How to Confront Sin (1 Samuel 26-27)

[If you’ve ever read or watched…] In The Lord of the Rings, a powerful ring falls into the hands of a simple hobbit named Frodo Baggins, and the fate of Middle-earth depends on what happens to it. See, the ring belongs to Sauron, the Dark Lord, and if he gets it back, he will destroy everything. 

In the first movie, leaders from across Middle-earth gather to decide what to do. And they realize the only way to defeat Sauron is to destroy the ring. 

The only problem is they’d have to sneak deep into enemy territory to do it. It’s a suicide mission. One of the men stands up and says it can’t be done. The land is heavily guarded by Orcs who outnumber us by the thousands. And if we somehow get by them, the eye of Sauron sees everything. He’ll find us and kill us himself. Not to mention the land is filled with ash and poison. [Meme] – “One does not simply walk into Mordor.” 

Well, neither does one simply walk into the camp of King Saul…that is, unless you’re David under the protection of the hand of God.  

We’ve been in a series in the book of Samuel called Search for a King. At this point, Israel’s first king, Saul, has been rejected by God.

In our story this morning, Saul’s in pursuit of David again. And when David finds out, he decides to enter his enemy’s camp to put an end to this once and for all. His goal isn’t to destroy Saul. It’s to overcome his sin through the power of forgiveness.  

Today, we’ll see that one of the greatest weapons against the evil of sin is forgiveness; not giving people what we think they deserve. But to forgive well, we first have to learn how to confront sin with a heart of forgiveness. 

[1 Sam. 26:1] – Then the Ziphites came to Saul at Gibeah, saying, “Is not David hiding himself on the hill of Hachilah, which is on the east of Jeshimon?” BTW – this is the second time the Ziphites betrayed David. [2] So Saul arose and went down to the wilderness of Ziph with three thousand chosen men of Israel to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph. These are 3,000 of the best military operatives at Saul’s disposal. As a former shepherd of the Judean countryside, David has home-field advantage. But this is like playing hide-and-seek with SEAL Team 6.  

[v. 3] – And Saul encamped on the hill of Hachilah, which is beside the road on the east of Jeshimon. But David remained in the wilderness. When he saw that Saul came after him into the wilderness, 4 David sent out spies and learned that Saul had indeed come. 5 Then David rose and came to the place where Saul had encamped. And David saw the place where Saul lay, with Abner the son of Ner, the commander of his army. Saul was lying within the encampment, while the army was encamped around him.

This is a picture of safety and security for Saul. Saul’s the aggressor, with an army that outnumbers David five to one. He sets up camp surrounded by his soldiers. The smart thing for David would be to stay hidden and hope no one finds him. 

[v. 6] – Then David said to Ahimelech the Hittite, and to Joab’s brother Abishai the son of Zeruiah, “Who will go down with me into the camp to Saul?” And Abishai said, “I will go down with you.” Now, if you’re a risk-averse person or have an analytical mind, you might ask: Why would you do that? But David doesn’t say, and Abishai doesn’t ask. He’s probably thinking, let’s hit Saul when he least expects it.  

[7] So David and Abishai went to the army by night. And there lay Saul sleeping within the encampment, with his spear stuck in the ground at his head, and Abner and the army lay around him.  The mistake Abner makes is underestimating David. He should’ve assigned watchmen for the night shift. But he doesn’t. David and 

Abishai walk right into the heart of the camp…[8] Then Abishai said to David, “God has given your enemy into your hand this day. Now please let me pin him to the earth with one stroke of the spear, and I will not strike him twice.” 9 But David said to Abishai, “Do not destroy him, for who can put out his hand against the Lord’s anointed and beguiltless?”  

Abishai must be thinking, “This is the easiest mission ever. David, let me give Saul what he deserves. I’ll kill Saul, you’ll be King, and all our problems will be over.” It sounds like a great plan! But it’s not what David came to do.  

When someone wrongs you, and I mean really wrongs you. Anger wells up in your body…what’s the first thing you want to do? Retaliate. 

We want to give people what we think they deserve.  

When I was in high school, our student ministry had separate guys’ and girls’ events. One night, while we were at a guys’ event, the girls vandalized all our cars—window chalk, Vaseline on the door handles, plastic wrap around the cars. Naturally, we started plotting our revenge. 

