Righteous Intervention: Lessons from David and Abigail

The reason that that is the most important thing is because at the end of the day you should not care what Matt Spangler's opinion is all right because in the grand scheme of things what we want to elevate in this time is what God's word would say because that's the only thing that's going to give life and hope and Lasting peace because God's word ultimately points Us number one to our need for a savior and number two to that savior who is Christ Our Lord. [00:35:00]

What begins as seemingly separate malleable forms become something different altogether a combination of small reactions resulting in a hardening that cannot be undone small reactions that result in a hardening that cannot be undone I want you to remember that and if you get nothing else out of today I want you to grab hold of this since we are predisposed to harden ourselves, stop, listen and pursue righteousness. [00:54:26]

Wrong reactions can cause us to look like our enemies wrong reactions can cause us to look like our enemies David had been peaceful he had not come after nabal or his sheep herders and if you're wondering about the significance highlighted here with the shearing of the sheep this would have been a large event especially for someone that had as many as neor think about the fact that he's got 3,000 sheep and a thousand goats. [17:03:00]

Without intervention and response we are bound to respond today in ways that will negatively impact tomorrow wrong reactions can cause us to look just like our enemies now one of nabal's young men knows what's going on he hears all of this that happens and he goes to Abigail communicates what's happening David doesn't realize it at this time but just as Saul in the previous chapter was in need of David's intervention so David in this same moment is in need of someone who intervenes on his behalf as well. [21:10:00]

Wrong response requires righteous intervention wrong response requires righteous intervention what we find in chapter 25 is that God sends a woman named Abigail to keep David from acting in a way today that will negatively impact his kingdom in the future now what does she do she hears these words she gathers up supplies she goes to David and we recognize from Abigail's words that In the Heat of response David is really blinded to the long term implications of what he's about to do. [22:41:00]

Abigail out of no obligation at all calls him into accountability the Lord has restrained you from blood guilt verse 26 says and from saving with your own hand that's directed at David in the future if you heed this accountability she says my Lord will have no cause for grief or pangs of conscience for having shed blood without cause or for my Lord working salvation for himself. [24:04:00]

Whether we see ourselves in the midst of this narrative as David seeking out the Revenge of of the fool who can't see past himself or we see ourselves as naal the self-centered one either way we are in need we are in need of righteous intervention and just like the words of Abigail we would be foolish ourselves to not consider who her words direct our attention to if we know the whole counsil of God's word. [26:48:00]

Abigail embodies the work of the spirit of God as she calls David a Chosen One of Israel to live as God would have him live not as his flesh would have him live and so all at once we have this visual picture in Abigail this bold Discerning woman sent from God to intervene between two men who were acting foolishly wrong response requires righteous intervention praise God that he's given us Christ to intercede on our behalf. [28:09:00]

Wrong Pursuits Harden our hearts and impact our future wrong Pursuits Harden our hearts and impact our future we haven't really spent much time this morning thinking about the person of nabal but he's a really significant piece of this narrative from the very beginning what we know about nabal is that he is Harsh bad sadly behaved a worthless man and his name literally means fool we see that from all angles in the introduction to the text. [29:55:00]

Nabal was a foolish man and when the wine was gone nabal's heart turned to stone and he died in his hardness we don't know how old nabal is here but we can surmise that what happens to nabal did not happen overnight he did not wake up one day and decide to harden himself he did not wake up and randomly choose to find his joy and his wealth and his wine no doubt that as the days moved on and the money poured in nabal allowed himself to turn inward. [32:00:00]

Today if you hear his voice do not Harden yourselves today if you recognize in your own life areas where you have hardened and believe you're Justified and not living in accordance with who God has called you to be in Christ stop listen and pursue righteousness because whether we see it or not our lives may just be a few simple reactions away from a hardening that we can't go back on Jesus came to change our hearts of stone into hearts of Flesh and give us life with the father he's the only way. [36:46:00]

Help us to heed the warnings that we can be like David and lose sight of what you've called us to as your people or we can be like AAL and just completely act like a fool completely turn in internal on ourselves I pray that you would soften our hearts cause us to respond with humility at the reminder and the hope that we've been given through Christ thank you for being merciful to us father that your mercy and Grace is still present today and the opportunity to turn to you is still here keep us from hardening ourselves Beyond repair Lord in Jesus name amen. [38:08:00]