David's Victories

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Last week in chapter 9 we saw David showing the kindness of God to someone from the house of Saul, in spite of Saul's past treatment of David, to Saul's grandson - in fact, the crippled son of David's friend Jonathan - Mephibosheth. And chapter 10 begins in a similar way with David wanting to show kindness and constancy, courtesy and loyalty this time to someone outside of Israel and indeed a potential enemy – to Hanun, the new king of the Ammonites, out of respect for his recently deceased father. All of which brings us to my first point from verses 1-5:

Do Not Repay Anyone Evil for Evil, But Always Seek To Do Good [Or Be Kind] To One Another and To Everyone (1 Thessalonians 5:15)

Apparently there's a movement called 'Be kind to everyone you meet today'. Someone posted "Because if you do it will drive them crazy!" But seriously, there are quotes, Pinterest sites, YouTube videos, etc. to back up the campaign. The most popular quote is "Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about". Way before Pinterest and YouTube, Martin Luther, a key mover and shaker in the Reformation, wrote:

Too often we underestimate the power of a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring all of which have the potential to turn a life around.

And those kind actions can indeed be very powerful. But you might be thinking humanists might say something similar. The first ever Humanist Hospital 'Chaplain' in the UK started work last Monday in Leicester. Jane Flint's role is to assist those of no religious belief in their hour of need. She says she sees her role as a non-judgmental listening ear, showing compassion and empathy in the way humanists believe your 'one life' should be lived. But with no mention of hope for the future or Christ's power to bring healing and forgiveness; with no Christian context which Martin Luther's words have; with no mention therefore of the power of the kindness of God.

Let me illustrate with a true story. A man was dying of AIDS. He'd been living a homosexual lifestyle. Without disclosing his illness, he invited a church minister to visit him for lunch. Halfway through the meal, the man paused. He looked the minister straight in the eye and blurted out, "I'm dying of AIDS". Then, with tears in his eyes, the minister reached across the table and touched the man's arm, "I'm sorry, I'm truly sorry", he said. Later the man repented and submitted his life to Jesus. He said this to the minister, "Do you want to know why I've decided to receive Jesus? When I told you I was dying of AIDS, I was watching your body language. I wondered if you would quickly lean back, away from my face. Or if you would surreptitiously move your glass and your plate towards you…But instead of rejecting me, you reached out and touched me. Your eyes filled with tears…You accepted me as a person. Then and there I decided that your God is the God I want to meet when I die."

Galatians 5 teaches that kindness is a fruit of the Spirit. So kindness should be evident and growing in our lives by the work of the Holy Spirit. Psalm 86 speaks of the Lord as kind or good and forgiving and we are to be imitators of God. And in this often harsh and selfish world this depth of kindness can be in short supply. And so – and I've been discovering this more and more recently as I've gone through some challenging times – showing kindness, courtesy, love and loyalty, even in small ways, can be a powerful witness today. Some of you know that I invited various people to Carols by Candlelight – my hairdresser and my car salesman to mention just two. Well, I also went back to see them to say thanks for coming and for the kindness and courtesy they had shown to me. They were very grateful and I was able to say a bit more about the gospel, about the kindness of God which leads to repentance and faith in Christ.

See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good [or be kind] to one another and to everyone." - 1 Thessalonians 5.15

Note that 'to one another' means to one another in this fellowship, but 'to everyone' means to believers and non-believers; to 'Ammonites' and other pagans; to our neighbours, course mates and colleagues; to those we come into contact with. This doesn't mean we don't oppose what is wrong and seek to bring change as Jesus did; of course we're to be salt and light. But there's a wideness in God's mercy. Look at what Jesus says, Matthew 5:43:

You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?

Yet that kindness and indeed the kindness of God himself can be rejected and thrown back in the face. That brings us to the wider themes of this chapter and two further lessons. The first of which is this:

In Spite of All Resistance and Hostility, God's Chosen King Will Rule

David's show of kindness to an Ammonite king mourning the death of his father was indeed rejected. Look at the second half of verse 2 to verse 6:

So David sent his servants to console him concerning his father… But the princes of the Ammonites said to Hanun their lord, "Do you think, because David has sent comforters to you, that he is honouring your father? Has not David sent his servants to you to search the city and to spy it out and to overthrow it?" So Hanun took David's servants and shaved off half the beard of each and cut off their garments in the middle, at their hips, and sent them away… When the Ammonites saw that they had become a stench to David, the Ammonites sent and hired the Syrians of Beth-rehob, and the Syrians of Zobah, 20,000 foot soldiers, and the king of Maacah with 1,000 men, and the men of Tob, 12,000 men.

Now this reaction is what often happens. Political advisors swaying a new king by insinuating that he's surely not so naïve that he fails to see right through David's 'condolence scam'. The Ammonites' fiendish barbering and tailoring (v4) was nothing unusual for them either. They liked to scoop out the right eyes of conquered peoples (1 Samuel 11) and slice open pregnant women so they could dispose of two generations at once (Amos 1:13). But despite it being typical it's also prophetical. Why? Well, because 2 Samuel 10 is a regionalised version of Psalm 2. As Hanun and the rest stir themselves up against David, so the kings and rulers of the world are bent on resisting the sway of God and his Davidic-messianic King. Even after the initial defeat the Syrians mount another massive assault (v15-18), which David smashes at Helam, 40 miles from Galilee. Only then did they wise up and seek peace with David (v19).

