King David, General Washington, and Trails of Tears - Part 1

There are uniquely sad moments in everyone's life, but King David was dealt a particularly devastating blow when his son, Absalom, led a revolt against him.

We read about it in 2 Samuel 15. Absalom was in Hebron (where David himself had first been crowned) and was recruiting his own group of followers to lead a rebellion against his father.

A messenger (spy?) reported to David, The hearts of the men of Israel are with Absalom.

Apparently David didn't need to verify this. He knew immediately that the messenger was telling the truth. Then David said to all of his officials who were with him in Jerusalem, 'Come! We must flee, or none of us will escape from Absalom. We must leave immediately, or he will move quickly to overtake us and bring ruin upon us and put the city to the sword.'


None of us will Escape...


None of us will escape... None of us? Not even David would be spared? Would Absalom's obsession with being King of Israel lead him to kill his own father? Looks like David thought so. He knew Absalom and was afraid for his own life, as well as the others in his court, and even for the residents in Jerusalem.

And so the king's officials told him Your servants are ready to do whatever our lord the king chooses.


And King David fled the city with his household and faithful followers. At one point, David halted and let his army march past. That army included 600 Gittites (people from Gath, where Goliath was from, and where Obed-Edom had lived). Ittai, the Gittite leader, told David, As surely as the LORD lives, and as my lord the king lives, wherever my lord the king may be, whether it means life or death, there will your servant be.


As David stood there with his household and watched his men march past, he must have felt some measure of comfort, or at least companionship, as he considered what lay ahead, and perhaps some measure of guilt for what was happening.

The Trail of Tears...


The whole countryside wept aloud as all the people passed by. The King also crossed the Kidron Valley (really a ravine with a wet-weather stream called the Kidron Brook. Jesus crossed this ravine also when He went to the olive grove where He was arrested) and all the people moved on toward the desert. 2 Samuel 15:23

Zadok, the high priest, and other Levites were bringing the Ark of the Covenant with them in their exile. Was David afraid Absalom would destroy the Ark? We can't know for certain, but likely Zadok, who was entrusted with the safety of the Ark, wanted to go with David, and couldn't leave it behind!

As all the people were leaving the city fleeing from Absalom's men, Abiathar offered sacrifices until all the people had finished leaving the city.


Where should the Ark of the Covenant be?

King David knew the Ark belonged back in the tabernacle. He said to Zadok Take the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the LORD's eyes, He will bring me back and let me see it and His dwelling place again. But if He says, 'I am not pleased with you,' then I am ready; let Him do to me whatever seems good to Him.'

But David continued up the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went; his head was covered and he was barefoot. All the people with him covered their heads too and were weeping as they went up.

It was truly a Trail of Tears.

Retreating in your own land....

We've all read about armies in retreat and seen movies of those despairing lines of wretched people on the run, bringing their household goods on small wobbly carts and wearing as many clothes as they could layer on, followed by crying children and maybe a few small farm animals. The people usually have a haunted, hopeless look. Pilgrims. Homeless people trying to find shelter and safety.

And retreating armies carrying their wounded, trying to outrun the enemy. Trying to keep ahead. Too weary to run and too afraid to stop.

But even sadder is to imagine soldiers retreating in their own country. Like the Russian army retreating in World War II. Retreating from the advancing Germans, passing villages and farms of shocked people, their friends and family who were counting on them to keep the enemy away. And they had failed.

Imagine how it would be if you were there, watching your own army, men and boys you knew, retreating right past your home, with the enemy right behind them, chasing them. Everything the people (usually the elderly, women and children, since the strong men were already dead or part of the retreating army) had counted on to protect them had evaporated before their eyes and they were left to face whatever horrors the enemy had in store for them.

And imagine how those men themselves must have felt.

So David was fleeing, in front of his countrymen, people who had entrusted him with their lives. It was too dangerous to stay behind and so all those who were able went with David as he fled toward the desert.

David wrote about it later. Psalm 63. O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory....
On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night.
Because you are my help, I will sing in the shadow of your wings.
My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.

The forward to the Psalm tells us it was from David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.

We know of two times David was in the wilderness: once when he was running from the jealousy and wrath of King Saul, and the other time was when he was fleeing from his own son. We can date it to the time he is running from Absalom, because in verse 11 he calls himself "the king." David often referred to himself in the third person in the psalms. (And when he was fleeing from King Saul, he was not the king.)

This Psalm is a well-known one. Most of us know parts of it by memory. And in it we can hear his voice of pain and also his voice of trust in God. (Another kind of sacred counterpoint?)

Continued in Part 2.

Darkness and Light - and Beethoven

This morning I woke up hearing Beethoven's "Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee" -- especially these words, "Hearts unfold like flowers before Thee, opening to the sun above....Melt the clouds of sin and sadness; drive the dark of doubt away...Giver of immortal gladness, fill us with the light of day..."

