Cloudy Days . . . Dark Nights, Part 2

Have you ever been stuck in the season over billions for this style of life would you choose carnality rather than spirituality and you begin to serve an adversary because she got to pay the piper slope in the slough of despond and rather than look up for the hand for help will lead you out while you're down there, it is easy to think it's better to live here never promises fair weather conditions for those who follow God today on Insight for living. Chuck Swindoll continues our biographical series on as we review another season of David's life will be reminded even spiritual giants suffer the consequences of their poor choices. First Samuel 27 describes it. When the celebrated warrior paid a price for his rebellion and discouragement followed. Chuck titled his message cloudy days. Dark nights. There is no way the Christian can go through this life en route to heaven without spending some time. Unfortunately, in the slough of despond, if you think you can escape that blog you are dreaming. You are not facing facts is not to try David because he was despondent. Our concern is what he did when he fell in there was a fork in the road and he took the wrong way, and the result was predictable misery compromise, and in fact, 16 long months of disobedience. David experienced it because of three things I like how you see them with me. Notice the chapter begins. Then David said to himself. Oh, there's your first problem. It's important if you talk to yourself that you tell yourself the right thing.

David didn't so the very first cause for his experience in the slough of despond is what I would call humanistic viewpoint. He looked at life strictly from the horizontal. You will find David praying once in this chapter David never looks up until much further down the line as we in the message you will see him do that, but he is coming off a spiritual high and emotional hi remember he could have slain Saul twice but it didn't. He was about to kill a ball, but Abigail stood in his way and said don't do that.

So he is experienced. It a great deal of victory. He's come off the crest of victory and that's a very vulnerable spot.

The second thing that caused his and his problem was pessimistic reasoning see what he says now I will perish one day by the hand of Saul. That's wrong. David you know better than that.

You notice that it's in the future. He says I will perish. She doesn't know the future but pessimists continually focus on the future and come out wrong in their minds. The future is inevitably bleak, pessimistic reasoning, surrounded David I'll perish in Sandalwood said to be the king God spoke through Abigail and said you're going to be the king God spoke through Jonathan and said, you will be the next king, even Saul, the enemy had said. David, I realize I'm looking at my replacement but David denied all those promises that God had given any set out Perry shall never see the kingdom there's 1/3 reason that he was in this deep despondency, and that is rationalistic logic lit him there. What he says I will perish one day, but I handle Saul there is nothing better for me than to escape into the land of the Philistines.

Can you believe that statement that's rationalism that says times are harder, God left me. I thought I could be king but I'll never be king. I'm going to die if I keep on the frontage of Saul's army he's going to catch up with me.

I'll have to escape all go to publicity will for sure Saul would look for him in the Philistine camp because that's where the adversary lives not want this to be such an allegory, you miss what were saying. It's a beautiful picture of a Christian that it's for carnality.

David is an illustration of a believer who is a believer on the inside but on the outside it looks just like a nonbeliever. It is like a non-Christian, he says I go to Felicity but he didn't go alone. He and the 600 men who were with him.

David is a commander is the commander-in-chief of the guerrilla troops. The Israeli troops. He strained these men in the cave of the development they have done battle in the wilderness among the border tribes and you he should've known when he went they would go with him. Not only thank verse three, David lived with a case of death, but he and his men and their households. So now we have David +600+600 households. Furthermore, it says in verse three that David's wives ahead ON and Abigail went along as well.

You do not simply live independently of everyone else. When you make a decision that is wrong you take a course that is not God's plan, you take it rather extensively among those as well. The trust you and count on you and look to you believe in, well really the balance of the messages on the consequences that poor decision, but let me point out a couple three right now and then will go further to the passage and show you the balance of look at verse four. It was told Saul that David had fled to Gath.

By the way, member gaffe member and a giant member, his hometown Goliath of Gath, and now that's David's home you believe it only a matter of years since he slew Goliath and in the Valley of the law, and yet after a number of years of running and now beginning to fade in the stretch. He runs back to Gath and decides he'll live there with vacation, the king, the arch enemy of the Israelites. It says it was told Saul that David had fled to Gath so he that's all no longer searched for him.

The first consequences that it created a false sense of security and safe and Felicity at last I don't have to mess with those troops of Saul that had been on my back and following my steps, plotting and holding the appraiser's gone. What a relief. Saul stopped following him. If you mark your margin of your Bible with the pencil out appreciate your putting down a verse of Scripture.

