April 22, 2015, Urawa Home Meeting
Gotthold Beck
2 Samuel
12:13 At this point, David told Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Nathan responded to David, “There’s one other thing: the Lord has forgiven your sin. You won’t die.
12:14 Nevertheless, because you have despised the Lord’s enemies with utter contempt, the son born to you will most certainly die.”
12:15 Then Nathan went home. After this, the Lord afflicted the child that Uriah’s wife had born to David, and the child became very ill.
12:16 David begged God on behalf of the youngster. He fasted, went inside, and spent the night lying on the ground.
12:17 His closest advisors at the palace got up, remained with him, and tried to help him get up from the ground, but he would not do so. He also wouldn’t eat with them.
12:18 A week later, the child died, and David’s staff was afraid to tell him that the child had died. They were telling themselves, “Look, when the child was still alive, we talked to him but he wouldn’t listen to what we said. Now what kind of trouble will he bring on himself if we tell him that the child has died?”
12:19 But as David observed his staff whispering together, he perceived that the child had died, so he asked his staff, “Is the child dead?” They replied, “He has died.”
12:20 At this, David got up from the ground, washed, anointed himself, changed his clothes, and went into the Lord’s tent to worship. Then he went back to his palace where, at his request, they served him food and he ate.
[International Standard Version]
Today, I would like to discuss with you briefly, the king called David. The Bible tells us that David was a man who pleased the Lord. Furthermore, he was called the true worshipper. This man named David, did not care about himself at all; he was pleased to have the Lord at the center of his life. He maintained this attitude.
Generally speaking, David is viewed as one of the central figures of the Old Testament. I guess that his counterpart, the central figure of the New Testament is Paul, who introduced Jesus at the risk of his life. Paul's heart was captured by Jesus, and he was made a slave who served the Lord. As someone who was overwhelmed by the love of Jesus, Paul came to love Jesus wholeheartedly, which, eventually, made him someone who pleased the Lord. And he sincerely sent these words to the brothers and sisters in the Lord of his time. This must be one of the most important verses for us too:
Colossians
1:10 “So that you might live in a manner worthy of the Lord and be fully pleasing to him as you bear fruit while doing all kinds of good things and growing in the full knowledge of God.”
The same is true for David. He was also someone who pleased the Lord. When we gather, we ought to do so with the same desire. That is to say, we must share the desperate desire to come to the Lord and have intimate fellowship with Him. However, according to the Bible, the Lord Himself has the same desire and is seeking such fellowship with us. The Lord’s eyes keep on roaming throughout the earth. His eyes even roam throughout Japan.
And His eyes are always roaming over our heads looking for the owner of an undivided and sincere heart that is connected straight to the Lord. We might be expecting something great to occur, to be pleased by some great power from above, or for something great to be accomplished through our assembly, but the only thing that our Lord wants from us is to have undivided and simple hearts, which are unified toward Him. Human beings are prone to be attracted by superficial things, such as man's innate talent or abilities. But, the Lord isn't. He is only interested in our hearts.
A man called Samuel, who was the prophet of those days, went to the home of David in order to choose the new king. When he did, he must have thought that the oldest among ten brothers of that household deserved to become the king more than anyone else because of his great looks and appearance. “This was the man who should be chosen as the new King!” However, despite what Samuel thought, the Lord did not choose the oldest brother. Against what many people expected, the Lord chose David, the smaller brother, who was as small as a lamb.
Humans would never act that way. The reason David was chosen was that he had an undivided heart. We will be truly blessed if we are the owners of hearts like David’s.
