CALVARY CHAPEL MAIDSTONE

A wedding, a funeral and an opportuntity to kill your enemy - David’s life is anything but dull! The days of David hiding in the wilderness are drawing to a close, but first David needs to face King Saul one more time. The Lord has taught David many things in his time on the run, and through the encounter with Nabal and the wisdom of Abigail he has learnt to leave his enemies in God’s hands. Howev...

It's sheep shearing season! The richest man in the land, Nabal, is cashing in on his flocks and it is a time for celebration! He is paying his under-shepherds, holding a feast and everyone is high spirits. All year David and his men have worked hard to help protect Nabal's sheep and so now they rightly expect a cut in the celebration and the pay. Yet, this businessman dismisses David, his...

At the end of chapter 23 David had almost fallen into the hands of Saul, now the tables are reversed as Saul now falls into the hands of David. Saul steps into a cave in En Gedi, unaware that in the dark recesses of the cave David and is men are in hiding. David resists the urging of his fellow men to take Saul's life, but does cut off the corner of Saul's robe. David, convicted by God, th...

Saul's relentless pursuit of David continues, as David hides in the strongholds of the Judean wilderness. David has both allies and enemies: Jonathan, who comes to strengthen David's hand in the Lord, and the Ziphites who betray David's whereabouts to Saul. However, David has learnt to rely on the Lord and hope in God, as Psalm 54, which was written at this time, shows us. As Saul clos...

The Philistines are raiding the Israeli city of Keilah! David hears the report of their plight and inquires of the Lord whether he and his band of 600 men should go to their aid. The Lord bids him go and assures him of victory. Saul, on the other hand, hears that David is Keilah, and with a mind to rid himself of David, marshalls his armies for Keilah too. A showdown at Keilah between David and Sa...

In light of the war between Israel and Hamas, triggered by Hamas' attack on Jewish civilians and settlements on 7th October 2023, the need for a Biblical perspective was needed. This message answers the following questions: - Who are Hamas? - What does their charter state as their purpose? - Who are the Palestinians? - Is Israel an illegal occupier of the land? - What are God's promises to...

David is back in relationship with God, but his circumstances haven’t improved. God has him in a pressure cooker, where Saul is seeking his life and there is no way of escape, but God will protect David. Saul is turning into a tyrant, ruling by fear, subgating the people and people are fleeing his side. David is being transformed into the character of Jesus, walking by faith and people are fleeing...

David is on the run from King Saul, and he's running from man to man looking for comfort, refuge and salvation. First he ran to Samuel, then to Jonathan, and in 1 Samuel 21 he runs to Ahimelech the priest, then to Achish the Lord of Gath. The one person he is not running to is God. However the Lord is there at every occasion, revealing Himself to David in different ways, if only he would stop...

David has escaped Saul by means of divine intervention at Naioth in Ramah, but he is far from safe. He reaches out to his covenant friend, Jonathan, for help - who is initially doubtful whether his father, the king, is indeed out for David's life. However, after an oath by David, together they hatch a plan to test Saul to see what his true colours are at the New Moon feast. What are Saul's...

Do you struggle with a besetting sin? Saul was tormented with the besetting sins of jealousy, anger and resentment over the person of David This sent him into ever decreasing depths of sin and torment until the only solution that he could see was to, 'Seek, Locate, Exterminate David!' This resolve was mollified when Saul's son, Jonathan, intervenes to defend David. Saul then relents an...

When Saul offers David the hand of his daughter Merab in marriage, it looks like the hostility from Saul is easing. That is until Saul gives Merab to another man at the last minute. When Saul's other daughter, Michal, falls for David, Saul offers him her hand as well. David unable to pay the expected bride price for a princess is given an alternative...kill one hundred Philistines! Is this Sau...

The battle between David and Goliath is won, and the nation rejoices over the victory. However, a jealous king looks on and when his craving for approval is supplanted by women's praise of David paranoia sets in. Could this mere boy be a genuine rival to his throne? What measures should be taken to control and keep an eye on this lad? While the king's heart declines into suspicion, anger,...

