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It is a great pleasure for me to be with you here this evening. I confess that you look a little bit distant from me, but then my eyesight is not very good these days, do they? I trust you'll hear me in heart, and if by reason of the distance you don't understand my la- lingo and my accent, well, raise your hand in protest or stamp your feet because you are the important people, and it is exceedingly important that you hear plainly what I intend to say. I'm about to read to you a very ancient story, or part thereof. It was written some three thousand years ago. But for all it's a very old story, it speaks like a very clear parable to our hearts. It is about an elderly man, elderly by those times he was. He was in fact a king, you know. But of course kings have their worries, like the rest of us, don't they? And things have not been going too well for this king. And the forces of his enemies were gathering on the horizon. And he was worried. He'd never been able to defeat them. He's right to be worried. Unknown to him, within a week or two's time, he would lie dead on the battlefield. Now, you know, whatever age we are, the prospect of possible death is a dark cloud, isn't it? When you're getting my age, dare I say, some of you your age, then of course we have to take this prospect realistically, do we not? And spend some time thinking about exactly what is going to happen. The interesting thing about the story I'm going to read to you is that it depicts the last occasion when this King Saul, his name was, came in contact with his saviour. The only one that could have saved him from the enemies that were massing on the horizon. There was a younger military commander in the army. Now, for various reasons, this king had conceived a fear of this man. The man's name was David, and thought that David was out for his throne, and that David, if given a chance, would assassinate him or humiliate him, or take away his freedom. And filled with that fear, he had from time to time persecuted this David, quite unjustly. David several times had saved his life. In spite of it, Saul had come out to attack him. And the interest of the story is what happens next, of course, as in all good stories. So let me read it to you. It comes in the Old Testament, Testament. Do you'll see. see. For those of you who want the reference, it is one Samuel chapter uh twenty six. But if you haven't got a Bible, or you're not used to the Old Testament, just sit and listen. The story goes like this. Then the Ziphites came to Saul at Gibeah, saying, "Is not David hiding himself in the hill of Hakkedar, which is on the east of Jesimon?" So Saul arose and went down to the wilderness of Ziph with three thousand um chosen men of Israel to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul encamped on the hill of Hakkedar, which is beside the road on the east of Jeshimon. David remained in the wilderness. When he saw that Saul came after him into the wilderness, David sent out spies and learned that Saul had come. Then David rose and came to the place where Saul had encamped. David saw the place where Saul lay with Abner the son of Ner, the commander of his army. Saul was lying within the encampment while the army was encamped round about him. Then David said to Abimelech the Hittite and to Joab's brother Abishai the son of Ruga, who will go down with me into the camp to Saul? And Abishai said, I will go down with you. So David and Abishai went to the army by night, and there lay Saul, sleeping within the encampment, with his spear stuck in the ground at his head, and Abner and the army lay round about him. Then said Abishai to David, God has given your enemy into your hand this day. Now please let me pin him to the earth with one stroke of the spear, and I will not strike him twice. But David said to Abishai, do not destroy him, for who can put out his hand against the Lord's anointed and be guiltless? David said, as the Lord lives, the Lord will strike him, or his day will come to die, or he will go down into the battle and perish. The Lord forbid that I should put my hand out against the Lord's anointed. But take now the spear that is at his head and the jar of water, and let us go. So David took the spear and the jar of water from Saul's head, and they went away. No man saw it or knew it, nor did any awake, for they were all asleep because a deep sleep from the Lord had fallen upon them. And David went over to the other side and stood afar off on the top of the hill, with a great space between them. Let that be enough for the moment, for our reading of the story. I wonder, can you picture it in your mind's eye? There is Saul come out with his army. He's come to take a risk and kill, if he can, David, one of the captains of his forces, because he's afraid of David. He thinks that David is going to destroy him or take his throne, or humiliate him, and he's come to destroy him. But there he is in the desert, and he's got his army around him, you'll see. And then he's got the wagons as a stockade around him, because the wilderness was a very dangerous place. And now he's gone to sleep. And he's