Day #109 | "The Son of David's Eternal Throne"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 2 Samuel 7, 1 Chronicles 17, and Psalm 110

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

A Messiah from the House of David. Looked at a certain way, the entire narrative of the Old Testament is just Creation (Genesis 1-2) and the Fall (Genesis 3) followed by one long genealogy leading up to the Messiah. God tells the Serpent in Genesis 3 that the seed of the woman (but interestingly, not of the man) will crush his head, and that in that moment the Serpent will deal him a mortal death blow. Then humanity is removed from Paradise, and the question hanging over the Old Testament from that point on is how we will get back. From that point in Genesis 3 and onwards, we are on the lookout for who this "seed of the woman" will be. Genesis 4-5 shows us that this descendant will come through Adam and Seth; Genesis 6-11 begins with the Messianic expectations of Noah's father, and shows us that the Messiah will come from Noah and Shem; Genesis 12-16 shows us he will come from the line of Abraham; Genesis 17-26 shows us he will come from Isaac's line rather than Ishmael's; Genesis 27-48 shows us that God will bring his deliverer through Jacob rather than Esau; and in Genesis 49 we find that this figure, though he will be dealt a death blow, will reign forever and come from the kingly line of Judah rather than the line of Joseph. The descendants of Judah don't seem to do much throughout Exodus-Judges, and a Canaanite man named Caleb actually leads the tribe for a brief period, though the backstory of how that happened is now lost to history. But after a long stretch, we then see that God is still working in the line of Judah in the book of Ruth, as Boaz and Ruth are married. Years afterwards, 1 Samuel sees David -the great grandson of Boaz and Ruth- anointed as the future king over his brothers. Finally, here in 2 Samuel 7 we see that God will establish the throne of David forever, and that the Messiah will come from David's line.

Is this really about the Messiah? This passage is the first major development in God's rescue plan since almost the book of Genesis, or maybe Exodus. From those books we already saw that we should be waiting for a Promised Deliverer. Now, though we know that David is not this deliverer, we are told that his family line will be preserved after his death, and that his throne will be established forever (2 Samuel 7:13). Solomon is to be the first of this kingly line of David, and so this passage has him directly in view, but to focus too much on Solomon would be to bury the lead, here: God just told David that his throne would be eternal. In the words of Dale David, "death would not annul it [7:12-13], sin could not destroy it [7:14-15], and time would not exhaust it [7:16]" (quoted from Walter Kaiser Jr., "2 Samuel 7: The Davidic Covenant" in The Moody Handbook of Messianic Prophecy, which I am pointing out here because I recommend the book). Although our reading plan pairs this with Psalm 110, a relevant "commentary" on 2 Samuel 7 comes from Psalm 132, which says:

The LORD swore an oath to David,

a promise He will not abandon:

"I will set one of your descendants

on your throne." [...]

There I will make a horn grow for David;

I have prepared a lamp for My anointed one.

I will clothe his enemies with shame,

But the crown he wears will be glorious. (Psalm 132:11, 17-18). 

From this passage on, we are to watch and wait for God's chosen, anointed (this word translates as Messiah or Christ), future King who will come from the line of Adam, Seth, Noah, Shem, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah--and David. When the Gospel of Matthew opens up the New Testament, he will arrange his genealogy of Jesus into three neat groups of 14: the value of the name of David. It's Matthew's way of pointing at Jesus with three big arrows marked "David" as if to say, this is the one. And that is who he is.

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR WORSHIP I think we can marvel at how God planned all of this out and brought it to fruition. IN OUR ATTITUDES we could take a page from those who watched and waited for the Messiah all the way from the time of Adam and Eve, and we can patiently wait for God to bring about what he has spoken--while paying attention to the ways that God is showing us that he is also active here and now.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean

Day #108 | "Reading the Bible Through the God Lens"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 1 Chronicles 16:4-43 and Psalms 96 and 29

