Connection vs. disconnect
Then David spoke to the men who were standing by him, saying, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should taunt the armies of the living God?” 1 Samuel 17:26
Connection vs. disconnect. The difference can be subtle in a time of peace, but when giants arise to taunt the armies of the living God, or when voices opposed to sound doctrine amass in the land—insisting that good is evil and evil is good—the contrast can become gravely stark.
The life of David—the shepherd boy, psalmist, and king of Israel—bears witness to this disparity. Our own lives also attest to the rewards and consequences of each—seasons of connection to the Lord and lapses into disconnect.
As a young man, David was sent to Israel’s front line with food for his brothers. When he approached his destination, David heard the Philistine champion, Goliath of Gath, defy the ranks of Israel, threatening them with defeat and enforced servitude (see 1 Samuel 17:8-10; 23). King Saul and his mighty warriors of Israel and were greatly dismayed and fled in terror (see verses 11 and 24).
But young David, fresh from shepherding sheep and singing out the depths of his heart to God, stood among them and asked in disbelief, “Who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should taunt the armies of the living God?” He could fathom neither the display of defiance toward God nor the timidity of the warriors gathered. David would take him on—and bring him down.
From the reservoir of strength within him, built up in private, intimate fellowship with God, he stood fast when challenged by Saul: “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are but a youth while he has been a warrior from his youth” (see verse 33).
David recounted his testimony birthed from connection with the Lord. “Your servant was tending his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock, I went out after him and attacked him, and rescued it from his mouth; and when he rose up against me, I seized him by his beard and struck him and killed him. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he has taunted the armies of the living God” (verses 34-36).
He summed up his thoughts, giving honor to God: “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine” (verse 37).
The rest is lauded history. David did his part, God did His part, and Goliath did his part—he died. And David became a rock star in Israel, loved and adored by all—except King Saul.
Fast forward
“Then it happened in the spring, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him and all Israel, and they destroyed the sons of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem” (2 Samuel 11:1).
Many years later, long after David was crowned king in Saul’s place, in the spring of the year when kings went out to battle against one another, David stayed at home. Bible commentator David Guzik explains, “In that part of the world, wars were not normally fought during the winter months because rains and cold weather made travel and campaigning difficult. Fighting resumed in the spring” (see http://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/guzik_david/StudyGuide_2Sa/2Sa_11.cfm).
King David was not unaware of this yearly threat to Israel’s sovereignty—although they took breaks, the enemies of Israel never gave up in their quest to decimate God’s people. Despite the menace to his country, David remained at home. In his commentary, Guzik quotes G. Campbell Morgan who wrote, “In the whole of the Old Testament literature there is no chapter more tragic or full of solemn and searching warning than this” (ibid; emphasis added).
It was his tight connection with God that drove David’s indignation at the taunts of Goliath; in the power of that connection the shepherd boy defeated the giant. Now, when his nation needed him again, his connection had grown lax; the godly outrage at the threats of the enemies of God had faded into comfortable nonchalance; the king figured that Joab could handle it—or perhaps he felt that no significant threat existed at all.
In that place of loose connection and resulting unguardedness, while relaxing on the roof, David—the giant-slayer, the king, and the beloved psalmist of Israel—saw someone pretty, and he wanted her. He sent for Bathsheba and bedded her despite the fact that she was married to one of his warriors. When she later informed him that she had become pregnant, he plotted to cover his sin by bringing her husband Uriah home from the battle for a few nights with her, in hopes that Uriah would be none-the-wiser when Bathsheba’s belly started to swell.
However, Uriah refused to join his wife, declaring, “The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in temporary shelters, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field. Shall I then go to my house to eat and to drink and to lie with my wife? By your life and the life of your soul, I will not do this thing” (see 2 Samuel 11:11). His zeal for Israel and those who served stood in sharp contrast to the carnal complicity of the king.
David conspired, therefore, to do away with the godly warrior and wrote in a letter to his chief officer Joab, “Place Uriah in the front line of the fiercest battle and withdraw from him, so that he may be struck down and die” (see verse 15).
Indeed, Uriah died in battle and David took the man’s wife as his own. And to re-quote G. Campbell Morgan, “In…the Old Testament…there is no chapter more tragic or full of solemn and searching warning than this.”
Connection vs. disconnect: The challenge emerges on a daily basis. You know that if you draw near to God, He will draw near to you. You have read in the Word, Choose life that you may live. Yet without missing a beat, the enemy of your soul prowls around as a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. How can your foe devour you if you are tightly connected in faith, love, and passionate pursuit of your God? He can’t—unless you allow him to entice you to loosen that connection.
Pay attention to this tale from the life of David, and make it your aim and lifelong pursuit to keep your connection with God sound, stable, and strong.
Could it be that from your connection with God the Light of Jesus will blaze brightly through your life and souls will be pulled out of sure death? Perhaps yours will be the connection with the Lord from which springs a giant-defeating blow or mighty restraint upon the agendas of darkness.
Is it worth it to maintain that tight connection with the Lord? Ask David.
Dorothy