David and Goliath

Read 1 Samuel 17 – It’s too long to post here. It’s the story of David and Goliath.  See if you notice details that you didn’t know about before.  I’ll be here when you come back.

 

This story has been used to illustrate how any battle can be won with the Lord’s help for ages.  This is a true and worthy “moral” of the story, but there’s so much more here.  Malcolm Gladwell actually wrote a whole book based on this story with a really original title, David and Goliath.  His angle on this story is that David simply saw this situation differently than everyone else and that is the foundation for his victory.  Goliath was big and slow; David was small and fast.  Goliath was pretty much impervious to traditional weapons, so David chose a sling.  David was just as skilled at using the sling as Goliath was with a spear. (For a demonstration of how deadly a sling could be, go here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWHV2WYdfTI )  Gladwell, and other Biblical scholars, believe David knew all this and saw Goliath as the underdog - hence, his bravado with Saul about “taking care of this Philistine.”

Some will argue, “but this takes God out of the equation.”  I say, “How?”  Why would God choose David, a shepherd, whose primary weapon is a sling, to become the leader of Israel.  Because Israel would need a leader who saw the world differently than most.  When the masses were fearful, David was confident.  When all the experts saw disadvantages, David saw advantages.  God prepared David’s vision and skills to match the Goliath moment perfectly.  This way of looking at this story is way more powerful and faith-inspiring to me than a “magical shot” with a smooth stone. 

This is why people who soon be shouting, “Saul has killed his thousands, David his ten thousands.”  It was clear to the people that God had chosen him, prepared him, and was blessing his leadership.  This is what they wanted when they asked Samuel for a King.  However, David’s adversity was just beginning. We pick up with that tomorrow.

 

Prayer:  God you have chosen me, prepared me, and will bless me in the work you have called me to do.  Give me David’s brand of confidence to do that work.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for God’s leadership of our leaders as they face the issues of our day. 

 

Song:  Petra – The Battle Belongs to the Lord

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLZJZsRJIC0

Components of Forgiveness – You Gotta Want It

 

Matthew 13:15, CEB - For this people’s senses have become calloused, and they’ve become hard of hearing, and they’ve shut their eyes so that they won’t see with their eyes or hear with their ears or understand with their minds, and change their hearts and lives that I may heal them.

 

                This seems abundantly obvious, but in order to forgive someone, you have want to forgive.  Quite often, this is a serious challenge.  In a very real way, refusing to forgive someone feels right.  After all, they did wrong/hurtful.  It is even reasonable to hold on to offense in the presence of wrong.  Many times, we do not want to forgive. And if you do not want to forgive, you will not forgive.  The will to forgive is an essential component of forgiveness. 

                But if we don’t have the will to forgive, how do we develop it?  We’ve talked about some the ways we do this in previous devotionals in this series on forgiveness.  One potential mind-changing realization is that forgiveness is good for us.   There are physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and relational benefits when we learn to forgive.  When we become convinced that forgiveness will help us in all these ways, our reluctance to forgive can be weakened.

                While I was getting my Master’s degree, I was part of a Clinical Pastoral Education(CPE) internship working as a Chaplain in a children’s hospital for a summer.  Part of the program was weekly counseling sessions with my supervisor.  In one of these sessions, my counselor and I were discussing a coping mechanism that I had when I encountered intense feelings of grief.  I expressed both a desire to change and a seeming powerlessness to do so.  My supervisor said something to me at that moment that I will never forget; “Eric, you will never change that defense mechanism until the pain of keeping it in place exceeds the pain you are avoiding.” She was right.  Later that summer, I realized my defense mechanism was actually causing me more pain than engaging the grief I encountered in my work in the hospital.  This realization helped me gain the will to change my approach. 

                Part of wanting to forgive is acknowledging the pain that not forgiving is causing us.  It actually the flip-side of looking at the benefits of forgiveness. We look at how we are suffering because we have not been willing to forgive.  The toxicity of unforgiveness has a cumulative effect on us just as the benefits of forgiveness bring cumulative benefits to our physical, mental, emotional, spiritual and relational health.  If examining the benefits of forgiveness is not enough to move the needle of your will towards wanting to forgive, consider the costs to continuing in unforgiveness.

 

Questions:  Consider an offense that, at this point, you have not been able to forgive.  Forgetting about the offender for a moment, what would it look like for you physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and socially for you to forgive the offense?  What is it costing you not to forgive?

 

Prayer:  Give us a clear picture of what it is costing us to continue in unforgiveness Lord.  Show us a vision for what life could be like if we could get free of the hurts of the past. Heal us Great Physician. Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for people who are being diagnosed with COVID this week as cases are rising again.

 

Song:  Don’t Let Your Heart Be Hardened – Petra

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWNh1IyFdvM

The Dirty Deed is Done

 

The Dirty Deed is Done

 

Matthew 26:47-50, NIV - While he was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests and the elders of the people.  Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: “The one I kiss is the man; arrest him.”  Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” and kissed him.

Jesus replied, “Do what you came for, friend.”

 

This passage marks the beginning of Matthew’s passion narrative, the account of Jesus submitting to arrest, trial, conviction, and sentence to death by Roman crucifixion.  It begins with thick irony, with the kiss of a friend.  This kiss of greeting marks Jesus for death.  Jesus knows this is coming, but Jesus is still human; the betrayal must have really sting, being turned over to authorities by a friend who has been with Jesus every day for three years. 

I think of times when friends have let me down, when personal attacks came from unexpected people.  I do not, in any way, compare those painful experiences with what Jesus endured in this moment.  For in a very real way, Judas’s betrayal represents the betrayal of Jesus by all God’s people.  It represents my betrayal of Jesus and yours as well. I think of a song by the Christian Rock band, Petra in 1982. The song for the day is that song linked for today, but if Rock Music is not your cup of tea, I invite you to simply read the lyrics here, addressed to Jesus.

I wonder how it makes you feel when the prodigal won't come home

I wonder how it makes you feel when he'd rather be on his own

I wonder what it's like for you when a lamb has gone astray

I wonder what it's like for you when your children disobey

 

Chorus:  It must be like another thorn struck in your brow

It must be like another close friend's broken vow

It must be like another nail right through your wrist

It must be just like

Just like Judas' kiss

 

I wonder how it makes you feel when no one seeks your face

I wonder how it makes you feel when they give up in the race

I wonder what it's like for you when they willingly disobey

I wonder what it's like for you when they willingly walk away.

Repeat Chorus

 

This passage confronts us with the ways in which we participated in the moment of Jesus’s betrayal.  Jesus the felt the rejection of all in Judas’s kiss. Yet Jesus, in the very moment of treachery, addresses Judas as friend.  Though Judas has turned away from Jesus, Jesus has not turned away from Judas.  Neither does Jesus turn away from us in the midst of our fallenness. 

 

Question:  What are the ways in which you have let Jesus down.

 

Prayer:  Forgive us Lord, when our independence becomes rebellion and our mistaken expectations lead us to move against the way you are leading. 

 

Prayer Focus:  Spend some time confessing your sins to God and receiving God’s forgiveness.  Hear the voice of Jesus calling you “friend.”

 

Song:  Judas Kiss - Petra

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CJJ03ueOfI