Title: The Forgotten Name / Topic: Disobedience

Today’s Reading: 2 Samuel 11-12; Psalm 51; Matthew 21

Scripture: 2 Samuel 12:24 Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and he went to her and lay with her. She gave birth to a son, and they named him Solomon. The LORD loved him; 25 and because the LORD loved him, he sent word through Nathan the prophet to name him Jedidiah.

Observation: I never really noticed this before but God told David and Bathsheba that they were to name their son Jedidiah. They had named him Solomon but God sent word to them to change it. But they did not do what the Lord told them to do. They stuck with their choice and did not change it to the name the Lord had given them. This strikes me as quite odd and really brazen, especially given the situation surrounding the birth of this young lad. You would think that after falling into such gross sin and causing so much pain to so many people, that David would want to be very careful about obeying the Lord's instructions exactly. But apparently, he just doesn't seem to pay any attention at all because this name does not appear anywhere else in the Bible. But I wonder what might have been different for Solomon if he had been given the name Jedidiah which means "loved by the Lord." Maybe such a name would have caused him to have a greater love for God. No one knows --

Application: But I do know that the wisest course is obeying the Lord fully. Any thought that there are no consequences in disregarding any part of the Lord's instructions is a lie. You cannot disobey God without some negative impact in your life and/or the life of others.

Prayer: Lord, help us to pay attention to what You say and to do it. May be not be lax in listening to You and carrying out Your words to us. We want to walk in the fullness of Your blessing and we know that to do that, we have to fully follow what You say.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Title: The Individualist / Topic: Rebellion

Today’s Reading: 2 Samuel 10; 1 Chronicles 20; Psalm 20; Matthew 22

Scripture: Matthew 22:8-13
8 "Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. 9 Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.' 10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.
11 "But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12 'Friend,' he asked, 'how did you get in here without wedding clothes?' The man was speechless.
13 "Then the king told the attendants, 'Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'"

Observation: Jesus tells this parable beginning with the phrase, "The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son..." So we know immediately that the king is God the Father and his son is Jesus Christ the Son of God. Think of the grace that this story portrays. Almighty God throws a great party and we are invited! Of course, it takes a while until "everyone" actually gets invited because the "A List" people get invited first but they snub the king, refusing to come to the party. So the king sends "personal reminders," servants urging the guests to come. But the "A List" people still refuse. It is then that the party is opened up to everyone. They "gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad." That is how you and I made it to the party. But notice that some of the people in the party, one guy in particular, an individualist, still refused to comply -- he wouldn't wear the clothing provided. You see, everyone was given special clothes to wear (probably for the pictures), but this one fellow decided that he would come to the party on his terms.

Application: There are many people in God's Kingdom who won't submit to God. I believe that we all have rebellion in our hearts, some more and others less. And everybody has to deal with it in some fashion. Some people deal with it by calling it "a personality trait" or something like that. Then they allow their rebellion to define much of their thoughts, words, and actions. The fellow in the story probably felt pretty special, being the only one at the party who wasn't dressed in the party outfits. He probably thought that he was the only one with enough courage to express himself and not conform to the religious dictates of others. He may have even bragged about this individuality. But when the king angrily notices him and asks him why he isn't wearing the wedding clothes, "the man was speechless." So much for being an individualist! Rebellion can be dressed up in all sorts of creative ways, but it is still rebellion and will eventually be dealt with by the Lord.

Bottom line: I must surrender and submit to God. Why? Because He is God and I am not.

Prayer: Lord, help me to lay my life at Your feet and take it up in the way You direct. May we see our rebellion for what it is and get rid of it. Show us how to live humbly in ourselves and with great confidence in You.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Title: Sounds Like David / Topic: Modeling

Today’s Reading: 2 Samuel 8; 2 Samuel 9; 1 Chronicles 18; 1 Chronicles 19; Matthew 21

Scripture: 1 Chronicles 19:12-13
12 Joab said, "If the Arameans are too strong for me, then you are to rescue me; but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will rescue you. 13 Be strong and let us fight bravely for our people and the cities of our God. The LORD will do what is good in his sight."

Observation: This is Joab, David's top general. He finds himself in a terrible spot strategically. Their positions have been flanked as a second enemy force has come upon them from the rear. Joab is giving final directions to Abashai, his brother and second in command. What I love about this is the fact that after Joab gives the battle plan, he acknowledges that they are in God's hands: "The LORD will do what is good in his sight." This shows the effect of David's training and example. Joab sounds like David. Good leadership rubs off. (By the way, wicked leadership rubs off too.)

