Join us for an inspiring exploration of what it means to know God beyond just religious practice. Pastor Jack Hibbs draws from the powerful book, Knowing God by J.I. Packer, illustrating the transformation from intellectual knowledge to a deep, personal relationship with the Divine. Discover how these teachings parallel David’s story, showing us how surrendering to God’s plan, despite uncertainty, can lead to a life lived with purpose and conviction. This episode aims to fortify your faith and redirects your trust towards God’s unwavering promise.
Christian, this is a great message for us. When God speaks and He speaks clearly and we understand what He’s saying, do that thing. Don’t hesitate. Don’t delay.
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This is Real Life. Welcome to Real Life Radio with Pastor Jack Hibbs. I’m David Jay, thanking you for joining us today as we listen, learn, and are challenged by God’s Word, the Bible. What if 2026 wasn’t about doing more, but about knowing God more? This January, we’re featuring one of the most powerful and timeless books on Christian faith, Knowing God, written by J.I. Packer. Now, this classic has helped millions of believers move from knowing about God to actually knowing God personally. With deep biblical insight and heart-centered focus, Packer invites you to explore God’s character, his love, and what it really means to walk with him. It’s not a quick read. It’s a life-changing one. Start your year with truth that will reshape your mind, strengthen your heart, and deepen your faith.
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Friend, this is a great book to get and take time to read it. Maybe read a page or two a day. Contemplate it. Think about it. But friends, get a copy for yourself, Knowing God by J.I. Packer. I promise you it affected my life. It’ll do the same for you.
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That’s Knowing God by J.I. Packer. Get your copy for a gift of any amount at jackhibbs.com. On today’s edition of Real Life Radio, Pastor Jack continues with his series called First Samuel and a message titled The Message Beyond You. Samuel of the Old Testament, of course, was the last judge of Israel, and he was the first of her prophets. So here in Chapter 20, we’ll consider how David’s life is under threat and that his future to him seemed uncertain. You see, David and Jonathan met as David fears for his own life because of Saul. Jonathan, however, reassures David that God is on his side. It’s a challenge that moves David from a self-centered fear to a trust that God is faithful beyond what he can imagine or even think. So today, Pastor Jack teaches us that David, through Jonathan’s help and guidance, is not just thinking of his own survival, that God’s covenant still stands for David as future king of Israel and to live beyond his current circumstances with a sense of purpose, not with his message called the message beyond you. Here’s pastor and Bible teacher Jack Hibbs.
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Verse 30. Here you go. Put on your helmet. Then Saul’s anger was aroused against Jonathan, and he said to him, You son of a perverse, rebellious woman. Now, some of your Bibles have… This is the New King James I’m reading. Some of your versions have something there that I’m not going to say publicly. I’ll just say that your version… When they rendered it so, they weren’t thinking about the etiquette of the king. When they put it together, your version is more accurate in what’s being said. Saul slams his wife for giving birth to Jonathan. Says some very nasty words about her. Now watch what happens. This guy… It seems like we’ve all worked for this guy at some point in time in our careers, doesn’t it? You son of a perverse, rebellious woman. Do I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the shame of your mother’s nakedness? For as long as the son of Jesse lives on the earth, you shall not be established, nor your kingdom. Now therefore send and bring him to me, for he shall surely die. And Jonathan answered Saul, his father, and said to him, Why should he be killed? What has he done? Then Saul cast a spear at Jonathan to kill him, by which Jonathan knew that Jonathan knew. Okay, now I know that it was determined by his father to kill David. Yikes! Can you imagine? You know, this is… Oh, now I see what David’s been talking about. Oh, man. How sad this is for Jonathan to see his lunatic father. Hmm. Hmm. So Jonathan, verse 34, arose from the table in fierce anger. You ought to mark that word, fierce anger. This is holy or righteous indignation. This is the kind of anger that God approves of. Did you know that, everybody? There’s an anger that God approves of. By the way, the Bible says, be angry and, yeah, sin not. You can be angry and not be sinning. Did you know that? An anger for righteousness, right? You know what that’s like. We all know what that’s like. I really believe that it’s not as rare as I had earlier thought in my Christian hood. Not in my neighborhood, I mean, as a Christian growing up. When you see injustice, doesn’t that anger you? I believe the initial anger is holy If I think about it, then I become unholy. Because here’s what happens to me. When I hear somebody abusing a child, there’s a fire that goes up inside of me of disgust and of shame. I don’t even wanna be a human. I don’t wanna be related to that. God help us as a people. And in about 30 seconds, I’m looking for something to beat that guy. And it goes from holy indignation to the wrath of man. You know what I’m saying? You want to choke him. And that stuff sets me off. And then the Lord reminds me, just wait till I get done with them. That’s later. You sit down and be quiet. I’ll take care of it. And I sometimes get like Jonah. Yeah, I know you will take care of it. 30, 40, 50 years from now, I want to see something now. And it’s not for me to do. God will deal with it in the end. This is a hard thing. Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger. Why? Because the hatred and the murderous thoughts are unjustified. For he was grieved for David because his father had treated him shamefully. Now verse 35 to verse 42 is the entire point to the chapter. And so it was that in the morning that Jonathan went out in the field at the time appointed with David, and the little lad was with them. And then he said to the lad, Now run, find the arrows which I shoot. And as the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him. When the lad had come to the place where the arrow was, which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried out after the lad and said, is not the arrow beyond you? And Jonathan cried out after the lad, make haste, hurry, do not delay. So Jonathan’s lad gathered up the arrows and came back to his master. But the lad did not know anything. only that Jonathan and David knew of the matter. Then Jonathan gave his weapons to the lad and said to him, go, carry them into the city. And as soon as the lad had gone, David arose from a place toward the south, fell on his face to the ground and bowed down three times. And they kissed one another and they wept together, but David more so. We’ll come back to that before we end. Then Jonathan said to David, go in peace, since we have both sworn in the name of the Lord, saying, may the Lord be between you and me and between your descendants and my descendants forever. So he arose and departed and Jonathan went into the city. It’s an amazing moment. David, go, flee now, run. You got to go. If David chose, listen, if David decided to delay, no, I’m gonna stay. Think of the outcome. But wait, think of where he’s at. He’s in a field, heir to the throne by decree of God. The arrows have landed such. Jonathan wasn’t shooting the arrows. Yeah, yeah, Jonathan shot the arrows, but who was guiding the arrows? God was guiding the arrows. And the arrows flew out in accordance with the truth. Without the will of David, without the will of Jonathan, the answer is from God. Run, flee, get up, go. And if David was to wait, he could custom his life. Christian, this is a great message for us. When God speaks and he speaks clearly and we understand what he’s saying, do that thing. Don’t hesitate. Don’t delay. Obey God. Did David understand everything that was going on? No. Did he know what the future would hold? Not exactly. From this point on, my friend, from chapter 20, verse 42, do you know how long David will now be in exile? Ten lonely years. Ten years. When God shoots his arrows, what do they say? What have they been saying in your life, in my life? When God shoots his arrow, issues his word, issues his command, don’t delay, obey him. But in the grand scheme of things, what was the target? Spiritually speaking, where did the arrows really hit? They hit David right in the heart. You say, well, Jack, I thought he was God’s man. That’s the point. If you’re God’s man, if you’re God’s woman, God’s arrows will hit you in the heart. Before there can ever be a life lived for God, there must be a crucifixion of self, of flesh. David’s going to be the greatest king that the world has ever known. He doesn’t know it yet. He’s got to go through a lot of pain and a lot of suffering. And this will begin a series of arrows to the heart. Sometimes they come by words, sometimes they come by events, sometimes they come by various means. But you look at David’s hearts, he loves God, and all apparent, listen, all apparent indicators suggest that God’s no longer with them. David could have sat back down in the field by the rock and say, I refuse to embrace this rock of departure. I’m not gonna do it. Can you imagine if he would have dug his heels in against the will of God? He would have been killed. There wouldn’t have been the greatest king of all the world. There wouldn’t have been a Solomon. So much would have been altered if he would have imposed his will. Quickly, turn in your Bibles to Luke 9.23. We don’t want to impose our will upon God. We don’t want to overlay God. Our will. Luke 9, 23. Then he said to them all, Jesus said to them all, if anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it. But whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. That’s what’s happening to David. People, that’s what will happen to every one of God’s believers, God’s children. Amen. In our lives, expect it. It will come when the arrows will fly and they’ll pierce our heart. And God’s right in the middle of it.
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You’re listening to Real Life with Pastor Jack Hibbs. To learn more about this ministry or to catch up on some previous episodes, go to jackhibbs.com. That’s jackhibbs.com. And now let’s get back to today’s message. Once again, here’s Pastor Jack.
