God unified Israel under David. And David has been making inroads at repairing all the damage done during the time of the judges and Saul. He's made his first very poor attempt at moving the Ark of God and now we'll learn more about those early days of David's unified kingship.
...continue reading "I Chronicles 14"Category: God’s Glory
The Business of Life
In my work, I get to work on different projects each year. One of the projects I am working on this year is a digital game in which the player runs a business. It is replacing a predecessor that was notoriously buggy and it's off to an inauspicious beginning itself. We are beta testing (8 weeks behind schedule) and the math and game logic is deeply flawed. We've brought in a specialist to help fix the algorithms and logic and the more I hear in these meetings with the expert the more I understand just have flawed the math is.
The reason this work-related problem has made it to the blog is that the game is haunting me. Because this game is related to business and accounting, I have always been intimidated by it. I always felt that the project would have been better served by someone else sitting in my seat. Someone better skilled and gifted in these areas. But I have relied heavily on the experts to do the parts I cannot.
...continue reading "The Business of Life"II Samuel 24 God’s Plans
Well, I swear i wrote this post already, but it's gone now. So I will praise the Lord and start over. This is such a good chapter. It's worth doing twice.
Chapter 24 is the last of book and the last of the four final chapters that Ryrie describes as non-chronological appendices of scenes from Davids life. So it is not immediately obvious at what point in his reign this occurs.
...continue reading "II Samuel 24 God’s Plans"II Samuel 22 (Wiersbe)
David's Song
Almost identical to Psalm 18. David adapted his own song for corporate worship.
David went through so very long, dark seasons; and yet he had so much to praise the Lord for.
...continue reading "II Samuel 22 (Wiersbe)"II Samuel 22
The Song of David
Almost identical to Psalm 18, this is David's song after being delivered from his enemies and King Saul. I'm not clear if this is upon Saul's death, or after the grieving process in which he wrote a nice song about Saul?
He praises the character of God that could save him. And he points out that he asked and was saved.He points out how severe the situation was and how close to death. Then reiterates that he cried out for deliverance and the Lord heard and shook the earth.
...continue reading "II Samuel 22"II Samuel 12 (Wiersbe) pt 3
David confessed.
Nathan immediately informed him that the Lord had forgiven his sin.
"However"
Uh oh. The amazing, grateful blanket of relief of being forgiven by God. Followed by, "However".
Forgiven of sin is not the same as released from consequences. Particularly those natural consequences that match the action. (Just like we learned in Love and Logic teaching and parenting.)
The Lord had made a covenant with David and the next baby was going to be his 8th, which is the number of new beginnings. We learn that the baby Bathsheba and David do have (Solomon) became identified as the one to carry on the crown. This baby, the one conceived in utter base sin and covered up by murder, could not be the beginning of the Lord's bloodline. Nathan frames it this way, "You have given occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme."
The baby lived only a week, so he was unable to be circumcised and named.
Solomon was born and was living evidence of God's forgiveness; God's provision of a new start; and God's promise of a redeemed future for us all.
This scene with Bathsheba, although fundamental and foundation to the future of mankind, was only a side story as David was still in the era of conquest and had to go complete the battle against Rabbah, so that the victory would count for his name-although Joab had done the lion's share of the work. At least Joab (probably by God's prompting) recognized the need to support is king and bring him the victory.
I think I need to meditate on that. How often do I claim the victory for myself, so that my name may be lifted up. Even corrupt Joab knew to save the victory for the king, so that the king's name be praised and the nation stronger for having a strong king. If Joab had kept the victory for himself, it would have split the names of those strong military leaders, leaving the kingdom vulnerable to factions-just like the ones they were just now coming out from. But Joab saved the victory for the king.
I can and should do the same. Put the victory under the name of our one true, strong king. Never touching the glory of God for myself.
Lord- please give me the words to do that correctly. Sometimes it sounds so awkward to try and give you the glory for work tasks and such. But I know there is a way to make it a natural part of who I am. A reflex to extend the victory to the real victor. I submit myself to you and ask that you renew my mind in Christ Jesus; and change me in this way.
I've camped on these two chapters, 11 and 12, for weeks. I've had various other studies and such, but I really was camping on these chapters when I had my own reading time. I found them deeply compelling and rich in lessons. And at the end of all of the tumult, God gives the Israelites (and their leader) a huge victory. That's how God chose to end this scene. I know we get into the consequences of David's sin next, and that comes soon enough. But before God picks up with the rest of the story, he gives David a significant victory with a 75 pound crown to symbolize that he was still King, reigning under the grace of a God with a plan and a God that forgives.
That's a pretty cool way to top off such a disappointing detour in David's journey. What astounding hope that gives to the rest of us.