The Lord has promised David that some day he would have Saul in his power to do what seemed right. This time doubtless came in 1 Samuel 24. Saul in the cave was in David's power. How is it we deal with our enemies? Hopefully we don't have people who are intent on killing us, though it does happen to some people. How would we deal with those people? What desires do we have for them? Is it our dream to stand up to those who despise us and reap vengeance on them? Is it our desire to seek their harm? Do we wish for an opportunity to taunt those who would terrorize us? Do we want an opportunity to mock those who would mock us? When we see someone who is more wealthy than we are, do we wish we were wealthy and that person were poor? We can ask the same kind of questions about physical appearance, health, intelligence, happiness, you name it. Fact is, we are not very contented people. If we have the power to be "better" in some way than someone else, we will normally take that opportunity, even to the detriment of the other person. Frankly, if Saul were trying to kill me and I were in David's position, Saul would have come out of the cave wrapped up in his cloak, quite possibly separated from his head.
What is right before God? How do we treat those other people, the people who hate us, who would destroy our lives, or who we perceive as being merely annoying in some way? How does God treat those who deride him, who claim he doesn't exist, who are arrogant and think they know better than he does? In Christ, God died for us while we were exactly that way. Our sin against God deserves death, eternal condemnation, eternal punishment and terror. Before we even knew that, Christ took on the sin of the world and died for everybody's sin. Everybody's sin? Yes, Jesus is portrayed as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He died for the sin of everyone in the world, bar none. His death is applied to all those who are believing recipients of the Word, proclaimed or administered in the Sacraments, which have both verbal and tactile applications of the Word. How did God treat us? He died to forgive our sins. He lives to proclaim that forgiveness.
So we are in God's power to do what seems good. He gives himself for us so we can live. What if the tables were reversed? What do we do before God? Do we reject and deny him, desiring our own way? That's our natural desire. That's the way that leads to condemnation. Do we receive the Word by faith and live in it? That's the way of life. I pray we may receive the Word by faith.
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