“Who is David? And who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants today who are each breaking away from his master. Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men whose origin I do not know?” 1 Samuel 25:10, 11
Nabal was a very rich businessman man. He had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. He was also harsh and wicked in his business dealings.
Nabal means “Fool.”
David had been living in the wilderness...among Nabal’s shepherds. He had a good relationship with the shepherds, had protected them from all sorts of hazards and...when the festival time for shearing sheep arrived...he wanted to join in the celebration. He sent men to ask Nabal for the provisions necessary to throw a party for hundreds of men. David said to the young men, “go to Nabal, in my name and say; “Peace to your household, peace to everyone here! When your shepherds were camped near us we didn’t take advantage of them. They didn’t lose a thing all the time they were with us in Carmel. Ask your young men—they’ll tell you. Now, please be generous with my men—share the feast! Give whatever your heart tells you.”
Of course, fools have no heart...
Nabal tore into them asking, “Who is this David? The country is full of runaway servants these days. Do you think I’m going to take good bread and wine and meat freshly butchered for my sheepshearers and give it to men I’ve never laid eyes on?”
When David heard this he said “That sure was a waste, guarding everything this man had out in the wild so that nothing he had was lost—and now he rewards me with insults. May God do his worst to me if Nabal and his household aren’t dead by morning!”
“Strap on your swords!”
Fortunately, Nabal had a wise wife who interceded for him. Abigail knew such an insult would not go unanswered so gathered up all the necessary provisions and went out to meet David. When she met David she said “My master, don’t dwell on what that idiot Nabal did. He acts out the meaning of his name...Fool. As God lives and as you live, God has kept you from this avenging murder—and may your enemies, end up like Nabal! God is at work in you...you fight God’s battles! As long as you live no evil will stick to you. When God completes all he has promised you and sets you up as prince over Israel, you will not have this guilt of an avenging murder weighing you down. Now take this gift that I, your servant, have brought to you, and give it to the young men who follow you.”
And when God has worked things for good for you, remember me...”
Smart woman! Ten days later Nabal was dead and Abigail became David’s wife.
A Nabal says in his heart “there is no God.” This conveniently allows him to believe everything he has is the result of his own prowess and belongs to him...alone. It allows him to claim “every good and perfect gift come from my own hand!”
We, of course know better. And, when we claim ownership of what belongs to God, there is a price to pay. The price? Well, the simple humility that should mark our lives transforms into arrogance, selfishness and pomposity. When that happens we hoard the blessings God intends us to pass along to others. We make enemies of others and...God. Conversely, if we recognize we are only stewards of God’s benevolence, we find joy in sharing because it is an opportunity honor God and point others to Him. And, “God blesses a cheerful giver.”
How much? Consider Robert G. LeTourneau. He was a prolific inventor of earthmoving machinery. His factories supplied LeTourneau machines which represented nearly 70 percent of the earthmoving equipment and engineering vehicles used by the Allied forces during World War II, and more than half of the 1,500-mile Alcan Highway in Canada was built with LeTourneau equipment. Over the course of his life he secured nearly 300 patents relating to earthmoving equipment, manufacturing processes and machine tools.
It wasn’t always such a success story. They are a Christian family who owned a modest company and went broke...in spite of faithfully tithing. Robert asked God why things had gone awry. At some point God laid it on his heart to tithe 90% of his income rather than 10%. His company exploded with success.
You and I are not promised LeTourneau’s success. We may not hear God ask for 90%. But, we are no different than Mr. LeTourneau. So...what do we have? How much of that are we willing to give away? If the answers are different we have a problem.
On one hand we have LeTourneau. On the other hand we have Nabal. Not a difficult choice.
Live boldly out there today...
No comments:
Post a Comment