1 Samuel: Sterling Character
Bethel Baptist Church
Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 29 One unlikely, but effective, strategy David used when running from Saul was to live in a Philistine city. David fled to Gath and lived there, serving the king of Gath, Achish, for 16 months (1 Sam 27:6). He even fought battles for Achish (1 Sam 27:8-12) against the Amalekites. When it came time to fight the Israelites, the Philistine commanders were suspicious of David’s loyalties (1 Sam 29:4,5). David was not allowed to go to battle against Israel, but before sending him back to Gath, Achish defended David in glowing terms...
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1 Chronicles: A Heart of Sacrifice
Bethel Baptist Church
Scripture Reading: 1 Chronicles 21:18-27 Following David’s sin of proudly taking an unnecessary census in Israel (1 Chr 21:1-17), God sent a pestilence on the land in judgment. When David repented of his sin, he desired to offer God a sacrifice of contrition. When King David came to the appointed place, the owner of the land, Ornan, offered to give it to him. But David made a telling declaration . . . “King David said to Ornan, ‘No, but I will buy them for full price. I will not take for the LORD what is yours, nor offer burnt offerings that cost me nothing’”...
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1 Corinthians: Narcissus Eating the Lord's Table
Bethel Baptist Church
Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 11:17-35 Selfishness was rotting the church at Corinth. Like the Greek mythological character Narcissus who loved his own reflection so much that he died while glaring at it, narcissism plagued the Corinthian church. They used Spirit-enabled gifts to feed their own ego rather than build up one another or glorify God. They prided themselves for their tolerance and inclusivity as they gave a permissive 'pass' to a man in their church claiming to be a believer while he was actively engaged in flagrant incest. They even abused the Lord’s Supper as a chance to...
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Make Disciples (Not Just Donations)
Bethel Baptist Church
Scripture Reading: Matthew 28:16-20 How big is your view of God? Then, how does your view of God color or affect your life? Too often, our theology is divorced from our lifestyle. If your theology doesn’t change your life, how much do you really believe it? In one of Jesus’s last discussions with his disciples, Jesus gives one of the clearest statements about himself, claiming all authority in heaven and on earth. He wasn’t just a prophet, nor even an angel. No, Jesus was no less than the divine son of God, and he emphasizes his supreme authority in order to introduce one of his most...
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1 Samuel: Respect for Authority
Bethel Baptist Church
Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 24:1-7 In 1 Samuel 24 (as well as 1 Sam 26) we have an amazing story of mercy and restraint and faith. As he ran for his very life from a murderous King Saul, David encountered two occasions in which he could have taken the life of his jealous pursuer. David’s men even encouraged him to kill Saul, but in a display of faith in God and respect for His established authority, David steadfastly refused. "The LORD forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, the LORD's anointed, to put out my hand against him, seeing he is the LORD's anointed" (1 Sam...
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1 Samuel: God's Invisible Hand
Bethel Baptist Church
Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 23:1-14 We see in this story of David’s flight from Saul an interesting and very significant dynamic. David was doing everything humanly possible to elude King Saul, who was bent on putting an end to David’s life. He hid in the wilderness and in the hills (1 Sam 23:14) . . . he received information from Saul’s son, Jonathan (1 Sam 23:16,17) . . . his men were carefully monitoring Saul’s movements (1 Sam 23:24,25). The human means for David’s safety are clearly displayed in this story. But above these human means there was an...
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1 Samuel: The Essence of Holiness
Bethel Baptist Church
Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 21:1-9 As David ran for his life from Saul’s murderous anger, living in the hills of Judah, he naturally became hungry. By the time David came to Ahimelech, the high priest, he had a few men accompanying him. When David inquired if Ahimelech had any provisions, the answer was that the only bread available at that moment was the sacred bread displayed in the Holy Place in the Tabernacle. This bread, sometimes called the ‘Showbread’ or the ‘Bread of the Presence,’ was arranged in two rows (perhaps in two stacks) of six loaves on a golden...
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David - The Lord Was With Him
Bethel Baptist Church
Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 18:10-16 After David killed Goliath, Saul saw in him the courage and skill that military conquerors are made of. "So David went out wherever Saul sent him, and prospered; and Saul set him over the men of war" (1 Sam 18:5). As we continue to read the story, it becomes clear why David had such great victories. "And David was prospering in all his ways for the LORD was with him" (1 Sam 18:14; cf. 18:12). The root of David’s victories was the hand of God in blessing him. When the Scripture says, "the LORD was with him," it is not just the...
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The Final King
Bethel Baptist Church
Scripture Reading: Luke 1:26-33 In light of the multiplied and complicated problems of our world it is clear that what the world needs is a king … someone to rule in divine wisdom and perfect justice and holy compassion. A king is exactly what God promised to David and through David, in what is usually called the Davidic Covenant. "When your days are fulfilled to walk with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. . . . I will confirm him in my house and in my kingdom forever, and his throne shall be established...
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David - Love and Jealousy
Bethel Baptist Church
Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 18:1-16 There is an interesting and significant study in contrasts in 1 Samuel 18. The contrast is seen in two opposite reactions to David’s successes and the reactions came from a father and his son. One is the reaction of unselfish love and the other is the reaction of consuming jealousy. King Saul’s son was Jonathan. As the son of the king, Jonathan was the heir to the throne of Israel. But a deep and abiding friendship developed between David and Jonathan (1 Sam 18:1-4). In a symbolic show of commitment, Jonathan gave...
info_outlineScripture Reading: 2 Kings 18:1-8
Hezekiah was the 13th king of the southern kingdom of Judah, ruling in the last quarter of the 8th century before Christ (715-686 B.C.). He was the most Godly king since David ruled, nearly 300 years earlier. The description of Hezekiah is glowing. "He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that David his father had done. . . . He trusted in the LORD the God of Israel, so that there was none like him among all the kings of Judah after him, nor among those who were before him" (2 Kgs 18:3.5).
Hezekiah attempted to bring sweeping spiritual reform to the people of Judah (cf. 2 Chr 29-31). He demolished the 'high places' which had been established as local shrines for worship of Baal and other false gods. He opened the temple which had been closed by his father, Ahaz. He gathered the priests and Levites to clean the temple. He reinstated temple worship and the Passover festival.
"He did what was good and right and faithful before the LORD his God. And every work that he undertook in the service of the house of God and in accordance with the law and the commandments, seeking his God, he did with all his heart, and prospered" (2 Chr 31:20,21).
Hezekiah was a born with a sinful nature, like every person, but he is an encouraging example to us that it is possible to serve God faithfully, from the heart. Let us plead for God to grant us such a heart and life.