One guy was so mad he was suggesting ideas that would damage their cars and endanger their lives. We told him, “Dude, I think you need to sit this one out.” 

But that’s not all that different from Abishai’s advice to David: Saul deserves this. When you think about it, he’s kinda gotta point. But David knows that sounds as foolish as the high schooler trying to damage the car. In the moment, retaliation feels good and fair. But it’s really the first step in becoming just like the person who wronged you. 

David doesn’t let Abishai kill Saul because David’s already committed to forgive him. Ken Sande describes forgiveness as the decision to make four promises. I promise: 

• I won’t dwell on what you did.
• I won’t bring it up again to punish you.
• I won’t talk about it with others so that they’ll punish you.
• I won’t let what you’ve done ruin our relationship.  

See, David doesn’t punish Saul. He doesn’t even let Abishai punish Saul because David’s already decided to do the work of forgiveness. That means choosing to treat someone who’s wronged you better than you think they deserve. And I just want to acknowledge that’s really hard. But it’s also really good.  

There was a time in my life when I felt deeply wronged by someone close to me; a friend, a mentor. I lost sleep over this. I used to replay conversations in my head. I kept asking people, “How do you forgive someone who doesn’t even admit they’ve done anything wrong?” 

And I wish someone had told me: By doing the work of moving toward them with a heart of forgiveness. 

See, David’s greatest risk wasn’t entering Saul’s camp. It was choosing forgiveness before Saul had done anything to deserve it.  

But how do you do that? Let me show you four truths we learn from David about confronting sin and seeking forgiveness.  

1. God plays a vital role in every conflict. 

Because only God knows what someone truly deserves. When we’re in conflict, it’s never just you vs. me. God always plays a role. So, how often do you consider Him in the middle of your conflicts? 

That’s what David does in [v. 10] – And David said, “As the Lord lives, the Lord will strike him, or his day will come to die, or he will go down into battle and perish. 11 The Lord forbid that I should put out my hand against the Lord’s anointed. But take now the spear that is at his head and the jar of water, and let us go.” 12 So David took the spear andthe jar of water from Saul’s head, and they went away. No man saw it or knew it, nor did any awake, for they were all asleep, because a deep sleep from the Lord had fallen upon them.

When someone wrongs us, we’re tempted to assume the worst and let our anger take over. But the moment we assume the role of judge over them, we have grasped for an authority that ultimately belongs to God. 

Let’s be honest: Are you really the best judge of another person? Do you really know them like that? Wouldn’t it be better to trust a God who always judges rightly?

See, David leaves Saul’s life in God’s hands. He trusts that God will do what is right, which frees David to love his enemy.

You say, well, how is that fair? Pastor Peter’s asked us before, “If you could livestream your life on YouTube and people could hear all your thoughts and watch all your actions, would you do it?” Of course not, because we know how sinful we are!  

The truth is, we don’t really want a world where everyone gets what they deserve. I’ve told my kids so many times, “You don’t want a world that’s fair. You want a world that’s bent in your favor.” 

But when we honor God as King, we learn to respond His way. And the Bible gives us clear instructions for when we’ve been wronged: 

[Prov. 19:11] – It’s to our glory to overlook an offense. 

[1 Cor. 13:5] – Don’t keep a record of wrongs.  

[Col. 3:13–14] – Be patient with others and forgive one another.  

[Jas. 1:19–20] – Be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger.  [1 Peter 4:8] – Love one another because love covers a multitude of sins. 

[Rom. 12:17, 21] – Don’t repay evil with evil; overcome evil with good. 

When God is King, we don’t have to get even. We can trust God and do what He says. So, in every conflict, we should ask, “What does God want out of this and what does He require of me toward those ends?” 

[v. 13] – Then David went over to the other side and stood far off on the top of the hill, with a great space between them. [Just because we’re doing the work of forgiveness doesn’t mean we trust the person right away…] [14] And David called to the army, and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, “Will you not answer, Abner?”…“Are you not a man?Who is like you in Israel? Why then have you not kept watch over your lord the king? For one of the people came in to destroy the king your lord. 16 This thing that you have done is not good. As the Lord lives, you deserve to die, because you have not kept watch over your lord, the Lord’s anointed. And now see where the king’s spear is and the jar of water that was at his head.”

