Absalom is setting himself up as the champion of the
people. He rises early and comes to
stand in the gate of the city so that he is available to those who need
justice. He holds himself out as wise
and just for those who live outside Jerusalem and if he were king they would
receive justice, unlike David who hasn't even appointed anyone to deal with
those who are outsiders. In addition, he
is a man of the people, refusing to let them pay homage to him, pulling them to
him and kissing them as equals. Was David
unaware of his son's actions? His inaction
to stop his son created a situation whereby Absalom stole the hearts of the
people and now he was stronger than even the king. David gets word of this revolt and prepares
to leave the city. I have seen this
happen in the church and it is a sad thing to see. Sometimes the love of a pastor for another
leader is so great they cannot or will not see or hear the truth about the
other leader. It all eventually comes
out in the end but the pain is terrible.
What is it about power and position that attracts us to our
own detriment? James and John have just
heard Jesus talk about His suffering and death and choose the moments shortly
afterward to ask for seats at His right and left hand when He comes into His
kingdom. What chutzpah! What cluelessness! Did they not hear Him? Unsurprisingly the other ten disciples are
greatly offended by their play for power and position. Group dynamics and the health of the band of
disciples is certainly threatened by their actions. It never ceases to amaze me how much time we
spend seeking these things even in the church or complaining to God, our
friends and others about being overlooked rather than simply serving as Jesus
said we are to do. At the end of the day
does it really matter? All that matters
is that we did what we were given to do and did it out of love for Him or
others.
Not surprisingly the Jews came against Paul based on the testimony
of others about things Paul hadn't done.
One of the things they accused him of was speaking against the temple,
the very thing they finally laid on Jesus' shoulders as the claim that would
stick. Paul is also falsely accused of
defiling the temple by taking non-Jews into its precincts, based on a
supposition that since they had seen him with a Greek he must have done
so. The "trial" also sounds
similar to Jesus' in that varied accusations were being leveled against him,
not one particular charge. The Romans
don't know what to make of it so they arrest him for later. Paul was trying to humble himself before them
and it all went wrong. Pleasing people
who are already seeking to destroy you rarely turns out like you hope, better
not to try to please anyone but God.
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