It is overcast today, and rain seems to hover somewhere up there over us. But our hearts are filled with eternal joy and God's true light.

I had to go back to Psalm 111 and 112 again. Lately I have been unable to focus on other Psalms -- These parallels are impossible to ignore. In Psalm 111 we see God's holiness, and in Psalm 112 we see how man can be holy -- and they are the same traits. That sure clarifies how we are to live and shape our character -- to follow God's character!

In 111 "His [God's] righteousness endures forever." In Psalm 112 "His [man's] righteousness endures forever." In Psalm 111 "He [God] is gracious and compassionate" and in Psalm 112 it says the righteous man is gracious and compassionate. And Psalm 111 tells how God shares and provides and Psalm 112 tells how righteous men are generous and share. And many more.

But I have to stop at 112:4--"Even in darkness light dawns for the upright.."
And then in Isaiah 9 we read "The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned."

I was one of those people -- living in darkness and then -- the Light of God dawned -- didn't arrive -- it had always been there -- but it 'dawned.'

We talk a lot about light and darkness these days. We talk about a curtain of darkness beginning to cloud over our land. Well, in a practical sense, darkness must come when the light is no longer shining. We leave a room and shut off the light.
So part of the darkness around us is because we are no longer shining. And any small flicker of a flame will dispel some darkness. (And wonder if we all lit just one little candle?)

Now I am trying to concentrate on darkness. What do we know about it? Is it just the absence of light?

Remember this C. S. Lewis quote?: "I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else."

That is part of my experience -- seeing God's light enables me to see everything else clearer.

Well, anyway, a great writer is Hugh Ross, who is a well-known astrophysicist and astronomer. He is the author of numerous books and earnest in his endeavor to teach "Creation as Science" in our universities. He has founded a Christian group of scientists who promote Reasons to Believe.

So I decided to see his thoughts on darkness:
He says, "...twenty-first century discoveries about cosmic darkness have yielded the most impressive scientific evidence to date for a supernatural, super-intelligent Creator, the God of the Bible.

"In Job 38 God asks, 'Where does darkness reside? Can you take it to its places? Do you know the paths to its dwellings?' For over 3000 years no human could answer. But now astronomers know that darkness makes up 99.73 percent of all the stuff of the universe. They know that dark stuff comes in 3 forms. They've even determined where these different forms of cosmic darkness reside:

1. Ordinary dark matter - resides in halos closely surrounding galaxies of all types
2. Exotic dark matter - resides in halos closely surrounding galaxy clusters
3. Dark energy - resides everywhere, evenly distributed."

Dr. Ross goes on to say, "The precise locations and amounts of this exotic and ordinary dark matter provide exactly what's needed for a stable spiral galaxy, and advanced life is possible only in a stable spiral galaxy....spectacular evidence for supernatural, super-intelligent design. The level of fine-tuning in the dark-energy component alone is astounding. If it varied by as little as one part in 10 120th (that's 10 with 119 zeroes after it) life could not exist in the universe.
What explanation, other than the God of the Bible, can anyone give for this level of design?

Job 38 includes nearly 50 questions about nature that underscore the incomparable wisdom and power of God. Scientists today can only answer 10. And yet the answers we do know show the intricacy of God's plan, the steadfastness of God's purpose, and the magnitude of God's care for the creation, including His living creatures."

Dr. Ross points out, "What's more, each answer researchers find yields powerful new evidence for believers and doubters alike that God exists and that His Word can be trusted. Both our hearts and our minds can embrace His provision for our redemption and our eternal life with Him."

Praise God for His power and for His revelation to us, His humble creatures. We can count on His faithfulness as He has revealed Himself to us.

More from Beethoven (1770-1827).....From his "Ode to Joy" -- part of his Ninth Symphony, which he wrote when he was completely deaf! So we applaud his work, and yet he never heard it! Maybe he has now!

(His Ninth Symphony was his last complete symphony, finished a couple of years before his death.)

"All Thy works with joy surround Thee, earth and heaven reflect Thy rays
Stars and angels sing around Thee, center of unbroken praise,
Field and forest, vale and mountain, flowery meadow, flashing sea
Singing bird and flowing fountain, call us to rejoice in Thee!"

To Gaze upon the Beauty of the LORD

 

One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek Him in His temple. (Psalm 27:4)

David's supreme priority is to "gaze upon the beauty of the LORD."

"Gazing" is not a short, one-time glimpse, but a steady, sustained focus.

It is not a prayer of repentance, but praising and admiring, and enjoying God for who He is; to find his greatest pleasure in just being in God's presence.

To sense God's beauty in the heart is to have such pleasure in Him that we rest content and fully satisfied.

