1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:06,680 Now on these Sunday mornings we’re building a picture of what it will take to successfully 2 00:00:06,680 –> 00:00:14,860 navigate your way through life like the Titanic, we live in dangerous waters. 3 00:00:14,860 –> 00:00:19,639 We move through areas of life in which there are many places in which we could take a plunge 4 00:00:19,639 –> 00:00:21,719 to disaster. 5 00:00:21,719 –> 00:00:27,840 And our aim on these Sunday mornings is that we identify them so that we can avoid them. 6 00:00:27,840 –> 00:00:32,680 And over these weeks we’ve been building up a number of key strategies that are going 7 00:00:32,680 –> 00:00:38,619 to be critical for you to avoid taking a plunge to disaster in life. 8 00:00:38,619 –> 00:00:45,040 The first, that we saw from the story of Cain was, deal with your anger, then from the story 9 00:00:45,040 –> 00:00:51,619 of Aesop we learned that it’s important to establish true values, from Balaam’s story 10 00:00:51,700 –> 00:00:58,700 we learned to live what you believe. From Korah, submit to authority, from Samson cultivate 11 00:01:00,240 –> 00:01:05,379 self control, and now today we come to the story of Absalom. 12 00:01:05,379 –> 00:01:12,379 And the principle that we’re going to learn is simply this, grow through your wounds. 13 00:01:13,820 –> 00:01:20,820 If you want to avoid a plunge to disaster, then grow through your wounds. 14 00:01:21,860 –> 00:01:28,860 For every one of us in some way and in some degree has wounds. 15 00:01:29,239 –> 00:01:35,559 You cannot go through life in this world without being wounded in some way. 16 00:01:35,559 –> 00:01:42,559 The great question is, what are you going to do with your wounds? 17 00:01:43,839 –> 00:01:49,180 Now last week, we learned from the story of a man whose passions were out of control. 18 00:01:49,180 –> 00:01:53,900 This week we’re going to flip and look at the other side of the story. 19 00:01:53,900 –> 00:02:00,900 What are you going to do, if you are wounded by someone whose passions are out of control? 20 00:02:04,000 –> 00:02:10,500 Today we’re going to follow a sensitive and a painful story of abuse within a family. 21 00:02:10,500 –> 00:02:16,960 Our focus is not going to be on the person who committed this terrible crime, but it’s 22 00:02:16,960 –> 00:02:20,039 going to be on those who were wounded by it. 23 00:02:20,039 –> 00:02:27,039 Now, I think that it’s important that we do this. We often in church speak about the sinner. 24 00:02:27,039 –> 00:02:33,119 What do you do if you have sinned? But today I want to speak about those that have been 25 00:02:33,119 –> 00:02:36,139 sinned against. 26 00:02:36,139 –> 00:02:42,639 What do you do when someone sins terribly against you? 27 00:02:42,639 –> 00:02:47,880 You begin to experience deep pain, not because of your own actions, but because of somebody 28 00:02:47,880 –> 00:02:54,100 else’s actions. The wounds are deep, and they can also be dangerous, 29 00:02:54,100 –> 00:03:00,559 and only God knows all of the wounds that have been experienced and are even experienced 30 00:03:00,559 –> 00:03:04,820 now within this congregation. 31 00:03:05,100 –> 00:03:13,300 Some may have been wounded within the family. Some have been wounded by a friend. 32 00:03:13,300 –> 00:03:20,300 Some have been wounded in business. Some have been wounded by another believer. 33 00:03:20,300 –> 00:03:25,139 But however it has happened, there has come some experience in your life where your trust 34 00:03:25,139 –> 00:03:31,779 has been betrayed, your confidence has been broken, and you feel that you have come face 35 00:03:31,779 –> 00:03:38,080 to face with evil itself. Now I want to invite you to open your Bibles 36 00:03:38,080 –> 00:03:46,899 then at 2nd Samuel and chapter 13, as we follow this story. 2nd Samuel and chapter 13. And 37 00:03:46,899 –> 00:03:54,699 we’re going to go behind some closed doors, this morning. 38 00:03:54,699 –> 00:04:01,139 So come with me as you open your Bible, please, into the palace of King David. 39 00:04:01,339 –> 00:04:06,720 It’s a magnificent home. David lives there with his large blended 40 00:04:06,720 –> 00:04:14,500 family. He sinned against God, in that he had many wives. People walking past the 41 00:04:14,500 –> 00:04:19,459 palace where this large family lived would have thought how marvelous it 42 00:04:19,459 –> 00:04:25,500 would have been to live there. I mean think of it, this large family, this 43 00:04:25,700 –> 00:04:31,640 magnificent home, plenty of money, just about everything you could 44 00:04:31,640 –> 00:04:37,440 imagine. I mean think about growing up in a home with these kinds of resources, I 45 00:04:37,440 –> 00:04:43,339 mean this is a dream isn’t it? Well actually, the reality was very different 46 00:04:43,339 –> 00:04:48,100 because behind the public face this was a family in crisis, this was no dream. 