2 Samuel 4:1-6:23, John 13:31-14:14, Psalm 119:17-32, Proverbs 15:31-32
Today is the 24th day of May, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I am Brian. It is wonderful to be here with you today, as we gather and take the next step forward on our journey. A journey that takes us through this year. A journey that takes us through every word and every verse, every chapter of the book of the Bible. So, we started our journey several months back and we have been doing exactly that, each and every day, following the path that has led us all the way into the book of Second Samuel, where we are now learning about David. And we’ve already learned an awful lot about David we are learning about David’s ascension to the throne of Israel as Israel’s second king. He was king in Hebron, but he is to become king of all Israel. And so, let’s pick up the story, Second Samuel chapters 4, 5 and 6 today.
Commentary:
Okay so, real quick, in Second Samuel today, David now is the king of all Israel. The rival king, Ish-bosheth, Saul’s remaining air was assassinated, and the assassins brought the head of Ish-bosheth to David and David did to them, the same that he did when he got the news of Saul being killed, those men were killed. And you could be like well, that’s, I mean gosh, how do you get into the good graces of the King besides kill the King’s enemies. The person that wanted to kill David is now dead, shouldn’t that be a good thing? But people are watching David and there is a distinction between the things that happened during war and the things that happened during peace that are under the cover of night. And assassination well, for David that’s more in the realm of God. If Ish-bosheth should be dead, then God will handle it, but the person that is willing to raise their hand against the anointed one of God, gets dealt with. And so, David’s setting example about his own leadership but he’s also lived that example toward Saul. So, the people have seen this character and it’s been a straight line. It’s been a consistent thing, that hasn’t been situational depending on how bad of an enemy tie that was David’s. David has a clear conscience and clear consistency, and the people see it and they follow him, and he is now the King.
Then we turn over to the Gospel of John and we are now moving through the Last Supper and the passion narrative, the last days of Jesus. And we are in the Gospel of John, my friends. It’s hard to believe that we are almost at the end of another one of our months, and this being the fifth month. This is the last time we move through this territory because we’re moving through the last of the four Gospels. So, we need to pay attention to what happens here and what gets said here, because we have to imagine the gravity of the situation of Jesus final meal, and that mere hours and He will be taken from them and so He won’t be able to teach them anymore, He won’t be able to able to interpret what’s going on for them. He won’t be able to be their Rabbi and comfort them and help them learn. They, He will be taken from them, and they will be on their own. And so, He has some things to say in these final moments of serenity before everything gets blown up. Yesterday, we observed Jesus, after the meal, take off his robe, and get down on his knees and wash the feet and wash the grime and dust off the feet of His disciples, telling them that He’s given them an example, like He blatantly told them, this is the example, if I, Your master and Lord are doing this for you, then you should do this for each other. This is how you’re supposed to live. Then we move into today’s reading and Jesus has some profound things that we simply cannot ignore. And we actually have to consider and live into. Jesus said, I give you a new command, love each other deeply and fully, remember the ways that I have loved you, and demonstrate your love for others in those same ways. In other words, love one another as I have loved you, by this everyone will know that you are my disciples, by the way that you demonstrate your love for one another. I don’t know guys; I think we could sit and just ponder that one until we get it. It is by our love for one another that the world is compelled toward the Gospel. Like, it’s not all of our nice, neat evangelism tactics and all of our processes. These are fine, but it is our love for one another that Jesus said. Like that’s the calling card. People will know you are My disciples by your love for one another. What does that look like in our lives? And oh, my goodness, we have work to do, significant work to do. If this is how we’re going to be known. And then, we move forward and what Jesus is teaching in his last meal, and he says something that is so poignant for me that I will never forget it. He says don’t get lost in despair. Believe in God and keep on believing in me. My Father’s home is designed to accommodate all of you, if there were not room for everyone, I would’ve told you that. I’m going to make arrangements for your arrival, we’ll be there to greet you personally and welcome you home. Where we’ll be together. I love that, I love that so very much. I go to prepare a place for you, then I’ll come and get you so that you’ll be where I am. I