The Conquering from 2 Samuel 12:26-31 and 1 Chr. 20:1-3)

9/26/2010 9:33:14 AM

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY

 

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  The Conquering

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                         Reference:  2Sam. 12:26-31; 1Chr. 20:1-3

 

            Message of the verses:  “26 ¶  Now Joab fought against Rabbah of the sons of Ammon and captured the royal city. 27  Joab sent messengers to David and said, "I have fought against Rabbah, I have even captured the city of waters. 28  "Now therefore, gather the rest of the people together and camp against the city and capture it, or I will capture the city myself and it will be named after me." 29  So David gathered all the people and went to Rabbah, fought against it and captured it. 30  Then he took the crown of their king from his head; and its weight was a talent of gold, and in it was a precious stone; and it was placed on David’s head. And he brought out the spoil of the city in great amounts. 31  He also brought out the people who were in it, and set them under saws, sharp iron instruments, and iron axes, and made them pass through the brickkiln. And thus he did to all the cities of the sons of Ammon. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.

            “1 ¶  Then it happened in the spring, at the time when kings go out to battle, that Joab led out the army and ravaged the land of the sons of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem. And Joab struck Rabbah and overthrew it. 2  David took the crown of their king from his head, and he found it to weigh a talent of gold, and there was a precious stone in it; and it was placed on David’s head. And he brought out the spoil of the city, a very great amount. 3  He brought out the people who were in it, and cut them with saws and with sharp instruments and with axes. And thus David did to all the cities of the sons of Ammon. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.”

 

            It is kind of a mystery to me as to how long this battle was going on with Ammon, for when it began in the spring is when David sinned with Bathsheba and now this is at least ten months later if this part was done in the order that the chapter was written. 

            I think that the point of this section is the grace of God, for even though there was this great sin in the life of Israel’s king God was gracious to give Israel the victory over Ammon, but the hammer is going to come down on David with members of his family in the next chapter of 2Samuel.

            The crown that the king of Ammon had on his head weighed between fifty and seventy-five pounds so it was not on his head for long, and after wearing it for a short time it would go into the treasury for Solomon to use to build the Temple of God. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I am thankful for the grace that God gives to me each day, and for the mercy that He gives to me each day.  I could never earn my salvation that the Lord provided for me through Jesus Christ, and if I got what I deserved it would be hell, but God is rich in His mercy towards me and for that I am thankful and praise the Lord.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1.      I trust the Lord will see us through to Kauai and that He will have work for us to do when we get there to His glory.

2.      I give myself to the Lord for worship and service today.

 

9/26/2010 9:53:39 AM

David Comforts Bathsheba (2 Sam. 12:24-25)

9/25/2010 8:38:09 AM

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY

 

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  The comforting

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  2Sam. 12:24-25

 

            Message of the verses:  “24  Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and went in to her and lay with her; and she gave birth to a son, and he named him Solomon. Now the LORD loved him 25  and sent word through Nathan the prophet, and he named him Jedidiah for the LORD’S sake.”

 

            God gave forgiveness to David and Bathsheba in giving them a son whom the Lord loved in a special way and he would be the one who will be the next king of Israel.  In verse twenty-four Bathsheba is called the wife of David and not Uriah’s wife as seen in other places. 

            There is one thing that I do not truly understand and that is what is recorded in 1Chronicles 3:5 “These were born to him in Jerusalem: Shimea, Shobab, Nathan and Solomon, four, by Bath-shua the daughter of Ammiel.”  Here and in other places it is mentioned that Solomon is born number four in line of children of Bathsheba and David and yet it seems like after reading the verses for today’s SD that he is the very next child to be born to David and Bathsheba.  Dr. Wiersbe says that David was around fifty years old when all this took place and if Solomon was their fourth child then David would have been somewhere around 55-60 when Solomon was born and David died at age 70 so Solomon would have been a very young king.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Romans 8:28 reads as follows, “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”  As I look at some of these incidents that are found in Scripture such as what is seen in chapters eleven and twelve of 2Samuel I see this as part of the meaning of Romans 8:28.  When I first started looking at situations like found here I would think that this was all in God’s plans, which it was, but in a bad sense and not in the sense where God was showing His grace and forgiveness and using this and other situations to work out for their good and for God’s glory.  These are very hard things to understand and things that will probably never be understood on this side of glory.

