Jesus, the Better King and Good Shepherd

David’s life is not mainly an underdog story meant to turn people into braver versions of themselves. The Bible is one story, and Jesus is its hero, not Moses, David, or any other flawed man who appears along the way. David helps people understand Jesus better because David’s throne, anointing, and shepherd’s heart all point beyond themselves to the true King.

David resembles Christ as a king anointed by God rather than self-appointed. David’s throne was always a human stand-in for a divine reality, since the throne belongs to God and finds its eternal fulfillment in Jesus. Jesus does not copy David. David foreshadows Jesus, the rightful King who holds all things together by right, not by loan.

David also shows the limits of every human king. David loved God sincerely, yet he fell into lust, greed, and sin that fractured his kingdom. Christ is like David in his kingship but unlike David in his humanity. Jesus was tempted but never sinned, and his kingdom cannot be shaken because he has never failed. David needed atonement, but Jesus is that atonement. David died and stayed dead, but Christ rose, securing the forever kingdom promised to David.

First Samuel 16 sets that contrast in motion. Saul looked like the kind of king the nations would choose: tall, handsome, charismatic, and able to carry an aura of power. Saul’s desire to hold onto power eventually showed that he was no longer worthy of it. God, however, sees the heart. David was not even invited to the sacrifice because he was out tending sheep, yet the shepherd boy carried the heart God sought in a leader: a heart to protect, sustain, and care for those under his authority.

Psalm 23 shows that David understood both shepherding and being shepherded. Jesus fulfills every part of that Psalm as the Good Shepherd. Christ feeds spiritual hunger, gives rest to weary souls, restores life, leads his sheep, stays present in the valley, and lays down his life against sin, Satan, and death. Christ’s lordship is therefore not a threat or a hard master demanding compliance. Christ’s authority brings about the good of his sheep.

David’s private anointing also points to the present reality of Christ’s reign. Jesus is the anointed King, though his kingdom has not yet been fully realized on earth. The Holy Spirit enables believers to confess that Jesus is Lord and to live into that confession. The Spirit cannot be lost because Christ gives the Spirit by grace, not works. Communion becomes a table in the presence of defeated enemies, reminding Christ’s people that his broken body defeats death and his blood defeats sin and Satan’s lies.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Jesus is the better David [20:56] David’s life gives real hope only when it directs attention beyond David. David’s throne, anointing, and shepherding all anticipate Christ, while David’s failures show the need for a King who cannot fail. Jesus fulfills what David could only picture. His kingdom stands because his life was sinless, his sacrifice sufficient, and his resurrection final. [20:56]
• 2. God sees the heart of leadership [28:41] Saul looked like the kind of king people naturally trust, but appearance and charisma could not sustain his calling. David was found among the sheep because God was looking for a shepherd’s heart, not merely a kingly image. Godly authority protects and serves rather than using people to preserve power. The Good Shepherd shows that real leadership is costly care. [28:41]
• 3. Christ’s lordship is for human good [46:39] Fear, anger, and shame often become the places where people try hardest to maintain control. Christ’s authority can feel threatening only when his heart is forgotten. Jesus leads as the Good Shepherd, not as a hard master who demands compliance without care. Surrender becomes possible when his direction is trusted as good, even through the valley. [46:39]
• 4. The Spirit gives lasting assurance [43:37] David feared the loss of God’s Spirit because Saul’s rejection stood in the background of his life. Christ gives the Holy Spirit differently, by grace through faith, so that the Spirit cannot be lost. The continuing confession that “Jesus is Lord” becomes evidence of the Spirit’s presence. The Spirit always brings people back to Christ rather than making them stare at themselves. [43:37]
• 5. Communion remembers defeated enemies [48:39] Christ prepares a table in the presence of sin, Satan, and death, not after those enemies have made life easy. The bread declares that Jesus was broken so death would not have the final word. The cup declares forgiveness strong enough to answer sin and shame. This meal gives a present taste of the future kingdom where Christ’s victory is fully seen.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [14:08] - Jesus Is the Hero of Every Story
• [16:20] - David Points to the Better King
• [21:33] - Israel Demands a Human King
• [24:01] - Saul’s Failure and God’s Choice
• [25:19] - God Looks at the Heart
• [29:11] - David’s Shepherd Heart
• [30:09] - Psalm 23 and the Good Shepherd
• [35:02] - David Anointed in Private
• [36:21] - The Anointed King and Human Surrender
• [38:24] - The Spirit Empowers David
• [40:58] - Jesus Anointed by the Spirit
• [43:37] - Assurance Through the Holy Spirit
• [46:39] - Christ’s Lordship Brings Good
• [48:39] - Communion in the Presence of Enemies
• [50:41] - The Broken Body and New Covenant

