And also the relatives

I Chronicles 13:40 And also their relatives … came bringing food on donkeys and on camels and on mules an don oxen, abundant provisions of flour, cakes of figs, clusters of raisins, and wine and oil, oxen and sheep …

Chapter 12 is full of information about David’s fighting men, their great soldiering abilities and readiness for battle.  Verse 2 tells us the “mighty men” were gifted ambidextrous warriors; verse 8 says they were experts with determination and strength even on their faces and that they were fast and sure-footed.  By the end of the chapter, I felt rather intimidated by the strength, bravery, and readiness of this great army around David.  I felt that way UNTIL I noticed who else is listed at the very end of the chapter.  Not everyone could be a strong and fearsome warrior in the fighting army.  Their supportive relatives had an equally vital role to play.  They are the ones who made it possible for the army to be battle-ready.  They came by the droves, by every means available, bringing food for these “might men” and the army.  Their role was as important as that of the mighty men and the rest of the army.  How encouraging to know that even if I am not a “mighty man” with special skills or abilities, I can have a supportive role in the accomplishments of those who are more actively engaged in the fight.

Give thanks to the Lord

(I wrote this several days ago and never posted it.)

I Chronicles 16:8-12 Oh give thanks to the Lord …

Top Ten Ways to Give Thanks to the Lord:

1. CALL upon His name (v8)

2. MAKE KNOWN His deeds (v8)

3. SING praises to Him (v9)

4. TELL of all His wondrous works (v9)

5. GLORY in His holy name (v10)

6. REJOICE in your heart (v10)

7. SEEK the Lord (v11)

8. SEEK the Lord’s strength (v11)

9. SEEK the Lord’s presence (v.11)

10. REMEMBER His wondrous works, His miracles, and His judgments (v12)

I must admit that I had never thought of some of these acts on my part as actually giving thanks to the Lord as my act of worship, but here they are!  Even when I call on Him I am showing my appreciation for who He is and what He can do.  When I look to Him for help or strength, it is an act of thankfulness.

Prepared for service

I Chronicles 12:38 All these men of war, arrayed in battle order, came to Hebron with a whole heart to make David king over all Israel.

I keep being drawn to this chapter in the history of the reign of King David.  It seems to be rich in spiritual lessons for me.  I know I have journaled about it before, and here I am again!  As I read through this listing of the groups of men coming to fight for David, I found some of the information about them to be inspiring.  They all came “arrayed in battle order” because they recognized the possibility of actually having to fight to make this happen.  They had no disillusions about this … they knew there might be some difficult days ahead so they came prepared.  For example, 6800 men from Judah came “bearing shield and spear” (v.24) and Zadok brought twenty-two commanders from his own father’s house (v.29).  The Benjaminites switched their allegiance over to David and came to fight for him and the Ephramites left their own fame in their area to be a part of this large army.  Evidently, helping this cause of David on a wider scale was more important to them than being a “big frog in a little pond.”  That says a lot about them, and serves as a great example of humble service, I think.  Then there were the 18000 men from the tribe of Manasseh.  I find it very inspiring to read that they had been expressly chosen to represent their tribe.  There were not just joining for themselves … they had a higher, more noble goal, if you will.  The representatives from Issachar had a special ability that would be of particular importance to this new army.  Verse 32 says they had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do.  I can imagine how important such skill would be when facing war.  The army from Zebulun was seasoned men and single minded in their sense of purpose.  They knew exactly why they were there.  Finally, the Danites, the Asherites, the Reubenites, the Gadites … all came equipped and ready for battle.  I see all of these men (340,000 by my calculations) as purposeful, prepared men, men who serve as my example of how I should serve my heavenly King Jesus.

Not just a name

I Chronicles 1:10 Cush fathered Nimrod.  He was the first on the earth to be a mighty man.

I have always struggled to read through the long genealogies that we have listed in the Bible, and particularly in the books of the Chronicles.  Most of the time I just skimmed through those lists of names, but this year I decided to read the names more carefully and to note anyone that has something said about him other than his place in a family, and I am finding some interesting food for thought in the process.  I am only at chapter five as of today, but have already seen some good lessons for myself, Nimrod being the first.

1:10 ~ Nimrod was Noah’s great-grandson and according to Genesis 10:9 not only was he a mighty man but he was a “mighty hunter before the Lord.”  He built some cities, the most memorable being Ninevah.  What he did, he did “before the Lord” which leads me to believe he was honorable and strong, faithful to God in what he did.

1:19 ~ Peleg was also a great-grandson of Noah and he is mentioned in Genesis 10:25 but all we know about him is that in his lifetime “the earth was divided.”  Peleg evidently lived in a day and age very similar to today.  The world around him was a hard one in which to live and although we know nothing else about him, the fact that this is mentioned in connection to his name tells me that he must have remained faithful to God in the midst of trouble and turmoil.  What a good reminder to me!

2:3 ~ Er was Judah’s oldest son and what a sad legacy he left to us!  He was evil, and his wickedness was not “small.”  This verse says he was so evil that God put him to death.  “Nuf said …

2:7 ~ Achan is another sad legacy.  In this verse he is called “the troubler of Israel.”  He “broke faith” and had to be punished because of his selfishness (see Judges 7:10-26) that caused Israel’s defeat at Ai.

2:22 ~ Jair is a name I never noticed until this exercise, but this verse says he had 23 cities, so he was no wall flower!  He obviously had some diligence and leadership ability and God blessed him when he was willing to use his talents and personality in a way that honored God.  I pray I will spend my life that way and be remembered in those terms also.

2:30, 32 ~ Seled and Jether are totally unknown except for the fact that they were childless.  This is often a painful experience for married people, and it would definitely have been so for these ancient men, living in a society where having children was of paramount importance.  The fact that this is mentioned is my reminder that God will bless the person who is faithful to Him even when circumstances of life are difficult and/or painful.

