The Hand of Grace

 DEVOTION

1^ST  SAMUEL

THE HAND OF GRACE

1 Sam 25:36-44

36 When Abigail went to Nabal, he was in the house holding a banquet like that of a king. He was in high spirits and very drunk. So she told him nothing until daybreak. 37 Then in the morning, when Nabal was sober, his wife told him all these things, and his heart failed him and he became like a stone. 38 About ten days later, the LORD struck Nabal and he died. 39 When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, "Praise be to the LORD, who has upheld my cause against Nabal for treating me with contempt. He has kept his servant from doing wrong and has brought Nabal's wrongdoing down on his own head." Then David sent word to Abigail, asking her to become his wife. 40 His servants went to Carmel and said to Abigail, "David has sent us to you to take you to become his wife." 41 She bowed down with her face to the ground and said, "Here is your maidservant, ready to serve you and wash the feet of my master's servants." 42 Abigail quickly got on a donkey and, attended by her five maids, went with David's messengers and became his wife. 43 David had also married Ahinoam of Jezreel, and they both were his wives. 44 But Saul had given his daughter Michal, David's wife, to Paltiel son of Laish, who was from Gallim.

NIV

This might be a love story about David and Abigail, although how could David fall in love so quickly after only having one brief moment when Abigail beseeched him to hold his hand from bloodshed and killing her husband and all the males in the town. But the real story is about Nabal, the surly, mean, and abusive man who rejected David's request for any help he could provide concerning food for David's troops. Then this selfish man holds a feast as if he were a king, drinking and making merry, celebrating himself. However, when he found out about her going to David with all those supplies, his heart failed and he passed out, became unconscious, and then in ten days the LORD struck Nabal and he died. The LORD fought the battle for David without David lifting a hand against Nabal. This is where our lesson rests. The Lord will fight our battles as well. Sometimes we think that we must strike out, trying to vindicate ourselves from what we think was an offense against us. Sometimes, we might decide to hold a grudge, if only for a few days, to cause discomfort to whoever we think harmed us or hurt our feelings. Sometimes we might what the help of an army, citing how others think the same way we do, to prove our just cause of unforgiveness. David was relieved that the LORD upheld his cause against Nabal for treating him with contempt. We should always turn to the Lord with praise and honor and know that He is the Almighty God of heaven and earth, and his power is immeasurable. He holds the life of each of us in his hands. He decided Nabal was not worthy to live because of his treatment of others, and to show David how his mighty power worked for him. The Lord wants to do mighty works for us and in us and through us, but we must forsake our own efforts of battle against those who might offend us or hurt our feelings, or reject our thoughts, disagree with us, or however else that we think wrongs us. The Lord is clear that we must always forgive, for if we do not forgive that person, he will not forgive us. That is harsh, but it is true, and we need to be aware of how we treat each other, with mutual respect and out of love, which includes mercy, compassion, forgiveness, and holding our hand from striking out. Abigail brought peace in a bad situation, and as a result of her gentle heart, the Lord rewarded her by becoming the wife of David, the Lord lifted her up for her hand of grace toward David, and the LORD struck down Nabal for his hand of rejection against David. Let us always be about extending the hand of grace. 

The Humble Heart

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

THE HUMBLE HEART

1 Samuel 25:23-35

23 When Abigail saw David, she quickly got off her donkey and bowed down before David with her face to the ground. 24 She fell at his feet and said: "My lord, let the blame be on me alone. Please let your servant speak to you; hear what your servant has to say. 25 May my lord pay no attention to that wicked man Nabal. He is just like his name — his name is Fool, and folly goes with him. But as for me, your servant, I did not see the men my master sent. 26 "Now since the LORD has kept you, my master, from bloodshed and from avenging yourself with your own hands, as surely as the LORD lives and as you live, may your enemies and all who intend to harm my master be like Nabal. 27 And let this gift, which your servant has brought to my master, be given to the men who follow you. 28 Please forgive your servant's offense, for the LORD will certainly make a lasting dynasty for my master, because he fights the LORD's battles. Let no wrongdoing be found in you as long as you live. 29 Even though someone is pursuing you to take your life, the life of my master will be bound securely in the bundle of the living by the LORD your God. But the lives of your enemies he will hurl away as from the pocket of a sling. 30 When the LORD has done for my master every good thing he promised concerning him and has appointed him leader over Israel, 31 my master will not have on his conscience the staggering burden of needless bloodshed or of having avenged himself. And when the LORD has brought my master success, remember your servant." 32 David said to Abigail, "Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel, who has sent you today to meet me. 33 May you be blessed for your good judgment and for keeping me from bloodshed this day and from avenging myself with my own hands. 34 Otherwise, as surely as the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, who has kept me from harming you, if you had not come quickly to meet me, not one male belonging to Nabal would have been left alive by daybreak." 35 Then David accepted from her hand what she had brought him and said, "Go home in peace. I have heard your words and granted your request."

