DAVID A man after God's own heart.

Good morning Class! Happy Sabbath! Merry Christmas!

Question of the Day: What is the best Christmas gift you have ever given and the best gift you have ever received? 

I know many of you will say that gifts are not what matter but in a way it is the only reason for this season.  Jesus being born was the greatest gift of all time!  I love the tradition of gift giving as it always reminds me of the gift of Jesus!

So last week the class didn't get through the second half of the lesson.  So today we will finish last weeks lesson.  At first blush or by the title of this section of the chapter it looks like it is not a great lesson for Christmas Sabbath!  However I think it is perfect! You will see why! This is a short passage that gives us just a little more insight into how Davids heart is like God's heart.  A man after God's own heart.

It may be good to review what happened in the first half of the chapter. 

David Mourns

19 Now Ahimaaz son of Zadok said, “Let me run and take the news to the king that the Lord has vindicated him by delivering him from the hand of his enemies.”

20 “You are not the one to take the news today,” Joab told him. “You may take the news another time, but you must not do so today, because the king’s son is dead.”

21 Then Joab said to a Cushite, “Go, tell the king what you have seen.” The Cushite bowed down before Joab and ran off.

22 Ahimaaz son of Zadok again said to Joab, “Come what may, please let me run behind the Cushite.”

But Joab replied, “My son, why do you want to go? You don’t have any news that will bring you a reward.”

23 He said, “Come what may, I want to run.”

So Joab said, “Run!” Then Ahimaaz ran by way of the plain[f] and outran the Cushite.

24 While David was sitting between the inner and outer gates, the watchman went up to the roof of the gateway by the wall. As he looked out, he saw a man running alone. 25 The watchman called out to the king and reported it.

The king said, “If he is alone, he must have good news.” And the runner came closer and closer.

26 Then the watchman saw another runner, and he called down to the gatekeeper, “Look, another man running alone!”

The king said, “He must be bringing good news, too.”

27 The watchman said, “It seems to me that the first one runs like Ahimaaz son of Zadok.”

“He’s a good man,” the king said. “He comes with good news.”

28 Then Ahimaaz called out to the king, “All is well!” He bowed down before the king with his face to the ground and said, “Praise be to the Lord your God! He has delivered up those who lifted their hands against my lord the king.”

29 The king asked, “Is the young man Absalom safe?”

Ahimaaz answered, “I saw great confusion just as Joab was about to send the king’s servant and me, your servant, but I don’t know what it was.”

30 The king said, “Stand aside and wait here.” So he stepped aside and stood there.

31 Then the Cushite arrived and said, “My lord the king, hear the good news! The Lord has vindicated you today by delivering you from the hand of all who rose up against you.”

32 The king asked the Cushite, “Is the young man Absalom safe?”

The Cushite replied, “May the enemies of my lord the king and all who rise up to harm you be like that young man.”

33 The king was shaken. He went up to the room over the gateway and wept. As he went, he said: “O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you—O Absalom, my son, my son!”

This passage starts with David sitting at the gate waiting for news!  He is anxious.  Hoping to hear something.  Hoping it will be good news! 

What do you think he was going through then?

How is that similar to our heavenly father?

Then when he hears the bad news what is his reaction?

My son, my son.  

What do we hear in Davids cry?

Grief

Regret

"If only I had...."

Have you ever cried out, "If only I had...."?

Once again David is faced with what he didn't do.  What he wished he had done. What he had done that he shouldn't have done. Once again the consequences of his action or inaction has hurt others, others whom he dearly loved.

Too often we think that our sin, our lusts, only affect ourselves. We don't think about how it will affect those around us. 

In looking at all that has happened since Bathsheba, wow can you imagine what the story might have been like if that had never happened.  If that evening when David started lusting after her, if he had turned to God, and done what he knew to be right instead of just what he wanted.  Can you imagine how different this would have been.  

Absalom was a remarkable being, imagine if his father had been who God wanted him to be, how different Absalom would have been.  Can you imagine?

That seemingly personal sin, turned into the death of his son's, a war within the family and the nation, huge numbers of men gave their lives, all because of what?

Your private sin, is never just a private sin! 

I want to shift gears here.  I said at the beginning that this would be an opportunity for us to understand how David is a man after God's own heart.  

How do we see that in this story?

What part of this story, let's us see similarities between the heart of David and the heart of God?

If you just look at how David felt about Absalom there are some beautiful parallels.   

Can you imagine God being willing to give up his son for you and me when we have hurt him, when we would kill him, when we don't deserve it?

David didn't give his life for his son, but he wished he had.  

David in spite of what his son had done, greatly loved him!

His son rejected him, and was trying to over throw him, and yet... David loved him and asked his men to treat him kindly.

It doesn't matter how great your sin, you heavenly father loves you! Weeps for you! Desperately wants a different outcome and has made provisions for you to come home and be part of his house! Do you really believe that?

God is begging for you to come into his arms of safety! 

Will you?

I know most of us around this table have given our hearts to God.  I know I have!

But what does it really mean to come into His arms of safety? 

It means to trust him. To be willing to wait for his guidance, his timing. Remember David always being asked by God to wait.  Are you willing to wait on God?

It means to turn to him when temptation strikes! It means believing that He will give you the strength to fight and the battle plan to defeat the enemy.  You have to turn to him, ask for his help. Seek out his will and surrender to His plan!

It means to accept His forgiveness and believe that you have been forgiven.  To live like you have been forgiven! 

What else does it mean?


So it is Christmas.  Christmas we see like no other time the great love of our heavenly father!  He sends his son, to be born in Bethlehem, poor, rejected, unrecognized, to eventually give his life for us.  

Just like David was sitting at the gate waiting, our heavenly father is waiting, and hoping that you will accept the gift he gave and he is hoping that you are coming back home to be with him.  So this Christmas dwell on His great love for you!