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[0:00] Welcome to our services and as we join together in this act of worship, let us seek the Lord's blessing.

[0:11] Let us unite together in prayer. Eternal and ever-blessed Lord, grant to us that we may be mindful of the great privilege that thou hast given to us.

[0:30] When we can draw near to thee in prayer. And that we would have the words of a servant of old, who cried out, Hear me, O Lord, because thy love and kindness is most good.

[0:50] Turn unto me according to thy mercies, multitude. All we give thanks unto thee, O Lord, for the greatness of thy known mercy and thy known grace tells us.

[1:05] For if thou shouldst mark our sin against us, there is none that could stand. But thou art a God who delighteth in mercy.

[1:16] And so we have that boldness and confidence through the merits of thy Son to draw near to thee and to lay out our petitions before thee.

[1:27] Seeking, O Lord, that thou would meet with us at our point of need, out of the riches of thy grace through Jesus Christ.

[1:37] We seek, O Lord, thy blessing to be upon thy word this evening. As we come to read thy word and to meditate upon it, we pray, O Lord, that it may be accompanied by thine own Holy Spirit.

[1:55] For we acknowledge that without thee we can do nothing. So we pray that thy Spirit would take thy word and would apply it to our hearts, that it may be lodged in our hearts and that it may bring forth fruit in our lives.

[2:15] We pray, O Lord, for all thy servants who have gone forth with thy word, who proclaim the riches of thy grace through Jesus Christ. O Lord, may thou through thy Spirit unstop the ears of our people that they may truly hear, that they may come to understand through the enlightenment of thine own Spirit upon them, to see their great need, to see their great need, and to see the sufficiency of Christ to meet with their need.

[2:47] We ask, O Lord, that we may always be mindful of the fact that each day brings us towards the end of our journey in this world, to that time when we pass from the realm of time into the realm of eternity.

[3:07] O grant to us, O Lord, that each and every one of us may be prepared for that end, that we may, O Lord, be found in Christ, not having our own righteousness, but the righteousness that is through him, that we may be clothed in the righteousness of Christ, granting to us the boldness and the confidence to appear before God.

[3:33] O we pray, O Lord, that thou would bless thy word through all nations of the earth, through thy own Holy Spirit, bringing people to be convicted of their sin, and bringing people to see the preciousness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, enabling them, O Lord, to embrace thy gospel through faith, that they may come to know thy salvation and the joy of thy salvation.

[4:04] We pray, O Lord, that thou would bless all our communities, how we yearn for a day of thy power to come among us, to bring us to a place of repentance, to mourn over our sin, and to seek the mercy of God in Jesus Christ.

[4:25] Bless every home and every family, we pray thee. Meet with them at their point of need. Remember our young people and our children. Remember the elderly, those who are confined to their homes or to care homes.

[4:39] We pray, O Lord, that thou would be near to them, and that thou would bless those who take care of them. Remember those who are ill in hospital or at home.

[4:51] We pray that thy blessing would be upon them, that they may know the blessing of thine own healing upon their bodies, but especially upon their soul.

[5:02] O Lord, we give thee thanks that so often thou hast blessed the bed of affliction in a spiritual way. We pray, O Lord, that that may be true of many even tonight, that they may turn to the Lord who bringeth through healing.

[5:18] We pray, Lord, for those who mourn, who find an empty place in their hearts, in their homes, in their families. O Lord, we pray that thou would fill that void that they find in their hearts tonight with thine own presence.

[5:34] We pray, Lord, that thou would be with us as we come to meditate upon thy word at this hour. O Lord, may thou enlighten our hearts.

[5:46] May thou lead us into thy truth, enlightening our understanding, opening our hearts to thine own word, that we may see the wondrous things out of thine own word, that would encourage us and strengthen us in our faith and in our walk in life.

[6:08] O Lord, grant to us that we may be faithful witnesses for thee, that we would walk in a way that would be worthy of the gospel.

[6:19] We know, O Lord, and acknowledge that we so often fail thee, that so often we come so far short of what we ought to be. But blessed be thy name that we are not what we were.

[6:33] O the wonder of thy grace in the hearts of sinners, such as we are. We pray, O Lord, that thou would be pleased to continue with us now as we come to wait upon thee, that thou would forgive us, O Lord, for all our sins and for all our shortcomings.