Application: Every believer should be intentionally involved in training. We should have someone who is leading us and someone who is following us. And as we model faith in our times of difficulty, we are helping to train our protégés how to handle their times of trouble. And if we do it right, they will trust in God and turn to Him. And also notice that Joab is training Abashai in the walk of faith as well. Neither of them would ever forget how God came to their rescue in this desperate situation.

Prayer: Lord, thank You for Your faithful example to us. Help us to lead in word, deed, attitude, and motivation as we live out the life and ministry that You have given us. Make us faithful teachers and models to those who come behind us. May our consistent example bring forth good and lasting fruit in the lives of those You have called us to lead.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Title: Happy Fear / Topic: Balance

Today’s Reading: 2 Samuel 7; 1 Chronicles 17; Psalm 2; Matthew 20

Scripture: Psalm 2:11 Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling.

Observation: What a strange combination of words these are to my ears. First of all "fear" is not something that is generally associated with serving the Lord. (Now I know that some of you are quoting to me right now the verse that says "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." OK, I also know that verse.) But my observation about this is true: in today's "Christian culture," the phrase "serve the Lord with fear" is not common -- and certainly not popular. And if this first part of verse 11 is uncommon, the second half "rejoice with trembling" is downright strange! If you went up to ten people at church and said to each of them, "rejoice with trembling," you would get ten confused responses. [I don't suggest you try this. :-) ]

The fact that these phrases are so far out of our norm is what caught my attention. I think that we have overemphasized the "personal relationship" aspect of our faith too much and have lost the sense of God as the Lord of Lords, the invincible One in Whose presence we must bow. The idea that God is a friend to us is true. But He is not our "buddy" or "pal".

Let me share a personal story. I recently had an encounter with a very young child where I was introduced to him and ended up sitting next to him at a meal. I immediately shifted into the "Grampapa mode" and started entertaining the lad. He laughed at my funny voices and wanted more. When I told him that it was time to pause and look at the menu, he grabbed me and demanded more funny voices. I calmly but firmly explained to this child, "Do not do that. You are not to grab me like that. I am your friend, but I am an adult and not one of your playground pals. You are not to treat me like one of your kid buddies. You must respect me. Do you understand?" He had become too comfortable with me and I needed to help him to better understand the relationship. Today this little boy is very glad to see me and is always respectful but also appropriately affectionate.

Application: We need to be careful that we are not too comfortable with Almighty God. A too-comfortable relationship can result in a casual attitude and taking God for granted. The outcome of this could be a disastrous complacency. There is another verse with the phrase "fear and trembling" that is on point here: "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling..." (Phil. 2:12). This pushes us in the direction of the serious, earnest, dedicated pursuit of God's purposes for our lives. There is a gravity to it. It is not to be taken lightly. Walking with God, knowing and serving Him is a joyful but serious business. "Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling."

Prayer: Lord, help us to find this place of great joy and deep reverence for You. May we walk in such a way that we experience the freedom You bring while taking Your yoke upon our lives. Thank You that You call us to lives of a humanly-impossible balance that can only be achieved by surrendering to Your power.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Title: Who Owns You? / Topic: Surrender

Today’s Reading: 1 Chronicles 16; Psalm 106; Matthew 19

Scripture: Matthew 19:16 Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?"
17 "Why do you ask me about what is good?" Jesus replied. "There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments."
18 "Which ones?" the man inquired.
Jesus replied, " 'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, 19 honor your father and mother,' and 'love your neighbor as yourself.'"
20 "All these I have kept," the young man said. "What do I still lack?"
21 Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
22 When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.
23 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."
25 When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, "Who then can be saved?"
26 Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

Observation: "I want to be rich!" If you are a believer and you say these words to another Christian, you are likely to raise eyebrows. A desire to be wealthy is guaranteed to arouse suspicion among Christians. But I believe that God is definitely in favor of rich Christians. He wants more of His committed and dedicated followers to have greater resource so they can be conduits of blessing to this world. However this story does show one of the pitfalls of great wealth. Here is a young man with a desire to follow God and he comes to Jesus to find out how to take his life to a higher spiritual level. Jesus points out that there is an idol in the man's life -- it is his wealth. The man put his money ahead of God. He didn't own his money -- his money owned him. And this fact meant that he could not be owned by God and he couldn't serve God fully. When given the challenge to choose God and let go of his money idol, the man "went away sad." He was deeply conflicted but his money won. Jesus says, "it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven... it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."

Now you may have heard a story about a gate in the wall of Jerusalem called "the eye of a needle" that a camel could only get through by being emptied of its baggage and stooping on its knees. This has been widely taught but unfortunately, no such gate exists -- it is an urban myth. Click here for more information about this story.