Most of the Psalms, which are placed at the center of the Old Testament were written by David. One of the most famous Psalms is Psalm 23, in which David praised the Lord with his whole heart. The Lord is mine. The Lord is my shepherd. I am nothing; I am capable of nothing at all; I am nothing but a miserable lamb. However, the only thing that matters is that I will be absolutely protected and guided if I only stay by this shepherd. David could say from his heart, “The Lord is my guide. The Lord is my shepherd.“
If this notion is viewed from a different perspective, he was saying that he was just a stupid, weak and miserable lamb. Sheep do not know how to protect themselves from enemies. Being a true shepherd, David knew the nature of this animal very well. And it made him say that he was very much like a stupid and weak lamb. Therefore, he absolutely needed a shepherd to guide him, lead him, and protect him day and night. David, who said that because he was a weak lamb, he needed the great shepherd, the Lord, was the owner of a humble and meek heart. How about us? “We are weak little lambs. We need a shepherd who guides us, leads us, and protects us all day and night.” Do we have a mindset like this? David was, of course, far from perfect. He was confronted with his weaknesses, which completely devastated him.
1 Samuel
27:1 “David told himself, ’One of these days I’ll perish by Saul’s hand. There is nothing better for me to do than to escape to Philistine territory. Saul will give up searching for me anymore within the borders of Israel, so I’ll escape from him.’”
This was what he really said. David experienced a wonderful life for a while, which was given by the Lord, but now, he prayed this way. He uttered these selfish words. Not only did he utter, he actually put them into practice. A few years earlier, the Lord had called David and promised that he would become the king. But, let us look at what David said this time, “The Lord cannot do this anymore. It is too late even for Him now. Hope is lost now, and I have no chance to become the King.” He thought this way.
Until this time, for many years, he had always been convinced that the Lord would absolutely accomplish whatever He planned. But now, he was not feeling that way anymore. All the circumstances seemed so difficult. He must have felt completely hopeless. David believed that no hope was left for him, and he felt completely devastated. Actually, this time, David's enemy, king Saul was going to die, and David was about to be the king. David was destined to become the king of Israel. However, right before that time, he experienced darkness; the Devil was working on him attempting to draw him into despair.
In simpler words, David thought, “it's over.” He had lost all hope. However, as we can see from the Psalms, a collection of the songs David sung, even when he was suffering at the bottom of despair, even when he fell into a completely hopeless situation, when he was left in the darkness and could not find a way out, David never ceased to worship the Lord. “No matter how weak I am, although I am just like a stupid and weak lamb, I have the Lord as my shepherd, and I have nothing to fear.” This is how David felt. He actually thought, “I am so weak indeed and have no protection. I am always troubled by something. I am so poor.” It was because he sincerely felt this way that David understood that he needed the Lord; he chose the Lord. And this was the reason that the Lord chose David too.
Do we have an attitude like this? If we do, just like the Lord chose David and anointed him, He will choose us as well, bless us and use us in His service. In the Old Testament, oil always symbolized the Spirit of God. Nothing is more important than to be filled with the Spirit of God; it is the secret to bearing fruit. It was because David was humble, and his heart was meek that he was chosen by the Lord. This filled him with everlasting joy.
Some people pray, saying, “My lord, I beg you. Please fill me with the Holy Spirit. Please bless me.” They even fast or pray all night, but how will they be answered? It gets no results at all. It is because the condition of their hearts is not ready yet. The Lord is seeking those who have broken, meek, and humble hearts. How is the condition of our hearts? Do we have hearts that are truly meek and humble? We do not have enough time today, but please read the Psalm 51 when you get home. You will see from this Psalm that people with good hearts refer neither to those who are perfect nor those who commit no sin.
What David had was a humble heart. And David had a heart, which was always prepared for repentance. King Saul, David’s predecessor, attacked him viciously. When Saul committed sins, he attempted to hide them and even when all his sins were revealed, he refused to confess all of them. He was arrogant and too proud of himself. Contrarily, David had a heart that was always prepared to repent.
When the Lord said to David, “You committed a sin. You are that man.” David instantly answered, “Yes, I did commit a sin. I am the man who did it.” Are we like Saul? Or, are we like David? Let us look at Proverbs, chapter 28. I guess you all know verse 13 by heart. This is a very important verse from the Word of God:
Proverbs
28:13 “Whoever hides his transgressions will not succeed, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will find mercy.”
