KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Monday, April 17, 2017
Chapters: I Samuel 25-27
Message: The Value Of Life
Hello My Friend,
Life; A person; a living being; usually or always, a human being. No matter what we have done in this life, God does not want to see one soul in hell, but that choice is up to each individual. We cannot pray to save a soul unless it is our own, we cannot work to save a soul, and we cannot pray to save a soul that has already left a persons body. We can believe in the Gospel of Christ and pray for Jesus to become our Saviour, and we can pray that God will open the heart of the one who needs to be saved. We can also live our lives in a way that values the life we are given, bringing others to the knowledge of Christ through our actions. Salvation is not about being free to live as we please, it is about knowing the value of every life and living in a godly way that brings the lost to Christ. “For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” – James 1:23-25.
By now all of Israel as well as the surrounding areas knew who David was, whenever he came into their town they wondered if he were there to destroy it or help them. David knew a man named Nabal, Nabal was a sheep wrangler, at one time he was having problems with the Philistines and asked David to help drive them away, and as a result he became very rich and successful. When David heard that Nabal was out shearing sheep close by he tried to get his help to feed the hungry men that were with him. He refused to even acknowledge David and that brought a fury on him and he was about to destroy the city until Nabal’s wife brought food, gifts and pleaded with David to have mercy on them, even giving her life in return for theirs.
“And now this blessing which thine handmaid hath brought unto my lord, let it even be given unto the young men that follow my lord. I pray thee, forgive the trespass of thine handmaid: for the LORD will certainly make my lord a sure house; because my lord fighteth the battles of the LORD, and evil hath not been found in thee all thy days. Yet a man is risen to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul: but the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the LORD thy God; and the souls of thine enemies, them shall he sling out, as out of the middle of a sling. And it shall come to pass, when the LORD shall have done to my lord according to all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee ruler over Israel; That this shall be no grief unto thee, nor offence of heart unto my lord, either that thou hast shed blood causeless, or that my lord hath avenged himself: but when the LORD shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thine handmaid. And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me:” – I Samuel 25:27-32.
“bound in the bundle of life with the LORD thy God;” God is the giver and taker of life, and if a life is living a wicked life than He will take it at the appointed time. The gift that Abigail sent was an atonement for Nabal’s behavior and her humbleness and submissiveness was able to give David a chance to think about what he was about to do. She did not excuse her husband, but depended upon the grace of God to soften David’s heart before he took away innocent lives, reminding him that he is above someone as foolish as Nabal, and that he would be king one day. Nabal’s appointed time was a few days later when Abigail told him what happened.
“And Abigail came to Nabal; and, behold, he held a feast in his house, like the feast of a king; and Nabal’s heart was merry within him, for he was very drunken: wherefore she told him nothing, less or more, until the morning light. But it came to pass in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, and his wife had told him these things, that his heart died within him, and he became as a stone. And it came to pass about ten days after, that the LORD smote Nabal, that he died. And when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, Blessed be the LORD, that hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath kept his servant from evil: for the LORD hath returned the wickedness of Nabal upon his own head. And David sent and communed with Abigail, to take her to him to wife.” – I Samuel 25:36-39.
“and he became as a stone.” The fear of death can do one of two things, bring us closer to God or keep us away from Him. Imagine discovering how close you were to losing your life over one stupid decision? This was what freaked Nabal out, so much so that it hardened his heart and brought him to his death. Our human mind cannot comprehend right from wrong, it is our conscious that develops over time that does, and if we are saved, it is the Holy Spirit that becomes our conscious. Even though King Saul no longer had the Spirit of God in him, he knew the God was with David. Saul got word of David’s whereabouts and pursues him once again. David gets yet another opportunity to kill Saul, but would not because he knew that it was not his place to take Saul’s life. David confronts the whole army, reminding them that Saul was God’s anointed and that God will take care of it.
“And David said to Abishai, Destroy him not: for who can stretch forth his hand against the LORD’S anointed, and be guiltless? David said furthermore, As the LORD liveth, the LORD shall smite him; or his day shall come to die; or he shall descend into battle, and perish. The LORD forbid that I should stretch forth mine hand against the LORD’S anointed: but, I pray thee, take thou now the spear that is at his bolster, and the cruse of water, and let us go. Then said Saul, I have sinned: return, my son David: for I will no more do thee harm, because my soul was precious in thine eyes this day: behold, I have played the fool, and have erred exceedingly. And David answered and said, Behold the king’s spear! and let one of the young men come over and fetch it. The LORD render to every man his righteousness and his faithfulness: for the LORD delivered thee into my hand to day, but I would not stretch forth mine hand against the LORD’S anointed. And, behold, as thy life was much set by this day in mine eyes, so let my life be much set by in the eyes of the LORD, and let him deliver me out of all tribulation.” – I Samuel 26:9-11,21-24.
“The LORD render to every man his righteousness and his faithfulness:” David was very capable of defending himself against Saul, he could have killed him months ago, but he chose to do the right thing. God will handle it, saved or not, we will face the consequences of our actions, God has taken many saved lives before their time because of the sinful lives they have chosen. While our works have nothing to do with our salvation they have everything to do with the rewards we get after we are saved. “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.” – Matthews 16:26-27.
Okay, doing the right thing all the time can be discouraging, especially when you try to make the best decisions, and nothing seems to change. Discouraged and distraught, David knew that no matter what he did he would be killed by Saul. David decides to leave Israel and reside with none other than the Philistines. “And David said in his heart, I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul: there is nothing better for me than that I should speedily escape into the land of the Philistines; and Saul shall despair of me, to seek me any more in any coast of Israel: so shall I escape out of his hand. And David arose, and he passed over with the six hundred men that were with him unto Achish, the son of Maoch, king of Gath. And David dwelt with Achish at Gath, he and his men, every man with his household, even David with his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the Carmelitess, Nabal’s wife. And it was told Saul that David was fled to Gath: and he sought no more again for him.” – 1 Samuel 27:1-4.
“I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul:” It is very hard to deal with some of the affliction we face, but we must never give up hope that they will subside. In fact, as long as we keep believing that they will come to pass they will much quicker than we think. It is all about faith, and trusting God and His appointed time to make them all go away. Believe it or not, the affliction we face now will be used to our advantage as the blessings will unfold, giving God the glory, which is exactly what He wants. “We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak; Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you. For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.” – II Corinthians 4:13-15.
Jesus Christ Magnified: Today, Jesus is revealed through Abigail, who served as the mediator between David and Nabal. Jesus is our mediator, we do not deserve the mercies of God, but they are given to us by grace through Jesus who mediates with God over the lives of those who believe in Him and receive Him as their Saviour. “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” – I Timothy 2:5-6.
Today’s Prayer: God, You know my heart and I know that no matter how much You do for me there are times when my faith in You becomes dim, so dim that I cannot see past the darkness of my circumstances. I do not want to be a faith by sight person, I want to be a faith by hearing and doing person. I want to keep going, believing and hoping that You will do everything You say You are going to do. Help my disbelief to be a thing of the past, break through the clouds and help me see things more clearly in every area of my life. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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