He would not go in Part 2

The older son was angry and would not go in to the party. So his father went out and begged him to come in. – Luke 15:28 (ERV)

Beloved, let’s continue from where we left off yesterday. May God give us clarity as we journey into His Word.

So, we saw that coming into himself, the younger son was able to regain a sense of lucidity even in a pigsty mess; something that anyone of us can apply to our own messiness.

The prodigal’s return journey started in that pigsty.

So he left and went to his father. – Luke 15:20a (ERV)

He began walking back to his father, rehearsing exactly what he is going say to him.

I will say to him: Father, I have sinned against God and have done wrong to you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. But let me be like one of your hired workers.’ – Luke 15:18-19 (ERV)

Remember, coming into himself, he has clarity of thought so, it’s a humble, carefully worded admission from a son to his father. Now close to home, the father, on seeing him coming, did something that no respectable elder, in those days, would ever have done – he ran.

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. – Luke 15:20 (NIV)

Understand that men of status did not run, at least not in public; the father’s behaviour would have been considered undignified, a transgression of the cultural standards of honour but he could care less at that moment.

The younger son was only able to partially deliver his speech, as the father, filled with compassion for him, seems not to have heard a word he said (see v 21-24). The compassion with which the father was filled is “splagchnizomai”, a powerful Greek verb describing gut-wrenching emotion; this tells us that the father’s response to seeing his son wasn’t polite; something deep inside his body moved even before his feet moved.

His son never got to the part of his carefully rehearsed speech where he intended to say to his father, make me like one of your hired servants because his father was already calling for the best robe, a ring and sandals to be put on his younger son.

Take note that the father sends for the best robe, but this robe wasn’t just the best, it was the finest robe in the house, the robe of the highest quality. This was no ordinary gesture since, along with the ring and the sandals, this signified the restoration of the younger son’s status.

You see, in those days, a ring was a signet, a seal used throughout the ancient, civilized world as a mark of authenticity and authority, it ratified important documents and agreements. Every person of standing possessed a signet ring.

Jesus’ first-century audience would have known the significance of these items; they would have understood that the ring was not simply a piece of sentimental jewellery but a sign that the younger son’s place in the family was permanently reinstated.

The party started.

Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate. (NIV)

But what about the father’s older son; the older brother? Where is he while all this is happening?

Verse 25 answers that question: The older son had been out in the field.

He hadn’t a clue what was going on, he just happened to hear music and dancing as he came near to the house.

Remember in yesterdays blog post I said of this parable, “suppose it’s a lesson about two things that happens in our own minds, our thought process”, well if the younger son was the first thing, then the older son is the second.

The older son had been out in the field all day. The older son never left to go to a far country. The older son did not waste the substance he was given. The older son stayed and worked like one of the father’s hired servants.

So he called to one of the servant boys and asked, ‘What does all this mean?’ The boy said, ‘Your brother has come back, and your father killed the best calf to eat. He is happy because he has his son back safe and sound.’ – Luke 15:26-27 (ERV)

The older son was angry. The older son does not go inside the house – he would not go in.

The Greek word for his reaction is “orgisthe” – this was not a burst of temper that may soon cool down, no, this was seething fury. The older son’s issue wasn’t that he got angry, it’s what he did with that anger.

Incidentally, Apostle Paul, speaking to the Ephesians, used the same Greek word when he said,

When you are angry, don’t let that anger make you sin, and don’t stay angry all day. – Ephesians 4:26 (ERV)

The father went out to a son for the second time that night. Yet again, the father is the one who moves first. He approached the older son who was standing furious in the darkness and begged him to come in but he would not go in.

Then finally, the older son confesses to his father what had been churning inside him all along. His words were direct.

Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders.

The older son felt that he had served as a slave, “douleuo”; he felt that his father did not consider him a son, but as property working for a master. Continuing to voice his complaint, he said,

Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him! – Luke 15:29-30 (NIV)

By referring to his younger brother as, this son of yours, the older brother distanced himself entirely from his brother.

Now, pay attention to the father’s response, for it speaks to the out-in-the-field mindset.

The father does not argue, instead his answer is quiet, steady, compassionate and in his response to his older son’s burning anger, is the key to this parable’s clearest lesson. In it, correction occurs.

My son, the father said, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found. – Luke 15:31-32 (NIV)

When the father tells his older son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours, in Greek, “panta ta ema sa estin”, it’s reassurance to his son that “all that is mine is yours” (see John 17).

And then, when the father referred to the younger son as, this brother of yours, he effectively draws the relationship between his two sons back together.