If you hide, sooner or later, you will regret it. It is meaningless. Because nothing can be hidden before the Lord. Are we, after all, arrogant and proud of ourselves? Or do we pray wholeheartedly, “Lord, please have mercy on me. Please forgive this self-centered nature of mine”? David had a heart that was so humble and meek. David confessed, “My cup is full,” which meant that his heart was totally filled with joy. David always prayed this way: “I need you, Lord. Please guide me. For I am so weak and helpless.” Unless you pray with a heart like this, I must say, all your prayers are, indeed, nothing but vain expectations.
What kind of man was David? As I just mentioned, firstly, he had a humble heart. Secondly, he had a heart that was prepared to repent. Furthermore, thirdly, he prayed for a pure heart. Let us look at Psalm 51, verse 10 and see what he prayed for:
Psalms
51:10 “God, create a pure heart in me, and renew a right attitude within me.”
David sincerely desired to maintain his heart in the right way.
Psalms
51:17 “True sacrifice to God is a broken spirit. A broken and chastened heart, God, you will not despise.”
David had his heart broken, which made him confess all his sins. How about us in this regard? The Lord rejoices with repented and broken souls. What we should always keep in mind is that the peace of our minds or our contentment does not matter at all to the Lord. What He cares about is whether we are walking in the center of His will or not. King David was the man who fulfilled the Lord's will. Because of this, He was used by God, which caused him to be filled with joy.
Psalms
51:11 “Do not cast me from your presence; do not take your Holy Spirit from me.”
He prayed wholeheartedly. When he committed the sin, David lost the presence of the Lord. Before he committed the sin, David used to hear the voice of the Lord intimately and see clearly the guidance of the Lord, but now, everything was lost.
Psalms
51:12 “Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and let a willing attitude control me.”
From this verse, we see that David not only lost the presence of the Lord in his life, but he also lost one more important thing. What was taken away from him was the joy of salvation. How about us? Do we share in the joy of the Lord pouring into us? Has the joy of the Lord Himself become our joy too? “I need the joy of the Lord!” This was what David had in his heart. We too, should aspire to share in the overflowing joy of the Lord together, shouldn't we?
When David prayed to the Lord, he only cared about the condition of his heart and wanted it to be fixed. King David, who pleased the Lord, had never talked proudly about the gift he was given, his thoughts or the songs he made. It was because he was very well aware that these things were completely meaningless if the thoughts of his heart were not right. There was another thing David knew. That is to say, he knew what would happen to all sinners when they restored the intimate relationship with the Lord.
Psalms
51:13 “Then I will teach transgressors about your ways, and sinners will turn to you.”
If we are not meek and our hearts are not humble enough, we are unable to point out the sins of others. Therefore, what is important for us is not to become better and esteemed persons, but to understand the Lord better and realize the importance of fellowship with the Lord through personal experience.
David was a man who received the salvation of the Lord and rejoiced in Him greatly. And he spent the first half of his faith life according to the guidance of the Lord. However, the time came when his life collapsed, when he committed the sin of adultery and then even the sin of murder at the same time. If we do not know the state of our minds, we would see what David did as very bad and unpleasant and wonder how come such a faithful believer committed a horrible sin like that. What was the reaction of the Lord? Did He say, “I have no hope in David now. He is useless. I gave him up and decided to abandon him”? No, He didn't. We can see what David really said in Psalm 51, verses 3 and 12:
Psalms
51:3 “For I acknowledge my transgression; my sin remains continually before me.
51:12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and let a willing attitude control me.”
This was what King David cried out from the bottom of his heart. Later, He was changed again by the great grace and love of the Lord. It can be seen in many Psalms. What was God's judgment on David for what he did? He said, “I found David, the son of Esau. He is the one who pleases me.” Can you think of any words of compliment greater than these?
