Open—C. Hendricks, D. Imbeau
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So I want to start right away. Matthew 18 Lord has laid this upon my heart.
Matthew 18.
At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the Kingdom of heaven.
Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the Kingdom of heaven, and whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea Woe unto the world because of offences, for it must needs be that offenses come.
But woe to that man by whom the offence cometh. Wherefore, if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off and cast them from thee. It is better for thee to enter into life halter maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire.
And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out and cast it from thee. It is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into Hellfire. Take heed that you despise not one of these little ones. For I say unto you that in heaven they're angels. Do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven. For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.
Helsinki, if a man have 100 sheep, and one of them be gone astray, does he not leave the 90 and 9 And goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which has gone astray? And if so be that he find it. Verily I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep than of the 90 and 9 which went not astray. Even so, it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.
Moreover, if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone, if he shall hear thee, Thou hast gained thy brother. But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established, And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church. But if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee is an heathen man and republican.
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Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say unto you, that if two of you shall agree on earth is touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how OFT shall my brother sin against me?
And I forgive him till seven times. Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee until seven times.
But until 70 * 7?
Therefore is the Kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants. And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him 10,000 talents. But for as much as he had not to pay, his Lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife and children, and all that he had in payment to be made. The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. Then the Lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.
But the same servant went out and found one of his fellow servants, which owed him 100 pence. And he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest.
And his fellow servant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Hath patience with me, and I will pay thee all? And he would not but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt. So when his fellow servants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their Lord all that was done. Then his Lord, after he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desirest me, shouldst not thou also have had compassion?
And my fellow servant, even as I had pity on thee, and his Lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors.
Till he should pay all that was due unto him, so likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you.
If ye from your hearts, forgive not everyone his brother.
Their trespasses.
In reflecting on this recently, I.
I thought that this chapter ought to have the word grace written over it.
The teaching of grace to us.
We speak of it so often we seem to know so little about it.
We are the products, the recipients of Grace.
Fullness of grace.
They come to him who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven, His disciples.
Thoughts of greatness, thoughts of being someone or something prominent looked up to, recognized these are all the natural, the natural things that man aspires after.
Fame, power, riches, pleasure. Those are the four things that animate, keeps the world turning, so to speak.
Fame, riches, power, and pleasure. Solomon had it all. He had all those four, and his book of Ecclesiastes says that it was all vanity and vexation of spirit.
And yet man continues to aspire after it, something that can never satisfy, never fulfill the desires and longings of the human heart.
Only Christ can do that. Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven? The very question betrays the condition of soul of the one who asks it.
It's as much as saying I want to be great. Teach me how to be great.
And so the Lord teaches the disciples.
Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them. Now he doesn't answer that question directly. Immediately he answers what had to precede the answer to that question, how to get in to the Kingdom of heaven, he said. Verily, I stand to you, except ye be converted, and become as little children, you shall not enter into the Kingdom of heaven.
Become as one that knows nothing is nothing, is esteemed as nothing. One who's not accomplished anything in this world yet hasn't made his marks here yet. Just a little chat.
That's what one needs to enter the Kingdom of heaven. He has to take the very lowest place, the place of knowing nothing.
And of being nothing, Little child hasn't accomplished anything. He is not known for his exploits or his accomplishments. That's how you get in. And then he answers the question. Wherefore whosoever shall humble himself as this little child, the same as greatest in the Kingdom of heaven. Now that's not the answer. They were looking. They were looking for. They were looking for the Lord to tell them some.
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Great thing that they could do to be great in the Kingdom of heaven. So he uses the little child as an example. 1St to get into it we have to become like one and then to be great in it we have to take the low place. Now the only the only principle in scripture that teaches us that is grace. Grace makes nothing of us, nothing of us. And that's why man doesn't like grace. It makes everything of God, everything of God.
The law principle makes something of man, something for man to do this do, and thou shalt live, And man likes that principle. He likes to show what he can do.
I was noticing that quote up there. Whatever you set your mind to, you will be able to accomplish that self accomplishment. That's the principle of this world.
It's not the principle of God.
Humble yourself as this little child, same as greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
So that's the beginning of this chapter on grace.
We have to become as a little child, become as nothing, and then once we're in that position of the Kingdom, to take the low place in it.
