Journey Thru The Bible! (2 Samuel 4 - 6)

Click on the Scripture above to read today's Bible text!

Finally, 14 years after Samuel anointed David to be the new King of Israel, David is crowned! It took a long time, but it eventually happened! According to 5:4, he was 30 years old when all of Israel finally agreed to make him their king. Overall, he reigned 40 years as the king of Israel and died at the age of 70.

As we read today's three chapters, there are a couple of things I'd like to point out:

1) We must fight our own battles, but it's the Lord that gives us the victory! As we read about David going out to fight the Philistines and Jebusites, it reminds me of how many Christians think that God should protect us from all harm and do ALL the fighting for us! God NEVER told David to just stand there and do nothing. He said to "go" and fight! As David and his army fought with swords, spears, and knives, it was the Lord who gave them the victory to win the battle.

So many Christians get mad at God when a battle flares up! Many of them have this weird kind of attitude that God should protect us from engaging in anything that should bring us harm. That's foolish! Read the bible! Even Jesus warned new believers that they WILL suffer persecution!

In life, you WILL face a few battles. God will want you to "go" and fight, and in the end will bring you the victory if you'll trust Him by faith as you fight the battle!

If you're mad at God for the battle you're facing today, get real. He promises that you'll never "be tempted above that which you can bear." The battle may be tough, and you may feel like you're losing the battle at times, but remember that He wants you to go through it, and He wants to give you the victory - so stay the course!

2) God demands that we fear Him! In chapter 6, Uzzah got lazy in his faithfulness to God. He knew that NO ONE should touch the Ark of the Covenant under any circumstances. Yet, when the oxen stumbled and the Ark nearly fell from the cart, Uzzah reached out to steady it and was instantly killed by God! Notice the fear and respect for God's holiness and for the importance that God places on obedience when that fateful event happened. The Bible says in 6:9, "David was now afraid of the Lord..." God demands that we fear Him. Many people forget the fact that God is holy, and that His holiness demands our obedience! While He is a loving and wonderful father, He also wants us to fear His reprimand for the sin in our lives. What happened to Uzzah was simply a reminder to David and to everyone else of that important fact!