What Would You Choose?
Sunday, January 09, 2011 - AM
By Pastor James May
David was known as a man after God’s own heart. What a wonderful thing it would be to know that God though of each of us in the same manner. I believe that I am looking out over a lot of people in the church who fit into that same description. One of the things that I ask for in prayer is that God not helps me, but that he helps all of us to know the very heart of God so that we may be useful vessels in God’s House.
David was truly a great man, chosen by God to lead Israel and anointed by God to be king and rule his people and lead them into becoming a great nation. I believe that, in similar fashion, God has chosen each of us and anointed us to become people who will lead many souls into the kingdom of God.
Even though David was a man after God’s own heart, he was also a man who experienced some tremendous battles in his life. Jut because he was called and anointed didn’t mean that he would go through life and serve in his appointed position without troubles.
One thing that we should never forget is that David was a strong leader, and with strong leaders comes strong weaknesses.
Many of us consider ourselves as truly sold out Christians. There is a true conviction in your heart that you will serve the Lord all of your days. You feel that your eyes are fixed on Jesus and your heart’s desire is to know him and become more like Jesus every day.
There is no doubt that God’s love is in your heart. There is no doubt that you have a true commitment to Christ. Your salvation is not in question. But I want to tell you to beware of the enemy of your soul because just as surely as I stand here this morning, there is a great spiritual battle on the horizon. Satan is not going to allow any of us, not one of us, to serve the Lord and seek his face without bringing temptation to sin into our lives.
I am going to tell you part of the story of David this morning, not as a stinging correction for sin, but as an exhortation to beware of the wiles of the devil. He is a subtle enemy and he can often send thoughts into our minds that don’t seem so bad at first, but can have terrible consequences in time.
This is God’s love reaching out to each of this morning, with a gentle nudge brought to us through the convicting power of the Holy Ghost, to help us to be on guard for our souls. Satan is like that roaring lion, walking through the jungles of life, looking for someone, anyone, whom he can destroy. God doesn’t want you to become one of his victims.
This story of David that I want to tell this morning can be found in the Book of 1 Chronicles beginning at chapter 21. David was coming out of a time of great trouble and had won some great victories. There had been a war with the Philistines Gezer and David’s army had won. Then there was another war with the Philistines that was also won, and one of the brothers of Goliath, whom David had killed many years earlier, was also destroyed. No doubt David had been threatened with revenge many times by the family of Goliath who had several brothers who were also giants. No sooner had these two wars been won a third war was forced upon David at Gath, where the son of a giant who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot. David had destroyed Goliath, but he had many more giants to defeat before he could claim full victory over the Philistines.
Sometimes we face some pretty big giants of our own. Some of you have faced great giants of physical distress in your family, and just when you thought the war had been won, along comes another giant attacking your body. Some of you have fought the giants of addictions perhaps to drugs, alcohol or tobacco and you finally have won the victory over those terrible giants only to discover that there’s another giant attacking your finances and causing you much trouble. Perhaps you’ve faced both of those giants and God has helped you to overcome them, but then along comes another giants where your relationships between spouses or with your children are strained almost to the breaking point. This is another attack of your own personal “Philistines” and another war to win. Sometimes the war just seems to never end and you begin to wonder how long this can go on. Let me tell you that this too shall pass. You won’t go down in defeat if you just keep holding on to God. Somehow it will all work out to your good in the end if you can just trust the Lord and walk in faith.
The thing that I feel the Holy Spirit is bringing to us is not a condemnation for what’s happening in our lives as we go through the battles. The wars will cease and the battles will be won, and by God’s grace we will go on to serve him. God cannot fail and we are already promised the victory, so the point of this message isn’t about the battle – it’s about what happens after the victory comes.
David had won the wars and the fighting finally ceased. Now came his time to bask in the limelight of success and enjoy his hard-won victories against some very powerful enemies. In accomplishing his victories David’s armies had accomplished some great things. They had overcome 1000 chariots (tanks of their day), during the long campaign, along with 7000 charioteers; 20,000 infantry soldiers were captured and 22,000 killed.
