Embraceable Ewe (2 Samuel 12v1-14)

Introduction

“You’re the man,” or it’s slang equivalent, “You ‘da man,” is a phrase we sometimes use as an expression of praise.  It means, “You’re the best,” or, “You’re someone I admire,” or “You’re someone who can make things happen.”

Normally it’s something you want to hear said about you.

It was not something David wanted to hear said about himself!  When his friend and God’s servant, Nathan, came to him and said, “You are the man!” it was to expose his sin of adultery with Bathsheba and his ordering the murder of Uriah her husband,.

As I thought about this confrontation I started to see that God was telling Nathan, “You’re the man who is going to tell David, ‘You’re the man!’ ”

God sent him to David to share His Word with the hope of seeing David repent.
God sends you and I to share His Word with the hope that those who hear will repent!  We are His Nathan’s today in all the various circumstances in which we find ourselves.

I’ll organize my thoughts around two points: #1 You Are The Man God Sends As His Messenger, and #2 “You Are The Man,” God Says, In His Message.

#1    You Are The Man God Sends As His Messenger
(v1-6)

Jesus spoke of our being sent when He gave what we call The Great Commission in Matthew 28:16-20.

Matthew 28:16  Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them…
Matthew 28:18  And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
Matthew 28:19  Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Matthew 28:20  teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

I’ve understood Jesus command, “Go,” to mean as you are going.  It means as you are going through your life.  You don’t have to “go” somewhere, as a missionary, because you are already going through life, encountering people to whom God wants you to share.  You’re His messenger wherever you are.

Let’s see what we can glean from Nathan, His messenger to David.

2 Samuel 12:1  Then the Lord sent Nathan to David. And he came to him, and said to him…

We see very definitely that Nathan was “sent” by the Lord.  There was a timing to it.  “Then,” it says, which was about a year after the adultery.

Nathan was sensitive to God’s leading.  Why didn’t he rebuke David earlier, assuming he knew?  On the other hand, once told to go to David, he did not hesitate.

Some of us rush into things, thinking we are doing the Lord’s work.  Others wait and wait and wait even after we’ve heard from the Lord.  God takes into account all of our personalities.  Our part is to remain sensitive to His leading.

Think about being “sent” to David.  This was no easy task.  David was a backslidden believer, living in sin, but with the power of a king.  The power of life and death which he had already wielded evilly against innocent Uriah to conceal his sin.

When God revealed to Nathan that He was sending him to David it would have been a great comfort to know he was in the Lord’s will as His messenger.  It did not guarantee the results; but it brought grace to his heart.

It’s encouraging, is it not, to realize we’ve been sent with God’s Word.  There’s no guarantee it will be received by either sinners or saints, but it does give us great comfort to know we are God’s messengers.

The genius of God’s plan for each of us to “Go” is that we develop relationships with folks.  Here’s what I mean.  Look at Nathan and David.  Nathan was more than just a prophet punching a clock for God.  He was a friend to David, close to him.  One of David’s sons is named Nathan (2Samuel 5:14).  David informs Nathan of his desire to build a temple (chapter 7).  Nathan will name Bathsheba and David’s second son (12:25). He will remain loyal to the king and to Solomon when Adonijah seeks to usurp the throne (1Kings 2).

Verse one continues, “And he came to him, and said to him…”  We will see that what follows is a masterful parable.  In the NASB it is formatted to look like a psalm.  In other words, it was a prepared, inspired message.

We are not sent with our own message.  We are sent with God’s message.  It’s the Gospel and we need to be true to its content and its character.  We don’t want to add to it; we don’t want to subtract from it.

I must remain convinced that the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation.  I must believe it is sufficient in and of itself and that it needs no propping-up from things godless men think they have discovered in their own research into the human psyche.

2 Samuel 12:1  Then the Lord sent Nathan to David. And he came to him, and said to him: “There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor.
2 Samuel 12:2  The rich man had exceedingly many flocks and herds.
2 Samuel 12:3  But the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb which he had bought and nourished; and it grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own food and drank from his own cup and lay in his bosom; and it was like a daughter to him.
2 Samuel 12:4  And a traveler came to the rich man, who refused to take from his own flock and from his own herd to prepare one for the wayfaring man who had come to him; but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”

Two men lived in the same city.  One was very rich and the other was very poor.  The rich man had flocks and herds.  The poor man had but one ewe lamb and it was his household pet.  He purchased it and then raised it in his own home.  The lamb spent much time in the man’s lap and being carried about.  It lived inside the house, not outside, being hand fed with food from the table and even drinking from its master’s cup.

The rich man had a guest drop in for a visit.  As the host he was obligated to provide him with a meal.  The rich man decided upon lamb, and yet he was not willing to sacrifice even one lamb from all those he owned.  Instead, he took the poor man’s lamb, slaughtered and served it to his guest, so as not to suffer any losses personally.

You know what is most interesting about this story?  David was a shepherd!    At least, that’s how he had started.  And he was a good shepherd.  He risked his young life to save sheep from the attacks of lions and bears.  He cared for each individual sheep.  It’s not going too far to suggest David may have had his own “pet lamb” from time-to-time.  As king he was to have the same shepherds-heart for each individual subject he ruled over.

God told a shepherd a sheep-story.  He met David right where he was at.  We can meet folks where they are at without compromising God’s message.  In fact, we ought to try to craft our presentation of the Gospel in a way they would find most meaningful.

I mentioned in our last study that Bathsheba was most likely an unwilling participant in the adultery.  This parable makes that even clearer.  The rich man “took” the ewe lamb.  David “took” Bathsheba from the man who loved her and whom she loved.

How would David respond to this injustice done in his kingdom?

2 Samuel 12:5  So David’s anger was greatly aroused against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this shall surely die!
2 Samuel 12:6  And he shall restore fourfold for the lamb, because he did this thing and because he had no pity.”

David pronounced a judgment that went beyond what God’s law would have required.  When folks act judgmentally we have a tendency to think it’s because they are so spiritual.  Yet it may be because they are in sin!  Those who are the most critical, the most judgmental, even the most legalistic, might just be covering their own sin by projecting it upon others.

David was a reader of God’s Word, and he was even one of its writers.  But here we see that it came to him through the agency of another person, a messenger sent to him.

You and I are to think of ourselves as “sent” out into the world by the Lord with His Word.

#2    “You Are The Man,” God Says, In His Message
(v7-14)

Knowing you are sent ought to produce a boldness when you speak.  It certainly did in Nathan.

2 Samuel 12:7  Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man!…”

In sales you’re told, “Always be closing!”  I certainly do not want to equate the Gospel with a sales pitch, but I do want to emphasize that the Word of God calls for a personal decision when it is taught.  God is speaking directly to each and every individual who encounters His Word.  We should press for a decision or at least indicate to the person that a decision is being called for.

2 Samuel 12:7  Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.
2 Samuel 12:8  I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your keeping, and gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if that had been too little, I also would have given you much more!
2 Samuel 12:9  Why have you despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in His sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon.

Some of us would have been critical of Nathan’s initial approach, thinking he was watering-down the message.  I mean, after all, comparing adultery and murder to the taking of one lamb seems weak.

God knows the heart.  He knows your heart and the hearts of all those you encounter.  Better to listen to the Lord and share what He tells you to, when He tells you to.

At some point we must tell the person we are talking to, “You are the man!”  You are a sinner with no hope of salvation apart from the Lord.  You are deserving of death – eternal ‘death,’ which is living forever separated from God and alone in darkness and Hell-fire.

If it’s a believer we’re speaking with, like Nathan confronting David, we must let them know they are backslidden and therefore fruitless in their walk, saved “yet so as through fire” (First Corinthians 3:15).

2 Samuel 12:10  Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’
2 Samuel 12:11  Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun.
2 Samuel 12:12  For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun.’ ”

These are prophecies that God gave Nathan of things to come.  In subsequent chapters we will see them transpire exactly as he said they would.

You and I have been given prophecies of things to come that we can share.

We know what happens when a person dies.  It is appointed for us to die once and after comes judgment.  If a person receives Jesus Christ as their Savior, their judgment has been laid upon Him.  He bore, on the Cross, the penalty and punishment for sin.  For the believer, to be absent from the body at death is to be immediately with the Lord.  Not so the nonbeliever.  He or she dies without Christ, in sin, and awaits what the Bible calls the second death – eternal damnation.
We also know the things that are coming, that are about to transpire on the earth, as God completes His plan of redemption.  We can speak with confidence about the God of history and prophecy.

Knowing the future is a fantastic evangelistic tool for convincing nonbelievers of their need for salvation.

It is also God’s means for reminding believers to remain ready.  The blessed hope of seeing Jesus at any moment keeps us focused on holiness so that we will not be ashamed before Him at His coming.

2 Samuel 12:13  So David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord…”
Hadn’t he sinned against Bathsheba?  Against Uriah?  Against the nation he served?  Yes, of course, but all that stemmed from the root of his sin against God.

God’s message isn’t that we need reform our behavior.  It is that we require a fundamental change from within.  We need regeneration, a new heart altogether.

Something we can glean from this is that too often we hype a specific sin, trying to show how evil it is, when God is seeking sinners.  God did not downplay David’s sexual sin.  But through the sheep-story we learn that it was just David’s sexual passions, it was his covetousness that was the root of his sin.  He had many wives and concubines but coveted another man’s wife.

People can come to church and be singled-out for their particular sin when it is symptomatic of a deeper issue.  They get the impression God hates them when in fact we are all sinners and God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son to save us and set us free.

2 Samuel 12:13  So David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die.

Wow!  Just like that, in response to David’s confession, his agreeing with God, the Lord “put away” his sin.

How can He do that?  David was told a parable about the slaughter of an innocent lamb.  God can “put away” your sins because of the slaughter of His innocent “lamb,” Jesus Christ.

When he saw Jesus, John the Baptist declared, not once but twice, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”  Jesus was the One whom all the sacrificial lambs prefigured.  His mission was to come as God and man to deal with the issue of sin by dying in our place.

Only through faith in Jesus Christ, in His death on your behalf, can you receive the forgiveness of sins and be told “the Lord has put away your sin; you shall not die,” but have everlasting life!

2 Samuel 12:14  However, because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also who is born to you shall surely die.”

In addition to the consequences previously listed, the child born to David by Bathsheba would die.  We’ll talk more about that when we get there.

For now we are meant to understand that though sins are forgiven, not counted against us, remembered no more, they nevertheless carry consequences.

David’s story is given to us as a warning.  If even he, the man after God’s own heart, the psalmist, God’s shepherd-king, could sin in such a manner, than so might I.

At one point in writing about the immense grace of God in forgiving our sin, the apostle Paul anticipates a question and says, “Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?” (Romans 6:1).  His immediate answer is, “Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?” (v2).
To put it in terms of the text, God’s Word can come to me daily and say, “You are the man!”  It can convict me of my sin, reveal attitudes as well as actions, the root as well as the fruit of sin.

To put it another way, God’s Word can cleanse me everyday as if it were cleansing water rushing over me.  It can just as powerfully declare to me, and to us, “You are the man!” with regard to blessings and rewards and privileges and power that are ours to claim.

You are the man, the woman, God loved with an everlasting love and drew to Himself.  Remain in your first love towards Him or, if you’ve left it, return.  Then go, sent out by Him, sharing His message with others.  Be their prophet-friend the way Nathan was.

Not a believer?  Then “Behold the Lamb of God!”

She Came In Through His Bathroom Watching (2 Samuel 11v1-27)

Introduction

Inigo Montoya says, “He’s dead.  He can’t talk.”  To which Miracle Max responds, “Whoo-hoo-hoo, look who knows so much.  It just so happens that your friend here is only MOSTLY dead.  There’s a big difference between mostly dead and all dead.  Mostly dead is slightly alive.  With all dead, well, with all dead there’s usually only one thing you can do.”

“What’s that?”

“Go through his clothes and look for loose change!”

Thus has the phrase “mostly dead” made its way from the cult classic, The Princess Bride, into popular culture.

I’m going to suggest that with regard to Bathsheba, David was “mostly dead.”  He was “mostly dead” to sin when he ought to have been all dead to it.

The Bible tells Christians we are to “reckon [ourselves] dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:11).  Earlier in that passage the apostle Paul describes Christians as “crucified,” “dead,” and “buried” with regard to sin.  When Jesus died on the Cross, spiritually speaking we died with Him with the result that we no longer need to yield ourselves to sinful impulses anymore than a dead man would!

Though dead to sin, we may yet freely choose to let it rule over us.  Right after being told to “reckon [ourselves] dead indeed to sin we read in Romans 6:12-13,

Romans 6:12  Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts.
Romans 6:13  And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin…

It is a choice we make.  But it’s an either/or choice.  Either we are all dead to sin or we are only mostly dead.

David chose badly.  I’ll organize my thoughts around two points: #1 Get Beyond Being Mostly Dead To Sin, and #2 Get Into Being All Dead To Sin.

#1    Get Beyond Being Mostly Dead To Sin
(v1-6)

In the Book of Deuteronomy God gave the kings of Israel three directives.

Deuteronomy 17:16  But [the king] shall not multiply horses for himself…
Deuteronomy 17:17  Neither shall he multiply wives for himself, lest his heart turn away; nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold for himself.

With regard to “horses,” the idea seems to be that the Lord did not want the king to trust in military equipment but rather to trust in the Lord for victory.  David understood this and that’s why in chapter eight when David defeated Hadadezer king of Zobah he hamstrung all of the chariot horses he had captured rendering them useless for future battles.

With regard to “silver and gold,” David dedicated much, if not most, of his personal wealth to the building of the future Temple by his son, Solomon.  It added up to hundreds of millions of dollars.

Neither power nor possessions were a problem for David.  He was dead to their temptation, yielding himself to God.

With regard to “wives” – that was another thing altogether!

Before David was king he was married to Michal, Saul’s daughter.
While a fugitive from Saul we read that David took Abigail, the widow of Nabal, to be his wife, and that he “also took Ahinoam of Jezreel, and so both of them were his wives.”
After Saul’s death he was made king over the southern kingdom of Judah.    He had sons born to him by no less than four additional wives – Maacah, Haggith, Abital, and Eglah (Second Samuel 3:2-5).

That’s a whole lot of wives but David wasn’t done.  When David conquered Jerusalem and united the nation we read in Second Samuel 5:13, “ And David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem…”

David was dead to power and possessions but not to his passions.  He took a second wife, a third, then he had six, then multiplied many more plus their maids.

He had become so used to feeding his passion for wives that one day he took not just another wife, but another man’s wife.

Two out of three might make you successful elsewhere, but not when it comes to sin.  David was therefore only mostly dead to sin and it was his undoing.  Let’s watch it unfold.

2 Samuel 11:1  It happened in the spring of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the people of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.

The Holy Spirit indicates that David ought to have been out with the army leading the fight.  If he had, he would not have had opportunity to sin.

I’m sure David had a few good reasons for sitting this one out.  So can we always think of one reason or another why we cannot be about the business of serving the Lord.  Soon it becomes a pattern, a habit, and we act like retired kings who require the luxuries of a palace rather than soldiers happy with rations and camaraderie on the front lines.

2 Samuel 11:2  Then it happened one evening that David arose from his bed and walked on the roof of the king’s house. And from the roof he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to behold.

You might sometimes read or hear that Bathsheba shares some blame.  That’s like blaming a woman when she gets raped.  Nope!  It’s all on David.

2 Samuel 11:3  So David sent and inquired about the woman. And someone said, “Is this not Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?”

There was no mistaking that she was a married woman.  David’s passions were so dominant that he would not even heed a direct warning.

2 Samuel 11:4  Then David sent messengers, and took her; and she came to him, and he lay with her, for she was cleansed from her impurity; and she returned to her house.

