King James Version

The Book of 2 Samuel

Chapter 16

Commentary

2 Samuel 16

      Can you imagine a time when you were a child, a time when someone bullied you in school? Can you remember a time when maybe you done the bullying? Looking at this chapter, I image a scene where the bad guy taunts David. Maybe even resorting to some irrational behavior to entice David to respond. This could be nearly anything, but let's say Absalom wanted his father to retaliate so as to initiate the fight. Instead of frontal attack, to overthrow the thrown, Absalom took measures to provoke David to make the first move. All the while, Absalom had taken the first move many years ago. He had always planned to steal his father's thrown.

     David tolerates this, and seeks God's guidance through it all. He has an insightful way of seeing the situation. He suggested that God has a purpose for all of this. David identifies God, even in this. Separate from "seeking" God's will, David also "identifies" God's presence in the situation. He sees what God could make to come of all this, suggests that God has a plan. --

     We hear people say this and similar, but do we really see it as tangible or practical in our current time? How superficial do we esteem someone if they said, "maybe God has a plan for our terrible loss" or, "God's will be done"? Most of us respond in some tolerant, perhaps even stolid way. How many of us actually believe, as David had, that God really does have a plan for our specif situation? How many of us can truly identify God's presence in our current, individual situations? It is not difficult to see God in everything. We can see the kingdom of God because we are born again, of the water and of the Spirit\. We can understand the way of God, even if we don't have the particulars of all the situations we find ourselves in. We can follow God, exactly, because we can be led. We can follow Him.

     Make conscience effort to know God. All you have to do is spend some time thinking only of Him. If your thoughts wander to a specific situation, see if you can see God quietly assisting as we seek Him. 

     I woke up early one Saturday morning. I thought it was a school day, so I rushed to get ready. When I got to the kitchen for the usual morning breakfast, all was silent. Still not knowing it's Saturday, I began to call out, not so loud at first. "Mom? Where are you? What's up? Where's everybody." Eventually, as I just get to my mother's door, and wake her, I realized what day it was. I felt relief. I even began to get tired all over again. Safe. I can go back to bed!

     Mom responded, even if not too pleasantly, for having been woken on the weekend. I knew in an instant all of the truth about my situation, and what I may opt to do in response. This is a scale model of what we go through in our relationship with God. In order for us to grow in likeness with Him, we need to know more about Him. Seek Him, not just some other person's opinion of Him. Understanding will come, like a baby developing awareness.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010 - 8:30 AM