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“Otherwise it shall come to pass, when my lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders.” (1Ki 1:21 AV)

 

These are the words of Bathsheba.  She is concerned with Adonijah.  Adonijah is David’s eldest living son.  With help from some of David’s administration, he assumes the throne in David’s stead.  David is elderly and weak and never anointed Solomon to take his place.  These words are spoken to David.  Bathsheba was not so much concerned with who would be serving as King as she was the safety of herself and Solomon.  She knew if Adonijah was to take the throne, Solomon and Bathsheba would be perceived as a threat even if they were not.  Their very existence was a threat to him.  The point is very clear.  The disobedient or wicked will always see the righteous as a threat.  The very existence of the righteous is a threat to the wicked even if they did nothing.  We want to be accepted and affirmed.  But the saints will never be accepted or affirmed in the eyes of the wicked.

I don’t normally do this because the purpose of this blog is not apologetic.  It is not my intention to call down saints with whom I disagree.  And, my following comments are not intended for that purpose.  Referencing the following is merely an example of that to which I am referring.  A “Christian” author and apologist was recently interviewed and stated the present state of animosity of the LGBTQ community towards evangelicals can be traced back to our response to their lifestyle during the 80s and 90s.   Tim Keller comments that states if we were more kind and welcoming to this community, the animosity would not exist.  I beg to differ.  He further states that when the world persecutes the believer for his stand against same-gender relationships, whatever comes his or her way was earned by the improper response to the sin of this community.  I find it ironic a man who professes to believe if Jesus Christ would even assert such a thing.  The founder of our faith did nothing but good works and sacrificed His life for all of humanity.  Yet they killed Him on a cruel cross!  What was His crime?  Healing the blind.  Giving sound back to the deaf or strength back to the lame?  Giving life back to the dead?  He confronted the self-righteous.  He confronted the adulterer with her sin.  He confronted the weak in faith.  He did so to give them the answer to their circumstances.  And what did He get?  Torture and agony.

The truth is simple.  Those who hate God and His righteousness do not want those who love God around.  Even if we are to hide in caves and leave the rest of the world alone, they would still see our existence and a threat.  We could, and often do, offer no resistance to the wickedness of the world.  We step aside and do not hinder much of the world's sin.  We may do what we can legally.  But by and large, outside of voicing God’s word, we honor individual soul liberty.  We do not run the government.  We don’t even run the schools.  However, the very existence of a church building or those who attend is a treat.  It is high time we as believers wake up to the fact no compromise could turn the relationship between God’s people and the devil’s people into a giant love fest.  It simply is not going to happen.  We are to reach them by loving them without any expectation of love in return.  The simple fact we are here is uncomfortable.  Our job is not to be loved.  Our job is to represent the interests of God’s amazing grace for the lost.  But remember, deep down in their heart, your presence is a threat and that will never change.  We have to find the means of overcoming this without trying to change this.  To do so is the compromise.

Come Out From Under The Blanket

“For thou art my lamp, O LORD: and the LORD will lighten my darkness.” (2Sa 22:29 AV)

 

This is spoken by David the king after the LORD had given him rest from all his enemies.  David had a hard life.  It started at seventeen years of age.  He was anointed to be king in the stead of a king, Saul, who was in rebellion against God.  Saul, instructed to wait on the man of God, decided to offer a sacrifice for which he was not authorized.  This choice started a string of choices wherein Saul did his own thing.  God sent the man of God to David who would anoint him to be king upon Saul’s death.  However, Saul pursued the life of David for thirteen or so years.  During those years, David fought numerous enemies of the nation of Israel.  Upon taking the throne, David continued to fight battles with those who were a threat to Israel.  Add to that the rebellion of Absalom, the betrayal of Ahithophel, the initial rejection of the ten tribes in bringing David back, Shimei the Benjamite who harassed David, and Joab, his military captain who disobeyed a direct order and killed the king’s son.  David’s life was full of adversity.  David had many dark days.  However, it was his walk with God that lightened those otherwise desperate days.

Light is a funny thing.  Light has to be let in.  For light to have its effect, that which it is trying to effect must receive it.  Otherwise, the light has no benefit.  It’s funny how children react while lying in bed, scared of something that isn’t there.  They bury themselves in their sheets and blankets expecting the absence of light to shut out the threat.  As long as it cannot be seen, then it must not be a real threat.  The boogeyman is under the bed.  But if he covers his head with the blanket, it keeps the boogeyman away.  If there is a monster in the closet, as long as he is cuddled up in a ball under the blankets and pillows, the monster in the closet cannot come and get him.  He hides from the light needed to see the threat is not as big as he first suspected.  He needs the light to see the threat may not be real at all.  Yet, there he is, calling out to Mother to come and rescue him from something he cannot, or will not see.