You remember how James and John mothers Ebony's children went to the Lord and asked that her two sons would sit, one on the right hand, one on the left, in the Kingdom. She aspired something for them, Put position of greatness, a position of recognition.
We can manifest that spirit in our own souls when that's what we want for our children. We want them a place of greatness in this world.
Sometimes our questions betray our state.
What we're looking at.
And whoso verse five shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.
To receive one that is of no account as far as the world is concerned is to receive Christ.
That was their estimate of him. And they despised him and rejected him and cast him out. We will not have this man to reign over us, so to receive a little child, one that has not made his mark in this world and achieved anything. To receive him in his name, to receive him.
Because one belongs to him.
You can learn a lot of lessons, can't we, from children, little children?
And then the sixth verse, very solemn verse, but whoso shall offend cause to stumble.
One of these little ones which believe in me.
It were better for him than a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he would drown in the depth of the sea.
Woe unto the world because of offenses we expect that from the world we don't expect.
To be stumbled by our brethren.
How many of us have stumbled? Some little one.
That isn't as far along as you are that we are and.
Stumbled them, turned them out of the way. Maybe by what we've said. Maybe by how we've lived, whatever it might be.
Stumbled on very serious thing. You expect it from the world, he says. Woe unto the world because of the fences, causes of stumbling where it must needs be, that offense has come, but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh. I think of the school teacher that said to the parent of a Christian child, and the teacher said to the parent, I'll do everything I can to destroy faith in your child.
Parent wisely pulled the child out of that class, not to subject him to that kind of thing. Yes, that's the that's the intended purpose of the world is to turn them, the little ones that have been entrusted to us, to turn them away from the path of righteousness.
For his namesake, They do it because they hate Christ.
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Well, it must needs be that offenses come, but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh.
Wherefore, if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, what you are doing, how you are walking, if that's causing?
Offense. If that's causing others to stumble, cut them off. Cast them from thee. It were better for thee to enter into life, halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire.
And if thine eye offend thee, what you read, what you look at, the pictures that you set before your eyes, and other things that the eye can take in.
Your thin eye causes others to stumble. Pluck it out, cast it from the IT were better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into Hellfire.
And then he issues a warning again. Take heed that you despise not one of these little ones. So easy to despise one. That's.
Poor.
Not rich in this world. The acquisition of riches make people to bow to you and to give you adulation and places prominence. Sit here. Do the poor sit down here.
You're guilty of evil thoughts being judges, and they're not realizing that the highest of all took the lowest place, came to the lowest place.
See that you take heed that you despise not one of these little ones.
I say unto you, that in heaven.
Their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.
In heaven, they have a representative there, one that represents them. They're not of no account to God. They might be to me or to you, maybe because of the color of their skin.
I remember asking a sister once.
Would you rather have?
Your daughter Mary A.
A black saved man or a white unsaved man?
Without flinching, she said. A white, unsaved man.
Then I change the question. I said, would you rather live next to a black saved family or a white unsaved family? And she said a black saved family.
When it came to her daughter marrying 1.
Claims of nature was too strong for her.
We can despise.
Those that are not up to us.
Up to our place in society.
Color of our skin, or the language we speak, or the education we've had, or whatever it might be.
We can despise them. Take heed that you despise that one of these little ones that he's talking about children. But that's very an example to us. There are, there are a picture to us of those that are of little account in the eyes of this world, but they have the representative in heaven, and they're not of no account to the Father.
And then he says for the son of man has come to save that which is lost. Doesn't say seek here as it does in Luke because here it's referring as specifically right in this passage to a little child and he's come to save them. I think this is 1 scripture that we can use to show that when a little child dies before they reach the age of accountability, they'll go to heaven go to be with the Lord he died to save such.
How Thank you. This is a very searching verse.
If a man have 100 sheep and one of them be gone astray now he's not talking about the sheep that is lost. Luke 15 talks about the sheep which is lost and he says there's joy in heaven. Having retrieved that lost sheep and brought him back, he says a joy in heaven over 1 Sinner that repented more than over 99. Just persons that need no repentance. There in Luke 15 it's a picture of a lost Sinner, but here it's a picture of a straying St.