2:33 ~ Sheshan had no sons, only daughters.  He gave one of his daughters to his Egyptian slave, Jarha, in marriage.  My first thought was really negative about Sheshan.  His daughter married his slave?  How barbaric, how cruel, how unfeeling!  But then I read how the children from that marriage were considered in the genealogy and I realized how once again God included Gentiles into Jewish lineage (remember Rahab and Ruth?).  God uses some of the most unique ways we can imagine to accomplish His purposes!  I only need to trust Him.

There are more names and more lessons to learn …

My duty to worship

I Chronicles 23:28-31 The duty of the Levites was to help Aaron’s descendants in the service of the temple of the lord … There were also to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord.  There were to do the same in the evening…

David the king worked to enhance the organization of worship and temple upkeep that had been started by Moses (in the book of Leviticus).  The duties of the priests needed fine-tuning after the temple became a permanent structure.  I find it fascinating to see the thought and planning of the music and worship-leading.  This has so often in my experience and observation been the weakest area of the church, but there is quite a lengthy section here in I Chronicles about this.  Then my thought goes immediately to the New Testament where we are told that we, as believers, are the “royal priesthood.”  So I see the need for me to recognize a couple of principles for my own life:

1. I should worship morning and evening, i.e., all day long;
2. It is my duty as a believer to do this;
3. Part of my duty as a New Testament priest is to encourage/assist my fellow priests, my believer friends who are priests as I am, to worship, thank and praise the Lord, and to serve.  In other words, I have a big responsibility for myself to worship and praise God, but also to my brothers and sisters in Christ.

Is my name important?

I Chronicles 16:41 With them were Heman and Jeduthun and the rest of those chosen and designated by name to give thanks to the Lord, “for his love endures forever.”

Each task related to worship in the tabernacle when the ark was brought back to Israel was assigned to specific people.  Asaph was in charge of praise, Obed-Edom and Hosah were gate-keepers, Zadok was in charge of the burnt offerings, and Heman and Jeduthun were responsible for sounding the trumps and other instruments.  No task was too simple or too unimportant to not be assigned, and everyone had a specific job to do that helped make the worship at the tabernacle a complete and orderly one for everyone who came to participate.  Although those in charge were named for us to know about them all these years later, there were many “associates” and “fellow priests” and “the rest of those chosen and designated by name” whom we do not know but who served faithfully.  Their service was equally important.  It is my faithful service to the Lord that matters, not whether my name is known or not.  I have been chosen by God by name and that is what matters.

When a little is a lot

I Chronicles 12:28 …with 22 officers from his family…

In this list of armed men who joined David for battle, 340,622 of them total, I find myself wondering why Zadok, a brave young warrior who brought only 22 men, is listed.  Perhaps even though it was only 22 men, he still came to fight, and that was important to God.  Perhaps he is important because he was brave enough to come with the little he had to offer, but he was brave…  No matter what the exact circumstances, it is clear that the little bit Zadok offered made a difference to God and to David, a difference enough to make him worth noting in this list.  If he had not been noted here, I may never have seen the lesson for myself so many years later.  It isn’t how much I offer to God, it is the fact that I offer what I have that matters.  I am reminded of a song I rather vaguely recall from many years ago, "Little is much when God is in it."  That is about all I remember of that song but it came to my mind immediately when thinking of this account of Zadok.

Spiralling downward

I Chronicles 10:13 Saul died because he was unfaithful to the Lord; he did not keep the word of the Lord and even consulted a medium for guidance, and did not inquire of the Lord.

Saul’s early and untimely death came as a result of his unfaithfulness to God.  Perhaps God allowed his death in order to keep him from going any further down the road away from God and His blessing on Saul’s life and reign as king.  In any case, Saul was on a downward spiral spiritually.  He began by not keeping the word of the Lord, and pretty quickly deteriorated spiritually after that, to the extent that he turned to a medium rather than to God for guidance.  But it all began with his being unfaithful to the Lord.  It is so easy for us to get off-track in our personal spiritual lives and unless God intervenes, we quickly go down, and oh, so easily so.  This is my powerful reminder to stay ever vigilant, knowing how easily I can get off track spiritually and how far I can wander from God and His perfect way for me.

Worship is important

I Chronicles 6:64 So the Israelites gave the Levites those towns and their pasturelands.

From the very beginning of the establishment of the tabernacle, the principle of accommodating those who are ministers was established  In Exodus, the Levites were given the tasks revolving around worshipping God, and when the Israelites took possession of the Promised Land, that principle continued.  The rest of the tribes of Israel each gave some land in their territory to the Levites, thereby sharing the responsibility of supporting those responsible for leading them in worship.  The task to which the Levites were assigned was important enough to God that He established that support principle from the beginning, and it is my reminder of the importance God places on worship, as well as on those who are called to lead me in worship.  I need to remember that those who are leading me deserve my highest respect because of the role they are fulfilling in God’s plan, just as the Levites did in ancient Israel.

Trusting God for victory

I Chronicles 5:20 They were helped in fighting them, and God delivered the Hagrites and all their allies into their hands, because they cried out to him during the battle.  He answered their prayers, because they trusted in him.

When the children of Israel began to occupy the Promised Land they were a relatively small nation with an untrained, unskilled army.  They were taking on strong, skilled armies of giants so in every way they were the underdogs.  But because they trusted God and called out to Him for help as they were fighting, they were victorious. Sometimes it is hard for me to remember to trust in the Lord and to call to Him while I am right in the middle of a battle and yet this is exactly what I need to do, not to be overwhelmed by the intensity of the battle to the extent that I forget to draw strength from God for the victory.