The fact that the disciples object with amazed incredulity shows that they understood the impossibility of Jesus' hyperbole. Jesus was talking about a real camel and a real needle. [Actually it is possible for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle. Of course, the camel has to go through the blender first. Ouch! That's not a pretty thought! Sorry :-)]
So the point is that a rich person can't be saved without God's intervention. But isn't that also true about a poor person, or any other person for that matter.

Application: All of us have the same problem: pride. That is, a person's individual right of self-determination. (In America, we have enshrined this prerogative as a cherished value.) Whether rich or poor, we all have to give up that right to come to God. And this is not just a one-time thing. No, we have to keep giving up and keep coming to God. Jesus tells us this. "If any man would follow me he must take up his cross daily and follow me." What or who owns you? It is either God or something else. Give yourself fully to God.

Prayer: Lord, help us to surrender all and follow You. Whether we have great riches or no riches, it is our pride that ultimately will keep us from You. Help us to see pride's destructive power and let it die so that we may live fully and unhindered in You.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Title: The Clueless Disciples / Topic: Humility

Today’s Reading: 1 Chronicles 14; 1 Chronicles 15; Psalm 132; Matthew 18

Scripture: Matthew 18:1-4
1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
2 He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3 And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."

Observation: I am always amazed at the really stupid questions that the Disciples asked. Their questions reveal how often they truly miss the point of what Jesus was trying to teach them. Case in point: the scripture above where the Disciples are apparently having a debate about which of them is going to be Jesus' second in command when they finally take over from the Romans. "Who is the greatest in the kingdom?" is their question. Jesus uses the opportunity to set them straight. "It's not about 'the greatest in heaven' -- it's about getting into heaven and to get in you have to be humble." I'm sure this was a shock to the Disciples, especially since Jesus didn't use any of them as the example but chose a small child to make His point. They were jockeying for position and Jesus essentially told them that if they continued their prideful pursuits, they wouldn't even get in!

Application: "Become like a child," Jesus tell us. Humble - teachable - eager to learn - unpretentious - uncomplicated. These traits are the opposite of the sophisticated assertive bluster that our culture promotes (i.e. Donald Trump). We must approach God with simplicity and openness. To sit at His feet and listen to what He says -- and to love Him: these are the ways that Jesus calls us to come.

Prayer: Lord, I want to come to You as a child. I want to be able to receive all that You have for me, and I know that I have so much in me that gets in the way of that. Help me to put my stuff aside and humbly seek Your face. Show us how to "change and become like little children" so we may experience all of You.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Title: They Didn't Ask / Topic: God's Way

Today’s Reading: 2 Samuel 6; 1 Chronicles 13; Psalm 68; Matthew 17

Scripture: 1 Chronicles 13:1-12
1 David conferred with each of his officers, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds. 2 He then said to the whole assembly of Israel, "If it seems good to you and if it is the will of the LORD our God, let us send word far and wide to the rest of our brothers throughout the territories of Israel, and also to the priests and Levites who are with them in their towns and pasturelands, to come and join us. 3 Let us bring the ark of our God back to us, for we did not inquire of it during the reign of Saul." 4 The whole assembly agreed to do this, because it seemed right to all the people.
5 So David assembled all the Israelites, from the Shihor River in Egypt to Lebo Hamath, to bring the ark of God from Kiriath Jearim. 6 David and all the Israelites with him went to Baalah of Judah (Kiriath Jearim) to bring up from there the ark of God the LORD, who is enthroned between the cherubim—the ark that is called by the Name.
7 They moved the ark of God from Abinadab's house on a new cart, with Uzzah and Ahio guiding it. 8 David and all the Israelites were celebrating with all their might before God, with songs and with harps, lyres, tambourines, cymbals and trumpets.
9 When they came to the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark, because the oxen stumbled. 10 The LORD's anger burned against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark. So he died there before God.
11 Then David was angry because the LORD's wrath had broken out against Uzzah, and to this day that place is called Perez Uzzah.
12 David was afraid of God that day and asked, "How can I ever bring the ark of God to me?"...

Observation: As David thinks about bringing the ark up to Jerusalem from the place it had been put after the Philistines sent it away, he asks the people and his officials, but he doesn't ask the Lord. That he assumes that it will be OK with God is shown by this line from verse 2: "If it seems good to you and if it is the will of the LORD our God..." Nowhere is there any record of him actually seeking God's will. The result is disaster. An innocent, well-meaning individual dies in the fiasco because David violated the clearly-written directions and warnings God had already given concerning the ark. David was angry with God, but he should have been just mad at himself.

Application: Don't assume or presume on God. Ask Him what to do and How to do it. Then listen and do as He says. Simple but true.

Prayer: Lord, may we walk in not only Your will but also Your ways. Help us to avoid presumption and arrogance of self-will in our lives by being in constant communication with You through the leading of the Holy Spirit.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.