[6:55] We give thanks for the efficacy of the work of Christ on the cross of Golgotha, for the efficacy of the blood that was shed, which is able to reconcile us to our God, that is able to bring us into that fellowship and communion with God that was lost by sin.

[7:14] O we give thee praise that that fellowship can be restored through our Lord Jesus Christ. We ask, O Lord, that thou would now be with us and that thou would bless each and every one of us.

[7:28] And all that we ask with the forgiveness of our sins is in Jesus' name and for his sake. Amen. We shall now read from the Old Testament and from the first book of Samuel and chapter 16.

[7:46] And the Lord said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel?

[8:00] Fill thine horn with oil and go. I will send thee to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided me a king among his sons. And Samuel said, How can I go?

[8:13] If Saul hear it, he will kill me. And the Lord said, Take an heifer with thee, and say, I am come to sacrifice to the Lord. And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show thee what thou shalt do.

[8:26] And thou shalt anoint unto me him whom I name unto thee. And Samuel did that which the Lord spake, and came to Bethlehem. And the elders of the town trembled at his coming, and said, Comest thou peaceably?

[8:41] And he said, Peaceably, I am come to sacrifice unto the Lord. Sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.

[8:56] And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord's anointed is before me. But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature, because I have refused him.

[9:12] For the Lord seeth not as man seeth. For man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart. Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel, and he said, Neither hath the Lord chosen this.

[9:29] Then Jesse made Samnath to pass by, and the Lord said, Neither hath the Lord chosen this. Again Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel, and Samuel said unto Jesse, The Lord hath not chosen these.

[9:45] And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and behold, he keepeth his sheep. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him, for we will not sit down till he come hither.

[10:01] And he sent and brought him in. Now he is frotty, and with all of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look on. And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him, for this is he.

[10:13] Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren. And the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.

[10:25] But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him. And Saul's servants said unto him, Behold now an evil spirit from God troubles thee.

[10:37] Let our Lord now command thy servants, which are before thee, to seek out a man who is a cunning player on an harp, and shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well.

[10:52] And Saul said unto his servants, Provide me now a man that can play well, and bring him to me. Then answered one of the servants, and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, that is cunning and playing, and a mighty valiant man, and a man of war, and prudent and maddush, and a comely person.

[11:12] And the Lord is with him. Wherefore Saul sent messages unto Jesse, and said, Send me David thy son, which is with the sheep. And Jesse took an ass laden with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid, and sent them by David his son, and to Saul.

[11:29] And David came to Saul, and stood before him, and he loved him greatly, and he became his armour bearer. And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me, for he hath found favour in my sight.

[11:43] And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand. So Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.

[11:56] May the Lord bless unto us, the reading of that portion of his word. Now, seeking the Lord's blessing, we shall this evening meditate, on words found in verse 14.

[12:10] That is 1 Samuel 16, and verse 14 onwards. But the spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him.

[12:23] And Saul's servants said unto him, Behold now an evil spirit from God, troubleth thee. Let our Lord now command thy servants, which are before thee, to seek out a man, who is a cunning player on an harp.

[12:36] And it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well. And so on. Now, recently, we studied David's anointing by the prophet Samuel.

[12:54] And we noted that this chapter, chapter 16 of 1 Samuel, marks a major transition in the books of Samuel, and that it brings us to the beginning of the history of David.

[13:10] David was to become one of Israel's most famous poet, prophet, and king. And of course, David was also to play an incredibly significant part in redemptive history, as it was of the seed of David that Jesus would eventually be born into this world.

[13:34] In the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation, in chapter 22, Jesus says, I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.

[13:48] David, of course, was a type or shadow of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jonathan Edwards writes that the types of Christ under the Old Testament were of three sorts.

[14:00] There was the types of institution or instituted types. There were providential types and personal types. The ordinance of sacrificing was the greatest of the instituted types.

[14:17] The redemption out of Egypt was the greatest of the providential types. And David was the greatest of the personal types. Edward concludes that David was the greatest personal type of Christ under the Old Testament.

[14:35] Now, the context of this chapter 16 is that, as we see in the previous chapter of 1 Samuel, they read of how King Saul had disobeyed God and as a result, God rejected him as king over Israel.