Ah!  Bathsheba was taking a bath for purification under Jewish law.  As I understand it, after a woman’s menstrual cycle she was required to undergo a ritual bath.  She therefore may have been attended by another gal and, since it was the season for kings to be gone to war, there was a reasonable expectation of privacy for her rooftop ritual.

2 Samuel 11:5  And the woman conceived; so she sent and told David, and said, “I am with child.”

How did things ever get that far?  They got that far because David allowed himself the indulgence of just one area in his life that was inappropriate.  His obedience in the area of horses and money didn’t cancel-out his disobedience regarding wives.

By the way: It was perfectly normal for kings to have harems.  Just not Jewish kings!  We want to remain separate from the surrounding culture, especially with regard to our morality.

The passage in Romans we’ve been citing as our New Testament principle says,

Romans 6:16  Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?

David illustrates this in his actions on the rooftop.  We know from an earlier passage that David could look out from his palace and see the Tabernacle where God dwelt among the Israelites.

He could look at the Tabernacle, at God, as it were.
Or he could look over at a woman bathing, at pornography, as it were.

It was a clear choice he could make to yield his body to God or to sin.

Likewise you and I.  Because of what Jesus did on the Cross are dead to sin but we have a clear choice to make in every situation.  Will we look to God, as David could have?  Or will we look at sin, as David did?

#2    Get Into Being All Dead To Sin
(v7-27)

In contrast to David is Uriah the Hittite, the honorable husband of Bathsheba.

2 Samuel 11:6  Then David sent to Joab, saying, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent Uriah to David.
2 Samuel 11:7  When Uriah had come to him, David asked how Joab was doing, and how the people were doing, and how the war prospered.

David had become an observer.  He was content to let others fight.

Get in the fight!  Serve the Lord!

2 Samuel 11:8  And David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and wash your feet.” So Uriah departed from the king’s house, and a gift of food from the king followed him.
2 Samuel 11:9  But Uriah slept at the door of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house.
2 Samuel 11:10  So when they told David, saying, “Uriah did not go down to his house,” David said to Uriah, “Did you not come from a journey? Why did you not go down to your house?”
2 Samuel 11:11  And Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah are dwelling in tents, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are encamped in the open fields. Shall I then go to my house to eat and drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.”

David slept with another man’s wife.  Uriah wouldn’t even sleep with his own wife!  There was nothing unlawful about it but in this particular situation he felt it would be inappropriate.

Uriah had a ministry-mindset.  He represents the attitude that worshipping God, and serving God, are 24/7 activities.  Even when I’m not on the front lines, when it’s not my turn on the schedule, I am to maintain the mind-set of a servant.  After all, I’m all dead to sin, so I am always alive to God and to His promptings.

2 Samuel 11:12  Then David said to Uriah, “Wait here today also, and tomorrow I will let you depart.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next.
2 Samuel 11:13  Now when David called him, he ate and drank before him; and he made him drunk. And at evening he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house.

Uriah couldn’t refuse the food and drink of his king.  But he still maintained control of himself.  Often we get tripped-up because of things that are lawful for us to partake of.  They become dominant and get in the way of our being able to minister to others.  Worse yet, we start stumbling others on account of demanding our liberties.

Not Uriah!  We ought to follow his example and keep all of our activities in their proper perspective.

2 Samuel 11:14  In the morning it happened that David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah.
2 Samuel 11:15  And he wrote in the letter, saying, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retreat from him, that he may be struck down and die.”
2 Samuel 11:16  So it was, while Joab besieged the city, that he assigned Uriah to a place where he knew there were valiant men.
2 Samuel 11:17  Then the men of the city came out and fought with Joab. And some of the people of the servants of David fell; and Uriah the Hittite died also.

It’s bad enough Uriah was killed.  Others were killed along with him.  Sin always affects others, not just you.

Uriah could be trusted to carry unopened a letter to his commander that included instructions for his own death. It reminds me of a passage in Second Corinthians 4:7-11 where we read,

2 Corinthians 4:7  But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.
2 Corinthians 4:8  We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
2 Corinthians 4:9  persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed –
2 Corinthians 4:10  always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.
2 Corinthians 4:11  For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.

Just like Uriah we are in a battle.  We are to go about like Uriah – carrying our death certificates by reckoning ourselves dead to sin and alive to God.  We are to obey Him, submit to Him, yield our bodies to Him, considering ourselves dead to sin.

2 Samuel 11:18  Then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war,
2 Samuel 11:19  and charged the messenger, saying, “When you have finished telling the matters of the war to the king,
2 Samuel 11:20  if it happens that the king’s wrath rises, and he says to you: ‘Why did you approach so near to the city when you fought? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall?
2 Samuel 11:21  Who struck Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? Was it not a woman who cast a piece of a millstone on him from the wall, so that he died in Thebez? Why did you go near the wall?’ – then you shall say, ‘Your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.’ ”

From the rest and relaxation and indulgence of the palace he’d criticize Joab’s tactics when, in fact, it was he who had set everything in motion.

It’s easy to criticize, to have a critical spirit.  Part of being all dead to sin is to always look first for a log in our own eye before we see the speck in someone else’s.

Truth is, sometimes ministry is stymied, it is held back, by armchair servants.  They withhold their time and their talent and their money from the Lord, then wonder why things aren’t more productive.  All the while those in the fight are getting slaughtered.

2 Samuel 11:22  So the messenger went, and came and told David all that Joab had sent by him.
2 Samuel 11:23  And the messenger said to David, “Surely the men prevailed against us and came out to us in the field; then we drove them back as far as the entrance of the gate.
2 Samuel 11:24  The archers shot from the wall at your servants; and some of the king’s servants are dead, and your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.”
2 Samuel 11:25  Then David said to the messenger, “Thus you shall say to Joab: ‘Do not let this thing displease you, for the sword devours one as well as another. Strengthen your attack against the city, and overthrow it.’ So encourage him.”

Oh well.  Soldiers die in battle.  Never mind David had him murdered and used the battle to cover it.

2 Samuel 11:26  When the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband.
2 Samuel 11:27  And when her mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.

David put on a facade.  But of this period in his life David would later write, in Psalm 32:3-4,
Psalms 32:3  When I kept silent, my bones grew old Through my groaning all the day long.
Psalms 32:4  For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was turned into the drought of summer.

We might say that since David was ‘alive’ to sin he was ‘dead’ toward God.  He could not enjoy the fellowship with God for which he was created.

Uriah was dead.  But that’s the point!  In one sense he was already ‘dead’ before he ever came to David.  He was dead to sin, all the way dead, and he carried himself in such a way as to inspire others in their serving the Lord.  Uriah the Hittite is who we want to be in this story.

“Reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:11).  “I reckon” is something Jed Clampet might say to Jethro.  We take it to mean “I guess,” or “I suppose.”

In reality the word “reckon” is far more confident and robust.  It means to make a calculation, to rely with confident expectancy, and to take into account.

When faced with a clear choice to sin or to not sin you are to take into account that your are dead to sin, make a calculation as to the alternatives and the consequences, then rely with confident expectation that God’s power is sufficient for you to turn away from it.

God does not command you to become “dead indeed to sin” by any means of your own.  It isn’t something you achieve through discipline.  He tells you that you are already “dead indeed to sin and alive” to Him, and then He commands you to act appropriately.

God crucified your sin nature on the Cross, rendering it inoperative.  Crucifixion is one form of death you cannot accomplish on your own.  You cannot crucify yourself!  This is why religion, with its rules, rites, and rituals, can never resolve the problem of sin in your life.  Nothing you can do can crucify sin.  God must do it for you on the Cross.  Then, through a living, personal relationship with God through Jesus, you can by faith act on the fact that sin need no longer reign and have dominion over you.

Get beyond being mostly dead to sin.  Get into being all dead to sin.  Turn your eyes upon Jesus!

Be Shaved And Buttocks (2 Samuel 10v1-19)

TEXT: 2 SAMUEL 10.1-19

TOPIC: KING DAVID’S AMBASSADORS ARE HUMILIATED WHEN THE AMMONITES “SHAVE-OFF HALF OF THEIR BEARDS…AND CUT-OFF THEIR GARMENTS AT THEIR BUTTOCKS”

TITLE: BE SHAVED AND BUTTOCKS

 

Introduction

Operation Auca was an attempt by five Christian missionaries from the United States to bring the gospel to the Huaorani people of the rainforest of Ecuador.  The Huaorani, also known by the pejorative Aucas (a modification of awqa, the word for “enemies”), were an isolated tribe known for their violence, against both their own people and outsiders who entered their territory.  With the intention of being the first Christians to evangelize the previously uncontacted Huaorani, the missionaries began making regular flights over Huaorani settlements in September 1955, dropping gifts.  After several months of exchanging gifts, on January 3, 1956, the missionaries established a camp at “Palm Beach,” a sandbar along the Curaray River a few kilometers from Huaorani settlements.

Their efforts came to an end on January 8, 1956, when all five – Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Ed McCully, Peter Fleming, and Roger Youderian – were attacked and speared by a group of Huaorani warriors.

Among Christians the men are considered martyrs.  Among nonchristian anthropologists their initial contact is criticized as having opened a door to the Gospel which led to the eventual deterioration of the native culture of the Huaorani.

Their story is an extreme example of the kind of spiritual tension that Christians face everyday.  We are tasked by Jesus with bringing the Gospel to the whole world.  While for some that means people like the Huaorani, for most of us it means our family, friends, neighbors and co-workers.  We will definitely meet with opposition.  We probably won’t be martyred and the end of a spear but often we are treated poorly, even shamefully, and humiliated.

Nevertheless we press on as ambassadors for the Lord knowing that one day the opportunity for the nonbelievers we encounter to be saved for eternity will come to an end.  Jesus will return and all those who have rejected Him will be consigned to eternal punishment.

When He does return, we will have already been resurrected or raptured and will return with Him.  No longer ambassadors, we are described in the Book of the Revelation in that return as being “the armies of Heaven” (19:14).

Our text in Second Samuel also features ambassadors and armies!  It can illustrate for us what it means to be ambassadors who anticipate returning as the armies.

I’ll organize my thoughts around two points: #1 As An Ambassador You Need The Courage To Be Humiliated, and #2 As An Army You Need The Patience To Be Vindicated.

#1    As An Ambassador You Need
The Courage To Be Humiliated
(v1-5)

Let’s get some perspective on humiliation.  We don’t mean that we act in weird ways to bring shame upon ourselves.  It doesn’t mean we have to dress funny, or live in poverty.  It’s not something we g out of our way to bring upon ourselves.

Christian humiliation means you are willing to endure whatever consequences might befall you as an ambassador tasked with sharing with others, especially nonbelievers, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

It requires courage, spiritual courage.  The five men martyred by the Huaorani tribe were humiliated.  Do you think of them as weak?  As being shamed?  No; they were Christian heroes of faith.

Let’s take a look at the ambassadors in our text.

2 Samuel 10:1  It happened after this that the king of the people of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in his place.
2 Samuel 10:2  Then David said, “I will show kindness to Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent by the hand of his servants to comfort him concerning his father. And David’s servants came into the land of the people of Ammon.

In the preceding chapter we talked a great deal about David desiring to show the kindness of God.  His actions spoke of God seeking to show kindness to every member of the human race by extending His grace and mercy to save them.

The emphasis in this chapter is on David’s servants acting as his ambassadors extending his kindness.  In them we see ourselves as the ambassadors of David’s greater Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ, Who has sent us out with the Good News.

What is that Good News?  It is that God has made a way for lost mankind to be saved.  Born dead in our sins, we are born-again when we believe in Jesus Christ, in His dying on the Cross as our sacrifice and substitute.

Going to the Ammonites was no easy mission.  The king of Ammon who had died, Nahash, had been a cruel enemy to Israel.  Probably when David was a fugitive hiding from Saul, Nahash had aided him in some way in order to oppose Saul.  There was no solid evidence, however, that Nahash’s son, Hanun, would want to establish diplomatic relations with Israel.
It was an Operation Auca!  The ambassadors were sent directly in to enemy territory with nothing but their testimony about David’s intentions.

2 Samuel 10:3  And the princes of the people of Ammon said to Hanun their lord, “Do you think that David really honors your father because he has sent comforters to you? Has David not rather sent his servants to you to search the city, to spy it out, and to overthrow it?”

Hanun was hurting.  His dad had died.  When someone around you is hurting you feel it is a good time to show God’s love.  Often God uses you to comfort others with the comfort you’ve received from Him.  But sometimes your talk about God and His love is resented.  God is blamed for the loss, for the tragedy, for the suffering.

The Ammonites were paranoid that their city walls would be breached.  They didn’t want anyone to upset their lifestyle – especially the religious Israelites.  Just so, people in the world act to defend their lifestyles.  They have some idea – usually incorrect – that accepting Jesus into their lives will ruin all their fun and future hopes.  They’re a little paranoid of the Gospel.

2 Samuel 10:4  Therefore Hanun took David’s servants, shaved off half of their beards, cut off their garments in the middle, at their buttocks, and sent them away.

Regarding beards in the Old Testament one author states the following:

The Bible tells us that a man should have a full, untrimmed beard, while trimming the hair on the head to an acceptable length. Much of this centers on the verse in Leviticus 19:27 which should be translated: ‘You must not shave or cut the corners of the hairs of your head and you are not to trim [mar or clip off] the edge (corners) of your beard.’

It’s interesting to note that not a few modern movements among Christians which want to put you under various strict Old Testament rules for living nevertheless simultaneously teach that facial hair on men is unacceptable.  It shows you that those who claim you must live according to the Law pick and choose which parts of the Law suit their own preferences.

Wear your hair and beard however you like.  It’s cultural, not biblical.  Only be careful that your habits don’t offend and stumble other believers, or detract from your ability to share about Jesus.

As far as the cutting of their garments to mid-buttocks, most likely they cut the outer robe leaving their undergarments intact.  Still this was like walking around with your underwear exposed.  Who does that!

I guess we can credit the Ammonites, then, for starting the current trend of men and women purposely exposing their underwear!

2 Samuel 10:5  When they told David, he sent to meet them, because the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, “Wait at Jericho until your beards have grown, and then return.”

We need to regroup from time-to-time.  I like to think of our meetings here at the church as times to regroup as we come together from our various humiliations to receive encouragement from the Lord.  One thing I would mention, though, is that it’s easy for us to only want to get together and literally ‘re-group,’ hanging-out only with our group.  Let’s stay outreach-oriented in our thinking and planning.

David’s ambassadors had the courage to go out among the enemy, in enemy territory, and offer the kindness of their king.  They were willing to die making the offer.  They did not die but were greatly humiliated.

Am I saying we need to be willing to die?  As an end result, Yes.  By the way: A lot of people are willing to die in place of others, are they not?  All of our emergency services folks, and our military, put themselves in harms way for others, for strangers.  Why shouldn’t we be willing to do the same for a much greater cause?

But here’s the key.  What we need to do is simply die to self and live for the Lord.  As we look to Jesus, to His example of humiliation, we are in awe.  He left Heaven, came to earth as a man, humbling Himself.  Then, as God the Father’s ambassador, He died on the Cross – bearing its shame in order that you and I might be saved.
That’s not the end of the story!  God highly exalted Him for His work.  He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

If we look to Jesus as our example, dying to ourselves to serve Him, then we will be supplied with the courage to be humiliated.  The rest is up to the Lord in terms of who we encounter and how they might react to humiliate us.

#2    As An Army You Need
The Patience To Be Vindicated
(v6-19)

Christians are frequently compared to soldiers in the New Testament.  The emphasis in our text is on one particular and vital aspect of being in the army of the Lord.  We need the patience to stand our ground, being humiliated when necessary, knowing that one day our King will return to vindicate us and make everything right.

