Good morning, I hope you all had a great week. Now we can look forward to the weekend. I can’t believe, but we are finishing up 2 Samuel today reading chapters 23-24.
Last words
This is the end of King David. Sure, we will hear more about him in Kings and Chronicles, and of course, the Psalms. Beginning chapter 23 in the NIV, it says David’s Last Words.
So much of the Judeo-Christian faith centers on this shepherd who rose to lead Israel. God established his throne forever (2 Sam 7:13-14). His descendent is Jesus Christ (Matt 1:1).
Morning light
The first line that captured my attention was 23:3-4. “The one who rules the people with justice, who rules in the fear of God, is like the morning light when the sun rises.” (NIV)
I have mentioned my wife, and I have lived in the same location for over thirty years.
Before our son was born, we bought a house from a client of mine. He helped us obtain the down payment and secure affordable terms for a mobile home, which he had set on a foundation and added onto. It was a triple-wide, with a nice size yard for gardens, lush trees, and a swimming pool.
At the time it was what we could afford, while I was working at the Newspaper.
As years passed, my income increased, but we resisted the temptation to move to a newer, bigger house. It had all we needed.
The one downside was, it was not wheelchair accessible. I could walk on a cane, and later on crutches. So that was not a problem.
We knew at some point it would become a problem, and after a series of surgeries on various limbs, we needed to tear down that home, and build an accessible site built home.
We’ve been living in that home, at the same address, for over two years now.
The first morning in our new home, my wife walked into the living room and the gorgeous morning view shocked her.
The sun coming up over the Catalina mountains, wisps of color in the sky. Our backyard now has a wall around it and our pool has a sidewalk to it. It continues to take our breath away, even after seeing it daily for over two years.
We had waited to build until we had enough money saved to pay for it. Debt is something we avoid as much as possible.
The economy had taken a bad turn as we began the project, with inflation driving the cost of everything up.
Enduring faith
Now, we have a new president, and prices are dropping. This didn’t happen overnight. We won’t fix it immediately either.
God has provided, so I am not worried about prices.
I am in prayer that our current administration will continue to “rule with the fear of God”. The last one had little regard for the Lord, from what I could see.
Later, in verse 23:16-17, we read characteristics of good leadership.
David will not drink the water his men bring him, because they should not need to risk their lives for his pleasure.
Building a legacy
I pray our leaders keep our troops out of the wars that are going on. We have become involved with sending arms and support, but so far that has not included soldiers.
We have no business in those conflicts.
I support our President using whatever leverage he has to seek a peaceful resolution between those nations. As long as it does not escalate to placing our people in harm’s way.
The chapter concludes by listing thirty-seven men who were leaders with David. The key take away for me is that leadership is never a solitary pursuit. Good leaders surround themselves with good people and allow them to contribute. They also allow them to receive the recognition for their contributions, as we see in this chapter.
Costly mistake
As we move to the final chapter of 2 Samuel, we see the sin of pride. David is placing his faith in the number of troops he has. He is counting on himself.
It was the Lord that gave them victory and preserved his men, but David ignores that and orders the census.
Therefore, God’s anger burned against Israel (v24:1).
We must learn from this the delicate nature of following God. Avoiding all sin, especially pride, is difficult.
Choosing sacrifice
Because of it, the Lord gives David three hard choices: three years of famine; to be pursued by enemies for three months; or three days of plague.
The first would cause long term suffering. Being pursued by the enemies would cause losing some men closest to him. A plague would cause the death of his people.
David would rather fall into the Lord’s hands, so he rejects the second option.
Instead, he watches as the angel unleashes a plague on Israel. Hearing the wails and seeing the death toll rise, he asks the Lord to punish him, not his people.
This is the final characteristic of a powerful leader. He makes policy, but he puts his people first.
Some oppose the America First agenda. To me, this is the strong leadership we see shown by David.
He sacrifices for the people. But, he is not willing to accept the objects of that sacrifice for free.
A sacrifice must cost something to have value.
For God, He sacrifices His Only Son, for us. We had a debt to pay, and He paid it with the highest possible price.
We must not take that for granted. Our sacrifice needs to have value. There is not cheap grace.
Are you willing to repent? Can you turn from doing things your way, enjoying making your own rules; to following the Lord’s commands?