[14:52] And we come to chapter 16, we see there the task that was given to Samuel by God, who was to go and seek for the person that God had chosen to be king over Israel, to seek for the Lord's anointed.

[15:08] He was told by God that the man who had been chosen to succeed Saul was a member of Jesse's family in Bethlehem. We noted recently how Samuel with some apprehension went to Jesse's house in Bethlehem and eventually the Lord spoke to him when David appeared, Arise, anoint him, for this is he.

[15:31] Then we read that, Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brethren. And the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. And that Samuel then rose up and went to Ramah.

[15:44] And we can only assume that after his anointing that David returned to the fields to look after his father's sheep. And what is next recorded for us and what will be our focus this evening is very solemn.

[16:02] For we read in verse 14, But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him.

[16:13] Some translations like the ESV has, Now the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and a harmful spirit from the Lord tormented him.

[16:25] However, neither translation removes the difficulty that people have, especially with the second part of the verse, an evil or a harmful spirit from the Lord troubled or tormented him.

[16:39] But we shall look at that in a moment. Here we have Saul's dilemma. You see, Saul was anointed as king over Israel and given the Spirit of God in order to fulfil that office.

[16:56] It does not mean that Saul had been born again to a saving faith. But the anointing only symbolised the equipping of God's specially chosen servant.

[17:10] But now in his disobedience the Lord had withdrawn his spirit and that means that he is no longer able to function properly as king over Israel since the Lord has rejected him.

[17:24] There is always the question, was Saul conscious of the Spirit of God departing from him? I used to be of the opinion that he was.

[17:38] But now I have to confess that I am not so sure. You see, Saul continued in his activities as king of Israel, possibly unaware that the Spirit of God had departed from him.

[17:54] You see, the great question for us is would we know if the Lord withdrew his Holy Spirit from working among us? Would we continue with all our activities and yet know that the Holy Spirit had been withdrawn from us?

[18:15] Would we continue with all our activities and yet not know that the Holy Spirit had withdrawn from us? our ministry in the church can achieve nothing without the power of the Holy Spirit accompanying it.

[18:34] A church can have the most effective programmes, the greatest of all activities, the preaching of the word, the most attractive orators, the most attractive speakers and the most able debaters.

[18:50] all that can be accomplished in a worldly sense and yet be of no spiritual value because they are not accompanied by the power of the Holy Spirit.

[19:05] In all our preaching and in our whole ministry in the church, we are dependent upon the power of the Holy Spirit. Spirit. If God withdraws his Holy Spirit from accompanying those activities, I am afraid that in general what would be true of us is that we would go on regardless.

[19:28] Perhaps even blinded to the fact that God had withdrawn from us the power of the Holy Spirit. And as I have already indicated, I am becoming more convinced of that scenario with King Saul.

[19:43] He just went on as king regardless, possibly not conscious that the Lord hath withdrawn his spirit from him.

[19:57] In Hosea chapter 5 we read, They shall go with their flocks and with their herds to seek the Lord, but they shall not find him.

[20:10] He hath withdrawn himself from them. And in the same chapter the Lord says, I will go and return to my place till they acknowledge their offence and seek my face.

[20:24] In their affliction they will seek me early. You see, the withdrawal of God's spirit is the worst calamity. and the presence of God's spirit is the greatest possible help and encouragement.

[20:40] We can never be as thankful as we ought to be when the influence of God is upon a nation or is upon a community or is upon an individual. This influence we call common grace and that is upon us all and when that influence is withdrawn by God man is given over to himself and what happens is that a situation of chaos pursues.

[21:07] In Romans chapter 1 where it is mentioned for us many forms of sin it is said again and again that it is as a result of God giving them over to do what was really in their own hearts.

[21:20] God giving them over to themselves. God giving them over to their heart. here God allows the real Saul to come forward and the history of Saul from this day forward is one without any influence upon his life from God.

[21:42] This is the great tragedy that we see here in chapter 16 of 1 Samuel. This man giving over the withdrawing of the spirit of God and this man going on in his activities as king unconscious of the fact that the Lord had withdrawn his spirit from him.

[22:07] A man going forward without any influence upon his life from God. There cannot be anything more sad in the world than to see a person going on in life without any influence upon his life from God.