Not a lost Sinner. A straying St. gets away, gets away from the flock for whatever reason.
Will they ever find their way back? Sheep don't find their way back. That's not the characteristic of sheep. They're dumb, stupid creatures, and they need they need a shepherd to guide them. A real shepherd.
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I heard a brother say the sheep don't know how to be shepherded. What an awful statement.
Does the shepherd know how to shepherd?
The steep. The sheep. That's the real steep.
Read Jeremiah 23 When you get home. Read Ezekiel 34. See what Jehovah God says about the shepherds of Israel.
Fed yourselves and not the flock, you haven't bound up the wounded, you haven't sought them.
You've left them out there in the cold, dark night.
Perish.
Where is grace?
How much do we know about grace?
The man having 100 sheep, verse 12 and one of them may gone astray, doth he not leave the 90 and 9 and goeth into the mountains in Luke. 15 He goes into the desert to find the lost sheep that was lost, that was a Sinner.
But here it's a strange sheep. He goes into the mountains a St. and seeketh that which has gone astray.
We've developed a doctrine that when one is out of fellowship, no one should ever seek them. No one should ever visit them.
I don't agree with that at all.
They won't find their way back. They need to be sought. I don't mean for fellowship. I don't mean to make them feel everything is all right, but to be like the doctor that comes in and stands at the outside of the room and says how you feeling today? Well, no, no, that's good. We're maybe OK And Doctor goes up and puts his hand on their forehead.
You've got a fever. Still, I think that's what we need to do. Sometimes we have to go and visit.
Those that are away find out that they still have a fever.
There's something still wrong. Do they need a shepherd's care? Shepherd's love?
If God dealt with me, as some of us deal with others, where would I be?
If so be that he finded, he, I say unto you, he rejoiceth more of that sheep than of the 99 which went not astray. There isn't anything I don't. I think it rejoices my heart every bit as much to find out that someone who has been away from the Lord has been restored to me, that rejoices me just as much as to learn that soul's been saved.
It's hard to compare those two because they're both matters of rejoicing.
A straying sheep needs a true shepherd.
That will seek the sheep and go after it, bring it home.
Verse 14 Even so, it is not the will of your Father, which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish. If there's not a shepherd to go out after them, they're going to perish there. They'll perish outside. We've we've been told, and it's true, that from the parable of the Good Samaritan who brings the the one that was wounded half dead by the side of the road to the to the end, The end is a picture of the assembly where the person can be cared for, nurtured said.
And loved.
And it's not the world that's the assembly, That's the sheltered place from the world. And to leave these strange sheep out there.
Unsought.
It's something that we shepherds if I don't consider myself much of A shepherd but.
Those of you who are shepherds will have to answer for.
It is not the will of your Father, which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.
Now verse 15, we don't usually quote the whole passage, we quote what we like of it.
Let's quote the whole passage. Moreover, if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone, if he shall hear thee. Thou hast gained thy brother. That shows the overture of grace. The previous portion was the shepherd going out after the strained sheep. Here you have the one offended against going out after the offender and seeking to gain them.
That's Grace telling him his fault. Brother, this is what you said. It embarrassed me terribly. It was a cruel, it was an unkind statement. And he said I'm sorry, I didn't mean it that way. Please forgive me that it's ended.
That never has to go to anyone else, just stops right there. That's beautiful if that's the way it works. But sometimes that's not enough. But if he will not hear the take with the one or two more that in the mouth of two or three witnesses, every word may be established.
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Still the overture of grace, still trying to win them, still taking the very the least thing maybe they may have said or or done as.
A little ray of hope that they might be restored.
Person might be restored.
The restoration, we've been told hundreds of times. I've heard it, You've heard it. Discipline is never to get rid of someone, but to restore them.
I know of too many cases, too many cases of those that are out.
And they've been out for years.
They'd never been sought.
Come to a meeting. Where's brother so and so? Well, he's out of fellowship.
Has he ever been visited?
No.
Never been visited where the shepherds.
I don't mean to commend his wrong path. I don't mean that at all.
I'm not in favor of those that ignore the discipline. If it was necessary, sympathize with the failing one as though it wasn't was of no account, but do not seek the restoration of that soul.
That's the duty of a shepherd, isn't it? That's the way he's dealt with me and you.
