May the mumbling commence!
At times, we are lacking in respect
for the Lord’s anointed. We can learn
from a couple of biblical figures about respecting the Lord’s anointed. We can learn from David (who, by the way, was
also anointed of the Lord) and his relationship with King Saul. David had two opportunities to kill Saul and
refused to do so. Read about the second
opportunity from First Samuel chapter twenty-six:
David slipped over to Saul's
camp one night to look around. Saul and his general, Abner son of Ner, were
sleeping inside a ring formed by the slumbering warriors. "Will anyone volunteer to go in there
with me?" David asked Ahimelech the Hittite and Abishai son of Zeruiah,
Joab's brother.
"I'll go with you,"
Abishai replied. So David and Abishai went right
into Saul's camp and found him asleep, with his spear stuck in the ground
beside his head. Abner and the warriors were lying
asleep around him.
"God has
surely handed your enemy over to you this time!" Abishai whispered to David. "Let me thrust that spear through him. I'll pin him
to the ground, and I won't need to strike twice!"
"No!" David said. "Don't kill him. For who can remain innocent
after attacking the Lord's
anointed one? Surely the Lord
will strike Saul down someday, or he will die in battle or of old age. But the Lord forbid that I should kill the one
he has anointed! But I'll tell you what – we'll take his spear
and his jug of water and then get out of here!"
So David took the spear and jug
of water that were near Saul's head. Then he and Abishai got away without
anyone seeing them or even waking up, because the Lord had put Saul's men into a deep sleep. David climbed the hill opposite the camp
until he was at a safe distance.
Then he shouted down to Abner
and Saul, "Wake up, Abner!"
"Who is it?" Abner
demanded.
"Well, Abner, you're a
great man, aren't you?" David taunted. "Where in all Israel is there
anyone as mighty? So why haven't you guarded your master the king when someone came to
kill him? This isn't good at all! I
swear by the Lord that you and
your men deserve to die, because you failed
to protect your master, the Lord's
anointed! Look around! Where are the king's spear and the
jug of water that were beside his head?" (Verses 5-16)
Saul’s kingship did not stay the
hand of David, it was the fact that Saul was the Lord’s anointed. David’s anger at the failure of Abner and his
men did not rest upon the kingship of Saul, it rested on Saul being the Lord’s
anointed.
David was ready to wait… to
wait indefinitely on the Lord’s timing.
David refused to rush along what he perceived as the Lord’s plans – even
when circumstance seemed to be giving him the green light. David was fully prepared to wait on the
Lord. Can we do the same in our
lives? Let’s strive for that.
The other person we can look to is
Gamaliel. Read his story from Acts
chapter five, where he defends his thoughts for how to deal with the disciples
of Jesus.
At this, the high council was
furious and decided to kill them. But one member had a different perspective.
He was a Pharisee named Gamaliel, who was an expert on religious law and was
very popular with the people. He stood up and ordered that the apostles be sent
outside the council chamber for a while.
Then he addressed his colleagues as follows: "Men
of Israel, take care what you are planning to do to these men! Some time ago there was that fellow Theudas, who
pretended to be someone great. About four hundred others joined him, but he was
killed, and his followers went their various ways. The whole movement came to
nothing. After him, at the time of the census,
there was Judas of Galilee. He got some people to follow him, but he was
killed, too, and all his followers were scattered.
So my advice is, leave these men alone. If they are teaching and doing these things
merely on their own, it will soon be overthrown. But if it is of
God, you will not be able to stop them. You may even find yourselves fighting
against God."
The council accepted his advice. They called in the apostles and had them flogged. Then
they ordered them never again to speak in the name of Jesus, and they let them
go. The apostles
left the high council rejoicing that God had counted them worthy to suffer
dishonor for the name of Jesus. And
every day, in the Temple and in their homes, they continued to teach and preach
this message: "The Messiah you are looking for is Jesus." (Verses 33-42)
Take care what you plan to do when
you are working against anything that could possibly be the will of God. To fight against the will of God is a futile
fight. Gamaliel reminded the council of
the previous rioters, who when they were killed their followers scattered to the
four winds.
Everyone in the room knew
that this was not the case for the followers of Jesus. They also knew about the miraculous works
being done through these seemingly ordinary men… ordinary men who God made
extraordinary.
These apostles rejoiced
at suffering for the sake of Jesus’ name.
They were encouraged by their suffering.
It was like throwing water on a grease fire. Their teaching and preaching in the name of Jesus
only increased – for they were teaching and preaching in the name of the Lord’s
Anointed One, Jesus the Christ, the Messiah.
Can we do the same in our lives? Let’s strive for that.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace
Out
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