#DailyDevotion Do You Appear Before The Lord And His Messengers With Nothing?

August 9th
Read 1 Sam 25:1–22
1Sa 25:12-19 ESV So David’s young men turned away and came back and told him all this. (13) And David said to his men, “Every man strap on his sword!” And every man of them strapped on his sword. David also strapped on his sword. And about four hundred men went up after David, while two hundred remained with the baggage. (14) But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal’s wife, “Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to greet our master, and he railed at them. (15) Yet the men were very good to us, and we suffered no harm, and we did not miss anything when we were in the fields, as long as we went with them. (16) They were a wall to us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep. (17) Now therefore know this and consider what you should do, for harm is determined against our master and against all his house, and he is such a worthless man that one cannot speak to him.” (18) Then Abigail made haste and took two hundred loaves and two skins of wine and five sheep already prepared and five seahs of parched grain and a hundred clusters of raisins and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on donkeys. (19) And she said to her young men, “Go on before me; behold, I come after you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal.

This is one of those times when a pastor looks at a passage from Scripture and goes, “What am I going to do with that?” It doesn’t look as if David is being particularly merciful and kind or loving. One might even think he’s being a little bratty although I guess one could say he is simply expecting his due. He and his men did provide some protection for this man’s servants and property. Abigail upon hearing the news of David’s plan seems to have a little more sense in that she prepares some sort of offering to send to David to assuage his anger.

Now if we recognize David as a type or prophesy of Jesus then maybe we can learn something from this. The Lord spoke, Exo 23:15 … “None shall appear before me empty-handed.” And again, Deu 16:16 ESV “Three times a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God at the place that he will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Booths. They shall not appear before the LORD empty-handed.”

David had protected this man’s property and the man acts as if David had done nothing for him or that he knows him. His attitude is unbelief and ungratefulness. Our Lord Jesus Christ has won for us salvation. He has defeated our foes sin, death and the devil. He has given us the kingdom. He even blesses us with temporal goods. What should our attitude be? How should we react to the commands of Jesus? Do we scoff at him and those he sends ahead of him i.e. pastors and evangelist? Do we act as if he has not done these things for us? Should we appear before him empty handed, not because we don’t have but because we refuse him what we do have as Nabal did David?

We should know then that Jesus is coming. He has sent his messengers ahead of him, namely evangelist and pastors. They have made known to us all the good Jesus has done for us. We should therefore turn to with Jesus with an attitude of faith, trust, thankfulness and gratitude.

Lord Jesus Christ, give us hearts of gratefulness and faith that we may not spurn those who to send to us but respond to them as we should towards you with trust and thanksgiving. Amen.