Has someone ever hurt you? Lied about you? Betrayed you? Did you want revenge? Did you fantasize about their demise?
David had served honorably. But because of fear and jealousy, King Saul pursued his life. David found himself living in a cave surrounded by misfits running from a man whose table he once sat at, a man who had mentored him, a man who was his father-in-law.
I’m sure David thought about taking revenge on his former mentor. I’m sure David questioned the fairness of God. How fair is it that Saul lives lavishly in the palace while I eke out a living in a cave?
But the day David had dreamed about arrived. Saul’s army left him vulnerable. David has the upper hand. He can end this madness once and for all. Everyone knows he is the next king. He can strike down Saul, fulfill the promise of God, leave the cave and move into the palace. He just has to avenge himself.
But David could not. He would not. Even after all Saul had done – killing a household of priests, trying to kill an innocent man – David could not avenge himself. He could not touch God’s anointed.
If you have been hurt, betrayed, rejected and you feel as if you are living in a cave while the one who hurt you is living in a palace, learn from David’s story.
God will avenge your cause. He will restore and he will promote you into the palace. Remain true to who you are. Avoid the temptation to avenge yourself. Avoid harming the person who hurt you even with your words. Forgive and prosper while in the cave. Remember even though Saul lived in a palace his heart was in a cave. He was filled with jealousy and fear. He was not free. Be free while living in the cave.
In full disclosure, I have to tell you that even though David behaved honorably that day, he still went home to a cave where he would dwell for about the next 14 years, while Saul went home to a palace. God’s justice is not always on our timing.
My friends, if you feel as if you are living in a cave because someone else has hurt, do not allow the cave to live in you. Forgive freely. Love unconditionally. Trust God’s justice. Your promotion is coming.
“Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe. He said to his men, “The LORD forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the LORD’s anointed, or lay my hand on him; for he is the anointed of the LORD.””
1 Samuel 24:5-6 NIV
http://bible.com/111/1sa.24.5-6.niv