I would imagine that the normal response to the death of someone who has deceived you, betrayed you, even attempted to kill you would not be to weep at their burial. Would you? Who says that the very one who physically attacked you was lovely in his death, swifter than an eagle and stronger than a lion? Who writes a Poem of Remembrance about someone who tried time after time after time to annihilate him?
The answer, of course, is “a true man”; or as Jesus says it; “a perfect man.” You see, being perfect is not being absolutely perfect so there is not one blemish on your character. Instead, being perfect, according to Jesus, is making sure you do four specific things for those people or that person who has made himself your enemy.
Now, please turn with me to II Samuel chapter three and find with me verse thirty-eight. Here you’ll see the same spirit in David reflected in the way he treated another man, Abner, a deceiver; Abner, General of the Israeli army died; Abner, the man who refused to acknowledge David as King over all Israel and Judah.
Abner is now dead and here’s what we read in II Samuel 3:38. II Samuel 3:38 “And the king [David] said unto his servants, Know ye not that there is a prince and a great man fallen this day in Israel?”
By the way, read through II Samuel this week and you’ll discover that David said similar things to others who had opposed him. How you view your enemies; those who have in some way done things to you that clearly changed the relationship, will determine something in your relationship with the LORD. And, needless to say, David, this attitude towards his enemies is a part of who David is.
Now, look with me at how David responded when Abner died. II Samuel 3:32. II Samuel 3:32 “And they buried Abner in Hebron: and the king lifted up his voice, and wept at the grave of Abner; and all the people wept.” David is so moved by Abner’s death that the people around him begin to weep as well. Verse thirty-two says “all the people wept.” Verse thirty-four says “And all the people wept again over him.”
David, Abner, go on in II Samuel and read about David’s words about Ishbosheth and others that had opposed David. See how this “perfect” man responded to them. Now, how are you going to be a perfect man or woman today? I’ve used the word “true.” Jesus used the word “perfect.” Here are some lessons from the Scriptures.
1. It’s never easy to maintain a right attitude. As you know, we all choose our own attitudes. No one forces us to take on our attitudes. They are ours and our alone. And most of the time, we determine our attitudes towards others in light of the way they treat us. Yet, this must be the opposite of the way a true man or a true woman lives. You might, right now, be holding the completely wrong attitude towards someone in your past; someone who has negatively impacted you in some major way. Yet, who’s the one who’s bound in the prison? Him, her, or you?
Have you heard of “Heaven’s Rain”? It’s the story of a Pastor and his wife who were horribly murdered for almost no reason at all. This Pastor and his wife and family had ministered as missionaries in Brazil and had returned to the States and were pastoring a Church in Oklahoma City, OK when this horrible murder took place. The Pastor’s son, Brooks Douglas, was there in the house when the event occurred. He was just fifteen years old. And, for many, many years afterward he felt completely stymied; especially since the legal system in the United States gave every right possible to the two murderers. Finally the men were convicted; but only after Brooks and his sister had lost their homes, their money, and their lives fighting the system, trying to get justice for their parents.
Then, Brooks became the youngest sitting Senator in OK history. But, as a three term Senator in OK, in 1995, something happened to Brooks. He was taking a tour of the very prison in OK that housed the men who had slain his parents. As a Christian, he decided that he needed to personally meet with him.
The answer, of course, is “a true man”; or as Jesus says it; “a perfect man.” You see, being perfect is not being absolutely perfect so there is not one blemish on your character. Instead, being perfect, according to Jesus, is making sure you do four specific things for those people or that person who has made himself your enemy.
Now, please turn with me to II Samuel chapter three and find with me verse thirty-eight. Here you’ll see the same spirit in David reflected in the way he treated another man, Abner, a deceiver; Abner, General of the Israeli army died; Abner, the man who refused to acknowledge David as King over all Israel and Judah.
Abner is now dead and here’s what we read in II Samuel 3:38. II Samuel 3:38 “And the king [David] said unto his servants, Know ye not that there is a prince and a great man fallen this day in Israel?”
By the way, read through II Samuel this week and you’ll discover that David said similar things to others who had opposed him. How you view your enemies; those who have in some way done things to you that clearly changed the relationship, will determine something in your relationship with the LORD. And, needless to say, David, this attitude towards his enemies is a part of who David is.
Now, look with me at how David responded when Abner died. II Samuel 3:32. II Samuel 3:32 “And they buried Abner in Hebron: and the king lifted up his voice, and wept at the grave of Abner; and all the people wept.” David is so moved by Abner’s death that the people around him begin to weep as well. Verse thirty-two says “all the people wept.” Verse thirty-four says “And all the people wept again over him.”
David, Abner, go on in II Samuel and read about David’s words about Ishbosheth and others that had opposed David. See how this “perfect” man responded to them. Now, how are you going to be a perfect man or woman today? I’ve used the word “true.” Jesus used the word “perfect.” Here are some lessons from the Scriptures.
1. It’s never easy to maintain a right attitude. As you know, we all choose our own attitudes. No one forces us to take on our attitudes. They are ours and our alone. And most of the time, we determine our attitudes towards others in light of the way they treat us. Yet, this must be the opposite of the way a true man or a true woman lives. You might, right now, be holding the completely wrong attitude towards someone in your past; someone who has negatively impacted you in some major way. Yet, who’s the one who’s bound in the prison? Him, her, or you?
Have you heard of “Heaven’s Rain”? It’s the story of a Pastor and his wife who were horribly murdered for almost no reason at all. This Pastor and his wife and family had ministered as missionaries in Brazil and had returned to the States and were pastoring a Church in Oklahoma City, OK when this horrible murder took place. The Pastor’s son, Brooks Douglas, was there in the house when the event occurred. He was just fifteen years old. And, for many, many years afterward he felt completely stymied; especially since the legal system in the United States gave every right possible to the two murderers. Finally the men were convicted; but only after Brooks and his sister had lost their homes, their money, and their lives fighting the system, trying to get justice for their parents.
Then, Brooks became the youngest sitting Senator in OK history. But, as a three term Senator in OK, in 1995, something happened to Brooks. He was taking a tour of the very prison in OK that housed the men who had slain his parents. As a Christian, he decided that he needed to personally meet with him.
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