The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 2 Samuel 24:10,
"David was conscience-stricken after he had counted the fighting men, and he said to the Lord, 'I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, Lord, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing.'"
David ordered a counting of the troops to see how strong his military was. Seems reasonable, doesn't it? However it cost him dearly. The Lord put seventy thousand people to death through a plague because of David's assessment of his military strength. What goes on here?
We read in Psalm 33:16-18,
"No king is saved by the size of his army;
no warrior escapes by his great strength.
A horse is a vain hope for deliverance;
despite all its great strength it cannot save.
But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,
on those whose hope is in his unfailing love..."
It is the Lord who brings victory and it is in the Lord himself that he expects his people to find their strength, their ability to achieve victory: faith and trust in him. Recall the twelve spies that returned with a report on the promised land following the exodus from Egypt. Ten of the twelve complained the inhabitants were too strong for the Israelites to conquer them. They lacked faith in the Lord. This is what caused the Lord's judgment of them for the forty years of wilderness wandering. They had no faith in the Lord's ability to bring them victory even though he had promised it.
David, even though a man of faith, faltered in his faith by reasoning his military strength lay in his troop strength, as opposed to the Lord's own hand. Recall that Gideon's army was pared down to 300 troops just to show Israel that they could beat an innumerable force through their faith in the strength the Lord provides.
God taught Israel through Gideon they could find their victories by trusting in him. David faltered on this and so the Lord brought another lesson, a painful one.
It should go without saying that we need to find our strength in the Lord as Christians... not in other things. Our very salvation is based on the same criteria Abraham was acknowledged for, "Yet he [Abraham] did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. This is why 'it was credited to him as righteousness.' The words 'it was credited to him' were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification." Romans 4:20-25.
"David was conscience-stricken after he had counted the fighting men, and he said to the Lord, 'I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, Lord, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing.'"
David ordered a counting of the troops to see how strong his military was. Seems reasonable, doesn't it? However it cost him dearly. The Lord put seventy thousand people to death through a plague because of David's assessment of his military strength. What goes on here?
We read in Psalm 33:16-18,
"No king is saved by the size of his army;
no warrior escapes by his great strength.
A horse is a vain hope for deliverance;
despite all its great strength it cannot save.
But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,
on those whose hope is in his unfailing love..."
It is the Lord who brings victory and it is in the Lord himself that he expects his people to find their strength, their ability to achieve victory: faith and trust in him. Recall the twelve spies that returned with a report on the promised land following the exodus from Egypt. Ten of the twelve complained the inhabitants were too strong for the Israelites to conquer them. They lacked faith in the Lord. This is what caused the Lord's judgment of them for the forty years of wilderness wandering. They had no faith in the Lord's ability to bring them victory even though he had promised it.
David, even though a man of faith, faltered in his faith by reasoning his military strength lay in his troop strength, as opposed to the Lord's own hand. Recall that Gideon's army was pared down to 300 troops just to show Israel that they could beat an innumerable force through their faith in the strength the Lord provides.
God taught Israel through Gideon they could find their victories by trusting in him. David faltered on this and so the Lord brought another lesson, a painful one.
It should go without saying that we need to find our strength in the Lord as Christians... not in other things. Our very salvation is based on the same criteria Abraham was acknowledged for, "Yet he [Abraham] did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. This is why 'it was credited to him as righteousness.' The words 'it was credited to him' were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification." Romans 4:20-25.
It is all about faith.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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