Last time we talked about three main ways the enemy tries to draw us off task. He does this by lies, distractions, and fears. But at the end of Nehemiah we see some other devices of Satan.
In chapter 13 Nehemiah is bringing about reforms in a nation just returned from exile in Babylon. While rebuilding the wall, two non-Jews, Tobiah and Sanballat, had tried to thwart Nehemiah by intimidation and deception.
Nehemiah thinks he has overcome their attacks until he returns from Babylon to find that one of the priests has set up a special room in the temple for Tobiah. He rushes in and throws Tobiah's furniture out on the street. Later he finds out that Eliaship, one of the priests, had married Sanballat's daughter. "Therefore I chased him from me." (13:28).
Two of Satan's other devices against us believers are to attack through bad leadership and unwise connections. I'm not saying that you should look suspect at all the leaders in your church, but I am saying that there are in the church today those who do not know Jesus Christ and yet have positions of leadership. If you aren't careful, they can be an influence that does not encourage you to be true to the Lord. Read his Word and if a leader teaches something that is contrary, go with God's Word and watch out for that leader.
Secondly, Satan likes to draw us into bad relationships. Paul said "Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers." (2 Corinthians 6:14). Marrying into families outside of the covenant community was the problem that got Israel sent to Babylon in the first place because the marriages pulled the Jews towards idolatry.
We just need to be careful who we are connected with in marriage, in business, in close friendship. Now I'm not saying to cloister yourself away and talk to no one except Christians. But I am saying that if you have a business partner that does not know the Lord and they want to lie and cheat and steal--what are you going to do? You are a partner and can't force them to do or not do anything.
Yes, some of us are in marriages or situations where there is an unbeliever. In those situations be light and salt and an example. But if you have a choice, just be careful that you become so tied up with the world that you are dragged down with it.
Pastor Tom
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Fears, Lies & Distractions
While Nehemiah was rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem, a couple of men were trying anything to stop him. Chapter 6 tells the story. Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem the Arab were the cast of characters.
First they sent him what sounded like a friendly invitation: "Come and let us meet together at Hakkephirim in the plain of Ono." It was like, "let's go down to Starbucks and grab a latte and chat."
But Nehemiah saw through the ruse: "I am doing a great work and cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?" Four times they resent the invitation. The fifth time they brought an accusing letter, making up all kinds of lies about what Nehemiah was doing.
When that didn't work, Tobiah and Sanballat sent a person to play prophet and make Nehemiah think he was in danger and should hide in the temple. But Nehemiah said: "And I understood God had not sent him."
In our lives, the enemy, Lucifer, will attempt to use three methods to deter us from doing God's work.
Distractions - Those things that seem okay, but their end is to keep us from serving God. Friends can do this, hobbies, jobs, or other tasks. It's not that we don't have friends and jobs and hobbies, but we need to determine if any of those things is actually stopping us from doing what God has called us to do.
Lies - The enemy will spread lies about you to others. If you spend all of your time defending yourself you will also stop the work. Nehemiah answered the lies but kept on working. The enemy wanted Nehemiah to worry more about his reputation than his calling.
Fears - If nothing else works then the enemy resorts to attack. Make us feel that we will be physically or emotionally in danger if we follow Jesus and do his bidding. Nehemiah called out to God, his protector, but did not stop working.
He that is in you is greater than he that is in the world.
Pastor Tom
First they sent him what sounded like a friendly invitation: "Come and let us meet together at Hakkephirim in the plain of Ono." It was like, "let's go down to Starbucks and grab a latte and chat."
But Nehemiah saw through the ruse: "I am doing a great work and cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?" Four times they resent the invitation. The fifth time they brought an accusing letter, making up all kinds of lies about what Nehemiah was doing.
When that didn't work, Tobiah and Sanballat sent a person to play prophet and make Nehemiah think he was in danger and should hide in the temple. But Nehemiah said: "And I understood God had not sent him."
In our lives, the enemy, Lucifer, will attempt to use three methods to deter us from doing God's work.
Distractions - Those things that seem okay, but their end is to keep us from serving God. Friends can do this, hobbies, jobs, or other tasks. It's not that we don't have friends and jobs and hobbies, but we need to determine if any of those things is actually stopping us from doing what God has called us to do.
