Over the last few weeks, we’ve had revival in view. David was running according to his own will, interests, and plan. His self-will and self-interest led him into great sin such that he was about to commit high treason against the nation he has been chosen to lead, Israel. He was given over to hypocrisy and moral decline. God worked together the worry of the Philistine commanders in order to bring David back to Ziklag, where he and his troops discovered the village ransacked by the Amalekites. David’s army was embittered toward him, even wanting to stone him to death. They blamed David for sin that was their fault as well as his. In a moment, David had nothing, the whole world was against him, and there was no help for him on the earth. Finally, David turned to God for direction. God disciplined David and his men. Upon David’s repentance, God directed and restored him.

Brothers and sisters, how can we tell if revival, or even regeneration, is both sincere and genuine? What are people like after they have been broken by God’s divine discipline and sanctified more by His will according to His good pleasure? What is the fruit of genuine revival?

1 Samuel 30:21-31

When David came to the two hundred men who were too exhausted to follow David, who had also been left at the brook Besor, and they went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him, then David approached the people and greeted them. Then all the wicked and worthless men among those who went with David said, “Because they did not go with us, we will not give them any of the spoil that we have recovered, except to every man his wife and his children, that they may lead them away and depart.”

Then David said, “You must not do so, my brothers, with what the Lord has given us, who has kept us and delivered into our hand the band that came against us. And who will listen to you in this matter? For as his share is who goes down to the battle, so shall his share be who stays by the baggage; they shall share alike.” So it has been from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day.

Now when David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the spoil to the elders of Judah, to his friends, saying, “Behold, a gift for you from the spoil of the enemies of the Lord: to those who were in Bethel, and to those who were in Ramoth of the Negev, and to those who were in Jattir, and to those who were in Aroer, and to those who were in Siphmoth, and to those who were in Eshtemoa, and to those who were in Racal, and to those who were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, and to those who were in the cities of the Kenites, and to those who were in Hormah, and to those who were in Bor-ashan, and to those who were in Athach, and to those who were in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men were accustomed to go.”

Rotten fruit (v. 21-22)

When David came to the two hundred men who were too exhausted to follow David, who had also been left at the brook Besor, and they went out to meet David and to meet the people who were with him, then David approached the people and greeted them. Then all the wicked and worthless men among those who went with David said, “Because they did not go with us, we will not give them any of the spoil that we have recovered, except to every man his wife and his children, that they may lead them away and depart.”

Previously, as David was pursuing the Amalekites, 200 of his 600 soldiers became too exhausted to cross the brook Besor and stayed behind (Cf. 30:10). They left only 400 men to combat the Amalekite army. By God’s providence, the 400 were able to obliterate the Amalekite army and take the spoils of war. The 400 cross the Besor again, the 200 rejoin the party. David greets them, but the 400 begin complaining about the 200 who did not help. In the minds of the 400, the 200 do not deserve any of the spoils—only what is necessary for the cowards to leave and take their families with them. While David had experienced great revival and an obvious conversion back to the Lord his God, there is no indication that David’s men experienced any degree of repentance or revival. They are still self-interested. They still only desire what most profits them. They are still out to find fault and hang others. They are no longer outwardly blaming David. David has repented. They are now devouring one another. Do you ever see others experiencing deep revival, but you don’t feel like you are experiencing revival? The problem is internal. Revival comes with a repentant heart. If you are not experiencing revival, it’s because you haven’t recognized your own sin and come to repentance.

Brothers and sisters, it has taken me a long time to learn that I don’t have to fix everything I think is wrong with others or the way I think others do things. There is a difference, here, between the way David and his men approach the 200 deserters. David greets them. The 400 complain about their insufficiencies and want to send them away. You might ask, why is that such a bad thing? Let’s turn to a more explicit passage to see. In Galatians 5, we read about the fruit of the Spirit. Before Paul describes the fruit of the Spirit in the First Century, he describes the deeds of the flesh:

For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another. But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God (Galatians 5:14-21).

Let’s count the rotten deeds we recognize in the 600, the deeds that cause nations, families, and local church congregations to be consumed: (1) enmities, (2) strife, (3) jealousy, (4) outbursts of anger, (5) disputes, (6) dissensions, (7) factions, and (8) envying. It is disconcerting that, in one series of events, any group can display 8 explicit deeds of the flesh. These deeds are exhibited because someone does not walk by the Spirit but by his or her own power. We see a warning in the text. Those who produce these deeds are in the flesh instead of in the Spirit and, therefore, will not inherit the kingdom of God.

