The story of David is one of the most detailed ones in the Bible. It begins in 1 Samuel 16 and goes all the way through 1 Kings 2:12. King David is referenced throughout the Bible because of his link to the promised Messiah.
David was known to be a fearless warrior, a passionate family man, a loyal follower of God, and a man after God’s heart.
After the death of Saul and three of his sons, David was anointed king of Judah. He reigned in Judah for seven years and six months. Eventually, David was crowned king over all of Israel, but it was not without pitfalls and lots of issues. Most of his reign was spent fighting the nations that threatened Israel like the Philistines. His kingdom was almost torn apart on two separate occasions because of his sons Absalom and Adonijah.
The 9 lessons to learn from King David
1. Never Judge by Appearances – 1 Samuel 16:7
After the Israelites had settled in the Promised Land for a while, they asked for a king. Under the influence of the Holy Spirit, the prophet Samuel chose Saul to be the first king of Israel.
At first, things went well but then Saul began to exhibit troubling signs of pride and disobedience. He lost favor with God and the kingdom was taken from him and his descendants (1 Samuel 9-15).
The prophet Samuel was sent to the house of Jesse to anoint the new king, David. David being the youngest of Jesse’s eight sons, had the responsibility of tending the family’s herd of sheep.
Jesse’s sons were brought before prophet Samuel. One by one, Samuel was shown all of Jesse’s older sons, but none was the right choice by God.
1 Samuel 16:7 (King James Version)
7 But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.
2. Just Because No One Did It, Does Not Mean It Cannot Be Done – 1 Samuel 17:45
David was surrounded by the children of Israel whom God had adopted as his sons, and yet they feared Goliath who was a heathen who worshipped pagan gods than God Himself.
There were so many promises that God would be with his people, so many thrilling examples of Jehovah stepping in with a mighty hand to defend his people. Yet, many sit trembling on the sidelines with great fear of their enemies.
Trusting in God’s strength and protection, David fearlessly faced the giant that had terrorized an entire army for forty days. He did not brag of his own strength or skills; rather, he put on the armor of God and trusted Him to carry him through this battle as He had through so many before. Whether tending his flock or facing a terrifying giant, David turned to God for strength and courage.
David being youngest among the Israel army had every right to join the majority in fear of the Philistines, but he didn’t. From him, we learn that:
When people try to defy your God, quit acting like they have a point.
In David’s own words to Goliath in 1 Samuel 17:45 (NKJ)
45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.
Eventually, David was responsible for killing Goliath, the giant and he became very popular among the Israelites. When Saul realized that David had become popular among the people, he tried to kill him. Saul’s persecution of David lasted for several years until his death. During that time, David lived on the run. (1 Samuel 16-27).
3. Vengeance belongs to God alone – I Samuel 26:23
King Saul pursued David through the desert, desperate to find and kill him. Once, while Saul was relieving himself in the very cave where David was hiding, David’s cohorts encouraged him to finally kill himl, But David merely cut off a small piece of Saul’s robe, indicating that he could have killed his pursuer but chose not to.4 He would have other opportunities, too, to kill Saul,5 but he never took them, revering to Saul as the king chosen by God.
There are times when circumstances present us with opportunities to take revenge against those who may have wronged us, and it can be tempting to take them. But, like David, we must refuse to refuge and allow God to fight for us. We may lose the battle, but we win the war of morality.
1 Samuel 26: 23 May the Lord repay every man for his righteousness and his faithfulness; for the Lord delivered you into my hand today, but I would not stretch out my hand against the Lord’s anointed.
4. Don’t Worry About What Others May Think – 2 Samuel 12-16
2 Samuel 6:15-16 (KJV)
15 So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet.
16 And as the ark of the Lord came into the city of David, Michal Saul’s daughter looked through a window, and saw king David leaping and dancing before the Lord; and she despised him in her heart.
The Bible says that King David “danced with all his might before the Lord.” Queen Michal, daughter of King Saul, found it distasteful for a king to display such emotion in public. When she criticized him for allowing even simple folk to see him in such a state, David explained his actions by saying that God had chosen him to become king over Israel. Even if he were to “demean” himself further, he said, he was confident that the onlookers would honor him.
5. Don’t listen to naysayers – 1 Samuel 17:23-24
“For forty days, twice a day, morning and evening, the Philistine giant loudly berated the Israelite army.” 1 Samuel 17:16 “As David talked with his brothers on the front line, he saw Goliath start shouting his usual threats to Israel’s army. When the army heard Goliath, they all ran away in terror.” 1 Samuel 17:23-24.
“David asked, ‘What’s the reward for killing this Philistine and ending this disgraceful abuse?’… When David’s older brother heard this he burned with anger at David and said ‘Why are YOU even here anyway?
1 Samuel 17:26-29 4. ‘Don’t worry about a thing,’ David told the King, ‘I’ll fight this Philistine!’ ‘Don’t be ridiculous!’ Saul replied. ‘There’s no way YOU can go against this Philistine! You’re only a boy,
Here, King David is faced with a giant that the all of the army of Israel is afraid of but he knew size doesn’t matter, it’s HEART, COURAGE, and COMMITMENT that matters.
You can apply the same principle and same level of thinking to your life and the challenges you’re facing. Think bigger than the challenge, be bigger than the obstacle, and act as if it’s impossible for you not to fail.
David didn’t allow the situation to discourage him. Let us be like David:
When people tell you that your God cannot save you, quit letting their opinion get you down.
When we push aside our concern over public opinion to serve God in the way we know to be correct, people respect us for our strength of conviction.
When people are being negative and trying to make you feel small, quit listening to them.
Don’t allow anyone to belittle you, live up to the identity of who you are in Christ.
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