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He’s in the middle of that huge setback. I was talking to a man today. I was speaking this week until this evening up at a missionary’s retreat in Lake Arrowhead. And the man that’s heading up the retreat, he’s got… multiple master’s degrees. He’s got his doctorate. He’s got all these things. He’s gone through all of the school, all of the seminaries, did all of the things and started to go do a church and it fell flat on the ground. And he was so upset. He felt so rejected by God. He had his plan and he asked God to bless it. And he went through all the schooling, did all the work. spent so much money to get those degrees. And today he told me, he said, listen, you need to hear something. I’m serving now in Mexico, ministering to these people. I am so content, I’m so blessed, I’m so happy. We know we’re right in the middle of the will of God. But when I first visited Calvary Chapel, I was angry, I was dejected, I was upset. And I came in and I sat down and I said this, what a silly place. He said, the parking lot upset me. I came in here, there’s no windows. And all the stuff I had learned in my master’s degree program about church development and growth, he said, you guys did the exact opposite. And I sat here and I was so angry. And he said, the word of God began to cut me in half. And he said, listen, I got spiritually healed. And he said, now years later, I am ministering and I’m doing it now. I look back at my schooling and he said today, I asked God, why? But he said, now I know. I had to go through all of that arrows in me to get my plan out of the picture so that God could steer me way down into Mexico. And he said, I never would have chosen Mexico ever. And that’s where he’s at. And he’s happy as a chihuahua. But it takes arrows. Maybe you’re in a marriage and it’s just, it’s rotten. Arrows. You say, well, what good thing can come out of this? Be careful. Watch out. Be still. Psalm 46, 10. Be still. Be still. and know that I am the Lord, and I will be exalted in all the earth. How are you gonna be exalted in all of the earth, God? I told you to be still. He will be exalted in all of the earth. In our lives, one person at a time. This man came in here, God changed his heart. Now he’s in the world, ministering in a foreign country. God’s doing that. So in our lives, we need to realize that when God shoots his arrows, the target’s our heart. The pain is unbearable. We don’t understand. It seems like God’s left us. Who understands? Who cares? Who’s with me? David had nobody. He was now to leave. Where’s he gonna go? What’s he gonna do? All that was familiar is gone. We don’t know anything of this, people. None of us have been to such a degree to be castigated from life. And David will be driven into the wilderness. Do you know of another one who’s the son of David who was driven into the wilderness? Do you know one who had no one? At the hour of his rejection, nobody was there to be with him. Would God ever cut two very good friends in half? Yeah, he does that. They love each other. They’ll always love each other. They’re great guys. God divided them And I wonder what they thought from that time on. You know, we love to read the Psalms. You read the Psalms, they’re fantastic. You know why they’re fantastic? Those are writings from a scarred up heart. That’s why you love them. You can relate to them. And then when you and I read a Psalm and we go… What was he trying to say? I didn’t get it. Just wait a few years. You’ll get it. Turn to Matthew 10, 37, if you would. He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me. And he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he who does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t love your mom or your dad, or your sons or your daughters, or your Jonathan or your David. It means you gotta love God more and love God first. These are eternal truths. With what God was gonna do with David, God had to have David alone for years. And I just want to challenge myself and all of us tonight before we end. Are we willing as believers to embrace the arrows of God? Do we love them? Oh yeah, we love them. Okay. Then lay down on the altar if you love me. Why? If that love is there, you won’t, it’s okay. You want me to lay this way on the altar or that way on the altar? We don’t hold it back from God. Wait a minute, Lord. I’m still saving a part of my life. Jesus has put that on the altar. I don’t know if I can do that. Well, that’s why we’re in Bible study tonight. That’s why we are still growing, Lord. And here’s what we want. Lord, I want to be as deep as David. I want to be like David. And I think the Lord just goes, you poor little nut. You don’t even know what you’re asking for. God changed the world through me. All right. And your liver falls out or something, you know? Your ear slides down your head, something. How are we going to change the world? Knowing God intimately, knowing God for real, knowing God does things in the clutch, bring you through. Oh. Then you can turn and say, listen, let me tell you something. And when you talk to that person, God will use you in convincing them that God will comfort them because you’re speaking to them with passion and with conviction because you know what it’s like to be delivered from something. That’s what God wants to do in our lives. And God loves us so much. His plan is so perfect. It’s so right that you don’t need to wait by the stone of his owl. You can go because that plan is perfect. It may be bloody. It may hurt. It will leave scars. But those scars become very beautiful things in the hand of God. And all the pain that you and I have gone through with things and shall go through, it’s not without hope. It’s not without meaning. And there’s no one in the hearing of this message that is exempt from what God wants to do in your life. let him, as we head off and run into the wilderness, he’ll take care of us. In our darkest hour, he’ll be there. Father, we thank you for the life that David had to live for us. Father, help us not to take the life of this man for granted. Lord, we thank you now. In Jesus’ name.
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pastor and Bible teacher Jack Hibbs here on Real Life Radio with his message called The Message Beyond You. You know, this message is part of Pastor Jack’s series called First Samuel. It’s a series that highlights the prophet Samuel who was called by God during one of Israel’s darkest times to bring the people back to a heart of true worship. And we’ll continue on the next edition of Real Life Radio. You ever felt like something’s missing in your life? Maybe you’ve been searching for answers for peace or a sense of purpose. You know, the truth is those longings are there because you were created to know God. At JackHibbs.com, there’s a tab called Know God. It’s designed to help you discover what it truly means to have a relationship with God. This isn’t about religion. It’s about understanding who God is and why he loves you and how you can find hope and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. The page breaks it down in a simple, clear way, answering common questions and guiding you through the steps of faith. It’s a great place to explore and reflect whether you’re just curious or you’re ready to make that next step. So don’t miss out on the most important relationship you’ll ever have. Visit that tab called KnowGod at JackHibbs.com and start your journey today. That’s JackHibbs.com because knowing God changes everything in your life for the better. Take that next step. Explore and reflect at the KnowGod section at JackHibbs.com. This program is made possible by the generous contributions of you, our listeners. Visit us at jackhibbs.com. That’s jackhibbs.com. Until next time, Pastor Jack Hibbs and all of us here at Real Life Radio wish for you solid and steady growth in Christ and in His Word. We’ll see you next time here on Real Life Radio.