Praise his name.
Thou must gain thy brother. How wonderful.
And if that fails, one or two more are taken. If that fails, verse 17, if he shall neglect to hear them all these overtures of grace, seeking to win his heart and to draw him back, and so that there's the the opportunity of extending forgiveness to that person.
If he shall neglect to hear them tell it to the church, that's the local assembly where these brothers are or sisters.
Where they go, if you neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee is an heathen man, and the public and.
The Church is the final Court of Appeal here.
But it's the last resort, not the first.
And it's when all else all the entreaties of grace have failed, then the assembly may have to deal with the matter.
We've been also told that when someone has to be put away from the table or from amongst us, it says in 2nd Corinthians 5, First Corinthians 5, put away from among yourselves that wicked person. It's because there's been failure all along the way. Prior to that. That is the real discipline that should have been carried out by brotherly visits or sisterly visits. Seeing one is deviating from the past. Seeing when someone is, there's something wrong in their life, they're not happy. They're missing meetings. They're doing this or that to visit them and to seek to win them. I know there were some brothers that are real, true shepherds.
Very valuable, Very valuable to have a true shepherd.
Well, this says if he doesn't hear the church.
Let him be unto these in heathen man and republican.
Now notice verse 18. We usually quote just the first part of it. Barely, I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven.
I said that to one brother, he quoted that verse to me, and I said, read the rest of the verse, and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
I gather from this verse that for every binding there ought to be a losing.
But sad to say, that's not the way it is.
There's many have been bound and they're out. They're unsought.
Where is the losing?
The seeking.
The lost sheep, the straying sheep, I should say.
Again I say unto you that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything, that they shall ask there's prayer. There's a united, harmonious prayer on behalf of the one that is out.
Are under discipline.
It says it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.
Sitting back, waiting for so and so to return when they're at home weeping.
Visited a brother recently.
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That has been out for a long time.
He was broken.
He was really broken. No one saw her.
No one cared. That's the that's the impression we give.
When we don't?
Now this promise is a wonderful promise. If two of you shall agree on earth is touching anything that they shall ask, there's nothing more precious to ask for than the restoration of an erring soul.
Shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. Your Father does not want any to perish. They continually behold the face of my Father which is in heaven, those that are in that kind of a condition, whether the little children are young ones in the assembly or whatever.
There's the activity of grace, which is so lacking.
In my life, maybe in yours.
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there are mine in the midst of them.
We boast that verse so often when when it really condemns us.
He's there, The God of all grace is there.
The one that came to seek and to save that which was lost.
The true shepherd of the sheep. He's there, we're gathered to his name.
He wants to see in us a ready response to what he is, who he is.
Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times he thought seven would be.
A long time.
Jesus said unto him, I say down unto thee, until seven times. But until 70 * 7, there's no limit to grace. There's no limit to grace. That's what he's teaching us.
No limit.
To reach out.
The real problem is I think I'm a little bit better than so and so.
And it's beneath my dignity to do this. No, I don't have any dignity.
Just another lost Sinner saved by matchless grace.
Then the last part of the chapter.
Verse 23 Therefore is the Kingdom of heaven like and unto a certain king, where we know the account. I won't read it again.
The one that was forgiven 10,000 talents. That's you and me. We've been forgiven 10,000 talents more than we could ever pay, and he frankly forgave them.
And then one comes to him, owing him a paltry amount and he wouldn't forgive.
He wouldn't forgive.
We say we're saved by grace.
We say we're standing in grace.
Justified by grace.
We know the God of all grace.
We know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, who though he was rich, yet for our sakes He became poor, that we through his poverty might be rich. We know this and we won't extend forgiveness grace.
To another.
That has offended against us in such a trivial way in comparison with the way we've offended against God.
What does that make us? Verse 32 Then his Lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, that's what it makes us, a wicked servant. I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desirest me. Shouldst not thou also have had compassion on my fellow servant, even as I had pity on thee? And his Lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.
Dispensationally, that's a picture of Israel the Jew not wanting any grace to go to the Gentile.
It might be a picture of us.
Of Maine.
Of you.
That's serious. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if he from your hearts.
Forgive not everyone, his brother, their trespasses.
