1 Samuel 25:9 “And when David’s young men came, they spake to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David, and ceased.”

1 Samuel 25:10 “And Nabal answered David’s servants, and said, Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there be many servants now a days that break away every man from his master.”

In 1 Samuel 25, during the life of David, we are introduced to a man called Nabal… his name means “fool”.

Nabal is a rich prosperous man who’s got a lot of possessions, but we quickly learn that for all his possessions, he does not possess the wisdom of God, a wisdom of which the Bible says “She is more precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her”.

Give me that wisdom! Well, it comes knocking on his door one day in the form of David’s messengers!

And so we get into this chapter, where we read that on a certain day, David sends messengers to him declaring peace unto him, and to request if he has anything to spare from his wealth, if he would like to bless, acknowledge and assist David and David’s cause with it.

It is a very kind and gracious invitation from David to be part of his cause, and we all have a very great opportunity from God in our lives to either live for our own little selfish cause and building our own personal kingdom… or we can make our life about living for the cause, name and glory of the Lord Jesus Christ, who’s pleasure we were created for… we can’t do both.

… The messengers from David come to Nabal bearing David’s message, and then they shut up. They tell Nabal what David told them to… exactly. And there’s quite a few professing Christian ministers who would do well to take note. We aren’t asked to make up the message, we are asked to deliver it and let God’s word do it’s job… which it will one way or another, it is two edged.

And so there isn’t a problem with the message, but we find out that Nabal thoroughly rejects the message anyway… which is the most foolish thing he will ever do. Rejecting Jesus Christ, the anointed Son of God, the heir of all things, who’s grace you so richly enjoy but do not credit or recognize him for… that’s going to prove pretty foolish, as it did for Nabal.

And you may traditionally think of a fool as a court jester type person or just a fairly dumb person in general. But Nabal wasn’t that, and being a fool isn’t necessarily that at all. Nabal was a prosperous man “For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them.”

Fools prosper in this world. Everywhere. Solomon saw this as a great vanity of life… as the wisdom of God doesn’t necessarily have the carnal sugar hit one would hope for. And the fact that Nabal was prosperous and yet a fool also shows that alluring people to the gospel of Christ through the promise of prosperity is a very false message and deceitful way of pitching the gospel to this world. But there are deceitful ministers of Christ aplenty in our times… they’re not David’s ministers carrying David’s message authorized by David though, just independent actors doing their own bidding not the Lord’s.

And so Nabal was a successful yet foolish man “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”

And it wasn’t that he couldn’t have wisdom, it wasn’t that he had to be a fool. Same for us, our failure of wisdom is not mandatory, it is volitional. It’s a choice, our choice in other words “For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord”

And so with the introduction to Nabal more or less done, today we want to briefly consider a few things from David’s interaction with Nabal which we would all do well to acknowledge, understand and then reflect upon for our own life. Because this story is not written for Nabal’s sake now, but for ours.

Firstly, consider this fact. That David had been so good to Nabal! But Nabal did not know it, nor care to know it! Perhaps you do not see, and refuse to see in your foolishness, just how good the Lord has been to you. Nabal was so willfully unaware of David’s goodness to him and unchanged by it.

Yes we live in an evil world where harm is done between man and man, but God has been so good to us. But do we know it? Can we see it? People everywhere enjoy the grace of God that the Bible says has appeared to all men, though many refuse to credit or thank him for it. The goodness of God is meant to lead us to repentance, but for many, it only hardens their heart toward him further… and that’s foolish.

How had David been good to Nabal? Well David had protected Nabal’s flock out in the wilderness and Nabal didn’t even know it. And not one of David’s men had touched a single sheep of all the great flock Nabal owned, there’s some young Christian men do well to take note of that point. … which is don’t touch what’s not yours until it’s yours. There’s plenty of fake Christians hurting other people’s lives, taking what is not theirs, and turning people away from Jesus, in many cases giving the enemies of God great occasion and excuse to blaspheme God’s holy name, as they do what they do in God’s name though not at God’s directive!

… but Nabal didn’t have that excuse. He was living off David’s good graces and didn’t even know it.