2 Samuel 10:6  When the people of Ammon saw that they had made themselves repulsive to David, the people of Ammon sent and hired the Syrians of Beth Rehob and the Syrians of Zoba, twenty thousand foot soldiers; and from the king of Maacah one thousand men, and from Ish-Tob twelve thousand men.
2 Samuel 10:7  Now when David heard of it, he sent Joab and all the army of the mighty men.
2 Samuel 10:8  Then the people of Ammon came out and put themselves in battle array at the entrance of the gate. And the Syrians of Zoba, Beth Rehob, Ish-Tob, and Maacah were by themselves in the field.
2 Samuel 10:9  When Joab saw that the battle line was against him before and behind, he chose some of Israel’s best and put them in battle array against the Syrians.
2 Samuel 10:10  And the rest of the people he put under the command of Abishai his brother, that he might set them in battle array against the people of Ammon.
2 Samuel 10:11  Then he said, “If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me; but if the people of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will come and help you.
2 Samuel 10:12  Be of good courage, and let us be strong for our people and for the cities of our God. And may the Lord do what is good in His sight.”
2 Samuel 10:13  So Joab and the people who were with him drew near for the battle against the Syrians, and they fled before him.
2 Samuel 10:14  When the people of Ammon saw that the Syrians were fleeing, they also fled before Abishai, and entered the city. So Joab returned from the people of Ammon and went to Jerusalem.

Did you notice something about this battle?  Something missing from the description of it?

No actual fighting is recorded!  Joab “drew near for the battle against the Syrians and they fled before him.”  Then “the people of Ammon… also fled before Abishai…”

The Israelites took their stand and their enemies fled.  As Christians we are to take our stand, to stand on the ground of victory won at the Cross, and watch as our enemies flee.

Our problem is that we have a different idea of victory than the Lord does.  We want to interpret it as physical victory while so often the victory is spiritual.  We often want circumstances to end while Jesus gives us strength to endure them.

One of the great passage of the Bible on this is the end of Romans chapter eight.

Romans 8:35  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Romans 8:36  As it is written: “FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE KILLED ALL DAY LONG; WE ARE ACCOUNTED AS SHEEP FOR THE SLAUGHTER.”
Romans 8:37  Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
Romans 8:38  For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,
Romans 8:39  nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

There’s a whole lot of “things” in those verses that I want no part of!  But it is in them, enduring those “things,” standing my ground by faith, that I am more than a conqueror.

One of the things that encourages me to endure, to take my stand, is that I know my King is coming and will one day vindicate me.  The enemies I have victory over will be ultimately destroyed.

Vindicate doesn’t mean vindictive.  It’s not a matter of revenge.  It means to regain possession, under claim of title of property through legal procedure, or to assert one’s right to possession.  As we will see, the Lord is returning to take fully and finally all that He won on the Cross.

David illustrates that for us in the remaining verses.

2 Samuel 10:15  When the Syrians saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they gathered together.
2 Samuel 10:16  Then Hadadezer sent and brought out the Syrians who were beyond the River, and they came to Helam. And Shobach the commander of Hadadezer’s army went before them.
2 Samuel 10:17  When it was told David, he gathered all Israel, crossed over the Jordan, and came to Helam. And the Syrians set themselves in battle array against David and fought with him.
2 Samuel 10:18  Then the Syrians fled before Israel; and David killed seven hundred charioteers and forty thousand horsemen of the Syrians, and struck Shobach the commander of their army, who died there.
2 Samuel 10:19  And when all the kings who were servants to Hadadezer saw that they were defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel and served them. So the Syrians were afraid to help the people of Ammon anymore.

The Syrians gathered for the fight.  David and his armies answered the challenge and defeated their enemies.  This time casualties and spoils of the battle are carefully listed.

Notice something else?  While we know that there was fierce hand-to-hand combat that involved each and every soldier, the writer (under the influence, of course, of the Holy Spirit) is careful to say “David… gathered all Israel… David killed seven hundred charioteers and forty thousand horsemen of the Syrians, and struck Shobach the commander of their army…”

It’s worded as if David alone fought and won the battle.

When we return with Jesus, that is exactly what occurs!  In Revelation chapter nineteen, where we are described as His armies returning with Him, the Lord alone fights.  It’s the Battle of Armageddon and Jesus destroys all who are arrayed against Him.
We won’t even be properly dressed for battle!  We will be wearing white robes!

Let me give you the future timeline, compiled from a literal reading of the Bible.

Jesus Christ rose from the dead.  Forty days later He ascended into Heaven.  He said He was going there to build us our heavenly homes and that He would return for us.
Meantime Jesus commissioned every Christian to go out sharing the Good News.  He warned us we’d be humiliated, be treated as He was, but we are to see it as an honor to be in such company as the Lord and His martyrs through the ensuing ages.
Meanwhile Jesus and later His apostles and prophets promised that He would be coming imminently to resurrect and rapture believers from off of the earth.  It could, it can, happen at any moment.
When we are removed in the rapture, a time of trouble will ensue upon the earth like nothing that has ever happened before.  It’s called the Great Tribulation and lasts seven years.  We’re safe in Heaven, in our resurrected bodies, while the earth is being judged and prepared for the return of the King.
At the end of the Great Tribulation, that’s when Jesus comes back in His Second Coming and we come with Him as His armies.  On earth the armies of mankind are warring in the Middle East, gathered in the Valley of Megiddo.  When the sky splits apart and they see Jesus, they muster against Him.
It’s not much of a battle, the Battle of Armageddon.  The Lord destroys His enemies by the word of His mouth.
Then Jesus sets-up the Kingdom of God on the earth.  It will be a time of refreshing and restoration that lasts one thousand years.  We will be there ruling and reigning with Jesus.
At the end of the thousand years, human beings who were born on the earth during that time will mount one final rebellion against God.  It is unsuccessful.
Then, at the very end of the current historical timeline, the Lord will raise the dead who have died throughout the centuries having rejected Jesus Christ.  All nonbelievers will be judged and sent to their eternal punishment in the Lake of Fire, which is what we call Hell.
Afterwards God will create a new earth and new heavens and we and all believers from all time will live forever.  Every tear will have been wiped away, no sin or suffering will be present.  It will be glorious.

That is what we mean by “vindicated.”

Put that way, I think we can be patient, can we not, as the army of the Lord?

This is the time for ambassadors.  As we close I’d like to give you God’s job description for His ambassadors.

At the end of Second Corinthians chapter five the apostle Paul said plainly, “we are ambassadors for Christ” (v20).  Then immediately in chapter six you read the following.

2 Corinthians 6:3  We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed.
2 Corinthians 6:4  But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses,
2 Corinthians 6:5  in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in fastings;
2 Corinthians 6:6  by purity, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love,
2 Corinthians 6:7  by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,
2 Corinthians 6:8  by honor and dishonor, by evil report and good report; as deceivers, and yet true;
2 Corinthians 6:9  as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold we live; as chastened, and yet not killed;
2 Corinthians 6:10  as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.

Go and show the kindness of God that has appeared to all men.

Mercy Beaucoup (2 Samuel 9v1-13)

TEXT: 2 SAMUEL 9.1-13

TOPIC: DAVID GOES OUT OF HIS WAY TO SHOW MERCY TO THE GRANDSON OF HIS FORMER RIVAL

TITLE: MERCY BEAUCOUP

 
Introduction

At some point in an interview you can expect a famous person to be asked the question, “What accomplishments are you the most proud of?”

I’m not sure what King David would have answered if he had been asked.  He certainly had a lot to choose from:

His defeat of the Philistine giant, Goliath, right at the beginning of his career, is perhaps his most famous accomplishment.
His unifying of the twelve tribes of Israel qualifies for a peace prize, for sure.
His conquering of Jerusalem after centuries of failure was an incredible feat.
Or maybe his planning for and preparing for the Temple that his son, Solomon, would build after his death.

I doubt we would think of what happens in Second Samuel chapter nine as one of David’s greatest moments, but it is.  I say that because, as you will see, David was never more Christlike than he was in his actions towards Mephibosheth, the surviving son of Jonathan and grandson of King Saul.
David decided he wanted to show kindness towards any survivors from the house of Saul.  As he seeks out Mephibosheth we see God’s grace and mercy towards us as lost sinners on display.  And we are reminded, we who are saved, that we have become the channels of God’s mercy and grace towards all the others He is seeking to save.

I’ll organize my thoughts around two points: #1 God’s Mercy Found You; Let Him Use You To Show His Mercy, and #2 God’s Grace Fills You; Let Him Use You To Bestow His Grace.

#1    God’s Mercy Found You;
Let Him Use You To Show His Mercy
(v1-8)

We like to say that “mercy is God not giving you what you deserve, while grace is God giving you what you don’t deserve.”  It’s a good definition, but how does it translate into action?  What do mercy and grace ‘look’ like?

They are on display for us in this text as David first shows mercy, then bestows grace, upon Mephibosheth.

2 Samuel 9:1  Now David said, “Is there still anyone who is left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”

Saul had made David a fugitive and had hunted him down to kill him for over a decade.  Upon succeeding to the throne after Saul’s death the normal thing for a monarch to do would be to kill any descendants of Saul’s who might have a legitimate claim to the throne.

Not only did David not do that, he actively sought to find a descendant of the house of Saul in order to show him kindness.

The first thing I’d say, then, about God’s mercy is that it is actively seeking folks in order to show them kindness.  God wants to save!  Dr. Norman Geisler puts it like this:

The truth is that God is more willing that all be saved than we are.  For “the Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).  God’s justice demands that he condemns all sinners, but his love compels him to provide salvation for all who by his grace will believe.  For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:13).

As we work through theses verses bear in mind that there is a double illustration for us:

First, David is a type of Jesus Christ to illustrate God’s mercy and grace towards all mankind.
But, second, David is a type of every believer in Jesus Christ through whom God wants to show His mercy and bestow His grace towards all mankind.

We see in David what God did for us and what He can do through us for others.

2 Samuel 9:2  And there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba. So when they had called him to David, the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?” He said, “At your service!”
2 Samuel 9:3  Then the king said, “Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, to whom I may show the kindness of God?” And Ziba said to the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan who is lame in his feet.”

David called what he wanted to do “the kindness of God.”  He understood that he was to example for others the mercy and grace of God in practical actions.

And not just in random acts of kindness he might do but in specific tasks that showed God had truly changed his life through mercy and grace.  It’s one thing to do a few kind things when it’s convenient.  What David did was show God’s mercy by an act of kindness to someone he probably ought to have killed.  To an enemy.  At the very least, it was unexpected.

Notice the condition of the “son of Jonathan.”  He was “lame in his feet.”  We learned why in an earlier study.  At the death of Saul and Jonathan in battle, the nurse of this boy, age five at the time, fled with him so the Philistines would not find him and kill him.  No mercy could be expected from them!  In her haste she dropped him and he was severely crippled for the rest of his life.

We would say that he was made lame through a fall.  So is the human race made lame through a fall – the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.

But immediately God came seeking Adam and Eve, to show them “kindness.”  Right there, in the Garden, while they were hiding from Him, while they were lying to Him, God promised them mercy and grace as He explained He would come in human flesh to die in their place, to save and redeem and restore them.

2 Samuel 9:4  So the king said to him, “Where is he?” And Ziba said to the king, “Indeed he is in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, in Lo Debar.”

Alan Redpath says that “Lo-debar” means something like barren land, a place of emptiness and dissatisfaction.  (Riverdale?).  Until you come to know Jesus Christ, the whole world is Lo-debar.  No matter your achievements or status in this world, you were created to have fellowship with God.  The Book of Ecclesiastes says that God has put eternity in your heart (3:11) indicating you can never be whole or filled satisfied until your heart is Christ’s home.

Something, I think, that sometimes can temper our zeal as Christians is that we look at the nonbelievers we know and they seem happy, satisfied, full.  They can seem better-off than us!  Don’t let that fool you.  It’s a veneer that masks their deep need.  After all, what does it profit if they gain the whole world but in the end lose their soul?

2 Samuel 9:5  Then King David sent and brought him out of the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo Debar.

About twenty years had passed since Mephibosheth had been crippled at age five.  He’d been hiding out, living in fear.  I don’t think it’s going too far to suggest that those who cared for him and raised him spoke badly of David and convinced him that the king had it in for him.  I mean, after all, they were hiding him from David as best they could, keeping him away from Jerusalem.

How tragic that so many children are brought up in ignorance of the Lord, or worse yet, taught by precept and example that God has abandoned the human race or is somehow responsible for its sufferings.

David issued a call for Mephibosheth to come to him.  The Gospel of Jesus Christ is a call.  It is a call to all mankind, throughout all man’s history, to come to God.  The very fact that God takes the initiative is a display of mercy unfathomable to the human heart but nevertheless true.

If you are saved, think back on the moment of your conversion and you’ll see that God was searching for you, calling to you.  If you were saved as a child then someone was being used by God to call you to Himself.

That’s because God’s calling most often comes through a person preaching the Gospel.  In Second Thessalonians 2:14 you read, “To this He called you through our gospel so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ”

2 Samuel 9:6  Now when Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, had come to David, he fell on his face and prostrated himself. Then David said, “Mephibosheth?” And he answered, “Here is your servant!”

David called him by name.  It reminds me that the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to any member of the human race who will believe.  Those who respond are saved and their names are listed forever in His Book of Life.

2 Samuel 9:7  So David said to him, “Do not fear, for I will surely show you kindness for Jonathan your father’s sake, and will restore to you all the land of Saul your grandfather; and you shall eat bread at my table continually.”

Commentators like to point out that David showed Mephibosheth “kindness” for the sake of someone else.  It’s an illustration of God the Father accepting us for the sake of Jesus Christ.  For example, we read in Ephesians 4:32, “… even as God in Christ forgave you.”  It was for the sake of Jesus that God forgave you.

It’s not that God didn’t want to forgive, or that He’s forced to against His will.  It’s that Jesus died on the Cross, taking our place, to satisfy the just demands of the holiness of God.  Now, for the sake of Jesus, we are accepted in Him, shown mercy and bestowed with grace.

2 Samuel 9:8  Then he bowed himself, and said, “What is your servant, that you should look upon such a dead dog as I?”

Mephibosheth sees himself as he truly is before the king.  There was nothing he could do about his parentage or his crippled condition.

Likewise you and I!  We cannot change the fact we are the descendants of Adam and Eve and are crippled by their fall.

When you got saved… or, if you’re not a believer, when you get saved… you see yourself as you truly are.  You are a sinner, separated from God, deserving of eternal judgment and its punishment.  You understand that nothing good dwells in you, that there is no good work or compilation of good works that can save you.  You understand you are at the mercy of God.

And then you understand what a great place that is to be because God IS merciful!  He sought you in His mercy to save you.  God so loved YOU that He gave His only begotten Son so that YOU would believe in Him, not perish, and have everlasting life!

As majestic and marvelous as that is, it is not the end; it’s only the beginning.  Next God makes you His agent, His representative, on earth to reveal Him to others by showing His mercy to them.  Not just by telling folks that mercy is not getting what they deserve, but by personally not giving them what they deserve in your own interactions with them.

If you are following what we’re saying, you know that it is something that cannot be done in your own strength.  But in the Lord you can be looking for those He is looking for and show them the kindness that real mercy produces.

#2    God’s Grace Fills You;
Let Him Use You To Bestow His Grace
(v9-13)

Not getting what you deserve is only half the story.  Getting what you don’t deserve comes next as God bestows His amazing grace.

2 Samuel 9:9  And the king called to Ziba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, “I have given to your master’s son all that belonged to Saul and to all his house.

Mephiboseth had been living in exile for no good reason.  David restored him to his family’s inheritance.

God loves to restore.  It doesn’t mean He is obligated to restore everything that you’ve exiled yourself from before receiving His mercy.  For example: He cannot restore a failed marriage if you or your spouse have remarried.  But it is God’s desire to restore.  Many of you, including myself, can testify to His restorative powers!

