Sheep on the Way
Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 24:3-19
3 So he came to the sheepfolds by the road, where there was a cave; and Saul went in to
attend to his needs. (David and his men were staying in the recesses of the cave.) 4 Then the
men of David said to him, “This is the day of which the LORD said to you, ‘Behold, I will deliver
your enemy into your hand, that you may do to him as it seems good to you.’” And David
arose and secretly cut off a corner of Saul’s robe. 5 Now it happened afterward that David’s
heart troubled him because he had cut Saul’s robe. 6 And he said to his men, “The LORD
forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the LORD’s anointed, to stretch out my hand
against him, seeing he is the anointed of the LORD.” 7 So David restrained his servants with
these words, and did not allow them to rise against Saul. And Saul got up from the cave and
went on his way.
8 David also arose afterward, went out of the cave, and called out to Saul, saying, “My lord the
king!” And when Saul looked behind him, David stooped with his face to the earth, and bowed
down. 9 And David said to Saul: “Why do you listen to the words of men who say, ‘Indeed
David seeks your harm’? 10 Look, this day your eyes have seen that the LORD delivered you
today into my hand in the cave, and someone urged me to kill you. But my eye spared you,
and I said, ‘I will not stretch out my hand against my lord, for he is the LORD’s anointed.’ 11
Moreover, my father, see! Yes, see the corner of your robe in my hand! For in that I cut off the
corner of your robe, and did not kill you, know and see that there is neither evil nor rebellion in
my hand, and I have not sinned against you. Yet you hunt my life to take it. 12 Let the LORD
judge between you and me, and let the LORD avenge me on you. But my hand shall not be
against you. 13 As the proverb of the ancients says, ‘Wickedness proceeds from the wicked.’
But my hand shall not be against you. 14 After whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom
do you pursue? A dead dog? A flea? 15 Therefore let the LORD be judge, and judge between
you and me, and see and plead my case, and deliver me out of your hand.”
16 So it was, when David had finished speaking these words to Saul, that Saul said, “Is this
your voice, my son David?” And Saul lifted up his voice and wept. 17 Then he said to David:
“You are more righteous than I; for you have rewarded me with good, whereas I have
rewarded you with evil. 18 And you have shown this day how you have dealt well with me; for
when the LORD delivered me into your hand, you did not kill me. 19 For if a man finds his
enemy, will he let him get away safely? Therefore may the LORD reward you with good for
what you have done to me this day.
Just as a preface to our scripture reading, it’s important to know that by this point
Saul has been trying to kill David for quite some time. David has never done
anything but support Saul. Saul has already disobeyed God, therefore spiritually
forfeiting the throne and David had already been anointed by Samuel but never
once attempted to usurp Saul;s authority but Saul had it out for him. So, now Saul
has heard that David and his men are in the Wilderness of En Gedi and he come to
kill David. So, the stage is set.
Saul is walking along the road and realizes that he has to attend to his needs. That’
s Bible speak for go to the bathroom. So, Saul heads for the cave not knowing that
David and his men are already hiding in the cave. David’s men are figuring that this
is the perfect time for David to kill Saul and rid himself of this menacing king that
wants him dead, but David will not go against the king. But he does take the
opportunity to make sure Saul know how close he was to without seeking to take his
life. Saul know that he’s wrong and David’s right and he pretty much apologizes for
being such a jerk. But guess what? In just 2 chapters he will be hunting David again
and David will have the opportunity to kill him again and won’t.
I Samuel 26:9-10
9 But David said to Abishai, “Do not destroy him; for who can stretch out his hand against the
LORD’s anointed, and be guiltless?” 10 David said furthermore, “As the LORD lives, the LORD
shall strike him, or his day shall come to die, or he shall go out to battle and perish.
Saul himself said that David was more righteous than him. Even with others around
him telling how profitable and easy it would be to get what he wanted by being
unrighteous, he chooses to remain righteous. Scripture tells us that David is a man
after God’s own heart, but not because he’s perfect as we see when he falls so far in
the ordeal with Bathsheba. It’s because David has a heart to follow Yahweh.
Proverbs 16:7-9
7 When a man’s ways please the LORD,
He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.
8 Better is a little with righteousness,
Than vast revenues without justice.
9 A man’s heart plans his way,
But the LORD directs his steps.
