Day 84, or March 25.—Forgive us as we forgive others.
Our thoughts today are rooted in 2 Samuel chapter 9 verse 1. David asked, Is there anyone
still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness, for Jonathan's sake?
First, here's the big picture surrounding this verse. King David fights and wins many
battles duly recorded in the book of 2 Samuel. He was a very successful man of war, but all
this confirmed to him that God was right when he told David that he was not suitable to
build a temple. That required a man of peace. David laid a great foundation for the peaceful
period that would come under the rule of his son, Solomon. It was to be Solomon who would
build the temple, but without the victories of David, it couldn't have taken place.
Now today's action step. In ancient days, when the next ruler often massacred their
enemies and all close relatives, it says something about David that he not only spared Mephibosheth,
son of Jonathan, but also regularly reminded him of their reconciliation, as they ate together,
2 Samuel 9 verse 13 tells us this. Today this beautiful word of reconciliation has been
relegated to meaning success in getting two columns of numbers to balance in accounts.
Biblically, it means so much more. We are reminded by the apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians
chapter 5 verses 19 and 20 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting
people's sins against them, and he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are
therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We
implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God.
So just as David was reflecting something of the personality of God in his attitude
to Mephibosheth, so must we reflect our heavenly Father in our treatment of others we meet.
Remember, be reconciled with each other and keep your antennae up today for a suitable
opportunity to offer reconciliation with God to another undeserving sinner like you and
me. More information about being reconciled with God can be found by listening to Day
21 again.