2 Samuel 9:10  You therefore, and your sons and your servants, shall work the land for him, and you shall bring in the harvest, that your master’s son may have food to eat. But Mephibosheth your master’s son shall eat bread at my table always.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

Two ‘worlds’ are depicted here in this verse:

There is the everyday world of their agrarian society in which crops were planted, then harvested.  That world had its ups and it’s downs depending on circumstances.
Then there is the world of the palace in which a table was spread bountifully everyday despite the temporary circumstances outside the palace.

So, too, with us there is our life as a pilgrim and stranger journeying homeward to Heaven.  It’s filled with circumstantial ups and, sadly, downs.  Some of those ‘downs’ are pretty deep valleys that you may have to travel through for years.  But simultaneously there is the realm of fellowship with God.  He walks with you, does He not, through the valley of the shadow of death.  In that realm you have God’s bounty from grace.  Every spiritual blessing in heavenly places is available to you.

2 Samuel 9:11  Then Ziba said to the king, “According to all that my lord the king has commanded his servant, so will your servant do.” “As for Mephibosheth,” said the king, “he shall eat at my table like one of the king’s sons.”

This is the third of four times in these verses that we read “he shall eat at my table” (v7, 10, 11 & 13).  It is to remind us that we were created to know God and to have a relationship with Him.  More than that, the relationship is to be a joyous one – like sharing a feast with Him where He is the host and we bring only ourselves and He supplies everything else in superabundance.

More even than that: He looks upon us as if we were His own “sons” because we are in His Son, Jesus Christ.

2 Samuel 9:12  Mephibosheth had a young son whose name was Micha. And all who dwelt in the house of Ziba were servants of Mephibosheth.

Mephibosheth had a son.  We know nothing about him except that we read in First Chronicles 8:34ff that he had a son and grandsons.  Again we see the emphasis on the home, on the family.  We would hope that Mephibosheth would raise his own son very differently than he had been raised.  Raise him to love the king and understand his mercy and grace.

If you have children it is job one to reveal God to them, to lead them to faith in Jesus Christ.

“All who dwelt in the house of Ziba” served Mephibosheth.  It reminds us that God is causing all things to work together for good for those who love Him and are the called.  But it is always according to His purposes.  In the life of Mephibosheth that means that a little later on, Ziba will slander his master and spread a lie that he has turned against David.  But Mephibosheth reacts in a godly manner, retains his integrity, and grows in his maturity.  All things working together for his ultimate, spiritual good.

2 Samuel 9:13  So Mephibosheth dwelt in Jerusalem, for he ate continually at the king’s table. And he was lame in both his feet.

You might read that as to say, “even though he was lame in both his feet.”  Two things about that:

“Even though he was lame in both his feet,” handicapped and deformed, David had no objection to him coming to the table.  It is true, and cannot be emphasized too much, that God receives you just as you are.  If you are not saved, don’t waste any time trying to clean-up or improve yourself.  That is what only God can do, and He does it starting with the heart and working out.  Even after you are saved, your flesh remains.  You struggle against sin in your inward parts.  Still, you are welcome to come to Him.
“Even though he was lame in both his feet,” Mephibosheth made his way to David’s table everyday!  Think how difficult it would have been for him, or, perhaps, how embarrassing.  There were no ADA requirements in the palace.  No wheelchair ramps because there were no wheelchairs!  Yet he found his way there.  So, too, you and I must overcome any of our ‘lame’ excuses for missing-out on either fellowship with God or with His saints.

A thoughtful person could look at King David and, in his dealings with Mephibosheth, see God’s dealings with them and with the human race.  It was the Gospel being illustrated.  Just as David showed mercy and bestowed grace, so does the God of Israel, the King of kings, seek you out to show mercy and to bestow grace.

And, as we’ve said, the illustration doesn’t stop there.  David also illustrates the life of a saved person to whom God has shown mercy and bestowed grace.  That person is to be God’s channel, His conduit, His representative, through whom He does the same for everyone they encounter.

How do you tap-into all of this?  Well, you simply accept the invitation to dinner!

David was inviting Mephibosheth to this life of feasting at his table.  He could have refused.  Think about it.  Here was David inviting him because of mercy and grace.  If Mephibosheth declined, would David then have him incarcerated?  Assassinated?  No, it was an invitation in the truest sense.  Mephibosheth would have lived-out his life in fear, in loathing, in Lo-debar.

It was an invitation he ought to accept, and did accept.

If you are not a believer, God is inviting you to dine with Him!

If you are a believer, here’s something to consider.  Often long-standing invitations can begin to take a lesser priority.  You start thinking, “I can go any time I want,” but then find yourself going less and less frequently because of it.

Individually (in your devotions) and corporately (in your church) take a look at how you are treating God’s invitation to fellowship with Him at His table.

Then come just as you are to the feast, get filled, and invite others to do likewise!

We Are The Champions Of The Lord (2 Samuel 8v1-18)

TEXT: 2 SAMUEL 8.1-18

TOPIC: DAVID CONQUERS ADVERSARY AFTER ADVERSARY IN THE NAME OF THE LORD
TITLE: WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS OF THE LORD
Introduction

We’re going to see King David’s success in several military campaigns.  He  advances and gains ground against Israel’s enemies in every direction of the compass.

It’s going to serve for us as Christians as an illustration of advancing and gaining spiritual ground in our campaign towards Heaven.

The New Testament, and especially the apostle Paul, frequently appeals to military illustrations and images to help us understand what it means to be a Christian on the earth.

One classic passage in which Paul refers to Christians as soldiers:

2 Timothy 2:3  You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
2 Timothy 2:4  No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.

Then there is, of course, the famous passage in the sixth chapter of his letter to the Ephesian church where he describes the Christian as a soldier and encourages you to take up the whole armor of God.
The Roman army was especially adept in its advance against the enemy.  They employed certain combat tactics to gain ground, e.g., the wedge formation and the tortoise formation.

The Romans employed the wedge formation shaped like the point of an arrow to penetrate the enemy line. When the enemy line was penetrated, they advanced rapidly to defeat their enemies.
The Romans used the tortoise formation to create an impenetrable shell by locking their shields together to protect their bodies and heads from arrows being fired or spears being thrown by the enemy.  They advanced slowly toward the enemy until they penetrated their defenses.

We want to be advancing, gaining ground, do we not?  To that end let’s see what we can glean from King David’s success.

I’ll organize my thoughts around two points: #1 Check For The Characteristics That Indicate You Are Gaining Ground, and #2 Contend For The Character Traits That Indicate You Are Gaining Ground.

#1    Check For The Characteristics
That Indicate You Are Gaining Ground
(v1-15)

It’s pretty obvious in a military campaign whether or not you are advancing and gaining ground.  It’s not so obvious in our spiritual campaigns because often our ‘advance’ involves things that initially seems to be setbacks.  Things like sufferings, which always initially seems a setback, are used by the Lord to cause us to advance spiritually.

Thus we need to be able to identify certain spiritual characteristics of gaining ground – things we can ‘see’ with spiritual eyes even in our physical setbacks.

In the descriptions of David’s advances and victories we can indeed identify a few characteristics of successful campaigns.  We see in verse one that it is a characteristic of spiritual advance that we follow through when the Lord stirs our hearts to step-out in faith.
2 Samuel 8:1  After this it came to pass that David attacked the Philistines and subdued them. And David took Metheg Ammah from the hand of the Philistines.

“Metheg Ammah” is another name for Gath, the chief city of the Philistines.  It’s root word means bridle or curb.  Alan Redpath suggests that it describes the fact that the Philistines kept the Israelites bridled or curbed in their attempts to occupy all the land given to them by God.

Is there a ‘chief city’ in your life, something that holds you back from fully serving the Lord?  It could be something like fear, for example.  You hear about a ministry or a mission and feel prompted by the Lord to participate but then fear bridles you, curbs your enthusiasm, and you let the opportunity pass.

Maybe it’s time for you to advance!  Start serving in the church.  Start something at work or in your neighborhood to advance the Gospel.  Follow through with the stirring on your heart.

We see in verse two that it is a characteristic of spiritual advance that we are led by the Holy Spirit rather than defaulting to old habits and traditions.

2 Samuel 8:2  Then he defeated Moab. Forcing them down to the ground, he measured them off with a line. With two lines he measured off those to be put to death, and with one full line those to be kept alive. So the Moabites became David’s servants, and brought tribute.

David executed two-thirds of the Moabites using some sort of measuring system that commentators don’t fully understand.  Even A.W. Pink, a commentator who normally sees an allegory in every verse, says he can’t really make sense of this measuring.

David employed different strategies in the various campaigns he found himself engaged in.  So must we in our walk with the Lord.  It’s a reminder to us that we must be led by the Holy Spirit.

If you’re anything like me, you are a creature of habit, and that carries over into your spiritual life.  It’s great to establish spiritual habits so long as they don’t become old and stale.
For example, Jesus healed a lot of folks when He was on the earth.  He never healed a blind man the same way twice!  He listened to His Father and then proceeded as instructed.

Maybe it’s time to take a ‘measure’ of your spiritual life and get some fresh perspective.

We see in verses three and four that it is a characteristic of spiritual advance that we utilize spiritual weapons against our adversaries, not the weapons of the world.

2 Samuel 8:3  David also defeated Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to recover his territory at the River Euphrates.
2 Samuel 8:4  David took from him one thousand chariots, seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand foot soldiers. Also David hamstrung all the chariot horses, except that he spared enough of them for one hundred chariots.

David made an assault against Hadadezer, king of Zobah, an area just north of Damascus.  Hadadezer had gone on a campaign to the Euphrates River to recover some territory and in his absence David struck.

Why hamstring the horses?  In Deuteronomy 17:16 the Lord instructed the Israelites to not multiply horses to themselves.  The horse and especially the horse drawn chariot were major weapons of war.  In those days it was like having a tank against foot soldiers.  The Lord did not want Israel to begin to trust in weapons but rather to put their trust in Him.

It’s an exhortation to us to take inventory of the weapons we employ.  Do we use the methods of the world?  We’ve talked before about the preference many Christians have for psychology over the spiritual disciplines of prayer and Bible study.  Or how sometimes churches adopt methods that manipulate or intimidate in order to get to a godly goal.

Let’s be sure the weapons of our warfare remain spiritual.  The weapons of the world seem powerful at first but if we will determine to hamstring them we’ll see that the Lord is our shield and fortress.
We see in verses five, six and fourteen that it is a characteristic of spiritual advance that we do whatever is necessary to keep from losing ground we’ve gained.

2 Samuel 8:5  When the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David killed twenty-two thousand of the Syrians.
2 Samuel 8:6  Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus; and the Syrians became David’s servants, and brought tribute. So the Lord preserved David wherever he went.

2 Samuel 8:14  He also put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom he put garrisons, and all the Edomites became David’s servants. And the Lord preserved David wherever he went.

David conquered these enemies and then, to be certain they did not grow strong again in his absence, he established outposts and left soldiers there to guard his victories.

We need ‘garrisons’ in our lives.  We need to establish protections, for example, against falling back into the sins God has delivered us from.  You know what it is, or who it is, that tempts you to sin.  Do whatever it takes to guard against it.  Jesus once suggested as an illustration that if your eye is the source of the problem, pluck it out.  Or if your hand, cut it off.  It was to stress the radical nature of sin and to emphasize we go to spiritual extremes, when necessary, to guard against it.

Back to verses seven through twelve.  We see in them that it is a characteristic of spiritual advance that we invest in the work of God.

2 Samuel 8:7  And David took the shields of gold that had belonged to the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.
2 Samuel 8:8  Also from Betah and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, King David took a large amount of bronze.
2 Samuel 8:9  When Toi king of Hamath heard that David had defeated all the army of Hadadezer,
2 Samuel 8:10  then Toi sent Joram his son to King David, to greet him and bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and defeated him (for Hadadezer had been at war with Toi); and Joram brought with him articles of silver, articles of gold, and articles of bronze.
2 Samuel 8:11  King David also dedicated these to the Lord, along with the silver and gold that he had dedicated from all the nations which he had subdued –
2 Samuel 8:12  from Syria, from Moab, from the people of Ammon, from the Philistines, from Amalek, and from the spoil of Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah.

The major emphasis in these verses is that David took the spoil he had won in these campaigns and “dedicated these to the Lord.”  In other passages you learn that he was amassing a great treasury for the building of the future Temple by his son, Solomon.

We might say that David was investing in the building of God’s Temple.  In our case it translates to giving to God’s work, first to the church, which is His temple today, and then to other works that further the Gospel.

This is perhaps the most practical and obvious of the characteristics we are listing.  You’re either giving to God’s work or you’re not.  Give and gain spiritual ground!

The final characteristic of spiritual advance in this text is that you be concerned with your reputation.

2 Samuel 8:13  And David made himself a name when he returned from killing eighteen thousand Syrians in the Valley of Salt.

David gained a reputation.  In his case it was as a king with great military success.  In our case it ought to be that we love the Lord and seek to serve him.

It’s a reminder that the way we live our lives will have an effect on those around us.  To paraphrase Roz from Monsters Inc., “they’re watching you, always watching you!”

There’s nothing wrong with being concerned about having a positive, spiritual impact on others – both believers and nonbelievers.  Let them see your good works and then glorify God.

Here, then, is our check list:

When God stirs my heart, I step-out in faith.
Rather than reduce my spiritual life to a set, legalistic pattern, I am led by the Holy Spirit.
I reject the methods and techniques of the world in favor of spiritual behaviors and disciplines.
I guard against things that might cause me to sin or fall back in my walk.
I am investing my money in the kingdom of God by giving to the work of God on earth.
I am concerned about having a positive effect on both believers and nonbelievers so that they will be open to the love of Jesus Christ.

Hopefully we can go through those and say “Check” in each case!

#2    Contend For The Character Traits
That Indicate You Are Gaining Ground
(v15-18)

In the remaining verses we get a look at David’s administration as king, at what we today would call his ‘cabinet.’

Israel needed to be governed.  Our lives need to be ‘governed’ by God so that we are advancing and gaining ground.

2 Samuel 8:15  So David reigned over all Israel; and David administered judgment and justice to all his people.

You and I may not be ‘kings,’ but almost all of us are given something to administrate.

If you have a family, for instance, it is no small task to oversee its operations on a daily basis!
At work you have something to administrate, even if others are over you.
Same with your serving in the church.

David approached his duties with “judgment and justice to all his people.”  John Gill, commenting on this, writes,

When he returned from his wars, he heard and tried all causes impartially, brought before him, and gave sentence according to the law of God, and administered righteous judgment without any respect to persons; all had justice done them that applied unto him, whether high or low, rich or poor; and indeed during his wars he was not negligent of the civil government of his subjects, and the distribution of justice to them by proper officers.

The exhortation for us is to first look upon things like family and work and church as a spiritual administration by which we want to help others see Jesus.

2 Samuel 8:16  Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the army…

General Joab led the army.  As we’ve already said and seen, we are soldiers in a spiritual army.  Add to that that we will always be at high alert while we are on this earth!  We’re in a battle, but not against flesh and blood.  Our enemies are spiritual so our warfare must be spiritual.  We need to maintain a military-mentality, marching forward on our knees.

2 Samuel 8:16  … Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder;

Jehohaphat was “recorder.”  According to Easton’s Bible Dictionary, the recorder,

…brought all weighty matters under the notice of the king, such as complaints, petitions, and wishes of subjects or foreigners.  He also drew up papers for the king’s guidance, and prepared drafts of the royal will for the scribes.  All treaties came under his oversight; and he had the care of the national archives or records…

The recorder brought matters to the notice of the king.  We do that as we seek the Lord in prayer!  The recorder was also concerned with the cares and complaints of citizens and foreigners.  We are concerned to encourage the citizens of the kingdom of Heaven, and to evangelize nonbelievers.

Do you know Jesus Christ?  Have you been saved?