The account of David and Goliath is one of the most well known events recorded in Scripture. Behind the physical battle between a giant and boy is a lesson of the spiritual battle that every believer in Jesus Christ has to face. The Goliath of sin towers over the lives of every believer, bringing intimidation, fear and prospect of continual defeat to the man of God. Yet, God has promised all who a...

David is rising to prominence and Saul's light is on the decline. In the passage taught, we see David rise as he first goes from the field to the house, then from the house to the palace, then from the palace to the battlefield. These four stages mark a significant step forward in the life of David, but they also reflect four stages we as Christian pass through toward maturity. - Which stage d...

Samuel is sent on a secret mission to anoint the son of Jesse as King in Bethlehem. Whenever God calls us into service there are obstacles in the path that need to be overcome, and sure enough there are two issues in the life of Samuel that need to be addressed before he goes undercover for God. Once in Bethlehem the mission is not as straightforward as it may have first seemed, Jesse doesn't...

The war with the Amalekites is over and King Saul and the Israelite army are victorious. On the return journey from the fight Saul erects a monument in honour of himself and the victory won in Carmel. But there is no monument to the Lord. This signals what is happening in Saul's heart, he is rising up in pride, and in the process he has turned away from the Lord. As a consequence the Lord regr...

King Saul is given a command from God through the prophet Samuel to punish the Amalekites for a crime committed over four hundred years earlier. This command amounted to genocide. Every man, woman, child and animal was to be utterly destroyed. How can a God of love be so cruel? Have we misunderstand the true character of God, atheists like Richard Dawkins think so, but what saith the word of God?...

We were blessed to have Chris Eke, Pastor of The Life Church in Maidstone, visit and he speak to us on the topic, "The Cost Of Discipleship." He asked us the question, what are the marks and costs of discipleship? 1) Disciples carry their own cross 2) Disciples follow the Lord 3) Disciples live for the Lord 4) Disciples start to finish Do you have what it takes to be a disciple of Jesus...

Jonathan has spearheaded an attack on the Philistines, making Saul late to the battle. In an attempt to motivate his army, Saul places his men under a foolish oath that they cannot eat until evening, which makes them wax weaker and weaker as the day marches on. However, Jonathan, ignorant of the oath, freely partakes of some honey when he stumbles across a bee hive in the forest - unwittingly plac...

Israel has never been in a worse situation... A vast Philistine military machine is staring over an Israeli army that has dwindled to a mere 600 in number. Soldiers have fled, hidden and defected, while their captain, Saul, has lost all motivation, and is sat under a pomegranate tree. God has promised that He will fight for His people, but He needs a person of faith to stand up and take the lead....

There is a ministry that all believers in Christ share. A ministry that must be considered and not neglected. A ministry that grows more important day-by-day as the time of Jesus Christ returns draws closer. A ministry that can only be execute by Christians meeting and sharing fellowship in person. What is that ministry? Our visiting speaker, Pastor Steve Vickery from Calvary Chapel Oxford, spoke...

A time jump of approximately twenty years has occurred between Saul's coronation and the events of 1 Samuel 13. In that time the Philistines have invaded and become an occupying presence. As Saul prepares for war, he must first wait seven days for Samuel to offer a sacrifice, but when Samuel is late in coming Saul decides to take matters into his own hands. The fifteenth in a series studying t...

The time has come for Samuel to retire from the ministry of Judge as the mantle of civil authority is now passed to King Saul. At Saul's coronation, Samuel delivers his farewell address. Instead of promoting himself and reflecting on his career, Samuel instead uses the speech for three purposes: 1) To permit a public examination of his service 2) To highlight the faithfulness of God to Israel...

An Ammonite invader lays siege to a city of Israel seeking to bring humiliation and reproach on the whole of the nation. A disunited nation, without a standing army appears ill-equipped to mount a rescue attempt. And a newly appointed king who was last seen hiding among the equipment and has since returned to farming. It is a hopeless situation, that is, until the Spirit of God falls... The thirte...

Israel is called to a general assembly to identify who will be the first king over the nation. Only Samuel and Saul know the answer. While Samuel takes centre stage, Saul is nowhere to be found! Where is the heir presumptive? And what does his absence tell us about his character? The twelth in a series studying through the first book of Samuel in the Bible. Study delivered on Sunday 12th February...