We will continue to study the life of David, but first, we must set the stage for the example of David. He is called a man after God’s own heart, not because he was perfect, he had problems, he sinned, his family was not perfect, but he was anointed, and he respected and treasured the anointing of the Lord. He was a worshiper, honest, and quick to repent and confess his sins. In setting the stage to understand David, we started by studying the pattern that happened with Saul and that many follow after receiving an anointing. Saul became self-confident and self-centered; he disobeyed the word of the Lord but still tried to preserve his image before the people by asking Samuel to stay by his side.
David learned a lot by shepherding his father’s sheep in the wilderness, and he never lost the simple heart of a shepherd. He was a warrior who always depended on the protection and strength of the Lord over his life. One can learn a lot about the life and the person of David by reading his Psalms. We learn about his complete reliance upon the protection of the Lord, and also how honest with God he always was about his enemies and his problems. He never tried to present a fake religious façade to God but always presented himself in honesty and openness before the Lord.
We can also learn a lot about David during the many years that he had to run and live as a fugitive in the wilderness, running for his life and away from Saul, who persecuted him and tried to kill David many times. On several different occasions, David had the opportunity to kill Saul, but he refused to because he knew that even though Saul hated him and wanted to take away his life, he had once been anointed. David treasured the anointing, even in Saul, his enemy and persecutor, even after it was clear in our eyes that the anointing had been removed and a different spirit was now motivating Saul. Maybe that is the reason that Jesus said we should love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ “But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (Matthew 5:43–45).
In Psalms 51, after David was confronted by the prophet Nathan about his sin, he prays to the Lord not to remove the Holy Spirit from him, not to remove the anointing of the Holy Spirit. “Do not cast me away from Your presence And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation And sustain me with a willing spirit” (Psalm 51:11–12). The anointing can come and go; it is up to each one to find ways to keep the anointing and hopefully make it grow and expand by yielding to the Holy Spirit.
“Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.” (Ephesians 4:29–32, NASB95)
“Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit; do not despise prophetic utterances. But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil. Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16–23, NASB95)