Dangerous Questions

3And when David and his men came to the city, they found it burned with fire, and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. 4Then David and the people who were with him raised their voices and wept until they had no more strength to weep. 5David’s two wives also had been taken captive, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel. 6And David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because all the people were bitter in soul, each for his sons and daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.

7And David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech, “Bring me the ephod.” So Abiathar brought the ephod to David. 8And David inquired of the LORD, “Shall I pursue after this band? Shall I overtake them?” He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake and shall surely rescue.”

1 Samuel 30:3-8 (ESV)

I don’t know about you, but I have a gut reaction to David’s inquiry of God in regards making a rescue of the taken wives and children…Duh! Do you even have to ask? Why? Go for it! Go get them!. I’m sure someone would say, “of course I’d ask God first!” Hmm, somehow I doubt even the most devout would really do that when the rubber met the road.

Look at our reactions to tragedies (i.e., natural disasters, wars, crimes, etc.). We want to do something now. I suspect that this is a pretty universal reaction. Yet, David was willing to put his desires on hold to confirm that God’s will would be fulfilled by his rescue of those taken. God told him, go. Yet, David was taking the risk that God would say, “no”. That requires both commitment and a lot of faith. Granted, it is a mere philosophical question as to what David would have done had the answer been,”no”? However, it is worth pondering.

And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

Luke 9:23 (ESV)

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