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

Reading the Psalm of Asaph through the God lens. Out of the three psalms in this reading, I've chosen the first one (in 1 Chronicles 16:8-36) to do a little exercise with. When I am preparing for a sermon, I will typically take the text and work through it three times, using what I call "the God lens," "the human lens," and "the Gospel lens." This is what happens when you go through the Psalm of Asaph in 1 Chronicles 16 with the God lens: (1) God has given good gifts to us, for which we should thank Him (16:8); (2) God is responsive to our call (16:8); (3) Even in the Old Testament, God's heart was for all the peoples of the earth that he had made (16:8); (4) God is worthy of praise (16:9); (5) God is holy (16:10); (6) God does not desire to press us into the dirt to establish his dominance, but in fact God desires that his people would be blessed, be happy, and rejoice (16:10); (7) God offers us his presence, and the strength that comes from him, continuously--he is both all-present and all-powerful, and both of those are attributes that he is willing to exercise on our behalf (16:11); (8) God is able to pass judgment because his wisdom is infinite, nothing is hidden from him, he knows the future, and because he is the designer of this world in which we live our lives: he knows how it is meant to function all together (16:12); (9) Though we are his servants, he treats us as friends (16:13); (10) God has chosen us as his people (16:13); (11) He is faithful to keep his promises, throughout all generations (16:14-18); (12) God protects his people, though we may not always see this on our own (16:19-22); (13) God saves us--but from what? In context, he protects Israel from the surrounding nations (the world). But he also saves us from ourselves, our own sin and brokenness and shame (the flesh). And he also protects us from Satan, who prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour (the devil). So God is the one who saves us from the world, the flesh, and the devil. And nothing else can, except him. (16:23); (14) The so-called gods of other religions can't compare to Yahweh, the one true Creator of heaven and earth. This is one reason why other religions lack the evidential basis of Judeo-Christian revelation, or the staying power, or the fruitfulness seen in societies that adopt its norms. Whether you choose evidentialism, pragmatism, or endurance as a measuring stick of truth, the God of the Bible passes each test (and all of them together in combination) better than any other religious claim--because the gods of the peoples are worthless idols (16:25-26); (15) Some of God's attributes: splendor, majesty, strength, joy, holiness (16:27,29); (16) God calls us to freely approach him, and yet we must do so with respect: this psalm simultaneously calls us to "come before him" in v. 29 and at the same time tells us "tremble" in his presence (16:30); (17) All of creation witnesses to the glory of God! The heavens are glad, the earth rejoices, the sea roars, the field exults, the trees of the forest sing for joy--what about you and me? (16:31-33) (18) Three things to know about God: he comes to judge the earth, he is good, and his steadfast love endures forever (16:33-34); (19) The final verses in 16:35-36 seem like they were added on during the exile, with a plea to gather Israel from among the nations, but they acknowledge an important truth in that God has no beginning and no end: from everlasting to everlasting he is God (16:36).

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR WORSHIP we can take some time to think about God: about who he is, what he is like, what he has done, and how we can know him. We can consider how he has treated us with graciousness and kindness, even though he doesn't need anything from us. We can seek him for his wisdom. We can place our hope on him. And, we can read the Bible through the God lens more often: asking first when we open God's Word, "what can this teach me about him?"

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean

Day #107 | "God Will Be Glorified"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 2 Samuel 6:1-23; 1 Chronicles 13:1-4, 15:1-16:3, and 16:31-53

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

The readings for Day #107 in Steinmann's chronological plan are all centered around worship.

The holy presence of God among us. The Ark of the Covenant represents God's presence in the midst of his people, and is a reminder that God desires to be in relationship, among us, in our midst. But there is a danger there. There is a danger that we would begin to see the sacred as merely normal, and that we would begin to be too casual in our relationship with God, losing our sense of awe and wonder. It seems to be the case that we tend to do this rather quickly. Now the Ark had been given to the people as a reminder of God's presence in their midst, but it was also supposed to be carried with poles (Exodus 25:14) so that no one actually touched the Ark itself--a reminder that God is simultaneously in our midst, but that some reverential distance is still required (because of his holiness, otherness, infinite power, and glory). Between travels, the Ark was also supposed to remain inside the Tabernacle, in the Holy of Holies in the midst of the Tabernacle, where even the High Priest could only enter once per year on the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16:2ff). But in the years since, it seems like the Ark of the Covenant had become a sort of traveling good luck charm, taken into battles to ensure victory (1 Samuel 4:3-4)--which means that someone would have had to go in to the Tabernacle, against God's prescriptions, in order to take it out for a field trip. Now, here, we find the Ark taken out again without God commanding it to happen, and the priests are not carrying it by its poles on foot with reverence and awe, but instead they've thrown it onto the back of a cart and strapped it down to get it where they want to take it faster and with less effort. You see how this might already be a problem? And now, having already approached God with excessive casualness and gone against presecriptions, Uzzah reaches out his hand to touch the Ark--and so God chooses to use this moment to put an end to the overly casual approach to him that the people have taken, and glorifies himself in the midst of Israel.

Making an example of Uzzah. There is a question that many have here about Uzzah, and whether God was just in striking him down for what seemed like an unintentional accident. (1) Uzzah's reaching out may have been an accident, but everything that brought him up to that moment came out of excessive casualness and dismissal of God's commands regarding the Ark. (2) I still believe that God loved Uzzah. While God may have made an example of his earthly body by striking him down, I believe that Uzzah opened his eyes half a moment later in the Kingdom of Heaven.

David was undignified before men, and refined in the eyes of God. While David's wife Michal, the daughter of Saul, shared her dad's sense of the importance of appearances above all, David was different. He had been a shepherd, a military leader, an outlaw, a fugitive, and a rebel leader. He was rougher around the edges. And what brought him to his role as king was not that he could play the part of king the best and be the best politician, but that he loved God. (This was true even after his significant moral failure with Bathsheba.) So in this reading, we see David dancing among the people in his linen under-robe, celebrating and singing. He doesn't care if he looks dignified. He doesn't care that men in his day were to remain stoic, calm, unmoved, and in control--even more so in the case of the King. Instead he pushed all of that to one side, picked up the flag-sticks, struck up the band, and danced in public in a way that showed that his own honor was no important but that God's was. That's the kind of godly leadership that we need. And God blessed it.

