Welcome back everyone. We are now over the half-way point. We are getting ready to move into 2 Samuel tomorrow and very soon we'll be following the life of David as king. I love these two books and I hope you are enjoying this as well.
Today's readings come from 1 Samuel 29-30
Chapter 29:When everything was said and done, the Philistines don't trust David. It doesn't matter how much he has fought along side of them or proven his loyalty to the king, the commanders fear David will turn on them. I'm sure there are many lessons that could be extracted from this point, but the more I think about, the more I can't blame them for refusing to let David go to battle with them. An interesting contrast appears here with the love King Achish has for David and the lack of love Saul has for him. It is supposed to be the other way around.
Chapter 30:
Two things stick out to me from this chapter. First, David's men want to stone him because their possessions and families have been taken from them. Nowhere in the text does it indicate that it is David's fault, but so often what happens is that the one he in leadership, in charge, gets the blame when things don't go well. They also often get all the credit when things do go well, even though that is probably undeserved as well. Second, the immediate move toward greed by the soldiers who went to fight against the ones who stayed behind. Which one would you have been, like David or the men? I think that is a hard answer because I could easily see myself wanting to punish the ones who didn't go fight. David exemplifies great leadership here by setting the men straight and the Scripture's say that the rule still applied the day in which Samuel was wrote.
Those are some of my observations, what were yours? Btw, this was my 300 blog post since starting last year -- I can't believe I'm stilling doing it.
brucks
ReplyDeleteMy biggest take away or thinking point was about the oath asked of David by the egyptian found in the field.
All the man needed was his word....oh how we lack that in the general society...but even in the church it seems...like everyone requires a form...every one requires a contract...it is sad to see that our words have come to be almost meaningless b/c of our actions...that now we need legal papers to prove that we are a man/woman of our word!
There are times in our lives that the world will not recognize our faithfulness. So we have to step aside and not prove our worth to them....God will do that.
ReplyDeleteNotice that by the commanders' voices David had to leave. Yet, this disdain sent David on an important journey that led him back to Ziklag....hmmm a rejection turned out to be a road for redemption of God's people.
Here in Chapter 30 is a great tie in to Erik's message Sunday. David would not allow jealousy to rise up in the family ( church ), instead he spread the wealth ( spoils ) to not only those present, but those scattered throughout all the towns David had a part of his life in.
What a testimony.....even those who stayed behind and held the baggage ( the little toes ) had a part in winning that battle. And the whole group ( church ) should be able to rejoice in the victory!
Take away one...the world can reject us, but God has a plan.
Take away two....Everyone in the church has a part and we should learn to rejoice together regardless of our participation levels.
I am proud to see David has learned from his many lessons on revenge. He asks permission from God first!I was struck by the grace of God.How merciful God is to have intervened on David's behalf where he didn't have to personally put his hand against Saul and his Best Friend Jonathan.
ReplyDeleteEvery job in the christian community is important. A prayer warrior or a nursery worker might be considered someone who "stays by the stuff" and their reward is no greater and no less than the person knocking on doors,teaching a bible study or preaching from the pulpit.
I like how the principles of the new testement where Paul wrote about the body of Christ are shown in action here in the story of David and the battle against the Amalakites.
I love vs.6 where even though David was distressed, he encouraged himself in the Lord.
It reminds me of one of my favorite passages from IICor.4 "We are troubled on every side, but not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair,Persecuted, but not forsaken;cast down,but not destroyed"
I love those passages;makes me cry sometimes to think of it. David could easily have written the same verses especially where it says ALL things were for your sakes for the abundant grace through the thanksgiving of many rebound to the Glory of God...our inward man is renewed day by day"
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ReplyDeleteBad move! I don’t like that strategy of keeping David away and out of the Philistine army. I’m of the thought keep your friends close and your enemies closer, even if the other leaders didn’t trust him! I know Achish had others to answer to, but if I had this dude on my team I’m thinking I’d push a little harder to keep him?!
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It is no surprise to me some men did not feel like sharing after they fought diligently to acquire their plunder. However, God never runs out, so although I understand their attitude, I don’t agree with it. We have limitations on our resources, but God has NO limitations. The one thing the Lord has taught me is that life is about giving. It hurts my heart to see people who are bound by selfishness. And I say “bound” because they are not free to experience all the blessings that come with giving and sharing.
Also, if any of the “evil” men were not physically able to fight to retrieve their families, how awful would it be to have a dependency on others to fight on their behalf? I don’t think these men were just kick’n it with the lives of their wives and children on the line.
Everything in life comes out in the wash. Even if you don’t get paid back, the person you give to could pay forward your generosity and that could create even better results in a greater picture than a tit for tat exchange. I’m glad David made it clear that the LORD provided for them and it was not THEIRS to decide what to do with. Rock on, David.
David had begun living, acting, and fighting for the ungodly. God knew the only way to bring David back to Him was to allow him to hit bottom. David lost everything and was in danger of losing his life. David finally realized he could not carry on without God and allowed God to strengthen him. God is there to strength us, we just have to allow him to do it. Through God's grace and mercy David was restored and given back all of the things he had lost and more. What a wonderful God we serve! No matter how bad we are or what we do, God is waiting with open arms to forgive us and strength us. David is becoming a better man and is beginning to allow God to lead his life again.
ReplyDeletegreat thoughts, as usual. i have really enjoyed hearing everyone's thoughts on these passages, please continue to voice how the Scriptures are speaking to you.
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