47 00:04:48,100 –> 00:04:54,480 Behind closed doors family life in the palace was a nightmare. 48 00:04:54,640 –> 00:05:01,760 Amnon was David’s oldest son and he was having serious problems with his 49 00:05:01,760 –> 00:05:09,260 thought life. He kept thinking about Tamar who was his step-sister David’s 50 00:05:09,260 –> 00:05:14,779 daughter by another wife. She was the Bible tells us a beautiful young woman 51 00:05:15,640 –> 00:05:24,220 and Amnon would watch her around the palace. Soon his thoughts about her were 52 00:05:24,220 –> 00:05:31,519 out of control and in 2nd Samuel chapter 13 we read that one day a terrible thing 53 00:05:31,519 –> 00:05:40,640 happened. Amnon invited his step sister into his room and he abused her. She came 54 00:05:40,679 –> 00:05:45,920 to give him a meal because she thought that he was ill, but he was only 55 00:05:45,920 –> 00:05:51,160 pretending and when she came close to feed him this food he grabbed her wrists 56 00:05:51,160 –> 00:06:02,160 and he would not let go. It’s a terrible story and it’s in the Bible and you 57 00:06:02,279 –> 00:06:10,019 know why? Because terrible things like this happen in this sorry world. 58 00:06:10,019 –> 00:06:16,940 We live, and if your eyes are open to any newspaper you will know it, in a world of 59 00:06:16,940 –> 00:06:23,019 terrible abuse. We hear increasingly about abuse within the family. Our courts 60 00:06:23,019 –> 00:06:31,140 are full of it. We hear about abuses that take place on a date. We need sexual 61 00:06:31,339 –> 00:06:38,619 harrassment policies at work. This is the world in which we live, it is terribly 62 00:06:38,619 –> 00:06:46,059 sad. But I want you to know that God speaks to the world you live in. The 63 00:06:46,059 –> 00:06:51,260 Bible is not a book about some kind of airy, fairy, fancy sort of world up in 64 00:06:51,260 –> 00:06:58,299 heaven. It is a book in which God speaks about life as it is in this world, in all 65 00:06:58,339 –> 00:07:04,220 of its pain, with all of its atrocities. And I’m glad it’s that way. 66 00:07:04,220 –> 00:07:08,559 Because even to come to this passage of Scripture that we open today is a 67 00:07:08,559 –> 00:07:18,339 reminder that God knows your deepest wounds, even if nobody else does. Timar 68 00:07:18,339 –> 00:07:24,579 came running from Amnon’s room, absolutely devastated. Verse 18, she was 69 00:07:24,859 –> 00:07:29,239 a richly ornamented robe, the kind of garment that the virgin daughters of the 70 00:07:29,239 –> 00:07:32,980 king wore. She must have looked magnificent in this robe. Can you imagine 71 00:07:32,980 –> 00:07:39,640 the princess in this beautiful beautiful robe? But when she came running from 72 00:07:39,640 –> 00:07:47,540 Amnon’s room, it was so different. Verse 19, Timar put ashes on her head. She tore 73 00:07:47,540 –> 00:07:52,420 the ornamented robe she was wearing. She put her hand on her head and she went 74 00:07:52,559 –> 00:08:03,940 away, weeping aloud as she went. This happened 3,000 years ago. But your heart 75 00:08:03,940 –> 00:08:10,619 goes out to this woman even as we look at this story today, doesn’t it? Who can 76 00:08:10,619 –> 00:08:16,540 describe the pain that she must have felt from what happened? You feel you 77 00:08:16,540 –> 00:08:24,820 want to pause and just weep with her and embrace her if you could. There was one 78 00:08:24,820 –> 00:08:33,739 person who did that. It was her brother, Absalom. She ran straight to him. As her 79 00:08:33,739 –> 00:08:40,140 full brother, she seemed to have an instinctive trust in him. I don’t think 80 00:08:40,140 –> 00:08:44,919 that what he said to her was particularly helpful. The Bible records 81 00:08:45,719 –> 00:08:51,280 it doesn’t particularly commend it, but what is clear is that Absalom did care 82 00:08:51,280 –> 00:08:59,640 for his sister, embraced her, he took her into his home, he protected her and she 83 00:08:59,640 –> 00:09:08,219 felt safe with him. We don’t read any more about Tamar. The story that the 84 00:09:08,419 –> 00:09:15,400 Bible follows is the story of how this affected Absalom and what he did with 85 00:09:15,400 –> 00:09:21,400 his wounds. And that’s the story that we’re going to follow through the Bible 86 00:09:21,400 –> 00:09:30,760 this morning. Absalom