NIV

The humility of Abigail as she presents herself and her gifts to David is almost staggering. She bows low to the ground and gives him praise, honoring the fact that he has the anointing of the LORD upon him, and he is surely the king of Israel. But at the same time, she seeks or beseeches him to withhold his hand from bloodshed. She does not ever speak of herself, but lifts up David and speaks of the offense of her surly husband. David relents and grants her request. This could be seen as an example of a humble heart before our Lord God. We do come to Him with gifts such as the sacrifice of praise, giving him honor, lifting up the name of Jesus. We are also being the sacrifice of self, presenting ourselves before him, bowed down low. Of course, it seems that as we gather together, we are not bowing down physically, as Abigail did before David, but hopefully we bow our hearts or spirits before you, Oh Lord. Although Abigail was able to change the mind of David and he assured her that he would not shed any blood, granting her request, we wonder do we ever change the mind of God. We do know that once we were subject to his wrath, but as we responded to the request, as we call the conviction of the Spirit, and accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we are no longer subject to his wrath, but rather to his grace. But then was God’s mind changed about us, because of our choice to follow Jesus, or was that God’s mind all along? Certainly, He has foreknowledge and always knew who we would be, in fact, forming us into the person He wanted us to be. Still, we should always bow before Him with humility in our hearts, with the gift of praise, honoring His sovereignty in our lives. We know God will never do any harm against us, but He will honor our requests. Let us take to heart the example of Abigail, but more importantly, the example of the gentle and humble heart of our Lord, Jesus, as he asked us to take his yoke upon us and learn from Him, for He is gentle and humble in heart, and we will find rest for our souls. This is a wonderful truth about learning from Jesus. He bowed himself before the Father, seeking the Father’s will, being humble before the Father, as Abigail was before David. Let us reflect the humble heart we have before God in our daily lives, and in our relationships with our fellow believers, as well as those outside the household of faith. We know the opposite of humility is pridefulness, but it is also selfishness, always thinking about self, always about the needs of self, the need to speak about self, rather than as Abigail gave us the example of speaking about David and his successes, and his anointing from God. If we learn anything from Jesus, it should be to have a gentle and humble heart. 

The Bad and the Good

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

THE BAD AND THE GOOD 

1 Sam 25:14-22

14 One of the servants told Nabal's wife Abigail: "David sent messengers from the desert to give our master his greetings, but he hurled insults at them. 15 Yet these men were very good to us. They did not mistreat us, and the whole time we were out in the fields near them nothing was missing. 16 Night and day they were a wall around us all the time we were herding our sheep near them. 17 Now think it over and see what you can do, because disaster is hanging over our master and his whole household. He is such a wicked man that no one can talk to him." 18 Abigail lost no time. She took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five dressed sheep, five seahs of roasted grain, a hundred cakes of raisins and two hundred cakes of pressed figs, and loaded them on donkeys. 19 Then she told her servants, "Go on ahead; I'll follow you." But she did not tell her husband Nabal. 20 As she came riding her donkey into a mountain ravine, there were David and his men descending toward her, and she met them. 21 David had just said, "It's been useless — all my watching over this fellow's property in the desert so that nothing of his was missing. He has paid me back evil for good. 22 May God deal with David, be it ever so severely, if by morning I leave alive one male of all who belong to him!"

