In 1 Samuel 27 David commits the sin of not waiting. In the church we often talk about various sins, but “not waiting” is rarely mentioned. Nevertheless it is a common one, both in the Bible and in our own lives. Even when a believer grasps God’s will correctly, and even when God’s promises and plans are understood the issue of God’s timing remains problematic.

Probably the worst enemy of all our good resolves is time. I’m willing to bet that all of us, at one time or another, have undertaken a project with great enthusiasm that later fizzled out. How many musical instruments are now collecting dust, unlearned in closets? How many diets and exercise programs have been abandoned? How many gardens are overrun with weeds? How many New Year’s resolutions have ended before January is even over? Almost all of us, I’m sure, can think of something we were once pursuing with energy, resolve and conviction, but things just kind of petered out over time. Can this happen in the Christian life too?

In this fallen world, things tend to corrode over time. Iron rusts, wood rots, and fires die down to coals. Over time David’s confidence in God’s plan to one day make him King, and his belief that God will protect him and provide for him until that day comes weakens and corrodes under the assault of fear, doubt, disappointment and time. God has confirmed these things repeatedly to David, and David, for his part, has understood and believed, but then time happened.

I hope you can listen in as we study 1 Samuel 27 as we see the perils of not waiting and coming up with escape plans that are not God’s plan.