was absolutely furious about what happened, but he 87 00:09:30,880 –> 00:09:39,780 didn’t say a word about it to anybody. Deep in his heart he and the older 88 00:09:39,780 –> 00:09:49,580 brother determined that he was going to get revenge. Verse 22, Absalom never said 89 00:09:49,580 –> 00:09:57,960 a word to Amnon, either good or bad. He hated Amnon, because he had disgraced 90 00:09:58,119 –> 00:10:03,960 his sister Timar. Now, talk about a dysfunctional family. I mean, as we take a 91 00:10:03,960 –> 00:10:08,479 look behind these closed doors, this terrible thing has happened in the 92 00:10:08,479 –> 00:10:16,299 family and nobody is saying a word about it. Absalom will not speak to Amnon, won’t 93 00:10:16,299 –> 00:10:21,260 say anything to him, either good or bad. If Amnon walks in the room, Absalom 94 00:10:21,260 –> 00:10:25,659 walks out. You could feel the hatred but nobody 95 00:10:25,659 –> 00:10:33,799 addressed the problem. And that was how it was, the Bible says, for two full years. 96 00:10:33,799 –> 00:10:39,299 Then one day, Absalom was out shearing his sheep, or at least supervising the 97 00:10:39,299 –> 00:10:44,059 shears who were doing that work. And when the sheep shearing was finished, Absalom 98 00:10:44,059 –> 00:10:49,059 thought that it was time for a celebration. So he persuaded all of the 99 00:10:49,099 –> 00:10:57,520 king’s sons to come and to join him, including Amnon. Then we read in verse 28, 100 00:10:57,520 –> 00:11:05,539 …”Absalom ordered his men, Listen, when Amnon is in high spirits from drinking 101 00:11:05,539 –> 00:11:14,919 wine, and I say to you, Strike Amnon down, then kill him. Don’t be afraid. Have I not 102 00:11:15,359 –> 00:11:20,659 the order, be strong and be brave.” And that’s exactly what happened. Absalom’s men did 103 00:11:20,659 –> 00:11:27,200 what he ordered and then, we’re told, the rest of the king’s sons jumped on their 104 00:11:27,200 –> 00:11:36,500 mules and fled. Now, there are two things to notice at this point in the story. The 105 00:11:36,500 –> 00:11:42,880 first is that nobody was surprised at what happened. Look at verse 32, where Jonadab 106 00:11:42,880 –> 00:11:45,760 a servant comes back and reports what has happened to the king. 107 00:11:45,760 –> 00:11:53,440 He says, this has been Absalom’s expressed intention ever since the day 108 00:11:53,440 –> 00:12:00,320 Amnon raped his sister Temar. Notice that he says it was Absalom’s expressed 109 00:12:00,320 –> 00:12:08,359 intention. That means he talked about it. That means that he made threats. He never 110 00:12:08,500 –> 00:12:14,479 said a word to Amnon, but everybody around the palace knew that Absalom was 111 00:12:14,479 –> 00:12:22,500 determined to get him and one day he would. So, nobody was surprised. The second 112 00:12:22,500 –> 00:12:29,400 thing to notice is that when Amnon was killed, all the king’s sons fled. 113 00:12:29,400 –> 00:12:35,700 Look at verse 29, As soon as the king’s sons saw what happened, all the 114 00:12:35,960 –> 00:12:45,340 king’s sons jumped on their mules and fled. Now why did they do that? I think one 115 00:12:45,340 –> 00:12:49,380 very simple reason, and that is that they were quite certain they were next. 116 00:12:49,380 –> 00:12:56,400 Amnon, after all, was the king’s oldest son, and Absalom, we know for the rest of 117 00:12:56,400 –> 00:13:04,380 the story, had his eye in a very determined way on the throne. And one way 118 00:13:04,419 –> 00:13:08,260 to make sure that he would get to the throne was very simply to get rid of his 119 00:13:08,260 –> 00:13:15,940 brothers. Amnon was the first, Absalom was the third in line, take out Amnon and 120 00:13:15,940 –> 00:13:21,320 you move up one place in the line of order. The other brothers knew what 121 00:13:21,320 –> 00:13:25,460 Absalom was about and very rightly deduced that if they didn’t get out of 122 00:13:25,460 –> 00:13:31,979 there quickly, the rest of them would be next. So you see what has happened here, 123 00:13:32,380 –> 00:13:38,380 as we followed the story of dysfunction within the family over a period of years, 124 00:13:38,380 –> 00:13:45,960 the issue has moved. At one point there was a terrible, unspeakable atrocity 125 00:13:45,960 –> 00:13:54,640 within the family. Absalom determined that he would take revenge, but in 126 00:13:54,640 –> 00:14:00,840 the process of his determined pursuit of revenge he sees another opportunity. 127 00:14:00,840 –> 00:14:07,859 Take out Amnon, and I not only avenge Timar, but I get myself one step nearer 128 00:14:07,859 –> 00:14:13,820 the throne. So the rest of the king’s sons know exactly what he’s on about. 