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR WORSHIP we should be emboldened to come near to God because he desires to be near to us. And yet, not to be flippant or casual in how we do this. God will be glorified in our midst--either because we will honor him above ourselves as David did, or because God will honor himself in our midst as he did with Uzzah.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean

Day #106 | "Promise Keepers"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 2 Samuel 21 and 13-14, 1 Chronicles 20:4-8, and Psalm 35

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

1. God wants us to keep our promises (2 Samuel 21).

If you think about it for any length of time, 2 Samuel 21 gets more and more complicated the more that you look at it. For starters, the Gibeonites that we encounter in this chapter were descendants of the Amorites, who God had commanded Israel to destroy when they first entered the land. But now, God declares guilt on the house of Saul because he had attempted to destroy them. What changed? Well, what changed was that Israel had made a promise to them: "the people of Israel had sworn to spare them" (2 Samuel 21:2). Even though this promise was made by deceitful means back in Joshua 9, God looked on the Gibeonites and saw a people of the land who recognized the power of God and who sought peace with his people. He loved them. And he recognized the promise made between them and Israel as binding. Though Saul sought to look impressive and God-fearing by attempting to wipe them out, he was actually doing something incredibly unjust by betraying his duty to protect these people. That rings true for what we know of Saul's character defects in general: that he was always trying to look good, that he was lazy and was always looking for an easy victory to celebrate, and that he was impulsive and unreflective. The truth is that when we have made a commitment to another person, God himself expects us to keep that commitment to the best of our ability. Duty and promise-keeping are incredibly important to God: for the sake of his promises to Adam, Noah, and Abraham, he has remained faithful to his commitment to restore humanity to Paradise, even at the cost of the crucifixion and death of Jesus on the cross. That's how seriously God takes promises. That's worth remembering the next time that we consider making a promise, or the next time we think about breaking one.

2. The many kinds of promises or duties for us to fulfill (all passages).

Throughout today's reading we see many different kinds of promises and duties that we are supposed to keep in mind as we go about our lives. (1) There are formal promises, like the agreements between in Israelites and Gibeonites in 2 Samuel 21:1-2, or between David and Jonathan's family in 2 Samuel 21:7. (2) There are general commitments to honor our family's memory/reputation which causes Rizpah to protect the bodies of her loved ones in 2 Samuel 21:10-11. (3) There is the commitment to honor the work of those who came before us as David did in 2 Samuel 21:12-14 when he collected the remains of King Saul's family and returned them to their family tomb (only after this did God "respond to the plea for the land"--i.e. he ended the famine that we read about in 2 Samuel 21:1). This is especially significant since Saul had tried repeatedly to murder David. Yet, David was still responsible to honor Saul's memory for the good that he had done. (4) There is the commitment to honor and care for those in positions of leadership, as David's men did when they cared for a now-aged King David in 2 Samuel 21:15-17 by protecting him and pleading with him not to endanger his life by going out into battle again. (5) There is the commitment of leaders to recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of those who they lead, as David undoubtedly did for Abishai, Sibbecai, Elhanan, and Jonathan--which is why we know their names and the feats that they accomplished (2 Samuel 21:18-22). (6) There is also the responsibility to care for family members who are in need as Absalom did when he took his sister Tamar into his house after she had been humiliated by Amnon (2 Samuel 13:20). (7) There is the duty to advocate for one's friends when it is appropriate, as Joab did for Absalom in 2 Samuel 14. (8) And finally (for now) there is the duty to work for unity within our family, friends, and society, as Joab's efforts caused David and his son Absalom to be finally reunited and reconciled (though, stay tuned) in 2 Samuel 14.

3. We also see some betrayals of these duties (2 Samuel 13-14).

The core reading for today is one that is mostly about deep, significant betrayals of duty and trust. Jonadab plans, and Amnon acts on, an intention to horrifically abuse and "humiliate" their relative (and Absalom's full sister) Tamar. Absalom uses a feast of peace to execute his brother Amnon. David abandons relationship with his son Absalom. Joab "ghosts" Absalom for a long time leaving him secluded and alone on his property with no answer about whether a meeting with King David might be forthcoming. Absalom, for his part, burns down his friend Joab's field to get attention--which, though he was stuck in a difficult situation, seems at least a little bit extreme. 

4. God demonstrates the ultimate commitment.

Like I mentioned above, duty and promise keeping are incredibly important to God. He keeps his commitments and he sees them as something that is binding--even for himself. God committed to save humanity and to restore us, and he is doing so, even though that involved the suffering and death of Jesus Christ, who is God in human flesh. He cleans us up unilaterally. He chases after us, even when we are not chasing after him, and even though he needs nothing from us. This is true for all the peoples of the earth. And for Israel specifically, though they are not (as a people) following God in modern times, it is still clear today that God has taken seriously and kept his commitment to preserve Israel's name and to bless them regardless of their response to him--though specifically in an earthly sense, as Jewish people along with everyone else must still come to trust in Jesus the Messiah for salvation. God is the ultimate promise keeper. That is who he is.

