one who compasses our path. He knows our down sittings and our uprisings. Nothing escapes his view. We can thank God, too, for having our heart stirred this morning as we took a look at the cross. It always awakens our hearts the more to see the magnitude of the love that the Lord Jesus showed for us. When He went to the cross, shows us the greatness of God the Father's love as He gave His only begotten Son. He gave that unspeakable gift, as we've been reminded. It's through the cross that we can look at some of His glory. and some that are distinct that were given to him because of the cross. And we remember last night we mentioned one of the mediatorial glories that were his. And I'd like to go to the book of First Samuel and take a picture here of the king because that's one of his glories. that he will reign from the throne of David, and he will certainly reign as king supreme. But in this little picture, we see some of his rejection, first of all. You know, in the book of Samuel, it's a book that first Samuel is about three men. It's about a man that a mother wanted, and his name was to be Samuel. She wanted someone who would be a Nazarite from his birth. I believe from reading that dear lady's prayer that she had an understanding of the great need that Israel had at the time for a man to stand in the hedge and make up the gap. She saw that the way the nation was going, and she knew that there was a need for a man of God to stand. And so she prayed for a man. And she prayed for one that would be a Nazarite. And she said that she would give him to the Lord. And that's what she did. And in Samuel's lifetime he proved out to be a faithful man of God. The second man in the book was the man Saul. He was chosen by the people to be their king. Saul was a man of the flesh. Saul was a man that walked after a fallen nature. Saul was a man that wanted his own desires, wanted to walk his own way and do his own thing. Saul was a man that the people recognized. You know, it's an amazing thing how people can see a man who's head and shoulders above other men and thinking this man lies strength and might and wisdom and all. And my how many men we've seen within our decade that have been men that others recognized as great men. But when their heart was really exposed, they weren't great at all. No, I can't help but thinking of one of the tea evangelists to see what an extremity that man was brought to. On one hand, to have the millions flocking after him. And then on the other hand, to be so broken in conviction perhaps, in a recognition his guilt is now caught up to him, that he tries to hide his head on a floor underneath the Davenport. See, that man, Saul, was a man who walked after a nature that was fallen. You know, so many of us think that something in this nature, there must be something good at it. I read a book one time that spoke of the latent power of the soul. And I disagreed even though the man was a terrific man. I disagreed immensely with his premises of the book. There is no latent power in the soul. It is dead in trespasses and sin, as we have been reminded. And when that nature became fallen, what man was made when God made us was body, soul, and spirit. And when Adam fell in the garden, his body was tempted by the food. He saw that, or Eve saw that the fruit was good for food, and she took it. She saw it was pleasant to the eyes, and certainly that sensuousness that was there fell as well. The body fell, the soul fell, and the spirit fell as man wanted to be as a God. And that fallen condition has never changed. You see, man fell, body, soul, and spirit. He's dead in trespasses and sin, in body, soul, and spirit. And that is why there has to be a new birth, to take us from that position, and to give us a new nature. But, beloved, one of our problems is just like Saul. We don't realize that that old nature is still there. I still have the fallen nature. But I'm so thankful that the day I got saved, Christ came in. And the nature of Christ was given to me. And now it is Christ in me, and Christ in you, the hope of glory. See, some of us have the idea that we make the old man over, and that's the new man. That's not truth either. The new man is Christ as he's developed in us. It is put off the old man and put on the new. and the newest Christ as He's developed within us. And we can thank God for that. Many times as we look at this being, we see it in all its failures. So then when we take a look at Christ, then what we can see, as we've already been minded, what we are in Christ, accepted in the beloved. I've often thought about our brother's comment of being saved and then lost the failure of the knowledge of eternal security. In order for me to be lost, Christ would have to fall out of the heavens because I've been accepted in Christ. I have been placed in Christ. And when the Father sees me, he doesn't see me through Christ. He sees me in Christ. What a secure position. But you know, as I look at Saul, he was a man that failed in so many ways, even when God had placed his spirit upon