NIV

How is it possible to have two hundred loaves of bread unless this is a type of unleavened bread? Did Abigail have all that stuff just on hand to be able to hurry and load it all on a donkey? Nevertheless, this is a woman of substance, a woman with a heart that must have pleased the Lord. Before she meets with David, he is still bent on seeking the destruction of Nabal and all his household. Even Nabal’s own shepherds knew he was an evil man whom no one could talk to or persuade to change his mind.  We wonder if Abigail is trying to stop David from what he was about to do for the sake of her husband, or if she was motivated by the LORD. We will get to the exchange between Abigail and David, but first, we should consider that she was providing the request that was made by the ten men that David sent to Nabal, and how he rejected them. When she found out how her husband mistreated the men sent by David, she went into action, loading enough provisions to feed David and all his men. Perhaps it was enough to make an offering, a plea to change the course of David and save her family. What is our lesson from this portion of the narrative? Maybe it is about the provisions as an offering to change the heart of David. We know we can not give enough of an offering to God to change his mind or heart. He already loves us beyond what any human could measure; after all, his love is as far as the heavens are above the earth, or unmeasurable. Yet we are told to offer ourselves as living sacrifices. Interestingly, David’s statement about Nabal paying him back evil for good reminds us of Joseph telling his brothers that the evil they perpetrated toward him, God meant it for good. This brings us to the barrier between evil and good. For the most part, as we had considered before, Nabal represents the wickedness of mankind or the evil in this world. We can see evil everywhere we look, hatred against each other, divisions among the people, and even violence in the streets of our cities. So much wickedness all around us, and yet God has built a hedge around us, keeping us separated from evil by His goodness. Abigail was the one doing good and represents this concept of reconciliation that we considered before. There should be a difference between the wicked and the righteous. Although we would be known as the righteous, it is only because we are in Jesus and He is in us. However, for the sake of the comparison, we should be different.  That difference should not be based on our deeds, over the deeds of the wicked, because even the unbelievers can do great humanitarian deeds, sometimes better than the church does. No, the difference is a heart issue. Nabal had an evil heart, so much so that no one could talk to him. Abigail had a heart bent toward good, wanting to prevent injustice. At this point, David’s heart was bent on revenge, but we will see that goodness always prevails. We should always be about examining our heart, or asking the Lord to examine our heart, to see if there are any anxious thoughts, or wicked thoughts, or self-oriented thoughts. We desire to have a heart for God, but, like David, do we allow that “self” that hurts feelings, drives us toward the dark side, seeking retaliation in some form because our feelings are hurt? Let us endeavor to repay any bad with good. 

Emotions

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

EMOTIONS

1 Samuel 25:4-13

4 While David was in the desert, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep. 5 So he sent ten young men and said to them, "Go up to Nabal at Carmel and greet him in my name. 6 Say to him: 'Long life to you! Good health to you and your household! And good health to all that is yours! 7 "'Now I hear that it is sheep-shearing time. When your shepherds were with us, we did not mistreat them, and the whole time they were at Carmel nothing of theirs was missing. 8 Ask your own servants and they will tell you. Therefore be favorable toward my young men, since we come at a festive time. Please give your servants and your son David whatever you can find for them.'" 9 When David's men arrived, they gave Nabal this message in David's name. Then they waited. 10 Nabal answered David's servants, "Who is this David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many servants are breaking away from their masters these days. 11 Why should I take my bread and water, and the meat I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men coming from who knows where?" 12 David's men turned around and went back. When they arrived, they reported every word. 13 David said to his men, "Put on your swords!" So they put on their swords, and David put on his. About four hundred men went up with David, while two hundred stayed with the supplies.

NIV

What an ugly man, this Nabel was, to respond to strangers coming in the name of David and bringing a blessing of long life and good health. Although Nabel is an example of self-centeredness, obstinacy, and downright meanness or wickedness, our story today is about the blessing of David upon Nabel and his household. Of course, having that blessing thrown back in his face, David felt that his blessing had not only been rejected, but his name had been thrown into the mud and stamped on. David is God’s anointed, and this Nabel could not care about anything or anyone except his own life. Is it any wonder that David strapped on his sword with the intent to destroy all that Nabel had, as well as his life? Was that right for David to be vengeful toward Nabel? Was it David’s emotions that took over? Is it right to seek revenge when our feelings are hurt? Revenge is only reserved for the Lord, and yet He does not treat us as we deserve. He does not seek revenge against those who revere him, but blesses them with his grace, mercy, compassion, and forgiveness. But we are human, and when we are offended, even in the slightest way, we get upset, and anger takes hold of us, and we want to strike back, much as David wanted to strike back at Nabel. But shouldn’t we who fear the Lord be different? Do we still struggle with that old nature?  Doesn’t being a new creation mean we should not serve that old self or allow it to control our emotions, words, or responses? Couldn’t David have simply gone himself and approached Nabel in peace, rather than wanting to kill him? But then David was also human, with all the emotions, responding as a man, without the influence of the LORD. Still, his initial intent was to bless Nabel, but he was rejected, and that started him on the wrong path. Let us not allow others to control our emotions and lead us down the wrong path. Let us remember who we are, and who we are responsible to. We will see how this turns out for the best, because the Lord takes charge of the situation. Let us live with the Lord in charge of our lives, rather than our 'self' or our emotions being in charge. 