got his big spear stuck in the ground. Because in those days, a spear not only had the sharp point that you put into the enemy in appropriate places, but at the other end, the butt end of it, it had a little, uh, uh, spear thing, and so at night you could stick it in the ground like that, to say, and it would stand up. Very good reason why. Because if you were suddenly attacked by your enemy in the middle of the night and woke up, it wouldn't be any good saying, now where did I put that spear thing? Where is it? You'll be dead before you could find it. So if an enemy suddenly attacked you at night and you woke up, whoomf, all you had to do was that, and you gossed the spear and were ready for fight, you see. There were days when you had to watch for your own life, you see, and be as secure as you could. And then, of course, there were his survival rations. In the desert, where the great danger is dehydration, you would need a water supply, and there was a water supply by his head. And feeling as secure as he might, in this condition, he went to sleep. Unbeknownst to him, David had been tracking his movements. This night, he saw the encampment, and he said to one of his lieutenants, said, David, anybody here will go down with me. And one of his, uh, lieutenants volunteered, and they went down. Nighttime. And Saul and his army were all asleep. And unknown to them, David penetrated their barricade, penetrated their arm- their armory, came to where Saul lay on his camp bed in the desert. David's lieutenant said, let me, let me kill him, Saul. He would have killed you if he could. Let me kill him. You'll do no such thing, says David. He's the Lord's anointed. We sin against God to kill the man. I know he's my enemy, but I love him. What I'd like you to do, he says, take the spear and take the water. And quietly they went back to the camp. And up upon a hill. And Saul, and David called to the major in the army that was meant to be protecting Saul. His name is Abner. I call on Abner. Wake up, men. You deserve to die. Came somebody into the ranks tonight to kill your sovereign. You were asleep. Wake up, man. And Saul heard David's voice, trembling in the middle of the night. David, he said, is it you? Dramatic, wasn't it? Can you picture them? Is Saul now woken up in his sleep, discovering his spear is gone, his water is gone, and what he thinks is his enemies has pierced his barricade. There's no security. And there is David standing on the hill, a great space being between. We're going to watch that space and see what happens as David talks to him. Let me point out again, Saul is in danger, not from David. The Philistines are massing over the horizon. If he doesn't let David save him, in a few weeks time he'll be dead on the battlefield. Last time, Time. Saw. Saul. Met. His saviour. And now there was a big space between them. There hadn't always been a big space, had there? David had been summoned to court as a younger man because he was a skilled player of the harp. And Saul was afflicted with nervous, bad nerves, you would call them, whatever the cause of it. And David, as he played on his harp, could soothe the king's nerves and bring him back to some emotional stability. David was near the king then. I doesn't wonder what David played on his heart, you know, when he was with Saul, don't you? Perhaps David tried out the new number he'd just written, that lovely number that was. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me by the still waters for his name's sake. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. David was near him then. Perhaps in those moments Saul felt the presence of God, who knows? But in the intervening years, this space had developed. You remember when you were a child? Are you a lovely little child with us this evening? You went to Sunday school, maybe? And your teachers sang to you too, didn't they? Or your parents, maybe. And you know the lovely hymns of Zion. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. Lovely hymns. What can wash away my stain? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. Could it be for you too? In the intervening years, there's come a big space between you and your Savior, which is Christ. Over the years, all sorts of things have happened, I know, and the space has widened. And you sit before God tonight, over the horizon... are the forces of your enemies. And soon life's end will come. You ready, friend? If there's a gap between you and the Savior, let me tell you straight, you can't afford the gap. Your salvation could depend on you crossing that gap and coming to meet your Savior, Jesus Christ, our Lord. The interest of the story is going to be that we should watch that space. What will happen? Shall we see Saul at last coming to see sense, rising up and realizing that David is not against him, he's for him? David is his savior. Rising up, saying, David, forgive me for the past, be now my savior. What will happen? Maybe the same thing is in our minds tonight. Is there a space between us and the savior? Believe there is. Can we not rise up and cross the space and come to Christ? Wasn't the first time David had got near to Saul, penetrated