2 Samuel 22:44 (ESV) 44 “You delivered me from strife with my people; you kept me as the head of the nations; people whom I had not known served me.
This is one of the most important verses in the Bible. Say what Ronnie? Bear with me.
"That's just not acceptable." Anyone ever said that about or to you? I'll bet they have. And I will bet that you and most assuredly I have voiced or thought the same about someone else. We hear that criticism stated in different ways(words, actions, attitudes of others) towards us every day..well...hopefully not EVERY day! smile. Everyone has their take on what WE are doing wrong!!You feelin' me here? Amen, I hear you brother.
Now to be sure, SOMETIMES those corrections, criticisms, scoldings are valid and warranted. OUCH! Sometimes we need our butts spanked don't we? But, that is not what the Psalmist and King is talking about here is it? No,no. Not at all. Back to the top.
2 Samuel 22:44 (ESV) 44 “You delivered me from strife with my people; you kept me as the head of the nations; people whom I had not known served me.
This verse has a companion verse. As a matter of fact this whole chapter and Psalm 18 go hand in hand.
Psalm 18:43 (ESV) 43 You delivered me from strife with the people; you made me the head of the nations; people whom I had not known served me.
The key here is found in the introduction to both of these chapters. Let's look at both of them.
If you look at the intro's to both chapters you will discover that this is a song of deliverance, written by David when he was delivered by God from his enemies and from Saul's hand.(with the people and with my people)David wrote this not at the time of Saul's death mind you, huh uh, but later in David's life, during his reign as King of Israel.
Here, on the one hand ,we have David, persecuted by a living Saul for years. But, when Saul died David's boo birds...you know,..his detractors ....the spectators in the cheap seats that kept reminding David(and those that today keep reminding you and me of our shortcomings) did not vanish. To be sure, David deserved some of it, but NOT most of it.
You know something brothers and sisters, it's one thing to serve others. The Lord Jesus taught us that we are to serve and love folks.
Luke 22:26 (ESV) 26 But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves.
But, it is an entirely different matter for someone to exert control over us because we try to cater to what they think about us. We fear their unwarranted criticism.
Proverbs 29:25 (ESV) 25 The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe.
Now don't get me wrong, I fret many times when I think someone is not pleased with me.When someone criticises me, the first thing entering my mind is"what did I do wrong?" And I'll tell you something else, most of the time(not ALL of the time) but MOST of the time, I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING WRONG!
MOST of the time, criticism is self serving and is offered from selfish and controlling motivations. People want to manipulate don't they? Not all, but most. Is this waving a red flag in your eyes? Yeah, I hear you. You keep beating up on a dog and he's going to take it for a while. But, eventually you're going to walk up on him one day and he's going to be showing you his teeth.Know what I'm sayin?
I have found that in 99.99% of the issues in my life, GOD ALMIGHTY is more than willing and certainly able to garner my attention when I need to make some adjustments to me. You feel me? Yes, there are certainly times when I need to listen and heed what others are telling me. Oh yes, without a doubt. But, when someone or some thing keeps on and on. Never giving a word of encouragement or a pat on the back. Never a thank you or a please. Always critical or demanding. It's always my fault or yours as the case may be. God never intended for us to submit to that. Don't put your hand to it, let God be God. Just sayin'
Psalm 35:1 (ESV) 1
God Bless
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