As I mentioned earlier, David became the worshipper who worshipped the Lord wholeheartedly. But, what is worship? After all, to worship is to cast everything to the Lord's will. It is to surrender ourselves to the way of the Lord. Very often, we pray, “Lord, please change Your will this way for me. Lord, please take away this burden from me. Lord, please change this circumstance I am facing now.” We ask, cry out, and plead to Him. This is what we call prayer. That is to say, prayer is an expression of our desires in words, but worship or reverence is different. To worship is to entrust all of ourselves completely to the Lord.
It goes without saying that the way of the Lord does not always match our desires. It can be clearly seen in Second Samuel, chapter 1; we read at the beginning. The Lord had no choice but to say to David, who once pleased Him, “The son born to you will most certainly die.” David had to hear these horrible words. David loved his child. He pleaded with the Lord. He fasted. He even fell to the ground, desperately prayed, and asked for his life, but according to the Bible, the child died. Many people, if they are placed in the same situation, could not help but ask, “why?” “Why did my child have to die?” But, it was not the attitude David took. He changed his clothes, and went into the Lord’s tent to worship. Yes, he worshipped.
Worship expresses heartfelt acceptance of the way the Lord takes completely. It is to entrust all of ourselves to the Lord. The Lord of the Heavenly Armies is always desperately looking for people who want to do this. For the Lord desires to reveal His power to perform the miracle. However, unless He works with someone whose heart is completely devoted to Him, this Lord, who was raised high into heaven cannot reveal His almighty power.
Why don't we abandon all things that hinder the power of the Lord in our lives? Do we still rely on what we can see and feel? Or, do we move forward based solely on our faith? Even today, the Lord is capable of bringing back to life those who are spiritually dead. Do you firmly trust this? Or, do we hinder the work of the Lord through our distrust and disobedience? How come David was called the man who pleased the Lord?
Psalms
18:1 ”He said: ‘I love you, Lord, my strength
18:2 The Lord is my rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my God, my stronghold in whom I take refuge, my shield, the glory of my salvation, and my high tower.’”
Those who constantly have this attitude will never fail to rejoice and will be used by Him just like David.
End
Gotthold Beck
2 Samuel
12:13 At this point, David told Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Nathan responded to David, “There’s one other thing: the Lord has forgiven your sin. You won’t die.
12:14 Nevertheless, because you have despised the Lord’s enemies with utter contempt, the son born to you will most certainly die.”
12:15 Then Nathan went home. After this, the Lord afflicted the child that Uriah’s wife had born to David, and the child became very ill.
12:16 David begged God on behalf of the youngster. He fasted, went inside, and spent the night lying on the ground.
12:17 His closest advisors at the palace got up, remained with him, and tried to help him get up from the ground, but he would not do so. He also wouldn’t eat with them.
12:18 A week later, the child died, and David’s staff was afraid to tell him that the child had died. They were telling themselves, “Look, when the child was still alive, we talked to him but he wouldn’t listen to what we said. Now what kind of trouble will he bring on himself if we tell him that the child has died?”
12:19 But as David observed his staff whispering together, he perceived that the child had died, so he asked his staff, “Is the child dead?” They replied, “He has died.”
12:20 At this, David got up from the ground, washed, anointed himself, changed his clothes, and went into the Lord’s tent to worship. Then he went back to his palace where, at his request, they served him food and he ate.
[International Standard Version]
Today, I would like to discuss with you briefly, the king called David. The Bible tells us that David was a man who pleased the Lord. Furthermore, he was called the true worshipper. This man named David, did not care about himself at all; he was pleased to have the Lord at the center of his life. He maintained this attitude.
Generally speaking, David is viewed as one of the central figures of the Old Testament. I guess that his counterpart, the central figure of the New Testament is Paul, who introduced Jesus at the risk of his life. Paul's heart was captured by Jesus, and he was made a slave who served the Lord. As someone who was overwhelmed by the love of Jesus, Paul came to love Jesus wholeheartedly, which, eventually, made him someone who pleased the Lord. And he sincerely sent these words to the brothers and sisters in the Lord of his time. This must be one of the most important verses for us too:
Colossians
1:10 “So that you might live in a manner worthy of the Lord and be fully pleasing to him as you bear fruit while doing all kinds of good things and growing in the full knowledge of God.”
