Last spring I drove my mother along the Blue Ridge Parkway outside of Waynesville, NC, and we saw this sign and this youngster (moose?). I think the sign was its teething ring. This is about 1 1/2 hours from Mt. Celo Church.
Preparing My Heart - Lessons and Applications from Today's Readings
Saul’s Downward Spiral (1 Sam 22-23) “They
call evil good and good evil” (Is. 5:20).
“Everyone does what is right in
his own eyes” (Judges 17:6; 22:25).
There is no thought of God in the king’s life; The Spirit has departed
Saul. Power and wisdom are gone from
him. He falsely accuses his most loyal
friend, David, of murder. He falsely
accuses his own son and his servants of conspiring against him. He murders the 85 priests at Nob and kills
every living thing there – man, woman, child and animal. He would not do this when commanded by the
LORD against the Amalekites; but he does it now against God’s anointed in his
own irrational rage. He relentlessly,
obsessively, compulsively pursues David to kill him; this has become his raison d’être.
Lessons and Applications – One of the most impacting parts of the Bible that speak to just this sort of depravity, this soul from which God's spirit has departed is Romans 1:18-32. When I encounter a person in this depraved state, it is one of the most difficult experiences to deal with in my Christian life. When I see this happening with a family member, it is devastating. There is little or nothing that can be done apart from God's intervention.
David's Upward Spiral (1 Sam 22-23) In exile, a death edict against him by the king, alone, hiding in a cave and in the wilderness, feigning madness to avoid an enemy king's wrath, knowing he is the cause of the death of 85 priests and their families and every man, woman, child and animal in their town...yet David does not follow Saul into the depths of depravity? Why? How can he endure so much torment and maintain loyalty to God, a king who hates him, the king's son, his nation and family? Because he trusts in the LORD, not in himself nor a king. Whatever happens, he knows he and God's people are under God's Providence and Sovereignty.
Like Jesus - As Jesus did with His mother at the point of his death, David finds caregivers and a safe place for his parents who have also come to their son in his trouble. Like Jesus and His disciples, David calls to himself a disparate group of misfits to form his core group. Like Jesus, the people David came to save (Keilah) turn against him, to deliver him to Saul. But God intervenes this time, sending the Philistines against Israel to distract Saul from David. ("God uses His enemies and ours as unwitting agents in accomplishing His will.")
The WORD (John 1) This was my son's favorite chapter in the Bible, and he had it memorized verbatim. It is probably my favorite too. The whole of the gospel and of Jesus's First Coming is summed up here. The incomprehensible mercy of God to send us His only beloved son...after His 400 years of silence...after all the thousands of years of His Chosen People's rejection of Him and His prophets. Here God sends the last prophet - the Baptist - to prepare the way for His Son. The Plan is in place; it has been from the foundation of the world. This greatest gift - God Himself coming in His Son - "to save the Jew first, and then us - for Holy God, for eternity. But...the world the Son helped create, didn't know Him. He was light to a dark world, but the darkness didn't comprehend the light. He came to His own, but His own didn't know Him. He became flesh and dwelt among us - full of grace and truth. BUT to those of us who receive Him, who believe Him, He has given the right to be called the children of God. And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. The law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." He and His truth and grace are still being rejected today, and the results we see are the lives of so many Sauls on the downward spiral. The remnant of believers is still here, so His Spirit is still present. How will He impact the world through us?
Lessons and Applications: As with David, the Bible tells us that believers are or will face hostility from those who hate the Spirit within us. We are told that as the time draws near for His Second Coming, this hostility will become worse. Are we ready? Do we have David's deep trust, persevering faith, and dedication to God and His purposes. Will we be able to maintain, mobilize ourselves and others for this upward spiral, to fulfill the mission He has given us, to bring Him honor and glory - or will we be caught in the maelstrom of the downward spiral leading to eternal separation from Him? Now is our time for preparation.
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