think the part that, that is so poignant for me because this, this verse right here, this takes me back to my mom’s passing several years ago. And coming to this passage, I mean her death was a monumental thing to happen in my life. It changed me in lots of ways that I’m still, still trying to figure out, her…her…her presence in the world. The presence of my parents being gone. And so, I just remember one evening sitting in a chair and coming through this verse, don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God and trust in me. In my father’s house are many mansions, right, many rooms. And here’s the part, if this were not so I would’ve told you. Why would I tell you I’m going to prepare a place for you if I’m not coming to get you. I personally, I hope, I hope in the words of Jesus there. I hope in that. Can you imagine the disciples, I mean, this, these are words they need the hear imminently. In hours, He’s going to be taken from them. They’re going to need to hear this, so He is so kind that even though what He’s got to face is upon His shoulders and what He’s got to face is unthinkable, unthinkable: death by crucifixion after being tortured. That’s just the physical aspect of it, but all of the falseness and the injustice of it, all of the sin that He has to take upon himself. Like the weight of that, I can’t even, we, no one, who could possibly fathom what we’re talking about here. And yet, with all that weight on His shoulders, Jesus is still being kind and giving His friends what they need to know, that even though He’s going to be taken, and even though they’re not going to understand, they need to remember He will not leave them and that they should not have troubled hearts. He is preparing a place, if it were not so, He would’ve told them. I mean, man none of us are facing what they were facing. But what does that do when we think about the anxiety that is hovering over us. The fear that is chasing behind us. What if we hear Jesus say, you’re going to be okay, don’t let your hearts be troubled. I have you, if it were not so I would’ve told you. It’s almost too beautiful to talk about. And then Jesus told them, I am the way, I am the truth, I am the life. And that is what we’re looking for, the way, the truth, and the life. Like isn’t that what this consciousness, this existence, this is getting up every day and moving through a day, isn’t this what we’re looking for? The way to do this, the truth about it: life. And Jesus is saying, I am what you are looking for, you have found what you seek. So, Jesus is being so kind and so revealing and so deeply ministering to their hearts in ways that they need to know. And so, but it’s not just comfort, like he is comforting them, but then he bestows power upon them. He says I tell you the truth, whoever believes in me will be able to do what I have done, they will do even greater things because I am returning to the Father. That is profound. First of all, Jesus insists that He’s telling the truth about it, right out of the gate. I’m telling you the truth. And then He tells us that…that we’re commissioned and have been given the same power to do the same works that Jesus was doing after the same way that He was doing it. In other words, we are invited to become Christ-like to reveal God in this world the way that Jesus did, to be the hands and feet of Jesus, to follow His example of loving one another, knowing that we will not be abandoned and knowing that we are empowered to live this life. These are the things that the final Gospel, the Gospel of John tells us about Jesus final meal and the wisdom and insight and love, that He wanted to bestow upon His friends before He was taken. May we drink deeply today because Jesus was showing His friends what life was going to look like after his departure, but they were going to need to know how they were going to need to shape their lives. And we are in the same situation and our lives are to be shaped in the same way, with the same hope, with the same power. Let’s think about that today.
Prayer:
Holy Spirit, we invite You to help us think about this. Some of these things are, like profound game changers to the way that we actually live, we live like we’re running away from things, we live half defeated on any given day, we live all kinds of ways, swirling and anxiety, worries, the cares of this life, all kinds of things. And so, we stay close to You and call upon You to help us navigate those things because we need You, we need Your help. But if this flip could be made and we realized no, it’s not really about those cares and concerns and obligations and responsibilities, it’s about loving each other and revealing God. And some of our paradigms change, and some of our assumptions get challenged, and we invite You into that, Holy Spirit. Lead us into all truth, this is our constant prayer, lead us into the truth that we might know the truth and that the truth might set us free, transforming us, that we might live full, productive, open, happy, fulfilled lives in Your presence. Come into this Jesus, we ask in Your name. Amen.
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And that’s it for today, I’m Brian, I love you and I’ll be waiting for you here, tomorrow.