him. And yet Saul failed to do his bidding, failed to do his will. And so he walked in his own way. And then God had to take the kingdom away from him and give it to a man after God's own heart. You see, Saul was a man after the people's own heart. Samuel was a man after his mother's own heart. But God is looking for a man after his own heart. And so he said he was going to take away the kingdom and take it from Saul and give it to his neighbor, a man after my own heart. And when we come to First Samuel, we see the anointing of David. that reminds us of the greater David and the anointing of the Lord Jesus. But first of all, I'd like to read a portion of this chapter to you. And the Lord said to Samuel, How long will thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill thy horn with oil and go. I will send thee to Jesse the Bethlehemite, For I have provided me a king amongst his son. And Samuel said, How can I go? Is Saul here? And he'll kill me. And the Lord said, Take a heifer with thee, and say, I've come to sacrifice to the Lord. And call Jesse to the sacrifice. And I will show thee what thou shalt do. And thou shalt anoint unto me him whom I name unto thee. And Samuel did that which the Lord spoke and came to Bethlehem. And the elders of the town trembled at his coming. And said, Comeest thou peaceably. And he said, Peaceably am I come to sacrifice unto the Lord. Sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons and called them to the sacrifice. Came to pass when they were come. He looked on Eliab and said, Surely the Lord's anointed is before him. Samuel saw like Israel saw. But the Lord said to Samuel, Look not on his countenance or on the height of his stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord seeth not as a man seeeth. For a man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart. And then Jesse called Abinadab and made him pass. before Samuel. And he said, Neither hath the Lord chosen this one. Then Jesse made Shema to pass by. And he said, Neither hath the Lord chosen this one. Again Jesse made the seven sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, The Lord has not chosen these. Samuel said unto Jesse, Are all thy children here? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest. And behold, he keepeth sheep. And Samuel said to Jesse, Send, and fetch him. For we will not sit down until he come here. He sent him and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and of a beautiful countenance and handsome. And the Lord said, Arise and anoint him. For this is he, and Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brethren. And the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day onward. So Samuel rose and went to Ramah. Samuel's job is done now. He found the one who was to be anointed as king. But as Samuel is told to go, I was struck reading this how many times in my life I said, how can I go? Have you ever been like that that God had a work for you to do? And then you wondered how can you go? There was a man named Moses that was like that one day. Ah, Moses thought about his lips and how they stuttered and stammered. Another man named Jeremiah one day, Jeremiah, says, I have lips as a child. And the Lord said, No, I don't want you to say that. I want you to fear men. I want you to go and speak what I've given you to speak. Samuel said, How shall I go? He sent him to Bethlehem. Now that's where the greater David came from, Bethlehem. That's where he was born. And Samuel was to go to the house of Jesse, to Bethlehem, to the house of bread, to find the one who would be sufficient for the king and the kingdom. You know, when we look at the greater David, and we read of him, born in Bethlehem the house of bread. The one who could say, I'm the bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never hunger, and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. He's the one that John could write of. He's the bread of God. He's the bread come down from heaven. And seven times over in that chapter were reminded of the bread of God. That bread come down from heaven. Samuel went there to anoint him. But you know when he went, and he goes to the house of Jesse, and Jesse is told to bring his son. And he brings Eliab, and my, here's a nice, handsome young man. Samuel says, Oh, surely this must be him. But the Lord said, No, Samuel, don't look on his countenance in the height of his stature, because I've refused him. The Lord seeth not as man seeth. The Lord looketh on the heart when man looks on the outward appearance. You know, I couldn't help but think of how many times that our own lives we spend looking on the outward appearance of men. Our brother mentioned to us as he was speaking this morning of a realization of Christ's death for us. And if he was willing to go that far, Ought we not be willing, as he said, to go pick up a telephone or go to someone else and hand out a track. And so many times we see the face of men. And because we see their face and we're fearful to speak, and we back away. But when the Lord viewed