HEAP COALS OF FIRE ON THEIR HEAD

Bizarre title, huh?

It comes from a verse in Romans 12:19-20,

Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.  Therefore

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
If he is thirsty, give him a drink;
For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”  [NT quote from Proverbs 25:22]

In yesterday's blog, I reviewed the first part of I Samuel 24, where David is hiding in a cave in the wilderness and King Saul stumbles into the cave to relieve himself.  David's men see it as a God-given opportunity to kill the King and ascend to the throne.  But David refuses their advice because of his high standards;  he will not harm the Lord's anointed one.  However, he does get close enough to cut off a corner from the king's robe.  

As Saul leaves the cave, David follows him and points out that he could easily have killed the king.  He clarifies that he has no intention of ever harming Saul.  He bows before Saul - prostrating himself with his face to the ground!  He proclaims himself a faithful servant of Saul.   

See, my father, look at this piece of your robe in my hand! I cut off the corner of your robe but did not kill you. See that there is nothing in my hand to indicate that I am guilty of wrongdoing or rebellion. I have not wronged you, but you are hunting me down to take my life. May the Lord judge between you and me. And may the Lord avenge the wrongs you have done to me, but my hand will not touch you.  [vs.11-12]

Saul's response is remarkable:

Saul asked, “Is that your voice, David my son?” And he wept aloud. “You are more righteous than I,” he said. “You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly. You have just now told me about the good you did to me; the Lord delivered me into your hands, but you did not kill me. When a man finds his enemy, does he let him get away unharmed? May the Lord reward you well for the way you treated me today. I know that you will surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands. Now swear to me by the Lord that you will not kill off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father’s family.”

So David gave his oath to Saul. Then Saul returned home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.   [vs.16-22]

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How did David heap hot coals on Saul's head?

By being overtly generous with him.

1. David spared Saul's life!
2. David bowed before Saul and gave him respect.
3. David called Saul, "My Lord, the king!"  "...my father..."
4. David exposed his heart of innocence:  "my hand will not touch you."
5. David made an oath that he would never cut off Saul's descendants or wipe out Saul's name.

This is the essence of the principle taught in Romans 12 and Proverbs 25.

One commentary that gets it right is the Bible Knowledge Commentary on Proverbs. It says this:

Sometimes a person’s fire went out and he needed to borrow some live coals to restart his fire. Giving a person coals in a pan to carry home “on his head” was a neighborly, kind act; it made friends, not enemies.

Proverbs 25:22 instructs us to give our enemy so many burning coals they have to carry them the way burdens are carried in the Middle East: in a container on the head. Then they can go back and immediately bake their bread without having to wait for the wood to become suitable coals for cooking.  

This reminds me of how Abraham Lincoln responded when asked why he did not seek to destroy his enemies, but showed them leniency instead. He said, “Do I not destroy my enemies when I make them my friends?”     

 [Jeremy Meyers, https://redeeminggod.com/heap-burning-coals-on-your-enemies/]

As representatives of God's grace, we must learn to treat our enemies with such generosity, respect and kindness that they will see our righteousness and respond in kind.  

Kind and Loving God,

This kind of living is the opposite of the way most of us think.  We are driven by revenge and hate.  But Your upside-down Kingdom calls us to a higher response.   With the help of Your Holy Spirit, we can do this!  Help us to see all our options in the future and choose ways that will promote our enemies into friends!  

For the Kingdom's sake.  Amen.  

IS YOUR CONSCIENCE WORKING?

Biblical scholars estimate that David fled from King Saul for at least eight years - possibly a whole decade.  

At the end of I Samuel 23, Saul is vigorously pursuing David and his men with a fairly large contingent of soldiers.  Saul has David's men outnumbered ten-to-one!  David is desperately trying to escape around a mountain, and Saul is in hot pursuit on the other side of the mountain.  

At this moment, a messenger arrives and reports to King Saul that the Philistines are attacking the land.

Then Saul broke off his pursuit of David and went to meet the Philistines.  [v.28]

Divine protection?  Divine providence?  

The very next chapter tells us that Saul resumes his pursuit of David.  

So Saul took three thousand able young men from all Israel and set out to look for David and his men near the Crags of the Wild Goats.  

 He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men were far back in the cave. The men said, “This is the day the Lord spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’” Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.

Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe. [24:2-5]

Is this also divine providence?  David's men think it is!  They encourage him to take Saul's life here and end this whole search and destroy effort.  God has clearly given Saul into the hands of David!

But David has a different understanding of things than that of his men.  David solemnly believes that it is against God's will to kill Saul:

He said to his men, “The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, or lay my hand on him; for he is the anointed of the Lord.” With these words David sharply rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul. And Saul left the cave and went his way.        [24:6-7]

David felt so strongly about this that it bothered him to have cut off the corner of Saul's robe!  [See verse 5 above - underlined]

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Now, we could deliberate long and hard on the development of the conscience.  It's clear that our parents play a significant role in developing this unmeasurable-but-real part of our mind.  In my case, my Mom's voice can still speak to me about simple 'right and wrong' issues.