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR ACTIONS we should imitate God by keeping our own promises and commitments to others, many of which are listed in point #2 above. IN OUR WORSHIP we can glorify and praise God, who has not abandoned his promises to us. And IN OUR ATTITUDES we should resolve to be people of character who do not make commitments lightly, and who are wholeheartedly set to do what we say.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean

Day #105 | "The Goodness of Guilt"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 2 Samuel 11-12 and Psalm 51

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

1. The Devil finds work for idle hands (2 Samuel 11).

2 Samuel 11 is literally the worst chapter in David's entire kingship. The sin that he commits against God and others is incredibly serious. But, look at how it all started: "In... the time when kings go out to battle... David remained at Jerusalem" (2 Samuel 11:1). Here we see David relaxing, with nothing to do, and all his soldiers are off at war, and he is putting his feet up at home. And then he is looking around because he's curious. And then he sees something he shouldn't and doesn't look away. And then he leans in, and goes after what he's set his eyes on. And then he's arranging a meeting. And then he's covering it up. And then he's committing crimes to preserve his own reputation: the man who would not kill Saul, though Saul hunted for his life, now has no problems with endangering his own soldiers in order to have Uriah -the husband of the woman that he lay with- killed and made to look like an accident. You see, David illustrated what former generations recognized quite well: that bad things happen when we don't have enough to do. 

2. The source of sin is lust and pride (2 Samuel 11).

One verse that is often used to categorize the temptations that we face is 1 John 2:15-17, which describes "the desires of the flesh, and the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life" as a basic categorization of worldly desires that lead us astray. These categories actually work pretty well. David fell for all three: first he let his eyes wander. Then he indulged in the desires of the flesh. Then, in order to cover up and maintain his image as the "man after God's own heart," David had a man killed so that he could maintain his outward appearance of righteousness and his pride of life. Interestingly, David didn't kill because of his lust: he had already had that satisfied. David killed because of his desire to look like a good, moral person. He needed others to recognize that he was righteous. And, ironically, in order to do that, he became the most immoral that he had ever been. Sometimes if you want to find out how evil a person is, all you need to do is let them know that you're aware of some actions of theirs which go against their self-image. This will work even if you don't exactly confront them on it. All they have to do is know that you are aware, and you will see what is inside them bubble up to the surface--just don't deliver any mail for them at that point, or you might get Uriah'd.

3. Becoming afraid of yourself (2 Samuel 12).

"You are that man," spoken from Nathan's lips, must have rung in David's ears for the rest of his life (2 Samuel 12:7). In that moment David's objections and justifications melted away, and he was allowed to finally become a little bit afraid of himself. What had he done? It would be hard to know where to start. He was a liar, and an abductor of men's wives, and a murderer, and an adulterer, and likely a breaker of every other one of the ten commandments all at one point in time. And now he knew it, and I believe he became a little bit afraid of who he'd become. I think the people that I enjoy best are those who have learned to be a little bit afraid of themselves. They are aware that certain things take their objectivity away, so they learn to trust themselves a little less. They know that they are prone to anger, and that this hurts those around them emotionally, so they have learned to go for a walk when they need it. They see the reality of hurt that they've caused, and so they have become gentle, humble people, ready to receive the Lord's guidance. Becoming afraid of yourself is not a bad thing. In this case fear of self is what brought David to repentance.

4. There is no cure for guilt other than God (Psalm 51).

This Psalm appears to have been written soon after Nathan confronted David. It records David's repentance, his acknowledgment of his own sins, and his desire to be made clean by God ("Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow," Psalm 51:7). There is no cure for guilt other than this. God alone is the one that we can run to. God alone has the power to wash away our sins. Only God, through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, can make us clean again.

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR WORSHIP we should lift God up and acknowledge his goodness and righteousness in contrast to our own faulty righteousness. Through knowledge of our own sinfulness, we are pushed closer to God who draws us closer to him so that we can share in his goodness. IN OUR ATTITUDES this knowledge of our own guilt should make us gentler, humbler people, who are patient with the fault of others because we know the fault in our own selves.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean

Day #104 | "Learning About Loyalty"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 2 Samuel 10:1-11:1; 12:26-31; 1 Chronicles 19:1-20:3

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

It seems like a lot of this particular reading revolves around loyalty, or the lack thereof. David shows loyalty to Nahash, the king of the Ammonites, by sending a delegation to his son after he died. David shows loyalty to his own men by meeting with them personally and allowing them to wait until the beards have grown back, before they return home from their mistreatment. Joab also displays loyalty to David when he allows David to take a city and be named the victor rather than himself. On the other hand, Nahash's son Hanun shows disloyalty to David by capturing David's men and returning them back to their own land in a state of dishonor. And the Syrians show their disloyalty by abandoning the Ammonites. So what does it look like to be loyal? It looks like considering someone when they are going through a tough time, as David did for Hanun. It looks like making the other person look good, as David did when he met personally with his returned men and had them rest and regrow their beards before returning home--and like Joab did when he called to David before taking the city. It looks like returning kindness for a kindness, unlike Hanun who met David's show of loyalty with dishonor. And it looks like sticking with those who you have committed to, unlike the Syrians who turned on their Ammonite companions when the going got tough. We can be loyal to God first, our spouses second, to our kids third, and to others that God has brought into our lives after that.