There was a time in my life when I produced every deed of the flesh listed except for sorcery and drunkenness. I appeal to you as a fellow sinner, knowing what God has delivered me from. Please take a moment to examine your own lives. Are these deeds present? Are you sexually promiscuous, carousing, sensual, or given to sexuality that is unnatural? Do you worship idols like self, work, education, safety, comfort, preference, experience, or tradition? Do you seek your own power and authority by your own means like sorcery? Do you dispute, outburst because of your anger, instigate enmities or strife, or enable factions and dissensions? How do you participate in political, moral, or theological discussions? How do you approach problems you perceive? If with the deeds of the flesh, we prove not to be walking by the power of the Holy Spirit. I appeal to you as a wretch who once produced these kinds of deeds. Just as I repented, I pray you do. There is such great freedom, joy, and peace awaiting. If you’ve never repented and turned from sin, I highly recommend it. There is life in that sort of death.

Good fruit (v. 23-31)

Then David said, “You must not do so, my brothers, with what the Lord has given us, who has kept us and delivered into our hand the band that came against us. And who will listen to you in this matter? For as his share is who goes down to the battle, so shall his share be who stays by the baggage; they shall share alike.” So it has been from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel to this day.

David understood that the spoils belonged to God and that God had provided the victory. While our tendency is to withhold good things from those who do not earn them, the correct understanding is that God owns all things and we are simply made stewards. We cannot earn the good things we have even if we perceive that we have worked for them. If God is so good as to make us stewards of something, how can we not share with others? David’s point as he addresses his soldiers means much as we consider providing for others, particularly those who have not worked for it—especially when we think about the fact that these men deserted David’s small army. When David becomes king, he will even make it unlawful for soldiers to divide the spoils of war unevenly.

David asks the question, “Who has kept us and delivered into our hand the band that came against us? Who will listen to you?” The implied answer is, “God.” These 400 men believed that David won the spoils (Cf. v. 20). They are really only following David again because they can profit from his success. David turns their attention to God. God kept them safe and delivered the Amalekites into their hands. God will listen and judge justly. Since the spoil is the Lord’s spoil, it shall be shared equally by grace, not by works. In the First Century, Jesus will do things the same way. David, here, models God’s salvific economy. Consider Jesus’s teaching:

For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. When he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the market place; and to those he said, “You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.” And so they went. Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did the same thing. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, “Why have you been standing here idle all day long?” They said to him, “Because no one hired us.” He said to them, “You go into the vineyard too.” When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, “Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last group to the first.” When those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one received a denarius. When those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, saying, “These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.” But he answered and said to one of them, “Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?” So the last shall be first, and the first last (Matthew 20:1-16).

David no longer produces the deeds of the flesh but bears the fruit of the Spirit:

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another (Galatians 5:22-26).

He bears (1) peace, (2) patience with his unrepentant men, (3) kindness and (4) goodness and (5) faithfulness toward those who deserted him, (6) gentleness, and (7) self-control. David is (8) not boastful about himself but about God. David is (9) not challenging his brethren but guarding all of them, even in the midst of their obstinance and even though they are about to devour one another. David (10) is not envious but generous, seeking the good and gain of others. Oh, yes. I did not mention love. Since “love” is so misdefined in our culture, let’s look to Scripture together:

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things (1 Corinthians 13:4-7).

David (11) loves his men. He does not even take into account the wrong he suffered by their hands. Do we bear the fruit of the Spirit, the fruit of regeneration and revival? Do we exhibit the characteristics of true Christians?

Now when David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the spoil to the elders of Judah, to his friends, saying, “Behold, a gift for you from the spoil of the enemies of the Lord: to those who were in Bethel, and to those who were in Ramoth of the Negev, and to those who were in Jattir, and to those who were in Aroer, and to those who were in Siphmoth, and to those who were in Eshtemoa, and to those who were in Racal, and to those who were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, and to those who were in the cities of the Kenites, and to those who were in Hormah, and to those who were in Bor-ashan, and to those who were in Athach, and to those who were in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men were accustomed to go.”

The fruit of the Spirit overflows in David’s life. He sends much of the spoil back to the kings of Judah. It is healthy for us to regularly examine our lives and the fruit we produce—to always strive to recognize the logs we have in our own eyes. None of us are fully sanctified. We don’t shy away from repentance. Knowing that, as children of God, we have been forgiven much, therefore we are able to love much—never even taking into account wrongs suffered (Cf. Luke 7:47).

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