FRIDAY November 2, 2018
Devastating Defeat
So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and every man fled to his tent. There was a very great slaughter, and there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers. Also the ark of God was captured; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, died.
1 Samuel 4:10-11
Israel did not learn their lessons. They went out to battle, but God was not with them. Previously, four thousand men of the army in the field died, but as the judgment of God began to roll through the camp, thirty thousand died, including Eli’s two sons––incredible.
David’s sin of adultery with Bathsheba was serious. David and his family suffered the terrible consequences. He sincerely repented of his sin (Psalm 51). When David willfully numbered the people, the consequences were even worse. David once more recognized his sin:
And David’s heart condemned him after he had numbered the people. So David said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done; but now, I pray, O Lord, take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly” (2 Samuel 24:10).
When God gave David three choices for the consequences of his sin (2 Samuel 24:11-14), he fell on the mercy of God, rather than into the hands of his enemies. His sin of numbering the people cost the lives of seventy thousand men: So the Lord sent a plague upon Israel from the morning till the appointed time. From Dan to Beersheba seventy thousand men of the people died (2 Samuel 24:15).
We need to learn the lessons God is trying to teach us. Making a willful choice to sin is very foolish. Understand, the consequences of sin will not only affect your life, but it will hurt those in your family, and the lives of many other people around you.
Sin is three-dimensional and has consequences in three directions: toward God, toward self and toward society. It alienates from God, degrades self and injures others.
~A.W. Tozer~
For more from Raul Ries, please visit Somebodylovesyouradio.org!