You can read it later says in my notes Hebrews 1125 and then it is a phrase that we have mouthed for years. The passing pleasures of sin. Hebrews 1125 is a context of Moses, who, rather than living in Egypt, he chose to live with the people of God, and it says in the decision he made. He chose to walk with God rather than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, don't you doubt it. Sin has its pleasures. Disobedience has its exhilarating moments were posted, and I there are times in which we relax and enjoy disobedience because of the pleasures, but they are always passing. They are always in transition in the never bring ultimate satisfaction never, never, in here is a case in point, we often think those passing pleasures of sin, or the overt pleasures, sometimes just a release of pressure on him under this this intensity. Walking with God and I buy what I offer the other side of the road.

Suddenly there's a release of pressure and I say this is great it pays off Saul no longer sorting, like what the New Testament says when they say peace, peace, peace, watch out.

Destruction is near. Now there's another reason there's there's another consequence to verse five David said to a quiche here is, here's the giant killer talking to the to the king. The king of Gath. He says if I if now I have found favor in your sight. Let them. That would be the citizens of Gath let the citizens give me a place in one of the cities in the country that I may live there, or why should your servant live in the Royal city with you. The second consequences submission to an adversary because when you opt for a disobedient black. A style of life and you choose carnality rather than spirituality, you begin to serve an adversary because I can't believe David calls himself the servant of a quiche. But that's what is she gonna pay the piper. When you slough in the slew of despair on, and rather than look up for the hand or help will lead you out while you're down there, it is easy to think what it's better to live here. Which brings up the third. Verses six and seven, a quiche gave sick lag to it that day. Remember that name. By the way, it means nothing to you right now, but significant.

Later on, the story Gath a quiche talk it over with his troops in the end they said let's give them sick, lag so it says they gave them sick, lag and zip line belong to the kings of Judah this day and the number of the days. David lived in the country. The Philistines was a year and four months of the third consequences. It led to a lengthy period of compromise. You could say I won't hurt day or two in this style I can get back in the swing of things doesn't work like that. There is something magnetic about slumping into despondency and beginning a lifestyle like the lost world. You just don't snap out of it. Abraham, when he went down to Egypt stayed for a while his nephew Lot. We went to Sodom began to pitch his tent near there and before long he was living there and finally became one of the elders ascended the gate of the city of Sodom. He was identified with David, now 16 months. This is the man who was the sweet singer of Israel by the way there's not one time you'll find a Psalm attributed to those days when he was with a quiche in Gath are sick like another words, the sweet singer of Israel was mute. He wrote no songs when he was in this slump you can mark it down for sure that the carnal Christian is not singing songs. There is a lack of production and there is a lack of deep joy that marks the life of the carnal Christian you don't find much happiness flowing out of the life of David you think maybe a case didn't really take them seriously. Maybe just said well we play along with him for a while. Wait a minute look at 29 three just for a moment over chapter 2 verse three of chapter 29 the commanders of the Philistines said one of these Hebrews doing here.

Vacation said to the commanders.

Is this not David the servant of Saul, the king of Israel, who has been with me these days are rather these years and I found no fault in him. Notice from the day he deserted to me to this day a case didn't misunderstand, he sought his desertion. It's a clear case of defection David who has walked with God now defects and walks away from God, and there are some here in that very state. I'm sure you have known the joys and ecstasies of walking with Christ and the penetration of despondency is happened and you've opted for the wrong fork in the road and you're now in the camp of carnality of a pastor friend who calls at the carnal corral where many Christians choose to live by the way they are the ones that give trouble to the church the local church, you have no trouble with the spiritual minded Christian it's the carnal Christian that gives you grief. Now the winds and storms began to increase, as David has opted for this style.

Notice a rather rapid movement of events and you I think will be interested in some insights geographically to how it applies to David style and show them to you. First of all, there is a duplicity that marks David steps Webster says that duplicity is deception by pretending you pretend to entertain one set of feelings, but really you're operating from another entirely deep inside David. He was an Israelite. He would always be an Israelite, but is trying to live like a full listing on the outside that's what happens when use when you spend your time in the carnal corral your believer down inside what you lifestyle your wanting to make it look free from that bondage quote unquote so you're in this miserable dilemma which creates the need to compromise. That's precisely what David does here is on the horns of a dilemma militarily. See verse eight. David and his men went up and rated the jet, the geisha writes in the girl resides in the Amalekites, for they were the inhabitants of the land for me. From ancient times.

Verse nine says David attacked the land and didn't leave a man or woman alive will wait a minute, let's get a little geography in our heads will help if her life depended on it.

Probably none of us could even point out on a map for the geisha writes in girls lights and Amalekites live or who they were or why that guy up front making such a big deal out of what's what's so important about those three groups. Well, what is important is that they were they were sort of neutral people.