David confronts Abner because he’s the head of the army. He’s responsible for keeping the King safe, and he failed. David and Abishai didn’t have any problem getting to Saul, and they have the spear and water jug to prove it. But this also shows David’s restraint and loyalty toward Saul. See, when confronting sin… 

2. You don’t have to wait for an apology to make things right.  

A lot of us assume when someone’s wronged us, the other person bears all the responsibility in fixing the relationship. And there are certainly situations where abuse is involved or other factors that require wisdom and discernment.  

But in this story, can we all agree that Saul is clearly in the wrong? And yet David takes the initiative to seek him out. Again, how do we do that? 

      (1)    Identify with them as a fellow sinner.

Last week, David was so angry when Nabal insulted him that he wanted to wipe out all the men in Nabal’s household. If Abigail hadn’t stepped in, David would’ve done something incredibly foolish and sinful. 

Maybe that experience shaped how David responds to Saul here. He could think, “If I were in Saul’s shoes, I might be tempted to do the same thing.” Now, that doesn’t excuse the sin, but it does help us have compassion for others when they give in to sin. 

When we’re sinned against, we’re tempted to see ourselves as better than the person who hurt us. Tim Keller says we can exaggerate someone’s sins like a cartoonist exaggerates a person’s features. It becomes the most defining thing we think about them. 

But David doesn’t demean Saul; he dignifies him. In [v. 19], David calls Saul “my lord” and himself “your servant.” Even though Saul has sinned against him, David recognizes, “I’m capable of doing the same thing.” 

But that doesn’t mean we ignore sin. We need to (2) Call out the sin.

Let’s be honest: One reason why we don’t do this is because it’s uncomfortable. It’s far easier to just end the relationship than to confront the sins of others. It’s even easier to make excuses. To say: Let’s just pretend like it never happened. But that’s not love.  

If a brother or sister’s caught in sin, you don’t want to see them stuck there. You want to see them restored. But that’s hard when you’re the one they’ve sinned against. That’s true for David too. 

But instead of retaliating, David seeks to expose sin by asking good, clarifying questions. 

[v. 18] – David asks Saul, “Why does my lord pursue after his servant? For what have I done? What evil is on my hands? 19 Now therefore let my lord the king hear the words of his servant. If it is the Lord who has stirred you up against me, may he accept an offering, but if it is men, may they be cursed before the Lord, for they have driven me out this day that I should have no share in the heritage of the Lord, saying, ‘Go, serve other gods.’ 20 Now therefore, let not my blood fall to the earth away from the presence of the Lord, for the king of Israel has come out to seek a single flea like one who hunts apartridge in the mountains.”

David gets right to the heart of the matter. He says, “Saul, if you’re coming after me because God told you to, then tell me what I’ve done so I can repent. But if you’re listening to bad advice from others, they deserve to be cursed by God, and you’ve sinned by listening to them.” 

Calling out sin means clearly communicating to the other person, “What you’ve done has not only hurt me but deserves God’s punishment.” But exposing sin is a delicate matter, which is why it’s so important to be motivated by love.  

See, when our sin is exposed, the first thing we want to do is deflect or hide because we can’t bear the weight of our sin. That’s why our motivation matters: I’m not confronting you because I’m against you. I’m confronting you because I love you.  

BTW – when you’re in the middle of conflict, if there’s a clear winner and loser, you’ve both lost because that makes repentance feel like losing, instead of what it should be: honest confession that moves toward restoration. You need to redefine what winning looks like. 

(3) We need to make reconciliation our goal.

If you’re willing to do the hard work of confronting someone’s sin, start with the end in mind: Are you praying for their downfall or their restoration? 

See, forgiveness is an incredible act of mercy. It means choosing not to hold someone’s sin against them anymore. But forgiveness doesn’t mean the relationship just goes back to normal. Normal isn’t the goal. The goal is reconciliation. 

Reconciliation is the process of rebuilding a broken relationship, and it requires both people to pursue it. On your part, the question you should be asking is: “What would it look like for this person to be restored to God and to me?” 

That’s an incredible act of kindness, especially when you don’t think they deserve it. But that’s the whole point: We don’t extend kindness because they deserve it. We extend kindness because God has been kind to us, even when we didn’t deserve it.   