When we are overwhelmed, we tend to be turtles.  We tend to regress into our shells.  Our flight instinct kicks in and we forget the LORD is bigger than whatever it is we are facing.  The light of God’s word, presence, and power is far and above greater than that which overwhelms us.  The thing is, light has to be let in.  Light cannot bend around corners.  That is, it cannot naturally bend around corners.  Light cannot pierce through a solid object of mean thickness.  Light has properties that it must conform to and in order for you and me to reap the benefits of light, we have to learn its nature and apply it accordingly.  The same is true of the light of God.  The light of God has properties.  One of which God’s light responds to faith.  Where there is no faith, there is no light.  One must believe the light to be there to see it.  Gratitude is another principle that guides light.  Even if we have faith, if gratitude is in short supply, so might God’s light be.  Another influence that can determine God’s light is obedience.  He will not provide light if we are going in the wrong direction.  All this is true, but the one idea we want to see is the hope and joy in David’s voice.  He knows, by the experiences of life, no matter the situation, God’s light will pierce the emotional, spiritual, or physical darkness which surrounds him.  Like a beam of light shooting through a dark room, God’s light goes directly to the problem.  It is that light that gives us hope and peace in difficult situations.

No Right To Grace

“For all of my father’s house were but dead men before my lord the king: yet didst thou set thy servant among them that did eat at thine own table. What right therefore have I yet to cry any more unto the king?” (2Sa 19:28 AV)

 

The one speaking here is a son of Jonathan whose name is Mephibosheth. The record here is a bit complicated but stick with it.  David’s best friend, Jonathan, made a covenant with David that when David rose to the throne, the king would show grace and mercy towards Jonathan and his descendants for the support Jonathan showed towards David.  When Saul, king of Israel, and his son Jonathan were lost in battle, David sought someone from the house of Jonathan to whom he might show favor.  David enquires after any and all descendants of the house of Jonathan and Mephibosheth is found.  Mephibosheth is placed in the royal palace and his every need is tended to as a show of grace from David to the house of Jonathan.  Forty or so years later, David finds himself fleeing from Absalom, his son.  While in flight, Ziba the servant and husbandman of Mephibosheth’s fields finds David and feeds him a lie that Mephibosheth allied himself with Absalom in hopes of regaining the throne for the house of Saul.  This results in bestowing all properties, possessions, and standing belonging to Mephibosheth upon Ziba.  Upon Absalom’s death, David returns to Jerusalem and the royal palace.  He confronts Mephibosheth over what Ziba had told him.  Upon learning the truth, the above scripture is Mephosheth’s response to David’s restoration of all things to him.

When we consider Mephibosheth’s question and the wrong he suffered, the question comes off as even more impressive.  He was a man, lame on his feet, whose only weakness was the family in which he was born.  He was at a disadvantage because he was born into the house of Saul – a sworn enemy of David.  He was born with the inability to make a living.  He was lame on his feet.  And he had a steward of his own tribe (probably a close relative) who manipulated David out of his inheritance.  If anything, Mephibosheth was the victim here.  If I was he, I would feel entitled to full restoration of all that was lost to my steward and a decision of justice placed upon him for his deception.  But that is not how Mephibosheth reacted.  In fact, if one were to read further, Mephibosheth was content simply to have the return of his father’s best friend to the throne.  He needed nor required no more than the presence of the dearest one he had ever known.  That was sufficient for him.

We live in an ungrateful and presumptuous generation.  We complain about the littlest matters.  We think we deserve better than we have.  Somehow, we feel victimized no matter how small or great the offense.  We cry and whine because life isn’t the way we want it and if we ever did have it the way we want it, we would discover it wasn’t what we thought it would be and whine again.  The true meaning of grace eludes us.  We cannot see how gracious God has been to us and we think life has to change.  This cripple was more grateful after losing everything and gaining nothing than we are when we suffer much less.  We make demands of others, and from God, and feel justified in doing so.  What tickles me is if we gave those who whine all they wanted, they probably wouldn’t want it once they had it.  Mephibosheth’s question, although rhetorical, is a good one.  What right do we have to be ungrateful towards anything or everything God has done for us?  We have no right.  God doesn’t serve us.  We serve Him.  We need to learn to appreciate the grace of God before His grace is forever removed.