But, God also plays a role in this important facet of our development.  The Holy Spirit plays a dominant part in developing our conscience and clarifying right and wrong from God's standards.  

In David's case, he felt badly about the simple act of cutting a piece from King Saul's robe.  This testifies that David's conscience was alive and well.  The rightness or wrongness of the act is irrelevant;  what is important is that David had a sensitivity to right and wrong.

When we allow Him, God will activate our conscience and develop it.  He will do this through His Word, through the whisperings of His Holy Spirit, through the teaching and preaching we submit ourselves to, through prayer and meditation, and through fellowship and interaction with other godly people.

Our teaching about this journey is intended to bring us to a single destination—a place where self-giving love reigns from a pure heart, a clean conscience, and a genuine faith.   [I Timothy 1:5  (The VOICE)]

Now there's a trio for you:  a pure heart, a clean conscience and a genuine faith!  I believe David had that - imperfect though he was...

I want that!  Don't you?  Here's a good prayer - sing it if you know it...

God,

Purify my heart

Let me be as gold and precious silver

Purify my heart

Let me be as gold, pure gold

Refiner's fire

My heart's one desire

Is to be holy

Set apart for You, Lord

I choose to be holy

Set apart for You, my Master

Ready to do Your will

Purify my heart

Cleanse me from within and make me holy

Purify my heart

Cleanse me from my sin, deep within

Refiner's fire

My heart's one desire

Is to be holy

Set apart for You, Lord

I choose to be holy

Set apart for You, my Master

Ready to do Your will

Amen!

 

 

THE CHIEF END OF MAN

The 24th chapter of Genesis is lengthy - 67 verses. Essentially, the story of Abraham sending his servant to get a wife for Isaac is told twice in these verses.

The main points of this chapter include:

1. Abraham does NOT want Isaac to be married to a Canaanite woman. He sends his chief servant and ten camels on an arduous journey of five-hundred miles so that he can at least try to find a woman from the region Abraham had left about 65 years prior!

2. The servant seems to share his master's faith. He prays for God's direction and blessing on his journey frequently throughout the story and gives God praise repeatedly when things miraculously come together!

3. The providence of God is clearly at work as this servant arrives in the town of Nahor and is greeted at the well by the granddaughter of Abraham's brother, Nahor.

4. The chief servant uses a 'fleece' to determine if this is the one God has chosen: if she agrees to water his camels - she's the one. She does! He gives her a nose ring and bracelets of gold!

5. Her outstanding qualities are:

a. Beauty

b. Generosity - she offers him water; she waters his camels; she offers him lodging.

c. Diligence - the camels had just travelled 500 miles, and one thirsty camel can guzzle up to thirty gallons of water in just ten minutes!

6. Upon arriving at her home, the chief servant refuses to eat until he has explained his mission. Then, he wants an immediate response from her father and brother. Remarkably, they agree, "This is from the LORD."

7. The chief servant immediately bows before the LORD to give thanks! Then he breaks out more gifts (gold, silver and clothing) for her brother and family [the dowry].

8. The family is a bit rattled when he insists on leaving the next morning on the return trip! They want ten days to say their good-byes. However, they leave the decision to Rebekah. She quickly responds: "I will go."

9. Her family sends her on the journey - knowing they will probably never see her again - with her nurse-maid and their blessing!

10. Upon arriving back in Canaan, she spots Isaac from a distance. The servant confirms that it is her future husband. She covered her face with a veil. They were quickly married and she joined her new husband in his (recently deceased) mother's tent.

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Keep in mind, Abraham was the first Jew. Isaac was the promised child of a barren, aged woman. God is carving out a new nation that will serve His sovereign purposes. God is crafting this story with great care! God is concerned about details.

This story is not about how marriage is supposed to happen 4,000 years later! It illustrates obedience, submission to God's Will, and absolute trust in God! Those values are still relevant today! They always will be!

Loving God,

We live in an age of rush-rush, hurry-skurry, get-there-quick, get-it-done, move on, take on the next task! At the end of the day, we're exhausted! We've spent it all. We cheat ourselves of sleep, rest, relaxation, meditation and contemplation! We make a little time for You on Sundays - if we can. Yet, we want and expect Your blessing on our lives...

Something is wrong with this picture. We've lost the concept of loving and enjoying You. The Westminster Shorter Catechism asks: "What is the chief end of man?" The answer is then given: "Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever."

Loving God, slow us down! Teach us to love You! Help us to glorify You with greater urgency! Give us a pace that allows us to get the necessities done, but also keeps our priorities in order! This will not be an easy task for You, Lord. We're addicted to speed and accomplishment (and TV). You'll likely have to use uncomfortable measures to teach us. But, what could be more important?

For Your glory! Amen.