Sunday Worship 31 August | Cafe Church: David the Poet-King

This morning was cafe church, a more informal and interactive way of worshipping together. We sang and prayed and reflected and created, all while sharing brunch.

We joined with the praise of all God's people as we shared in the words of Psalm 145, and we reflected on and responded to two aspects of the life of David.

David and Jonathan

Everybody at King Saul’s palace knew about David the shepherd boy. He had killed the giant Goliath, and he played beautiful music on his harp. When he went to live in the palace, David met Jonathan who was the king’s son. They liked one another at once. They were best friends and shared all their secrets. David was famous and all the people liked him, so the king became very jealous. One day when David was playing his harp, King Saul picked up his spear and threw it at him. David jumped out of the way and ran from the palace. Jonathan was very sad when David went away, but he wanted to protect him, so he told him that his father still wanted to kill him and so he must never come back to the palace. David didn’t know where to run, but he knew God would show him. He hid in the mountains until one day he heard news of a terrible battle. King Saul and Jonathan had been killed. It was the saddest day of David’s life. He missed his best friend very much.

We are told that "Jonathan became one in spirit with David" (1 Samuel 18:1). And as he laments Jonathan's death, David declares "you were very dear to me; your love for me was wonderful, more wonderful than that of women" (2 Samuel 1:26).

Some people read the relationship between David and Jonathan as romantic, and it certainly seems plausible. If that is the case, then I want to celebrate their love as something beautiful and holy. But that isn't certain from the text, and the traditional reading of their relationship is one of deep friendship. If that is the case, then I still want to celebrate their love as something beautiful and holy.

It might be that years of religious homophobia have sought to obscure the nature of David and Jonathon's love for one another, but it also might be that the most significant relationship of their lives was platonic. I want to affirm love in its myriad forms, and that includes recognising the significance of friendships. 

So for the next little while I want to invite us to reflect on the important relationships in our own lives.

DISCUSSION

Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father and said to him, “Let not the king do wrong to his servant David; he has not wronged you, and what he has done has benefited you greatly”. (1 Samuel 19:4)

David's relationship with Jonathan saved his life on more than one occasion. How have your relationships shaped your life?

Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. (1 Samuel 18:4)

David and Jonathan made a commitment to one another. How do we or could we mark and celebrate our significant relationships?

ACTIVITY

Write a letter or card to an important person in your life.

David the Poet-King

After the death of King Saul, the Israelites crowned David king, just as the prophet Samuel had said would happen. They knew that God would help him to be a good leader. David captured the city of Jerusalem, and there was great celebration when he brought the special box which held the laws into God’s city. David himself danced for joy. David fought many battles and ruled over the people. He loved God all his life, but he did not always obey God. He got many things wrong, but he was always sorry and asked God to forgive him. David was also a great poet and songwriter. He wrote many psalms which praised God and expressed his deepest feelings. When David died, his son Solomon became king. He was known for his wisdom, and he built the temple his father David had dreamed of.

We are told that David was a man after God's own heart (1 Samuel 13:14, Acts 13:22). I struggled with that expression for a long time, because David was not a good man. He had killed tens of thousands by the time he was made king and his reign was marked by violent conquest. He took advantage of Bathsheba and then had her husband murdered to cover his wrongdoing. He precipitated civil war when he failed to deliver justice after his daughter was assaulted by her own brother. How could this be a man after God's own heart?

I think we find the answer not in the actions of the king but in the words of the poet. David made some terrible mistakes, with appalling consequences for those around him, but we get a glimpse of his lament in the psalms, and perhaps it is that capacity for repentance that is the reason his heart so resonated with the heart of God. David asked for a pure heart, and perhaps its purity lay not in being without blemish, but in being willing to be refined.

So I want to give us some space now to think about what we might learn from David’s remorse.

DISCUSSION

The Lord sent Nathan to David...then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord”. (2 Samuel 12:1, 13)

God sent the prophet Nathan to challenge David about his misdeeds and lead him to repentance. Are there people in our lives who can hold us to account?

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. (Psalm 51:10)

Psalm 51 was written after David was confronted by Nathan. What do you think it means to have a pure heart and a steadfast spirit?

ACTIVITY

Make a heart shaped soap as a reminder to pray for a clean heart.