I am reading the bible chronologically this year. I have just finished reading about King David. I thought this would be a great time to read my first Beth Moore book. This Beth Moore book draws from 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Chronicles, and Psalms. Each chapter has a biblical foundation: chapters and verses it draws its teaching from. Beth Moore also shares some personal insights; some chapters definitely have a devotional feel! There are 52 chapters in all taking readers from Hannah's story to the beginning of Solomon's reign.
Favorite quotes:
How do you respond to the fact that the only perfect person in Christ’s genealogy is Christ Himself?
David was not divine or perfect, as we will quickly discover, but God has used him to teach us truths about the One who is.
I believe God usually takes the building blocks of our lives and uses them to His glory.
Never assume that to follow Him means to throw away who He has made you to be. Few things seem less spiritual than keeping a bunch of smelly sheep, yet God used David’s skills for eternal purposes.
Our God is incredibly “public opinion resistant.”
The sovereign God loves deeply, but He will not be disrespected. He will not permit us to take Him for granted. He will not honor our neglect.
David was a complex man. He could be both passionate and withdrawn; dependable and shocking; righteous and wicked—just like us.
A person with godly humility looks to the Master. He or she neither exalts nor denigrates self, because to do either is to make self the center of our universe. When we’re really serving Christ, our reputations and abilities simply cease to be so important. We must decrease that He may increase.
Self-consciousness constitutes the opposite of God-consciousness.
You see, if a person fears God, he or she has no reason to fear anything else. On the other hand, if a person does not fear God, then fear becomes a way of life. David feared God so he did not fear Goliath. Saul did not fear God. Thus he feared the opinions of others, the enemy, and even a loyal young boy who played the harp.
Studying God’s Word is habit-forming. Keep praying for a hunger and thirst for His Word. Like David, God doesn’t want you feeding from common loaves. He desires to feed you with the bread of His Presence. His table is always set.
David’s standard for measuring sin was not the wickedness of Saul, but the holiness of God.
I think one reason David remained a man after God’s own heart was his unwillingness to turn from God, even when he felt negative emotions. David allowed his anger and fear to motivate him to seek more insight into the heart of God.
Only through repentance will God “cover” us and “clothe” us with His loving forgiveness. Only when we run to Him in the nakedness of our sin will He wrap us up with “garments of salvation” and a “robe of righteousness” (Isa. 61:10). David was trying to cover his tracks. God wanted to cover his sins. The latter means life. The former means death—to something or someone.
Have you noticed how the further we wander outside of God’s will, the more we judge others and the less we show mercy?
When he fell on his face before God, the prodigal returned home to the place he belonged. He was bankrupt in soul, demoralized, and terrified, but he was back. Too many months had passed since he had last entered the indescribable place of God’s presence, but he still recognized the Father.
Spiritual living does not come naturally—sin does. The first step to victory is acknowledging the authority of God in our lives.
© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible
1 comment:
I'm reading this with a women's Bible study at church. I'm amazed by how much there is too learn from David's story.
Post a Comment