[22:28] The rejection of Saul as king had two immediate results. As we saw the spirit of God departed from him but we are told that an evil or harmful spirit from the Lord troubled or tormented him.

[22:48] Now this part of the verse proves difficult and troubles many people. Do we have here God in consent and conspiracy with evil or do we have God harboring someone?

[23:01] I think there are two things that we need to remind ourselves. First it may seem strange to us how could an evil spirit be sent from God who is holy for as the New Testament testifies of God God is light and in him is no darkness at all.

[23:23] But you know this has to be understood in the same manner as when it is said that God hardened Pharaoh's heart. You see when the influence of God as we have already noted is withdrawn from a person like Pharaoh and Saul something else has to fill the vacuum and in the case of Saul it was an evil spirit or a harmful spirit.

[23:54] God gave him over and an evil or harmful spirit filled the vacuum. The Lord can withdraw his influence through his spirit away from a nation or from individuals that is his prerogative.

[24:12] He can give a nation or individuals over to their own evil heart. Remember what Christ said? From within out of the heart of men proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murder, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.

[24:39] All these evil things come from within and defile the man. man. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil.

[24:57] For of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh. You see the Lord giving a person over to his own heart. And his own heart, within his own heart lies all these sins that we have mentioned.

[25:16] So that it is worthy of us to remember that. Now the text here explicitly states that the evil spirit or the spirit that was tormenting Saul was from the Lord.

[25:35] Now the answer to that is that the evil spirit was an act of judgment from the Lord. The Lord is not the source of evil, but by his act of withdrawing his spirit, an evil spirit filled the vacuum.

[25:53] Only in that sense can it be said that it was from the Lord. The Lord withdrew his spirit, and into that vacuum came an evil or a harmful spirit.

[26:06] The Lord gave him over to his own heart. Saul was troubled by the spirit as a result of the Lord judging him for his disobedience.

[26:21] Saul had disobeyed God, he was not repentant, and so God gave him over to his own heart, and an evil spirit filled that vacuum.

[26:34] It is only in that sense that we can understand that the spirit came from the Lord, that is, the Lord giving him over to his own heart. The Lord was not the source of that evil spirit, but as a result of the Lord withdrawing his spirit, an evil spirit filled the vacuum.

[26:56] Now, along with Saul's dilemma, then, we have recorded for us the ill advice of his servants.

[27:07] We have that in verses 15 to 17. And Saul's servant said unto him, Behold now an evil spirit from God troubleth thee. Let our Lord now command thy servants which are before thee to seek out a man who is a cunning player on an harp.

[27:25] And it shall come to pass when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well. And Saul said unto his servants, Provide me now a man that can play well, and bring him to me.

[27:41] What I find interesting here is that they had some kind of inkling of what had happened, for they said, Behold now an evil spirit from God troubleth thee. You may be listening tonight, and you may know that the root cause of the problem in society, that the root cause of the problem in the world, and perhaps in your own personal life, is the fact that God has withdrawn his influence upon you.

[28:13] Perhaps you are troubled by the fact that the gospel seems to have so little influence upon you that it once did. there may have been a time when you were so engrossed in the things of God, but now you have become so indifferent to them.

[28:32] Maybe you are a backslider. You have strayed away from the rest of the flock of God's people. Your prayer life is almost, if not totally, nonexistent.

[28:44] Your reading of God's word has become a chore instead of a delight. What has happened is that the things of this world have filled the vacuum in your life.

[28:57] Paul warns believers not to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of the mind. Tonight it is a good thing if you are troubled about your relationship with God.

[29:16] The servants here knew the root cause of Saul's problem, but they had no discernment about what he ought to do. Maybe tonight you are troubled within yourself, seeking an answer as to what you ought to do.

[29:34] And what we have here is the servant's ill advice. Saul was troubled by this spirit as a result of his disobedience, and the servants were so certain that they knew just the thing to cure him.

[29:52] The servants offered their own advice. Let our Lord now command thy servants which are before thee, to seek out a man who is a cunning player on a harp, and it shall come to pass when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well.

[30:11] you know, my friends, it is an awful thing to be surrounded by people you trust, but who offers you bad advice. Tonight, you may be filled and anxious regarding your relationship with God, may be deeply depressed, may be your conscience is troubling you regarding your sinful state, your sinful past.

