How to Behave in a Cave | Part 2

What is the greatest victory we ever saw so long ago?

Welcome to Love Worth Finding, featuring profound truth simply stated by Adrian Rogers. This month we've been studying the life and legacy of King David. He was a remarkable man after God's own heart.

He lived by principle, not by appearance. He was a warrior who knew many victories, but perhaps his greatest victory was the one over his own spirit when he chose to respect the authority God had placed over him. In part one of today's message, we learned that David had the opportunity to kill the man, actively pursuing him. David's response shows us how to behave in a cave when no one else is watching. If you have your Bible, turn now to 1 Samuel chapter 24.

Once again, here's Adrian Rogers. There's David's response to his message. Then Saul took 3,000 chosen men out of all Israel and went to seek David and his men upon the rocks of the wild goats. He came to the sheep goats, by the way, where there was a cave.

Saul went in to cover his feet. Incidentally, this place is full of caves and it was not too far from here that the Dead Sea Scrolls were found. Saul went in to cover his feet and David and his men remained in the cave and David took three men out of Israel.

in the sides of the cave. Now Saul went in there to relieve himself and to refresh himself. And as he went into the cave, his eyes, of course, used to that dazzling, brilliant desert sun, could not see David and his men as they were sequestered there in the crooks and nannies of that cave. They were back there in the shadows. They saw Saul, but he could not see them.

And so they're back there. And the men of David said unto him, said to David, Behold, the day of which the Lord said unto thee, behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thine hand, that thou mayest do to him as it shall seem good unto thee. Then David arose. And they were thinking as David went forward with the dagger in his hand, he's going to plunge this dagger into the back of the unsuspecting Saul, his enemy. And David arose and cut off the skirt of Saul's robe, privily. That is, secretly, with that razor sharp knife, Saul not aware, perhaps now he stretched himself out to sleep for just a few moments on the cool earth. And David takes that razor sharp knife and he slits Saul's skirt and just gets a handful of the garment.

And then he backs back into the back of the cave. And it came to pass afterward that David's heart smote him because he had cut off Saul's skirt. And he said unto his men, The Lord forbid that I should do this thing unto my master, the Lord's anointed, to stretch forth mine hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the Lord. So David stayed his servants with these words and suffered them not to rise against Saul. Now, I want you to notice three things as we look at this passage of scripture.

The first thing I want you to notice is a great principle. What was the principle that David understood? It was the principle of spiritual authority. When you reject those whom God has put over you, ladies and gentlemen, you do not reject that person. You reject God himself.

You withstand God. Now, Saul was God's spiritual authority. Saul was the man that had been anointed king over Israel. He was not a good man. He was an apostate man. He was a man out of fellowship with God.

He was a wicked man. He was seeking David's life. And yet David understood a spiritual principle that many modern Americans do not understand.

It is the principle of spiritual authority. Here is Saul. He comes into this cave. He cannot see.

He is completely, totally defenseless. David's men said, This is it, David. What an opportunity. Look, God has delivered him into your hand. This is God's promise to you. This is the day that you're going to do him in, David. This is doubtless from God. Do it, David.

Kill him, David. All he had to do was plant that dagger in the back of King Saul, and he would have been automatically king for he had already been anointed to be king. But here's the point. You had better be careful of operating on appearances rather than principle. It appeared to everybody that this was of God. And the average person would have said, Look what God has done and taken advantage of it. And the thing that kept David from getting into deep, deep, deep, deep trouble was that he understood principle.

Now you better learn to live by principle and not by appearance. I know so many people say, Well, I'm praying about it. And God, if you don't want it to happen, don't let it happen. That's ridiculous.

It's ridiculous. There are a lot of things that happen that are not God's will. People say, Well, if it's not God's will, it won't happen. Do you think rape is God's will? Do you think murder is God's will? Do you think arson is God's will? Do you think blasphemy is God's will?