People Prefer Lamps Over Candles

“The light of the righteous rejoiceth: but the lamp of the wicked shall be put out.” (Pr 13:9 AV)

 

This proverb is a bit confusing until you realize the two halves cannot be separated.  Note there is the light of the righteous and the lamp of the wicked.  The lamp is giving light but is put out.  The light of the righteous is rejoicing.  So, what is going on here?  Commentators somewhat agree on the overall principle but disagree on the more specific application.  The controversy surrounds the definition of light and to whom this light appears to rejoice.  So, I will put my spin on it.  What I believe the king is trying to show his children is the light of the righteous will rejoice those who are affected by it while the light, or the lamp, of the wicked, will be rejected.  In other words, the light (or joy) which the life of the righteous will bring to others keeps is burning while the quality of life which the wicked bring only causes those affected by it to reject that quality of life.

Many of us have lost power in our homes.  In such a time, we scramble for flashlights.  If the power stays off for too long, we light candles or oil lamps.  At first, this lesser light is charming.  It is better than no light at all.  Many years ago, in the state and region where I lived, we had an ice storm.  The result of that ice storm was thirteen days without power.  We fled to my in-laws who had a log cabin in the woods.  They have a wood-burning stove.  We were able to take sponge baths, heat as well as cook by the stove, and we lit candles as the sun dipped below the mountains.  It was a bit rustic, but we were no worse for the wear.  Our sons thought it was awesome.  No baths for a week.  They could play out in the woods as long as they wanted.  BB guns, four-wheelers, and playing in the dirt and mud were regular events.  It was like we were on a week-long camping trip.  There were candles everywhere.  The flickering of the flame cast a warm shadow on the walls and ceiling.  As we drifted off to sleep, it was the light cast by the open flame of the wood-burning stove that led us into slumber.  Not a bad life.  But something happened.  The power came back on.  We were never happier to trade the candles for a light switch.  Incandescent bulbs over wax.  We traveled back home and flipped on the switch.  WE HAD POWER!  The brightness of the light was far superior to the dimness of the candle.  We rejoiced at the light of the lamp over the flicker of the flame.

This is the meaning here.  The benefit of the wicked to the people around them is far inferior to the benefit of the righteous.  We may have to endure the lamp of the wicked.  But if we had a choice, we would prefer the light of the righteous.  Solomon is trying to show his children that if they are to have an impact on others and be a blessing to them, a righteous life is far superior to a wicked one.  In fact, one could go even further and apply it to the source of illumination.  If the light bearer wishes to have company, righteousness is always superior to wickedness.  If I am a wicked person and people have a choice to keep company with me or someone who walks in righteousness, I do believe I would be a very lonely person.  Our lives and actions determine in large part how great a company we keep.  The more we walk with God, the greater the company.  The less we walk with God, the less our company.  If we desire others to be a blessing to us, then we must give them a reason to rejoice.  That would be by our righteousness.

For His Glory First - For our Pleasure Last

"For thy word’s sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou done all these great things, to make thy servant know them.” (2Sa 7:21 AV)

 

The great things of which David speaks is the establishment of his throne to himself, Solomon, and their progeny, as well as giving David a royal palace.  These blessings bestowed by God upon David were in response to David’s heart.  David saw the ark of God of which he had just rescued from the Philistines resting in the tent of the tabernacle.  David looked around him and saw the royalty of his neighbors in the lavish homes.  He noticed the temples built for the false gods of the area.  He looked upon the tent in which the ark dwelt and thought the God of all the universe deserved a house of splendor greater than anything the world could produce.  David was not disillusioned with the tabernacle.  His heart was truly set on building a house for the LORD worthy of the glory due to His name.  This, the LORD approved of.  But not by the hands of the king whose job it was to conquer the enemy.  David’s hands were bloody with the blood of war.  It would be his son, Solomon who would build it.  However, what the LORD did do was bless David’s heart and intent by giving him a perpetual throne and palace.  However, what we want to notice in particular is David’s understanding of why God gave that blessing.  It wasn’t first and foremost to reward David for his heart.  The blessing came first and foremost that God might be seen as faithful and worthy of our trust.  It was given first and foremost for the glory of God and not for the pleasure of David.