[30:36] what advice does the world give you? Maybe those that you trust who are closest to you, comes to you with advice, and just like Saul's servants, they offer bad advice.

[30:53] What advice does the world offer? The world would say to you, you are taking life too serious. The world will say to you, you ought to relax and have a drink, and you feel a lot better.

[31:09] The world will say to you, you are tired and depressed, and what you need is a holiday. The mindset of the world is, let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.

[31:26] You see, seeking consolation in the things that make you feel good is dangerous. For such bad advice as the servants gave, or the world gives, will lead you to deal only with the symptoms and never with the cause of your problems.

[31:45] They might make you feel good, but your problem is much deeper than mere feelings. The advice of Saul's servants was to find a musician to play soothing music, for music was widely held in the ancient world to combat evil spirits.

[32:05] And even today we know the soothing power of soft music. But instead of seeking someone to play music, they should have encouraged Saul to seek God in repentance.

[32:20] That would be the answer to Saul's dilemma, to seek God in repentance. And dear friend, that is the answer to your dilemma tonight, is to seek God in repentance.

[32:43] We see here that Saul went along with her advice, provide me now a man that can play well and bring him to me. One of his servants knew about David, then answered one of the servants and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse, the Bethlehemite, that is cunning and playing and a mighty valiant man, and a man of war and prudent in matters, and a comely person, and the Lord is with him.

[33:14] We are not told how the servant knew David in order to give him this high recommendation. But it is very significant, the words of the servant as he presents his final tribute or praise regarding David.

[33:33] For he said, The Lord is with him. Yes, he is a cunning player. Yes, he is a mighty valiant man.

[33:44] Yes, he is a man of war. Yes, he is a man who is prudent in matters. Yes, he is a comely person. But the Lord is with him.

[33:57] There is no more outstanding tribute that can be given to anyone than that which here the servant gives to David, that the Lord was with him.

[34:11] Obviously, the servant must have been for some time observing David. In our recent study of the letter of Paul to the Philippians, we saw how important this matter is, that our behaviour as believers be such and to let our walk and conversation be that of a good citizen worthy of the gospel of Christ.

[34:39] The Christian is always under the watchful eye of those around them. For many people, the believer is their Bible, upon which they draw their conclusion regarding the Christian faith.

[34:52] In the Old Testament, we have the accounts of Enoch and Noah that they walked with God. In the New Testament, Paul writes to the Colossians and he says that ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God, that ye may walk worthy of the Lord.

[35:16] To the Thessalonians he says that ye would walk worthy of God who hath called you into his kingdom glory. We are called upon to let our light shine before men.

[35:31] And what we find here is that David was being observed and the conclusion was the Lord is with him. Oh, let us strive to be observed in the same manner.

[35:46] The people looking upon us would be able to say the Lord is with him or the Lord is with her. Based on this outstanding account Saul sends for David.

[36:05] Wherefore Saul sent messages unto Jesse and said send me David thy son which is with the sheep. Now let us look at David's response for a moment.

[36:16] Jesse took an ass laden with bread and a bottle of wine and a kit and sent them by David his son and to Saul. And David came to Saul and stood before him and he loved him greatly and he became his armour bearer.

[36:31] And Saul said to Jesse saying let David I pray thee stand before me for he hath found favour in my sight. Now there are a number of remarkable things taking place here.

[36:44] Although we cannot always see the sovereign hand of God guiding our own lives yet we know that our times are in the Lord's hand. David was tending to his father's sheep in the fields outside Bethlehem when he was summoned to appear before the king's court.

[37:04] And this change of scenery must mean a major adjustment for young David moving from the fields of Bethlehem to the royal court. And it's why his providence the Lord sometimes brings people into circumstances that they could only dream on in order to bring about his own purpose.

[37:25] And here we find that David was obviously gifted as a musician and now God is going to use that gift. But what we find is that David was obedient to the summons and he comes and he appears at the royal court and this was a very threatening situation for David for he was in the presence of the man whom he was anointed to replace and who would become his enemy.

[37:56] What we have to learn from this is that we are all given our own peculiar and particular gifts and God has given all his people certain gifts.