That’s why it’s important to remember…3. It’s God’s kindness that leads to repentance. See, there’s something about being treated better than you deserve that cuts through the heart of pride.  

Early in my marriage, I told myself I would never yell at my wife. Instead, I would shut down and become emotionally distant. I thought I was protecting her, but I was actually hurting her. 

At one point, Sarah came to me in tears to apologize, saying she didn’t know what she’d done wrong but didn’t want me to shut her out.  

Even though I was hurting her, she chose to assume the best about me. She confronted me in love and expressed how much she wanted to be close to me. Her kindness made me realize what a fool I was being and helped me change.  

David’s kindness has a similar effect on Saul. See, Saul’s been hunting David to kill him, but when David has the opportunity to kill Saul, he refuses because he wants Saul to repent.  

Listen to how Saul responds: [v. 21] – Then Saul said, “I have sinned. Return, my son David, for I will no more do you harm, because my life was precious in your eyes this day. Behold, I have acted foolishly, and have made a great mistake.”  

Saul recognizes what David has done: “My life was precious in your eyes. David, you treated me better than I deserve.”  

One of the greatest kindnesses we can show someone is to remain loyal to them while holding them accountable for their sin. God does some of His best work in us when our sin is met with His kindness and grace. 

So David returns the spear and water jug to show he’s not trying to steal Saul’s power and provision. David says in [v. 23] – The Lord rewards every man for his righteousness and his faithfulness, for the Lord gave you into my hand today, and I would not put out my hand against the Lord’s anointed. 24 Behold, as your life was precious this day in my sight, so may my life be precious in the sight of the Lord, and may he deliver me out of all tribulation.” 25 Then Saul said to David, “Blessed be you, my son David! You will do many things and will succeed in them.” So David went his way, and Saul returned to hisplace.

Even after this exchange, David doesn’t go back with Saul. Their relationship’s not on that level yet. And even still, just because we respond with kindness doesn’t guarantee someone’s repentance.   

See, some of us might be tempted to call Saul’s response repentance. But remorse and repentance aren’t the same thing. Remorse is just feeling bad I got caught. Repentanceis a godly sorrow that leads to life change. 

For repentance to be genuine, it must produce change. See, it’s not enough to feel bad about what you’ve done. You have to admit your sin, turn from it, and depend on God’s grace to change you. Otherwise, you’ll just do it again. That’s why forced apologies don’t work.  

We’ve already seen this play out before. Saul admitted his sin, acknowledged that David would be king, and then, at the next opportunity, sought to kill him.  

And that brings us to chapter 27. After this incredible display of courage, David experiences a total lapse of faith.  

[27:1] – Then David said in his heart, “Now I shall perish one day by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than that I should escape to the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will despair of seeking me any longer within the borders of Israel, and I shall escape out of his hand.” 2 So David arose and went over, he and the six hundred men who were with him, to Achish the son of Maoch, king of Gath…[4] And when it was told Saul that David had fled to Gath, he no longer sought him.

When David’s circumstances got easier, his doubts got louder. He starts speaking to his own heart. And while it may be fair to doubt 

Saul’s repentance, it was unwise of David to doubt God’s protection.  

Earlier, David told Saul that being pushed out of Israel meant being kept from worshiping God. Today, we can worship God anywhere, but in David’s day, there’s no Gath City International Church. Worship was centered in Israel; you had to go to the Temple.  

At first, Saul was keeping David from worship. But now, it’s David’s own unbelief. As you might expect, God is not mentioned at all in this chapter.  

[v. 5] – Then David said to Achish, “If I have found favor in your eyes, let a place be given me in one of the country towns, that I may dwell there. For why should your servant dwell in the royal city with you?”  

David asks Achish to give him a place to live away from the royal city. So Achish gives him Ziklag, where David will live for the next 16 months. 

While in Ziklag, David and his men raid Israel’s enemies, but he lies to 

Achish by telling him they’ve been fighting their own people. [v. 11] – And David would leave neither man nor woman alive to bring news to Gath, thinking, “lest they should tell about us and say, ‘So David has done.’” Such was his custom all the while he lived in the country of the Philistines. 12 And Achish trusted David, thinking, “He has madehimself an utter stench to his people Israel; therefore he shall always be my servant.”