There are a lot of things that happen that are not God's will, and a lot of God's people do things they have no business doing because of coincidence and because of circumstance rather than principle. I was immobile, and a man came up to me who had left his wife, and he said, You know, I am seeking God's will for my life. And he said, There's a lady that I've met, and she's such a fine lady. And he said, I've been praying about God's will for my life. And he said, You just wouldn't believe, Brother Rogers, how God just miraculously brought this woman into my life. He said, It had to be of God. And he said, Therefore, I'm dating her.

I just know it's of God. He said, You would not believe the circumstances. I told him, Buddy, you better forget the circumstances and get back to God's word.

You had better stop operating according to appearances and start operating according to principle. If David had operated according to appearances, he would have said, This is obviously of God. To everybody else there that day, they said, This is of God. Behold the day which the Lord said unto thee. Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thine hand that thou mayest do to him as it seemeth good to thee. But it was not of God, and David operated according to a principle.

And that's one of the reasons I say this was one of David's greatest victories, if not his greatest victory. And so the very first thing you see is a great principle. Now, that brings us to another problem, or at least to another point. The second point is a gentle plea. A gentle plea. What do you do when you have a spiritual authority that's not worthy to be a spiritual authority?

That's a real problem, isn't it? What do you do when you're a Christian boy or girl and your parents are ungodly, and they are your spiritual authority? What do you do when you're a member of a church and your pastor doesn't seem to be doing exactly what you think he ought to do? What do you do when you're a member of a government and your government seems to be unworthy of your support and your government initiates laws and rules and things that you believe are not right and things that you would not do? What do you do when there's somebody that commands you to do something that you think is contrary to the will of God? What do you do about unworthy spiritual authorities?

Are we just to blindly obey them? Well, let me give you a verse of scripture here. I want you to see, first of all, well, let's just read starting in verse eight and then come back.

I want to give you a New Testament scripture. Now, well, verse seven. So David stayed his servants with these words and suffered them not to rise against Saul, but Saul rose up out of the cave and went his way. David also rose afterward and went out of the cave and cried after Saul saying, my Lord, the king.

And when Saul looked behind him, David stooped with his face to the earth and bowed himself. And David said to Saul, wherefore hearest thou men's words saying, behold, David seeketh thy hurt. Behold, this day thine eyes have seen how that the Lord had delivered thee today into mine hand in the cave. And some bade me kill thee, but mine eye spared thee. And I said, I will not put forth my hand against my Lord for he is the Lord's anointed. Moreover, my father, see ye, see the skirt of thy robe in my hand. For in that I cut off the skirt of thy robe and kill thee not. Know thou and see that there is neither evil nor transgression in mine hand. And I have not sinned against thee yet thou huntest my soul to take it. The Lord judge between me and thee and the Lord avenge me of thee, but mine hand shall not be upon thee as sayeth the proverb of the ancients, wickedness proceedeth from the wicked, but mine hand shall not be upon thee. After whom is the king of Israel come out? After whom does thou pursue?

After a dead dog, after a flee? Therefore the Lord be judged and judge between me and thee and see and plead my cause and deliver me out of thine hand. Now I want you to notice David's plea.

First of all, we've seen a great principle. Now you see a gentle plea. I want you to see how David dealt with Saul. Look in verse eight and see the reverence that he has for Saul. In verse eight he says, my Lord the king. And when Saul looked behind him, David stooped with his face to the earth and bowed himself.

Can you imagine bowing down in front of someone who's trying to kill you? Here is a man who is dealing with respect and reverence to his spiritual authority. But not only his reverence, notice also his respect as we continue to read in verse eight. And David said to Saul, verse nine, wherefore hearest thou the men's words, saying behold David seeketh thy hurt. I believe David here was giving Saul the benefit of the doubt.

Do you know what he was saying? He was saying surely, Saul, you've been misinformed. Surely somebody's been giving you wrong information. Surely somebody is saying I'm your enemy. I'm not your enemy. And how kind it was of David here to give Saul the benefit of the doubt and to say to Saul it's really probably, or maybe it's not even your fault.

Maybe somebody has been giving you wrong information. Then I want you to notice in verse 11 how he tries to reason with Saul. He says moreover, my father, see, yay, see the skirt of thy robe. And then he goes on to say, look, if I had wanted to kill you, I would have killed you.