129 00:14:13,820 –> 00:14:17,580 He’s been talking about this kind of thing, making threats for a long time. 130 00:14:17,580 –> 00:14:22,919 So they dump on their mules and immediately they flee for their lives. 131 00:14:22,919 –> 00:14:28,119 Now all of this then leaves Absalom absolutely alienated from the king. 132 00:14:28,460 –> 00:14:33,299 He himself has to flee. Verse 34. And I don’t want to focus on the rest of the 133 00:14:33,299 –> 00:14:37,520 story, but just so that you know what it ends, because it’s very frustrating to get 134 00:14:37,520 –> 00:14:44,039 half a story, David eventually invited Absalam back. And that was a big 135 00:14:44,039 –> 00:14:47,940 mistake, because he invited him back without 136 00:14:47,940 –> 00:14:50,900 ever dealing with the issue that had caused him to go. 137 00:14:51,780 –> 00:14:58,359 Absalam then began to build a popular support, and eventually he raised a 138 00:14:58,359 –> 00:15:03,880 rebellion against his own father, the king. David was forced to retreat from 139 00:15:03,880 –> 00:15:11,440 his home in Jerusalem, and what followed was a civil war between the Loyalists to 140 00:15:11,440 –> 00:15:18,559 Absalam, and the Loyalists to David. In the end the rebellion failed, and Absalam 141 00:15:18,599 –> 00:15:23,119 was killed in battle. At the end of all of that, David was 142 00:15:23,119 –> 00:15:28,580 brokenhearted. In Second Samuel 18, and verse 33, some very famous words, he 143 00:15:28,580 –> 00:15:35,440 pours out the pain of his heart. Oh my son Absalam, my son, my son Absalam, if 144 00:15:35,440 –> 00:15:45,979 only I had died instead of you. Oh Absalam, my son, my son. David weeps over 145 00:15:46,119 –> 00:15:54,640 a son who has taken a plunge to disaster. Now you cannot help but feel for David 146 00:15:54,640 –> 00:15:58,960 at this point because over a period of years tragedy has multiplied in his 147 00:15:58,960 –> 00:16:05,559 family. His daughter has been terribly abused, now two of his sons are dead, and 148 00:16:05,559 –> 00:16:11,760 the whole of God’s glorious kingdom that has been entrusted to him has been 149 00:16:11,760 –> 00:16:19,440 utterly and completely divided. It’s a story of immense tragedy. 150 00:16:19,440 –> 00:16:26,520 Of course, Absalom wanted to make things right, but all he did in the process of 151 00:16:26,520 –> 00:16:33,179 his action was to multiply pain and bloodshed. And we’re going to have to 152 00:16:33,179 –> 00:16:36,280 think about that for a moment this morning, because when you are wounded 153 00:16:36,780 –> 00:16:44,380 there will be something within you that will want to make another person pay. 154 00:16:44,380 –> 00:16:53,280 And sometimes it’s not easy to tell the difference between justice and vengeance. 155 00:16:53,280 –> 00:16:58,619 The tragedy of this story is that Absalom multiplied pain and division 156 00:16:58,619 –> 00:17:05,739 and bloodshed among God’s people, that’s all he did. He would have said of course 157 00:17:05,739 –> 00:17:12,719 I’m pursuing justice. But the truth was that it all got mixed up much more with 158 00:17:12,719 –> 00:17:19,020 his own ambitions to claim a throne and I want you to think about that and for 159 00:17:19,020 –> 00:17:24,380 us to remember that whenever we find ourselves in situations of conflict. 160 00:17:24,380 –> 00:17:31,939 You see as you follow the story it isn’t about Timar now. It’s about Absalom getting 161 00:17:32,119 –> 00:17:36,459 the throne. It’s about who gets the wealth of the 162 00:17:36,459 –> 00:17:44,380 Palace. It’s about money. It’s about winning. And it’s about power. And you see 163 00:17:44,380 –> 00:17:49,439 that’s what happens time and time and time again in conflict. We begin by 164 00:17:49,439 –> 00:17:55,459 trying to put something that was wrong right. Then it develops into a passion to 165 00:17:55,459 –> 00:18:01,260 destroy another person. Finally it ends up in the tragedy of a person saying 166 00:18:01,260 –> 00:18:05,900 what can I get out of this? 167 00:18:06,800 –> 00:18:15,939 Something terrible happened in Absalom’s family. But he spent the rest of his life 168 00:18:15,939 –> 00:18:25,339 hating, fighting, destroying, dividing God’s kingdom. 169 00:18:26,219 –> 00:18:33,500 He lived with clenched fists. He was eaten up by a consuming desire for 170 00:18:33,500 –> 00:18:43,420 revenge and all he did was take a personal plunge to disaster, leaving a 171 00:18:43,420 –> 00:18:56,439 trail of pain and brokenness in his wake. I read this story and been moved by how 172 00:18:56,439 –> 00:19:05,540 many times its pattern is repeated today and I’ve asked the question, how then can 173 00:19:05,780 –> 00:19:12,780 you avoid absalom’s plunge to disaster? Now remember none of us can avoid wounds. 