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR ACTIONS we can apply this reading by imitating the sort of actions that show loyalty, and by choosing not to imitate the actions that show disloyalty.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean

Day #103 | "God Goes First"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 2 Samuel 4-5, and 1 Chronicles 11:1-9, 12:23-40, and 14:1-17

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

1. God initiates, we respond (2 Samuel 4-5 and 1 Chronicles 11, 12, 14).

One of the basic truths of our relationship with God is that God goes first. We see this in the passages for today in the ESV chronological plan. When the united tribes came to David to name him king, they referenced the promise that was first made to David through the prophet Samuel (1 Chronicles 11:3), where he had been told "You shall be shepherd of my people Israel, and you shall be ruler over Israel" (2 Samuel 5:2). However this promise came to be known amongst the people in general, they definitely responded to it. This was why so many people had come out to David and joined with him during his time of exile. This was also why Jonathan, the son of Saul, recognized David and not himself as the next king of Israel. God initiated this chain of events by choosing David from among the people to be his chosen king through whom he would bring his Promised Deliverer, and David in turn responded to "the Lord... who has redeemed my life out of every adversity" (2 Samuel 4:9). The people recognized that God had made a choice, initiated, and made his move in their midst. Then, once they recognized that, they decided to respond to God by uniting with David as their king. We can also respond to God as well: If he has given you an awareness of your need for him, then you can enter into (further?) relationship with him. If he gives you godly desires, then you can live your life outwards out of those new desires. If he has given you talents, you can use them for his glory. As we respond, God may then initiate in other ways. As God initiates, we are enabled to respond, almost like two peddles on a bike being pressed down in turn in order to sustain forward movement.

2. God commands, we obey (2 Samuel 4-5 and 1 Chronicles 11, 12, 14).

As followers of God, we do not simply do whatever we think is right in a given situation (in fact, the book of Judges can almost be seen as a sort of horror story about what happens when people who have no direction are always trying to do their best). Instead we first try to understand what God commands, and then we obey him. This is what David did in 2 Samuel 5, when he asked the Lord "Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you give them into my hand?" (2 Samuel 5:19). He did this a few times in this chapter, and always responded obediently to what God commanded him in response. The result was that God was able to bring blessing into his life. As God commands, we can obey him and walk with trust that God knows more than we do, and that he loves us, and that therefore what he says is in our best interest.

3. God creates opportunities, we take action (2 Samuel 4-5 and 1 Chronicles 11, 12, 14).

Another way that God goes first is by opening up opportunities. He often does this in his own timing: for example, although he told David early on that David would be king of Israel, he did not actually create the opportunity for that to happen for many years. David could have tried to make it happen on his own, but that would have resulted in failure and started his rulership off on a shaky path. Instead, God allowed in his own timing for Ish-bosheth to be slain, for his killers to run to David so that David could demonstrate his righteousness by executing them, for the people to come as a united group to crown David king, for Hiram king of Tyre to seek an alliance with him, for Jerusalem to be taken as the new capitol city of Israel, and for the Philistines to be defeated before him. In each of these cases, David responded to God's provision of opportunities. We see this very clearly in the final battle with the Philistines in today's reading: God told David not to go up against the Philistines, but to go around and wait by the balsam trees, and then to only go up for battle after he heard "the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees" (1 Chronicles 14:15)--a signal that the angelic army of God had gone out before him, assuring him that there would be victory.

4. God saves, and we trust Him (2 Samuel 4-5 and 1 Chronicles 11, 12, 14).

Ultimately we see how God initiates, commands, and creates opportunities--and in turn we respond, obey, and take action. Again, it's like a bike: God presses the pedal down on one side of our lives, and that enables us to press the pedal down on the other side, and on and on. But this goes deeper than just the choices that we make in a given situation. This pattern of God initiating goes right to the very bedrock of our relationship with him. Though we were stuck in our brokenness and sin and shame, God saved us. Though we were incapable of paying the debt for what we owe because of our own actions, God took our debt on himself. Though we were not searching for God, God sought us out and made us aware of our need for him. God went first. God loved first. Jesus, God in human flesh, came down and died a shameful and painful death on the cross, and then defeated death through the resurrection, in our place. He did this because we couldn't. And now, because he has done this, we can respond to him by placing our trust in who he is and what he has done. God saves, so that we can respond in trust, and together those things enable us to go forward in relationship with him.