After defeating such power attacks and overcoming his enemies against great odds, David finally had a time of rest to stop and think of what had transpired. What a great job he had done in leading Israel.
One thing that we must always remember is that after every great victory comes the time of great temptation to allow pride to enter into our hearts. When you overcome your troubles and finally have joy in victory, be careful to remember that it is God that brought you through. David lost sight of this for a moment and in that moment, Satan brought him a great temptation that was to become his worst battle of all, his battle with his own pride. It was a battle that David lost.
Those enemies that attack us from without are far easier to defeat than those who attack from within.
Satan rose up against David and brought the thought into David’s heart that it was his powerful army that had brought the victory. David, for a while, forgot that God had led his armies and that God had given him the victory. David’s pride began to take over and he wanted to know just how powerful his army was.
1 Chronicles 21:1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.
The problem here is that David’s faith became misplaced. Instead of having faith in God, David began to have faith in the arm of the flesh. He began to believe that the size of his army was the reason he had won, and not the help of the Lord.
I think we’ve seen this same thing happen in our nation as well. The people of America think of themselves as a people who can’t be beaten. They depend upon our vast military power and technology; but we have tried to cast God our of our society, forgetting that it was God who brought this nation into existence in the first place. We are following David’s footsteps and we are destined to experience the same correction that David did if we don’t place our faith in God. I can only hope that our nation’s leaders make the right choices but it sure seems impossible that such a thing will happen.
I’ve also seen this same course of events in the lives of individuals. How often do people cry out to God in their need, knowing that there is no hope outside of God, and yet when the crisis passes and times get better, they don’t want God anymore and they think they can handle things on their own? Somehow Satan pushes them into believing that God didn’t do anything and that they did it all by themselves.
David had faithful men about him who tried to stop him from going into sin, but he wouldn’t listen. His heart was set on the wrong course of action.
1 Chronicles 21:3 And Joab answered, The LORD make his people an hundred times so many more as they be: but, my lord the king, are they not all my lord's servants? why then doth my lord require this thing? why will he be a cause of trespass to Israel?
The problem with counting the people was that David wanted to know how big his army was so that he could depend upon that strength rather than trusting in the Lord to fight his battles, no matter how small his army was. This abandonment of faith and taking hold of the flesh was going to be a great source of trouble for David, and it will be for us too if we follow that path.
David’s army was big and powerful. He had 1,570,000 men that would answer the call to battle. David felt that no one could defeat him now. What he didn’t realize that all of the king’s horses and all the king’s men couldn’t keep him from self-destruction through disobeying God and that no army could stand against the power of God to bring them defeat if they were in rebellion against God’s Law.
1 Chronicles 21:7 And God was displeased with this thing; therefore he smote Israel.
God’s method of getting our attention is that he often brings judgment against the very thing that we place our faith in because those things have become our idols. God’s judgments against Israel brought David to a place of repentance, but there was a price to pay for David’s disobedience.
Sin will not, and cannot go unpunished, and though we may repent and cry bitter tears, we often have to suffer the consequences of failing God. But thank God, that’s not the end of the story.
In verses 9 and 10 we see the Lord beginning to speak to David through the prophet, Gad. The word that came to David was not good. It didn’t bring shouts of joy or a peace to David’s heart. These were words of conviction and of judgment for sin that would be the price of David’s willful sin against God.
Here are the choices that God gave to David, and none of them were good. Have you ever felt like there was no way out of your situation? Have you ever wondered, “God, which path do I take now? They all seem to lead in the wrong direction. I want forgiveness and deliverance, but all I see is more trouble.” If you have been walking in disobedience perhaps this is God’s way of telling you that there are consequences to pay. No matter what choice we make it seems bad, but that’s when we have to trust God the most, because He has promised to bring us through if we will obey Him.