Two Types

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

TWO TYPES

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

1 Sam 25:1-3

25:1 Now Samuel died, and all Israel assembled and mourned for him; and they buried him at his home in Ramah.

Then David moved down into the Desert of Maon.   2 A certain man in Maon, who had property there at Carmel, was very wealthy. He had a thousand goats and three thousand sheep, which he was shearing in Carmel. 3 His name was Nabal and his wife's name was Abigail. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman, but her husband, a Calebite, was surly and mean in his dealings.

NIV

Like all men, Samuel’s time had come to an end, and all of Israel mourned. Samuel was a man of God, and we believe the LORD did not leave him in the grave, but took him home to be with him. Although his body may have remained behind until the day of the resurrection of the dead and the taking up of those who are alive. This event, we call the rapture; however, it is spoken of as being taken up, or caught up in the air to meet our Lord. We believe all godly people who breathe their last will be mourned, but also that there should be rejoicing. Perhaps not by the whole of a people, like Samuel was, but it is the destiny of all of us to pass through the shadow of the valley of death, but we will fear no evil, for the Lord is with us and His rod and His staff comfort us. We are not told the age of Samuel, but he lived a Godly life, and it would seem right to believe he lived to a ripe old age.  In the narrative that follows David and his men, along with a surly man named Nabal and his lovely wife Abigail, we will see the outcome of God's justice. This is our introduction to these characters, David encounters, and how the LORD intervenes to accomplish his will or plan for the life of David. We will get there soon enough, but for now, let us understand the Lord is Sovereign and has a plan for each one of us. He may work directly with us, speaking into our spirit, or heart, and even in our ears. He can work directly with us through his word, or he might work in us through the words of another person through the gift of the word of wisdom, word of knowledge, or the gift of prophecy. What we know is that the Lord has had his plan for us before we were born, as he knew us before the foundation of the earth. If that is not true, then he is not God, but it is true because He is God. Looking at these two people, a surly man and an intelligent and beautiful woman, and we already know David, so it is the character of these two that we take our lesson from. Interestingly, the Hebrew word qasheh, translated as surly means hard, difficult, stubborn, stiff of neck, intense, vehement, obstinate, and even cruel. We cannot believe any believer would fit into that description; for Nabal represents the world, however, Abigail offers us a look into a godly life, intelligent and beautiful, a look into what a child of God looks like.  

Reconciled

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

RECONCILED

1 Sam 24:8-22

8 Then David went out of the cave and called out to Saul, "My lord the king!" When Saul looked behind him, David bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground. 9 He said to Saul, "Why do you listen when men say, 'David is bent on harming you'? 10 This day you have seen with your own eyes how the LORD delivered you into my hands in the cave. Some urged me to kill you, but I spared you; I said, 'I will not lift my hand against my master, because he is the LORD's anointed.' 11 See, my father, look at this piece of your robe in my hand! I cut off the corner of your robe but did not kill you. Now understand and recognize that I am not guilty of wrongdoing or rebellion. I have not wronged you, but you are hunting me down to take my life. 12 May the LORD judge between you and me. And may the LORD avenge the wrongs you have done to me, but my hand will not touch you. 13 As the old saying goes, 'From evildoers come evil deeds,' so my hand will not touch you. 14 "Against whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom are you pursuing? A dead dog? A flea? 15 May the LORD be our judge and decide between us. May he consider my cause and uphold it; may he vindicate me by delivering me from your hand." 16 When David finished saying this, Saul asked, "Is that your voice, David my son?" And he wept aloud. 17 "You are more righteous than I," he said. "You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly. 18 You have just now told me of the good you did to me; the LORD delivered me into your hands, but you did not kill me. 19 When a man finds his enemy, does he let him get away unharmed? May the LORD reward you well for the way you treated me today. 20 I know that you will surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands. 21 Now swear to me by the LORD that you will not cut off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father's family." 22 So David gave his oath to Saul. Then Saul returned home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.