his presence so that, had he chose, he could have killed him. There was an earlier time, you know, when Saul was persecuting David. You say, but tell us, why on earth did he persecute the man? Well, that that's a question, isn't it? You see, Saul was king. And he sinned against God, and God had said he could no longer be king. God had anointed David that he should be king one day. Saul felt that that meant that David was out to kill him. David never killed him. David, in fact, loved him. David did all he could to s- preserve his life. David was his friend. But you know, when you've been king, I don't know whether you've had that kind of experience, but when you've been king, it's very difficult sometimes to leave off being king. You can imagine that, can't you? And there is a sense, of course, in which we've been king of our own lives, haven't we? We've got free will. We like to think we can decide what we do and where we go. You know Karl Marx? He said the idea of God was a filthy idea. It removed people's freedom. And I can tell you straight in my, in my experience, there are multitudes of men and women. They know about Jesus Christ, but they're afraid of him. They're afraid that if they give in to him, he will remove their freedom. And now they will come under his rule and have to do what he says, and they value their freedom. They want to be independent. That's how Saul said. Okay. But then... there are enemies to be met, aren't there? Death itself lies ahead. Then there is the justice of God, and the wrath of God against sin. Past the line, you know, when the Bible says after death comes the judgment. Can we save ourselves? No, we can't save ourselves. We need a savior, don't we? I'm going to tell you about the first instance. Saul was out with his army, can you see him and all his gear, and he was the king, of course, and the metals, and you know, all that stuff. And he was leading his troops. He was in fact seeking David. He was going to destroy David and his name from the earth. But, if you'll allow me to say such a humble thing, like anybody else, he had to go to the toilet. And so he, uh, uh, saw a nearby cave and sought the privacy of the cave, uh, so as to attend to his bodily affairs. And unknown to him, David and his men were at the back of the cave. And there was a king. Well, I didn't describe the actions of Uthom. And, uh, when he was there, you see, one of David's men said, let me smite him, I'll kill him right now. No, you won't, said David. No, no. He's God's anointed, I love him and respect him. His life to me is dear. But David himself got up and with his, uh, knife cut off the hem of his, his big robe, you know. And Saul, having done what he had to do, dressed up and went back out of the cave. I don't know what the soldiers said when they saw the back of his trousers half cut off to you. The king, he did look a bit of a... Yes. Why did David shame him like that. Ah, but David would often see the king shame. There was that occasion when Goliath came, you know, remember that? Goliath came and and gave his uh uh uh uh a challenge to the force to go out and fight him, and King Saul, for all his boasted power, scalped in his tent, and David went in to see him, to volunteer to go and fight Goliath, and David looked in the king's eyes, you know, and saw the terror in the man's eyes, the cowardice. Pardon? Well, perhaps it was just fear. Pardon? Yeah, well, there you are. And David... Yes, well, anyway, David had seen it. He was seen his weakness. And Christ, of course, sees us, doesn't he? Sees us through and through. As our weaknesses. Loves us just the same. I remember as a child being taken to when there was a, uh, what in those days was called a workhouse in Newmarket in England, the horsey place. And the Christians had learned a new chorus, and I, as a seven-year-old was asked to sing it in front of the older folks. The perfect friend is the one who knows the worst about us and loves us just the same. There's only one that loves like that, and Jesus is his name. It's wonderful, wonderful name. When I finished, an elderly lady at the back put her hand up. Please, would you sing it again? And I was told afterwards who she was. She's the widow of a wealthy racehorse owner, had entertained royalty in her day, now had fallen on hard times and bankrupt. She was in the poorhouse. No wonder the words meant a lot to her. The perfect friend is the one who knows the worst about you and loves you just the same. There's only one that loves like that, and Jesus is his name. In cutting off ro- uh, Saul's robe, David was letting Saul know, I could have destroyed you. I love you, Saul. I want to save you. In spite of it, Saul came this last time to destroy David if he could, and lay down, as we have said, what he thought was security. But David got through his Security. security. And you know what? We are but creatures, are we not? Christ is the one through whom the universe was made. The very circuits of atoms in our brains, he made them. He upholds them. Apart from Christ, there is no ultimate security. We can have all the security we like, as we think. There is no security that can bar Christ's