Read 1 Chron. 21
Satan is mad. He "stands up". I guess he couldn't take losing all those battles so he is going to try a new strategy. He couldn't defeat David on the battlefield because David is a good warrior, so he tries a new area: pride. He provoked or seduced David into wanting to number the people. Then David could know how powerful his kingdom really was. Joab tried to talk him out of it because he knew it was wrong. God had said that his people would be as the sand of the sea, without number. David numbers them anyway and finds out he has over one million people. God saw what David did and sent Gad to remind him who was really in charge. He gave David his choice of punishment: 3 years famine, 3 months of losing on the battlefield, 3 days of plague on the land by the angel of the Lord. David chose the latter; he would rather fall into the hands of God because God is merciful and man is not. He was right. The angle came and killed 70,000 men and was making his way to Jerusalem to destroy it when God stopped him at the threshing floor of Ornan. David saw the angel standing between heaven and earth with his sword drawn over Jerusalem and fell on his face and repented. True repentance is when you see your sin, take responsibility for it, and offer retribution. David did all three and the plagued stopped. God told him to offer a sacrifice right there on the threshing floor. Ornan and his 4 sons had been threshing the wheat and also saw the angel and hid. They were doing in the natural what God was doing in the spiritual - separating the good from the bad. David learns from the prophet Gad what God was requiring from him which was a sacrifice right there. David goes to Ornan and tries to buy the land to do the sacrifice and Ornan offers to give him the land and the sacrifice. This was a test to see if David was really repentant. David passed because he refused to offer to God anything that didn't cost him something. David bought the land from Ornan and offered burnt and peace offerings. Burnt offerings are always sin offerings - something that needs to be consumed; they have to do with repentance. Peace offerings are to restore relationship with God. David offered both and God spoke his approval with fire.
Notice both Satan and the Angel of the Lord stood up. When the devil stands up, God stands up. They both stood up to bring destruction. The devil's destruction is always for bad, but the Lord's destruction is always for good. I know this, in the end there will only be one left standing and that is God.
Lord, we repent of any disobedience in our lives. Show us what pleases you and is the best sacrifice to you. Give us clean hands and a pure heart.
No comments:
Post a Comment