174 00:19:16,859 –> 00:19:20,900 You can’t go through life in this world without some kinds of wounds. Some people 175 00:19:20,900 –> 00:19:27,900 will hurt you and when you’ve got a wound, think about a slash in your hand. One of two 176 00:19:28,739 –> 00:19:35,739 things can happen. Either the wound can heal or the wound can go septic. How are you going 177 00:19:42,319 –> 00:19:49,319 to deal with your wounds? That will be one of the critical questions that will determine 178 00:19:50,619 –> 00:19:57,619 the outcome and impact of your life. Now I know that when we talk about healing these 179 00:19:57,939 –> 00:20:04,939 that we are talking here about one of the most sensitive issues that could ever be spoken 180 00:20:06,020 –> 00:20:13,020 of. But I want to offer three words of counsel for our wounds today. Here’s the first. When 181 00:20:14,020 –> 00:20:21,020 you’re wounded, make sure that you discern the enemy. Now if you had asked Absalom, Absalom 182 00:20:21,020 –> 00:20:28,020 Now, if you had asked Absalom, Absalom, who is the enemy? He would have had absolutely 183 00:20:41,459 –> 00:20:48,119 no hesitation about the answer. He would have said, well, of course it’s Amnon. Period. 184 00:20:48,119 –> 00:20:55,060 Things will be alright when we deal with Amnon. When Amnon leaves this company, when Amnon 185 00:20:55,060 –> 00:21:00,040 retires, when Amnon goes, when Amnon graduates, when I no longer in Amnon’s class, 186 00:21:00,040 –> 00:21:07,040 it’ll all be alright. Absalom’s great mistake was that he pinned this problem exclusively 187 00:21:10,280 –> 00:21:17,280 on a person. And the problem is that if you believe that people are the problem you will 188 00:21:17,520 –> 00:21:24,520 never be done. You’ll never be finished. Because as soon as you see it, you’ve dealt 189 00:21:25,359 –> 00:21:30,219 with or got away from or dispatched one person, you’ll find yourself in a similar conflict 190 00:21:30,219 –> 00:21:37,219 with another. It’s exactly what happens to Absalom. As soon as Amnon is gone, Absalom 191 00:21:38,839 –> 00:21:42,739 finds himself in a conflict with David because he also had some responsibility in this whole 192 00:21:42,800 –> 00:21:49,459 thing, he did nothing about it. That’s how it is. And it goes on and it goes on and it 193 00:21:49,459 –> 00:21:56,459 goes on unless you can properly discern the enemy. And that’s where the New Testament 194 00:21:57,339 –> 00:22:04,339 gives us a critical piece of information. Ephesians chapter 6 and verse 12. Our struggle 195 00:22:05,260 –> 00:22:12,260 is not against flesh and blood but it is Paul continues against the powers of this dark 196 00:22:12,260 –> 00:22:19,060 world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. See when you 197 00:22:19,060 –> 00:22:26,060 think of your wounds, there’s probably a face that comes to your mind straight away 198 00:22:26,060 –> 00:22:34,979 and you say, he’s my problem, she’s my problem and I’m saying to you 199 00:22:34,979 –> 00:22:40,699 from Ephesians in chapter 6, be more discerning about your enemy than that. 200 00:22:40,699 –> 00:22:49,780 Our struggle is not against flesh and blood. The primary struggle in your life 201 00:22:50,520 –> 00:23:00,119 with a person. It is with the activity of your enemy through that person. And there 202 00:23:00,119 –> 00:23:05,099 is a world of a difference between these two things and if you can once grasp 203 00:23:05,099 –> 00:23:11,719 that difference, it will be a wonderful help to you in growing through your 204 00:23:11,719 –> 00:23:23,300 wounds. Jesus did not teach His disciples to pray, Lord deliver us from Caesar. Lord 205 00:23:23,300 –> 00:23:33,079 deliver us from the Pharisees. He said, when you pray, pray like this, Lord 206 00:23:33,160 –> 00:23:43,739 deliver us from, lets hear it loud, evil. That’s your enemy. It may have been 207 00:23:43,739 –> 00:23:52,619 expressed in a person horribly, brutally, but the New Testament teaches us to 208 00:23:52,619 –> 00:24:01,020 discern more deeply. The heart of your problem is not with a particular person 209 00:24:01,060 –> 00:24:09,300 but with the activity of your enemy through that person. And when you can see 210 00:24:09,300 –> 00:24:20,180 that distinction it will begin to help you to move forward. Jesus speaks to us 211 00:24:20,180 –> 00:24:27,199 about praying for those