Pray:
Lord, my praise rises to You, from whom all blessings come. Engage me now with Your Word as I come before You.
Read:
2 Samuel 15:13-26
Meditate
Consider: "The Lord disciplines those he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his child" (Heb. 12:6, TNIV).
Think Further:
God issues reminders when we disobey, for sin before God must arouse his loving discipline. The words "Then a messenger came to David..." (13) echo the day when David first heard about Saul and Jonathan's deaths by messenger. Sadly, this déjà vu reminds David and us that sin has its consequences.
David submitted to the rod of God. Betrayed and tracked like an animal by his son Absalom, David refused to put up a fight. Imagine watching the champion warrior and great king departing his capital, Jerusalem, as he trudged along with a small retinue of loyal subjects out the city gates. When some of David's loyal men asked if they should bring the Ark of the Covenant, David told them to leave it, for God might permit them to return in the future. God's special tabernacle presence belonged in Jerusalem, and David was not about to defile it by taking it with him into exile. In these appalling circumstances, David responded to mistreatment in a simple and example-worthy manner. David submitted to the Lord's chastening hand. David said, "Let him do to me as seems good to him" (26). God's rod of discipline can be painful. No one knew this better than David. But, at this difficult time in his life, David shows us how to accept God's chastisement in our lives. David peaceably submitted to God's hand. In submission, David found peace.
God's discipline tends to be an unpopular topic. Some people might like to deny that God would discipline them. He tells us clearly that he will (cf. Heb. 12:7-13). But we need not live in fear of God's discipline if we obey him. And we should remind ourselves that God disciplines in love.
Apply:
Is God chastening you? Submit to his mighty and loving hand and enjoy his forgiveness.
Pray:
Chastening and loving Father, help me understand Your discipline better so that I might walk in obedience with You and find Your perfect peace.