Remember in yesterday’s blog post we learnt that the father had divided his “bios”, his life, between his two sons. Well, that’s what’s happening again at the end of this parable but it’s not a word that the father is repeating, it is an offer.

The older son always had access to everything, but he didn’t see that and never bothered to ask the father for the fattened calf; he just served slavishly instead of asking.

The older son is a portrait of those who never leave, toil in the field all day long, keep every rule, while at the same time is resentful of the person who doesn’t but still gets a celebratory welcome home.

Beloved, Jesus told a parable with no definite conclusion because it is up to you and me to figure out the direction we’re headed. Are you walking toward the Father or are you just standing outside in the field doing all the so-called right things but refusing to go in because you’re harbouring anger?

You must see yourself in the parable. These sons were never two different people. They are two different parts of a person – of you.

The younger son is the part of you that goes off searching for what you think you’re missing out on in the world. Squandering your attention and energy afar off in no particular place until you have nothing left and realize that you have no choice but to return home to your father.

Then there’s the other part of you, the older son, the part that thinks you should stay home, close to everything good, religiously keep every rule, and do everything right, but still you don’t enter the joy that is right in front of you, joy that’s always been at your disposal.

And then there’s the father, the one who divided his own life into you, not as two separate entities but you as a whole; He is the one who ran to you and stepped into the darkness for you; He is the one who tells you that everything I have is already yours.

The door is accessible, the music is playing and the Father is waiting, asking, and inviting you, every part of you to come in. Would you go in?

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “He would not go in Part 2” © 2026 August 5, 2026

He would not go in Part 1

The older son was angry and would not go in to the party. So his father went out and begged him to come in. – Luke 15:28 (ERV)

The story we know as the prodigal son, ends at the party. Luke does not tell us what happened next, he leaves the story open-ended so, we have no idea whether the older son eventually went in.

Have you ever wondered deeply about this story? Let us look at this tale from a different perspective. Suppose it was never about two separate people. Suppose it was never about leaving home. Suppose it’s a lesson about two things that happens in our own minds, our thought process.

As you know Luke would have originally written in Greek and this Greek text was translated into English and we know that the true essence of what was meant originally often gets lost in translation.

So, according to Luke, Jesus tells us about a father and his two sons. The younger son wants to explore the known world and asks his father for his inheritance, while the older son remains at home with the father. There’s a word that is used to describe what he’s about to hand over to his younger son.

And he divided his living between them – Luke 15:12 (RSV)

Now, the many different translations of the bible have used various words to describe what the father divided – assets, wealth, property, inheritance, livelihood, estate, living and one even used the word substance.

Yes substance, the father divided his life between his sons, not his money, his life. You see, the Greek word is “bios”, the root of the English word biology. Bios can mean a person’s livelihood – their means of living – but it inherently pertains to physical life or living existence.

Jesus must have chosen this word on purpose; but why?

In Luke 15:13, Jesus tells us that not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took his journey into a far country but never divulges the name of the far country, then we are told that this son, when he arrives at this mystery destination squandered his property in loose living.

Take note that the Greek word translated property here is “ousia” – this Greek word means substance or one’s being, intrinsically it’s what something is at its core.

So, with this in mind, what the younger son squandered was not his money, but his substance and after wasting his substance, he then went and joined himself to one of the citizens of that country (v 15a).

Our English word “joined” does not properly express what its Greek counterpart “ekollethe” does; this son literally glued himself, bonded with or attached himself to someone who sent him into his fields to feed swine (v 15b).

To Jesus’ first century listeners, the younger son degrading himself to feeding pigs, was as low as a person could go. Nobody gave him anything so, he resorted to eating what the pigs ate (v 16).

At this moment, something happens to this young son, something that is not stressed enough, if at all, from pulpits or in bible study – “eis heauton de elthon”, translated as “he came to himself” in most bibles or in others, “he came to his senses”.

However, taking a closer look at the Greek, where “eis” means into and “heauton” means “himself”, the phrase truly translates to “coming into himself”, this conjures up an entirely different understanding. And, coming into himself, he realizes his need to return home.

The necessity to change direction happened in his mind long before he took a step. The going came after the coming and this also changes the direction of the rest of Jesus’ parable.

Hear me out, if the return already happened before he even moved, then his journey home is not his transformation. This being the case, then Jesus is prompting us to see the transformation from the outside, rather than from the inside as we habitually do.

Observe that once the so-called prodigal son, comes into himself, there is no guilt, there is no shame, he doesn’t spiral into depression, he is not confused or doubtful, instead he is clear minded.