who persecute you. It is one of the hardest things He 212 00:24:27,239 –> 00:24:31,660 ever asked us to do. But remember he said that in the Sermon on the Mount, pray for 213 00:24:31,660 –> 00:24:36,739 those who persecute you. Now we ask the question of course, how on earth could 214 00:24:36,739 –> 00:24:45,160 you do that? How on earth could you pray for Amnon? Well Absalom couldn’t even 215 00:24:45,160 –> 00:24:50,520 say the guy’s name without feeling sick. How could you pray for him after what 216 00:24:50,520 –> 00:25:00,880 he did? Only one way. If you discern the enemy there are evil powers pulling the 217 00:25:00,880 –> 00:25:07,939 strings within Amnon’s life. There’s a spirit of lust that has terribly got 218 00:25:07,939 –> 00:25:18,359 hold of this man. That’s where the problem lies. Amnon could be redeemed. He 219 00:25:18,380 –> 00:25:25,920 could be. The person who has wronged you is not the enemy. They wronged you 220 00:25:25,920 –> 00:25:29,780 because they are in the hands of the enemy and that’s why it’s such a 221 00:25:29,780 –> 00:25:38,699 terrible thing. But if you could one see them as someone in the grip of an enemy 222 00:25:39,239 –> 00:25:50,300 you might just find compassion within your heart. You might just see that what 223 00:25:50,300 –> 00:25:59,420 Jesus said, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, is at least 224 00:25:59,420 –> 00:26:06,859 within conceivable reach by His grace and by the power 225 00:26:06,859 –> 00:26:18,020 of His Spirit. When you see the true enemy, you will begin to have compassion. 226 00:26:18,020 –> 00:26:28,040 And when you have compassion, you may begin to pray. And if, when you are 227 00:26:28,300 –> 00:26:38,660 wounded, you pray, then God’s grace triumphs in your soul. And your real 228 00:26:38,660 –> 00:26:45,959 enemy, whose ultimate aim, of course, is to fill your soul with poison so that 229 00:26:45,959 –> 00:26:57,420 you’re double destroyed by this thing, He tumbles to defeat. And you will grow 230 00:26:57,420 –> 00:27:05,160 through your wounds. Could anyone have imagined such a thing? That 231 00:27:05,160 –> 00:27:14,719 you could grow through your wounds? I don’t know how many times God has given 232 00:27:14,719 –> 00:27:20,699 me the great great privilege of speaking to someone has been deeply wounded, and 233 00:27:20,699 –> 00:27:25,099 you know the question that’s most often asked, and it comes time and time again 234 00:27:25,099 –> 00:27:32,979 is, how can I forgive? How can I forgive? And I’m increasingly persuaded that that 235 00:27:32,979 –> 00:27:41,160 may not be the primary question. Amnon never showed any sign of ownership, there 236 00:27:41,160 –> 00:27:50,939 was no repentance. Reconciliation was not even on the radar screen. The issue here 237 00:27:50,939 –> 00:27:59,280 was, how can I have compassion? How can I have compassion? The way you find 238 00:27:59,280 –> 00:28:08,780 compassion, it’s when you discern the enemy. Here’s the second thing. Number one, 239 00:28:09,300 –> 00:28:17,060 discern the enemy. Number two, trust the king. Now, we can all 240 00:28:17,060 –> 00:28:21,920 understand Absalom’s outrage. His own sister had been abused. Absalom’s her big 241 00:28:21,920 –> 00:28:26,619 brother. He was a magnificent fellow, we know that from elsewhere in the story. He 242 00:28:26,619 –> 00:28:30,160 felt that he should have been able to protect her, perhaps he felt guilty about 243 00:28:30,160 –> 00:28:34,479 how it could possibly have happened to his sister, and his guilt fueled his 244 00:28:34,579 –> 00:28:40,839 anger, and he felt he had, therefore, to deal with the situation. But that was a 245 00:28:40,839 –> 00:28:50,160 big mistake. For the task of dealing with Amnon belonged not to Absalom but to the 246 00:28:50,160 –> 00:28:55,000 king. Now, there’s a very important principle here that is one that protects 247 00:28:55,000 –> 00:29:00,260 us from the great dangers of vengeance. You see, God has established a chain of 248 00:29:00,260 –> 00:29:05,260 command in society, and we should be very thankful for it. This is where we are 249 00:29:05,260 –> 00:29:08,739 able to distinguish between justice and revenge. 250 00:29:08,739 –> 00:29:13,920 Romans in Chapter 13 reminds us that everyone must submit himself to the 251 00:29:13,920 –> 00:29:19,459 governing authorities for there is no authority except that which God has 252 00:29:19,459 –> 00:29:25,500 established. And he’s talking about the civil authorities within a community. So 253 00:29:25,520 –> 00:29:31,760 So when there is some great conflict, the first question is, is this an issue that 254 00:29:31,760 –> 00:29:38,780 can be rightly resolved by repentance, forgiveness, and reconciliation? And if 255 00:29:38,780 –> 00:29:46,500 it’s not, the question is, who then has God appointed to deal with this matter? 