            I am thankful for the grace of God.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1.      Trust that the Lord will give me the strength to finish the task of helping us to get ready to go to Kauai.

 

9/25/2010 9:15:10 AM

God Chastens David from 2 Samuel 12:15-23

9/24/2010 6:59:01 AM

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY

 

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  The chastening

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  2Sam. 12:15-23

 

            Message of the verses:  “15 ¶  So Nathan went to his house. Then the LORD struck the child that Uriah’s widow bore to David, so that he was very sick. 16  David therefore inquired of God for the child; and David fasted and went and lay all night on the ground. 17  The elders of his household stood beside him in order to raise him up from the ground, but he was unwilling and would not eat food with them. 18  Then it happened on the seventh day that the child died. And the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they said, "Behold, while the child was still alive, we spoke to him and he did not listen to our voice. How then can we tell him that the child is dead, since he might do himself harm!" 19  But when David saw that his servants were whispering together, David perceived that the child was dead; so David said to his servants, "Is the child dead?" And they said, "He is dead." 20  So David arose from the ground, washed, anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he came into the house of the LORD and worshiped. Then he came to his own house, and when he requested, they set food before him and he ate. 21  Then his servants said to him, "What is this thing that you have done? While the child was alive, you fasted and wept; but when the child died, you arose and ate food." 22  He said, "While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, ’Who knows, the LORD may be gracious to me, that the child may live.’ 23  "But now he has died; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.’”

 

            I want to begin this portion of my SD by quoting from Dr. Wiersbe’s commentary on 2Samuel:  “Chastening is not punishment meted out by and angry judge who wants to uphold the law; rather, it’s difficulty permitted by a loving Father who wants His children to submit to His will and develop godly character.  Chastening is an expression of God’s love:  ‘11  My son, do not reject the discipline of the LORD Or loathe His reproof, 12  For whom the LORD loves He reproves, Even as a father corrects the son in whom he delights’ (Proverbs 3:11-12).” 

            The death of Bathsheba’s son brings about a question that must be asked, but difficult to answer and the question is “Why does a loving God permit evil in the world?”  Dr. Wiersbe writes “There are no easy answers to settle our minds, but there are plenty of dependable promises to heal our hearts, and faith is nurtured on promises, not explanations.”  I like that last part of the quote speaking of promises that nurture us and not explanations.  Abraham said in Genesis 18:25 “Far be it from You to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?’” 

            Some have said that what David meant in verse twenty three means that David was speaking of him going to his son in death, but this would not be a good promise, for I believe that David is speaking of going to see his son, whom he will recognize, in glory.

            One more thing and that is something that I have gone over in earlier SD’s and that is the part where David learned of his son’s death and then the Scripture says “So David arose from the ground, washed, anointed himself, and changed his clothes.”  “In Scripture, washing oneself and changing clothes symbolizes making a new beginning.”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  David had been away from the Lord for a long time before Nathan confronted him with his sins, and now David has returned to fellowship with the Lord and this is seen by what David is doing in this section and this shows that he truly is a man after God’s own heart.  What I can learn from this is it is important how I handle problems, how I handle chastening from the Lord, and it does not always mean that I have sinned in order to be chastened by the Lord.  The word in Hebrews 12:5-13 that is translated in the KJV as chastening and in the NASB as discipline speaks of the discipline that a Greek son were taught when they were little as they went to the gym to learn how to be prepared for life.  “AV-chastening 3, nurture 1, instruction 1, chastisement 1; 6  

1) the whole training and education of children (which relates to the cultivation of mind and morals, and employs for this purpose now commands and admonitions, now reproof and punishment) It also includes the training and care of the body

2) whatever in adults also cultivates the soul, esp. by correcting mistakes and curbing passions.

2a) instruction which aims at increasing virtue

2b) chastisement, chastening, (of the evils with which God visits men for their amendment)”

This explanation comes from the Greek English dictionary that is on the Online Bible program that I have on my computer.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1.      Learn to handle discipline in a godly mater so that I will grow in the Lord from that experience.

2.      Give myself to the Lord for worship and service.

3.      Trust the Lord to direct my path today.

 

9/24/2010 7:41:19 AM 

God Pardons David from 2 Samuel 12:13-14

9/23/2010 9:50:17 AM

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY

 

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  The pardon

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  2Sam. 12:13-14

 

            Message of the verses:  “13  Then David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the LORD." And Nathan said to David, "The LORD also has taken away your sin; you shall not die. 14  "However, because by this deed you have given occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also that is born to you shall surely die.’”