My Prayer this morning: LORD, it is no exaggeration  to say that there is only one thing I need in life. And I ask for it now. It is not merely to believe in You, but in prayer and experience to see and sense Your supreme beauty. Help me to love You for Yourself alone, not just for your gifts. And I thank You for the knowledge that one day I shall find the greatest pleasure I have ever known by just being  in Your presence forever. That's my "strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow."  Amen.

Jairus Just Had to Wait

                     

                        Jairus Just Had To Wait

       Now when  Jesus returned, a crowd welcomed him, because
       they were all expecting him.

       Then a man named Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue, came
       and fell at Jesus' feet, pleading with him to come to his
       house...(Luke 8:40-41)

Jairus was "one of the synagogue rulers" - so we know he was someone of authority and importance.

He fell at the feet of Jesus, a mere carpenter from Galilee. He must have been desperate.

And so he was.

       ...because his only daughter, a girl of about twelve was
       dying. (Luke 8:42)

We can imagine him there, anxious and worried - just one thread of hope - that this man they called Jesus could heal her. If only there was enough time
 - they must hurry - wonder if they were too late?

His heart was pounding. He was frantic. Hurry!

       As Jesus was on his way, the crowds almost crushed him.
       And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding
       for twelve years, but no one could heal her.

       She came up behind him and touched the edge of his
       cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped.

       "Who touched me?" Jesus asked.

       When they all denied it, Peter said, "Master, the people are
       crowding and pressing against you."

       But Jesus said, "Someone touched me; I know that power
       has gone out from me." (Luke 8:42-46)


Jairus is probably thinking: "Who cares? Of course someone has touched you! Probably many people have touched you! I must hurry!  Before it's too late!"


       Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed.  

     Then he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you.
       Go in peace."  (Luke 8:47-48)


Jairus is getting angry. "That woman," he might be think, has had her illness for twelve years. She has had opportunity for healing, and can later. My daughter has only been alive twelve years!  This is her only chance! Don't delay us any longer!"

No ordinary doctor would behave like this.  The emergency, especially involving an important public figure, would get first attention.

But Jesus is no ordinary doctor.

You know the rest of the story - a messenger arrives to tell Jairus that his daughter has died, but Jesus continues to Jairus' home, saying, "Don't be afraid; just believe and she will be healed." (Luke 8:49)

And the little girl in her bed, like the woman in the crowd, was healed.

One of the lessons for us is that "our timing is not His timing."

Jairus was frantic, the disciples were probably impatient and irritated, but Jesus is calm and composed.

Jesus will not be hurried.  He says, "You may think all is lost if I don't act right now. You may think that I don't love you because I delay. I delay because I love you."

"I have something much bigger to do for you. Just wait and watch!"

Right now, are you anxious for God to work out something in your life? Do you feel He has forgotten, or even abandoned, you?

Are you impatient and frustrated?

Jesus is saying, just as He said to Jairus, "Don't be afraid....don't be anxious....don't panic....just believe and I will astound you with what I am doing!"

Just wait and watch!

Bruised Reeds and Smoldering Wicks

 How Matthew describes Jesus' Ministry

"A bruised reed He will not break, and a smoldering wick He will not snuff out...in His name the nations will put their hope (Matthew 12:20-21).

And when Matthew specifically links these words back to Isaiah's description of the Messiah in Isaiah 42:3 -- written 700 years before -- he directly connects Jesus as God's promised Messiah, our Rescuer and Redeemer!

What is weaker than a bruised reed or a smoldering wick?

A reed growing in a marshland -- let a small bird land on it and it snaps! Every breeze that blows moves it to and fro, a tiny creature scurries around it and it is bruised and broken. It is hard to find a more fragile part of Gods creation!

And a smoldering wick? There is a tiny spark left in it, but it is almost smothered. Even a baby's breath can blow it completely out. A single tear drop will end it forever.

Some of God's children are made strong to do mighty work for Him. He has His Samsons here and there who can pull up Gaza's gates and carry them to the top of the hill. And His Moseses who can lead His people 40 years across the treacherous wilderness!

But most of His people are a timid, trembling group. They are like starlings, frightened at every sound -- a fearful flock of defenseless sheep! Their frail craft bounces along every wave, barely surviving, threatening to sink very moment. Weak things without strength, wisdom and foresight. Yet, weak as they are, and because they are weak, God made this promise to them!

This is grace and goodness. Here is love and kindness A picture of the compassion of Jesus -- so gentle and tender. We never have to fear a harsh word from Him or shrink back  from His angry touch -- those nail-scarred hands caress us with love.

Bruised reeds receive no blows from Him, and smoldering wicks are not attacked in His anger.

Our joyful song, every day, is:

"I am weak,. but Thou art strong...I'll be satisfied as long, as I walk, let me walk, close to Thee"!

STICK CLOSE TODAY!