1 Chronicles
If you will recall my post from May 10, you will see that I talked about the focus of 1 Chronicles, noting that the author was keenly interested in King David, more so than the other kings of Israel/Judah. We have now come to the end of 1 Chronicles, and the main point of this book has certainly been David. The book started with many lists of names, leading up to an extremely brief narrative of Saul's reign, and then headlong into David's tenure as king. Moreover, we didn't really hear about any of the negative aspects of David's time as king, such as the fights between him and Saul before he became king, or his murder of Uriah, husband of Bathsheba. It was mainly a rosy picture of how God blessed David and prospered him on the throne. It remains to be seen how things turn out in 2 Chronicles, now that David has passed on.
Showing posts with label David. Show all posts
Showing posts with label David. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Saturday, May 14, 2011
A temple for God
1 Chronicles and Psalms
Psalm 132 relays how David had exclaimed that he would build God a house on earth. Knowing what a psalm of ascent is, this psalm really makes sense because it is all about God’s temple in Jerusalem. It’s
also interesting to see how in 1 Chronicles 17, also in today’s reading, we can read again of David’s desire to build God a temple. He wanted to honour God by giving him a beautiful and wonderful place to reside.
I don’t always think of my body being a temple, but if we have received Jesus into our hearts and placed our trust in Him, we are all temples! David never got the chance to build a temple, yet he continually strove to honour God with all his heart. I have a temple of the Lord right here, and what am I doing with it? Am I honouring God?
Psalm 132 relays how David had exclaimed that he would build God a house on earth. Knowing what a psalm of ascent is, this psalm really makes sense because it is all about God’s temple in Jerusalem. It’s
also interesting to see how in 1 Chronicles 17, also in today’s reading, we can read again of David’s desire to build God a temple. He wanted to honour God by giving him a beautiful and wonderful place to reside.
I don’t always think of my body being a temple, but if we have received Jesus into our hearts and placed our trust in Him, we are all temples! David never got the chance to build a temple, yet he continually strove to honour God with all his heart. I have a temple of the Lord right here, and what am I doing with it? Am I honouring God?
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Neverending genealogies with a purpose
1 Chronicles
I'm not going to lie - after now having read 7 chapters of genealogy in 1 Chronicles, I'm a little bored... The Chronicler sure liked to chronicle things! However, I understand that there is a point to all the names. He is showing the lineage and heritage of the great kings of Israel - David and Solomon. God made a number of promises to King David, stating that he would always have someone from his line on the throne. God keeps his promises! Nonetheless, it seems that maybe the information could have been presented in a more interesting manner.
Here's a fun fact, though. The Chronicles tell roughly the same story as 1 and 2 Kings, but the focus is different. In Kings, the author seems keen on showing how the Israelites failed to follow God's commands and subsequently, God would punish them, show love to them again when they started obeying, and then punish them when they fell back into pagan, sinful ways. In Chronicles, I believe we will see how God's promises to King David came true. Track along with me as we read continue to read the Chronicles and we'll find out!
I'm not going to lie - after now having read 7 chapters of genealogy in 1 Chronicles, I'm a little bored... The Chronicler sure liked to chronicle things! However, I understand that there is a point to all the names. He is showing the lineage and heritage of the great kings of Israel - David and Solomon. God made a number of promises to King David, stating that he would always have someone from his line on the throne. God keeps his promises! Nonetheless, it seems that maybe the information could have been presented in a more interesting manner.
Here's a fun fact, though. The Chronicles tell roughly the same story as 1 and 2 Kings, but the focus is different. In Kings, the author seems keen on showing how the Israelites failed to follow God's commands and subsequently, God would punish them, show love to them again when they started obeying, and then punish them when they fell back into pagan, sinful ways. In Chronicles, I believe we will see how God's promises to King David came true. Track along with me as we read continue to read the Chronicles and we'll find out!