Lies - The enemy will spread lies about you to others. If you spend all of your time defending yourself you will also stop the work. Nehemiah answered the lies but kept on working. The enemy wanted Nehemiah to worry more about his reputation than his calling.
Fears - If nothing else works then the enemy resorts to attack. Make us feel that we will be physically or emotionally in danger if we follow Jesus and do his bidding. Nehemiah called out to God, his protector, but did not stop working.
He that is in you is greater than he that is in the world.
Pastor Tom
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Showing Emotion
Most of the time when we look at the book of Nehemiah we concentrate on the great task of rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem and the incredible opposition that Nehemiah endured to that project. But today I want to focus on what may seem a very insignificant, but I think important, part of the story.
Nehemiah 2:1 "In the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, I took up the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad in his presence. And the king said to me, "Why is your face sad, seeing you are not sick? This is nothing but sadness of the heart." Then I was very afraid."
There is a subtle pressure as a Christian to always be happy. After all, Jesus has won the victory over sin and death so what reason do you have to be sad? While this is true, it sets up believers to be like the medal-givers at the Beijing Olympics - always smiling with 6-8 teeth showing and never reveal any emotion. It's not real and it can actually hamper the work of God.
Nehemiah had just prayed about the state of his homeland (he was in Babylon at the time). The walls of Jerusalem were in rubble and he lamented the sin of the people that had led God to force them out of Israel. He didn't mean to, but he carried that godly sorrow into his interactions with the king.
If he had forced a smile and was not himself, the king would not have asked him anything and Jerusalem's walls would not have been rebuilt. He showed emotion, he was real.
We need to be real as Christians as well. When God moves in your heart, even if it is in sorrow, don't hide it away thinking that others will consider you weak and not a "good Christian." Instead, let the love of God and the emotion of God flow through you. Jesus wept convulsively at times. Jesus got angry at sin and those trying to keep people away from a relationship with God.
Sometimes it is your real emotions that actually work to break down barriers and allow the real work of God to begin in someone's life.
Pastor Tom
Nehemiah 2:1 "In the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was before him, I took up the wine and gave it to the king. Now I had not been sad in his presence. And the king said to me, "Why is your face sad, seeing you are not sick? This is nothing but sadness of the heart." Then I was very afraid."
There is a subtle pressure as a Christian to always be happy. After all, Jesus has won the victory over sin and death so what reason do you have to be sad? While this is true, it sets up believers to be like the medal-givers at the Beijing Olympics - always smiling with 6-8 teeth showing and never reveal any emotion. It's not real and it can actually hamper the work of God.
Nehemiah had just prayed about the state of his homeland (he was in Babylon at the time). The walls of Jerusalem were in rubble and he lamented the sin of the people that had led God to force them out of Israel. He didn't mean to, but he carried that godly sorrow into his interactions with the king.
If he had forced a smile and was not himself, the king would not have asked him anything and Jerusalem's walls would not have been rebuilt. He showed emotion, he was real.
We need to be real as Christians as well. When God moves in your heart, even if it is in sorrow, don't hide it away thinking that others will consider you weak and not a "good Christian." Instead, let the love of God and the emotion of God flow through you. Jesus wept convulsively at times. Jesus got angry at sin and those trying to keep people away from a relationship with God.
Sometimes it is your real emotions that actually work to break down barriers and allow the real work of God to begin in someone's life.
Pastor Tom
Friday, August 15, 2008
The Most Evil/Redeemed King
Manasseh was a really bad guy. You read his story as king of Judah in 2 Chronicles 33 and you think "why didn't God just strike him with lightning or something?" Manesseh undid so much of what his father Hezekiah did in serving the Lord. Without going into the gory details (including the fact that he burned his own sons to death) read verse 9 "Manesseh led Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem astray, to do more evil than the nations whom the Lord destroyed before the people of Israel."
What an indictment!
So I'm reading along and thinking this story is really going to end badly, like so many others. God begins to punish Israel for Manasseh's evil and suddenly it all changes. Manesseh "entreated" the Lord, "humbled himself greatly, and "prayed."
Then in verse 13 comes the kicker, "Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was God."
I wonder how many people are running around doing whatever comes to their minds, no matter how evil, because they don't realize the Lord is God. They don't know or refuse to acknowledge that there is something bigger than ourselves and we are responsible for our behavior to that Being.