Approach. approach. And come under some sort of moral and spiritual tyrant. Oh, but let me plead the cause of Christ with you. He loves you. This same Christ that made us, made you. The story is he died for you. Took our place. All the wrath of God against our sin, that we might be forgiven. He came to seek and to save us. And if we would repent and put our faith in him, receive him as our Lord. Not only he give us forgiveness, he give us eternal life and the guarantee of a place in the Father's house above. David stood on the hill, pleading with Saul. When David had finished, said, here's the water, here's your spear, Saul. Send a young man over to get it. You have no security apart from me, Saul. But I want to be your saviour. Saul replied to David, oh David, I have played the fool, David. And I say to myself, marvelous, marvelous. Saul at last is beginning to see sense. He's going to accept David as his savior. Oh, he'll get up in a minute. You'll see him run across that, the gap and embrace David, and they'll kiss one another, and Saul will be saved. No. It isn't how it happened. When the talking was done, Saul went his way, and David went his. That's the last Saul ever saw his savior dead. Sad, isn't it? Like every gospel preacher, I must say, this could be the last time that anybody has to meet the Savior. If you sense there's a gap between you and him. Oh, why not rush, uh, stand up and run across the gap to come to Christ and say, like, uh, like Saul said, I have played the fool so far in keeping my distance from you. Lord, have mercy, forgive me, save me, and I will take you as my Lord. Saul didn't. You say, what happened? Well, the armies of the Philistines gathered. Now it was clear there would be battle. And Saul, in his desperation, prayed to God. God wouldn't answer him. So he went down to a witch, to a hodl, and witches had been banned in Saul's day, but now he went down to a witch to try and get some news. What's going to happen to me? And the witch said, who shall I bring up? He said, bring up Samuel the prophet. When the figure of Samuel came up, Saul, he said to Saul, why are you troubling me? I want to know, said Saul, what's going to happen? I've asked, but God doesn't answer me anymore. That's a fearful thing, isn't it? The God of love waits for our repentance and faith in the Savior. But the Savior himself said it. The one who died for us says it. Do be sure to rise up and come in through the narrow gate into salvation. Why? Because the time will come when the master of the house will rise up and shut the door. Which will happen. God shall shut the door one day. God had talked many, many, many times to Saul. Saul knew in his heart what he should do, could have been saved, but he went by the last appeal. God wouldn't speak anymore. To find oneself in eternity, that God, one's creator, that one's creator has turned his back on us. Doesn't speak anymore. Will be an eternity of meaninglessness and pain. There sat Saul, or there he lay on the floor prostrate. The witch came to him and said, all but cheer up, uh, have some food. And Saul said, no, how can I have some food? Oh, go on, she said, I've risked my life for you, no, get up. And she spread the table and put the food on. And Saul sat at the witch's table. Oh, did you ever see such a sorry sight in your life? I only get a little entertainment at such a table before he went out the next day into eternity, lost forever. Oh friend, whose table are you sitting at? The world's table, trying to entertain yourself throughout life's brief years, or do you come home, like the prodigal came to the father in the parable, to find welcome and the kiss of God's forgiveness, the embrace of his reconciliation, and all the lovely joys that God puts on for those who receive his son as savior. So may God use this ancient parable, this ancient piece of history, to speak to our hearts. Let me just repeat. If any of us senses that there is a space between us and God, between us and Christ, and we're not sure where we're headed to for tomorrow and the eternity that lies ahead. Oh God, grant us the way grace and wisdom not to rest until we rise up, lest we know how, and come to the Savior and close the gap and let him tell us how he will save us. So let's commend our study to the Lord in prayer. Are we? Now, Father, this story comes from thy holy word, written for our admonition. We pray, Lord, that thou will help us understand its message to us, each one of us now individually this night. We thank thee, Father, for the Savior who came to seek and to save that which is lost. While we were yet enemies, thou hast been reconciled to us, and we to thee, through the death of thy son. We thank thee that thou dost wait still, that the door of salvation stands open and not yet shut. So we pray, Lord, speak to our hearts. Show us where each one of us is tonight, we pray. And if there's still a gap, still a space, we've not come home, not yet reconciled to thee. Lord, speak to us now, that this night may see us rising up and falling into the embrace of the arms of the Son of God, that we might find in him peace, forgiveness, and eternal life. We ask in his holy name. Amen.