Day 200
1 Chronicles 28:1‐29:30; Romans 5:6‐21; Psalm 15:1‐5; Proverbs 19:18‐19
History Matters
We all like to believe that with God there is always a new beginning, and that we can accomplish anything with God at our side… at least if the preponderance of memes I see on Facebook are any indication. Unfortunately, it is not always so.
We would be hard pressed to name a more effective leader of God’s people than King David. His military conquests, his organization of the kingdom, his ability to mobilize his people are without equal. Yet, the task he most wanted to accomplish was denied him. King David longed to build a home for the Ark, a temple for the Lord, and surely he had the leadership skills to accomplish this task. Nonetheless, God barred him from that task because of his history—he was a warrior who had shed blood.
Note that the implication here is not that he had sinned. After all, David had been anointed as king and had been commanded by God to lead the people into battle. But somehow, the life he was called to live as king excluded him from some other callings. This should diminish neither the call as a warrior and king, nor the call inherited by his son, Solomon, to build the Temple.
None of us are called to do all things, nor do we get to do all the things we might like to do. But when we each undertake our own particular calling, the result is the glory of God!
The Rev. Eric Turner