Wed.’s Devo - Seeing By Faith

Read: 1 Samuel 20:1-21:15; John 9:1-41; Psalm 1143:1-114:8; Proverbs 15:15-17 David fled Saul’s wrath and went to Ramah to find Jonathan. He told him that his father was determined to kill him. He wanted Jonathan to find out why his father wanted him dead. Jonathan couldn’t believe Saul wanted to kill David, so they devised a plan to find out if it was true. *** David wasn’t coming to the new moon festival and Saul would expect him to be there. If he didn’t get mad, they would know he was not wanting to kill David, but if it upset him, they would know he wanted David dead. *** The second day of the festival, Saul asked Jonathan where David was and Jonathan gave him David’s excuse. Saul flew off the handle and cussed Jonathan and told him he knew that he wanted David to be king in his place which would shame his mother and himself. As long as David was alive, he would never be king. He told Jonathan to go get David so he could kill him and the crown would be safely his. *** When Jonathan defended David, Saul threw his spear at him. Then, Jonathan knew his father was set on killing David. He went to their prescribed hiding place and met with David. He told him everything that happened. They hugged and said their tearful good-byes. *** David left and went to Nob to see Ahimelech the priest. He asked for food and a sword. He didn’t tell the priest that he was running from Saul because he didn’t want to endanger him. It ended up costing him his life anyway because Saul was a murderer. Ahimelech descended from Eli in the line of Ithamar. Samuel had prophesied in 1 Samuel 2:30-36 that none of Eli’s descendants would grow to be old. *** Ahimelech gave David and his men the bread of the priest’s and the sword of a king (Goliath’s). Then David escaped to King Achish of Gath. “Achish” means “angry” and he lived up to his name. He was angry that David had come to him for refuge. He had heard of his exploits against his people, the Philistines. David was afraid of the king so he acted like he was insane, drooling and scratching on doors. He threw David out of his presence. Later Ahimelech would welcome David back to fight with him. *** Jesus was still in Jerusalem when he met a man who had been blind from birth. The disciples asked Jesus if the man was blind because his sins or the sins of his parents, but Jesus said neither - it was so that the power of God could be seen in him. Jesus made the statement that the night was coming when no one could work but while he was here in the world he was the light of the world. He spat on the ground and made mud and spread it over the man’s blind eyes. He told him to go and wash it off in the pool of Siloam. He did and came back seeing! *** The man testified to everyone what had happened to him. The Pharisees questioned him at length because this was one of the litmus tests they had in their doctrine that only the Messiah could do (to heal a man born blind.) So they did extensive investigation into this miracle. The man’s parents wouldn’t even back him up because they were afraid they would lose their status in the Temple. The man defended Jesus and when they told the healed man that they didn’t know where this man, Jesus came from, he said that if Jesus wasn’t from God, he would not have been able to do this miracle. They were so offended, they threw him out of the synagogue. Jesus found him and asked him if he believed in the Son of Man. When he told him that he was the Son of Man, the man instantly believed. Jesus said that he entered into this world to render judgment - to give sight to the blind and to show those who think they see that they are blind. *** Some of the Pharisees that heard this, asked Jesus if he was saying that they were blind. Jesus replied, “If you were blind, you wouldn’t be guilty, But you remain guilty because you claim you can see.” *** Lord, may we not be guilty of thinking we see when we are blind. May we be open to new things you want to show us and teach us. We see through a glass darkly, help us to see more clearly.