“The son realized that he had been very foolish. He thought, ‘All my father’s hired workers have plenty of food. But here I am, almost dead because I have nothing to eat. I will leave and go to my father. I will say to him: Father, I have sinned against God and have done wrong to you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. But let me be like one of your hired workers.’ – Luke 15:17-19 (ERV)

These three verses indicate that there was clarity, not an emotional meltdown. I don’t know about you, but I had always seen this son’s dilemma solely from the standpoint of an emotionally distressed man and I don’t doubt that he was at some stage of his ordeal, but right here it shows a man with clarity of thought and strategic decisiveness.

Coming into himself, enabled him to regain a sense of lucidity even in a pigsty mess. Anyone of us can apply this to our own messiness.

The narrative continues with, So he left and went to his father. “While the son was still a long way off, his father saw him coming and felt sorry for him. So he ran to him and hugged and kissed him. – Luke 15:20 (ERV)

Beloved, let’s chew on this for now and continue tomorrow. May God give us clarity as we journey into His Word.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “He would not go in Part 1” © 2026 August 4, 2026

The peace of Christ

 

Jesus Christ said, Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. – John 14:27 (NIV)

Do you know what is this “peace” to which Jesus refers? This “peace” that’s not as the world gives, so it’s nothing like worldly peace. According to the world, peace is freedom from disturbance; tranquillity; a state or period in which there is no war or a war has ended, but that’s not the peace of Christ.

Sunday morning at church when you say to your fellow congregants, “the peace of Christ”, do you even understand what you are bestowing upon them? It’s much more than just quiet time.

Many Christians have no idea what Jesus actually means by peace. He said, my peace, so that ought to give us pause; it could not be ordinary, but we are programmed to say liturgical phrases by rote, so we do not think beyond the words, instead we simply believe that the peace of Christ carries the same meaning as the dictionary’s definition of peace, namely the absence of conflict or violence or war or that it’s silence, keeping still, calm or having no drama.

But the peace that Jesus speaks of is not simply the absence of something but rather the presence of Someone, God. Notice that before Jesus spoke of giving His peace, He said,

“All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. – John 14:25-26 (NIV)

Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God, the presence of God – that is the peace that Jesus gives.

The Greek word translated “peace” that Jesus would have used is salom (shalom) which speaks of wholeness, completeness, restoration, true justice, soundness, healing, provision, belonging; it can denote neighbourliness, well-being and security. Shalom is a reward of a mind that’s stayed on God; it’s when lives flourish.

You will keep the man in perfect peace whose mind is kept on You, because he trusts in You. – Isaiah 26:3 (NLV)

According to Philippians 4:7, the peace of Christ results from God’s forgiveness.

And because you belong to Christ Jesus, God’s peace will stand guard over all your thoughts and feelings. His peace can do this far better than our human minds. (ERV)

Beloved, the peace of Christ is an element of the fruit that the Spirit produces in your life (see Galatians 5:22-25). A godly trait you must determine to cultivate through the work of God’s Spirit within you.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “The peace of Christ” © 2026 August 3, 2026

Let us pray: Jesus is at your door

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in and eat with you. And you will eat with me. I will let everyone who wins the victory sit with me on my throne. It was the same with me. I won the victory and sat down with my Father on his throne. – Revelation 3:20-21 (ERV)

 

Almighty Father, today I pray that by the power of Your Holy Spirit, supernatural doorways can be established, and miracles can happen in my life.

I know that You desire me to walk in Your conquering power in a very special way. Ignite that flame of victory within me so that I may truly understand that even amidst the trials and challenges, I am more than a conqueror.

Give me a fully open mind and heart to receive all that I have inherited through Jesus Christ, Your beloved Son and my beloved Saviour.

Jesus, forgive me for leaving You standing at my door for far too long, I invite You now into my life so that we may eat together; please come in, eat with me.

Fill me, King of glory! And as You fill me, let everything and anything that is not of You be removed from me. I thank You for the victory I have won through You.

Victory over darkness; victory over sin; victory over strife; victory over pain and victory over shame!

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “Let us pray: Jesus is at your door” © 2026 August 3, 2026

 

Our Daily Bread

Give us today our daily bread. – Matthew 6:11 (NRSVUE)

When in Matthew 4:4, Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3 saying, “People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God”, He was letting His listeners then and us today know that physical bread is not enough to sustain us, that what we require more is the spiritual bread which imparts and sustains life in the Spirit.

We see clearly that spiritual bread relates to the Word of God – both written (logos) and spoken (rhema). God’s logos is the Living Word or Jesus, as evidenced in John 1:1,14

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (NIV)

Every day we need Jesus, our daily Bread, whom God has provided for us free of charge as the work of Calvary has freed us from toiling for bread. Our daily Bread is a gift and like the manna which fell from heaven to feed the sojourning Israelites (see Exodus 16), is to be received and not worked for.

Jesus spoke of heavenly manna in John 6:32-59 but the people, only envisioning physical food, could not grasp the concept of Jesus being our daily Bread and they walked away. Will you do the same? Will you walk away when Jesus challenges your way of thinking or your own beliefs or takes you out of your comfort zone? Will you go in search of that which makes you feel comfortable?

Beloved, it takes a great hunger for our daily Bread to overcome our physical wants. We need both physical and spiritual food, malnutrition will be the result if either is lacking but we must fill ourselves with more of the spiritual, as Jesus assures us,

Listen! I am standing at the door, knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in and eat with you, and you with me. – Revelation 3:20 (NRSVUE)

Today and every day we must open the door to our daily Bread and not only eat with Him but feed on Him (see John 6:57).

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “Our Daily Bread” © 2026 August 2, 2026

 

How God calls

Now as Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon, who was called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And He *said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of people.” Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. Going on from there He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets; and He called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him. – Matthew 4:18-20 (NASB)

photo courtesy O'Reilly Lewis

Jesus, on a mission to build His following, walked along the seashore knowing exactly who He was looking for; His first catch would be men who knew how to fish.

Peter, Andrew, James and John were called by Jesus to follow Him. He called them and they immediately responded by leaving all that they knew, their livelihoods, their careers, their jobs, and their families.

The overall call has not changed, those four were called one way but how God calls us is totally dependent on God. He is the one who seeks us out, calls us and opens doors of discipleship to us to play an essential part of the work of salvation.

Here are some ways in which God chose to make calls.

God calls Abraham (Abram) – Genesis 12:1 (GNT)

The Lord said to Abram, “Leave your country, your relatives, and your father's home, and go to a land that I am going to show you.

God calls Moses – Exodus 3:4 (GNT)

When the Lord saw that Moses was coming closer, he called to him from the middle of the bush and said, “Moses! Moses!”

God calls Samuel – 1 Samuel 3:3-4 (GNT)

Samuel was sleeping in the sanctuary, where the sacred Covenant Box was. Before dawn, while the lamp was still burning, the Lord called Samuel.

God calls Jeremiah – Jeremiah 1:4,5 (GNT)

The Lord said to me, “I chose you before I gave you life, and before you were born I selected you to be a prophet to the nations.”

God calls Mary – Luke 1:26,27 (GNT)

God sent the angel Gabriel to a town in Galilee named Nazareth. 27 He had a message for a young woman promised in marriage to a man named Joseph, who was a descendant of King David. Her name was Mary. 

Gos calls Paul – Acts 9:17 (GNT)

“Brother Saul,” he said, “the Lord has sent me—Jesus himself, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here. 

We see from the text that how God calls, is different for everyone depending on His purpose. How God calls you and how God calls me may not be the same, however, rest assured that no matter how God calls, His call on our lives is no ordinary experience.

God’s call isn’t a call that can be easily ignored. That’s a call we must answer, but in answering, how do we respond to His call?

Many think that God’s call is limited to vocational ministry, but God can also call persons to specific tasks.

So, yes, God calls us all to salvation.

God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. – 1 Timothy 2:3,4 (NASB)

This is a universally extended call which has gone out to all mankind and it’s up to each individual to answer that call.

God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. – 1 Corinthians 1:9 (NASB)

We respond to God’s universal call by accepting Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour.

God’s call is also a call to serve. Christ Himself said that He came to serve and not to be served (see Matthew 20:28) and He is the example that we must follow. God’s call is a call to humble service (John 13:15).

 This call to serve is not about having an outward display of service but a genuine commitment to serve displayed through acts of service.

God also calls us to surrender; offering our lives as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1). We must make ourselves available to God, fully surrendered to honouring Him by our willingness to fulfil His mission.

And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” – Matthew 28:18-20(NASB)

God calls us to give Him full control of our lives, to set aside our lives for His purpose. He wants us to be completely dependent on Him, after all, He saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was granted to us in Christ Jesus from all eternity (2 Timothy 1:9 NASB).

Beloved, God may be calling you even now to share in His work, to live the life that Christ died for you to live but like most of us, you get so caught up in the busyness of life that you can’t hear God’s call or because of how God calls, you figure it’s not Him calling. Look back at all the various ways God calls – He may make a direct call, or He may send someone to you – pay attention, as your response to God’s call will determine the direction of your life.