            David wrote two Psalms to show his repentance from these sins, and these Psalms, 32 & 51 give comfort to all who have sinned against the Lord and have truly confessed and repented from their sin.  Verse fourteen begins with the word “however” and this is the part that Dr. Wiersbe points out that this has to do with the government of God, and so God would allow David to go through the consequences of his sin, and the first part of that would be the death of Bathsheba’s son.  As mentioned in an earlier SD David would also lose three more sons and he also had a beautiful daughter rapped by her half brother and this began the great trouble in David’s family that almost cost him his throne. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life this morning:  I have been writing about the stages of how temptation and sin work in a person’s life and will repeat some of these things in this section of this SD today.  Temptation is not sin for Hebrews tells me that the Lord Jesus was tempted :  “Heb 2:18  For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.  Heb 4:15  For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.”  These two verses prove that temptation is not sin.  When I am tempted I can get rid of the temptation and one of the ways to do this is to quote 1Cor. 10:13 “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”

            Next when I give in to temptation in my mind that will be the next easiest way to not sin in my body.  Jesus spoke of this in His sermon on the mount:  “Mt 5:27  "You have heard that it was said, ’YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY’; Mt 5:28  but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”  Sinning in my heart can lead to sinning in my body and it does not only mean sexual sins like is spoken of above, anger and murder begin in the heart along with other sins and in the heart is the second best place to get rid of these sins before one commits them in their bodies.

            David did not follow any of these steps and thus broke four of the Ten Commandments.  God, in His grace, forgave David and because of what Jesus Christ did on the cross I will be forgiven for all my sins, but if I continue to sin then I will not be in wonderful fellowship with the Lord and will not be conformed in the image of Jesus Christ, something I have a great desire to do

 

My Steps of Faith for Today: 

1.      Remember the truth of 1Cor. 10:13.

2.      Give myself to the Lord for worship and service this day.

3.      Trust the Lord to guide & direct my path today.

 

9/23/2010 10:29:19 AM

God Gives His Verdict and Sentence (2 Samuel 12:7-12)

9/22/2010 7:07:16 AM

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus: The verdict & the sentence

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  2Sam. 12:7-12

 

            Message of the verses: “7 Nathan then said to David, "You are the man! Thus says the LORD God of Israel, ’It is I who anointed you king over Israel and it is I who delivered you from the hand of Saul. 8 ’I also gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your care, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added to you many more things like these! 9 ’Why have you despised the word of the LORD by doing evil in His sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword, have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the sons of Ammon.  10 ’Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’ 11 “Thus says the LORD, ’Behold, I will raise up evil against you from your own household; I will even take your wives before your eyes and give them to your companion, and he will lie with your wives in broad daylight. 12 ’Indeed you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, and under the sun.’”

 

            David was angry at the man in the story who had killed the little ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and so Nathan tells David that he was that man.  I do not suppose that he gave David time to react to that statement, but he goes on to tell him the verdict that the Lord had told Nathan to tell David.  David had not only sinned against Uriah and Bathsheba, but he also sinned against the Lord and he did not care that he had broken four of the Ten Commandments and used the enemy of Ammon to kill Uriah, and then he took Bathsheba to be his wife.  Nathan goes on to tell David that if the things that the Lord had given him were too little that He would have given him more.  The Lord had taken David from tending sheep to make him king and then kept him safe from Saul and then given all that Saul had and given it to David, and God had also given him victory over his enemies and now David forgot all of this for one moment of pleasure. 

 

            As for the matter of the sentence that the Lord was about to give to David it was harsh because the crimes were also harsh, but the Lord will pardon David from a part of this sentence because He is gracious and because God had made a covenant with David to always have a man on the throne and this still holds true even today as Jesus Christ is seated on the throne in heaven next to His Father ruling and reigning. 

            David would lose four of his sons, the baby; Amnon, Absalom, and Adonijah were all kill by the sword with the exception of Bathsheba’s baby.  Absalom would lie with David concubines in full view of all to see.  What David did with Bathsheba was not as serious as what he did to Uriah, and in 1Kings 15:5 the author speaks of the matter of what David did to Uriah, but does not speak of what David did with Bathsheba.