David was suddenly faced with a decision. Let’s liken this to the TV game show called “Let’s Make a Deal”. Here’s the prophet standing there saying, “Which will it be, David; door #1, #2 or #3. Behind door number one we have Three wonderful years of terrible famine, but don’t worry David, you’re the king and the king will always eat even if the rest of the people die of starvation. Behind door number two we have a wonderful vacation where you will survive as a king on the move, enjoying the sights and wonder of the Land of Israel for three months of paid vacation while other men you’re your enemies and die to keep you safe from harm. And finally, behind door number three we have three magnificent days of pestilence in the land as an angel God roams throughout Israel bringing death and destruction wherever he goes under God’s command, and David, that pestilence won’t miss you. You’ll have the opportunity of a lifetime to face the angel of death and destruction right in your own palace. Which door do you choose? Which one would you have chosen?
Here’s where we see the difference between a man who is living in self-pride and a man whose heart is truly after God.
David’s thoughts suddenly turned back to trusting in God. Though the price would be hard to bear, he knew that his best chance for victory could only be found in God. David realized that though God’s judgment would come; it would be tempered by God’s love, mercy and grace. He would find no mercy and love in the judgments of man, or in the course of nature, for it is all opposed to God. David chose to put his future in God’s hands. It’s the only real choice that any of us have? Where else can we find any hope? There is no hope outside of serving God, even in the bad times!
David confessed that it was his sin, and not that of the people of Israel, that brought these judgments. Though the price would be heavy, his only hope was in God. If only he hadn’t forgot that in the first place. If only he hadn’t allowed his pride to enter the picture. If only he had remembered that it was God alone that gave the victory. But he had forgotten and now there was the price of sin to be paid.
Pestilence came as God had said and 70,000 men died. David had placed his faith in his army and now the angel was destroying that army. The angel then entered the city of Jerusalem and began his destruction there. God’s judgment fell upon David’s idol and the guilt of it all fell upon David’s shoulders.
But God’s love for Israel and for David tempered his judgment and God commanded the angel to stop at the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.
1 Chronicles 21:16 And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the angel of the LORD stand between the earth and the heaven, having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders of Israel, who were clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces.
David’s eyes were opened and he saw into the spiritual realm, seeing the terrible judgment of God just waiting for the signal to go. That’s when he fell down in repentance.
I believe that God opens our spiritual eyes to see what’s coming if we continue in sin. Not one Christian has ever went off into sin without the Holy Spirit trying to turn him around and reveal the price of that sin in advance. The Holy Ghost is very leading us back to Christ; back to a life of righteousness and holiness. But the choice remains ours to make.
The thing we need to see here is that God honored David’s repentant heart. That’s all God is looking for; a man or woman who will humble their hearts before God in repentance and ask for forgiveness. It gives God no pleasure to bring judgments. He wants to love and provide for us all, if we will just let Him!
At the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite God told David to set up an altar to sacrifice unto the Lord. He bought that piece of property, built the ark and that spot in Jerusalem became the very ground on which the Temple would be built under the reign of King Solomon.
God’s judgment was stayed and the angel ceased his destruction. David sacrificed unto the Lord, getting his heart right with God once again.
As we come to the end of this message, let me say that first of all that we must beware of pride entering into our hearts. Secondly, we must keep our trust in God and not in our own ability. Thirdly, we must not allow anything of this world to become our idol, or we will surely bring God’s judgment upon that idol. And finally, let us always remember, that when the time comes that we have failed God, then put your trust in God anyway. Even if the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin, we still have only one hope – and that hope is found Jesus Christ alone. Where could any of us go for hope but to the Lord?
To be a man or woman after God’s own heart is our goal, and to be that kind of man or woman means that we will always look to Jesus, praying for his forgiveness, seeking his mercy in our times of need. And even in our times of great victory and success, we still trust in the Lord. It’s all about God! Ever trust in Him and he will bring you the victory.
