“ He (David) took his life in his hands when he killed the Philistine. The Lord won a great victory for all Israel, and you saw it and were glad. Why then would you do wrong to an innocent man like David by killing him for no reason?” (I Samuel 19:5)

You remember that when David killed Goliath, his life changed. From that moment on Saul became jealous of him and wanted to kill him. So David hid himself in Ein Gedi. Today Ein Gedi is a national park in Israel and people from all over the world come to visit it. The lesson of Ein Gedi is very real. 1 Samuel 19:5 says that Jonathan spoke to Saul saying: “He (David) took his life in hands when he killed the Philistine. The Lord won a great victory for all Israel, and you saw and were glad.”  But, in reality, the heart of Saul wanted revenge because of his jealousy of David.

Today we who work in community need to learn this lesson from Ein Gedi. David was hiding from Saul in these caves on the western side of the Dead Sea. But Saul found out where he was and came to kill him. As Saul went inside one of these caves to relieve himself, David came from behind and took a piece of his robe. David showed it to his soldiers and later said he could not kill Saul because he was the Lord’s anointed (I Samuel 24:6).

David said to Saul, “ May the Lord judge between you and me. And may the Lord avenge the wrongs you have done to me, but my hand will not touch you” (I Samuel 24:12). In these caves David won the greatest battle of his whole life, the forgiveness of Saul.

This saying touched the heart of Saul, he became convicted of what David said and at least momentarily he forgave David also, saying”You have just now told me of the good you did to me; the Lord delivered me into your hands, but you did not kill me”  (I Samuel 24:18).

Are you holding forgiveness back from someone? We make judgments based on what we think or perceive, but our discernment fails and we sin against others by what we say to them. Are you holding back forgiveness? For almost a lifetime, Saul suffered, and his attitude or unforgiveness brought unclean spirits in his life to torment him many nights. Are you holding back forgiveness from someone one?

These are days in which God will use many of us to do the work of the kingdom. It’s harvest time. A life lived for God will come to a place in which God will use you to reach many, and each life has a moment. In my life, this is the moment. More will come to the kingdom in the next 5 years then ever before.

Unforgiveness holds the anointing of God from being released in your life. Forgiveness is the central theme of the gospel. Forgiveness is why Jesus came. You cannot forgive, you cannot be forgiven. You cannot forgive, you cannot serve with anointing! That is it!

Rick Bonfim