            Dr. Wiersbe points out the laws that David broke and the consequences that that are written in the Law when these laws were broken and they all happened to David, especially when Absalom took over for a brief time as king before Joab killed him.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  God is equitable in all his doings with me, and though my sins have been forgiven me through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ there are still consequences when I sin just as there were when David sinned.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1.      I give myself to the Lord today for worship and for service.

2.      I trust the Lord to guide my path today.

3.      I trust the Lord to guide me into making the correct decisions with the health problems that I am now facing.

 

 

9/22/2010 7:45:41 AM

 

 

 

           

God Puts David on Trial (2 Samuel 12:1-6)

9/21/2010 9:10:33 AM

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY

 

My Worship Time                                                                                          Focus:  The trial

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  2Sam. 12:1-6

 

            Message of the verses:  “1 ¶  Then the LORD sent Nathan to David. And he came to him and said, "There were two men in one city, the one rich and the other poor. 2  "The rich man had a great many flocks and herds. 3  "But the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb Which he bought and nourished; And it grew up together with him and his children. It would eat of his bread and drink of his cup and lie in his bosom, and was like a daughter to him. 4  "Now a traveler came to the rich man, And he was unwilling to take from his own flock or his own herd, To prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him; Rather he took the poor man’s ewe lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him." 5  Then David’s anger burned greatly against the man, and he said to Nathan, "As the LORD lives, surely the man who has done this deserves to die. 6  "He must make restitution for the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing and had no compassion."

 

            This SD begins the forth main point from Warren Wiersbe’s commentary on 2Samuel and this is from the fifth chapter in his commentary.  He has entitled this forth point “The Confessing,” and this is the first of four sub-points to be covered.

            I believe that this may be the second time the prophet is mentioned as he came on the scene in 2Samuel chapter seven where David had had the desire to build a temple for the Lord and Nathan responded at first with telling David to do so but then came back with the Word from the Lord not to do it, but let his son do it.

            Now Nathan must tell David a story that will show him that he had committed a great sin that was deserving of death along with his pregnant wife and he uses an illustration that if very familiar to David that of a sheep probably reminding David of his days as a shepherd of sheep.  In this story there is a rich man who represents David, a poor man who represents Uriah, and a guest who represents sin.  I think that all of these representations are very clear with possibility the reprehensive of sin.  I want to turn to the very first chapter in the Bible and something that happened near the beginning to help illustrate why sin can first be a guest and then can be a master.  “6 ¶  Then the LORD said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? 7  ‘If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.’”  I think the Lord is saying to Cain that if you don’t master sin it will master you. “6 ¶  GOD spoke to Cain: "Why this tantrum? Why the sulking? 7  If you do well, won’t you be accepted? And if you don’t do well, sin is lying in wait for you, ready to pounce; it’s out to get you, you’ve got to master it.’”  (Message)

            The Lord gave Nathan the right words to say to David and David will respond in the correct manner, as the Word of God had great effect with David’s sin unlike what it did in the life of Cain who became the first murderer on planet earth. 

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  As I could not sleep for a while last night I picked up the book that I have been reading “Hand Me Another Brick” by Charles Swindoll and got to a chapter called “The Fine Art of Insight.”  In this chapter he writes about the difference between input and insight and this is what is seen or will be seen with David, for David was listening to Nathan and was receiving insight from the Word of the Lord, while Cain was only getting input from the Word of the Lord and it did not affect him.

            I have a great desire to read and understand and have insight into the Word of God, and I want it to affect me in such a way that it will do the work in my life that God wants it to do.  At times I truly fight with myself on how I show people things that I have learned from the Word of God as I want to bring glory to the Lord for what He has taught me and at times I lose this fight and it seems to me that I have brought glory to me, and this just causes me a great deal of pain for I know that this is sinful and wrong.  This puts me in the seventh chapter of Romans where I am doing what I don’t want to do and not doing what I want to do, “24 Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.”

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1.      In all I do I want to give glory to the Lord.

2.      Give myself to the Lord for worship and service.

3.      Continue to learn contentment.

 

9/21/2010 10:03:46 AM

David Covers his Sin (Bad News) (2 Samuel 11:5-27)

9/20/2010 8:16:16 AM

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY

 

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  The covering

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  2Sam. 11:5-27

 

            Message of the verses:  “  The woman conceived; and she sent and told David, and said, ‘I am pregnant.’