Friday, April 15, 2011
Counting the fighting men
Key verse
Mark 16:6 - “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him."
2 Samuel
In today's reading in 2 Samuel 24, David counted the number of men in his army. He did this because God was angry with the Israelites, 'and he incited David against them.' I see this act of David's as a lack of trust in God. He needed to know exactly what position he could hold against his enemies, rather than relying on God to come through for him regardless of the situation.
I think we can learn from this situation and realize that in our own lives, we don't need to know exactly what's going on. For example, we don't need to count our pennies and stay rigidly within certain guidelines; we should have the freedom to rest in God's provision for our needs. Instead of restraining yourself from something God may want you to do, go forward in faith, even if it may not seem that you're equipped for it right away.
Mark 16:6 - “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him."
2 Samuel
In today's reading in 2 Samuel 24, David counted the number of men in his army. He did this because God was angry with the Israelites, 'and he incited David against them.' I see this act of David's as a lack of trust in God. He needed to know exactly what position he could hold against his enemies, rather than relying on God to come through for him regardless of the situation.
I think we can learn from this situation and realize that in our own lives, we don't need to know exactly what's going on. For example, we don't need to count our pennies and stay rigidly within certain guidelines; we should have the freedom to rest in God's provision for our needs. Instead of restraining yourself from something God may want you to do, go forward in faith, even if it may not seem that you're equipped for it right away.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
A way back
2 Samuel
Sometimes, it seems like the people in the Old Testament would have misunderstood God, just because the stories seem so harsh and judgmental. Lots of people dying, and not a lot of grace. But in 2 Samuel 14:14, we see that they did actually understood what God was after. A wise woman said to King David "But God does not take away life; instead, he devises ways so that a banished person may not remain estranged from him."
God is always trying to get us to come back to Him. His Son, Jesus, is the ultimate example of how far God was willing to go to reconcile us to Himself. We just have to accept that He loves us that much!
Sometimes, it seems like the people in the Old Testament would have misunderstood God, just because the stories seem so harsh and judgmental. Lots of people dying, and not a lot of grace. But in 2 Samuel 14:14, we see that they did actually understood what God was after. A wise woman said to King David "But God does not take away life; instead, he devises ways so that a banished person may not remain estranged from him."
God is always trying to get us to come back to Him. His Son, Jesus, is the ultimate example of how far God was willing to go to reconcile us to Himself. We just have to accept that He loves us that much!
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Honour and vengeance
1 Samuel
David shows us what it really means to honour those in power. Saul was anointed by God to be king of Israel, but he didn't follow God's ways. Through envy, he tried to kill David a number of times. While on the run from Saul, David had multiple opportunities to kill Saul, and yet he didn't. He would tell his men, "This is the Lord's anointed. Far be it from me to avenge myself on the Lord's anointed." He allowed God to take care of Saul for him. He said "I will not be the one to kill Saul. When his time comes, he will die, or he will go into battle and die, but I will not be the one to kill him."
That is true reliance on God. We are not to take vengeance into our own hands, for God is the only one who truly knows what is going on. Giving up our supposed control over the situation results in a far better outcome, because we won't feel the guilt of having done something we would later regret, and God will ensure that the person who wronged us will pay the price. We just have to be patient. That's not to say that we should lie in wait and gloat when they finally are avenged. We should ask God to change our hearts so that we are more like David - we should want to be reconciled to the other person (Saul, in David's case).
David shows us what it really means to honour those in power. Saul was anointed by God to be king of Israel, but he didn't follow God's ways. Through envy, he tried to kill David a number of times. While on the run from Saul, David had multiple opportunities to kill Saul, and yet he didn't. He would tell his men, "This is the Lord's anointed. Far be it from me to avenge myself on the Lord's anointed." He allowed God to take care of Saul for him. He said "I will not be the one to kill Saul. When his time comes, he will die, or he will go into battle and die, but I will not be the one to kill him."