The same is true for David. He was also someone who pleased the Lord. When we gather, we ought to do so with the same desire. That is to say, we must share the desperate desire to come to the Lord and have intimate fellowship with Him. However, according to the Bible, the Lord Himself has the same desire and is seeking such fellowship with us. The Lord’s eyes keep on roaming throughout the earth. His eyes even roam throughout Japan.
And His eyes are always roaming over our heads looking for the owner of an undivided and sincere heart that is connected straight to the Lord. We might be expecting something great to occur, to be pleased by some great power from above, or for something great to be accomplished through our assembly, but the only thing that our Lord wants from us is to have undivided and simple hearts, which are unified toward Him. Human beings are prone to be attracted by superficial things, such as man's innate talent or abilities. But, the Lord isn't. He is only interested in our hearts.
A man called Samuel, who was the prophet of those days, went to the home of David in order to choose the new king. When he did, he must have thought that the oldest among ten brothers of that household deserved to become the king more than anyone else because of his great looks and appearance. “This was the man who should be chosen as the new King!” However, despite what Samuel thought, the Lord did not choose the oldest brother. Against what many people expected, the Lord chose David, the smaller brother, who was as small as a lamb.
Humans would never act that way. The reason David was chosen was that he had an undivided heart. We will be truly blessed if we are the owners of hearts like David’s.
Most of the Psalms, which are placed at the center of the Old Testament were written by David. One of the most famous Psalms is Psalm 23, in which David praised the Lord with his whole heart. The Lord is mine. The Lord is my shepherd. I am nothing; I am capable of nothing at all; I am nothing but a miserable lamb. However, the only thing that matters is that I will be absolutely protected and guided if I only stay by this shepherd. David could say from his heart, “The Lord is my guide. The Lord is my shepherd.“
If this notion is viewed from a different perspective, he was saying that he was just a stupid, weak and miserable lamb. Sheep do not know how to protect themselves from enemies. Being a true shepherd, David knew the nature of this animal very well. And it made him say that he was very much like a stupid and weak lamb. Therefore, he absolutely needed a shepherd to guide him, lead him, and protect him day and night. David, who said that because he was a weak lamb, he needed the great shepherd, the Lord, was the owner of a humble and meek heart. How about us? “We are weak little lambs. We need a shepherd who guides us, leads us, and protects us all day and night.” Do we have a mindset like this? David was, of course, far from perfect. He was confronted with his weaknesses, which completely devastated him.
1 Samuel
27:1 “David told himself, ’One of these days I’ll perish by Saul’s hand. There is nothing better for me to do than to escape to Philistine territory. Saul will give up searching for me anymore within the borders of Israel, so I’ll escape from him.’”
This was what he really said. David experienced a wonderful life for a while, which was given by the Lord, but now, he prayed this way. He uttered these selfish words. Not only did he utter, he actually put them into practice. A few years earlier, the Lord had called David and promised that he would become the king. But, let us look at what David said this time, “The Lord cannot do this anymore. It is too late even for Him now. Hope is lost now, and I have no chance to become the King.” He thought this way.
Until this time, for many years, he had always been convinced that the Lord would absolutely accomplish whatever He planned. But now, he was not feeling that way anymore. All the circumstances seemed so difficult. He must have felt completely hopeless. David believed that no hope was left for him, and he felt completely devastated. Actually, this time, David's enemy, king Saul was going to die, and David was about to be the king. David was destined to become the king of Israel. However, right before that time, he experienced darkness; the Devil was working on him attempting to draw him into despair.
