Tag: king

Posted in Advent devotions

Pick the next leader

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Michał Parzuchowski on Unsplash

Since I grew up in the United States of America, a representative democracy, I struggle to grasp the selection of a monarch. Candidates for elected office campaign for months before I and others vote for one of them.

A king or a queen is not elected. He or she inherits the throne from their father or mother. A person may have an opinion about the reigning monarch, but their voice has no weight.

When it’s time for Samuel to anoint the next king of Israel, neither his opinion nor anyone else’s matters. God chooses. God chose Saul. That didn’t work out. God chooses the next king, someone after his own heart. God chooses David.

God sends Samuel to Jesse the Bethlehemite to anoint one of his sons as the next king. It must be Jesse’s firstborn, Eliab. Nope. God is looking deeper than appearances. How about the next son, Abinadab? Nope. It’s going to be the youngest son, a good-looking, brave, eloquent, sheep-herding, song-writing musician named David (16:18). I know, that’s an impressive resume!

A thousand years later, the angel Gabriel would announce to Mary that God would give her Spirit-conceived child “the throne of his father David.” No one would choose this child to be king. He would be despised, rejected, and killed. But he would rise and ascend to rule and reign. From the very start he is the King of kings and Lord of lords.

Thank you, Lord, for David. Thanks for his songs, his victories, his descendants, and for Jesus. I would much rather be king or queen, but I am glad that he is my Lord. Only he can give me life!

David gets an ornament on the Jesse Tree; he is the ancestor of Jesus!

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

A downward spiral

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Dan Freeman on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from the book of Judges.

When I read through the rest of Judges, from chapter 9 to the end, I’m amazed at Israel’s downward spiral into idolatry, cruelty, and the abuse of power.

  • Gideon’s son Abimelech kills almost all of his brothers to secure a position ruling over Israel (Judges 9:5)
  • Jephthah sacrifices his own daughter as fulfillment of a stupid vow he made to the Lord (Judges 11:31,35).
  • Samson uses his strength mostly to mess with the Philistines and get women (Judges 13-16).
  • Micah makes his own idol and hires his own personal priest (Judges 17).
  • A Levite chops up his raped and murdered concubine and sends it out everywhere in Israel to spark a war with Benjamin and all but wipe out the tribe (Judges 20).

By the end of the book, the nation has descended into moral, social, political, and spiritual chaos. Just when you think they’ve hit bottom, a new chapter filled with new atrocities begins. And it’s all because “There was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25).

Increasing chaos awaits us, too, unless we have a king. And the king we need is Jesus.

Posted in 2021 Advent devotions

A new king

Posted on by William Douthwaite

“The Road to Bethlehem” Advent devotion for November 30, 2021. Photo by Hassan Pasha on Unsplash

“The Lord said to Samuel, ‘How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.'” (1 Samuel 16:1)

King Saul turned out to be a big disappointment. Rather than following God’s instructions, he made up his own rules. God decided to start over, selecting the next king from another family. It’s time for Samuel to take the road to Bethlehem to anoint one of the sons of Jesse.

Saul knows what’s going on. He knows he’s blown it. If Saul found out what Samuel was up to, he would definitely stop him (1 Samuel 16:2-3). It’s trachery! So Samuel has to make it look like he’s going to Bethlehem to offer up a sacrifice. Once there he’ll be able to meet with Jesse and select the next king.

Yes, we are talking about religion and politics. Succession from one ruler to the next in the bible is often messy and violent. Politicians were making back room deals 1,500 years before Jesus was born. And then when Jesus was born, Herod sent soldiers down the road to Bethlehem to kill the children, among whom he hoped would be the king of the Jews.

Imagine being Jesse. You’ve been invited to a clandestine occasion with the prophet Samuel. He wants you to bring your sons, too. Suddenly you’re part of a plot against the throne! Samuel anoints your youngest son, David, as the next king. If Saul finds out, you’re going to be on the hit list, too.

Years later Jesus would tell his disciples that they would be brought before kings and governors because of their allegiance to Jesus (Luke 21:12). Their own families would turn them in (Luke 21:16). They would find themselves between a rock and a hard place, wedged between the kingdoms of this world and the kingdom of God.

Isn’t that exactly where Joseph and Mary found themselves? Her child would inherit the throne of his father David (Luke 1:32). But they would be on their way to Bethlehem because of a decree from Caesar Augustus (Luke 2:1).

It’s a tension that always has and always will tug at the loyalties of God’s people. We know that the governing authorities are God’s gift to us to keep the peace and protect us. We also know that we must obey God rather than men. A life of faith often walks a tightrope between the two. Just like Jesus, who paid his taxes and stood trial before the Roman governor. Just like Jesus who submitted to the will of his father and fulfilled the law for us. Just like the apostles who were imprisoned for talking about Jesus. Just like the apostles who were compelled to speak about what they had seen and heard about Jesus.

Are you struggling to navigate a path between religions and politics? You’re in good company with the faithful of old and of today.

Thank you, Lord, for the gift of governing authorities. Thank you for being my Lord. Guide me through the tension between these two kingdoms until that day when every knee bows to you. Amen.