Do you really believe that? Do you believe God’s words enough to stand on them or
do they just sound nice, in theory? Did you choose to come hear and listen to me
speak or did God guide you to the place in time where you would hear this? Is it
either or? Is it both? Believe is not just something you do in your head, there
should be some action involved as well. Let’s say I tell you their giving away brand
new Cadillacs 600 miles from where you are today for anyone who applies, no
strings attached. If you really believe me you would not only do everything you
could to get there yourself but you’d probably tell all your friends about it so they
could get one too. You could believe me in part thinking they may be giving away
cars but there must be some catch that’s probably not worth dealing with, so you don’
t bother going. Or you could not believe me at all. It’s not only what you say that will
show which level of belief you have, but it’s also what you do. If you really believe
the proverb I just said, you would seek to please Yahweh. You would hang on tightly
to your righteousness. You would allow yourself to be directed by Him.
Psalm 23
1 The LORD is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
3 He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever.
Psalm 23 is one that every believer has the opportunity to know by heart. It’s only
six verses so it’s not difficult to memorize and in time when you’re in trouble it’s a
good one to remind yourself who your God is. Is the LORD Yahweh your
Shepherd? Yahweh Rohi; the LORD my Shepherd. Do you follow Him only and
listen only to His voice? We don’t live in the type of farm-oriented society like people
used to but from what I understand the sheep will only listen to their own shepherd.
If there are three shepherds grazing in the same pasture, their flocks can get all
mixed up together without a problem. We would look at the situation and see
confusion because the sheep generally look alike so how would each shepherd be
able to figure out what sheep are his when it’s time to separate? Well, here’s the
really interesting part. The sheep will only listen to one shepherd. All the shepherd
has to do is call his sheep and only his sheep will follow his voice. No problem when
it’s time to separate.
John 10:3-4 & 27
3 To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by
name and leads them out. 4 And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and
the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.
27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
Yeshua says that the sheep will follow Him because they know His voice. They’ve
become so accustomed to hearing His voice that they are able to easily distinguish it
from the voice of another. Someone may impersonate His voice and for those who
don’t really know Him, if it’s a good impersonation, they may be deceived. But those
who really know Him will not be deceived even if the voice sounds similar. Have you
become accustomed to His voice? Can you distinguish His voice from all others? If
you hear His voice do you listen and follow or do you think some other way is
better? If you don’t listen and follow, you may be in the same pasture with His
sheep, you may look like His sheep, you may act like His sheep but if you do not
respond to His voice, are you really His? If you listen and follow the voice of
another, whose are you?
Romans 6:15-19
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! 16
Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s
slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to
righteousness? 17 But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed
from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. 18 And having been set free
from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. 19 I speak in human terms because of the
weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness,
and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of
righteousness for holiness.
In that hypothetical pen with all the different sheep mixed up, they ALL heard the
shepherd’s voice. Only those who were really his did something. They moved
toward him; they followed him. The action is what is necessary to be able to
distinguish between the two groups; the group that are his and the group that are
not his. Action! Do you recognize the implications? What do your actions imply?
Do you simply hear or do you hear and act on what you hear?
Romans 2:12-13
12 For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have
sinned in the law will be judged by the law 13 (for not the hearers of the law are just in the
sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified
James 1:22-25
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a
hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24
for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But
he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but
a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.
Don’t deceive yourself. If you’re not a doer of the word, if you’re not following the
voice of Yeshua; you may just be in the pen. As hard as that is to hear, it’s the
truth. Some people have some strange ideas as to what the Law of God is and is
not. It is not some checklist that you do to get spiritual brownie points. As Yacov
says, it is like a spiritual mirror that allows us to look into ourselves and judge
ourselves. Of course we must see our flaws and recognize that we need a Savior
but we must continue in it. We must trust the LORD Yahweh enough to allow Him to
be our Yahweh Rohi; our Shepherd. We must hear His voice and follow Him
wherever He leads. Look back at Psalm 23 to see all the things God wants for you.
He doesn’t want you to have to want for anything, He wants you completely restored,
He does not want you to have any fear of evil, He wants you to be comforted, He
wants you to have such abundance that your cup overflows, and He wants your life
filled with goodness and mercy. When you truly believe that He only wants to take
you to green pasture, there is no fear in following Him.
David listened to His voice instead of the voices of all those around Him, even when
in the natural it seemed like the other voices were right. Even when it looked like
everything he wanted was right in front of him for the taking. There will be many
times in our life when what we think we want is going to be right in front of us if we will
just put aside God’s commands to have it. If you continue reading the account of
David’s life you will see that he did indeed sit on the throne. In fact of all the kings of
Israel, he is the most honored and remembered. God blessed him with the throne
without him having to be unrighteous to receive it. God will bless you as well when
you make righteous choices. So, do you believe it?