Calvary, as he did from the Garden of Gethsemane, he viewed all the cost it was to be for him. He faced it fully, and He went the total way, obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Had we ought then to look upon the faces of men. God says the fear of man is a snare. And so many times, just like Samuel, fear of what Saul might do. And yet let the Lord say, You go. We look at men when we're in the assembly work. I've noticed so many times at boards of schools and camps and things like this. We look at men who've got finances. We look at men who've got different abilities in those sense publicly. And I'm going to bring it closer home. How many times within the assembly are men today holding a little vote, a popular decision as who ought to be an elder within the assembly? But my Bible says, if any man desires overseership, he desires a good work. It ought to be something that comes from the man and the individual. And there's the spiritual emphasis in that life. Even as God had seen in the heart of David here, God said, I rejected Eliab and then. He rejected all seven sons that passed before him. And Samuel says, isn't there one more? Is this all your children? He said, no, we have one, but he's just keeping the sheep. He's out there in the field keeping the sheep. A shepherd. He was just a boy called a stripling, a young lad, perhaps sixteen years old. Somewhere in that range, sixteen to eighteen. And you know, he wasn't looked on very well by his own family. You ever remember a time in the life of the Lord Jesus? You read in John's Gospel, chapter seven, and his brethren believed not on him. They said, go to your disciples. His own family rejected him. There's a time when his family were without. because they thought something was wrong with him, and they wanted to take him away from the witness that he was bearing. A man rejected of his own. And yet God was going to choose one out of the brethren, even as he did here. It wasn't until after his resurrection that his brethren believed on him. We see that because of what we read of his half-brother James. James being one that the Lord appeared unto, we read in First Corinthians fifteen. And so when we look at David here, he keeps the sheep. You know, I couldn't help but think, what a contrast between David and Saul. What was Saul doing when the Lord called him? He was following after the donkeys, wasn't he? He was looking for the donkeys. A donkey is something that's unclean, something wild, even as God writes, have man born as a wild asses cold. And you know, that was typical of the life of Saul. And so if the Holy Spirit made a definite point in the life of Saul as showing us the direction that that man went, when the nation wanted to make him their king, then what about the man David, what he was doing when God wanted to anoint him as king? David was a shepherd, and he was keeping the sheep. And you know, from that day forward, usually the kings were looked upon as shepherds. those who were to keep the sheep. And when David finished his life, he's run his course. You remember at the end, nearing the end of his life, when he had the people of Israel numbered something he was not to do. God had enticed him to do it. Satan had enticed him as well. as he was prompted to number the people because God wanted to bring a judgment to him. And then he went out and numbered the people. And now, what does he do? He brings judgment against the nation. And David begins to plead in behalf of the nation. And he said, What have these sheep done? Until the end of David's life, he never changed the path of being a shepherd. He kept the sheep. And you know, when the Lord anointed his own, when God anointed the Lord Jesus as his king, there was one who could say, I'm the good shepherd, and the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. Now, I have in my possession at home an article that was written in Reader's Digest maybe thirty years ago. was an article written about the brass shepherd who cared for his sheep that would get them and he would bring them in to the fold at night. And then when he brought his sheep in, he had his rod, his staff there, and the sheep would pass under the rod. And as they passed under it, he looked, he'd sheep, as he called them, by name. And then if one of them had a wound, or were afflicted in the eyes, he would take and touch them with the rod, and then the sheep would step out of line and wait till all the sheep were in and counted. And when all the sheep were in and counted, then the shepherd would take himself a bucket of cold water. And then he would take the sheep that had a disease of the eyes, and that sheep would stick its snout down into the water until it would come right to its eyes to cool the fever and to refresh them. And then the shepherd would take those sheep that had been wounded and would dress their wounds, and then he would lie down across the door. Last night we mentioned in the plan of the Lord Lord's willingness to be that man of sorrows and one who was acquainted with grief, that