256 00:29:46,500 –> 00:29:52,920 If a crime is involved, God has appointed authorities to deal with the crime. This 257 00:29:53,020 –> 00:29:59,300 is what prevents us from descending into anarchy. It’s one of the graces of God in 258 00:29:59,300 –> 00:30:07,079 human society. It keeps a man from pursuing his own vendetta. That means, by 259 00:30:07,079 –> 00:30:10,979 the way, just to take it down to a different kind of level, that if there’s 260 00:30:10,979 –> 00:30:15,180 some situation at school, it may mean that you need to report it to a dean 261 00:30:15,180 –> 00:30:21,880 rather than take it into your own hands in the school afterwards. There’ll be all 262 00:30:21,880 –> 00:30:27,760 the difference in the world. God has appointed a king. God has appointed 263 00:30:27,760 –> 00:30:34,979 authorities, structures within society and it was the king’s job to deal with 264 00:30:34,979 –> 00:30:41,319 the terrible abuse that took place. Absalom, don’t take matters into your 265 00:30:41,319 –> 00:30:48,040 own hands because that will leave you in a situation of vengeance. Absalom, go to 266 00:30:48,040 –> 00:30:55,300 the king. Go to the king. It is his job to establish 267 00:30:55,300 –> 00:31:00,739 justice. Now of course and you’ll immediately tweak to this, the problem in 268 00:31:00,739 –> 00:31:05,000 this situation was that the King didn’t. He failed his responsibility. Look at 269 00:31:05,000 –> 00:31:10,280 verse 21 of 2 Samuel chapter 13. When the King David heard all this, that is, the 270 00:31:10,280 –> 00:31:19,000 awful thing that happened to Tamar, he was furious. Furious. Furious. Period. He 271 00:31:19,000 –> 00:31:24,040 didn’t do anything. He got angry, but he did nothing. 272 00:31:24,040 –> 00:31:28,599 Amnon was never confronted or disciplined or charged or sentenced. The 273 00:31:28,599 –> 00:31:35,560 King failed to uphold justice. The reason of course for that, as you will 274 00:31:35,560 –> 00:31:39,160 guess, was very simple. That David suffered from a moral paralysis because 275 00:31:39,880 –> 00:31:45,640 own life, he had also taken another man’s wife. Absalom knew that so 276 00:31:45,640 –> 00:31:51,459 he decided to take matters into his own hand. Now here’s the issue. God has 277 00:31:51,459 –> 00:31:55,920 established channels of authority in the world so that justice should be done and 278 00:31:55,920 –> 00:32:03,020 revenge should be prevented. What do you do when it doesn’t work? What do you do 279 00:32:03,020 –> 00:32:07,439 if a court comes up with a ridiculous ruling? 280 00:32:07,439 –> 00:32:11,239 What do you do if you try and use the appropriate channels within your 281 00:32:11,239 –> 00:32:15,660 workplace and you don’t get justice? 282 00:32:15,660 –> 00:32:20,959 What do you do if the Dean at school makes a wrong ruling because he didn’t 283 00:32:20,959 –> 00:32:26,579 get all the evidence? What do you do in any sphere of life where there is an 284 00:32:26,579 –> 00:32:31,719 injustice and at the end of the due process that God has put in place 285 00:32:31,719 –> 00:32:37,119 these processes actually in this particular case fail? What do you do then? 286 00:32:37,239 –> 00:32:40,560 Because this happens 287 00:32:40,560 –> 00:32:44,020 the answer is 288 00:32:44,020 –> 00:32:48,280 when the King fails, you trust 289 00:32:48,280 –> 00:32:52,760 the King. When the King fails 290 00:32:52,760 –> 00:32:55,959 you trust the King 291 00:32:55,959 –> 00:32:59,359 you notice capital K 292 00:32:59,359 –> 00:33:03,719 King. You see, all authorities draw their 293 00:33:03,719 –> 00:33:08,000 authority from God, and when the King 294 00:33:08,000 –> 00:33:12,000 fails, when a human process 295 00:33:12,000 –> 00:33:15,180 fails, they’re is 296 00:33:15,180 –> 00:33:19,040 the King, to whom you can look 297 00:33:19,040 –> 00:33:23,239 He will never fail. He doesn’t miss it 298 00:33:23,239 –> 00:33:30,660 when a sparrow falls. There may be a situation somewhere in your life where 299 00:33:30,660 –> 00:33:31,819 the truth was hidden 300 00:33:31,819 –> 00:33:34,839 where justice was miscarried, 301 00:33:34,839 –> 00:33:38,640 where evidence was planted, where you were set 302 00:33:38,640 –> 00:33:44,760 up. And when that happens, if it does to you 303 00:33:44,760 –> 00:33:48,619 you will long for justice you