2 Samuel 8:17  Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were the priests…

Priests offered sacrifices for themselves and then on behalf of the people.  In New Testament times all believers are called a “priesthood” and, so, this reminds us to first offer ourselves as living sacrifices in order to serve he Lord by ministering to one another in the body of Christ and others who are yet outside as nonbelievers.

2 Samuel 8:17  … Seraiah was the scribe;

The “scribe” in the Old Testament acted as a combined Secretary of State and Treasury Secretary.  One commentator said,

We may think of them as the king’s secretaries, writing his letters, drawing up his decrees, managing his finances.

We might apply this by saying that we should take our King’s dictation, as He speaks to us through the Bible.  Then we are to go about as His living letters so others can ‘read’ about Him through our radically changed lives.

2 Samuel 8:18  Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites…

These, according to Josephus, were the king’s bodyguards, and Benaiah is said to be set over his guards.  Now, the Lord needs no defending from us.  Neither does His Word need defending.  Charles Spurgeon is credited with saying, “the Word of God is like a lion.  You don’t have to defend a lion.  All you have to do is let the lion loose, and the lion will defend itself.”

Ah, but it must be let loose!  Here, then, we have encouragement to give an answer to everyone of the hope that is within us.

I admit this next statement is a stretch from the text, but it’s biblical.  Be a bodyguard in this sense: Guard, by holding in high esteem, the body of Christ!  Don’t be drawn into attacks on believers or churches.  Defend against them for Christ’s sake.

2 Samuel 8:18  … and David’s sons were chief ministers.

“David’s sons were chief ministers.”  As his descendants, they were in line to rule after him.  David had them serving in his administration where he could teach them about the Lord.
Are you teaching your kids about the Lord?  Evangelizing them?  Are you with them often in the house of the Lord – or have other activities taken priority?

There is nothing more personally satisfying than to see your children saved, serving, and walking with the Lord.

All these offices speak to our character as believers.  If character counts (and it does), it counts most that ours be spiritually grounded in the ways and the works of the Lord.

If you pursue Christian character, you will find yourself exhibiting the characteristics we checked for in the first part of the study.  They go hand-in-hand.

Nathan The Famous Frank-Talker (2 Samuel 7v1-29)

TITLE: NATHAN THE FAMOUS FRANK-TALKER

TEXT: 2 SAMUEL 7.1-29

TOPIC: DAVID WANTS TO BUILD A HOUSE FOR GOD BUT GOD SENDS NATHAN TO VERY FRANKLY TELL HIM NO

Introduction

After I graduated from UC Riverside I applied for a master’s degree program in counseling at Cal State San Bernardino.  I thought I could help people navigate through life, help them with their problems.  After all, I knew everything I needed to know, having earned degrees in both psychology and philosophy.

Never mind that I was a drunk, smoked pot and that my marriage was an absolute failure.

I was not accepted into the counseling program.  It was pretty devastating at the time – a real setback.

Little did I know that very shortly Jesus Christ was going to be revealed to me as my Savior.  By the power of His Gospel He conquered my addictions and healed my marriage.  A little later on He put me into the ministry where I found myself rejecting the vain philosophies of men, like psychology, in favor of watching the Lord make disciples as His Word was taught and applied.

God said “No” to my plans in order to work in me and through me to give me the desires of my heart in a way that was consistent with the wonder of His grace and truth.

As a Christian I’ve noticed that God still sometimes says “No” to me, to what I think are my desires.  It’s hard to understand at the time but sometimes “No” is the best answer.

Alan Redpath put it like this: “I think that sometimes [God] has more to teach us from His denials than from His permissions.”

David would add his “Amen!” to that comment.  In our text God says “No” to David’s desire to build a Temple.  It’s because God wanted to do something bigger, something greater than David’s desire to build a house.  God wanted to build David a house in the sense of making him promises about his descendants.

God is going to say “No” to you a lot.  You can ignore it, press-on through it, and get what you want.  Or you can submit to Him and be graced with what He wants.

I know which category I want to be in!  I’ll organize my thoughts around two points: #1 There’s A House To Be Built For God According To His Plans, and #2 There’s A Heart Being Built By God According To His Promises.

#1    There’s A House To Be Built For God According To His Plans (v1-17)

Before we even look at the verses let me suggest an application for us today.  There is a building being built in the age in which we live.

Ephesians 2:20  having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone,
Ephesians 2:21  … the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord,
Ephesians 2:22  in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
1 Peter 2:5  you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house…

The fellowship of believers we call the church is a spiritual house.  God is building it and we are all co-builders.

It’s up to us to use the best possible spiritual materials as we build.  It is not up to us to decide when and how and where we will build.  We must build according to God’s plan.  Our own desires, our own assessments of needs, must be subordinated to God’s leading through the leaders He has raised-up.

I think a lot of what goes on in churches is being done by ‘David’s’ who refused to take God’s “No” for an answer.

Let’s get into it.

2 Samuel 7:1  Now it came to pass when the king was dwelling in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies all around,
2 Samuel 7:2  that the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells inside tent curtains.”

David had the right heart, the right vision, the right passion.  But he was the wrong man for the right job.  We read why in First Chronicles 22:7-9.

1 Chronicles 22:7  And David said to Solomon: “My son, as for me, it was in my mind to build a house to the name of the Lord my God;
1 Chronicles 22:8  but the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘You have shed much blood and have made great wars; you shall not build a house for My name, because you have shed much blood on the earth in My sight.
1 Chronicles 22:9  Behold, a son shall be born to you, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies all around. His name shall be Solomon, for I will give peace and quietness to Israel in his days.

By the way: This explanation came years after God initially said “No.”  God may or may not explain Himself to you.  If He does, it’s a bonus.

One thing to realize is that God did want a Temple on earth.  But He had very specific criteria for its builder.  We go wrong sometimes because we understand things that God wants to do but refuse to acknowledge we may not be the person to do it.

Campbell Morgan said,

It is of the utmost importance that we should ever test our desires, even the highest and holiest of them, by His will.  Work, excellent in itself, should never be undertaken, save at the express command of God.  The passing of time will always vindicate the wisdom of the Divine will.

2 Samuel 7:3  Then Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you.”

Nathan was a prophet, a spiritual guy.  But he initially gave David the wrong advice.

The most spiritual among us can still give wrong advice.  They might recognize your heart, your vision, your passion.  It’s hard to see those and then say, “You’re the wrong man for the right job.”  It doesn’t win you a lot of points with people.

2 Samuel 7:4  But it happened that night that the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying,
2 Samuel 7:5  “Go and tell My servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Would you build a house for Me to dwell in?
2 Samuel 7:6  For I have not dwelt in a house since the time that I brought the children of Israel up from Egypt, even to this day, but have moved about in a tent and in a tabernacle.
2 Samuel 7:7  Wherever I have moved about with all the children of Israel, have I ever spoken a word to anyone from the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?’ ” ‘

Make no mistake.  God wanted a Temple to be built.  He was simply pointing out that now was not the time He wanted it built and David was not the builder He wanted to build it.  It would come after David and be built by Solomon.

Here me on this.  David saw a need.  Then he acted to try to meet that need.  God saw it very differently.  He saw no immediate need for a Temple – either for Him to dwell in or for the people to worship in.
We cannot become driven by needs.  When Jesus said, “The poor you will have with you always,” He certainly wasn’t giving us an excuse for telling people to go away and be warmed and filled.  He was pointing out that we are always surrounded by the needs of others, either spiritually or physically, and must therefore be led by God as to which one or ones to address and as to exactly how to address them.

2 Samuel 7:8  Now therefore, thus shall you say to My servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: “I took you from the sheepfold, from following the sheep, to be ruler over My people, over Israel.
2 Samuel 7:9  And I have been with you wherever you have gone, and have cut off all your enemies from before you, and have made you a great name, like the name of the great men who are on the earth.
2 Samuel 7:10  Moreover I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own and move no more; nor shall the sons of wickedness oppress them anymore, as previously,
2 Samuel 7:11  since the time that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel, and have caused you to rest from all your enemies. Also the Lord tells you that He will make you a house.
2 Samuel 7:12  “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
2 Samuel 7:13  He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

Theologians see in these verses what is called The Davidic Covenant.  God promised David and Israel that the Messiah (Jesus Christ) would come from the lineage of David and the tribe of Judah and would establish a kingdom that would endure forever.  The Davidic Covenant is unconditional because God does not place any conditions of obedience upon its fulfillment.  The surety of the promises made rests solely on God’s faithfulness and does not depend at all on David or Israel’s obedience.

2 Samuel 7:14  I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men.
2 Samuel 7:15  But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you.

In the midst of giving this eternal covenant God paused to talk about Solomon.  He promised that even if David’s son “commit[ed] iniquity,” He would be with him throughout his reign over Israel.
2 Samuel 7:16  And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever.” ‘ ”

The covenant is summarized by the words “house,” promising a dynasty in the lineage of David; “kingdom,” referring to a people who are governed by a king; “throne,” emphasizing the authority of the king’s rule; and “forever,” emphasizing the eternal and unconditional nature of this promise to David and Israel.

It doesn’t mean there would be an unbroken succession of kings on the throne, or that Israel would never be scattered from her homeland.  It means that there will be a kingdom and one of David’s heirs will be the king.

2 Samuel 7:17  According to all these words and according to all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.

It’s pretty easy to be the Nathan of verse three.  It’s not so easy to be the Nathan of verse seventeen.

From pulpits you often hear messages meant to encourage you to get up out of the pew and serve.  That’s important.  But sometimes Christians need to be told “No.”  You’re the wrong person, it’s the wrong time, it’s not God’s leading.

When that happens, how will you respond?  Let’s see how David responded.

#2    There’s A Heart Being Built By God According To His Promises (v18-29)

I was drawn to something precious in verse twenty-seven:

2 Samuel 7:27  For You, O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, have revealed this to Your servant, saying, ‘I will build you a house.’ Therefore Your servant has found it in his heart to pray this prayer to You.

If Nathan hadn’t courageously spoken to David, or if David had stubbornly pressed forward, God would not have been able to reveal this beautiful, this marvelous, this intimate promise to him.  David would have built a Temple.  Everyone would have rejoiced.  But they would have collectively missed God’s best and, individually, David would have missed-out on something wonderful taking place in his heart, in his walk with God.

David said he “found it in his heart to pray this prayer.”  He uses language that indicates a search for something hidden.  Because God said “No,” David went looking for God.  He wouldn’t even have been looking for this kind of intimacy had God not said “No.”

God’s “No’s” are precious.  They are not setbacks but rather are stepping stones to intimacy.

2 Samuel 7:18  Then King David went in and sat before the Lord; and he said: “Who am I, O Lord God? And what is my house, that You have brought me this far?
2 Samuel 7:19  And yet this was a small thing in Your sight, O Lord God; and You have also spoken of Your servant’s house for a great while to come. Is this the manner of man, O Lord God?

No, this was not the “manner of man.”  Man would say “Go for it!”  “Build!”  The idea that God may say “No” to our well-intentioned plans rarely enters the mind of man.

The typical church building project is a good example.  First, it’s usually assumed God wants a church to build.  Once begun, the project must be completed at just about any cost.  Sometimes techniques are employed to raise the funding that are less than godly.  In the end something is built but nothing had been found out about God.

2 Samuel 7:20  Now what more can David say to You? For You, Lord God, know Your servant.
2 Samuel 7:21  For Your word’s sake, and according to Your own heart, You have done all these great things, to make Your servant know them.

David said, “What more can David say to You?”  He refers to himself in the third person.  He was looking at his life, at himself, from outside of it as if to acknowledge that God was at work building it.  God was building “David,” the “David” who, when completed, would be so much like Jesus Christ.

He that has begun a good work in you is working to complete it.  You are predestined to be conformed into the image of Jesus.  You are being changed from glory-to-glory.

In you there is a heart being built by God.  It’s the heart you really want; it’s just that building it sometimes requires things that seem contrary to our immediate wishes.

2 Samuel 7:22  Therefore You are great, O Lord God. For there is none like You, nor is there any God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears.

Let’s say you have need of some type of service in your home – a repair of some kind.  Do you care about who it is that comes to your home?  Especially if you need to give him access when you’re not going to be there?  Sure you do!

Then why do we invite all kinds of things to come in to our hearts and take up residence there when Jesus is all we need?

Do you think there is anything or anybody in the world that can build your heart with more skill, with more care, than the Lord, Jesus Christ?

2 Samuel 7:23  And who is like Your people, like Israel, the one nation on the earth whom God went to redeem for Himself as a people, to make for Himself a name – and to do for Yourself great and awesome deeds for Your land – before Your people whom You redeemed for Yourself from Egypt, the nations, and their gods?
2 Samuel 7:24  For You have made Your people Israel Your very own people forever; and You, Lord, have become their God.

David understood that God had made unconditional promises to Abraham, and now to him, about the “forever” nature of Israel.  God is at work right now fulfilling those promises and we are a generation privileged to watch them unfold.

2 Samuel 7:25  “Now, O Lord God, the word which You have spoken concerning Your servant and concerning his house, establish it forever and do as You have said.
2 Samuel 7:26  So let Your name be magnified forever, saying, ‘The Lord of hosts is the God over Israel.’ And let the house of Your servant David be established before You.
2 Samuel 7:27  For You, O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, have revealed this to Your servant, saying, ‘I will build you a house.’ Therefore Your servant has found it in his heart to pray this prayer to You.
2 Samuel 7:28  “And now, O Lord God, You are God, and Your words are true, and You have promised this goodness to Your servant.
2 Samuel 7:29  Now therefore, let it please You to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue before You forever; for You, O Lord God, have spoken it, and with Your blessing let the house of Your servant be blessed forever.”

I would be the first to admit that this kind of rejoicing is not my reaction when God says “No.”  It ought to be because we know that God’s thoughts towards us are “thoughts of peace, not of evil, to give [us] an expected end” (Jeremiah 29:11).

You might argue and say, “Well, of course David rejoiced at God’s ‘No’ because look at all God promised to do for him!”

Do you really want to compare what God promised David with all that God has promised to us?  It is truly incomparable!

John fourteen alone is greater than God’s promise to build David a house.

John 14:1  “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.
John 14:2  In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
John 14:3  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.

Yes, there are exhortations to get up and get to work.  We’re told to stir-up the gift or gifts that God has given us and serve one another and share with others the Good News about Jesus.

There are also times when our best intentions must be set aside because God says “No.”

Those are more than character building times.  They build intimacy with God because we go looking for something and when we find it in our hearts, we’re amazed at His grace, mercy, forgiveness and love.

I Left My Cart In Obed-Edom’s (2 Samuel 6v1-23)

TEXT: 2 SAMUEL 6.1-23

TOPIC: DAVID BUILDS A CART TO BRING THE ARK OF THE COVENANT BACK TO JERUSALEM BUT ENDS UP LEAVING IT AT THE HOUSE OF OBED-EDOM

TITLE: I LEFT MY CART IN OBED-EDOM’S

Introduction

Traditional hymns versus contemporary choruses.  The debate rages on with no end in sight.

The solution is really quite simple.  It has to do with your clothing!

I’m not talking about your physical clothing.  (That’s a whole other debate).

No, I’m talking about your spiritual clothing.  Regardless hymns or choruses, what are you really ‘wearing,’ spiritually, as you approach God in your worship?

We have in our text an illustration of two types of clothing we might put on as we seek to worship Jesus.  King David plans and then participates in two worship services involving bringing the Ark of the Covenant back to its rightful place in the Tabernacle.  In each case he wears different clothing to a very different result.

In the first he was clothed as the king.  The worship service was a disaster.  It was ‘killer worship,’ but not the kind you wanted.
In the second, he took off his kingly attire and dressed as a common priest.  This worship service ended blessedly with the Ark back in its place and all Israel being prospered.