he could take our sorrows and our affliction so that he could be a high priest that would be touched with the feeling of our infirmities. But my, how secure that he made us as a sheep within himself. Surely he was a shepherd that gave his life for the sheep. David, when he was called, was keeping the sheep. And so Samuel said, We're not going to sit down until he comes. Go bring him. So they go to get him. And they bring him there. We read that he was ruddy and of a beautiful countenance and handsome. Now we read of the lover in the Song of Solomon being ruddy and fair. When we think of the Lord Jesus of what he was before his father, he was the fairest of the fair. He was altogether lovely. He was the rose of Sharon. He's the lily of all lilies, the lily of the valley. When we come to the last title that's given to him in the Word of God, tied with David, said he's the root and the offspring of David. He's the bright and the morning star. And so when we view him, he's the one who was all together lovely. And you know, he was the father's delight. He was the one that we mentioned last night. Then was I by him as one brought up with him from the eternal ages past. And then Samuel took the horn of oil, and he anointed him king. David was made the king of Israel. You know when it comes to anointing, the Lord Jesus had three offices that were his. We have three types in the Old Testament. concerning him in those three offices. Aaron was the type of his priesthood in his service of the priesthood. Melchizedek was the type of his priesthood in his eternalness of that priesthood because he was a high priest after the order of Melchizedek, the one who had no beginning or ending. No genealogy just appeared on the scene. Then we have Elisha, Moses, types of the prophet of the Lord Jesus. Aaron was anointed in Leviticus eight when he was brought in to the priesthood. Elisha was anointed in first Kings nineteen when he began his ministry as a prophet. David was anointed here. And when we view the Lord Jesus, he indeed stood as prophet, priest, and king. I'd like to suggest that David was anointed three times. The first anointing was here, where David was anointed king of Israel. The second anointing was when the nation of Judah anointed him as their king in chapter two of second Samuel and verse four. The third anointing of David was when the whole now, the nation of Israel, decided to make David their king as well. And that was in second Samuel five. Three times that David had been anointed king. Could it be that in being the type of the Lord Jesus then, that it's possible that three times that the Lord Jesus would have been anointed? Could it be that the Spirit of God and what He was doing here in the life of David, one who was truly the type of the greater David? who was to be David's son and David's Lord. I'd like to suggest, first of all, that in the Gospel of Luke in chapter one in verse thirty-five, that there was the work of the Spirit of God sanctifying, setting apart the Lord Jesus in his birth. We read that in speaking to Mary, she was told The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee. And that holy thing that shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. Would that have been an anointing, setting apart in the womb of Mary, the Lord Jesus, to be the one who is to be prophet, priest, and king? That's the first anointing. I'd like to suggest to you that the second was the public anointing of the Lord Jesus. Publicly, he was anointed at the beginning of his ministry when he was taken to the River Jordan. Acts chapter ten and verse thirty eight teaches us this, where we read And God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. And He went about doing good, healing all those who were oppressed of the devil. When the Lord Jesus began His ministry, He went forth immediately doing good and healing all of those that were oppressed by the devil. But now the scripture says he came to his own and his own received him not. Ah, he was really their king. But our brother reminded us a little while ago what they said. We'll not have this man to reign over us. They rejected their king. Pilate said, Aren't thou a king? He said, Thou sayest it. In other words, that's exactly right, you said. He said, For this reason was I born. To this end did I come. He was born a king, but they rejected him. But that didn't change his kingship. But what about the third anointing? I'd like you to go with me to the book of Psalms, to Psalm chapter forty-five, forty-fifth Psalm. I'd like to read these first few verses to you. My heart is overflowing with a good matter. I speak of the things which I have made touching the king. My tongue is a pen of a ready writer. Thou art fairer than the children of men. Grace is poured into thy lips. Therefore God hath blessed thee forever. Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty. and thy glory with thy glory and thy majesty. And in majesty ride prosperously because of a truth, because of truth and meekness and righteousness. And thy right hand shall teach thee awe-inspiring things. Thine arrows are in the heart of the king's enemies, whereby the people shall fall under thee. Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever. The scepter of thy kingdom is a right scepter. Thou lovest righteousness and hated wickedness. Therefore, God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellow. Calvary was a place of sorrow. Calvary was the place where the Holy One, who knew no sin, was made sin for us. Calvary was the place where the righteous one bore our sin in his own body and a tree. Calvary was the place where the just one died for the unjust. But when Calvary was finished, And he cried that awful cry, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And he suffered that spiritual separation of the Father. And then finally he could say, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit. And he gave up the ghost. And they took him down at the end of that day and they put him in a tomb. Some thought we've got it made. He's dead. We buried him. He's in a tomb sealed. But on the third day, the stone was rolled away. And someone could say, He's not here, He's risen. Come see the place where the Lord lags. Ah, how about that man now? He had promised the thief, Today shall thou be with me in paradise. And when he left that cross, He gave into the Father's hand his own spirit. That restoration established again with the Father. And when we finally see him ascend, he ascends into the glory to set himself down at the right hand of the majesty on high. He's the king. With every right as his kingship now to reign. He's been anointed. What's he anointed with now? With the oil of gladness above his fellow. You know, many suffered and died in different ways. The Romans crucified a lot of them. They took a road one time and they took the Christians along it and they nailed them up on cross after cross after cross along the way to crucify them. But you know, when the Lord Jesus died, He was above men. And the oil of gladness that he had was that joy that he could have in the restoration with the Father. But you know, I want to look a little bit beyond that when I read that for the joy that was set before him, he endured the cross, despising the shame, and sat himself down at the right hand of the majesty on high. What was the joy that was before him? A joy of restoration and the fellowship with the Father to be won again into the glory that was his before the world was. He went back to that glory. Even the angels could sing. The angels rejoiced, I should say, as they welcomed him back to the glory. But you know, He had a bride viewed before him. You know, that bride was his church, and one day they shall be married to him, with him in his presence forever. But I see that king here in the psalm. It's when the psalms... Psalmist is saying, Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, and with thy glory and thy majesty. He was looking beyond to a day when the Lord Jesus is going to come back to this earth and when he is going to reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lord. You know, I rejoice that this earth to us sometimes now is a place of sorrow and a place of suffering. But in that day, we're going to reign with him in the glory. But what have we got in the meantime? Have a shepherd king who cares for his sheep. That shepherd left us something one day. I believe when David wrote the twenty-third Psalm, he wrote it viewing a sheep looking at its shepherd. Now David cared for the sheep out there in the wilderness in the cold of the night, just like He was doing when God called Him. And the Lord Jesus is that one who cares for His own. And how many times it's comforted our own heart as we look to that shepherd king. The shepherd's savior and king. And we say the Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restores my soul. He leadeth me in paths of righteousness for His namesake. Ye though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for thou art with me. Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. Now anoint us my head with oil, my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. What a savior, what a shepherd, what a king. One is young people reminded us as they sang, one who never leave and never forsake. But it's all because of Calvary. All because he was willing to die. To take our sin. And our shame. To be the man of sorrow. The one acquainted with grief. Shall we pray? Thank you our Father. For your loving kindness. And for your abundant mercies. Thank you that you are indeed a faithful God. A God who gives us new mercies every morning. A God whose faithfulness that Moses could say, reaching through a thousand generations. But as David reminds us, your faithfulness is eternal. And we bless thee for that. Thank you for feeding our hearts this morning. as we looked at Calvary and then beyond Calvary at your Son. Thank you for giving us handfuls on purpose that we might indeed grow in grace for the desire to be more like your Son. We bring our thanksgiving in His blessed name.