How we receive a gift and what we do with it tells a lot about our maturity level.  How a child receives a gift and how a mature adult receives one is vastly different.  At Christmas time, families sit around the tree and open gifts.  The child will rip open the package and release its contents.  He will begin to play with it as long as playing with it is the most fun available.  If there is another gift waiting to be opened, the anticipation of what it might be is greater than the pleasure from the gift just opened.  When all the gifts are opened, those that please him the most are the ones to which he dedicates his time and imagination.  These blessings, in his mind, were bestowed upon him from someone who loves him for the purpose of his own pleasure.  However, as we age we tend to receive different kinds of gifts because they mean something entirely different.  Let me give you an example.

There is a type of sock worn by younger adults that are fashion statements. It takes argyle to a whole new level.  Like out of the universe level.  Argyle socks are socks with diamond patterns.  Large diamond patterns.  They are complimentary.  Most socks are solid colors.  The newest style is bold and unique patterns.  Polka dots.  Large stripes.  Repeating silhouettes.  That type of thing.  My father-in-law calls them clown socks.  That just about it.  These socks are socks that Ringling Brothers clowns wore under the big top.  You know the kind.  Anyway, my oldest grandson, who was four at the time, picked out these clown socks for me for Christmas.  One pair is grey with black stripes and blue dog silhouettes.  Another pair are black with large white polka dots.  Still, a third pair is that same grey with different color stripes.  When I wear a suit with those colors in them, I wear those socks.  Normally, you would not catch me ever wearing this type of sock.  They are highly inappropriate for someone approaching their sixties.  One might think me a bit eccentric and ready for the retirement home.  But I wear them.  Why?  Because we live stream and I know his parents watch from time to time.  Every time I wear those socks I do so to display my grandson Titus’ love for his pawpa.  It is to brag on him.  Not because it pleases me.  If I were to buy those socks on my own, I would be embarrassed.  But I am not.  Why?  Because I get to tell the world how much my grandson loves me.

When we receive blessings from God, how we view those blessings and for what purpose we use them tells a lot.  God has given the gift of life.  Do we use that life to glorify Him?  That is why He gave it.  We have received the blessing of salvation.  Do we use it to consume the results of salvation for our own pleasure?  Do we consume the blessing of peace of mind?  We receive the fellowship of the saints as a blessing from God.  Do we use our assembly as a means to glorify God and be a blessing to others?  Or, do we see the assembling of ourselves and nothing more than something that pleases us?  God has bestowed these blessings first and foremost for His glory.  He gives gifts that they might bless others.  Our pleasure derived from them may be a result, but it is not the primary purpose.  They are all for His glory.

Hebron is Coming

“And unto David were sons born in Hebron: and his firstborn was Amnon, of Ahinoam the Jezreelitess;” (2Sa 3:2 AV)

 

It just goes to show how much stress plays a part in barrenness.  David married Saul’s daughter, Michal.  She helped him escape the threats of her father, Saul.  But then she lied about it and Saul gave her away to a friend of David’s as his wife.  He was a bachelor, on the run from his own father-in-law.  He ran from Saul for thirteen years.  Five years before Saul would die, leaving the throne to David, David married Ahinoam and Abigail.  For five years David and his family, along with 600 other men and their families, traveled from place to place in fear of their lives.  What was particularly interesting to me was David’s firstborn, Amnon, did not come along until David was established in Hebron as the reigning king of Israel.  The entire five years of his marriage to Ahinoam and Abigail, there were no children born to David.  It was a great time of stress and uncertainty.  It was a time of trouble.  It was a time of unpredictability.  It was a time of anxiety.  During those times, there was no fruit.  No increase.  No future is established by the actions of the present.  As long as the people of God are under great times of trouble, they risk the reality of bareness.

When circumstances overwhelm the soul, planning and hope usually go by the wayside.  We are merely trying to survive.  I remember back in the ‘70s, China had loaned two giant pandas to the United States as a diplomatic gesture.  Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing arrived at the national zoo in Washington DC.  It was speculated they would breed and produce the first American-born panda ever.  However, this never materialized. Together, this pair produced five cubs.  None of them survived.  After this pair died, two more giant pandas were loaned to the National Zoo.  Mei Xiang (female) and Tian Tian (male) arrived in 2000.  It would be five years and several attempts at pregnancy before Mei Xiang gave birth to the first surviving giant panda born on US soil.  The process of panda breeding is extremely complicated.  They are an endangered species for a reason.  Even in the wild, they do not reproduce nearly as prolifically as their cousins like the black or brown bear.  There is a small window of 36 hours once a year where a female can become pregnant.  If mating does not occur, the female must wait an entire year before another small window opens.  Add to the complications of natural breeding of the panda the stress captivity would bring, and once can see how nearly impossible it would be for two giant pandas to naturally conceive in captivity.  However, for the species to survive, it must adapt to adverse conditions and continue.

