I'd like to encourage all of
us to remember Lance and Robin Heller in prayer. They are leaving
tomorrow on their journey back to New Zealand for the next two
months, the Lord willing. Let's keep them in our prayers
and our thoughts. The Lord bless them and their
traveling and the time that they're able to spend there. Now, if
you will, let's open our Bibles once again to 2 Samuel. And tonight,
let's go to chapter 20. 2 Samuel chapter 20. This chapter continues, of course,
with the life of David, his life after Absalom's rebellion. And I'm going to divide my message
into three parts or three divisions. First, we'll look at verses one
and two. There happened to be. There happened
to be. And there happened to be there
a man of Bilal, whose name was Sheba. son of Betra, a Benjamite,
and he blew a trumpet and said, We have no part in David, neither
have we inheritance in the son of Jesse. Every man to his tent,
so Israel. So every man of Israel went up
from David and followed Sheba, the son of Mithra. But the men
of Judah clave unto their king from Jordan even to Jerusalem. As I began to read this chapter
and pray and meditate as to what the Lord might have me to say
tonight, the first thing that gripped me are those four words,
there happen to be. There happen to be. And my thought
was, does anything in the life of a child of God just happen
to be? David, he was a child of God. He's called the sweet singer
of Israel. God said he was a man after his
own heart. But I looked at these words,
there happened to be, and I asked myself that question, does anything
in the life of a child of God just happen to be? You know,
when you read these words, you read these verses, it seems so
accidental. It seems so accidental that there
just happened to be a man by the name of Sheba here. What does the Bible say? What
does the Bible teach about that which seems so fortuitous, that
just happens by chance? It happens by accident. What
does the Bible teach about things like this? Well, the Bible teaches
there is no such thing. That's what the Bible teaches.
There is no such thing as fortuitous events or luck or chance happenings. No, the Bible teaches there are
no such things. The scriptures tell us that what
takes place in this world is what God has decreed should take
place from before the foundation of the world. Nothing ever surprises
God. God never learns anything. God knows everything before it
comes to pass. And he knows it because he has
ordained it. that it should come to pass.
That's what the Bible teaches about these things that just
seem so accidental, they just happen to be, or they happen
to be. The scripture in the New Testament,
James, I believe it was, who said, known unto God are all
his works from the beginning of the world. We know the scripture
says, in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth, but
from the beginning, God knows everything that's going to take
place. There's no chance. People talk
about luck. There is no such thing as luck.
There's providence. There's God's decree as he rules
and reigns in his world over all things, over all peoples,
at all times. That's the God of the Bible.
That's what the Word of God teaches. You know, in Ephesians chapter
one in verse 11, what a wonderful chapter there when we think about
God choosing a people from before the foundation of the world and
redeeming those people by the blood of Christ and predestinating
us unto the adoption of sons. But the apostle goes on there
in verse 11 to tell us that God worketh all things, all things,
all things. God worketh all things after
the counsel of his own will. You know, when we read that word
counsel, concerning God's decrees and God's purposes, That word
counsel reminds us of God's infinite wisdom. There's a proverb which
says in the multitude of counselors, there won't if not wisdom. And God uses that word to enforce
and to encourage us that everything that God has ordained is a product
of infinite wisdom. God makes no mistakes, never
has and never will. No. Arthur Pink, in an article that
he wrote about God's decrees, including all things, pointed
out this very important thing concerning sin. You see, that's
always a question that everyone has, and rightly so. If God works
all things, if God has ordained all things that come to pass
in this world, well, what about sin? Well, Mr. Pink, and I believe he had it
right when he said that God is the orderer and controller of
sin. He is not the author of it in
the same way that he is of that which is good. He is the author
of good. We know the scriptures tell us
that God cannot be tempted with sin, neither tempteth he any
man. And if God was the author of
moral evil, of sin, then he would not be holy. He would not be
the holy God that he is. Let me read that quote in its
entirety. He is the orderer and controller. He's not the author of it in
the same way that he is the author of good. Sin could not proceed