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR WORSHIP we can take a moment to marvel at how God is so good, gracious, and merciful, that he would initiate and seek us out when we were too stubborn to come to him. IN OUR ATTITUDE I think that this would create in us an attitude of responsiveness, humility, gratefulness, and trust. And IN OUR ACTIONS I think that this would look like choosing to respond to God, to look for where he is opening up opportunities for us to move forward in ways that line up with his word, and to spend time in Scripture so that we can respond to what he has said to us there.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean

Day #102 | "The Way of Forgiveness"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 2 Samuel 2-3, 1 Chronicles 3:1-9, and Psalms 25 and 26

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

1. When unforgiveness leads to wrongdoing on your own team (2 Samuel 2-3).

Joab and Abishai, the supporters (and nephews--see 1 Chronicles 2:13-16) of David, could not get past the death of their brother Asahel on the field of battle, and they held a personal hatred for Abner for killing him. We see the battle where that happened take place in 2 Samuel 2, and then we see Joab's retribution in 2 Samuel 3, after Abner had defected to David's side. While David was willing to forgive the death of his nephew at Abner's hands, Joab and Abishai could not forgive the bloodshed, and so they slew him by deception and treachery in the city gates. David could have covered this up. He could have protected his nephews. He could have excused their actions as regrettable, but understandable. But he did none of these things, because he wanted his kingdom to be founded on mercy and integrity. So he did something difficult: he publicized what his generals, who were his own family members, had done. And he denounced them. He held public mourning, and conducted a public funeral, and composed a song for Abner, and buried him in the (at that time) royal city of Hebron, and instituted public mourning, and fasted. David showed his people by his actions that it is not okay to excuse wrongdoing just because it was done by someone that you have a relationship with. And he showed that perpetuating the cycle of revenge is not the way.

2. David points to an even better forgiveness (2 Samuel 3).

David shows his integrity in his lack of favoritism here. He publicly mourns the man who killed his nephew, and he publicly rebukes his own family for taking revenge. His mercy was emblematic of the one who would later come from David's line -Jesus- who also counseled against taking revenge: "Then Jesus said to [Peter], 'Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword" (Matthew 26:52). Jesus also showed mercy to those who had been his enemies, as Romans 5:10 says "while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son." In these ways David's call for mercy points forward to the one who would show perfect mercy to us.

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR ATTITUDES, we can practice forgiveness towards those who have done wrong to us--and even to be willing to reestablish a relationship, though with appropriate boundaries. This does not diminish the seriousness of the other person's actions, but it does give us a chance to bring healing. IN OUR WORSHIP, it can be an awe-inspiring thing to just dwell on the mercy of God. He did not hold our sins against us, even though it would take the death of his own Son to make things right on our behalf.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean

Day #101 | "Passive Faith in God's Timing"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 1 Samuel 31-2 Samuel 1, 1 Chronicles 10:1-14, and Psalm 5

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

1. Refuse to take the morally questionable short cut (1 Samuel 31-2 Samuel 1). 

Leading up to these chapters, we saw how David repeatedly refused to gain the kingdom by means of assassination. Open, honorable battle appears to have been a legitimate option, but not cold-blooded murder. This is not a stance that all people have taken throughout history, so it is notable. Many of David's men were probably pushing him to take the easy way, but David refused. We see that stance continue to be taken here, as David refuses to accept the man who says he killed King Saul. (Side note: there does appear to be a contradiction between the start of 2 Samuel and the end of 1 Samuel, but this only appears to be the case--the man who brings the report is evidently not telling the full truth to David, and the books of 1-2 Samuel are in fact one single book whose author saw no contradiction between what he wrote in both places, side by side.) This stance against inheriting the kingdom through assassination likely slowed David down quite a bit, but it also helped to legitimize his eventual claim to the throne and delegitimized any future efforts to overthrow his own kingdom by similar means. We will see David continue to take this principled stance.

When we see a road block in front of us, often we want to deal with it ourselves by any means necessary. But if there is no honorable way to deal with the roadblock, we are generally best to just let it be and allow God to deal with it in his own timing. Trust God. It might be that God will deal with the issue, but he might (as was the case with Saul, and eventually Ish-Bosheth/Eshbaal) deal with it by allowing something to happen that you will be glad you weren't the cause of. It is not up to you to make everything work out; instead, it's up to you to travel down the path as God opens it up.

2. Let God make his way straight before you (Psalm 5).

David writes, "Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness because of my enemies; make your way straight before me" (Psalm 5:8). This verse models the thought process of David, which we made note of in yesterday's reading. He expected God to align things so that the correct path would become clear along the way; a path which would both accomplish the goal and keep him from guilt. While we generally want to maintain an active faith (see yesterday's reading), situations like the one that David encountered occasionally call for passive faith, where there are no good options for going ahead and so we must wait for God to "make his way straight" before us.

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR ATTITUDES, when there are no honorable actions that we could take to move ahead to what we believe God wants to do in our lives, we can adopt a "passive faith" which waits -potentially for a long time, as David waited- for God to "make his way straight" before us. In these seasons, while we are watching expectantly for opportunities that God might create for us, we are also learning to wait and to depend on God. This is good for us as well.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean

Day #100 | "Active Faith in God's Timing"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 1 Samuel 29-30, 1 Chronicles 12:19-22, and Psalms 12 and 13

