Rethink Success
Theme: God defines success very differently than we do .
Text: 1 Samuel 19:1-7 and 1 Samuel 23:14-18
Here’s a thought: Sam Logan concludes, “Success is finding out what God wants you to do - and doing it.”
If we went out and asked people how they define success, what would they say? We would probably get a variety of answers, including:
Having more money.
Getting a good job.
Driving a nice car.
Owning a beautiful home.
Having lots of followers on social media.
Being able to travel.
Being famous.
Being powerful.
Being happy.
How would you define success? How would your family, friends, coworkers and neighbours define success?
What is success? An unsung hero in the Bible named Jonathan challenges us to rethink this question.
We are introduced to Jonathan, who lived about 1,100 years B.C. in 1 Samuel 13:1-2:
1 Saul was [thirty] years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel [forty-] two years. 2 Saul chose three thousand men from Israel; two thousand were with him at Micmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. The rest of the men he sent back to their homes. NIV
Jonathan Could Have Been Number One
Jonathan is described in 1 Samuel 13 as the commander of a thousand men. When Jonathan attacked the Philistine garrison at Geba, his action brought swift retaliation from the Philistines, who subdued and humiliated the Israelites. But Jonathan and his armour bearer courageously attacked the Philistine garrison at Micmash and were successful. This action inspired the Israelites to overthrow their oppressors (1 Samuel 14:1-23).
The name Jonathan means “God has given.” He was the eldest son of King Saul, and, like his father, he was a man of great strength and activity (2 Samuel 1:23) and excelled in archery (2 Samuel 1:22).
The affection between Jonathan and his father was interrupted by the growth of Saul's insecurity and paranoia. After an eventful career, he died, along with his father and two brothers, on the battlefield of Gilboa (1 Samuel 31:2, 8). He left one five-year-old son, Merib-baal, or Mephibosheth (2 Samuel 4:4 and 1 Chronicles 8:34).
As the eldest son of King Saul, Jonathan was the natural heir to the throne. Their family and the nation of Israel would have expected Jonathan to be groomed for such a position.
Prince Charles, now King Charles III, was the longest-waiting heir to the throne in British history. He reportedly said in November 2012 (www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/prince-charles/9700402/Prince-Charles- Im-running-out-of-time.html), “Impatient? Me? What a thing to suggest! Yes, of course, I am.” He added, “I’ll run out of time soon. I shall have snuffed it if I’m not careful.” His wait was over when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, passed away on September 8th, 2022.
Have you ever lost a championship game and finished second? Have you been passed over for a promotion at work? Why do I remember when Mr. Cooper chose Darrell Jones instead of me for our volleyball team in grade six? Why do
I still feel the pain in my backside when I think about riding the bench as a second-stringer on our high school basketball team?
By human standards, Jonathan had everything going for him. He was the king’s right-hand man, and his future looked bright. Jonathan must have laid awake at night thinking about what he would do when he was king. He would finally get the recognition and privileges that he deserved. He would have seen his father's weaknesses and vowed that he would not allow these weaknesses to mark his career and leadership. These ambitions would have motivated any average, red-blooded or blue-blooded young man. Jonathan, however, was not your typical “king in waiting.”
Jonathan Could Have Been Number One
Jonathan Embraced Being Number Two
The best-known fact about Jonathan is his close friendship with David. We assume that Jonathan and David were both young men of similar ages when they met. However, when I looked at the chronology, I realized that Jonathan was older than David. Some estimate five years, while others estimate at least 28 years. This makes the story of Jonathan even more remarkable!
Even though Saul was king, the prophet Samuel was led by the Lord to anoint David as the next king in 1 Samuel 16:13. Jonathan reveals that he and Saul knew David would be king one day in 1 Samuel 23:14-18:
14 David stayed in the desert strongholds and in the hills of the Desert of Ziph. Day after day Saul searched for him, but God did not give David into his hands. 15 While David was at Horesh in the Desert of Ziph, he learned that Saul had come out to take his life. 16 And Saul's son Jonathan went to David at Horesh and helped him find strength in God. 17 “Don't be afraid,” he said. “My father Saul will not lay a hand on you. You will be king over Israel, and I will be second to you. Even my father Saul knows this.” 18 The two of them made a covenant before the Lord. Then Jonathan went home, but David remained at Horesh. NIV
What a study in contrasts! While Saul felt threatened by David, Jonathan embraced God’s will and his place as second in the kingdom of Israel.
