THE LORD SPOKE (May 10)

Daily Reflections from Scripture:

Old Testament: II Samuel 18-19

II Samuel 18:1-4

On more than one occasion in his administration as king of Israel, David demonstrated what would today be called "top level management principles". Someone could go through the passages of Scripture that speak of his royal court and write a manual of leadership and administration and a new seminar could be promoted across corporate America on "The David Principle". But those seminars don't usually thrive on a principle that we see demonstrated in this text.

This passage gives us one small insight into David's effectiveness as a leader. He divided his men into groups of manageable size and created a chain-of-command very similar to the advice that Jethro gave to Moses back in Exodus 18 ("teach them...select capable men...have them serve"). David has been teaching his men by example and by word for some time now. He "appointed over them commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds" (II Sam. 18:1) and then he sent them out under three capable leaders - Joab, Abishai, and Itai.

That's not novel to modern principles of administration. But, what interests me is to find that the man at the top of the corporate ladder, able to command tens of thousands, then says (vs. 4), "I will do whatever seems best to you." And, he doesn't just say it, he does it! In this chapter he stays behind instead of leading the troops himself. In the next chapter he reenters Jerusalem and "took his seat in the gateway" (19:8) though his heart was breaking over the death of his son and everything in him wanted to run and hide. Instead, he listens to Joab's advice and stood before the people at their moment of need.

It takes a great leader to trust those around him. And, guess what? Those around him will trust him more when they see this kind of genuine servant-leadership.


New Testament: Romans 13

Nero was the emperor at the time. Maybe it’s never easy but that certainly casts a different light on Paul’s words in Romans 13:1 - “there is no authority except that which God has established.”

Two reasons why God has assigned human government are given:

1. “to do you good” (Rom. 13:4a). Peter adds that this is “to commend those who do right” (I Pet. 3:14b). It is the biblical basis for many forms of community services - roads, postal service, education, and protection from evildoers, both internal and external. It should include also a system of rewards and incentives as motivation.
2. “to bring punishment on the wrongdoer” (Rom. 13:4b). This is the justification for a police force, civil guards, and a standing army. It is also the reason for fines or community service for wrongdoers, including imprisonment and hard labor. It goes all the way to capital punishment (otherwise, what’s the meaning of “bears the sword”?).

Four reasons or motivations are given for obedience to government authority:

1. fear of punishment (Rom. 13:3-5a). This is the outflow of the biblical principle of using force to correct bad conduct.
2. conscience (Rom. 13:5b-7). Living without a clear conscience is unbearable and will eventually crush you.
3. love (Rom. 13:8-10). The only higher commandment is to love God; after that, “love your neighbor” sums up all the rest of God’s law.
4. Jesus (Rom. 13:14). When we are truly clothed with the Lord Jesus, all else will fall into its proper place.

Do you struggle with sinful desires? Are there attractions that you know it’s wrong to give in to, yet the pull to gratify those desires is so great that you often do cave in? While this section speaks of the authority of civil government, it has even more to say about governing yourself. The key comes at the end of the chapter: if we will wrap ourselves in Jesus Christ as Lord of our very existence, we will not be trapped by the desires of our sinful nature. He’ll even take away the thoughts!