from a holy God by positive and direct creation. but only by
decretive permission and negative action. What does that mean? It means that if God just lets
a person do what's in that person's heart. And you know the greatest
example of that, of course, is the crucifixion of Christ. He was crucified according to
God's determinate will, his foreknowledge and determinate will. But yet
men did it by wicked hands, by wicked hands. That's what the
apostle Peter said, isn't it, on the day of Pentecost. So what
did the Lord Jesus Christ teach about things which seem so fortuitous? Look with me, if you will, in
Matthew, in Matthew chapter 10. And I'll begin in verse 28, Matthew
chapter 10, verse 28. Fear not them which kill the
body, but are not able to kill the soul. But rather fear him
that is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Or not
to spare a soul for a farthing. Now, a farthing evidently was
the lowest piece of money that they had anything to do with
at that time. We might say a penny. That's
the smallest amount in our money, a penny. Are not two sparrows
sold for a penny? And one of them shall not fall
on the ground without your father. But the very hairs of your head
are all numbers. Fear you not, therefore, you
are of more value than many sparrows. Can we even begin to imagine
the population of the birds in this world? I looked that up
a few years ago, and I was surprised to find that you can actually
find how many birds there are. Of course, nobody's counted them
all, That's just estimating, I'm sure. But how many sparrows,
how many of these small birds that are not worth even a penny
are in the world at one time? And yet our Lord, the Lord Jesus
Christ, he declared that not one of them, though of very little
worth, of very little value to man, Not one of them can fall
to the earth without your Father, without your Heavenly Father.
What does the Lord Jesus Christ teach about these things that
men call luck and accidents? He teaches the very same thing
as I've already said the Bible teaches. There are no such things.
No. In this text, and I, if you turn
back here to 2 Samuel 20, In this text, this man happened
to be there because God continued to fulfill his word to David. His word to David, which he had
spoken through the prophet, which told David, now therefore,
the sword shall never depart from thine house. This man just
happened to be there because God's providence, God's word
would be fulfilled in this way. You notice the chapter begins
with the word and. And is a connecting word, isn't
it? And actually, it helps if we go back into the previous
chapter, chapter 19, and at verse 41, we read, and behold, Now, this has to do with bringing
David back to Jerusalem. Remember, he had fled from his
son Absalom. He'd gone to the farthest part
of the land of Israel, across the Jordan, and now Absalom has
been destroyed and he has to come back. He has to be brought
back to his palace. And all the men of Israel came
to the king and said unto the king, Why have our brethren,
the men of Judah, stolen thee away? The men of Judah, they
came and they began to escort David, to carry David, to transport
David and his family back to Jerusalem. And the men of Israel,
there's 10 tribes at least included in that. Why have our brethren,
the men of Judah, stolen thee away? and have brought the king
and his household and all David's men with him over Jordan. Why
have they done that? And all the men of Judah answered
the men of Israel, because, here's the reason, because the king
is near of kin to us, wherefore then be ye angry for this matter. Have we eaten at all of the king's
cost or hath he given us any gift? The men of Israel answered
the men of Judah and said, we have 10 parts in the king. In
other words, we represent 10 tribes. We represent 10 tribes. We've got 10 parts in the king. And we have also more right in
David than you, you the tribe of Judah. You have only one part,
according to their reasoning. Why then did you despise us,
that our advice should not be first had in bringing back our
king? Now notice this, and the words
of the men of Judah, were fiercer. Their words were fiercer than
the words of the men of Israel. It would be amazing as you read
this and stop and consider it. It would be amazing if we didn't
know something about human nature as we read this. All of these
tribes had been willing just a few weeks before, maybe a few
days before, to see their king flee, and none of them came to
his defense. Not the 10 tribes of Israel,
nor the tribe of Judah or Benjamin. None of them. And now that the
rebel has been destroyed in bringing him back They began to fight
and to argue over who has the most right to bring him back. You know what Joseph, when he
revealed himself to his brothers in Egypt, you know, they came
down there the first time, he didn't tell them who he was.