1. The LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.” [25:19]
2. And Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me.” And the LORD said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’” [25:19]
3. “And invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do. And you shall anoint for me him whom I declare to you.” [25:19]
4. Samuel did what the LORD commanded and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him trembling and said, “Do you come peaceably?” [25:19]
5. And he said, “Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice.” And he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice. [25:19]
6. When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, “Surely the LORD's anointed is before him.” [28:41]
7. But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.” [28:41]
8. Then Jesse called Abinadab and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, “Neither has the LORD chosen this one.” [28:41]
9. Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, “Neither has the LORD chosen this one.” [28:41]
10. And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, “The LORD has not chosen these.” [28:41]
11. Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” And he said, “There remains yet the youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and get him, for we will not sit down till he comes here.” [35:02]
12. And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome. And the LORD said, “Arise, anoint him, for this is he.” [35:02]
13. Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah. [35:02]

1. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. [30:09]
2. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. [30:35]
3. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. [30:35]
4. Even 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. [33:25]
5. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. [48:39]
6. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever. [48:39]

1. Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit. [44:00]

1. And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” [50:41]
2. And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” [51:25]

1. In 1 Samuel 16, what concerns does Samuel express before going to Bethlehem, and what specific instructions does God give him?
2. What differences does the passage show between Eliab, the other brothers, and David—including where David is when Samuel arrives? [28:41]
3. What does God explicitly say that people look at, and what does God look at instead?
4. In Psalm 23, what actions does the Shepherd take for his sheep before, during, and after the valley of the shadow of death? [33:25]

1. Why does God’s choice of David, who was tending sheep and not even invited to the sacrifice, help explain that godly leadership is meant to protect and care for people rather than preserve a leader’s image or power? [29:11]
2. David was genuinely chosen by God, yet David later needed forgiveness and atonement. How do David’s strengths and failures together point beyond him to Jesus, the King who never sinned and whose kingdom cannot fail? [20:56]
3. Psalm 23 describes the Lord as a Shepherd who leads, restores, protects, and remains present in danger. How does this shape the meaning of calling Jesus “Lord” and “King”? [47:47]
4. According to 1 Corinthians 12:3, what does a continuing confession that “Jesus is Lord” reveal about the Holy Spirit’s work in a believer, especially when that believer is aware of failure or doubt? [44:14]

1. Where are you most tempted to judge yourself or others by outward appearance, confidence, achievement, or charisma? What might it look like to ask God to form a shepherd’s heart in that area? [28:41]
2. Fear, anger, and shame can become places where people try to keep control. Which of these tends to be strongest for you, and what would it look like to bring that specific struggle under the care of Jesus, the Good Shepherd? [45:36]
3. Jesus’ lordship is not the rule of a hard master but the care of a Good Shepherd. Is there a particular part of your life where surrender to Jesus feels threatening or costly? What makes it hard to trust that his direction is for your good? [46:48]
4. When you doubt whether God is still at work in you, how could the simple confession, “Jesus is Lord,” redirect your attention away from your performance and back to grace through the Holy Spirit? [44:30]
5. Psalm 23 says that God prepares a table in the presence of enemies. What “enemies” of fear, sin, accusation, shame, or death feel especially present in your life right now, and how does Christ’s victory speak into them? [48:39]
6. Jesus’ broken body declares that death will not have the final word, and his blood declares forgiveness in the midst of failure. How might remembering these truths change the way you respond to a recent failure, regret, or fear? [51:25]