If you harbor bitterness and unforgiving spirit, if I harbor that.
No matter how much evil that person has done to you or to me.
We put ourselves in the position of a wicked servant.
I who have been forgiven 10,000 talents. I can't forgive this insignificant amount.
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How is it with us?
To really understand Grace.
Do we understand that to get into the Kingdom we have to become as little children, and then, once there, to humble ourselves as a little child, to take the place of nothingness? Not to stumble another not to offend them, not to turn them aside, not to despise them because they're of no account?
To seek them when they've gone astray.
Seek them as a true shepherd if you get offended against to go to the offender and to seek to gain them.
In grace.
There are recourses there the Lord has given in this chapter.
The authority to the assembly to deal with evil when it comes up. Otherwise the assembly would be just a hotbed of evil, unjudged.
But to emphasize that and miss the whole intent of the chapter, he's missed the point.
May God help us the walk in grace.
By what our brother brought before us to refer to a portion that's been on my heart, but I just wondered about bringing it before.
An assemblage like this, and it's a well known portion in First Peter Chapter 2.
And it's the portion that begins.
About walking in the steps of our Savior. So first Peter chapter 2. I'll start reading in verse 20 to get a little sense of the portion.
For what glory is it, if when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? But if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. For even hereunto were ye called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that ye should follow his steps. Hoodoo did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth, who, when he was reviled, reviled not again.
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When he suffered, he threatened not, but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously, who his own self bear our sins, and his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness. By whose stripes ye were healed, for ye were as sheep going astray, but are now returned unto the shepherd and Bishop of your souls.
Well, there's a great deal in this portion, and I don't know that I feel at least that equal to even begin, but the part that really has been on my heart was verse 23 Speaking of our Lord Jesus.
When He was reviled, reviled not again. When He suffered, He threatened not, but committed himself to him, the Judgeth, righteously. I feel that this verse would save us much sorrow as we go along, as a company of those who seek to walk in the light of the truth, as believers, walking with one another, walking before the Lord, members of the one body of our Savior.
We wonderfully are all individuals. We all have distinctive personalities. We all have feelings. We feel sometimes things that are said to us, and no doubt we say things that later, if we really understood how it was heard or received, we would regret saying such things. Scripture makes that plain. We all at some point offend and we have to be patient with one another and understand that. And so here is a more.
A striking case when he was reviled, reviled not again. Well, we know something of the Lord Jesus path. But he was a wonderful human being, fully God, but fully man. He was a man of dependence, a man of prayer. He ever sought the Father's will as he went through this scene.
And of course he had divine power. He could have called upon 12 legions of angels when he was to be crucified, but he was obedient, obedient to death. So it's struck me, and some of the things that have happened amongst the Saints in recent years, that if those who would feel that they're being charged improperly with some bit of conduct or matter of discipline in the assembly.
If they would only follow this verse to leave it with the Lord.
Just think of that. The Lord has all power. He can work through the hearts of the Saints. He can work through the hearts of those in an assembly where there may be a difficulty.
It's a path of faith.
To commit to him that judgeth righteously.
And I think this would save us so much sorrow. We talk about pride, we talk about self will.
You know, a human being is a fearful thing. I say that in this sense that if a person makes up their mind, you know, it's almost as if they're stone. The personality is so strong. That became apparent to me many years ago in the Maritimes. We went to visit a sister who had been a school teacher.
She was a very petite woman, but now she was bedridden, quite an age. But in speaking to her, and I think I wasn't sure because I didn't see her standing, but I think she was a short woman. But you could feel the force, the strength of her personality. And I could picture her as a teacher, you know, a short teacher with some 6 foot farm boy right there. And she would say sit down and he'd quake in his shoes and sit down because he had that power of personality.
And we all know that because if we go to a funeral and see the remains of someone in the casket, there's no power there. But there's power there as long as that person is alive. So each one of us have that. And as we deal with one another, there may be things of where there's a difference of opinion.
Feel felt strongly, oftentimes referring to Scripture about. I feel that strongly. This is what scripture is teaching.
But isn't it wonderful that we can commit it to him that judgeth righteously? Well, this portion which is spoken to my heart through the years, really came very clearly before me recently in the case of David and if we turn back to Second Samuel.
