.png)
2 Samuel 1:1-16
Message No. 0530 | Twitter @GodandUs | www.wisdom-speaks.ca
Decades ago, when I worked in the bank, I started nursing the idea of partnering with someone to start a restaurant business. The idea was to see if there was an existing practitioner, like a chef, who had the same idea of starting something on their own, so we could partner. I also thought I might find favor to get some loan that would enable us start. Soon, someone introduced himself as a staff in the restaurant of a reputable hotel and was interested in a partnership to start the business. Then, one day, he walked into my office, opened his bag and brought out a bunch of premium quality cutleries, apparently stolen from the hotel where he worked, and said ‘we could start with these.’ I was dumbfounded and taken aback. How could I, a Christian, start a business built on stolen goods, and expect the blessings of God to follow? And, how could he, my potential partner, bring in items stolen from his current place of work, and expect me to trust him to faithfully run our business?
In 2 Samuel 1:1-16, an Amalekite man ran into the camp of David and greeted him, and told him that he was from the camp of Saul at the battle on Mount Gilboa, and that Saul and Jonathan were dead. ‘How do you know that Saul and Jonathan are dead?’ David asked the man. Then, lying, the man said that he happened to be on the mountain and saw Saul already wounded and when Saul saw him, he asked him to kill him because he did not want the enemies to take victory for killing him.
“So I stood beside him and killed him, because I knew that after he had fallen he could not survive. And I took the crown that was on his head and the band on his arm and have brought them here to my lord.” (2 Samuel 1:10).
Now, this guy expected to be rewarded with some great reward, for killing the archenemy of David and for bringing to him the crown of the king of Israel, essentially, giving David the pathway to assuming the kingship of Israel. He was wrong. What David did next shocked him. In verses 14-16:
David asked him, “Why weren’t you afraid to lift your hand to destroy the Lord’s anointed?” Then David called one of his men and said, “Go, strike him down!” So he struck him down, and he died. For David had said to him, “Your blood be on your own head. Your own mouth testified against you when you said, ‘I killed the Lord’s anointed.’”
The irony of this is that, the Amalekite man wasn’t the person who killed Saul. In 1 Samuel 31:3-5, the Bible says that Saul killed himself after his armourbearer refused to kill him. The Amalekite lied to David in the hope of being highly rewarded for killing David’s enemy. Unknown to him, the only reward anyone would receive from David for killing God’s anointed was death.
There is no reward for evil, or, actually, there is: Evil. Evil is the reward for evil. In Psalm 34:21, the Bible says “Evil shall slay the wicked,” and in Matthew 26:52, Jesus said those who draw the sword will die by the sword. No one who trades in evil should expect to receive good in return. In Galatians 6:7, the Bible says:
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.
We live in the age of sycophancy, where servants would do anything to find favor with their masters, including manipulating the book and lying continuously to make their principals happy. Some will continue to dwell in evil and believe that they are doing God good and some will continue to live a life of disobedience with the hope that God will miraculously forget His laws and reward them for obedience. What a time we live in!
Here’s the truth: we cannot confuse God and no amount of prayers will switch evil to the camp of good. The only action required for anyone who is living in disobedience is to repent. Assuming that I embraced the guy who stole cutleries from his working place and joined with him to start a restaurant, what kind of rewards would I expect from God? Assuming that David embraced the guy who claimed to kill God’s anointed king and gave him a good position in his army, what kind of foundation would David have laid for his kingdom? We cannot build the truth on a foundation of lies. Let us examine ourselves and if there are ways we have accommodated evil in whatever we are doing, to repent and ask God to cleanse us and make our ways straight with Him. This is important, and may God help us to do the right thing, in Jesus’ name. Amen. Have a blessed week!
To leave a comment for this message, add new subscribers or share through social media, please follow these steps:
1. To leave a comment, please use the comments box below.
2. To add new readers, please use the Subscribe Form below or click on the Subscribe menu and enter your email address.
3. To share through social media, please use one of the relevant icons below.
PLEASE ACT NOW:
If you are yet to give your life to Christ, you do not have a covenant with God and His promises do not apply to you. To come under these promises, please surrender your life to Christ today, by praying this prayer:
Lord I know that I am a sinner and I am unable to save myself. I am sorry for my sins and I pray that you please forgive me. I am aware that Your Son Jesus died for my sins and I accept Him as my Lord and savior. I surrender my life unto you from this moment. Please take control of my entire being and help me to be obedient to your Word, going forward. Thank you, Lord, for hearing me. I have prayed in Jesus’ name. Amen.
If you prayed the foregoing prayer, you have just been born again. Please find a Bible believing church in your area and ask to see the pastor. Let him or her know that you have just given your life to Christ and s/he will guide you on next steps in your journey as a child of God. The Lord bless you!
Comments