David’s physical attire illustrates the two types of spiritual clothing we can put on in the presence of our God:

In the first service we see him clothed with pride.
In the second service he was clothed with humility.

I’ll organize my thoughts around two points: #1 Clothe Yourself With Pride And You’re Not Really Worshipping The Lord, and #2 Clothe Yourself With Humility And You’ll Be Fully Worshipping The Lord.

#1    Clothe Yourself With Pride
And You And You’re Not Really Worshipping The Lord
(v1-10)

I want to make an important point as we begin.  David didn’t set out to promote himself or to clothe himself with pride.  He was absolutely sincere in his desire to worship the Lord.  He was trying to do the right thing.  It’s just that he went about it the wrong way.  We’ll see that his entire plan for transporting the Ark speaks of man’s wisdom, of human effort, of worldly pomp.

You and I don’t set out to promote self or to clothe ourselves with pride.  We are sincere in our desire to worship the Lord.  Nevertheless we can come clothed with pride that speaks of our own effort rather than God’s grace.  We, too, can go about trying to do the right thing in the wrong way.

2 Samuel 6:1  Again David gathered all the choice men of Israel, thirty thousand.
2 Samuel 6:2  And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from Baale Judah to bring up from there the ark of God, whose name is called by the Name, the Lord of Hosts, who dwells between the cherubim.

If you’ve seen Raiders of the Lost Ark you’ve got a pretty good idea of what the Ark looked like.  The Ark was a rectangular chest (2’ 3″ wide, 3’ 9″ long, and 2’ 3″ high) made of acacia wood and overlaid inside and out with gold. The lid of the Ark, featuring two cherubim angels with their wings touching, was considered a separate piece of furniture and was called the Mercy Seat.  Usually when we mention the Ark we mean both it and the lid.

It was there at the Ark between the cherubim inside the holy of holies of the Tabernacle that God manifested His presence to the Israelites.  His glory literally lived there among men.

The Ark hadn’t been in the Tabernacle for many decades.  The Philistines had captured it.  They took the Ark to several places in their country, and at each place misfortune befell them.  After seven months they sent it back to the Israelites.  It eventually ended up at a place called Kearjath-jearim in the house of Abinadab.

2 Samuel 6:3  So they set the ark of God on a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drove the new cart.

I’m sure the “cart” was a thing of beauty, crafted especially for the occasion.  Uzzah and Ahio guys probably somehow earned the right to “drive” the ox drawn cart.

2 Samuel 6:4  And they brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill, accompanying the ark of God; and Ahio went before the ark.
2 Samuel 6:5  Then David and all the house of Israel played music before the Lord on all kinds of instruments of fir wood, on harps, on stringed instruments, on tambourines, on sistrums, and on cymbals.

Can you picture the excitement in this crowd?  This was the Super Bowl of worship.  A huge crowd of over thirty-thousand… The choicest men… All new instruments… Music that was undoubtedly written by David especially for the occasion… The best worship voices in the land… A whole new way of transporting the Ark.  It would have required months of planning, lots of money invested, rehearsals round the clock.  And it was all for God!

2 Samuel 6:6  And when they came to Nachon’s threshing floor, Uzzah put out his hand to the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled.
2 Samuel 6:7  Then the anger of the Lord was aroused against Uzzah, and God struck him there for his error; and he died there by the ark of God.
That’s quite a buzz killer!  Just when everything was going so well, God let it be known He was not pleased with their efforts.

Why not?  I see Uzzah’s action in reaching out to steady the Ark as symbolic.  It represented in one moment everything that was wrong about this procession.  It was all man’s attempt to carry God along, to help God out, rather than submitting to Him by following His simple instructions.

In the case of transporting the Ark, God had clearly described His ‘way’ of doing it.  According to Moses in the Book of Exodus it was to be carried only by Levites who first sanctified themselves and then bore the Ark on their shoulders by poles fitted through rings in it (25:10-16).  Simple!

If you step back from the procession David planned and was carrying out you see man, not God.  All of David’s preparations obscured the Ark.  You didn’t see the Ark so much as you saw lots of human effort surrounding it.

No matter David’s intentions, this was man on display; this was pride.  See how subtle it was?  It snuck-up on David at a time when his intentions were good.  His ideas, his plans and those of others he commissioned, ignored God’s Word in favor of methods that they must have thought were an improvement.

2 Samuel 6:8  And David became angry because of the Lord’s outbreak against Uzzah; and he called the name of the place Perez Uzzah to this day.
2 Samuel 6:9  David was afraid of the Lord that day; and he said, “How can the ark of the Lord come to me?”
2 Samuel 6:10  So David would not move the ark of the Lord with him into the City of David; but David took it aside into the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite.

Anger, fear, and failure were the results of David’s worship service.  Worshipping God wasn’t ‘working’ for him.

Maybe you feel that worshipping God isn’t working for you.  You feel anger, or fear, or you are experiencing failure in your walk with the Lord.  It could be, it just might be, that you’re going about things your way, obscuring the presence of God.

Simplify!  Go to the Word and find out what you ought to be doing and do it.
God has clearly described His way of doing things, especially in the big, important areas of life, like home and church and society.  Too often we try to go beyond the simplicity of His instruction in those areas.

If you want an example, I’d point to Christian’s who would rather embrace the psychological theories of godless men rather than sticking with the simplicity of soul care as revealed in the Word of God.  It’s an attempt to modernize God, to bring Jesus up-to-date.  But it’s really a new cart driven by men and surrounded by man’s wisdom.  I don’t want to touch it!

Pride comes naturally to us and, so, if we’re not careful it will express itself even as we seek to worship the Lord.  We’ll do things our way, not God’s, then expect His blessing because we were sincere.

You know that expression, “It’s my way or the highway?”  We could modify it as if God was saying, “My way is the high way,” meaning by that the ‘higher’ way, the way of the Spirit.

What is that ‘way?’  The Bible encourages us to clothe ourselves with humility.  The apostle Peter said, “be clothed with humility, for “GOD RESISTS THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE” (First Peter 5:5).  It’s a choice we make.  It assumes we are clothed with pride and need to daily pursue humility.

#2    Clothe Yourself With Humility
And You’ll Be Fully Worshipping The Lord
(v11-23)

One thing I love about David: He wasn’t one to let a setback cripple him.  He sorted things out.

2 Samuel 6:11  The ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite three months. And the Lord blessed Obed-Edom and all his household.
2 Samuel 6:12  Now it was told King David, saying, “The Lord has blessed the house of Obed-Edom and all that belongs to him, because of the ark of God.” So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with gladness.
The Ark was a blessing.  God wanted to bless His people.  David simply needed to do things God’s way.

God still, always, wants to bless His people!

2 Samuel 6:13  And so it was, when those bearing the ark of the Lord had gone six paces, that he sacrificed oxen and fatted sheep.

Likely this occurred only once, after the first six paces, and not every six paces – otherwise they’d still be there!

2 Samuel 6:14  Then David danced before the Lord with all his might; and David was wearing a linen ephod.
2 Samuel 6:15  So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouting and with the sound of the trumpet.

There’s a terrible movie called King David starring Richard Gere.  In this scene he strips down to his underwear and dances like a drunken man staggering along ahead of the Ark.

David wasn’t in his underwear.  And I’ll bet he was a great dancer!

David took off his kingly attire and dressed like a common priest.  Why?  Well, who else do we know that, in a sense, took off His kingly garments to function as a priest?  Jesus left Heaven, laid aside His rights to deity, and as the God-man became our great High Priest.

David’s actions are a powerful outward representation of the humility of Jesus Christ and the humility we, His followers, ought to clothe ourselves with.

Skip verse sixteen for a moment and look at verses seventeen, eighteen and nineteen.

2 Samuel 6:17  So they brought the ark of the Lord, and set it in its place in the midst of the tabernacle that David had erected for it. Then David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord.
2 Samuel 6:18  And when David had finished offering burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of hosts.
2 Samuel 6:19  Then he distributed among all the people, among the whole multitude of Israel, both the women and the men, to everyone a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a cake of raisins. So all the people departed, everyone to his house.

Quite a different result, wouldn’t you say?  Everyone in Israel was blessed and it was signified by the material blessing of food.

Well, not quite everyone.  Back to verse sixteen.

2 Samuel 6:16  Now as the ark of the Lord came into the City of David, Michal, Saul’s daughter, looked through a window and saw King David leaping and whirling before the Lord; and she despised him in her heart.

I can’t help but notice that Michal was at home, looking through a window.  She had no desire to be at this worship service – even though it was arguably the most important worship service of that era.  Her staying home tells us a lot about where her heart was at.

2 Samuel 6:20  Then David returned to bless his household. And Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David, and said, “How glorious was the king of Israel today, uncovering himself today in the eyes of the maids of his servants, as one of the base fellows shamelessly uncovers himself!”

Want to have a way of measuring whether or not you are really worshipping the Lord clothed with humility?  If you are, you will be a blessing in your home, when no one is looking but your family.

Michal thought it was beneath the dignity of David’s position as king to act like a common worshipper.  She was clothed with pride and it embarrassed her as one of the king’s wives.

David had learned from his previous attempt that he needed to divest himself of that very attitude, to humble himself before the Lord, to clothe himself with humility.

2 Samuel 6:21  So David said to Michal, “It was before the Lord, who chose me instead of your father and all his house, to appoint me ruler over the people of the Lord, over Israel. Therefore I will play music before the Lord.
2 Samuel 6:22  And I will be even more undignified than this, and will be humble in my own sight. But as for the maidservants of whom you have spoken, by them I will be held in honor.”

In the earlier attempt to transport the Ark, David had forgotten what kind of a king he was supposed to be.  He needed to be “humble in [his] own sight” in order to be the kind of shepherd-king God had called him to be.  He needed to be like his own future descendant, the greater son of David, the Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Samuel 6:23  Therefore Michal the daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death.

Michal was still the wife of the great king of Israel.  His first wife, nonetheless.  She still went to state functions and such.  But her womb, and thus her life, was barren and empty – representing the life of pride as opposed to one clothed with humility.

In the end it doesn’t really matter if you sing hymns or choruses.  It doesn’t matter if you ban instruments or utilize every instrument under the sun.  It doesn’t matter if you dance or discourage dancing.

All of those things are cultural and generational and are merely matters of style in a particular place at a particular time.

What matters is how you are clothed.  Our default clothing is pride and, unfortunately, we can be clothed with it even when our motives are sincere.

Better to clothe ourselves with humility, submitting to one another in the fear of the Lord.

If there is some area in your life in which you feel worshipping God isn’t ‘working’ for you, get back to basics.  Do the simple things God instructs.  Realize that results may not always be immediate but that they will be eternal.

Kill Phils, Volume 2 (2 Samuel 5v17-25)

TITLE: KILL PHILS, VOLUME 2

TEXT: 2 SAMUEL 5.17-25

TOPIC: NOT ONCE BUT TWICE DAVID KILLS MANY PHILISTINES WHO COME AGAINST ISRAEL
Introduction

In the world of sports we look forward to match-ups that pit a top offensive player against his counterpart on defense.

Back in the day when “Bo knew best,” Bo Jackson was a rookie offensive phenom for the Oakland Raiders.  His rookie counterpart was Brian ‘the Boz’ Bosworth, linebacker for the Seattle Seahawks.  He was the winner of the first two Butkus Awards as the nation’s top college linebacker.  He remains the only player ever to have won the honor more than once.

The Raiders and the Seahawks squared-off on Monday Night Football on November 30, 1987.  In the third quarter, on his way to scoring three touchdowns and running for 221 yards,  Bo Jackson literally ran over Brian Bosworth.  The play became one of the most memorable plays in Monday Night Football history.

I guess you’d say “the best defense is a good offense.”  Unless you’re Tom Brady and the current New England Patriots.  All season long the Patriots offense showed the ability to put at least 30 points up on the board against some of the best defenses in the NFL.  That all came to an end when the New York Jets held them to a relatively meager 21 points to advance in this year’s playoffs.  In that game, “the best offense was a good defense.”

So which is best – offense or defense?  Moving from the world of sports to that of the military, I ran across something called ‘active defense.’  By definition active defense means the employment of limited offensive action and counterattacks to deny a contested area or position to the enemy.

King David understood active defense.  In our text he first fortified his defensive position, which was the stronghold of Jerusalem.  But he didn’t simply hole-up there when attacked by the Philistines.  He left his fortifications, not once but twice, and took the fight to them, defeating them both times.

These things we read about in the Old Testament are written for our learning.  Like David, we must employ active defense against spiritual enemies who would seek to defeat us, to destroy us.  We must both fortify and fight.

I’ll organize my thoughts around two points: #1 The Active Defense Of Your Christian Life Involves Fortifying Your Defenses, and #2 The Active Defense Of Your Christian Life Involves Fighting In Offensives.

#1    The Active Defense Of Your Christian Life
Involves Fortifying Your Defenses
(v9)

Israel had been divided and involved in civil war for around seven years.  David had been ruling the tribe of Judah in the south.  One of Saul’s sons, Ishbosheth, had been the ruler of the northern tribes.

During the civil war it seems the Philistines, Israel’s perpetual enemy, pulled up a chair and watched.  Why fight your enemy when they are fighting amongst themselves?

As believers in Jesus Christ, we ought not to fight amongst ourselves.  In his New Testament book, James even called these quarrels “wars” (4:1).  In-fighting gives our enemies an easy victory.  Before we talk about anything else, be sure there are no civil wars raging in your life.

David united Israel.  He conquered Jerusalem, something that had eluded the Jews for centuries.  He was starting to establish himself in treaties with other kings and rulers.

His success stirred the Philistines to action.

Quit in-fighting and start reaching out and guess what?  You will face opposition.

Before we look at the opposition of the Philistines, I want to glean some insight from verse nine about fortification.

2 Samuel 5:9  Then David dwelt in the stronghold, and called it the City of David. And David built all around from the Millo and inward.

Jerusalem was considered a “stronghold.”  David had been able to identify its military weakness.  There was a water shaft that could give an army access to the city.  I’m sure he fortified the weakness that had allowed him to conquer the city.

We’re told “David built all around from the Millo inward.”  No one is certain what “the Millo” is but it seems to have had some military significance.  Later in Israel’s history “the Millo” appears in a list of repairs to military fortifications ordered by King Hezekiah (Second Chronicles 32:5).

We have good evidence, then, to conclude that David fortified his already fortified position.

As a believer you have a fortified position in Christ.  Your enemies have been defeated at the Cross.  You’ve been adopted into the family of God.  You are promised a heavenly mansion and both a reward when Jesus returns and an inheritance in Heaven that is being kept for you.

You are secure.  Ephesians 1:4-5 says, “just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will…”

You are granted strength.  Philippians 4:13 says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

In Romans 8:37 you read, “Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.”

We could go on-and-on listing the perks of your fortified spiritual position in Christ.  At the same time you are told that you are involved in a spiritual warfare against deadly enemies.

Paul the apostle described sinister supernatural entities then strongly suggested you take up spiritual armor to withstand their onslaught.
James, in his letter, suggested that you can be drawn away by the lusts of your flesh back into sins that once held sway over you.
The writers of the New Testament warn you about the influence of the world around you as you seek to walk with Jesus.

You must therefore fortify your fortified position.

It’s not a matter of maintaining salvation.  You’re secure in Christ.  It’s a matter of working-out your salvation, of your daily sanctification as you are growing in Christ.

The techniques to fortify your life are no secret.  They are the common Christian behaviors, or disciplines if you prefer that term.  They involve reading the Word, praying, fellowshipping with other believers, and sharing your relationship with Jesus with others.  You’re called upon to serve, to give, to fast.

The point that we are making is this: You are to always be busy fortifying your life.  The attacks are coming and they will do a lot more damage to you and those you love if you’ve been lax in preparation.