[38:09] It's a different gift to me different gift to you but he has given us all certain gifts and it is important that we put to use the gifts that he has given to us even when it means for us to be found in threatening positions that was what was true of David here he was going to use the gift given to him by God but he was going to use it in the most he finds himself taken from the fields of Bethlehem and now he's in the royal court and he's appearing before the person that he was to replace the person that was to become his enemy there is a sense of which we can say that for the Christian the world is always a threatening position Jesus said behold I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves be there for wiser serpents and harmless as doves but it is in such positions that we are to use our gifts to witness for the

[39:21] Lord the Lord summons his people to serve and witness for him even in situations that we would never have dreamed of or even we would never have planned ourselves and here we read that that it came to pass when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul that David took and had and played with his hands so Saul was refreshed and was well and the evil spirit departed from him you you you see this was Saul's way of escape from a troubled spirit when David played the evil or harmful spirit would leave Saul for a while and he would feel good again however this type of feeling was bad for Saul it may be difficult for us to understand but in some cases you know a troubled spirit can be a blessing for it may be the holy spirit way of trying to reach you and if tonight your conscience is troubling you do not look for a way of escape so many try to escape trouble conscious by indulging in alcohol and drugs or whatever advice which may give you a good feeling but it certainly does not deal with the real problem the

[40:48] Bible speaks of the pleasures of sin but it also speaks of the deceitfulness of sin and feelings can be so deceitful Saul was refreshed but only for a while the real problem remained you see good feelings diminish and you must return and repeat the activity that produced them again and again and again that is how people become addicted to drugs and alcohol and other vices and here instead of turning to God and repentance Saul sought other ways to give him a good feeling so that this hard and full spirit would depart from him for a season for a short time and good feelings came in its place but soon the good feelings diminished and the hard and full spirit would come back but instead of seeking the Lord he sought his consolation in other places you see there is only that in fact before we leave

[42:14] I just want to say this that is not only true of those who turn to sinful ways to escape troubled spirits but there is also danger for people under the gospel you see many find attending church and hearing sermons it gives them good feelings and so the rest upon them and does not deal with the real problems you see we must remember that feelings are unreliable and not trustworthy it can prevent people from seeing their real need and that is what you have to search yourself tonight for you may have good feelings tonight but these good feelings may be preventing you from seeing your real need as a sinner before God maybe hiding the real need of repentance before God the servant's best advice to Saul would have been to encourage him to repent of his sin and to embrace the mercy of God by faith our message for you tonight is not to speak to you in terms that would please you and give you good feelings but to exhort you to deal with the cause of the problems in your life and in your relationship with God instead of trusting in your feelings you need to trust instead in the atoning work that Jesus did for sinners on the cross of

[43:44] Golgotha when he died in order to restore our fellowship with God young David from Bethlehem was able with his music to soothe Saul's troubled mind but only for a while but you know the sweetest musical sound that was ever heard in this troubled world was sung by angels to country shepherds who was in their fields near Bethlehem keeping watch over their flock by night when the glory of the Lord shone around them and an angel said to them fear not for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people for unto you is born this day in the city of David a saviour which is Christ the Lord here we have the greater son of David here we have the greater son of Bethlehem well my friend are you troubled are you concerned for the guilt of your sins are you seeking solace in the things that this world has to offer you for our salvation my friend we must not depend upon our feelings but on the fact that

[45:06] Jesus shed his blood for the salvation of sinners feelings diminish but Jesus has promised to us lasting peace and lasting joy our greatest need as sinners tonight is to come to God in repentance and to seek his mercy through his son Jesus Christ to embrace the finished work of Christ on the cross of Golgotha to trust in him to lean upon him for our salvation thoughts upon his word let us pray eternal and ever blessed

[46:28] Lord we give thee thanks that thy word encourages us to come with our troubled hearts and to come oh Lord in repentance to come before a holy God acknowledging our sinners we give thee thanks oh Lord for the provision that thou hast made for us in thy son for the provision of the atoning work of the cross of Golgotha we give thee thanks oh Lord for the efficacy of that work which is able to reconcile us to our God that is able to deliver and bring salvation into our experience oh may we know that great promise of that lasting peace and joy that is to be found in Jesus Christ we ask oh Lord thy blessing to rest upon us during the coming days and may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of

[47:30]  God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all now and forever more Amen