Hanun, Hadadezer and company had arrayed themselves against God's chosen King and they lost. 2 Samuel 10 is Psalm 2 in miniature and proclaims 'In Spite of All Resistance and Hostility God's Chosen King Will Rule'. Today in spite of all the opposition whether from government, OFSTED or ISIS, Jesus is ruling and will rule. And that should be a great reassurance to us. I mean if we don't have that assurance why go to work or take exams tomorrow morning? But that assurance should also turn us to prayer and action with faith in the Sovereign Lord. Just as it did the apostles who were under pressure from the authorities in Acts 4, as they viewed their situation with a Psalm 2 perspective. So instead of cowering away they prayed to their and our great God:

Sovereign Lord, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them, who through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit, "Why did the Gentiles rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together, against the Lord and his Anointed" – for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and plan had predestined to take place. And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal' ...and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness." - Acts 4.24-29

And that's a prayer for our context too; a prayer we can learn from and use; a prayer for God to work powerfully in this city and region and that he might strengthen us to proclaim his message; a prayer therefore which leads to action, that we, rather like the apostles, might speak God's word with all boldness in the power of the Holy Spirit as God works mightily in people's lives. For in spite of all resistance and hostility, God's chosen King will rule.

And surely if we believe in God's sovereignty, that Christ has won the victory through his death and resurrection, and is ruling and with us by his Spirit then we need not fear those who are opposed (though we should be as wise as serpents and as gentle as doves) and should be heartened that there will be many folks out there who are receptive to the gospel, to the kindness of God. We need to remember that - in regard to West Tyneside, students and those around where we live and work, as we seek to invite people to St Joseph's and the CE Taster Sessions, etc. Thirdly and finally and not unrelated:

The Lord God Will Do What He Thinks Good

Take a look at verses 6-14. David's army under Joab's command gets caught in a pincer movement while preparing to attack the capital of the Ammonites. Faced with enemies in front and behind, Joab divides his troops. Those under his brother Abishai were to hold off the Ammonites, while those with Joab turned to face the Syrians. What happens? The opposition forces flee. David's army is victorious. Yet the writer gives us no real details about that. What's highlighted here in 2 Samuel 10 is not tales of battle but rather Joab's speech to Abishai and his comment about the Lord. Have a look at verses 11 and 12:

Joab said, "If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will come and help you. Be of good courage, and let us be courageous for our people, and for the cities of our God, and may the Lord do what seems good to him."

May the Lord do what seems good to him or perhaps better translated the Lord God will do what he thinks good. Was this a last gasp of despair as Joab faced being surrounded on the brink of battle, in danger of being defeated or was it an expression of faith in God in spite of the uncertainty? Well surely it has to be the latter. You see that affirmation – the Lord will do what he thinks good – is always the resting place of God's beleaguered people. Let me say it again – the Lord will do what he thinks is good to him. Isn't this our firmest comfort in all life's uncertainties as believers? Yes, here's where this chapter can get very personal, very personal as we face uncertainties. I wonder what uncertainties you're facing and how you cope with them; uncertainties over health, exams and future career, marriage and family, even over St Joseph's and how the launch will go on the 28th of February and in the weeks after the launch? Are you like Joab trusting in the Lord and praying may the Lord do what seems good to him? John Calvin, the well-known Christian writer, wrote this on 2 Samuel 10:

Well, if someone still claims that Joab didn't show that he trusted in God, the reply to that is that God doesn't give particular promises about this or that to his children. Yes we certainly have this point – that the Lord will do what he thinks good - which should firmly persuade us that God will never abandon us, and that in the end he will show that our hope in him wasn't in vain. Nevertheless, we must remain in suspense about many things. For instance, when we ask God for our daily bread, it isn't that we're assured that he'll send us a great harvest or a good vintage. We should leave that in his hands and patiently await what pleases him. When we have any illness, we must be assured that he hasn't forgotten us, and that we have such access to him that, in the end, we will feel that he's looked upon us in pity. The promise of God should be fully sufficient in regards to that. However, when we would like to have the word that today or tomorrow he will restore our health, we don't know – and we are even in doubt of living or dying. Joab couldn't have absolute certainty of victory here because he had no specific promise about that situation. So Joab's uncertainty wasn't lack of faith, for we can certainly doubt, although we embrace the promises of God and hold them as absolutely certain and infallible. What we doubt are the things which aren't clear to us. That's how God wants us to remain in suspense about many things and to leave it all to his secret counsel and his providence.

Now some of you might be thinking 'yes, but if I take Joab's words into my dilemmas that could make me both more confident and less certain!' Well we need to remain dependent on him, trusting him and praying not my will but yours Lord. We are in his hands. Psalm 48:14 promises that God will guide us, not only now but also forever. That was a verse I remember clinging on to as I faced great uncertainty over which post I was going to take up after ordination. And surely will we not see that if the Lord God will do what he thinks good, that will also be what is good for his people? Romans 8:28 says:

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

And according to the context of Romans 8 what is good is becoming more like Christ to the glory of his Name, keeping the perspective of the certainty of future glory in all the uncertainties, challenges and even joys of this life. Yes, what is certain is that God is good. He cares. He provides. He is faithful. He wants his church to grow. He wants us to become more like Christ. The Lord will do what he thinks good. We are in his hands. We can trust him. We live by faith and not by sight, and the best is yet to come for those who share in Christ's victory through faith in his death and resurrection. Joab stirs up our faith in spite of whatever uncertainty we're facing. So be courageous for the Lord.

But let me conclude with a word of warning. Be careful when enjoying 'success' as David does in his victories or even in enduring suffering. Peter warns (1 Peter 5:8):

Be sober minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

Resist the devil and humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, giving thanks to the Lord. You see, pride comes before a fall, as we're about to see in chapters 11 and 12.

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