I could have killed you. Isn't it reasonable, he says, to see that I'm not your enemy? And there is, ladies and gentlemen, reverence. There is respect.

There is reason here with this man. And then notice the reliance upon the Lord in verse 12. The Lord judge between me and thee, and the Lord avenge me of thee, but mine hand shall not be upon thee. David is saying I'm gonna trust God to get me out of this thing. And then notice in verse 15, the Lord therefore judge and judge between me and thee and see and plead my cause and deliver me out of thine hand. I want you to see with David in this speech there was reverence, there was respect, there was reason, there was reliance upon God.

It was one of the greatest speeches in all of the Bible. He does not vilify his spiritual authority, but what he does is to plead his righteous cause. And what should we as God's children do when we are faced with spiritual authorities? We ought to do what David did.

Oh, I wish I could have learned this lesson a long time ago. No, we're not to do something that's ungodly. If somebody commands us to do something wicked or vile or that isn't a direct contradiction to the word of God. No, we must obey God rather than men. That's what the apostles say. And if somebody is some so-called authority commands you to murder, you can't murder.

If some so-called authority commands you to commit adultery, you can't commit adultery or whatever, of course not. We must obey God rather than men. But ladies and gentlemen, we must be very careful that when we have an authority over us, that we do not have a spirit of rebellion, but that we have, as David had here, a spirit that is such a gentle spirit, a pleading spirit rather than a rebellious spirit.

I say I wish I could have learned this long ago. David had a spirit that's one of the sweetest spirits in all of the Bible. Notice how he addresses Saul.

Notice that spirit. Some of you kids, you know what you do. You go in school and the teacher signs some book.

And so you're a member of Bellevue Church. That book's got some dirty words in it. You know what we used to think that kids ought to do? March right in there and say, now look, teacher, look at this book. These old filthy words, I'm a Christian. I'm not gonna read that and you can flunk me if you want to.

That sounds so good. I'll tell you what you ought to do. That happens, you ought to go to that teacher. You ought to say, first of all, teacher, I want you to know how much I appreciate what you're doing for me. And I want you to know I appreciate the way you have prepared yourself to teach and the sacrifice. And I know that you don't get paid as you ought. And teacher, may I say a word to you please? I'm a Christian and there's some things in this book that grieve me.

Maybe it's not even your desire. Maybe you have others that tell you that this material must be taught. But teacher, I've gone to the library and I've found two books that are twice as hard as this book.

May I have permission to read those two books rather than this one book and do a report on them both? I'll be willing to do it if you'll just let me, teacher. What do you think that teacher's gonna say? That teacher's gonna say those kids that go to Bellevue Church have got character. They're real.

They have something that's real. Some of you kids, you're coming down here to church and your mom and dad don't want you to come on Sunday night or Wednesday night or whatever. They're not saved yet and you go strutting around the house and you say, well, I'm a Christian. You're also their son and their daughter. Before you talk about how you ought to be at church, you ought to be doing your homework and keeping your room clean.

Did you know that? And speaking to your mother and your father, the authority over you with respect. And then perhaps your mother and your father will believe in the God that you serve. And you're gonna find out that when David acted this way to Saul, Saul was immediately stricken. His conscience was stricken because when David got under, God started to work on this man named Saul. I'm sorry to say that Saul later still hardened his heart against God and he died, but the point still remains that God brought tremendous conviction.

First Peter chapter two, and I want you to look in verse 17. Honor all men, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king. Servants be subject to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and the gentle, but also to the froward. That means people who act like Saul acted.

People who really do not deserve that kind of respect, but also to the froward. For this is think worthy if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully. For what glory is it if when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently. But if when ye do well and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. For even here unto were ye called because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that we should follow in his steps. Oh, if we could only learn this, that if we could only learn to be respectful to those whom God has said over us. Now there's one last thing and I'll be finished. Oh, let me give you a few verses.

Just put these down in your margin. As you think about David's speech, Proverbs 15 one, A soft answer turneth away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger. Surely David must have known that. Proverbs 16 verse seven, When a man's ways please the Lord, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him. Here is Saul that becomes at peace with David. Proverbs 21 verse one, The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord. As rivers of water he turneth it whithersoever he will. Now what David said is, Saul, I'm gonna leave you up to God.