After David defeated Goliath, the seeds of jealousy were watered in King Saul when the Israelite women sang of David killing tens of thousands in battle and Saul killing only thousands (1 Samuel 18:7). From that day forward, Saul was
worried that David would take away his kingdom. As a result, Saul tried many times to kill David.
A new bank president met with his predecessor and said, “I would like to know what have been the keys to your success.” The older gentleman looked at him and replied, “Young man, I can sum it up in two words: Good decisions.”
The young man responded, “I thank you immensely for that advice, sir, but how does one know which are the good decisions?”
“One word, young man,” replied the sage, “Experience.”
“That's all well and good,” said the younger, “but how does one get experience?” “Two words,” said the elder, “Bad decisions.”
One of Saul’s murderous plots is described in 1 Samuel 19:1-7:
1 Saul told his son Jonathan and all the attendants to kill David. But Jonathan was very fond of David 2 and warned him, “My father Saul is looking for a chance to kill you. Be on your guard tomorrow morning; go into hiding and stay there. 3 I will go out and stand with my father in the field where you are. I'll speak to him about you and will tell you what I find out.” 4 Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father and said to him, “Let not the king do wrong to his servant David; he has not wronged you, and what he has done has benefited you greatly. 5 He 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?” 6 Saul listened to Jonathan and took this oath: “As surely as the Lord lives, David will not be put to death.” 7 So Jonathan called David and told him the whole conversation. He brought him to Saul, and David was with Saul as before. NIV
This was the defining moment in Jonathan’s life. He could step back and let his father, King Saul, get rid of David. This could be his chance to eliminate his rival for the throne. All his human ambitions could be realized; he could please his father and secure his future as king.
Someone has observed, “The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking places.”
When Saul sought David's life, Jonathan interceded on behalf of David, and Saul reinstated David to his good favour (1 Samuel 19:1-7). Jonathan had made a covenant with David (1 Samuel 18:3-4), so he warned David of Saul's plot against his life (1 Samuel 19:1-2). Jonathan proved his loyalty to David when he warned him of Saul's threats of vengeance (1 Samuel 20) and encouraged David in times of danger (1 Samuel 23:16-18).
When was the last time you heard people chant, “We’re number two! We’re number two!”
Silver medal winners are often more dissatisfied than bronze medal winners. The silver medallist thinks, “I could have had the gold.” The bronze medallist thinks, “It’s great that I won a medal!”
The tragic end for Jonathan came at Mount Gilboa when the Philistines killed him, his father Saul and two of his brothers (1 Samuel 31:1-2; 1 Chronicles 10:1-6). When David heard of this, he mourned and fasted (2 Samuel 1:12). He then composed a lamentation, the “Song of the Bow,” in which he poured out his grief over the death of Saul and Jonathan in 2 Samuel 1:23:
Saul and Jonathan - in life they were loved and gracious, and in death they were not parted. They were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions. NIV
Here are some adjectives to describe Jonathan: bold, courageous, skilled, loyal (even to death), capable, unselfish, helpful, secure and humble. We would look at Jonathan and conclude, “What a tragic waste, what a failure!”
God could have chosen to reward Jonathan immediately for his loyalty to God’s will and David, but He did not. His reward was waiting for him in heaven.
The Apostle Paul describes this “upside down” thinking of the kingdom of God as demonstrated by Jesus in Philippians 2:3-11:
3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death - even death on a cross! 9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. NIV
Jesus Christ laid down His life in the short term for long-term gain. Jonathan laid down his earthly position for a heavenly place.
Mark Hatfield told of touring Calcutta, India, with Mother Teresa and visiting the so-called “House of Dying,” where sick children are cared for in their last days, and the dispensary, where the poor line up by the hundreds to receive medical attention. Watching Mother Teresa minister to these people, feeding and nursing those left by others to die, Hatfield was overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of the suffering she and her co-workers faced daily. “How can you bear the load without being crushed by it?” he asked.
Mother Teresa replied, “My dear Senator, I am not called to be successful, I am called to be faithful.” (From https://www.goodshepherd.sa.edu.au/good- shepherd-grapevine-12-august-2021/)
Sam Logan concludes, “Success is finding out what God wants you to do - and doing it.”
How will you measure your success when you look back on your life? The Lord is most interested in the Great Commandments – loving Him and loving others – and in the Great Commission – making disciples of all nations. How do your interests line up with His? Are you available for whatever place He has for you – whether or not people notice you?
Jonathan Could Have Been Number One Jonathan Embraced Being Number Two
God defines success very differently than we do.