In simpler words, David thought, “it's over.” He had lost all hope. However, as we can see from the Psalms, a collection of the songs David sung, even when he was suffering at the bottom of despair, even when he fell into a completely hopeless situation, when he was left in the darkness and could not find a way out, David never ceased to worship the Lord. “No matter how weak I am, although I am just like a stupid and weak lamb, I have the Lord as my shepherd, and I have nothing to fear.” This is how David felt. He actually thought, “I am so weak indeed and have no protection. I am always troubled by something. I am so poor.” It was because he sincerely felt this way that David understood that he needed the Lord; he chose the Lord. And this was the reason that the Lord chose David too.
Do we have an attitude like this? If we do, just like the Lord chose David and anointed him, He will choose us as well, bless us and use us in His service. In the Old Testament, oil always symbolized the Spirit of God. Nothing is more important than to be filled with the Spirit of God; it is the secret to bearing fruit. It was because David was humble, and his heart was meek that he was chosen by the Lord. This filled him with everlasting joy.
Some people pray, saying, “My lord, I beg you. Please fill me with the Holy Spirit. Please bless me.” They even fast or pray all night, but how will they be answered? It gets no results at all. It is because the condition of their hearts is not ready yet. The Lord is seeking those who have broken, meek, and humble hearts. How is the condition of our hearts? Do we have hearts that are truly meek and humble? We do not have enough time today, but please read the Psalm 51 when you get home. You will see from this Psalm that people with good hearts refer neither to those who are perfect nor those who commit no sin.
What David had was a humble heart. And David had a heart, which was always prepared for repentance. King Saul, David’s predecessor, attacked him viciously. When Saul committed sins, he attempted to hide them and even when all his sins were revealed, he refused to confess all of them. He was arrogant and too proud of himself. Contrarily, David had a heart that was always prepared to repent.
When the Lord said to David, “You committed a sin. You are that man.” David instantly answered, “Yes, I did commit a sin. I am the man who did it.” Are we like Saul? Or, are we like David? Let us look at Proverbs, chapter 28. I guess you all know verse 13 by heart. This is a very important verse from the Word of God:
Proverbs
28:13 “Whoever hides his transgressions will not succeed, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will find mercy.”
If you hide, sooner or later, you will regret it. It is meaningless. Because nothing can be hidden before the Lord. Are we, after all, arrogant and proud of ourselves? Or do we pray wholeheartedly, “Lord, please have mercy on me. Please forgive this self-centered nature of mine”? David had a heart that was so humble and meek. David confessed, “My cup is full,” which meant that his heart was totally filled with joy. David always prayed this way: “I need you, Lord. Please guide me. For I am so weak and helpless.” Unless you pray with a heart like this, I must say, all your prayers are, indeed, nothing but vain expectations.
What kind of man was David? As I just mentioned, firstly, he had a humble heart. Secondly, he had a heart that was prepared to repent. Furthermore, thirdly, he prayed for a pure heart. Let us look at Psalm 51, verse 10 and see what he prayed for:
Psalms
51:10 “God, create a pure heart in me, and renew a right attitude within me.”
David sincerely desired to maintain his heart in the right way.
Psalms
51:17 “True sacrifice to God is a broken spirit. A broken and chastened heart, God, you will not despise.”
David had his heart broken, which made him confess all his sins. How about us in this regard? The Lord rejoices with repented and broken souls. What we should always keep in mind is that the peace of our minds or our contentment does not matter at all to the Lord. What He cares about is whether we are walking in the center of His will or not. King David was the man who fulfilled the Lord's will. Because of this, He was used by God, which caused him to be filled with joy.
Psalms
51:11 “Do not cast me from your presence; do not take your Holy Spirit from me.”
He prayed wholeheartedly. When he committed the sin, David lost the presence of the Lord. Before he committed the sin, David used to hear the voice of the Lord intimately and see clearly the guidance of the Lord, but now, everything was lost.
Psalms
51:12 “Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and let a willing attitude control me.”
From this verse, we see that David not only lost the presence of the Lord in his life, but he also lost one more important thing. What was taken away from him was the joy of salvation. How about us? Do we share in the joy of the Lord pouring into us? Has the joy of the Lord Himself become our joy too? “I need the joy of the Lord!” This was what David had in his heart. We too, should aspire to share in the overflowing joy of the Lord together, shouldn't we?