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

1. If you are open, God will get you where you need to be (1 Samuel 29-30; 1 Chronicles 12:19-22). 

In 1 Samuel 29 David was rejected by the Philistines just before he was set to join a battle with them against the armies of King Saul. Apparently, according to 1 Chronicles 12:19-22, some men from Manasseh actually broke away from Saul and joined David leading up to that battle. Whatever David's actual plan was at this point, it would have been incredibly difficult for him to ever assume a tenable place as Israel's chosen King if he had actually participated in a battle against Israel on behalf of the Philistines. So right when it appeared that this would be the case, the Philistines all of a sudden decided to send him away. And not only did they send him away, but they allowed him to go freely. This was likely God working behind the scenes to take David, his willing servant, out of the conundrum that he had got himself into, and to get him into the correct position going forward. The events of 1 Samuel 30 also appear to be part of God's providential work on behalf of David: though it seemed like a further setback at the time, the Amalekites' raid against Ziklag had some improbable elements (for example, "They killed no one, but carried them off," 1 Samuel 30:2), and the battle that ensued actually gave David what he needed to make a gift to the towns of Judah to be welcomed back into their midst--just as Saul was about to be killed in the battle that he had recently been prevented from participating in (1 Samuel 31). If any of these events, which all occurred together, had not happened, David would have had a much more difficult time becoming the leader of the united tribes of Israel. But instead everything happened the way that it needed to. If we are open to God's leading, and we are committed to serving him with a humble and willing heart, we can trust that God will take us where we need to go. This is the case even when, as in 1 Samuel 29-30, it appears that God is giving us a series of road blocks (i.e. the rejection by the Philistines and the raid against Ziklag). Don't despair, but trust that God is working in this situation and push forward. There is likely something even better than what you had planned around the corner.

2. God will arise in his own timing (Psalms 13 and 12).

Psalm 13 asks, "How long, O Lord?" in reference to David's desire that God would act on his behalf. It must have seemed at times like God had abandoned him--he was living outside his homeland, rejected by the people that he had joined with, his city had been raided, his wives were captured, and the people wanted to stone him to death. But David also knew the truth: that though God seemed to be absent at the moment, his strong arm would be revealed in time ("I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation," Psalm 13:5). Then in Psalm 12, David wrote the God would arise and return his poor, plundered, and needy people to safety (Psalm 12:5). Though our situation might appear dire, we know who we trust in. If we perish, God will bring us into glory. If we err, God will direct our steps. If we are prevented from moving forward through spiritual warfare, God will fight on our behalf. We can deal with all manner of setbacks by committing ourselves to trusting in him.

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR ATTITUDES, we can adopt a posture of "active faith." In contrast to passive faith which sits back and expects God to move (and this is not always a bad thing; sometimes it is the only thing that we can do), an active faith presses ahead and looks for opportunities and actively looks to overcome obstacles, while believing that God will "show up" in unexpected ways to direct our steps as we go ahead. This is the posture that David seemed to have. He was personally proactive, and yet he was also responsive to how God might be directing him through the various circumstances, opportunities, and roadblocks that he encountered. This seems to be a good "sweet spot" for people who have faith in Jesus to maintain, as it avoids inappropriate passivity on one hand, while keeping us from a stubborn attachment to our own plans on the other.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean

Day #99 | "Where to Run When You Find Trouble"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 1 Samuel 27-28, 1 Chronicles 12:1-7, and Psalm 7

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

1. Be careful where you turn when you find trouble (1 Samuel 27-28).

There is some difference of opinion over whether David did the right thing in 1 Samuel 27. On one hand, he joined hands with Israel's enemies, which was incredibly ethically inadvisable. Who knows what David was asked to do in those days to earn the trust of the Philistines? If David never outright sinned, I would bet that he was still made to enter into a lot of morally tricky situations in order to secure favor. On the other hand, he seemed to try to make the best of it by working on Israel's behalf secretly, and then by lying about it. There are some kinds of people from whom you do not want help. Nothing good will come out of it. The best thing that happened to David was that the Philistines eventually rejected him, and that they let him go freely. On the other hand, Saul also looked for help from a witch to summon the spirit of Samuel, because he could not get an answer from the Lord by normal means. (We are going to leave, for now, the tricky questions of whether Samuel's dead spirit was actually raised, whether witchcraft actually holds any real power, whether ghosts exist, etc.--but these are conversations that could legitimately arise from the text.) The result is only trouble for Saul, and another sign of his moral failings.

2. The Lord looks on our hearts--but us, not so much (1 Samuel 27-28).

I do not have exact answers about why Saul is condemned for seeking out help from a bad source, while David isn't. My best guess is that God saw that David was trying to be careful to follow the Lord, even as he was making some bad decisions. David was trying to make it work ethically, and took mercy on David, because he saw David's heart. Meanwhile Saul justified his own actions, but God saw Saul more clearly than he saw himself. For Saul, this was just another instance of casting the law of God aside so that he could get what he wanted. Maybe there is a word here for us: sometimes, in following God, we will make bad decisions without realizing it. And in those times, God knows what your intention is, even if you are hiding it from yourself. He will save and rescue us despite our bad decisions if our hearts are entirely set on him, and he will judge us if we are inwardly rebellious against God, however we might justify things to ourselves. Take comfort because God knows our heart better than we do. And walk with carefulness and humility, because God knows our heart better than we do. It cuts both ways.

3. Turn to God's people in the midst of trouble (1 Chronicles 12:1-7).

In 1 Chronicles 12:1-7, we see a whole group of people uniting together under David's banner to follow God's chosen king. When we are in the midst of trouble, God has given us other brothers and sisters in Christ who we can join with as the family of God. We are not meant to walk through life alone.