To say 2020 was a rough year is an understatement.  This is also true of churches.  Financially most of us are doing well.  The LORD has provided our needs and God’s people have remained faithful in supporting their ministry.  Where we are finding it challenging is building back what has been lost and increasing on what once was.  We are under a great deal of stress.  We have anxiety over what the future might hold.  Fishing for prospects or first-time visitors is getting impossible only because our entire culture has been scared into meeting with other people.  This will pass.  As the fear abates, there will be opportunity.  We should not be discouraged because there is a temporary lull in church growth or salvation decisions.  This is natural.  David and his two wives did not bear children while they were running for their lives.  They survived.  They went from one day to the next.  They were more concerned with their next meal than they were with the next generation.  But it won’t always be that way.  Just around the corner is our Hebron.  Just around the corner is the rest we have been waiting for.  Just around the corner are the times of bearing fruit.  They may not last long.  There may be a new set of circumstances that makes bearing fruit impossible.  These things go in cycles.  We merely have to remember there are fruitful times ahead and reason to be encouraged.  Hebron is coming.

Defeat is not Permanent

"And they cut off his head, and stripped off his armour, and sent into the land of the Philistines round about, to publish it in the house of their idols, and among the people.” (1Sa 31:9 AV)

 

Saul and his sons were killed in battle with the Philistines.  In response to their victory, they beheaded the royal family and exhibited their remains as a way to embarrass the rest of Israel.  When the battle turned against Israel they fled every one to his home.  The cities which were under siege were taken by the Philistines and occupied.  If I am Israel, I would be sorely discouraged that the remains of my king and his family are hung on a wall being eaten by scavengers and their heads displayed in the temple of a false god.  I would be extremely ashamed.  If my leader was laid out in open shame, I think I might want to hide as well.  The laying out of the remains of the king and his sons was more than a declaration of victory.  It was taunting.  It was a flaunting of their success and Israel’s failure.  It was meant to imply God was no longer with them and the Philistines were the superior nation.  What they failed to consider, and a fact they knew, was David waited in the wings to take that throne.  Israel’s defeat and the Philistines' success were only temporary.

March madness is soon upon us.  A time when Men’s college basketball squares off to determine who the best college team in the nation might be crowned.  This past weekend was championship weekend.  At least for several conferences.  We sat and watch the second half of a minor conference championship game.  I cannot remember the two teams.  In fact, we tuned in the last thirty seconds of the game.  There was a three-point difference.  With twenty-seven seconds left, the losing team drove the court, and with one point seven seconds left, shot and made a three-pointer.  There was an immediate time-out called.  Then another.  Then another.  Over that time, the broadcast scanned to the team that had just scored to send this game into eminent overtime.  They zoomed in on the player who made the shot.  They showed other players congratulating him.  They panned in on the coaching staff devising what overtime would look like.  They showed the team that had just made that shot jumping up and down in anticipation of another five minutes of play.  The problem was, there were still 1.7 seconds left.  Something told me they were celebrating a bit too prematurely.  The time remaining was as minimal as it could be.  I was not blaming them for thinking the game was going into overtime.  The thing is, there were still 1.7 seconds left on the clock.  The team that had led inbounded the ball with only two seconds left on the ten-second countdown.  The pass was a slow bounce pass.  It went to the best shooter who received the pass at half court, dribbled once, and threw the ball up one-handed.  The shot hit the backboard and went in.  Defeat was only temporary.  Failure was only temporary.

Over the ensuing years, if the LORD tarries, things may feel like God’s side is losing.  We may lose more and more of the ability to practice our faith as we once did.  The world may strive to make us feel embarrassed over who and what we are.  They may take away more and more liberty.  They may insist we accept their definitions of morality or righteousness even if the Bible is clearly contrary.  We know this to be true.  Peter tells us persecution is normal.  It is part and parcel of being a child of God.  There is nothing that will ever change.  That is until Jesus comes.  Like David waiting in the wings, our LORD and Savior is waiting for our Heavenly Father to say the time is up.  The time for His return is now.  We are waiting for our King of Kings to come to avenge the blood of the elect.  Until then, we have to deal with defeat.  But defeat is not permanent.  It is only temporary.