That is true reliance on God. We are not to take vengeance into our own hands, for God is the only one who truly knows what is going on. Giving up our supposed control over the situation results in a far better outcome, because we won't feel the guilt of having done something we would later regret, and God will ensure that the person who wronged us will pay the price. We just have to be patient. That's not to say that we should lie in wait and gloat when they finally are avenged. We should ask God to change our hearts so that we are more like David - we should want to be reconciled to the other person (Saul, in David's case).
Monday, March 28, 2011
Obedience is better than sacrifice
1 Samuel
Today I learned that even if we think we're doing God a favour, we aren't if we have not followed his commands. That's where this verse comes in - 1 Samuel 15:22 - Obedience is better than sacrifice. Saul had just waged war against the Amalekites, as the Lord had asked. However, God had also told Saul to kill all the Amalekites, both the people and their animals. Saul killed the weak ones, but left the king alive, as well as the choicest sheep and other animals. He was going to sacrifice these animals to God, thinking he would be pleasing God. However, this is what Samuel the prophet tells Saul: "Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams."
God is not interested in our offerings if we can't actually follow his word. In the end, it will go better for us, even if we can't seem to understand that right away. Here's what happened to Saul - Samuel killed the Amalekite king, and God took the kingship away from Saul and gave it to David.
It seems to me that living within the will of God is far better than trying to get on his good side in our own way.
Today I learned that even if we think we're doing God a favour, we aren't if we have not followed his commands. That's where this verse comes in - 1 Samuel 15:22 - Obedience is better than sacrifice. Saul had just waged war against the Amalekites, as the Lord had asked. However, God had also told Saul to kill all the Amalekites, both the people and their animals. Saul killed the weak ones, but left the king alive, as well as the choicest sheep and other animals. He was going to sacrifice these animals to God, thinking he would be pleasing God. However, this is what Samuel the prophet tells Saul: "Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams."
God is not interested in our offerings if we can't actually follow his word. In the end, it will go better for us, even if we can't seem to understand that right away. Here's what happened to Saul - Samuel killed the Amalekite king, and God took the kingship away from Saul and gave it to David.
It seems to me that living within the will of God is far better than trying to get on his good side in our own way.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Into your hands
"Into your hands I commit my spirit." I wonder if Jesus had Psalm 31:5 in mind when he was dying on the cross, because his words are an exact replica of David's.
Some commentaries (click here) suggest that this verse was simply very appropriate for Jesus at this time because he was in a time of great trouble, as was David when he originally penned these words. I would agree with this idea. It's a comfort to know that even Jesus had a use for the psalms. Poetry can express our feelings to God more adequately than prose can at times.
Some commentaries (click here) suggest that this verse was simply very appropriate for Jesus at this time because he was in a time of great trouble, as was David when he originally penned these words. I would agree with this idea. It's a comfort to know that even Jesus had a use for the psalms. Poetry can express our feelings to God more adequately than prose can at times.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Casting lots for clothes
John 19
It seemed amazing to me that David would foretell about the casting of lots for Jesus' clothing. John 19:24 includes a reference to Psalm 22:18, in which David says that he has been surrounded and attacked and his clothes were divided among his enemies, by casting lots. This passage in Psalm 22 doesn't really seem to speak to future events, but rather describes what was happening to David when he had written this particular psalm. Why then does John include this passage as a "fulfilment of scripture"? It seems more like a nifty little similarity rather than a fulfilment of a foretold action.
It seemed amazing to me that David would foretell about the casting of lots for Jesus' clothing. John 19:24 includes a reference to Psalm 22:18, in which David says that he has been surrounded and attacked and his clothes were divided among his enemies, by casting lots. This passage in Psalm 22 doesn't really seem to speak to future events, but rather describes what was happening to David when he had written this particular psalm. Why then does John include this passage as a "fulfilment of scripture"? It seems more like a nifty little similarity rather than a fulfilment of a foretold action.
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