked comes wickedness. Jesus in the gospel says something very similar to that. Now, when I first read this in the passage, I assumed David was actually using this for Saul, kind of an insult, but an accurate one. But he's actually using it to point to his own innocence. If David was the rebellious and murderous man that Saul said he was, he would have proven it by killing Saul when he had the chance. But he didn't act wickedly, meaning he wasn't wicked. In fact, all these events proved is that David was innocent of everything that Saul was accusing him of. And instead, what we see is that Saul was just being foolish in all of this. The king of Israel was wasting money, time and resources to hunt down an insignificant and an innocent man. Even with David's army, Saul outnumbered him five to one at least. And Saul could call on all Israel if he needed to. Saul was a fool chasing an innocent man. And for this, David entrusted himself to the Lord and his justice for rescue and for vindication. In these verses, we see a way that David points us to Jesus and how he suffered while on this earth. Jesus Christ committed no sin against anybody, and yet he was mistreated and killed. First Peter 2, 23. When Jesus was reviled, he did not revile in return. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to Him who judges justly. Even Jesus did not take matters into His own hands while walking on this earth. He relied on the Heavenly Father just as we are to rely on the Lord. Often in our sin and naivete, we think we know best what people deserve for sins committed. But the truth is that we do not. Our revenge can never be just because we are imperfect at every level. Only the perfectly good, wise, and just God can rightly repay someone for their sins. He will never punish anyone for more or for less than they deserve. Now, can any of you boast the same in your judgment of others and their sins? I don't think so. And so when you are wronged and when you want to take matters into your own hands, instead, follow the example of David and your savior and entrust yourself to the Lord and his justice. The final point, point three, so this is waiting and it's waiting on the Lord's vindication. So having entrusted himself and his situation to the Lord, David did not have to wait long to see what God would do with these events. Immediately, Saul began his longest speech in the book of First Samuel. And knowing how Saul has spoken and behaved up to this point in the book, his reaction in these verses is extremely shocking, to say the least. First of all, Saul was overcome by emotions rather than wrath or jealousy. Echoing the language of David to him in verse 11, in verse 16, Saul says, my son, David. Now, up to this point, Saul has refused to use the name of anybody he's been unhappy with for chapters now. But now he actually uses David's real name. In this moment of confrontation and vulnerability, Saul came to his senses finally, and he wept. And the result was vindication for David. The Lord vindicated and affirmed David in that very moment, surprisingly enough, through the words of Saul. Saul declared David more righteous than himself. David had repaid Saul's evil towards him with good, sparing his life and even refusing to harm him. He even acknowledged that it was Yahweh who had placed him in that cave and led them to that moment. And that's just a reminder, when you see LORD all caps, it is God's covenant name, Yahweh. Saul's words in verse 19 show that he did not truly understand David or why he had done what he did. He asked, if a man finds his enemy, Will he let him go away safe? The obvious answer Saul expects is no, never. So shocked was he to have been treated with mercy and kindness by David that he was at a loss. So not only did he declare that David's actions were good, but asked for Yahweh's blessing on David as a reward for those good actions. Saul was separated from the Lord, but he even Even he understood that the Lord was able to bless and reward David for his righteous actions. So I've been fighting to keep the crown, holding on for dear life, knowing that David was his replacement. But at this point of brokenness, he made a startling admission in verse 20. This event was the final sign for him to know for sure that David would be king and that Israel would one day thrive under his rule. He knew his family would not keep the crown. And knowing what normally befell the family of an ousted dynasty, Saul asked David to make a covenant, to swear to him, to promise to be merciful to his family. He asked David to swear not to wipe out his family when he took the throne, which was the normal practice of the day. And it's kind of shocking to think about this part. Imagine being the wrongdoer in this situation and then asking the wronged for a favor. And it may surprise you that David agreed to this promise, agreed to this oath in word and later in deed. And when we consider, though, that he had already made this essentially the same vow to Jonathan in covenant, it does become a little less shocking. But now he makes the same vow to Saul. And with the covenant made, Saul went home. But despite this encounter and the covenant, the seemingly moment of reconciliation, David did not return home. He did not return to Gibeah with Saul either. He knew that Saul would likely fall into his jealous wrath and envy once again, and so he remained in the wilderness. And so it was not really reconciliation. So in this one chapter. We see David wrestle with a difficult decision. entrust himself to the Lord and wait on the Lord to vindicate him. Now, he was not finally vindicated against Saul in this chapter, but he was vindicated to some degree. And that's something that we need to keep in mind. Vindication does not always come now and it does not always come all at once. We can wrestle through situations, we can entrust ourselves to God and wait on his vindication for a long time. Sometimes we do see some now. The person who has wronged you, they come to repentance and they admit their sin against you. They ask for forgiveness. And that can be a vindicating thing. It could come through actual court cases. Maybe it's seen a decision that you made according to the word that others mocked you for come to bear fruit in the end. So the Lord can vindicate us in many ways now. But oftentimes that vindication is delayed. Oftentimes we wait for years. And when that happens, that doesn't mean that we weren't wronged. It doesn't mean that God has forgotten about our situation or doesn't care. And there are some things that we may not see vindication for in this life at all. And yet it's not wrong to want to be vindicated, nor is it wrong to ask for the Lord to judge between you and evil people who have wronged you. So when someone has committed heinous sins against you and others, it is a good thing to entrust yourself to God and ask him to judge. Asking God for justice is not a bad thing. It is a good thing. In fact, the imprecatory Psalms, which you mentioned earlier, they were given for us to use, not as personal revenge vendettas, but to teach us how to lead justice to God. You may see him answer these kind of prayers in this life, and you may not. But one thing we know for certain is that the Lord will judge all fairly. Hebrews 4.13 promises this. It says, No creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. There's no such thing as a hidden sin. There's no such thing as a hidden action in the eyes of God. He knows and sees all. Then 2 Corinthians 5 10 says, we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ so that each one may receive what is due for him for what he has done in the body, whether good or bad. If you are trusting in yourself, taking things into your own hands or in any way oppressing others, this should be a terrifying truth. But if you are clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, this is a wonderful promise of rescue and final vindication. You will receive a reward from your God while those who oppressed you and therefore the church will be punished for what they did. At the last day, When Christ returns to judge the world and to take his bride home, every Christian will be fully and finally vindicated before all the earth by the judge of all the earth. Your innocence in Christ will be declared and proclaimed to all by the Lord. So as you wrestle through the difficulties of this life, entrust yourself to your heavenly judge and await the appearance of Jesus Christ. Leave it to God, for he is just. Let's pray. Lord Jesus, we thank you that you are the just God, that nothing escapes your sight, that no wrong is ever left unpunished, that you are keeping track of all things. And Lord, we know at the same time that if we were to pay for all the sins that we've committed ourselves, that we would be damned. Yet through your blood, through you paying the penalty we could not, we are alive. We are alive spiritually, and we are your people. So, Lord, help us to leave all things, to entrust all things to your hands, even while praying for justice and even while praying that part of the way you may exact justice is bringing the people, the wrongdoers to yourself and by bending their knee in repentance. So, Lord, we lift all these things up to you. Help us, teach us, train us to give all things to you. In Jesus name. Amen.