It is at the same time puzzling and comforting what even a godly person will do in private. It is puzzling because you wouldn’t expect of it from the godly and comforting because we are no different.

David is God’s anointed. He is everything that the King Saul is not. King Saul was a coward but David was brave and godly. Yet when he flees from King Saul, which was justified since his life was threatened, he goes to the land of Gath, where Goliath is from, and pretends to be a madman! (1 Samunel 21:13)

To be fair, David was under tremendous duress. He was being hunted and didn’t know where to go and so in desperation, he goes into his arch-enemies’ land. And to survive there, he feigns to be deranged. This would be excusable if David was an average man, even commendable, for quick thinking. But this is David! He is to represent Christ to the world. He is to walk by faith and not by sight as the new king of Isarel. How could he succumb to displaying such little faith?

My answer? This points to Jesus. Not in the way that David represented Jesus well, but that there really is no one but Jesus who is perfect. EVERYONE will disappoint when you see what they do in private. How shameful and embarrassing are the things we do away from the public eye! Not even the seeming godly are exempt. Not David. Not Abraham. Not Moses. Not me. Not you.

But Jesus is. He alone is perfect. He alone is pure. He alone is perfectly consistent both in public and private. And He is not just our example (If that’s all He were, we are doomed!), but our substitute. Glory Hallelujah!

So, I will trust Him in my weakness in spite of my shameful past. I will put no man on pedestal for they are no better than me. But Jesus, I will look up to love Him and to become like Him.

PH