Did you know that David protected his flock when Nabal and Nabal’s servants didn’t and couldn’t? Did you know the whole reason they even had land to farm and flocks of sheep was because of David’s victory over Goliath? David had given Nabal no reason to reject him, and all the reason to love him, acknowledge him and help his cause. And look here friend, for all your problems in your life, the Lord Jesus Christ isn’t one of them. He has wronged no man, and he is debtor to no man. Only one innocent man ever walked this earth, and it is the Lord Jesus Christ. Yes you could find reason of fault in anyone else, but you cannot find it in Jesus. You just don’t have the wisdom to see that.

A second point we need to consider is that Nabal did not realize who David was, and the power David had. When you’re messing with Jesus and his word, you don’t know who and what you are messing with. A false concept of Christ, where Christ is who you imagine him to be is going to get you into a lot of trouble.

At this point IN TIME, and that’s all that between you and this eventual realization… time. At this particular point in time David was not king. But he was the king elect. Jesus might not look that high and lifted up to your estimation right now. But rest assured… he as not lost his shine. For we assuredly know he’s shining as bright as ever, and if you could ever just get a brief view of his lustre, take a trip up the mount of transfiguration or open Isaiah 6 or Revelation 4 & 5 where he dwells in the light that no man can approach to.

David although living in the wilderness and not yet on the throne, had already been chosen by God. He was God’s anointed. This was not someone to mess with. He was far greater than Nabal. Did you know Jesus is far far far greater than you could possibly imagine. Nabal didn’t even conceive of the fact that all of his stuff was really at David’s disposal anyway, because as king it would all come under David’s authority.

Nabal feasted like a king, but David was the king. Big difference. We live like kings, but we are not the King of kings. And we are only the word of the Father to the Son away from Jesus possessing the kingdoms of this world fully and forever. It is all his to be, his by promise, the only thing waiting is not his ineptitude or incompetence, it is his grace and mercy. The smart play for now is to invest in Christ because his stocks are only heading one direction “and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.”

Thirdly, we see that Nabal was visited by multiple people that David sent into his life. You’ve had that already. God always puts someone in our lives to tell us about who Jesus is and what Jesus wants. In this case, it was young men. God loves women, and he has a role and design for women that shapes the home and the kingdom… but God has a design, an order, which this world opposes and also many hip churches do… which is that God sends young men with the power and authority in the name of Jesus Christ, and it will be when manhood returns and young men who know God’s word for themselves, and with courage to answer the call … they are who God sends to preach the word and shepherd the flock. Effeminized Christianity is killing churches left, right and centre. And we could argue words all we want, but there is no argument, proof is in the pudding.

We could easily do a whole study on these young men. Because David’s young men thought quite a lot of David. But they found out that Nabal didn’t. Maybe it was a shock to them that Nabal didn’t think of David like they did. And when you are a young Christian and you’ve tasted and seen that the Lord is good you may well be shocked when you find out that this world isn’t as hot on Jesus as you are. You may well be really shocked when you find out how many ministers of Christ so called are not really ministers of Christ, Ezekiel and Jeremiah both had their turns at being shocked that wickedness was centralized in the high places and the great men where surely, they thought, these guys knew God and walked in truth.

And so we read that Nabal absolutely chewed these young men out who David sent to him. He trashed their master. He trashed their lord who they loved. It’s such a foolish thing to do so, if you’ve copped it from a Nabal, don’t let that put you off. You’re acting under higher authority, and who they’ve rejected isn’t you, it’s Jesus Christ. Keep telling people Jesus loves them, died for them, would forgive their sins and give them a home in heaven. Go and preach peace to them through Christ’s blood, and encourage people to then give their LIVES and best to Christ, and render to Christ what is Christ’s and come under his authority… you’ll find out that message doesn’t go down too well with the fools… but you’ll find Abigails too!

Verse 8 has a wonderful phrase “ask thy young men, and they will shew thee”. Could you show Jesus to anyone? Are you possibly capable of showing the goodness and grace and glory of God to someone else? Have you ever shown Jesus to anyone? We need young Christian MEN who can show GOD to the lost. Not religion, God’s word with POWER. Where the word of a king is, there is power. We need young Christian men who go to the Nabal’s of this world who can speak “according to all those words in the name of David”.

That was a sidenote!