Vengeance is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord. And David refused to touch God's anointed. God would do a better job than David would do. And God did.

As one last thing I want you to see, not only a great principle, not only a gentle plea, but a gracious promise. Go back to 1 Samuel chapter 24, and let's begin reading now in verse 16. And it came to pass when David had made an end of speaking these words unto Saul, that Saul said, is this thy voice, my son David?

Notice how Saul is now softened before he's come with blood in his eye, with murder in his heart. But now he says, is this thy voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his voice and wept, because David had done to him what the New Testament says, we're to do good for evil, we're to heap hot coals on their heads. And he said to David, thou art more righteous than I, for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil. And thou hast showed this day how that thou hast dealt well with me, for as much as when the Lord had delivered me into thine hand, thou killest me not.

For if a man find his enemy, will he let him go well away? Wherefore the Lord reward thee good, for that thou hast done unto me this day. And now behold, I know well that thou shall surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in thine hand. Even old blind Saul could see that when David was willing to be under, that God was going to put him over. Swear now therefore unto me by the Lord, that thou wilt not cut off my seed after me, and that thou wilt not destroy my name out of my father's house. And David sware unto Saul, and Saul went home, but David and his men gat them up unto the whole.

Now here's an amazing thing. Saul recognizes that he could have been killed. Saul recognizes that David one day indeed will be king. And then Saul says to David, David, please promise me this. When you become king, will you be gentle on my loved ones? And David said, yes, I will. Yes, I will. David is doing good to his enemies.

Put this down in the margin. Romans 12, verse 19, listen to it. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath. For it is written, vengeance is mine. I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore, if thine enemy hunger, feed him.

If he thirst, give him drink. For in so doing, thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head. Saul said in verse 19, I've never seen anything like this.

You're supposed to kill your enemies. But David promised Saul that he would protect Saul's loved ones. Now it's only the Spirit of the Lord that was in David. David never won a greater victory than he won that day in the cave, a victory over self, a victory over Saul, and therefore a victory over sin.

One last, last word, look in verse 22. And David sware unto Saul, that was his gracious promise. But now notice this, and Saul went home, but David and his men gapped them up into the hole. David was no fool. He didn't come down there where Saul could kill him.

He went back to the rocks, back to his cage. He was gentle as a dove, but he was wise as a serpent. How we ought to learn a lesson from old David so long ago.

Now I want to ask you a question. This message tonight has brought me under conviction one more time about the sin of rebellion that the Bible says is as witchcraft. The difference between David and Saul is this, that Saul was a man after Satan's own heart, a rebel. David was a man after God's own heart.

And David had learned to respect authority, and therefore David had authority. Some of you mothers want spiritual authority over your children. You better get submissive to your husband. Some of you men want spiritual authority over your wives. You better get submissive to your church and your pastor.

Some of you businessmen want authority in your prayer life. You better get submissive to the government. Some of you teenagers want to live victoriously over the flesh.

You better get submissive to your mothers and your daddies. I tell you, dear friends, God can't bless someone with a rebellious spirit. The greatest victory you'll ever win is the victory over self with a submissive spirit. Father, bless the message to our hearts tonight.

For Jesus' sake, amen. What an inspiring and challenging lesson today from the life of King David. You know, at Love Worth Finding, we love hearing how the ministry and the messages of Adrian Rogers have inspired you in your faith journey. Would you let us know, submit your own testimony, or read others online that have shared their stories with us. We often select stories to be shared throughout our Love Worth Finding community, and we will always protect your privacy if that's what you desire. So let us hear from you today.

Go online to lwf.org slash mylwfstory. Now if you'd like to order a copy of today's message in its entirety, you can call us at 1-877-LOVEGOD and mention the title, How to Behave in a Cave. This message is also part of the insightful series, Live Like a King, for the complete collection a dozen powerful messages called 1-877-LOVEGOD or order online at lwf.org slash radio.

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