David’s deception works. Achish believes him, thinking David has made himself an enemy of Israel.

This isn’t one of David’s finer moments. And it raises an important question: We’ve been talking about how to confront the sin of others, but what about when we’re the ones doing the sinning?  

When confronting sin…4. Don’t forget to confront yourself.  

I’m pretty confident most of us would say we’re sinners, but when was the last time you repented of a specific sin? Is your category of sin broad and shallow? Or are you seeking God’s help as you wrestle through specific sin in your life?  

When confronting sin in your life: (1) Own your weaknesses and limitations.

If David could stumble and fall, so can you. If his faith could grow tired and weary, so can yours. I’m not saying that to discourage you. I’m saying it because it’s true.  

You will stumble, but if you don’t acknowledge your weaknesses, you won’t be prepared when you do. David’s story reminds us that even the best among us are fallen. But just because you’ve fallen doesn’t mean you’ve failed.  

[Prov. 24:16] – for the righteous falls seven times and rises again,     but the wicked stumble in times of calamity.

Seven is a number of completion. The righteous person isn’t someone who never falls; they fall continually, but they keep getting back up. 

And where do we go when we fall? Back to God.  

David may have walked away from God, but God never walked away from David. And He won’t walk away from you. At some point, we’re all going to stumble and fall. But failure isn’t falling. Failure is not relying on God to lift you up after you fall.  

Second, when we confront ourselves, we need to be ready to… 

(2) Preach the gospel to ourselves. 

Just like David, we all talk to ourselves. [v. 1] reminds us that what we say to our hearts is just as important as what we say out loud to everyone else. So, don’t ignore that inner voice, but don’t just listen to it either. Instead, in those moments, we need to preach the gospel to ourselves.  

When it comes to American sports, my brother is like an encyclopedia. It’s like he knows everything. 

If I asked him who hit the walk-off HR in the 1988 World Series, he could tell me the teams, the batter, the pitcher, the score, the stadium. Why? Because he loves sports. And because he loves it so much he’s filled himself with these things. He reads it, he studies it, he thinks about it.  

Because when conflict and crisis come, they don’t create what’s inside us, they reveal it. And if we haven’t filled ourselves with the gospel, we’ll be tempted to believe whatever our hearts tell us in the moment. 

Your heart might say, “You’re a failure. You have no hope. You have no future.” 

But the gospel says, “Yes, my sin was so bad it deserved death. But I’m also so loved that God sent His Son Jesus to die in my place. 

Yes, my works can’t secure my future. But because of what Christ has done for me, I have life and a future in Him. For that reason, I know–(3)–I can… 

(3) Run to the Lord.  

Here’s the amazing thing about God: Even when we run from Him, He doesn’t run from us. If He did, we’d never find our way back to Him.  

But when we come to God in repentance; not just saying, “I did something wrong,” but, “I’m a sinner who deserves your judgment, and apart from you my life would be ruined.” 

That’s the kind of person who experiences the freedom of forgiveness. 

See, God doesn’t look at our sin and say, “It’s no big deal.” And if He did, He wouldn’t be just. Instead, our sin is exactly why Jesus went to the Cross. See, Jesus lived perfectly, and yet, “for our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” [2 Cor. 5:21] 

Think about what the Cross says: The Cross was Jesus saying, “I won’t treat you as your sins deserve. In fact, I’ll take what you deserve on myself.  

And because of the Cross, Jesus says, “I promise not to hold your sin against you.” 

I won’t dwell on what you did.

I won’t bring it up again to punish you. 

I won’t tell others so they can punish you. 

I’ll defend you. So when the Enemy whispers condemnation to you, Jesus says, “Not true. That debt’s already been paid in full.” 

Because of the Cross, Jesus says, “I won’t let what you’ve done ruin our relationship.” See, God isn’t committed to holding your sin against you. He’s committed to reconciling you to Himself. 

And that’s the power of forgiveness your sin has no answer for. 

¹ Works Consulted:  

1 & 2 Samuel – Vannoy; “David’s Mercy” – Keller; “Review of Tim Keller’s Book on Forgivenes” – Brauns;

“Applying Faith in Conflict and Crisis” – Shelton; “Four Promises of Forgiveness” – Sande 

and replaced by David. Which sounds great to everyone except Saul, who’s been hunting David for years.