Skip to main content

Don’t Count on it



             Ask most people, “What was King David’s worst sin?” and they will say “His affair with Bathsheba” (2 Samuel 11). 

            That is a good answer, but did you know that in terms of impact on the kingdom, the people and himself, David does something much worse later in his life?  The event is recorded in 1 Chronicles 21.  Are you ready for this?  Brace yourself!

            “David said… ‘Go count the Israelites from Dan to Beersheba.  Then report back to me so that I may know how many there are’” (Verse 1).

            Whoa, that is crazy, right? 

            Well, you may not think so but look at how others react to this command. 

            Joab, the commander of David’s army, asked, “Why does my Lord want to do this?  Why should he bring guilt on Israel?”(Verse 3).

            Verse seven tells us that, “This command was also evil in the sigh of God; so he punished Israel”.

            Obviously, we are missing something here.

            The problem has to do with where David is putting his trust.

            Up until this point, David’s whole life was based on God’s blessings.  For example, when it came time to replace Saul as king, no one even thought about David.  He was left out in the field with the sheep.  God chose him anyway (1 Samuel 16).  When he faced Goliath, David did so with the assurance that God would give him the victory (1 Samuel 17).  When Saul tries, numerous times, to kill him, David does not retaliate.  Instead, he trusts that God will look after the situation (1 Samuel 18-31).  David trusted God because he had nothing else.  God was his only hope.

            Now, later in his life, David is rich.  He has a large army and a strong kingdom.  He is a man of power and he thinks that he can take care of himself.  Counting the people is wrong because he thinks that his security is found in his own resources. 

            Unfortunately, we still fall into the same trap.  It is easy to think that if I pile up enough money, I will be ok.  Some think that if they climb to the top of the corporate ladder, life will be perfect.  Others dedicate themselves to the acquisition of knowledge in the hopes that university degrees will provide a good life.  Preachers, by the way, still count people.  Rarely have I seen a minister “called” to a smaller church (Seems odd doesn’t it?).

            If our hope is in anything but God, we will be disappointed.  The only real strength we have comes from above.  When we find that hope, we will have all we need.

            “Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33).

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

New Article: Grace Changes Everything

               A young man broke into a business and did $5000 damage. As part of his Restorative Justice sentence, he was required to meet with my friend Garth.   Garth believes in making apologies and restitution.   It took several months, but Garth finally convinced the young man that these were necessary steps, so he tried to arrange a meeting with the business owner.                The business owner wanted nothing to do with this situation.   He was angry and wanted a more severe form of justice.   Eventually, however, he agreed to meet the young man to hear what he had to say.                  The young man looked the business owner in the eye an...

The Art of Noticing.... Seeing what we need to see and what we miss when we don't

 What we focus on in life matters. Here are some scriptural reminders that will help us see correctly.  https://youtu.be/Rn76tV0ZH8s    

New Article: Think Abundance Not Scarcity

                 “There are no trees in Saskatchewan!”                I have heard that statement many times, mostly from people who moved to Estevan from places like British Columbia or northern Ontario.   Compared to what they expect, Saskatchewan, and Estevan in particular, seems rather barren.   However, that statement is not true.   More than half the province is covered with trees.   Go up north and there are trees everywhere.                A few months ago, I came across an aerial photo of Estevan from the 1950s.   When I showed it to my girls, the first thing they said was, “Wow, there are no trees in that picture!”   The photo looked odd ...