Committed to the Lord

… The words of our two brothers have, as they will have done for you, affected me, and it's this question of committal that our dear brother Frank's got us to, committal. And I should like to speak on the obverse side of what John was bringing before us in Samuel, and the question of committal to the Lord. And I know it's not very good to speak on the negative, but I hope you'll see that one who was not committed to the Lord should bring out in greater glory the emphasis on the blessing of being committed to the Lord. And so, if we could turn to 1 Samuel, 1 Samuel chapter 18, 1 Samuel chapter 18 verse 1. And it came to pass when David attended speaking to Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. Verse 3, Jonathan and David made a covenant because they loved him as his own soul. And chapter 20, verse 4, chapter 20, verse 4, Jonathan said to David, Whatever thy soul desirest, that will I do for you. And David departed hence and escaped to the cave of Adon, and his brethren and all his father's house heard it, and they went down thither to him. And everyone that was in distress, and everyone that was in debt, and everyone that was discontented gathered round him. And he became a captain over them, and there were with him about 400 men. Chapter 23, and verse 15, and David saw that Saul had come out to seek his life, and David was in the wilderness of Zip, in a wood. And Jonathan, Saul's son, arose, went to David into the wood, and strengthened his hand in God. I think that might do for the moment. Now, I'm sure there we see Jonathan. Wouldn't you think Jonathan was devoted to David? Isn't that a wonderful example of devotion? Knit with the soul of David. Jonathan loved him as his own soul. What a challenge to our hearts. What a challenge to our hearts. I'm sure every believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, when they come in all their sin and shame and degradation to the feet of Jesus, over the happy, happy day, they are committed to him, aren't they? Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul. I didn't read verse 4, it says, Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, gave it to David, I don't want to anticipate tomorrow's reading, and gave it to David and his dress, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle, everything, all at the feet of Jesus. Dear Saint of God, dear young saint, have you laid everything at the feet of Jesus? All your pride, your atonement, yourself, is it gone? At the feet of Jesus. Philippians chapter 3, what things were gained? Those I counted loss for Christ. I challenge your heart, what are you holding on to? That is keeping you back from full and absolute surrender to Christ. If you look at these things that happened there, that Jonathan took off, there's one item missing, isn't there? One item missing, he didn't take his shoes off. He didn't take his shoes off, because these shoes marked him out as the son of King Saul, as a prince. Dear Saint of God, are you holding on to this world? That's what it speaks to me. Are we keeping something of this world? Is there this wonderful surrender to Christ, but we're still retaining that which gives us possession in this world? Is there something there that we've got, that oh yes, if necessary, we'll get back into the world, we'll get on in the world, we'll get a position, we'll stand in our place in the world. Yes, Jonathan, wonderfully devoted man, mightily used of God in chapter 14, read about him, him and his armor bearer, defeating all that great army, wonderful men, and we've got great men of God today preaching to the multitudes. Is there that full and total surrender and commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ, the true David? And so we see that in verse 4, Jonathan says, Whatsoever thy soul desires, I will give thee. Oh yes, we can say things in great bravado. When we step out on our Christian bike, we say, Lord Jesus, whatsoever thou desirest of me, I will give it, I will do it. Do you recognize the words, dear Saint of God? Are you one of the few that's never said them? I've said it many a time in my life. Whatsoever thy soul desirest, that will I give thee. We had brought before us, very appealingly, from our dear brother, the occasion, the only occasion, when David expressed his heart's desire. We read it, didn't we? Was Jonathan there to grant him his heart's desire? No, no, no. He wasn't there. In chapter 23, we read about him. He went back to his own house, 23 and 18. Jonathan went back to his own house. But there was three of David's mighty men were there. They were those that were in company with David. Dear Saint of God, dear young Saint of God, it's a challenge to be here for the Lord Jesus Christ. The Christian pathway is not a bed of rose petals, no. We read in chapter 22, everyone that was in distress, everyone was in debt. The whole nation of Israel were in debt to David. And Goliath stood, Pope, says, give me a man, give me a man. And if there's no man, then you're mine. And Philistine said, you all belong to me. And David went in, didn't he, with a sling, down Goliath went. Delivered the nation of Israel. Yes. David was the deliverer. So the whole of the nation of Israel were in debt to him. We read there was only 400 recognized that. Dear Saint of God, we know we've had fumingly brought before us the Lord Jesus Christ and his death upon Calvary's cross. All the way to Calvary he went. For me, each one of us can see he shed his precious blood. He paid the great price there upon Calvary's cross. Thyself thou gavest, blessed Lord. There on the cross he died for you and me. Gave himself. Don't we own everything? I won't say more. I won't anticipate tomorrow's reading. But surely we are in debt to him, aren't we? It says those that were in distress, we are in distress, aren't we, today? Because we've taken sides with the rejected Christ. God forbid that I should glory save on the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world. Dear Saint of God, if we knew the reality of that, we'd be in distress, wouldn't we? Yes, oh yes, we can say I am crucified to the world. We can take that side. The world crucified to me. What about that side? Have you sat alone, dear Saint of God, while this world goes on with its mockery and its joysting and things like that and its carousing and you stand alone testifying for Christ, by which the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world, in distress? In rejection with the Lord. It says they were discontented, discontented. Why were they discontented? Because the white man was not on the throne. Our Lord is now rejected and by the world is sown, by the many still neglected, by the few enthroned. But soon he'll come in glory. How wonderful. Dear Saint of God, aren't we? We're discontented because our man is not on the throne. Yes, every one of us, when they come knocking at the door for our vote, we always say, our man's in, our man's in, he's there, he's in. He's in. We'd cast our vote for Christ. Every one of us. Oh, there was dear little Marjorie in our meeting. She went and said, boo to a goose. But when the kindless us came to her house, she said, my man's in, my man's in. Oh, you could have blown an arrow and she would have gone over with the wind. But these great, posh politicians and the burly lads came along for our vote and she said, he's in, he's in. And do you want to know, you can trust him as your saviour too. Oh yes, aren't we? We're discontented because the wrong man's on the throne. But we're not just moping and moaning, are we? No, we're close to Christ and we're going out with a message. So you see these, these people gathered around him, didn't they? Those that were in distress, those that were in debt, those that were discontented. And these three dear men were found with David and then David expressed his heart's desire and those who were in rejection with him were able to grant him his heart's desire. Dear Saint of God, dear young Saint, that's the position we're called to today, called into a place of rejection with our Lord Jesus Christ. That's what we're called to be in, to stand up for him today in that place of rejection with him. Yes, there are many Jonathans around that may well give practically everything to him, but they retain that that gets them on in this world. We've got to have nothing to do with it and go on for the Lord Jesus Christ in devotion to him, keep close to him, to be in rejection with him. And then when he expresses his heart's desire, we are there with him to be for him. Dear young Saint in particular, we've got a great entail. Follow on to know the Lord, be with him, be for him here in the days that remain. It's a great entail, it's a great challenge. Know the reality of what it is to be here in rejection with the true David and then come out. You know, I haven't time to elaborate it, but I would commend to you to read in the Chronicles account that comes out, I think it's chapter 11, of the exports of David's mighty men. And then we go over, don't we, to chapter 22 or 23, I think it is, possibly 24, and you read how these men, these men are put in position when David, it says Isaiah 53, therefore will I divide the spoil with the strong. And oh, you know, there's that one, isn't there, his son was with him. I think you know what I mean. 3-7-4 …