Manasseh changed that day, forever. My challenge is to consider, is there really a God out there? If there is, how has He revealed Himself and what should I do about it? I would suggest that the only way God has truly revealed Himself is through the Bible and God's Son Jesus Christ.
We are responsible for what we do before God. Entreat God yourself, humble yourself, pray, and ask Him to reveal Himself to you. I'm betting He'll do just that.
Pastor Tom
What an indictment!
So I'm reading along and thinking this story is really going to end badly, like so many others. God begins to punish Israel for Manasseh's evil and suddenly it all changes. Manesseh "entreated" the Lord, "humbled himself greatly, and "prayed."
Then in verse 13 comes the kicker, "Then Manasseh knew that the Lord was God."
I wonder how many people are running around doing whatever comes to their minds, no matter how evil, because they don't realize the Lord is God. They don't know or refuse to acknowledge that there is something bigger than ourselves and we are responsible for our behavior to that Being.
Manasseh changed that day, forever. My challenge is to consider, is there really a God out there? If there is, how has He revealed Himself and what should I do about it? I would suggest that the only way God has truly revealed Himself is through the Bible and God's Son Jesus Christ.
We are responsible for what we do before God. Entreat God yourself, humble yourself, pray, and ask Him to reveal Himself to you. I'm betting He'll do just that.
Pastor Tom
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Marked by Sin
For the most part we should be impressed by Uzziah, who reigned over Judah starting when he was just 16 years old. He was king for 52 years - a lot of time to serve the Lord and a lot of time to make mistakes.
In 2 Chronicles 26:5 it says "He st himself to seek God ... and as long as he sought the Lord, God made him prosper."
And prosper he did. Uzziah made war and won, Uzziah built up Jerusalem and succeeded. He even hired inventors to create new technology in warfare to defend the city, and it was successful.
But later in life something happened. In verse 16 we read "But when he was strong he grew proud to his destruction." Uzziah entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense. This was the job of the priests, not the king. I think perhaps Uzziah started thinking he could do no wrong and that anything he accomplished was done from his own power.
But what happened next is very instructive. The priests came in and told the king he shouldn't do this. At that point nothing had happened to Uzziah. But then the king got angry - and it was then that leprosy broke out on his forehead. He was rushed out of the temple and had to live apart, marked by his sin, for the rest of his life.
There are a bunch of lessons here, but the one I want to focus on may not be the most obvious. We are all like Uzziah in the temple with leprosy broken out on our heads. Leprosy was a symbol for sin. Here we are in the pride of our own accomplishments (or what we think are ours) showing off before God. And there it is, sin - right there. We too are set apart from God and excluded from fellowship.
But thanks be to God that there is another mark we can have. Instead of the mark of leprosy, we have the mark of the blood of Jesus that not only covers but washes away the mark of sin and separation. We can come to God freely, knowing that we didn't deserve it and didn't do it and can't do it at all!
So the next time you feel the mark of sin forcing you away from the Lord, or even when pride rears its ugly head and you start taking credit for what God has done - remember Uzziah. And picture that mark of leprosy (what you deserve) being replaced with the mark of the blood of Christ.
Be humble, and be free.
Pastor Tom
In 2 Chronicles 26:5 it says "He st himself to seek God ... and as long as he sought the Lord, God made him prosper."
And prosper he did. Uzziah made war and won, Uzziah built up Jerusalem and succeeded. He even hired inventors to create new technology in warfare to defend the city, and it was successful.
But later in life something happened. In verse 16 we read "But when he was strong he grew proud to his destruction." Uzziah entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense. This was the job of the priests, not the king. I think perhaps Uzziah started thinking he could do no wrong and that anything he accomplished was done from his own power.
But what happened next is very instructive. The priests came in and told the king he shouldn't do this. At that point nothing had happened to Uzziah. But then the king got angry - and it was then that leprosy broke out on his forehead. He was rushed out of the temple and had to live apart, marked by his sin, for the rest of his life.
There are a bunch of lessons here, but the one I want to focus on may not be the most obvious. We are all like Uzziah in the temple with leprosy broken out on our heads. Leprosy was a symbol for sin. Here we are in the pride of our own accomplishments (or what we think are ours) showing off before God. And there it is, sin - right there. We too are set apart from God and excluded from fellowship.