NIV

 Those words, “You are more righteous than I”, are from Saul to David, but also prophetic about us and the LORD. He is our righteousness. How can any man be righteous unless it comes from the LORD? However, David was surely a man after God’s own heart. He could have killed Saul, and he would have been justified because Saul was bent on doing evil by trying to kill David. It would appear they were enemies, except David did not want to kill Saul. In fact, he addressed Saul as master, as the LORD’s anointed, and as the king of Israel. There was reconciliation that happened that day, as it ended with an acknowledgement by Saul that David was meant to be the king, and when he sat on the throne, that he would be gracious to Saul and his descendants. David gave his oath to Saul. What a lesson for us to take to heart. We should always be the ones to do the work of reconciliation. If there is any division between us or ill feelings toward us by someone, and we become aware of it, we should be the ones to make every effort to be about peace and harmony. If we become aware that we are having some ill feelings, such as jealousy, envy, or angry, like Saul had been feeling toward David, we should first ask the Lord for his forgiveness, which of course, he will not only forgive, but removes our sin, then we need to ask the person we have had those unrighteous feelings toward for forgiveness. No matter which side of the fence we stand, it is our responsibility to seek reconciliation. However, we should never think that we are more righteous than another, even if it appears, we could be, as we see David was more righteous than Saul. It is right that the Lord would judge us, as he will judge us all. It is not so much judging between two people who may be at odds with each other, but he will judge each of us according to our deeds. That is not to mean our “Good works”,  but the bent of our heart. The Lord will judge each according to what we have done. If we are persistent in doing good by seeking glory, honor, and immortality, we will receive eternal life. However, we do not seek glory, honor, and immortality for ourselves, but those words define Jesus. He is the only one worthy of glory, honor, and immortality. The opposite of that are those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth, who is Jesus, and follow evil. It comes down to the only good we can do is follow Jesus, although doing good things for others is following Jesus, but the only thing that will be judged for is who we seek, and his name is Jesus. Just as Saul and David were reconciled, through Jesus we have been reconciled with God, even though it seems difficult to understand, God reconciled Himself to us. 

A Right Heart

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

A RIGHT HEART

1 Sam 24:1-7

24:1 After Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, "David is in the Desert of En Gedi." 2 So Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel and set out to look for David and his men near the Crags of the Wild Goats. 3 He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men were far back in the cave. 4 The men said, "This is the day the LORD spoke of when he said to you, 'I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.'" Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul's robe. 5 Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe. 6 He said to his men, "The LORD forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the LORD's anointed, or lift my hand against him; for he is the anointed of the LORD." 7 With these words David rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul. And Saul left the cave and went his way.

NIV

There is more to the story of David and Saul, but we can learn a valuable lesson from the heart of David. Although Saul was filled with anger against David and sought to kill him, he took time to relieve himself. That sounds like he needed to empty his bladder, but a more direct meaning of the Hebrew is to cover his feet, which would mean to take a nap, fall asleep. This is why David was able to snip a corner of Saul’s robe, as Saul was sound asleep. However, David was conscience-stricken for doing such a thing. Interestingly, although David had been anointed by Samuel as the king of Israel under the direction of the Lord, for He had rejected Saul as king, David still considered Saul his master, the LORD’s anointed. This is a humbled-hearted man, one who knows the LORD, and who the LORD knows that David is a man after His own heart. At least this far in the whole struggle of Saul, we can see him represent wickedness, or evil, and David represents a man after the heart of God, just and righteous. It was and now stands as what we would call the ancient battle between good and evil. Of course, we believe we are the ones who represent good, as we believe God and have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior, while those in the world who have not yet or may never believe in Jesus represent the evil in the world. It is easy to judge that difference, but are we being self-righteous? “See how good we are”, “We go to church every Sunday”, “ We know Jesus”. However, we wonder, because our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the forces of evil in this world and in the heavenly realm. The fact is, we do battle with evil, and if we are to be honest, we battle against our own evil thoughts that can sneak in. Search me, O God, and know my heart, test me and know my thoughts, see if there is any wicked way, or anxious thoughts in me, and lead me in ways everlasting. David wanted God to make sure that the Lord would show him if he had any anxious thoughts, or a more wooded translation, any pain, sorrow, or idol thoughts. Anxious would fit in this idolatry or pain and sorrow, as all of that kind of thinking surrounds self-centeredness. Could we have anxious thoughts? Could we battle with some aspect of evil thinking? Do we judge others or criticize their actions? Do we think more highly of ourselves than we should? It appears David did not, although he had the anointing of God on him. Is gossip a form of evil thoughts? Let us ask the LORD to search our hearts, to try us, and see if we have any wicked thoughts. Let us desire to have a heart after God, a right heart.