   “ 6 ¶  Then David sent to Joab, saying, "Send me Uriah the Hittite." So Joab sent Uriah to David. 7  When Uriah came to him, David asked concerning the welfare of Joab and the people and the state of the war. 8  Then David said to Uriah, "Go down to your house, and wash your feet." And Uriah went out of the king’s house, and a present from the king was sent out after him. 9  But Uriah slept at the door of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. 10  Now when they told David, saying, "Uriah did not go down to his house," David said to Uriah, "Have you not come from a journey? Why did you not go down to your house?" 11  Uriah said to David, "The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in temporary shelters, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field. Shall I then go to my house to eat and to drink and to lie with my wife? By your life and the life of your soul, I will not do this thing." 12  Then David said to Uriah, "Stay here today also, and tomorrow I will let you go." So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next. 13  Now David called him, and he ate and drank before him, and he made him drunk; and in the evening he went out to lie on his bed with his lord’s servants, but he did not go down to his house.

    “14 ¶  Now in the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15  He had written in the letter, saying, "Place Uriah in the front line of the fiercest battle and withdraw from him, so that he may be struck down and die." 16  So it was as Joab kept watch on the city, that he put Uriah at the place where he knew there were valiant men. 17  The men of the city went out and fought against Joab, and some of the people among David’s servants fell; and Uriah the Hittite also died. 18  Then Joab sent and reported to David all the events of the war. 19  He charged the messenger, saying, "When you have finished telling all the events of the war to the king, 20  and if it happens that the king’s wrath rises and he says to you, ’Why did you go so near to the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall? 21  ’Who struck down Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? Did not a woman throw an upper millstone on him from the wall so that he died at Thebez? Why did you go so near the wall?’-then you shall say, ’Your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.’" 22  So the messenger departed and came and reported to David all that Joab had sent him to tell. 23  The messenger said to David, "The men prevailed against us and came out against us in the field, but we pressed them as far as the entrance of the gate. 24  "Moreover, the archers shot at your servants from the wall; so some of the king’s servants are dead, and your servant Uriah the Hittite is also dead." 25  Then David said to the messenger, "Thus you shall say to Joab, ’Do not let this thing displease you, for the sword devours one as well as another; make your battle against the city stronger and overthrow it’; and so encourage him." 26  Now when the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband. 27  When the time of mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house and she became his wife; then she bore him a son. But the thing that David had done was evil in the sight of the LORD.”

            This is one of the saddest stories in all the Scripture from the standpoint of Uriah, for he was the innocent one in all of this, the one that was the good soldier, the one that was the good husband, and his only crime was to marry a beautiful woman and live near the palace of the king.  Uriah would carry his own death sentence unknowingly to his commander and die for king, country, and his Lord, but actually would be murdered by his king.

            David was breaking many of the Ten Commandments starting with the hardest one to keep, for the commandment concerning coveting was a commandment of the mind and that made it the easiest to break.  David coveted his neighbor’s wife, committed adultery with his neighbor’s wife, then he bore false witness against his neighbor, and then killed his neighbor to cover up the breaking of these other broken commandments.

            I have highlighted the last sentence in verse 27, “But the thing that David had done was evil in the sight of the LORD.”  It will be the Lord who has the last word on all of this, for the only way that David would be able to live after breaking these commandments is by God’s grace for there was no sacrifice to offer for the things that David had done.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Humanely speaking this was a series of smart moves that David did, yet humanely is usually all together wrong for it comes from the flesh, the old nature and that is the wrong nature to follow.  The things that I can learn from all of this is that it is best to take care of temptations in the mind by taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, and this means that I must have the mind of Christ, and that means that I must be in a church that teaches the Word of God so that I can learn the Word of God and then this will give me the mind of Christ so that when I am tempted I can take the temptation captive to the obedience of Christ.  As stated before the next place that is easiest to take care of a problem like this is when I sin in my mind is to confess it at that time and not dwell any longer on it.  The rest will go downhill very fast if not taken care of in the first two steps like it did for David.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

 

1.      Take every though captive to the obedience of Christ.

2.      Give myself to the Lord for worship and service.

3.      Put on the spiritual armor in order to be protected in the battle that is all around me.

4.      Continue to learn contentment.

5.      Love my wife like Christ loves His Church.

6.      Seek the Lord to direct my path today.

7.      Trust that the Holy Spirit will search my heart for unconfessed sin in order to have sweet fellowship with my Lord.

 

9/20/2010 9:01:30 AM