But thanks be to God that there is another mark we can have. Instead of the mark of leprosy, we have the mark of the blood of Jesus that not only covers but washes away the mark of sin and separation. We can come to God freely, knowing that we didn't deserve it and didn't do it and can't do it at all!
So the next time you feel the mark of sin forcing you away from the Lord, or even when pride rears its ugly head and you start taking credit for what God has done - remember Uzziah. And picture that mark of leprosy (what you deserve) being replaced with the mark of the blood of Christ.
Be humble, and be free.
Pastor Tom
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Mentors - Teach for your Absence
I'm always bummed by what happened to Joash. He had this incredible mentor, the High Priest, named Jehoiada, who had cared for him since he was a young lad. But after Jehoiada died, Joash "abandoned the house of the Lord, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and the idols." (2 Chronicles 24:18).
This happened after such an incredible number of good things that Joash did including repairing the temple and destroyed the idols.
So what happened? It's hard to know for sure, but it seems that perhaps as a mentor, Jehoiada held on too tightly to Joash. His wife had hidden Joash from a murder plot when he was a baby. At seven he had placed him on the throne. Later he found two wives for Joash and many of the reforms that came about were really his.
What Jehoiada didn't do was pass on the faith and trust in Yahweh in such a way that Joash would trust God even when Jehoiada wasn't around.
I think that's a good lesson for us as we mentor and disciple (and parent). Our goal should not be to have those that we mentor do what we say and mirror what we do. Our goal should be to pass on the truth of the gospel and train them in such a way that they begin to serve God without our prompting.
It is human nature for us to want those that look up to us to depend on us. As mentors our job is to put ourselves out of a job.
Pastor Tom
This happened after such an incredible number of good things that Joash did including repairing the temple and destroyed the idols.
So what happened? It's hard to know for sure, but it seems that perhaps as a mentor, Jehoiada held on too tightly to Joash. His wife had hidden Joash from a murder plot when he was a baby. At seven he had placed him on the throne. Later he found two wives for Joash and many of the reforms that came about were really his.
What Jehoiada didn't do was pass on the faith and trust in Yahweh in such a way that Joash would trust God even when Jehoiada wasn't around.
I think that's a good lesson for us as we mentor and disciple (and parent). Our goal should not be to have those that we mentor do what we say and mirror what we do. Our goal should be to pass on the truth of the gospel and train them in such a way that they begin to serve God without our prompting.
It is human nature for us to want those that look up to us to depend on us. As mentors our job is to put ourselves out of a job.
Pastor Tom
Monday, August 11, 2008
Makes for a great Sound Bite
Ahab, king of Israel, wanted to do battle against a certain city. He called his new buddy Jehoshaphat to join him. To put it mildly, Ahab was a bad guy and Jehoshaphat a pretty good guy (in that he sought the Lord). Jehoshaphat asked a simple question of Abab, "how about we ask what the Lord wants."
Abab got his band of prophets together and they knew the king wanted to hear "go up, for the battle is yours." So that's just what they said. Jehoshaphat was skeptical and wanted to know if there was a "prophet of the Lord" they could ask.
If you know the story, the prophet at first went along as he was told, but later told the truth. This got Abab pretty steamed and he said "Didn't I tell you that he would not prophesy good concerning me but evil?" (2 Chronicles 18:17). They ended up putting him in jail, and the battle was lost, just as the prophet said.
So what's my point? I think sometimes we only listen to the Lord when he is telling us what we want to hear. When he convicts us in his word and let's us know that there is evil inside us that only repentance and his blood can cleanse we stop up our ears. We end up listening to speakers or reading books that make us feel good or agree with us.
Now I'm not saying we need to beat ourselves up all the time and go around moping. But I am saying that we need to be careful to let all of God's word into our hearts and not just what sounds good. Those Precious Promises books are fine, but is the promise of Jesus in there that if you want to live a godly life you will suffer persecution? "Oh Lord, give me persecution today!" We don't pray that promise in; we don't stand on that promise.
Only good words make for great sound bites, but not for good lives.
Pastor Tom
Abab got his band of prophets together and they knew the king wanted to hear "go up, for the battle is yours." So that's just what they said. Jehoshaphat was skeptical and wanted to know if there was a "prophet of the Lord" they could ask.
If you know the story, the prophet at first went along as he was told, but later told the truth. This got Abab pretty steamed and he said "Didn't I tell you that he would not prophesy good concerning me but evil?" (2 Chronicles 18:17). They ended up putting him in jail, and the battle was lost, just as the prophet said.