When David prayed to the Lord, he only cared about the condition of his heart and wanted it to be fixed. King David, who pleased the Lord, had never talked proudly about the gift he was given, his thoughts or the songs he made. It was because he was very well aware that these things were completely meaningless if the thoughts of his heart were not right. There was another thing David knew. That is to say, he knew what would happen to all sinners when they restored the intimate relationship with the Lord.
Psalms
51:13 “Then I will teach transgressors about your ways, and sinners will turn to you.”
If we are not meek and our hearts are not humble enough, we are unable to point out the sins of others. Therefore, what is important for us is not to become better and esteemed persons, but to understand the Lord better and realize the importance of fellowship with the Lord through personal experience.
David was a man who received the salvation of the Lord and rejoiced in Him greatly. And he spent the first half of his faith life according to the guidance of the Lord. However, the time came when his life collapsed, when he committed the sin of adultery and then even the sin of murder at the same time. If we do not know the state of our minds, we would see what David did as very bad and unpleasant and wonder how come such a faithful believer committed a horrible sin like that. What was the reaction of the Lord? Did He say, “I have no hope in David now. He is useless. I gave him up and decided to abandon him”? No, He didn't. We can see what David really said in Psalm 51, verses 3 and 12:
Psalms
51:3 “For I acknowledge my transgression; my sin remains continually before me.
51:12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and let a willing attitude control me.”
This was what King David cried out from the bottom of his heart. Later, He was changed again by the great grace and love of the Lord. It can be seen in many Psalms. What was God's judgment on David for what he did? He said, “I found David, the son of Esau. He is the one who pleases me.” Can you think of any words of compliment greater than these?
As I mentioned earlier, David became the worshipper who worshipped the Lord wholeheartedly. But, what is worship? After all, to worship is to cast everything to the Lord's will. It is to surrender ourselves to the way of the Lord. Very often, we pray, “Lord, please change Your will this way for me. Lord, please take away this burden from me. Lord, please change this circumstance I am facing now.” We ask, cry out, and plead to Him. This is what we call prayer. That is to say, prayer is an expression of our desires in words, but worship or reverence is different. To worship is to entrust all of ourselves completely to the Lord.
It goes without saying that the way of the Lord does not always match our desires. It can be clearly seen in Second Samuel, chapter 1; we read at the beginning. The Lord had no choice but to say to David, who once pleased Him, “The son born to you will most certainly die.” David had to hear these horrible words. David loved his child. He pleaded with the Lord. He fasted. He even fell to the ground, desperately prayed, and asked for his life, but according to the Bible, the child died. Many people, if they are placed in the same situation, could not help but ask, “why?” “Why did my child have to die?” But, it was not the attitude David took. He changed his clothes, and went into the Lord’s tent to worship. Yes, he worshipped.
Worship expresses heartfelt acceptance of the way the Lord takes completely. It is to entrust all of ourselves to the Lord. The Lord of the Heavenly Armies is always desperately looking for people who want to do this. For the Lord desires to reveal His power to perform the miracle. However, unless He works with someone whose heart is completely devoted to Him, this Lord, who was raised high into heaven cannot reveal His almighty power.
Why don't we abandon all things that hinder the power of the Lord in our lives? Do we still rely on what we can see and feel? Or, do we move forward based solely on our faith? Even today, the Lord is capable of bringing back to life those who are spiritually dead. Do you firmly trust this? Or, do we hinder the work of the Lord through our distrust and disobedience? How come David was called the man who pleased the Lord?
Psalms
18:1 ”He said: ‘I love you, Lord, my strength
18:2 The Lord is my rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my God, my stronghold in whom I take refuge, my shield, the glory of my salvation, and my high tower.’”
Those who constantly have this attitude will never fail to rejoice and will be used by Him just like David.
End
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