The Old Testament hero, Nehemiah, is a great illustration for us.  Tasked with rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem, tasked with fortifying the city, he had his men held a trowel in one hand and a sword in the other.  Fortify and fight.

Where is the weakness in your fortifications today?  Take inventory of your spiritual behaviors, of your Christian disciplines, and begin to fortify those things that have been ignored or abandoned.

#2    The Active Defense Of Your Christian Life
Involves Fighting In Offensives
(v17-25)

David had taken the stronghold of Jerusalem.  He had fortified it against enemy attack.  You might think that his best strategy when attacked by the Philistines would be to remain on defense – to hole-up in the city and trust in its fortifications.

Yet not once but twice God instructs him instead to leave his fortified position and go on the offensive against the Philistines.

We cannot just fortify.  We must take the fight to our enemies.

It’s an important consideration.  You see, it is all too common for us as believers to become ingrown.  God might be calling us into a battle, to establish a beachhead somewhere, but we only hang around believers all the time.  The only ‘ministries’ we are interested in are those that build us up rather than reach out to the lost.  It’s a recipe for civil war and, worse, for our own lives to become vulnerable to attack.

David took the fight to the Philistines.

2 Samuel 5:17  Now when the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David. And David heard of it and went down to the stronghold.
2 Samuel 5:18  The Philistines also went and deployed themselves in the Valley of Rephaim.

David went to his “stronghold.”  The Philistines lined-up in the valley.  You’d think the best offense was a good defense in which the city withstood a long siege.

The trouble with siege warfare is that, while you are relatively safe, it still costs you dearly.

Everything outside the walls is overcome and destroyed.
You wind up on minimum rations.
Your movements are restricted since you cannot leave the safety of the city.

Sometimes it’s better to have a fortified position but to take the fight out to your enemy and meet him head on.

Truth is, you face your enemies everyday.  Our lives, both individually and corporately, are like a fortified city in the midst of a hostile world.  We don’t need to go looking for a fight because our enemies are all around us.  The importance of this text, this morning, is to remind us to get to fighting.

2 Samuel 5:19  So David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will You deliver them into my hand?” And the Lord said to David, “Go up, for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into your hand.”
2 Samuel 5:20  So David went to Baal Perazim, and David defeated them there; and he said, “The Lord has broken through my enemies before me, like a breakthrough of water.” Therefore he called the name of that place Baal Perazim.

The Lord broke upon the Philistines like a tsunami.  David’s army had no trouble defeating them.  It was active defense at its best.

2 Samuel 5:21  And they left their images there, and David and his men carried them away.

In ancient times the armies would carry with them “images” of their gods.  We would call them idols.  In a parallel passage you read that David had the idols burned (First Chronicles 14:12).

It serves to remind us that we should follow through in our battles.  We can’t afford to let some idol linger around.  No, we must get rid of it while we can or else it will return in greater strength to trouble us.

One thing I’ll say about the Philistines.  They were persistent.  It wasn’t long before they again marched against David.

2 Samuel 5:22  Then the Philistines went up once again and deployed themselves in the Valley of Rephaim.

David might have gone out without consulting the Lord.  After all, hadn’t he just defeated the Philistines in just this same valley?

The Philistines were no dummies.  You can bet they had a new strategy for overcoming David.

Your enemies are smart.  They are always developing new strategies for defeating you.  You need to keep ahead of them by seeking the Lord.

2 Samuel 5:23  Therefore David inquired of the Lord, and He said, “You shall not go up; circle around behind them, and come upon them in front of the mulberry trees.
2 Samuel 5:24  And it shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall advance quickly. For then the Lord will go out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.”
2 Samuel 5:25  And David did so, as the Lord commanded him; and he drove back the Philistines from Geba as far as Gezer.

Instead of a direct assault, this time David would attack from behind.  Instead of a wave David saw it as a mighty wind.

There’s a great devotional study here.  Water and wind remind us of the Holy Spirit.  David was a man led by the Holy Spirit, a man who simply followed the Lord into every spiritual battle.

Something else we note is that active defense requires a spiritual quality that is implied by this second strategy.  It is humility.

Here’s what I mean.  David was a tremendous military hero.  He’s the guy who as a very young man defeated Goliath, the Philistine giant.  A little later he went out and collected two hundred Philistine foreskins as a dowry to earn his wife.  Fast-forward and he’s the guy whose strategy had led to victory at Jerusalem over the Jebusites.  He had just broken upon the Philistines like a tsunami.

Now he was being asked to come from behind and mount a sneak attack!  To hide in the trees until God gave the sign of the rustling of the leaves.  It was humbling.

I think sometimes we miss the Lord’s leading not because we fail to seek it but we fail to seek it with humility.  It would have been easy for David to offer up a token prayer to God regarding this latest Philistine attack then go out against them as he had before.

We are creatures of habit.  We like to figure things out, have everything in order.  But when we try to do that in our relationship with God, we can put Him in a box and start living in the past, on tradition, rather than really following His lead.  We can already have our own understanding of how God is going to lead us before we listen to His leading.

Quite honestly, we don’t like to humble ourselves and we aren’t naturally drawn to strategies that speak of humility.

Jesus was the master of humility, starting with His choice in eternity past to come into the world as a man.

Philippians 2:7  [Jesus] made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.
Philippians 2:8  And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

Think of the humility of Jesus’ birth in a feeding trough, of His obscure life as a carpenter in Nazareth.  In His relatively short three-and-one-half year ministry He was mocked and ridiculed.  Those in power considered Him, and called Him, the illegitimate son of Joseph and Mary.  He said of Himself that He had nothing – not even a place to lie His head.  His disciples never really understood Him, and one of them betrayed Him while almost all the others scattered.  His arrest and trials were humiliating, to say the least, culminating in His shameful death as a criminal on the Cross.

Philippians 2:9  Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,
Philippians 2:10  that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth,
Philippians 2:11  and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Jesus’ humility won Him a pretty big victory!

We need to go on active defense.  If we only, always, fortify our fortified position we will set ourselves up for defeat.  Either we will suffer the debilitating effects of a long siege or we will give the enemy an opportunity to discover and exploit weaknesses.

Active defense is discovered by humility.  Humble yourself and seek the Lord for His strategies.  You are facing Philistines in your personal life… At home, in your family… At work… At school… Maybe even in church.

But in every situation the Lord is a wave or a wind you can follow to victory.

If You’re Gonna Walk The Walk (2 Samuel 5.1-16)

TEXT: 2 SAMUEL 5.1-16

TOPIC: THE JEBUSITES AND KING DAVID TRADE TAUNTS AS THE ISRAELITES DETERMINE TO CONQUER JERUSALEM

TITLE: IF YOU’RE GONNA WALK THE WALK, YOU’VE GOT TO TRASH THE TALK

SERIES: TOTAL INCLINE OF THE HEART

Introduction

In sports it’s called trash talk.  One of the greatest trash-talking moments occurred in the 1997 NBA Finals between the Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz.  Game one was tied at 82.  The game was played on a Sunday.  As Karl Malone stepped to the free-throw line Scottie Pippen walked behind The Mailman, Karl Malone, and muttered, “The Mailman doesn’t deliver on Sunday.”

It seemed to work!  The Mailman choked by throwing up two bricks.  On the ensuing play one of basketball’s greatest trash talkers, Michael Jordan, won the game with a buzzer-beater.

We encounter some trash talk in our text.  David was now king of a untied nation of Israel.  His first order of business was to capture Jerusalem from the Jebusites.

When David’s men approached Jerusalem it prompted some high-level trash talking from both sides.

The Jebusites, confident in their impregnability, looked down upon the Israelites and said, “You shall not come in here; but the blind and the lame shall repel you.”
David turned their taunt back on them and after Jerusalem was taken by his army it became a motivational saying in Israel.

Conquering Jerusalem was both a strategic and a symbolic victory for David.  You see, in their entire history the Jews had never been able to overcome the inhabitants of Jerusalem, never had they driven them out.  It was as if even lame and blind Jebusites could repel the best soldiers of Israel.

What you see in this text is that the moment Israel recognized their rightful king, the conquest that had eluded them for so long became easy.

I’m going to suggest a correlation in our spiritual lives as believers in Jesus Christ.  It’s simply this: In our lives there are things we struggle against that are essentially powerless because of the Cross of Jesus yet they continue to hold sway over us.  If we will yield to the lordship of Christ we can, we will, overcome those strongholds.

I’ll organize my thoughts around two points: #1 The ‘Lame and the Blind’ Will Repel You Until You Settle The Issue Of Lordship, and #2 The ‘Lame and the Blind’ Will Repulse You Once You Settle The Issue Of Lordship.

#1    The ‘Lame and the Blind’ Will Repel You
Until You Settle The Issue Of Lordship
(v1-7)

I should spend a few moments defining what we mean by ‘lordship.’  A few years ago there was a big debate among evangelical believers over what was called Lordship Salvation.  Its proponents emphasized that submitting to Christ as Lord over your life goes hand-in-hand with trusting in Christ to be saved.  You can summarize their position with this saying – “If He’s not Lord of all, He’s not Lord at all.”

Of course Jesus is Lord!  But spiritual growth is a process.  The Bible calls this process sanctification.  Some people grow more quickly than others and even in our individual lives there can be circumstances and situations that affect sanctification.

Submitting to the lordship of Jesus is an issue of our sanctification, not our salvation.  To quote one source,

A person does not have to submit to God in every area of his or her life in order to be saved.  A person simply has to recognize that he or she is a sinner, in need of Jesus Christ for salvation, and place trust in Him.  Jesus is Lord.  Christians absolutely should submit to Him.  [But] a changed life and submission to Christ’s lordship are the result of salvation, not a requirement for salvation.

For our purposes this morning, in talking about the lordship of Jesus we mean a Christian resolving issues of spiritual growth, deciding who is really in control of their life.

As soon as Israel recognized David as king, something that had eluded them for centuries – the capture of the stronghold of Jerusalem – was achieved.

2 Samuel 5:1  Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and spoke, saying, “Indeed we are your bone and your flesh.
2 Samuel 5:2  Also, in time past, when Saul was king over us, you were the one who led Israel out and brought them in; and the Lord said to you, ‘You shall shepherd My people Israel, and be ruler over Israel.’ ”
2 Samuel 5:3  Therefore all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the Lord. And they anointed David king over Israel.

After the death of Saul the men of Judah recognized David as king.  The northern tribes did not.  David ruled the south from Hebron while a descendant of Saul’s, Ishbosheth, ruled the north.  This went on for some seven years until the murder of Ishbosheth by two of his own military captains.

The thing to notice is that the northerners knew all along that David was God’s choice to be king.  Even while Saul was alive it was David whose military exploits brought glory to God and defended Israel.  Still they followed Saul and, afterward, his son.  They therefore willfully refused to acknowledge what they knew and believed to be true – that David was their king, to shepherd them.

We can relate to this on a personal level.  If we are Christians we know and believe that Jesus is Lord and means to shepherd us.  But in one or more areas of our lives we may cling to some other ‘ruler.’  It may be self, or some idol that we have set up.  We may struggle against it or we may grow comfortable with it.  It may be a habit we’ve chosen or an addiction that has us in chains.  We may find ourselves making the excuse, “That’s just the way I am.”

The encouragement of God’s Word for us today is that overcoming that kind of stronghold in our lives, no matter how fiercely held or for how long, is possible if we will yield to the lordship of Jesus Christ in that area.

The “elders of Israel,” representing the people, anointed David king.  God had already anointed him some fifteen or more years earlier, while he was yet a teenager.  They were just getting around to fully acknowledging what God had already done for them.

So much of our growing in Christ is fully acknowledging what He has already done for us.  On the Cross Jesus defeated the devil.  He conquered death and Hell.  We’re told that as we identify with Him on the Cross and in His resurrection that we are dead to sin and alive to Him – meaning we have power to not sin and to walk in victory over it.

Some areas of our lives can prove more resistant to this acknowledging than others.  Or we might make the foolish mistake of returning to a stronghold that Jesus overcame for us.  Either way the solution is the same: Acknowledge He is Lord and yield your members to Him.

2 Samuel 5:4  David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.
2 Samuel 5:5  In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah.

In this historical note we see that the northern tribes suffered under the wrong lordship for some seven years.  Stubborn to hold-out against David, it created a kind of stalemate in which their growth was on hold.  And it affected the development of the entire nation as they remained unable to overcome the Jebusites and take their rightful capital city.

I say they “suffered” but it was mostly spiritual.  Their lives went on.  They got up, went to work, went to worship.  But there was something missing; someone, actually.  They did not have their shepherd-king to lead them to new glories.

The Christian life can be sort of stunted as well when we allow strongholds to continue.  We go through the motions but we’re not really making any progress.

2 Samuel 5:6  And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who spoke to David, saying, “You shall not come in here; but the blind and the lame will repel you,” thinking, “David cannot come in here.”

Jerusalem, because of the way it was situated and fortified, was one of those seemingly impregnable fortresses.  The Jebusites were so confident in its defensibility that they could taunt David by saying even the blind and the lame could successfully defend it against the Israelites.

In a sense, the blind and the lame had repelled the Israelites until now.  Commentators point out that in addition to referring to actual blind and lame individuals this could be a reference to the gods of the Jebusites.  Probably they would set-up the images of their gods on the walls when an army approached; it was common practice in those days.

It was also commonly known that the God of Israel had attitude about idols.  Listen to this excerpt from Psalm 135.

Psalms 135:15  The idols of the nations are silver and gold, The work of men’s hands.
Psalms 135:16  They have mouths, but they do not speak; Eyes they have, but they do not see;
Psalms 135:17  They have ears, but they do not hear; Nor is there any breath in their mouths.
Psalms 135:18  Those who make them are like them; So is everyone who trusts in them.

Part of the taunt of the Jebusites, then, was that the God of Israel was no match for their supposedly blind and lame idols.

If we are allowing some stronghold to exist unconquered it’s as if we are being dominated by things that are essentially blind and lame – powerless in the aftermath of the Cross and resurrection of our Lord.

2 Samuel 5:7  Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion (that is, the City of David).

We’ll see how in a moment.  The point the writer seems to be making is that victory was certain and even easy once they acknowledged the rightful king.

Is there an area in your life you continually struggle against?  It may be a sincere struggle, or it may be something you desire to hold on to.  Either way the Lord has already overcome it.  Victory may be as easy as acknowledging it is, in fact, an enemy stronghold that needs to be overthrown.

#2    The ‘Lame and the Blind’ Will Repulse You
Once You Settle The Issue Of Lordship
(v8-15)

David engaged in some trash talking of his own to motivate his men.

2 Samuel 5:8  Now David said on that day, “Whoever climbs up by way of the water shaft and defeats the Jebusites (the lame and the blind, who are hated by David’s soul), he shall be chief and captain.” Therefore they say, “The blind and the lame shall not come into the house.”

Before we look at his strategy, notice the phrase, “the lame and the blind, who are hated by David’s soul.”  Who or what was David referring to?

Certainly he was referring to the so-called ‘gods’ of the Jebusites.  By extension he was referring to the Jebusites themselves who had put their trust in dead idols of their own making instead of turning to the living God Who had made them.

Then we read, “Therefore they say, ‘The blind and the lame shall not come into the house.’ ”  This apparently became a saying in Israel, something soldiers would say to one another as motivation before a battle.  They’d come upon a fortified enemy and say to one another, “The blind and the lame shall not come into the house,” and it would remind them of their great victory over the seemingly impregnable stronghold of Jerusalem.  It would remind them that the gods of the pagans were blind and lame and no match at all for the living God.

We’re told David “hated” the blind and the lame.  He was repulsed by them.

It’s been my experience over the years that once Jesus has taken over an area of my life, the thing or things I used to be drawn to are shown to be repulsive.  I see the damage they can create, the ruin they instigate.  They’re just plain ugly when compared to the beauty of Christ.