So what's my point? I think sometimes we only listen to the Lord when he is telling us what we want to hear. When he convicts us in his word and let's us know that there is evil inside us that only repentance and his blood can cleanse we stop up our ears. We end up listening to speakers or reading books that make us feel good or agree with us.
Now I'm not saying we need to beat ourselves up all the time and go around moping. But I am saying that we need to be careful to let all of God's word into our hearts and not just what sounds good. Those Precious Promises books are fine, but is the promise of Jesus in there that if you want to live a godly life you will suffer persecution? "Oh Lord, give me persecution today!" We don't pray that promise in; we don't stand on that promise.
Only good words make for great sound bites, but not for good lives.
Pastor Tom
Friday, August 08, 2008
With God as long as He is with you
Rehoboam gets a little bit of a bad rap. Son of Solomon, he's the one who listened to counselors his own age instead of the more mature ones and said he would put a heavy load on Israel. This caused a split where the northern tribes served another king.
For the most part after that, though, Rehoboam was a good guy. When Jeroboam began his own home-made religion the priests of God came to Jerusalem. When Rehoboam wanted to go to war against the rest of Israel God told him "no" and he listened. The people strengthened Rehoboam as for three years he walked in the way of David and Solomon. And Rehoboam built up cities in Judah to defend his kingdom from invaders.
Sounds all well and good. So then here's this verse in 2 Chronicles 12:1 "When the rule of Rehoboam was established and he was strong, he abandoned the law of the Lord, and all Israel with him."
Oh bummer. What is it about us that really trusts in God only because we need something from Him? Once we get our health back or get that job or new car or get out of that financial jam we forget about Him?
And what happens if God disciplines us and allows bad things to happen in order to mature us or more perfectly communicate the gospel through our lives? Do we stick closely to God then? Or do we simply get mad at him?
Are we a fair-weather friend to the Lord at times? Let us determine in our own hearts to trust in God for the good and the bad (not that he ever wants to harm us). Let's remember what Job said "The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord." Job 1:21
Pastor Tom
For the most part after that, though, Rehoboam was a good guy. When Jeroboam began his own home-made religion the priests of God came to Jerusalem. When Rehoboam wanted to go to war against the rest of Israel God told him "no" and he listened. The people strengthened Rehoboam as for three years he walked in the way of David and Solomon. And Rehoboam built up cities in Judah to defend his kingdom from invaders.
Sounds all well and good. So then here's this verse in 2 Chronicles 12:1 "When the rule of Rehoboam was established and he was strong, he abandoned the law of the Lord, and all Israel with him."
Oh bummer. What is it about us that really trusts in God only because we need something from Him? Once we get our health back or get that job or new car or get out of that financial jam we forget about Him?
And what happens if God disciplines us and allows bad things to happen in order to mature us or more perfectly communicate the gospel through our lives? Do we stick closely to God then? Or do we simply get mad at him?
Are we a fair-weather friend to the Lord at times? Let us determine in our own hearts to trust in God for the good and the bad (not that he ever wants to harm us). Let's remember what Job said "The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord." Job 1:21
Pastor Tom
Monday, August 04, 2008
Leave a Legacy and Let Go
I'm really impressed by David. He really wanted to build a house for God but the Lord told him he could not because he was a man of war, but that his son, Solomon, could build it.
So David drew up the plans, saved up money and building materials, and donated a huge fortune of own for the project. Then he charged Solomon with building it.
He said to Solomon "Be strong and courageous and do it. Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed, for the Lord God, even my God, is with you." (1 Chronicles 28:20)
Later he prayed for Solomon, "Grant to Solomon my son a whole heart that he may keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, performing all, and that he may build the palace for which I have made provision." (29:19)
I think its a wonderful thing when we as parents give our kids all the tools they need to serve the Lord. We teach them God's Word, we pray for them, we create an environment that is conducive to worshiping the Lord, and we even encourage their own involvement in the things of the Lord.
That alone is a good lesson for us. How much are we investing in our children's relationship with the Lord? But there is another lesson. Despite what David prayed, Solomon did not serve God with a whole heart and ended up worshiping other gods.
We as parents can only do so much until we must turn our children over to the Lord. It was not David's fault that Solomon made the decisions he did. All he could do was plant and water. That is all we can do as well.
