1 Samuel 18 – Saul or Jonathan?
How do you react to the success of God’s Messiah, Jesus – like Saul or Jonathan? Saul hated the messiah. He was angry because he wanted glory for himself, and he was afraid because the messiah’s rule threatened his own rule of his life. This is the way of destruction.
Jonathan, on the other hand, though he is next in line and heir to the throne, sees God’s chosen king in David and submits to him. In verse 4 Jonathan gives David the weapons of the heir and the clothes of the crown prince – he is acknowledging David as the next king and giving up his pretended rights as king. Jonathan couldn’t have held on to his rights to the crown. David will be like a Spirit-driven juggernaut all the way to the throne. But Jonathan is no mere political pragmatist who sees the way the wind is blowing. He loves God’s king and gives up all to him.
So will you be like Jonathan or Saul? Will you cling to your own rule, gripped by fear because you think you have to sort it all out and you’re failing to? Will you hold on to hurts because what someone did meant you’re not number one, or because it highlighted your own failings? Are you angry that God has asked you to do or endure something hard for him, giving you a difficult path to walk, for his glory, not your own?
Jonathan had to die to his own dreams, submit to one greater than himself and place himself in his hands. Here is selfless submission. This is the call to us all in the aftermath of Jesus’ giant-killing: selfless submission, sacrificial service, painful giving up of our own goals, desires and hurts. We must entrust all to God’s successful Messiah. Ultimately, it is an investment for our own good. We see this later in the story where Jonathan’s family are preserved when David, in his love, provides for Jonathan’s disabled son after his death. Submitting to the Messiah may be hard and costly, but it is ultimately for our good.
Questions
- Where are you – like Saul, clinging to your own rule, or holding on to hurts because someone trod on our toes, or angry because of the difficult path set before you?
Prayer Points
- Pray for a heart like Jonathan – loving the Messiah King, even at a cost.
- Use prayer points from your congregation.
- Pray for family matters.