Prayer and Encouragements:
Good morning, Family, this is John from Texas calling in for my amazing wife. I’ve called in a couple times and want to thank you again for all your prayers. I know my wife listens to every prayer, the community prayer and prays for each of you. And I know that as we continue to lift one another up in prayer, the Lord will break through. I believe prayer is like a muscle that must be exercised daily to see breakthrough, to see benefit, to see change. And so, I continue to pray because I know there’s nothing impossible with the Lord. If He can raise Lazarus out of the grave, He can heal any affliction, He can deal with any problem, there’s nothing that He doesn’t know about and there’s nothing that He doesn’t have a solution for. And so, I know He has a solution and a healing for my wife, as He does for every one of your prayers. And so, we say thank you Lord, for all that You’ve done and all that You’re doing in our lives. And we know that as we hear each of you cry out to You with our different needs, there’s none of them that You don’t hear. And so, Father, we give You the glory for these things. We lift these things up to you and we say, thank You Father for all that You’ve done, all that You’re doing, and all that’s to come in our lives. In Jesus name I pray these things. Amen.
Hey, Daily Audio Bible Family, this is Summer the Songbird in Nebraska. It is May 20th. Ooohh, those prayer requests today. So, Holy Spirit, we life up Our Little Girl, who’s suddenly facing really scary mental illness challenges, Lord. We lift up the family, we want freedom for this child, freedom from any spiritual attack, mental attack, physical attack, Lord. We speak health into this child, into these relationships. And…and comfort her family and help them through a very scary thing and to not give in to or cling to fear but cling to You. In Jesus name. I want to lift up Jeremiah and I think it was Christine in North Carolina. Jeremiah’s moved across the world and is facing so many challenges. And Christine needs to move. Lord, I ask, thank You for moving Jeremiah on this great adventure, to this new place. Please guide him through it and let it be the change he needs. And show Christine the paths she needs, the place she needs to go. These big challenging moves can be so scary and be so hard, and we just know that You are hand is on it. We love You Jesus. Be glorified through all of these things. Praise You, in Jesus name.
Hey, family, it’s Jesse from Washington. I just need prayers. A friend of mine’s sister has had some drug and addiction problems. She’s been on and off the streets for years. She recently overdosed herself and was admitted to the ER. And then, the family, you know, said hey, doctors, let us know before you discharge her so we can get her some help. And she just took off. So now, she’s on the streets. They don’t know where she is, everyone’s stressed out. She has 8 siblings plus a mother and father. So, it’s really affecting a lot of people. So, just, I guess, please pray that her name’s Myra. Just pray that she gets the help that she needs. That Jesus can just open her heart to getting some help and accepting help. And that, she reach out to somebody in the family and starts that process. Alright ya’ll, love you. Thank you, have a good weekend. Bye.
This is Julie and Chris from Texas. And we are just calling in on the 19th of May as we celebrate our 15th anniversary. And just want to call in to give God praise for that and glory. And then also just lift up all of the couples out there. So, we’re just going to read together. So, Lord, we just thank You for Your hand of love over our lives and in receiving Your love we are able to love each other as You love us. And so, I just thank you Father God, for all of the couples out there, that You would just, You would show them love in a way that is new and fresh to them and You would just revive their love for one another in new ways as well, Lord. That You are a God that moves from glory to glory, and we give You praise for that in our own lives, and we speak that over the lives of our brothers and sisters in this community.
It’s hard to remain neutral when it comes to today’s affairs.
Everybody wants God to hear their prayers.
The worlds been given strong dillusion and God is not the author of confusion.
Many things that were once right are now considered to be wrong.
Causing many Christians to questions where they actually belong
In terms of their thinking and perspectives
Their political view and use of infectives
And that paints a picture of the future that looks pretty grim.
But it’s not our job to judge or condemn.
Because we realize there’s still a lot of wheat in the midst of the tears
Especially when it comes to today’s affairs.
We also realize that there’s nothing God can’t change.
And no set of circumstances that he can’t rearrange.
Political correctness and the world ever shifting mood,
Should never form the basis for a Christians attitudes.
Our standard for truth is based on Holy Spirit proof.
And our uncompromising stance is rooted in love.
Give glory and honor to the Father above.
Reflecting His light as we endeavor to live right.
But fervently keeping the faith, especially when it comes to today’s affairs.
Because we realize, there’s still a lot of wheat in the midst of the tares.
blindtony1016@gmail.com I’d like to give a shout out to Delta Alpha Foxtrot and Tony the truck driver who has a son named AJ. Haven’t heard from either one of you in a while. Know you’re both are very much loved, thought of often and prayed for regularly. And once again Brian and the Hardin Family, thank you for this wonderful podcast for God’s Holy Spirit to flow, keep in flowing ya’ll. Alright, bye bye.