Sermon by: Denise Baxley
Date: June 24, 2007
Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 24:3-19
3 So he came to the sheepfolds by the road, where there was a cave; and Saul went in to
attend to his needs. (David and his men were staying in the recesses of the cave.) 4 Then the
men of David said to him, “This is the day of which the LORD said to you, ‘Behold, I will deliver
your enemy into your hand, that you may do to him as it seems good to you.’” And David
arose and secretly cut off a corner of Saul’s robe. 5 Now it happened afterward that David’s
heart troubled him because he had cut Saul’s robe. 6 And he said to his men, “The LORD
forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the LORD’s anointed, to stretch out my hand
against him, seeing he is the anointed of the LORD.” 7 So David restrained his servants with
these words, and did not allow them to rise against Saul. And Saul got up from the cave and
went on his way.
8 David also arose afterward, went out of the cave, and called out to Saul, saying, “My lord the
king!” And when Saul looked behind him, David stooped with his face to the earth, and bowed
down. 9 And David said to Saul: “Why do you listen to the words of men who say, ‘Indeed
David seeks your harm’? 10 Look, this day your eyes have seen that the LORD delivered you
today into my hand in the cave, and someone urged me to kill you. But my eye spared you,
and I said, ‘I will not stretch out my hand against my lord, for he is the LORD’s anointed.’ 11
Moreover, my father, see! Yes, see the corner of your robe in my hand! For in that I cut off the
corner of your robe, and did not kill you, know and see that there is neither evil nor rebellion in
my hand, and I have not sinned against you. Yet you hunt my life to take it. 12 Let the LORD
judge between you and me, and let the LORD avenge me on you. But my hand shall not be
against you. 13 As the proverb of the ancients says, ‘Wickedness proceeds from the wicked.’
But my hand shall not be against you. 14 After whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom
do you pursue? A dead dog? A flea? 15 Therefore let the LORD be judge, and judge between
you and me, and see and plead my case, and deliver me out of your hand.”
16 So it was, when David had finished speaking these words to Saul, that Saul said, “Is this
your voice, my son David?” And Saul lifted up his voice and wept. 17 Then he said to David:
“You are more righteous than I; for you have rewarded me with good, whereas I have
rewarded you with evil. 18 And you have shown this day how you have dealt well with me; for
when the LORD delivered me into your hand, you did not kill me. 19 For if a man finds his
enemy, will he let him get away safely? Therefore may the LORD reward you with good for
what you have done to me this day.
Just as a preface to our scripture reading, it’s important to know that by this point
Saul has been trying to kill David for quite some time. David has never done
anything but support Saul. Saul has already disobeyed God, therefore spiritually
forfeiting the throne and David had already been anointed by Samuel but never
once attempted to usurp Saul;s authority but Saul had it out for him. So, now Saul
has heard that David and his men are in the Wilderness of En Gedi and he come to
kill David. So, the stage is set.
Saul is walking along the road and realizes that he has to attend to his needs. That’
s Bible speak for go to the bathroom. So, Saul heads for the cave not knowing that
David and his men are already hiding in the cave. David’s men are figuring that this
is the perfect time for David to kill Saul and rid himself of this menacing king that
wants him dead, but David will not go against the king. But he does take the
opportunity to make sure Saul know how close he was to without seeking to take his
life. Saul know that he’s wrong and David’s right and he pretty much apologizes for
being such a jerk. But guess what? In just 2 chapters he will be hunting David again
and David will have the opportunity to kill him again and won’t.
I Samuel 26:9-10
9 But David said to Abishai, “Do not destroy him; for who can stretch out his hand against the
LORD’s anointed, and be guiltless?” 10 David said furthermore, “As the LORD lives, the LORD
shall strike him, or his day shall come to die, or he shall go out to battle and perish.
Saul himself said that David was more righteous than him. Even with others around
him telling how profitable and easy it would be to get what he wanted by being
unrighteous, he chooses to remain righteous. Scripture tells us that David is a man
after God’s own heart, but not because he’s perfect as we see when he falls so far in
the ordeal with Bathsheba. It’s because David has a heart to follow Yahweh.
Proverbs 16:7-9
7 When a man’s ways please the LORD,
He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.
8 Better is a little with righteousness,
Than vast revenues without justice.
9 A man’s heart plans his way,
But the LORD directs his steps.
