Preparing for Sunday - 1 Samuel 18-19

Preparing for Sunday - 1 Samuel 18-19

This Sunday we step into the long middle of the story, where Saul turns his whole strength against the man God has chosen and keeps missing. Before you gather, read 1 Samuel 18-19 slowly and watch a single sentence surface again and again: the Lord was with him. Come ready to see what God's presence does to every weapon raised against His anointed.

Critically Think

1. Read 18:1-4. One victory over Goliath, two hearts headed opposite directions. What does Jonathan hand David in 18:4? Remember who Jonathan is when you answer that.
2. Read 18:6-9. Which line of the women's song lights the fuse for Saul? And when the narrator says Saul "eyed David from that day on" (18:9), what's he telling you about Saul?
3. Now watch how fast Saul slides in 18:8-11. Angry, then watching, then a spear in the air. How long is the trip from a feeling to a weapon?
4. Twice the narrator tells you why David keeps winning (18:12, 18:14). What's the reason? And back in 18:12, who is Saul actually afraid of?
5. Read 18:17-25. Saul keeps saying "not my hand." How is he trying to get David killed without getting any blood on himself? And what does he call his own daughter in 18:21?
6. Read 19:1-7. Jonathan calls David "innocent," killed "without cause" (19:4-5), and Saul swears a real oath not to touch him (19:6). How long does that oath last (19:9-10)?
7. Read 19:11-24. Count everyone God uses to keep David alive: a son, a wife, a window, even a death squad that ends up preaching. And where does the manhunt finally leave Saul (19:23-24)?

Prayerfully Meditate
Saul heard David's name in the street and something in his chest went tight. Whose blessing can't you hear praised without that same sting? And what have you been calling it, so you don't have to call it envy?
Envy is just grief over the grace God gave someone else. Where is that grief hiding in you right now?
The man God is with cannot be stopped by the man God has left. If that is true of you in Christ, what are you still so afraid of?
Saul meant that oath when he swore it. It didn't survive the next spark. What sin have you been managing for years that God has been telling you to kill?
An experience of God is not the favor of God. Only a surrendered heart is. Are you leaning on something you once felt in worship, or on the Anointed who died and rose in your place?

Intentionally Act

1. Read 1 Samuel 18-19 before Sunday, and every time you hit "the Lord was with him," stop and let it land.
2. Make the Jonathan move. Pick one person whose blessing has stung you, and celebrate them this week out loud, to their face.
3. Name the sin you've been managing instead of killing. Confess it to God in plain words, and if you need to, to one believer you trust.
4. Go thank a Jonathan or a Michal in your life, someone God used to protect you or speak up for you when you weren't in the room. Tell them you can see God's hand in it now.
5. Learn the songs below before we gather, so Sunday you're not just hearing about God's presence but singing it over whatever fear you walked in with.

Songs for Sunday
Yes I Will 
In Christ Alone 
Build My Life
How Great Thou Art

Associate Pastor Search Update
Thank you for praying with us through this season of searching. Your shepherds have kept bringing candidates before the Lord, and we've sat down with several godly men. At this point, though, we don't sense the Lord leading us to move forward with any one of them for the posted position, and we'd rather wait on His timing than get ahead of it. The position is still open, more resumes came in this week, and we're reading through them prayerfully. We're also thankful for the staff God has already given us, and for their faithful work this summer, much of it the kind nobody sees. Keep praying with us as we trust the Lord to provide the shepherd He has for us.