Now when King David came to Bahurim, there was a man from the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei the son of Gera, coming from there. He came out, cursing continuously as he came. Also Shimei said thus when he cursed: Come out! Come out! You bloodthirsty man, you rogue! And as David and his men went along the road, Shimei went along the hillside opposite him and cursed as he went, threw stones at him and kicked up dust. 2 Samuel 16:5, 7, 13 (NKJV)
Imagine for a moment you have someone coming against you by verbal abuse such as slander and cursing. They are just dead set against you, and no matter what you do, they will not subside. Now, imagine if in addition to the verbal abuse, they were to kick dirt and huck rocks at you. Such was the case with King David--he knew exactly what this felt like. Here's what happened.
David was fleeing his own kingdom as his very own son Absalom was attempting to overthrow his reign as King. As David and his faithful men were walking along on one side of the road, there was a man named Shimei who was on the other side. Shimei kicked dirt while he threw foul language, insults and stones at David.
Abishai, one of David's mighty men of valor could not stand by and watch what was happening, and so he spoke to David saying, "Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Please, let me go over and take off his head!"(2 Sam. 16:9)
But David answered Abishai in this way, "Let him alone, and let him curse; for so the LORD has ordered him." (2 Sam. 16:11)
Q: What Was David saying?
He was basically saying God had obviously allowed this man to come against him and to say these things, so who was he to take revenge against this man. He decided to let God deal with it.
And this is exactly what we need to take from this story because God did take care of David, as Absalom and his entire army were defeated against David and his small band of men. God had defended David and allowed for him to come through his trial, and in the process, David's son Absalom, the man responsible for the revolt, was struck dead. But what about this man who hurled rocks and insults against David--what became of Shimei? We can see how God humbled him and brought honor to David in the Book of 2 Samuel 19.
Then a ferryboat went across to carry over the king's household, and to do what he thought good. Now Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king when he had crossed the Jordan. Then he said to the king, "Do not let my lord impute iniquity to me, or remember what wrong your servant did on the day that my lord the king left Jerusalem, that the king should take it to heart. For I, your servant, know that I have sinned. Therefore here I am, the first to come today of all the house of Joseph to go down to meet my lord the king." 2 Samuel 19:18-20 (NKJV)
Again, King David's commander suggested putting this man Shimei to death. And again David responded with wisdom and grace by saying, "Shall any man be put to death today in Israel? For do I not know that today I am king over Israel?" I would have to believe Shimei knew very well he should have received death for his actions, and yet David then gave Shimei his word he would not be put to death.
Q: Was Shimei deserving of this mercy?
A: No! And neither are you and I.
We should be imitating God's great mercy (Eph. 5:1) to everyone we meet--not just some (See James 2:9-13). We need to remember to never doubt the truth of God being in control. He is very capable of either stopping or taking care of the person who is attacking us. When we realize we are being tested, and we properly put our trust in the Lord, we will walk in peace and allow God to be our great defender. God is simply giving us an opportunity in these times to show great love and mercy in our actions.
Perhaps you have someone in your life attacking you, or slandering you. Perhaps you have someone coming against you with false accusations. Perhaps God wants you to grow in the area of forgiveness. We must not forget, we are no better than Shimei. We too, have come before our Lord and confessed, and asked him to not hold our iniquity against us. Let me ask you this,
Q: Do you believe you are forgiven? (See Col. 2:13; James 5:15; 1 John 2:12)
Q: Do you believe it is God's will for you to forgive others of their offenses against you? (See Matt. 6:15; Luke 6:37)
For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Matthew 6:14-15 (NKJV)
Hey Christian, I want to encourage you today to have peace--regardless of what you may be facing. Know with assurance, God is in control and He will defend you as you choose to walk in righteousness. Let God defend you and stop trying to defend yourself. Forgive those who have offended you. Let's imitate our Lord. May we say like the Psalmist says, "My defense is of God, who saves the upright in heart." (Ps. 7:10) Let's turn it over to God.
STUDY QUESTION: What can we learn about our need to forgive others of their offenses against us?
PERSONAL INVENTORY: Are you holding on to any offenses committed against you? Are you willing to show grace to those who have offended you? Are you willing to allow God to be your defender?
