"Giving Up On Life" So We Can Hope In Eternity (In Search Of Truth, Hebrews 11:32, David)

(Hebrews 11:32, ESV) And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—


The names listed in v. 32 seem to represent the totality of those in history who displayed faith, since the list of deeds followed by "who" in verse 33 can probably not all be accounted for in the lives of only those on this short list of names.

With this in mind, we're taking a brief look at each of the people listed here and making a few observations about their faith based on what the Bible says about them. This time we'll look at David, whose story can be found in 1 Sam. 16:1 – 1 Kings 2:10, as well as a number of Psalms.

There is actually so much material in the Bible about David's life that he really warrants an entire series of his own. And in fact sometime down the road I'd like to do a study on the life of King David for these "In Search Of Truth" segments, incorporating the Psalms he wrote as they chronologically fall during his life. If that sounds like a big undertaking that will take us on an epic journey, you're right. So for now I'll just try to make a few observations about David's faith based on "stand-out" moments from his life.

The Sunday school version of young David's encounter with lions, bears and Goliath can easily leave me with a flannel-graph, cartoony version of events in my mind. It's easy to read Bible stories and become numb to the savage and dangerous times these people lived in. David, who was probably no older than 19 and possibly as young as 12, had killed at least one lion and at least one bear in the course of his duties as a shepherd. Then he went on to kill a highly trained and physically remarkable enemy soldier that no one else in the Israelite army was brave enough to fight. Yet in all these cases he identified Yahweh as the reason for victory.

(1 Samuel 17:37, ESV) And David said, “The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the LORD be with you!”

(1 Samuel 17:47b, ESV)  "For the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give you into our hand.”

We've seen examples of this kind of faith in others from the Hebrews "Hall Of Faith", but David's faith goes beyond trusting God's ability. He trusted in who Yahweh said he was, and his trust changed the way he approached life. Instead of chasing his own dreams and aspirations, he pursued the things that God cares about, being described by Yahweh as "a man after his [Yahweh's] own heart". (1 Samuel 13:14)

He trusted and recognized Yahweh's identity as rightful ruler over all. So even when he had the opportunity to kill King Saul, who was mercilessly trying to kill him, David spared his life and said, "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.” (1 Samuel 24:6) Although Saul was a terrible ruler, David trusted Yahweh's plan which, for now, involved placing a corrupt ruler in authority.

You may already be familiar with David's sin. He slept with a married woman and essentially had her husband killed so that he could marry her. When he was confronted about this sin he immediately repented and mourned what he had done.

Psalm 51 records the thoughts and prayers of David as he responded to his sin, and it shows us more about his faith in Yahweh. David had an enormously large and high view of God that was far ahead of his time. He recognized that God alone could provide forgiveness for his sin and that the sacrificial system was ultimately not what would put people in right relationship with God. (Psalm 51:1-2,16-17)

He also recognized God's holiness and infinite value, which meant that God, by comparison, was the only person being wronged by David's sin that was worth mentioning.

(Psalm 51:4, ESV) Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment. 

Yes, Bathsheba was wronged by David's seduction of her and of course her husband was wronged by being murdered by David's command. It wasn't David's right to do either of these things. But Bathsheba and her husband were sinners, just like you and I are. And sin deserves death anyway (Romans 6:23). A day we live without being struck down for our sin is a day of undeserved favor from God.

But God empathizes with and loves each of us so much that when we hurt each other we're doing wrong against him. (Matthew 25:45) And God is our Creator, so we take his gift of life for granted and insult him when we violate what he has made us for.

Through David's repentance we see how his faith was not compartmentalized, but informed the way he viewed every area of his life.

When David's child becomes deathly ill because of David's sin, David mourns and weeps and pleads with God until the child dies, at which point:

David arose from the earth and washed and anointed himself and changed his clothes. And he went into the house of the LORD and worshiped. He then went to his own house. And when he asked, they set food before him, and he ate. Then his servants said to him, “What is this thing that you have done? You fasted and wept for the child while he was alive; but when the child died, you arose and ate food.” He said, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept, for I said, ‘Who knows whether the LORD will be gracious to me, that the child may live?’ But now he is dead. Why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me.” (2 Samuel 12:20-23, ESV)

I have never seen anyone mourn death like this, let alone the death of a child. I can't imagine the kind of faith required to have this perspective on life and death. But when my time comes to mourn, I want to mourn like David.

He didn't see this life as the main event and what comes after as an epilogue. He had his eyes on eternity. And I think that's what kept him from sitting in despair and bitterness for the rest of his life. He mourned and wept when horrible nightmares came true in his life. But he also recognized that this life isn't primarily what we were made to experience. It will eventually just be a dot on the line of eternity. His life was ruined, but he also knew that what we have on earth isn't our real life when compared to eternity.


SO WHAT'S IN THIS FOR GEEKS?

It's worth noting that David was a creative type, as I think most all geeks are in some way. He was a musician and a writer and had a gift for creative and descriptive word imagery. He's one of the closest things to a geek we have in scripture, which often makes me a little extra curious about his way of thinking and his approach to life.

As geeks, we are often dreamers. We imagine and long for success and recognition for our creative endeavors, whether that means landing a big publishing deal or just getting reactions of approval from the gaming group we DM for. But David's first priority was being on board with God's agenda. He pursued God's heart on a day-to-day and moment-by-moment basis. He wasn't just trying to "be good", he was aiming to give pleasure to God with his choices.(A stunning capability we have when you think about it.) And even when he knew God would one day make him king he was in no hurry to claim that title.

What might happen if we stopped being concerned about getting approval and recognition from people and instead saw our interactions with others as an opportunity to be on board with what God is doing in their lives?

Despite our love for the imaginary, geeks also often surprisingly live too much for the here and now instead of living for what's coming in eternity. In fact imagination is often our escape because we will otherwise fixate too much on the here and now. Specifically our fears, pains and desires. We stew in bitterness over the way we've been wounded, or live in defensive caution of being wounded again. Or we allow our immense enjoyment of our hobbies to become what we live our lives for.

Of course we wouldn't say we live for the here and now on a written exam. We know how to get the answer right on the test and would probably fill in the bubble marked "I'm living for eternity". But moment-to-moment we still live in our fears, or bitterness, or our desire to finish our workday so we can disappear into our geekery. We obsess over both the good and bad in our lives and often miss out on life as it's meant to be lived.

David had every reason to shut down and stay in grief and bitterness for the rest of his life after his son died. But instead he fixed his eyes on the reality of eternity on the horizon. He didn't place high hopes on having a happy life here and now. And neither should we.

Jesus said, "In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”(John 16:33, ESV) And we might look at that and say, "Good for you Jesus. Glad you made it out. Woop-dee-doo. I'm still stuck living in this world right now."

And yet I think that was his point. We have trouble in this life, but Jesus has overcome the world, which means if we place our hope in him there is lasting victory and peace and joy after this life that we can fix our eyes on right now.

Sometimes that just means getting through this day, or this week, or this month, or this life. I'm creeping up to 40 in just over a couple years, and while that sometimes makes me feel nervous, on my rough days it's a hopeful reminder that maybe I'm already halfway home. Yeah, time flies and that's scary, but when I'm weary it also means that rest is coming, and that knowledge can help us push through.

My troubles in life have been ridiculously tame compared to what I know some of you have experienced, or are even going through right now. But David's life is a life worth every geek's examination. He shows us how to live in the pain and fear of today, but while resting in the hope of eternity, and relying on the strength of the God who made us and creates beauty and purpose out of even the worst realities of life.