But now we get to where it would be good to have a long think. Because in witnessing to others and conversing with others about God, Nabal said what I have heard so many people say, a truly whimpy response from this man “there be many servants now a days that break away ever man from his master”

Do you know what Nabal is saying here? I myself have heard this so many times… He’s using the “which God is it” style rebuttal. He’s saying to David’s messengers… ok you serve David, but many people are following a master who they think is right. Everyone’s following their own god and they think they’ve got it right, what makes David any different that I should give him one of my sheep?

You ever heard this line of drivel? Or do you parrot it yourself like you’re smart when you’re not at all. Nabal is putting David on the same level as every other man or master that someone is following. And if you decide to put Jesus on the same level as Mohammad, Buddha, Vishnu, Krishna, Odin, Thor, Osiris, Ra, Poseidon, Zeus, Jupiter, Brahma, Shiva… WHATEVER… you are making a foolish mistake. Jesus is not just like those, he’s not in that bracket, though Nabal would try putting him there.

If you use this argument, you are proving yourself a fool, and I’ve heard many people dismiss Jesus with the “which one” argument of gods to choose from. Fact is, there was no one else like David. David was the only man who defeated Goliath without help from anyone else. David was the only one chosen by God to lead his people Israel. Putting Jesus on the same level as other gods for your convenience may help you to wash your hands of the call to be saved, but it’s the most foolish thing you will also ever do.

Because Jesus Christ stands alone. He is alone in birth, virgin born. He is alone in righteousness, the only one to never sin. He is alone in calling, anointed and chosen by God as Messiah and Saviour and Lord. He is alone in redemption, only his blood can wash away our sins. He is alone in deity, being fully God in the flesh. He is alone in sacrifice, his death alone atones for sin. He is alone in life, because God placed all life in his Son. He is alone in power, all power is given unto him in heaven and in earth. He is alone in answers, he has the keys to death and hell. He is the ONLY way you go to heaven.

You know why David had the right to ask Nabal to render good unto him? Because David was worthy. You know why true Christians serve God? Not for handouts… but for who he is. We serve God because of who he is. Yes he does benefit and profit our life with joy, peace, happiness, purpose, fulfillment, light, hope, life, as if that wasn’t enough, but point is, there is a benefit to serving God… but we give to Jesus, and that our lives, because he is WORTHY.

… Because he has proved himself “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
You know how everyone is commending themselves on how loving they are in today’s society? Well guess what, God doesn’t commend our love like we do. He commends one love, his own, manifested through sending his Son to be crucified at the hands of sinful men to offer them salvation as a gift which many of them would refuse. That’s amazing love. Behold what manner of love! You know how Jesus stands alone? His love also stands alone. You and I are not as loving as we would say, have others believe or even convince ourselves we are. You and I do not have nearly as much love as we commend ourselves for.

And if there is anything we need to learn from Nabal’s foolishness, it is that Jesus Christ is not your or my level… he is from above. “And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world” Sooner we all get that attitude to God and his holy word the better off we will be. Nabal ruined his own family and life through his rejection of David. We are doing the same in our country. We are being dismantled by our own foolishness. It happened to the temple at Jerusalem, why would it not happen to everything in our lives? “And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

You reject the cornerstone, the living stone, your life is going to end up like Jerusalem’s walls as Nehemiah found it, broken down, burned with fire, heaps of rubbish and a HUGE job to fix, if at all possible.

And I’ve gone long enough for today, but you can read on about Nabal and how he treated these young men who thought so much of David and he rubbished David. He kept saying “my”… my bread, my water, my shearers, my flesh… he didn’t realize it was all David’s, and you don’t realize everything you have is only because God allows you.

Yes it’s easy to put Jesus on the same level as every other god because that’s convenient for your selfish little life. Yes everyone does say they are following the truth. But Jesus is not on the same level.

May God soften your heart before it becomes a stone. Because Nabal’s foolish heart was so hardened to God it literally became as a stone and he died. He was a fool even though he had “everything”. I know we are all busily pursuing having everything… but the only thing you must have is Jesus Christ. In a world of haves versus have nots… it’s not houses and lands and fat bank account… it’s whether you truly have Jesus or don’t have Jesus. That simple. And he’s been good to you, and you have the opportunity to be at peace with him, come under his protection and authority and goodness and grace which you already enjoy in measure already… but if you want throw evil in his face for the good he has bestowed upon you… that cannot and will not possibly end well.

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