Pastor Tom
So David drew up the plans, saved up money and building materials, and donated a huge fortune of own for the project. Then he charged Solomon with building it.
He said to Solomon "Be strong and courageous and do it. Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed, for the Lord God, even my God, is with you." (1 Chronicles 28:20)
Later he prayed for Solomon, "Grant to Solomon my son a whole heart that he may keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, performing all, and that he may build the palace for which I have made provision." (29:19)
I think its a wonderful thing when we as parents give our kids all the tools they need to serve the Lord. We teach them God's Word, we pray for them, we create an environment that is conducive to worshiping the Lord, and we even encourage their own involvement in the things of the Lord.
That alone is a good lesson for us. How much are we investing in our children's relationship with the Lord? But there is another lesson. Despite what David prayed, Solomon did not serve God with a whole heart and ended up worshiping other gods.
We as parents can only do so much until we must turn our children over to the Lord. It was not David's fault that Solomon made the decisions he did. All he could do was plant and water. That is all we can do as well.
Pastor Tom
Friday, August 01, 2008
Repentance Isn't Enough
King David was in a jam. He'd decided, against the Lord's will, to number the fighting men of Israel. It was a huge number, but finding it out came at a huge cost. When God called David on it he said in 1 Chronicles 21:8 "I have sinned greatly in that I have done this thing. But now, please take away the iniquity of your servant..."
God didn't do that. Instead he gave David three choices of consequences: three years of famine, three months running from his enemies, or three days of the "sword of the Lord." David chose the latter and over 70,000 died.
When the angel of the Lord was about to strike Jerusalem, God stopped him saying "it is enough."
Now here is where it gets interesting. David buys the land (which later becomes the temple) in order to perform sacrifices. Here in Chronicles it tells us that he did not go to the Tent of Meeting which was in Gibeon but performed this sacrifice right there because "he was afraid of the sword of the angel of the Lord." (vs 30)
When David repented of his sin the sword of the angel was still unsheathed and ready to continue at God's command. It wasn't until David presented the burnt offering on the altar he made that the Lord told the angel to put away the sword.
Why is this significant? We sometimes have two mistaken notions about sin. One, we think that if we just stop doing something bad, like a kid that has stopped hitting their brother, that God will turn away to read his newspaper again and be satisfied. Or secondly, we think that not just stopping but actually being sorry and turning away from the sin is enough. "I won't do it again, I promise, I feel really bad about what I did."
It's not enough. An offering must take place or the sword of God's judgment still hangs over us because we cannot survive in his presence if there is any evil in us.
I thank God that he provided for me a sacrifice by providing himself as that payment for my sin. Now when I repent (which means to change your mind about the sin) there is a way to sheath the sword of the Lord and a way to help me not do it anymore (the presence of the Holy Spirit in my life).
Pastor Tom
God didn't do that. Instead he gave David three choices of consequences: three years of famine, three months running from his enemies, or three days of the "sword of the Lord." David chose the latter and over 70,000 died.
When the angel of the Lord was about to strike Jerusalem, God stopped him saying "it is enough."
Now here is where it gets interesting. David buys the land (which later becomes the temple) in order to perform sacrifices. Here in Chronicles it tells us that he did not go to the Tent of Meeting which was in Gibeon but performed this sacrifice right there because "he was afraid of the sword of the angel of the Lord." (vs 30)
When David repented of his sin the sword of the angel was still unsheathed and ready to continue at God's command. It wasn't until David presented the burnt offering on the altar he made that the Lord told the angel to put away the sword.
Why is this significant? We sometimes have two mistaken notions about sin. One, we think that if we just stop doing something bad, like a kid that has stopped hitting their brother, that God will turn away to read his newspaper again and be satisfied. Or secondly, we think that not just stopping but actually being sorry and turning away from the sin is enough. "I won't do it again, I promise, I feel really bad about what I did."
It's not enough. An offering must take place or the sword of God's judgment still hangs over us because we cannot survive in his presence if there is any evil in us.
I thank God that he provided for me a sacrifice by providing himself as that payment for my sin. Now when I repent (which means to change your mind about the sin) there is a way to sheath the sword of the Lord and a way to help me not do it anymore (the presence of the Holy Spirit in my life).
Pastor Tom
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