They were neither the will. They were the enemies of Israel, but they were not the allies of Felicity, sort of like Russia in the second world war, the European theater is running the trouble with Berlin. You see, they were the they were the enemies of Nazi Germany, but they were not the allies of of America. Okay, they were in that closet, Edenton position that later on they tip their hand and showed they were not our allies and so David 20s down and sick lag and by the way, that's the second most southern city in Palestine way down there, just above Beersheba Pisan sick lag and he's saying militarily, so he does some skirmishes he fights with the border troops who were described as the Garside sender and the, the, the geisha writes in resides in Amalekites there safe people to slaughter their border people but they're not really philistine enemies or allies what I want to show you is that David begins to be very vague in reporting his actions and I can hardly wait to make this point in in its allegory, but just a second look at the point of what he says.

Verse nine he attacked the land notice he didn't leave a man or woman alive put it into total extermination, nobody living to tell what really happened, not a person was alive. The land was strewn with them on the hillside.

He took the sheet.

The cattle the dogs. The Campbells in the clothing that's a rather complete job of mopping up.

I would say that he returned and came to a quiche to look at this dialogue and he said where you been where you made a raid today. Currently David was responsible to report back. He was accountable to a case that uses or to make a raid today. Look at the vagueness.

David said against the negative of Judah.

The negative is a Hebrew word for South Lachish. I was fighting in the southern part of Judah, implying I was killing those people of Judah Israelite, but he wasn't killing the Israelites he was killing the Amalekites and the geisha writes all other rights it wasn't killing people of Israel but he was but he failed his answer in terms that couldn't be pinpointed. There wasn't a clarity about his position to talk to a carnal Christian about his life and they are masters at this particular thing do we do it as kids see no back in those days we covered it up with our folks.

I never get that Halloween day route through those eggs on that house. The teacher that I didn't like and two other guys who made me do it and the three of us that night. I didn't know it but the guy living inside's I do know I was in there and he stepped up front. He shot the shotgun when all I set a record that they had 100 yard – I jumped a 6 foot fence at the next day I couldn't climb over the night before is what the walked in the house. My mother said were you been and I said outside that is a veiled answer and we got pretty specific later on.

Talk to a chronic Christian about worries at he will come to terms with you for love is like I was in the thousands style flight and those people Judah implied but not actually stated what else he does. He lies a little, I am against the hood Jerome Eliasson against the they cannot writes that lyre didn't fight those people. That's why he wiped out those he did fine. So the word wouldn't get back to where his head really was. It was, not the traces you see he was he's doing his homework so nobody would really know where he was.

Verse 11 drives at home. There's a secrecy here. See David didn't leave a man or woman alive to bring the gap saying lest they should tell about us saying so is David Dunn and so is Buddhist practice all the time is limited to the Felicity say that. So what you do when you operate from a carnal corral you you operate in secrecy you want to be accountable to no one about him asking, and you cover this is a season in David's life that's often overlooked. We often picture Israel's king is a fearless warrior but rarely as someone who covered up his carnal desires you're going to hear the rest of the story. On the next edition of Insight for living and if you like to learn more about this ministry. Visit us online@insideworld.org.

Please stay with us because will hear a personal comment from Chuck in just a moment right now, I'm pleased to remind you that Chuck wrote a biography that coincides with his teaching series on David and it's available right now by giving us a call or visiting our online store. If you're looking for a book to read this summer, one that will remind you of God's unfailing love, even in our lowest moments we highly recommend this one.

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Lest you think your Bible teacher lives in a protective bubble, devoid of any disappointments in unwanted surprises. Let me assure you that nothing could be further from the truth. My world is no different than your world swindles are not immune from the travails and the trials of this life. Even so, my heart is revived because God is proven himself a full over and over again. This will be love about David Wright in our current study were allowed a front row seat in the theater of David's extraordinary life. His humble career started on the dusty hillside where he was caring for his father's smelling sheep. Remember that later he would bear arms during one season. David slumped into depression and ultimately he occupied the highest office in the land. What contrasts he endured before you're too impressed.

Remember this David's trajectory to the top was punctuated with the embarrassing misstep's. He was far from perfect and yet God wanted to David and said this of him there that would right there. He's a man after my own heart will hear it inside for living ministries. This is our hope filled message to a generation that struggling for survival.

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Share this comment from a grateful friend who said Pastor Chuck, I started reading your books 25 years ago through our pastor in the Philippines. It was a great help in my spiritual growth. Then one day my stubborn and rebellious heart went astray. I hid from God for number of years. I ignored because I was enjoying and loving my sins and it was exactly a year ago that I ran back to his arms.

I thank God for your life.

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We look forward to hearing from you soon path Thursday on insight for living. The preceding message. Cloudy days. Dark Knight was copyrighted in 1978, 1988, 1997 and 2009 and the sound recording was copyrighted 2009 by Charles R swindles all rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited