"Sound Doctrine"

"I am for peace: but when I speak, they are for war." (Psalms 120:7)

  How do I say this with clarity of thought? God has put so much on my heart, it is too hard to put it into anything of order or sequence. Let me start with the first item of contention: Saul was a typical representation of the flesh; he was when David was going to take on Goliath, and he was when a King was selected for God's people. The flesh might start out well, but sooner or later, the flesh will get its way! Try to follow my line of thinking, as I try to make sense of what I am seeing. Remembering that this seven verse Psalm is, 'A Prayer for Deliverance,' and where we started with the fact that true deliverance is that which delivers our soul, not the flesh. The soul is that part of us which longs to be reunited with God's Spirit; our spirit and God's Spirit are meant to be united together. We are created for worship, it is something that we do; we love something and something needs to drive us and move us and make us thrive. So what do we end up doing? Paul puts it in very simple terms, in Romans 1:25, saying, "Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever, Amen." Crazy as it seems, David was known as a man of war; he was magnanimous and celebrated for his victories. Yet, God had another thing that He made him famous for: "A man after God's own heart!" There are just too many references for this and how it plays out. It starts with Adam and Eve, continues with Noah and Ham; then onto Abraham and Hagar, and on and on; the flesh and spirit battling it out for dominance. There actually is an easy answer, but most people don't care to accept it: God is always the Way, the Truth, and the Life; His word does not change and we cannot change it! Whether you can believe it or not, the Bible was written by men that were be spoken through by God. The soul of that man was connected to the Spirit of the Living God, and thoughts were bing put down and recorded for you and I to read and to learn the heart of God. That is the reason for the title above; because that is the battle that rages within us! I don't care who you are or who strong you might think you are, you still have the same battle going on that you had decades ago. You might think you have certain things taken care of, and maybe you do; but the chances are you have simply learned how to live with sin; whatever that sin might be...

"David came out and shouted after him, "My lord the king!" And when Saul looked around, David bowed low before him. Then he shouted to Saul, "Why do you listen to the people who say I am trying to harm you? This very day you can see with your own eyes it isn't true. For the LORD placed you at my mercy back there in the cave. Some of my men told me to kill you, but I spared you. For I said, 'I will never harm the king -he is the LORD'S anointed one.' Look, my father, at what I have in my hand. It is a piece of the hem of your robe! I cut it off, but I didn't kill you. This proves that I am not trying to harm you and that I have not sinned against you, even though you have been hunting for me to kill me."" (1 Samuel 24:8-11) NLT