Verse of the Day: 1 Samuel 24:6, And he said to his men, “The LORD forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the LORD’s anointed, to stretch out my hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the LORD.”
What an incredible example of restraint on the part of David. How could he ever resist taking vengeance on Saul at such a vulnerable and advantageous moment? He could have easily ended the turmoil in his life and had the complete backing of his men. A decision to strike down Saul would have been a popular one with the men who were following him and he could have begun his reign as king. What would have been so wrong with that? After all, did not God already have him anointed by Samuel (1 Samuel 16)? Was that not proof right there that God delivered Saul into David’s hand? Was that not proof of God’s will? How could he not take full advantage of “all the star being aligned” at that very moment? Well, it was a simple answer. David was truly a man after God’s own heart and this act of restraint demonstrated how great David’s faith and trust was in the LORD. Many of us would have to admit that we would have not hesitated to finally take revenge against a person who had caused us as much misery as Saul did to David. Many of us would even hang our hat on the fact that God brought our enemy right to us and that it was part of His will and plan for us to take out our enemy. Yet, there are those times when God delivers our enemy into our hands, not so much for us to take vengeance, but for us to show them the love of Jesus and demonstrate how much faith we have in Him. Yes, this might be a very tough pill to swallow, but the truth of the matter is that we can never go wrong by showing those who torment us the love of Jesus. As I read David’s reaction to what happened I could not help but think of a number of verses that apply to this situation. Matthew 5:44-45, clearly commands, “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” Romans 12:17-21 also commands us, “Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. 18 If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. 19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord. 20 Therefore ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.’ 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” When we are struggling against those who choose to make us their enemies, or those who choose to torment us because of who we are or what we believe, it is not very difficult to allow the desire to do them wrong or see them fall to grow within us. It is even easier to see opportunities as David had as opportunities from God to end our misery. However, not every opportunity for us to take vengeance is really an opportunity from God to take revenge. More often than not, it is an opportunity, from God, for us to show Him how much we truly trust Him and how much faith we have in Him and His Word. Before we decide that certain circumstances are opportunities from God to act out the desires of our hearts, we need to step back and ask, “LORD is this an opportunity for me to trust You and show You how much I love You and have faith in You?” The fact of the matter is that we may not know the answer right away, but I will always try to go with what my pastor once told me, “We can never go wrong if we err on the side of grace.” After all, did not God forgive us and show us much grace, for much worse, for Jesus’ sake? (Ephesians 4:32) The line between vengeance and faith is a very thin one. However, we will do what is pleasing to the LORD if we first begin with faith (Hebrew 11:6).
Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).
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