Tues.’s Devo - Stay Attached to the Vine

Read: 2 Samuel 9:1-11:27; John 15:1-27; Psalm 119:49-64;Provers 16:1-3 David wanted to honor anyone left in Jonathan’s house because of his love for Jonathan and the covenant they had made with each other. He learned from Ziba, who had been a servant of Saul, that Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth was still alive. He had been crippled since he was a small child. David called in Mephibosheth and told him that he was giving him all the land that had belonged to Saul, his grandfather, and that Ziba would be his servant and help him manage the land. But, Mephibosheth would live in Jerusalem and always eat at his table as one of his sons. Mephibosheth was humbled and grateful. Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants so this was a blessing for him also. *** Nahash who had been king of the Ammonites died and David wanted to send his condolences to his son Hanun. David sent some men to console Hanun. The princes of Hanun convinced him that the only reason David sent men to him was to scout out their land so they could attack it later. *** Hanun believed his men and took David’s servants and had their beard shaved off and cut their garments at their hips and sent them home disgraced. David came to meet his men and let them stay in Jericho until their beards grew back. *** David was angry at the Ammonites. They knew it, so they hired the Syrians to fight with them against Israel. They divided their army in half and the Ammonite army came to the gate of the city while the Syrians waited in the field on the other side of the city. *** David’s army commander, Joab saw this and sent some of the best of his army to go with him to fight the Syrians. Joab put Abishai, his brother, in charge of the rest of the army who would fight the Ammonites. They would help each other if they needed help. *** The Syrians fled before Joab and his army and when the Ammonites saw them flee, they also fled. The Syrians called for their reserves who had been waiting beyond the Euphrates. David led his army to meet them. The Syrians fled before David and lost 700 chariots and 40,000 horsemen. Their army commander Shobach was killed. When Syria realized they couldn’t win, they made peace with Israel and became their subjects. They were afraid to ever fight for the Ammonites again. *** It was the spring of the year and David usually went out to war as their king, but this year he decided to stay in Jerusalem. He was walking on his roof and noticed a beautiful woman bathing. He inquired about her and found out she was married to Uriah, one of David’s mighty warriors who was off fighting for him. *** It didn’t matter to David that she was married, or that her husband was off risking his life for Israel; David sent for Bathsheba and slept with her. He soon learned Bathsheba was pregnant with his baby. He tried everything he could think of to have Uriah, her husband come home from the battle field and sleep with his wife, so he would think that the child was his. But, God was not going to let David hide his sin. *** David finally had Uriah killed, but it was done in a way that no one would know it was his doing. God knew, and he was not happy. *** Bathsheba mourned her husband’s death. Then David sent for Bathsheba and she became one of his wives. *** In John, Jesus told his disciples an allegory. God was like the owner of a vineyard. Jesus was the true vine that all the good grapes grew from. We, as his followers are the fruit of his vine. Apart from the vine, we can do nothing because he is our source of life. As long as we stay attached to the vine, we will be fruitful and healthy. If we don’t stay attached, we will be thrown away and thrown into the fire to be destroyed. It is believing in his words that keep us attached to him. It is the Fathers’s will that we bear fruit and abide in his love. We prove that we love him by obeying his commandments. Then, he can call us his friend instead of his master. It is his joy that we also love others in the family of God. *** We can expect the world to hate us, because they hated him also. They persecuted him, so we should expect them to do the same to us. They do this because they hate Jesus which means, they also hate God. *** The Helper was sent and he bore witness to the truth about Jesus. This witness is now our story, also. *** Lord, may we be your witnesses that you are the only way to truth and life. May we exemplify this truth to others today.