I will leave you with this lovely hymn written by Cecil Frances Alexander and I pray that as you read it, God will open your ears to hear His call. 

Jesus calls us o'er the tumult
Of our life's wild, restless sea;
Day by day his sweet voice sounding,
Saying, "Christian, follow me."

Brothers Simon, Andrew heard it
By the Galilean lake,
Turned from home, and toil, and kindred,
Leaving all for His dear sake.

Jesus calls us from the worship
Of the vain world’s golden store,
From each idol that would keep us,
Saying, “Christian, love me more.”

In our joys and in our sorrows,
Days of toil and hours of ease,
Still he calls, in cares and pleasures,
“Christian, love me more than these.”

Jesus calls us—By your mercies,
Savior, may we hear your call,
Give our hearts to your obedience,
Serve and love you best of all.

 

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “How God calls” © 2026 July 31, 2026

 


 

 

David’s Trepidation

The people of Israel, who had already rejected the Lord’s leadership, had had enough of the corrupt judges and were now clamouring for a king to rule them.

So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.” – 1 Samuel 8:4-5 (NIV)

And despite all the Lord’s warnings (1 Samuel 8:10-18), their calls for a king intensified.

“No!” they said. “We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.” – 1 Samuel 8:19-20 (NIV)

Saul, as handsome a young man as could be found anywhere in Israel, and he was a head taller than anyone else (1 Samuel 9:2 NIV), was out searching for some of his father’s donkeys that were lost when Samuel first met him. Unable to find these donkeys and ready to throw in the towel and head back home, a servant who was with him, encouraged Saul to seek the help of a certain man of God to locate the lost animals.

Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed this to Samuel: 16 “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him ruler over my people Israel; – 1 Samuel 8:15-16 (NIV)

Today’s blog is not about Saul, so all the above is simply to provide a little context; we’ll leave Saul and his leadership for another day. Anyway, basically that’s how Saul was anointed king of Israel.

And you know what, his rule was just as God had told Samuel it would be, he was terrible to the same people who insisted on Israel having a king; sometimes we reject one thing for another, thinking that the other will be better than what we already have, despite being warned about the thing we want.

On to David who enters the narrative in 1 Samuel chapter 16. By this time, several years had passed, God has rejected Saul and sends Samuel to Jesse, David’s father, to anoint one of his sons as His chosen king of Israel.

“Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.” – 1 Samuel 16:1 (NIV)

After much ado, David, just a boy, is anointed by Samuel as the future king of Israel.

So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David. – 1 Samuel 16:13 (NIV)

photo courtesy O'Reilly Lewis

Please take note that in the Old Testament and before the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ, only certain, chosen individuals were endowed with the Holy Spirit.

Older now, David was introduced to the king’s court when he was appointed as court musician to play the lyre for king Saul as he had become a terribly troubled man.

Saul and David end up having a tumultuous relationship rooted in envy and hate on Saul’s part. And after king Saul’s death, David becomes king of Israel.

When all the elders of Israel had come to King David at Hebron, the king made a covenant with them at Hebron before the Lord, and they anointed David king over Israel. – 2 Samuel 5:2 (NIV)

David, whom the Lord described as a man after his own heart (1 Samuel 13:14) was now king however, by his own admission, he had sinned against the Lord (2 Samuel 12:13) and was filled with remorse.

In his anguish and moved to repentance, David wrote Psalm 51 and in owning up to his sinful behaviour, wrote a curious line.

Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. – Psalm 51:11 (ESV)

Have you ever wondered what caused David’s trepidation concerning God’s removal of His Holy Spirit from him? After all, God said a lot but nowhere in the message Nathan delivered to king David did God say that He would remove His Spirit from him (see 2 Samuel 12).

“This is what the Lord says: ‘Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’” – 2 Samuel 12:11-12 (NIV)

Beloved, you would recall that from the day Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed David, the Holy Spirit was upon him. Likewise, after Samuel anointed Saul, the Spirit of God was upon him but after his rebellion towards God (see 1 Samuel 15), the Spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him; by the way, that’s why Saul needed soothing music played (see 1 Samuel 16:14-23).

Whenever the spirit from God came on Saul, David would take up his lyre and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him. – 1 Samuel 16:23 (NIV)

David’s trepidation stemmed from witnessing firsthand what Saul suffered as a result of God removing His Spirit from Saul. He did not want to suffer the same fate. 

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “David’s Trepidation” © 2026 July 30, 2026