DAVID A man after God's own heart!

Question of the Day: I would like for us to take a moment and discuss what we as a class would like our focus to be this next year. Next New Years weekend, what do we want to say our class has done?  I hope this is connected to where you would like to be next year. If you are not in class and are reading this online, please make comments.  I would love to discuss it further next week and have a direction and a focus for our class to take this next year.


This mornings lesson covers eight challenging verses.  May the Lord guide and humble our hearts as we tackle them.

READ: 2 Samuel 19: 1-8

19 Joab was told, “The king is weeping and mourning for Absalom.”2 And for the whole army the victory that day was turned into mourning, because on that day the troops heard it said, “The king is grieving for his son.” 3 The men stole into the city that day as men steal in who are ashamed when they flee from battle. 4 The king covered his face and cried aloud, “O my son Absalom! O Absalom, my son, my son!”

5 Then Joab went into the house to the king and said, “Today you have humiliated all your men, who have just saved your life and the lives of your sons and daughters and the lives of your wives and concubines.6 You love those who hate you and hate those who love you. You have made it clear today that the commanders and their men mean nothing to you. I see that you would be pleased if Absalom were alive today and all of us were dead. 7 Now go out and encourage your men. I swear by the Lord that if you don’t go out, not a man will be left with you by nightfall. This will be worse for you than all the calamities that have come on you from your youth till now.”

8 So the king got up and took his seat in the gateway. When the men were told, “The king is sitting in the gateway,” they all came before him.

Meanwhile, the Israelites had fled to their homes.

This passage opens with David mourning the death of his son.  

Appropriate right?

At first read I'm mad at Joab.  First he disregards Davids request to be kind to his son, and kills him, then he tells David to stop mourning.

Seriously!

There is nothing about this I like.  David, is heart broken.  Obviously he should be mourning. Right?

We are going to focus our time on three points or questions. 

The first one deals with Joab.

1. Are there times we need to speak up even to our leaders?

This is a tricky question.  Being raised a pastors daughter I am fully aware that most of us have no problem telling our leaders what they should be doing.  In fact we like to tell the entire pastors family what we think they should be doing.  We have no problem, asking our leaders to be what we think they should be!  Most of the time I would argue that we need to be lifting up our leaders, praying for them, and trusting that God will lead and guide them and he doesn't need us. Yet here we clearly see the wisdom in what Joab, (irritating Joab) is telling David.  

How do we know if we should or should not speak up to our leaders?

2. Are we willing to hear the message even if the messenger is far from our favorite person?

As leaders of our homes, or our church, or at work, how do we remain humble enough to hear when people we don't likes speak to us about things they think we should be doing?

I don't know about you, but I'm not a fan of anyone who tells me what to do!

Some of my earliest memories are of trying to figure out how to manage not doing what I was told.  I remember one time my mother instructed me that I was clearing the table wrong.  She told me a much more efficient way of doing it.  I saw clearly the wisdom in what she was saying and yet was determined for weeks to not do it the way she had suggested just because I didn't want her to know I had heard her, or that I agreed with her.  I would rather take longer to do my chore, miss out on play time, than to let my mom know she was right and I was wrong.  Perhaps that is why when I read this I was angry at David for a moment.  Why couldn't he just fire Joab, and call him out for not doing as he had been asked.  Why didn't David use his power and tell him to deal with the men while he mourned his son?  It was his right! Why would he let Joab, be right in this instance? 

David, was willing to humble himself and quiet his own desires to hear wisdom. 

He didn't let the messenger get in the way!

How many times do we disregard wisdom because we don't like who the messenger is?  Could it be that God is trying to get through to you, and you are not listening because of the messenger?  

He also didn't let his own feelings be more important than the wisdom! Feelings are important and I think many of us have tried to take feelings out of religion to a point that we have forgotten that this beautiful relationship with Jesus Christ must include feelings, however....

There are times we MUST put our feelings aside.  There are times we need to quiet our feelings enough to hear the wisdom that is being shared.

I don't know about you but I need to hear this!  

3. There is a time to mourn, but are there times when mourning is justified, and yet we need to stop and get to work?

David didn't really get time to mourn.  This is not a case of taking the time you need and now it is time to stop and get to work.  Here David didn't get the time.  Yet he needed to step outside himself and do something for the good of the "kingdom".  

There are times that we have to do!

There are times when we must step up and be willing to do what needs to be done, even when we don't feel like it, even if we need time to mourn! 

My amazing sweet cousin, mother of four beautiful and very young children is loosing her husband to cancer.  They found out right before Christmas that he has just a short time left.  She has reason to mourn!  She has reason to fall apart!  Yet she has been filled with strength and even joy! Why? She has to.  She has four little ones who need her to be strong and to let them experience a joyous season with their daddy.  She wrote recently on a go fund me page that was set up for them, "We want to thank God for today instead of worrying what tomorrow might bring." 

She is stepping up and doing what she knows she has to do.

David does the same here.  He has the right to mourn, but he sets that aside to serve his men. So he gets up and goes to the gate! He gets up and goes to work.

Is there something that you have been holding onto, have you been mourning something or someone and God is challenging you to get up and get back to work.  Is someone needing you to be present!

Sometimes it isn't as obvious as my cousins situation.  Sometimes we are simply stuck in our feelings of inadequacy and aren't doing our work the way we should.  Maybe we are tired and need rest, but God is asking us to get up and serve Him.  Maybe you are feeling pulled in to many directions, and now someone is asking you to pick up something else, could God be calling you to serve? Maybe we have been mourning the loss of our hopes and dreams, maybe we have been mourning the fact that our children aren't following the Lord.  Whatever it is, could it be that God is asking you to stop mourning, and start doing?

It may be that God wants you to go and refresh!

It may be that God wants you to get up and get to work!

It may be that God is saying, take time and mourn!

It may be that God is saying, stop mourning and serve those around you!

It may be that God is saying come and sit with me a while!

It may be that God is saying, I have already spoken, now get up and do!

This lesson challenges me to humble myself, to God's leading! Am I humbled enough to hear him if He asks me to speak to leadership, or to keep my mouth shut?  Am I humbled enough to listen to those I don't like, and even to those who have hurt me?  Am I humbled enough to not only hear them, but to do what they are asking, essentially letting them "win" because what they are saying is right. Am I humbled enough to set my feelings aside and get to work? Am I humbled? Am I?