APPLICATION: Choose to forgive anyone who may have offended you--regardless of the offense. Pray for them, and allow God to use what was done to you for good. Trust the Lord, and lean not on your own understanding. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
Imagine for a moment you have someone coming against you by verbal abuse such as slander and cursing. They are just dead set against you, and no matter what you do, they will not subside. Now, imagine if in addition to the verbal abuse, they were to kick dirt and huck rocks at you. Such was the case with King David--he knew exactly what this felt like. Here's what happened.
David was fleeing his own kingdom as his very own son Absalom was attempting to overthrow his reign as King. As David and his faithful men were walking along on one side of the road, there was a man named Shimei who was on the other side. Shimei kicked dirt while he threw foul language, insults and stones at David.
Abishai, one of David's mighty men of valor could not stand by and watch what was happening, and so he spoke to David saying, "Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Please, let me go over and take off his head!"(2 Sam. 16:9)
But David answered Abishai in this way, "Let him alone, and let him curse; for so the LORD has ordered him." (2 Sam. 16:11)
Q: What Was David saying?
He was basically saying God had obviously allowed this man to come against him and to say these things, so who was he to take revenge against this man. He decided to let God deal with it.
And this is exactly what we need to take from this story because God did take care of David, as Absalom and his entire army were defeated against David and his small band of men. God had defended David and allowed for him to come through his trial, and in the process, David's son Absalom, the man responsible for the revolt, was struck dead. But what about this man who hurled rocks and insults against David--what became of Shimei? We can see how God humbled him and brought honor to David in the Book of 2 Samuel 19.
Then a ferryboat went across to carry over the king's household, and to do what he thought good. Now Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king when he had crossed the Jordan. Then he said to the king, "Do not let my lord impute iniquity to me, or remember what wrong your servant did on the day that my lord the king left Jerusalem, that the king should take it to heart. For I, your servant, know that I have sinned. Therefore here I am, the first to come today of all the house of Joseph to go down to meet my lord the king." 2 Samuel 19:18-20 (NKJV)
Again, King David's commander suggested putting this man Shimei to death. And again David responded with wisdom and grace by saying, "Shall any man be put to death today in Israel? For do I not know that today I am king over Israel?" I would have to believe Shimei knew very well he should have received death for his actions, and yet David then gave Shimei his word he would not be put to death.
Q: Was Shimei deserving of this mercy?
A: No! And neither are you and I.
We should be imitating God's great mercy (Eph. 5:1) to everyone we meet--not just some (See James 2:9-13). We need to remember to never doubt the truth of God being in control. He is very capable of either stopping or taking care of the person who is attacking us. When we realize we are being tested, and we properly put our trust in the Lord, we will walk in peace and allow God to be our great defender. God is simply giving us an opportunity in these times to show great love and mercy in our actions.
Perhaps you have someone in your life attacking you, or slandering you. Perhaps you have someone coming against you with false accusations. Perhaps God wants you to grow in the area of forgiveness. We must not forget, we are no better than Shimei. We too, have come before our Lord and confessed, and asked him to not hold our iniquity against us. Let me ask you this,
Q: Do you believe you are forgiven? (See Col. 2:13; James 5:15; 1 John 2:12)
Q: Do you believe it is God's will for you to forgive others of their offenses against you? (See Matt. 6:15; Luke 6:37)
For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Matthew 6:14-15 (NKJV)
Hey Christian, I want to encourage you today to have peace--regardless of what you may be facing. Know with assurance, God is in control and He will defend you as you choose to walk in righteousness. Let God defend you and stop trying to defend yourself. Forgive those who have offended you. Let's imitate our Lord. May we say like the Psalmist says, "My defense is of God, who saves the upright in heart." (Ps. 7:10) Let's turn it over to God.
STUDY QUESTION: What can we learn about our need to forgive others of their offenses against us?
PERSONAL INVENTORY: Are you holding on to any offenses committed against you? Are you willing to show grace to those who have offended you? Are you willing to allow God to be your defender?
APPLICATION: Choose to forgive anyone who may have offended you--regardless of the offense. Pray for them, and allow God to use what was done to you for good. Trust the Lord, and lean not on your own understanding. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
Very creeative post
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