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In Chapter 16, we come to the portion well known to us, but we'll read it where Absalom was.
Seeking to take over the Kingdom from his father and David had a flea.
From Jerusalem. And as he did, Chimei went along and threw rocks and dirt at this entourage of those who were faithful to David and going with him away from Jerusalem. And we'll read that verse.
Verse 5.
Of.
Second Samuel 16 And when King David came to Bashuram, behold thence came out a man of the family of the House of Saul.
Whose name was Shimmy? I, the son of Gira? He came forth and cursed still as he came, And he cast stones at David, and that all the servants of King David, and all the people, and all the mighty men that were on his right hand and on his left. And thus said Shimei, when he cursed, Come out, come out, thou bloody man, And thou man of Belial the Lord, hath returned upon thee all the blood of the House of Saul.
In whose stead thou hast reigned, And the Lord hath delivered the Kingdom into the hand of Absalom thy son. And behold, thou art taken in thy mischief, because thou art a bloody man. Well, I was a pretty strong words, aren't they? David was surrounded by his mighty men, even as he left, and here he was being reviled, just as we read in Peter, And David as a king had great power.
But what did he do? I think it's a wonderful example for us.
So verse 9 then said Abishai the son of Zeruaya unto the king, Why should this dead dog curse my Lord the king? Let me go over, I pray thee, and take off his head.
Now that's how the flesh would react, wouldn't it?
That's purely resentment, and David could have had a lot of things to say in self Justification.
But what did he say? And I think there's quite a lesson for us in it, the king said.
What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zerawaia? So let them curse, because the Lord hath said unto him, cursed David, Who shall then say, Wherefore hast thou done so? And David said to Obiti, and unto all his servants, Behold, my son, which came forth of my bowels seeketh my life. How much more? Now may this benjamite do it? Let him alone, and let him curse.
For the Lord hath bitten him. It may be that the Lord will look on mine affliction, and that the Lord will requite me good for his cursing this day. And as David and his men went by the way shimmy, I went along on the hillside over against him, and cursed as he went, and threw stones at him, and did cast dust. Well, I just used that as an example of leaving it with him when we're reviled.
That we revile not again that we leave it with the Lord. And David rightly rightfully recognized that Jimmy, I wouldn't have done that unless the Lord allowed it. And think of the verses we know. If God before us, who can be against us.
I remember learning from Brother Gordon Hayhoe, known to most of us here some years ago, something that always stayed with me and I I remember hearing it at one of the fall meetings up at Otter Lake for the married men and what he said, and I'm sure many have heard it, but I think it bears repeating.
He said if you're ever accused by one of your brethren about something in which you know they're wrong, they're making false accusation or an inaccurate one, your natural reaction would be to say just a minute, let me straighten you out so you understand, or so on, he said. That should not be your first reaction. Your first reaction should be to raise with yourself the question Why has the Lord allowed this?
What is the Lord bringing before me? Even if it's a false accusation, don't we see that here with shimmy eye? David recognized that a lot of what he said was true, that David was a bloody man. David also recognized that the Lord had stirred Jimmy Eye to do that. But David also recognized that the Lord could requite David in his own time. So I go back to the verse that we read in Peter to walk in his steps when he was reviled. He reviled Not again.
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I don't think that we have to do that. What we need is a tender conscience, short accounts with the Lord that if there is something in our lives, we ask the Lords help to judge it, that we might walk for him and not seek to enter into controversy with our brethren. The Lord Jesus is our advocate. Do we need more? Can't we leave it with Him? Scripture tells us do the things that make for peace, seek to edify one another.
Not to look for things of contention. God has given us, I think a wonderful example. It's just that we happened in our home reading to be reading about David and then putting that together with that verse just struck me as David as a type of the Lord Jesus showing such a wonderful example. And we know other things about David. When he could have slain Saul, who unjustly was pursuing him in the wilderness, he was living in caves. Why the Lord allowed him to come out with.
Saul sleeping at his feet. But what was his reaction? He would not.
Take action against the Lord's anointed. Well, that's the equivalent of the Lord allowing it. And what happened with David? He did become king. He didn't have to take things into his own hands. So let us be that way. If we're reviled, let us not revile again, but leave it with him, but do it righteously.