But when they came back that second time, Joseph revealed
himself and his question was, is my father yet alive? And they said, yes, Jacob, he's
still alive. And Joseph sent the wagons and
everything they would need to transport Jacob and their wives
and children all back into Egypt where they would be provided
for. But Joseph told his brothers, 11 of them, see that you fall
not out along the way. That's just human nature, isn't
it? It's human nature, it seems like, to fall out, and sometimes
over the smallest thing. And sometimes Christians, and
it's a shame, but it's the truth, sometimes Christians even, sometimes
in the same church, worshiping the same God, loving the same
Savior, will let some minor thing And don't read into this that
I'm saying there's something like this going on in this church.
If it is, I don't know about it. But it does go on in churches
at times, doesn't it? Just some minor thing, someone
says something or doesn't say something to somebody, and someone
gets their feelings heard, and people fall out on the way. Here these men were. They had
been free before to defend David, to protect him, but they didn't
move a muscle. And now, when they see that one
tribe is involved or engaged in bringing him back, then they
find fault, and they have a problem there. And the words, it says,
of Judah were more fierce, fiercer than the words of Israel. Well,
there just happened to be a man of Belial. Now that word Belial
means a wicked man, a wicked man. And he was there to lead
the revolt, to take advantage of this conflict. And when we read that every man,
notice in verse two, it says, so every man of Israel went up
from David. We're not talking here about
every single man in the nation of Israel. They were not all
there. There were representatives of the 10 tribes. Yes. How many? I don't know. But when
this man said what he said, he blew a trumpet and said, we have
no part in David. Neither have we inheritance in
the son of Jesse. Every man to his tents, O Israel. For they began to follow him.
There happened to be a man. Think of how many men may have
been there. How many men may have kept their
mouth shut. But there was one man. who cried
out, every man to his tent. And he was a leader and men followed
him. Before I go on to my second point,
let us think of the comfort for every child of God in knowing
that God rules over all things. We could say now that David begins
at this point a new affliction. He wrote in Psalm 34, many are
the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out
of them all. This is a different affliction.
He just finished with that first affliction with his son revolting,
now here's a new affliction. But isn't it a comfort in knowing
that God rules and reigns over all things. I quoted that verse. He said,
Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivereth
him out of them all. Take your concordance sometime
and look up the word trouble and just look at the many times
it is used in the book of Psalms. David was a man who knew trouble. And all of God's children, at
times, are going to know trouble in this world. No one is going
to escape. In the world, our Lord said,
you shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer. Why? Because I have overcome the world. Yes, no one's going to escape,
none of God's children, But when we come into trouble, here are
three things that I've thought of that we should remind ourselves.
Number one, ultimately, whatever it is, whatever the trouble is,
it is from the hand of my father. Whatever it is. It didn't just
happen. Not some fortuitous event. No, it is from the hand of my
father. And he's too wise to make a mistake. And he's too good to allow anything
that would not be for my good. Number two. It is part of the
all things that work together for my good. I try to remind
myself of that. When something happens that just
not quite what I was expecting or what I would like or rather
have happen, it's just one part of the all things that work together
for my good. I know that. You say, how do
you know that? Because God tells me that. And we know, I love
the words, the text in the New Testament and Paul's letters
when he says, and we know, we're not doubtful. No, we know that
all things work together for good to them who love God, to
those who are the called according to his purpose. How do we know
it? By his word. He cannot lie. And third, This too shall pass. Whatever it is, this too shall
pass. You know, when a goldsmith puts
that precious gold into the refiner's pot and brings that heat up to
a certain point, when it reaches that point, he removes the heat. When the gold, the impurities
that are in the gold, when it reaches that certain point, It's
time to take it off the fire. And whatever trouble and affliction
that God sends our way, we know he's in control of the fire.