Do you really believe that? Do you believe God’s words enough to stand on them or
do they just sound nice, in theory? Did you choose to come hear and listen to me
speak or did God guide you to the place in time where you would hear this? Is it
either or? Is it both? Believe is not just something you do in your head, there
should be some action involved as well. Let’s say I tell you their giving away brand
new Cadillacs 600 miles from where you are today for anyone who applies, no
strings attached. If you really believe me you would not only do everything you
could to get there yourself but you’d probably tell all your friends about it so they
could get one too. You could believe me in part thinking they may be giving away
cars but there must be some catch that’s probably not worth dealing with, so you don’
t bother going. Or you could not believe me at all. It’s not only what you say that will
show which level of belief you have, but it’s also what you do. If you really believe
the proverb I just said, you would seek to please Yahweh. You would hang on tightly
to your righteousness. You would allow yourself to be directed by Him.
Psalm 23
1 The LORD is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
3 He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever.
Psalm 23 is one that every believer has the opportunity to know by heart. It’s only
six verses so it’s not difficult to memorize and in time when you’re in trouble it’s a
good one to remind yourself who your God is. Is the LORD Yahweh your
Shepherd? Yahweh Rohi; the LORD my Shepherd. Do you follow Him only and
listen only to His voice? We don’t live in the type of farm-oriented society like people
used to but from what I understand the sheep will only listen to their own shepherd.
If there are three shepherds grazing in the same pasture, their flocks can get all
mixed up together without a problem. We would look at the situation and see
confusion because the sheep generally look alike so how would each shepherd be
able to figure out what sheep are his when it’s time to separate? Well, here’s the
really interesting part. The sheep will only listen to one shepherd. All the shepherd
has to do is call his sheep and only his sheep will follow his voice. No problem when
it’s time to separate.
John 10:3-4 & 27
3 To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by
name and leads them out. 4 And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and
the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.
27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
Yeshua says that the sheep will follow Him because they know His voice. They’ve
become so accustomed to hearing His voice that they are able to easily distinguish it
from the voice of another. Someone may impersonate His voice and for those who
don’t really know Him, if it’s a good impersonation, they may be deceived. But those
who really know Him will not be deceived even if the voice sounds similar. Have you
become accustomed to His voice? Can you distinguish His voice from all others? If
you hear His voice do you listen and follow or do you think some other way is
better? If you don’t listen and follow, you may be in the same pasture with His
sheep, you may look like His sheep, you may act like His sheep but if you do not
respond to His voice, are you really His? If you listen and follow the voice of
another, whose are you?
Romans 6:15-19
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! 16
Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s
slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to
righteousness? 17 But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed
from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. 18 And having been set free
from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. 19 I speak in human terms because of the
weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness,
and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of
righteousness for holiness.
In that hypothetical pen with all the different sheep mixed up, they ALL heard the
shepherd’s voice. Only those who were really his did something. They moved
toward him; they followed him. The action is what is necessary to be able to
distinguish between the two groups; the group that are his and the group that are
not his. Action! Do you recognize the implications? What do your actions imply?
Do you simply hear or do you hear and act on what you hear?
Romans 2:12-13
12 For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have
sinned in the law will be judged by the law 13 (for not the hearers of the law are just in the
sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified
James 1:22-25
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a
hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24
for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But
he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but
a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.
Don’t deceive yourself. If you’re not a doer of the word, if you’re not following the
voice of Yeshua; you may just be in the pen. As hard as that is to hear, it’s the
truth. Some people have some strange ideas as to what the Law of God is and is
not. It is not some checklist that you do to get spiritual brownie points. As Yacov
says, it is like a spiritual mirror that allows us to look into ourselves and judge
ourselves. Of course we must see our flaws and recognize that we need a Savior
but we must continue in it. We must trust the LORD Yahweh enough to allow Him to
be our Yahweh Rohi; our Shepherd. We must hear His voice and follow Him
wherever He leads. Look back at Psalm 23 to see all the things God wants for you.
He doesn’t want you to have to want for anything, He wants you completely restored,
He does not want you to have any fear of evil, He wants you to be comforted, He
wants you to have such abundance that your cup overflows, and He wants your life
filled with goodness and mercy. When you truly believe that He only wants to take
you to green pasture, there is no fear in following Him.
David listened to His voice instead of the voices of all those around Him, even when
in the natural it seemed like the other voices were right. Even when it looked like
everything he wanted was right in front of him for the taking. There will be many
times in our life when what we think we want is going to be right in front of us if we will
just put aside God’s commands to have it. If you continue reading the account of
David’s life you will see that he did indeed sit on the throne. In fact of all the kings of
Israel, he is the most honored and remembered. God blessed him with the throne
without him having to be unrighteous to receive it. God will bless you as well when
you make righteous choices. So, do you believe it?
Sermon by: Denise Baxley
Date: June 24, 2007