Jerusalem seemed secure in her defenses.  David identified the one weakness.  There was a “water shaft” that supplied the city its fresh water.  The soldiers could enter there and attack and defeat the Jebusites.

Water is a common symbol in the Bible for the cleansing and the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  Everything we are talking about depends upon the cleansing and the power of the Holy Spirit.  We cannot overcome strongholds on our own, in our own strength.

The words “he shall be chief and captain” in verse eight are in italics.  That means they were added by translators to give you a better sense of the history of this event.  You find them in the text of a parallel account of this event in First Chronicles 11:6.  There you read that Joab went up first and claimed the command of David’s army.

But I thought Joab was already David’s military commander?  He was, but he had recently murdered Abner and was on the outs with David.  Still Joab was an amazing warrior.  By issuing this kind of challenge it gave Joab opportunity to prove himself to David and before all of Israel – especially those in the northern tribes whose general Joab had killed.

The thing I get from this personally is that I cannot rest in former victories or some current position or office.  My Christian life is to be a daily overcoming of sin, routing the enemies of my God, in the power of the Holy Spirit.

One of the things that leads me to ignore or establish or reestablish enemy strongholds in my life is thinking I’ve somehow arrived.  I won’t arrive until I awake in Heaven and am in the presence of my Lord and Savior.  Until then I strive in His power against those things that ought to repulse me.

The remaining verses of this section read like a footnote.  They give us a glimpse of life under the rightful king.

2 Samuel 5:9  Then David dwelt in the stronghold, and called it the City of David. And David built all around from the Millo and inward.

David fortified the already fortified city.  If God has given you a victory, if you’ve overcome a stronghold in your life, then seek to fortify your position.

2 Samuel 5:10  So David went on and became great, and the Lord God of hosts was with him.
2 Samuel 5:11  Then Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and carpenters and masons. And they built David a house.
2 Samuel 5:12  So David knew that the Lord had established him as king over Israel, and that He had exalted His kingdom for the sake of His people Israel.

Other nations began to recognize God was doing something in Israel through David.  In other words, his testimony increased.  So does ours when we settle the issue of lordship because we are hearing from the Lord with greater confidence.

For his part David was encouraged in his walk and work.  It doesn’t mean things were smooth, or that there were no discouragements.  It means that he knew he was where he was supposed to be, doing what he was supposed to be doing.  He was looking past people and circumstances and unto the Lord.
2 Samuel 5:13  And David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, after he had come from Hebron. Also more sons and daughters were born to David.
2 Samuel 5:14  Now these are the names of those who were born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon,
2 Samuel 5:15  Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia,
2 Samuel 5:16  Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet.

We’re not too excited about this.  God had instructed His kings in the Book of Deuteronomy to not multiply wives to themselves.  David totally ignored this from the very beginning of his adult life.

It was customary in those days for a king to have many wives.  A lot of them were the daughters of foreign rulers and helped cement treaties and such.  But God wanted His kings to be separate from that pagan practice.

What you have here, then, is an enemy stronghold under construction in David’s life.  It would eventually be his undoing as he would take not just another wife but another man’s wife.  The adultery he would commit with Bathsheeba would lead to the murder of her husband.

It sort of illustrates what we’ve been talking about.  Even in the midst of a Christian’s life there can be evil or enemy strongholds.  Jesus is Lord… But He may not be lord of all.

God’s Word is a mirror.  We look into it, see ourselves as He sees us, with the understanding that we want to ‘look’ more like Jesus when we’re done.

If the Lord has revealed to you some area in which you are being repelled by the blind and the lame, see them as they really are, become repulsed by them, and walk in the power of the Cross and resurrection of Jesus.

Mercy In The Orient Expressed (2 Samuel 4v1-12)

TEXT: 2 SAMUEL 4.1-12

TOPIC: DAVID IS UPSET BY EVIDENCE OF THE MURDER OF ISHBOSHETH BECAUSE HE INTENDED TO EXPRESS MERCY TO THE DESCENDANTS OF SAUL

TITLE: MERCY IN THE ORIENT EXPRESSED

Introduction

Every four or eight years, when we elect a new president, there is a smooth transfer of power from one administration to the next.  The outgoing gang might go so far as to remove all the ‘W’s’ from the computer keyboards, but that’s about it.

In our text a not-so-smooth change of administration was occurring in Israel.  David was king over Judah in the south while Ishbosheth, Saul’s heir, ruled the northern tribes.  The commander of the northern forces, Abner, had defected to David, offering to help him unite Israel.  Abner was then murdered by David’s commander, Joab.  Two of Ishbosheth’s commanders next murdered him and brought his head to David.

Murders like these were the usual prerequisites to a change in administration in biblical times.  The new king wanted to eliminate any heirs to the throne.

It was a big moment in David’s administration.  It provided an opportunity for him to show what kind of policies he would enforce.

In his reaction to Abner’s murder in chapter three, and now to Ishbosheth’s in chapter four, we see that David preferred mercy over murder – a thing unheard of in those days.

I’m going to suggest that ‘those days’ continue right up to our present time.  I’ll show you that the world in which we live is administrated by a murderer.  It gives us opportunity to show mercy.

I’ll organize my thoughts around two points:  #1 The World In Which You Live Is Administrated By A Murderer, and #2 The Life Which You Are To Live Is Administrated By Mercy.

#1    The World In Which You Live
Is Administered By A Murderer
(v1-7)

I don’t want to get too far off track talking about the devil but the Bible tells us that he is the ruler of this world (John 12:31, 14:31) and the god of this world (2Corinthians 4:4).  Jesus once described him as “a murderer from the beginning” (John 8:44).  He was probably referring to Satan’s part in the first murder, when Cain is described as being “of the wicked one [Satan]” in the killing his brother, Abel (1John 3:12).

Or perhaps Jesus was referring to the fact that in tempting Adam and Eve to sin in the Garden of Eden Satan was ensuring the death of every human being born from them.  He knew that the wages of sin is death.  He’s the world’s first mass murderer.

Since the ruler and god of this world is a murderer, we can expect ‘murder’ to be one of his policies.  Given the opportunity, we’re talking actual murder, e.g., in Nazi Germany as Hitler and Himmler were deeply affected by satanic influences as they carried-out the Holocaust.

Even if he can’t literally kill you, the devil still administrates by murder.  It’s still his philosophy.  Look around and see how many lives his policies have destroyed, how many marriages have imploded, how much hatred and strife are sown in the world by those taken captive by him to do his will.

At first it might sound extreme, but it’s true.  The world in which we live is administrated by a murderer and it affects every one of us.

Verses one through eight of our text are a typical slice of life from a world characterized by murder.

2 Samuel 4:1  When Saul’s son [Ishbosheth] heard that Abner had died in Hebron, he lost heart, and all Israel was troubled.

Ishbosheth never ought to have been king in the first place.  Everyone in Israel knew that Samuel the prophet had anointed David to rule after Saul’s death.  Ishbosheth allowed Abner to pressure him into succeeding his father against God’s will.

It was the way of the world, you see, to succeed your father.  It’s what all the kings and kingdoms did.  But it wasn’t God’s way – not for Israel.  Abner and Ishbosheth, in a philosophical sense, ‘murdered’ what God was wanting to do.  Thus murder would play a big part in their reign over the north.

For example: A civil war had been raging for the past seven years and many good men on both sides had died.

The policies of murder would catch-up with Ishbosheth.

2 Samuel 4:2  Now Saul’s son had two men who were captains of troops. The name of one was Baanah and the name of the other Rechab, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, of the children of Benjamin. (For Beeroth also was part of Benjamin,
2 Samuel 4:3  because the Beerothites fled to Gittaim and have been sojourners there until this day.)

(Please skip to verse five for a moment).

2 Samuel 4:5  Then the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, set out and came at about the heat of the day to the house of Ishbosheth, who was lying on his bed at noon.
2 Samuel 4:6  And they came there, all the way into the house, as though to get wheat, and they stabbed him in the stomach. Then Rechab and Baanah his brother escaped.
2 Samuel 4:7  For when they came into the house, he was lying on his bed in his bedroom; then they struck him and killed him, beheaded him and took his head, and were all night escaping through the plain.

There’s a line of dialog in one of the Godfather movies that sums up this scene and the point I’m making.  It goes like this: “If anything in this life is certain, if history has taught us anything, it is that you can kill anyone.”

That pretty much sums up human history!

Now let’s look at verse four.

2 Samuel 4:4  Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son who was lame in his feet. He was five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel; and his nurse took him up and fled. And it happened, as she made haste to flee, that he fell and became lame. His name was Mephibosheth.

The writer inserts this history here because he’s dealing with this whole idea of how kings succeeded one another by murder.  Back when Saul fell on his sword and died, and Israel was defeated by the Philistines, it was reasonable for the nurse to fear that they would come and murder Saul’s heirs.  It was the common practice, the cultural norm, of that day.  Mephibosheth’s life was spared, but his nurse caused him to be crippled.

When murder is the policy, the underlying philosophy, lives are ruined and destroyed in many ways.

The Rolling Stones have a song, Sympathy for the Devil.  It promotes the idea that Satan is, in fact, a murderer behind much of the world’s suffering.

Here’s a line from it:

I stuck around St. Petersburg when I saw it was time for a change
Killed the czar and his ministers, Anastasia screamed in vain
I rode a tank, held a general’s rank
When the blitzkrieg raged, and the bodies stank

It’s not theology but it shows a keen insight into human history.
But it isn’t just history in the big, broad strokes.  The policies of murder permeate our everyday lives and interactions.  We wrestle not against flesh and blood, after all, but “against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).  At home, at work, in school, even in the church, we as Christians will be confronted with those who prefer murder on some scale.  We must reply in a way that is consistent with Christ.

John Wesley once said, “They that are bound for Heaven must be willing to swim against the stream, and must do, not as most do, but as the best do.”

The best live by mercy.

#2    The Life Which You Are To Live
Is Administrated By Mercy
(v8-12)

David decided to swim against the stream.

2 Samuel 4:8  And they brought the head of Ishbosheth to David at Hebron, and said to the king, “Here is the head of Ishbosheth, the son of Saul your enemy, who sought your life; and the Lord has avenged my lord the king this day of Saul and his descendants.”

Recently four bodies were thrown on a sidewalk along a service road of radiator shops and garages abutting the main highway leading from Mexico’s capital through Cuernavaca to the south and on to Acapulco, the Pacific beach resort.  One of the bodies was missing its head.  Centuries may have passed since beheading was common but given the right circumstances we, as a race, default to it.

The truly sad thing about bringing Ishbosheth’s head to David is the fact it was the norm.  These guys thought David would richly reward them.

2 Samuel 4:9  But David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said to them, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my life from all adversity,
2 Samuel 4:10  when someone told me, saying, ‘Look, Saul is dead,’ thinking to have brought good news, I arrested him and had him executed in Ziklag – the one who thought I would give him a reward for his news.
2 Samuel 4:11  How much more, when wicked men have killed a righteous person in his own house on his bed? Therefore, shall I not now require his blood at your hand and remove you from the earth?”

David had already established a policy of mercy over murder when he had heard of Saul’s death.  But murder as a policy, as a philosophy, as a way of life, was so ingrained that these guys didn’t understand mercy.

2 Samuel 4:12  So David commanded his young men, and they executed them, cut off their hands and feet, and hanged them by the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ishbosheth and buried it in the tomb of Abner in Hebron.

It may sound like a contradiction to ascribe to David mercy while he’s having these guys executed and their bodies mutilated.  Even where mercy is the rule, justice must be carried out.  These guys were actual murderers.  The penalty was death and the “eye for an eye” thing was still in force, still part of the Law of Moses that held sway.

David would not have killed Ishbosheth.  We know that because in just a few chapters he will seek-out Mephibosheth, not to kill him, but to show him mercy.  He will invite him to sit at his table.  David will care for him all the days of his life.  He will not give him what he deserved in their society.

You might think, “So what, he was a cripple and therefore no challenge.”  Not true!  Ishbosheth was installed as king by Abner, who was the real power, simply because he was an heir.  Someone could have used Mephibosheth as a figure head the same way to try to overthrow David.

History and culture and custom and, to a certain extent, even logic dictated that David send executioners to seek and destroy Mephibosheth.  It would not have been unlawful.  It was expected.  To do anything less might even make David appear weak to those he was getting ready to rule over.

I mean, who wants a king who won’t murder his rivals?

David had to have a lot of strength to swim upstream in this situation.  But right from the beginning of his rule he established that mercy, not murder, would characterize his administration.  It was David at his best.

Dog-eat-dog.  It’s a jungle out there.  The rat race.  Survival of the fittest.  It’s every man for himself.

We say things like that without even thinking about them.  They represent life as if it were a life-and-death competition in which one person is going to not only defeat but also destroy the other.

Some of you intellectuals have heard of Niccolò Machiavelli.  If you haven’t heard of him, you’ve been confused if you’ve ever heard someone refer to something, especially in politics, as being “very Maciavellian.”

He lived in the early 1500’s.  He’s most famous for his book, The Prince.  That book (and I quote),

… concentrates on the possibility of a “new prince,” rather than the more traditional subject of an hereditary prince.  To retain power, the hereditary prince must carefully maintain the socio-political institutions to which the people are accustomed; whereas a new prince has the more difficult task in ruling, since he must first stabilize his new-found power in order to build an enduring political structure.  That requires the prince being concerned with reputation but also being willing to act immorally.  As a political scientist, Machiavelli emphasizes the occasional need for the methodical exercise of brute force…

It’s the devil’s philosophy.  Murder if you must, if you can.

David swam upstream.  So can you and I.  We are going to find ourselves in one of two positions:

Either we are the ones in charge of administrating,
Or we are serving under some administration.

Either way we are called upon to show mercy in the face of murder.  In short, we are to act and react based upon the grace and mercy shown to us by the Lord, Jesus Christ.

One of the things that means, one of the ways we do that, is by not always demanding our rights.  I heard a pastor say once in his sermon, “Jesus didn’t die for your rights.  He died for your wrongs!”  It was his way of focusing on the fact we who are saved were once in danger of perishing eternally.  When we were yet sinners, the enemies of God, deserving of death and Hell, Jesus came and died for our sins.  He set aside His rights to Heaven and submitted to His Father and came and was humiliated in order to purchase us out from death and sin.

If Jesus hadn’t, in a sense, given up His rights we would still all be in our wrongs – lost, dying, perishing.

I’ve said all this to make one very simple point.  Your life exists in a context of murder.  There are forces, elements, that want to destroy your life.  At every turn you can join with that flow, or you can go against it by showing the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ.

I think we sometimes forget that biblical Christianity is lived-out in the context of small, everyday situations and circumstances that give us the opportunity to reveal Christ.

We need to get over thinking that things like love, grace, mercy, kindness, and patience show weakness.  No, they show the incredible strength of the indwelling presence of Jesus Christ.

The world doesn’t need another Machiavelli.  It needs to see its Messiah.

If you need some help, some encouragement, to go against the flow, you can find it in something David said in verse nine.  He said, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my life from all adversity…”  He’ll say this again towards the end of his life so that tells me it was a kind of philosophy he lived by.

His statement tells us to expect “adversity” as we travel the path of our lives.  Sometimes it will be pretty serious, pretty severe, because the only way out is to be “redeemed,” which means rescued or ransomed.   People who need rescuing or ransoming are in real trouble!
But we know that all things work together for the good for them that love the Lord and are the called according to His purposes.  We know that He who began a good work in us will complete it until the day we go to be with Jesus.

The first “adversity” the Lord redeems from is the wages of death, which is sin.  He’s saved the human race by taking our place as a Substitute and dying as a once-for-all Sacrifice for sin.

Have you been redeemed?  Are you saved?

If you are, He will also redeem your life from all adversity.  It may be intense at times, but He will see you through it until He sees you face-to-face.