Amen. Here's a second thought. A deceitful
kiss, verses 8 through 10. A deceitful kiss. When they were
at the Great Stone, which is in Gibeon, Amasa went before
them and Joab's garment that he had put on was girded unto
him, and upon it a girdle with a sword fastened upon his loins,
and the sheath thereof. And as he went forth, it fell
out. And Joab said to Amasa, Art thou in health, my brother?
And Joab took Amasa by the beard with the right hand to kiss him,
but Amasa took no heed to the sword that was in Joab's hand,
so he smote him therewith in the fifth rib. and shed out his
bowels to the ground and struck him not again, and he died. Ambassador had followed Absalom. Absalom had made him the commander
of his army. And for some reason, and I would
say some strange reason, it seems to me, that David rewarded that
man's disloyalty by making him now the commander of the army
of Israel, replacing Joab, and making this rebel who had been
a rebel, making him now the commander of his army. His first order
David gave to this man was to assemble the men of Judah, that
is the fighting men of Judah, have them here within three days,
And we're going to pursue Sheba, this man who led this revolt.
We're going to pursue him. Have the army of Judah here in
three days. Well, he didn't obey. Third day, he wasn't there. And
so Abishai, Joab's brother, lets those who were there And Joab,
of course, who had been replaced, he went along with them. But
when he found Amasa, when they met, he took him by the beard,
kissed him. But with his other hand, he put
that sword between his fifth rib, destroyed him. His kissing him has to remind
us of Judas, right? Of how he betrayed the Lord Jesus
Christ. That night he told those soldiers,
when they came to arrest the Savior, you will know him by
my kiss. The man I kiss, that's the man.
Take him, take him. The Lord, speaking to Judas that
night, said, Judas, Betrayest thou the Son of Man with a kiss? Don't you know, don't you know
tonight? In our time, 2,000 years have
passed. Our Lord said that the rich man,
Abraham told the rich man, rememberest thou? Don't you know, Judas? has remembered all these many
days that with a kiss he betrayed the Savior. So close. Let that sink in. So close. So close to Christ for three
and a half years and yet betrayed the Lord with a kiss. Well, the third, and I'll just
mention this. Sheba went on, my point is one
dies in the place of many, verse 22. One man dies in the place
of many, verse 22. Then the woman went unto all
the people in her wisdom, and they cut off the head of Sheba,
the son of Bitzra, and cast it out to Joab, and he blew a trumpet,
And they returned from the city, every man to his tent. This man who had led the rebellion,
he made his way to a town by the name of Abel. And the city,
of course, had walls around it. And Joab and the army of Israel,
they were ready to batter the walls down to come in. And a wise woman, the scripture
said, A wise woman came to the side of the wall, and she said,
I want to speak to Joab. And word got to Joab, and he
came, and she said, are you Joab? Yeah, I'm Joab. Are you going
to destroy this whole city because of the rebellion of one man?
He said, no. You deliver Sheba. And she did. She went to the
men of that city and they destroyed Sheba, cut off his head and threw
it over the wall. And just as soon as they did,
Joab blew the trumpet. War's over. It's over. Cannot help but remember the
Lord Jesus Christ died in the place of many. One man in the
place of the many. How many? As many as the Father
gave him. That's how many. And just as
soon as he cried on the cross, it is finished. God's people
were delivered. Delivered from sin, from the
curse of the law, from the power of sin, and from the wrath of
God, which is to come. I pray the Lord would bless these
words. You know, I don't want to be
guilty of just teaching a history lesson. This is history. If you look
in this book, 2 Samuel, it's in that section, the historical
books of the Bible. But I want us, as we go through,
it's been my desire and hope to bring out truths to us as
we go through. Read through the chapter on your
own and then you'll get more out of it. But three practical
lessons I believe. Let's sing a hymn before we're
done.