4. Turn to God in the midst of trouble (Psalm 7).

When David was dealing with harsh words and ever-present troubles, and accusations, and dangers, he asked God to show him the truth and to protect him if he was walking in obedience: "O Lord my God, if I have done this, if there is wrong in my hands... let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it... Arise, O Lord... lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies; awake for me; you have appointed a judgment" (Psalm 7:3-6). We can never go wrong in trusting the Lord with our souls, our future, and our eternity.

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR WORSHIP, we can take some time to reflect and ask what we tend to run to when things get tough. Do we run to the comfort of distractions, food, and entertainment? Do we run to security, money, and possessions? Do we run to get the approval of other people? All of these things can result in negative outcomes when these things act as saviors that exercise control over our lives--in fact, maybe they already are. But as we realize this, we can change course and run to God. Whatever we run to when things get difficult, that is what we worship.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean

Day #98 | "How to Not Be Controlled By Others' Words"

LOOK | WHAT DOES IT SAY?

Read 1 Samuel 25-26 and Psalms 54 and 63

THINK | WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

1. Don't be controlled by insults - David and Nabal (1 Samuel 25).

David admits in this chapter that he nearly sinned and took things into his own hands because he felt insulted by someone. When other people appear to look down on us, or mock us, or insult us, and they don't treat us the way that we deserve due to our position or experience, we tend to want to show them that they are wrong. Maybe we do what David almost did to Nabal, and we try to get back at them. Or, maybe we do the opposite, and dedicate seasons of our lives to trying to prove to that person that we are better, or know better, or can do better, than they seem to give us credit for (only to be disappointed when they remain unmoved). Either way, we are living a life where we are being controlled by the negative words of others. When we are tempted to do this, we need to remember that our primary relationship is with God: he alone defines who we are, and we live to please him, not those who look down on us.

2. Be open to reason - David and Abigail (1 Samuel 25). 

Abigail is a noteworthy, virtuous figure, because she was able to be the calm voice of reason in this passage. She turned David away from the path that he was on. While David was not controlled by her words, he did listen to her, and he was able to understand that he had been in the wrong. It is not "being controlled by others" to listen to them and find out that they are right and you are wrong. The difference is that when David listened to Abigail, he wasn't doing anything to make her think of him a certain way, but rather he listened because he found that what she said was right.

3. Don't be controlled by compliments - David and Saul (1 Samuel 26).

In this chapter David has learned the lesson of the previous chapter, and that lesson saved his life and future kingdom. Though Saul has pursued David, he doesn't react to Saul's newest provocation; instead he spares Saul's life (yet again). By not assassinating Saul, he wisely keeps his own kingdom from being founded on a cycle of kings being killed in order to grab power. But at the same time, he does not react to Saul's compliments, either. Saul had previously shown through repeated actions and reversals of favor that he could not be trusted. So when Saul said "I have sinned. Return, my son David, for I will no more do you harm... I have acted foolishly... You will do many things and will succeed in them" (1 Samuel 26:21, 25), you should notice a couple of things about David's reaction. One, David did not return to Saul. Instead he had a representative of Saul's come into the midst of his forces, to retrieve Saul's belongings. And we also see that David did not accept Saul's invitation at face value: "So David went his way, and Saul returned to his place" (1 Samuel 26:25). Sometimes we are so hungry for affirmation or peace that we listen to people whose words should not be trusted, and we make terrible mistakes because of that. David shows that we can treat people well, but not be gullible either. While we are to forgive everyone, that is not the same as trust.

4. Be attentive to God's voice - David and God (Psalms 54 and 63).

Both of these Psalms show David running to find his rest in God, when the words of men proved to be unreliable. Psalm 63 was written in the shadow of "those who seek to destroy my life" (Psalm 63:9), and Psalm 54 was written "when the Ziphites went and told Saul, 'Is not David hiding among us?'" (Psalm 54:0). But David was able to stand on the promises of God: he wrote about how God was his helper and the upholder of his life (Psalm 54:4), and that he was sustained by meditating on God throughout his sleepless nights (Psalm 63:6). 

DO | HOW DO WE RESPOND?

How can we respond in our worship, attitude, and actions? IN OUR ACTIONS we can stop when we hear someone say something to (or about) us, whether good or bad, before we act. We can ask what God would want us to do in this situation. We can ask whether the person is reliable. We can sort through the reasonableness of what they are telling us. And then, after taking some time in prayer, we can act based on what we believe God would have us do, and not (primarily) out of a desire to get a certain response from another person--though as we are trying to be a witness to them, we may act partially in order to gain a hearing.

PRAY | HOW DOES THIS BRING US TO GOD?

Whether in response to anything pointed out here, or to something else in your Bible reading time, take a few moments before you close up your Bible to pray in response to God. If you need a format for prayer, both the ACTS (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication), CALL (Confess, Ask, Love, Listen), and PRAY (Praise, Repent, Ask, Yield) methods are helpful ways to stay consistent.

-Sean