will long for justice 304 00:33:48,619 –> 00:33:53,020 and if you cannot get it it will hurt you deeply 305 00:33:53,020 –> 00:33:58,839 But I want to say to you that justice and vindication do not hang 306 00:33:59,140 –> 00:34:04,719 Finally on the authorities that God has established, but ultimately on God himself 307 00:34:06,099 –> 00:34:08,780 Getting justice today is important 308 00:34:09,879 –> 00:34:11,879 But it’s not all important 309 00:34:12,699 –> 00:34:14,699 There is another day 310 00:34:15,120 –> 00:34:17,280 when justice will be done and 311 00:34:18,679 –> 00:34:20,860 Truth will be known 312 00:34:22,959 –> 00:34:24,959 Go to the King Absolome 313 00:34:25,659 –> 00:34:27,659 But 314 00:34:28,040 –> 00:34:30,040 If the king fails 315 00:34:31,479 –> 00:34:34,260 Trust the King 316 00:34:37,280 –> 00:34:44,120 Peter wrote in the New Testament to some people who suffer terrible terrible persecution and justice was never done 317 00:34:45,719 –> 00:34:52,479 and he said this those who suffer in this way you should commit yourself to your creator and 318 00:34:53,320 –> 00:34:55,320 Continue 319 00:34:55,379 –> 00:34:57,860 To do good sometimes to do that 320 00:34:58,699 –> 00:35:00,979 May be the only way to bring peace 321 00:35:01,820 –> 00:35:03,820 to your soul 322 00:35:04,060 –> 00:35:06,060 And here’s the last thing very briefly 323 00:35:07,479 –> 00:35:09,479 Serve the wounded 324 00:35:10,360 –> 00:35:15,260 What are you to do when there are deep wounds within your own life, you don’t want them to go septic 325 00:35:15,260 –> 00:35:20,679 They don’t want the wound that’s already painful to end up destroying you so discern the enemy 326 00:35:21,679 –> 00:35:23,679 Trust the King 327 00:35:23,699 –> 00:35:25,959 And here’s the last thing serve the wounded 328 00:35:26,800 –> 00:35:30,159 Now you can’t get this from our story because absolutely didn’t do it 329 00:35:30,159 –> 00:35:33,120 So we have to look for someone else who did and in these last moments 330 00:35:33,120 –> 00:35:39,620 I want us to look of course at our Lord Jesus Christ. You can’t talk about this subject without talking about Jesus 331 00:35:41,340 –> 00:35:47,580 There has never been a person so abused as Jesus Christ remember that 332 00:35:48,560 –> 00:35:52,840 He was flogged just to keep people happy 333 00:35:55,699 –> 00:36:01,620 When they were finished with him his face was so disfigured that he was no longer recognizable 334 00:36:05,479 –> 00:36:07,479 Finally they nailed him to a cross 335 00:36:08,919 –> 00:36:14,419 And they lifted him up to be crucified I cannot think of a greater abuse 336 00:36:14,939 –> 00:36:16,939 That could be committed 337 00:36:20,419 –> 00:36:22,659 Remember what Jesus did 338 00:36:24,459 –> 00:36:27,739 He said and this has us all in awe I trust 339 00:36:29,840 –> 00:36:31,840 Father forgive them 340 00:36:32,399 –> 00:36:35,899 They do not know what they are doing how could he say that? 341 00:36:38,699 –> 00:36:43,860 Because he discerned the enemy you see they do not know what they’re doing 342 00:36:45,040 –> 00:36:47,040 There’s another power 343 00:36:47,820 –> 00:36:53,659 Work, that’s far more dark, and it’s being expressed within them father forgive them 344 00:36:54,899 –> 00:36:56,899 They do not know what they’re doing 345 00:36:57,340 –> 00:36:58,699 and 346 00:36:58,699 –> 00:37:02,439 The courts failed him if ever a court failed my goodness 347 00:37:03,800 –> 00:37:07,239 He went to king Herod what a king 348 00:37:08,780 –> 00:37:10,959 He just beheaded John the Baptist 349 00:37:10,979 –> 00:37:12,979 He 350 00:37:13,399 –> 00:37:20,379 Went before pilot the government entrusted with law and order in the land and he brings out a bowl of water and washes his hands 351 00:37:24,139 –> 00:37:26,699 And Peter writes these words about Jesus 352 00:37:27,979 –> 00:37:29,979 When he suffered 353 00:37:30,620 –> 00:37:32,620 He made no threats 354 00:37:33,600 –> 00:37:36,199 But instead he trusted himself 355 00:37:37,520 –> 00:37:39,860 to him who judges just 356 00:37:41,000 –> 00:37:43,939 You see what Jesus did when the King failed 357 00:37:45,399 –> 00:37:47,739 Was he trusted the king? 358 00:37:49,600 –> 00:37:51,600 Now what came out of that 359 00:37:52,179 –> 00:37:55,320 While Peter goes on to explain 1peter 2 24 360 00:37:55,340 –> 00:38:01,780 he bore our sins in his body on the tree so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness and then he says this and 361 00:38:02,800 –> 00:38:04,800 by his 362 00:38:05,080 –> 00:38:07,080 wounds 363 00:38:07,840 –> 00:38:09,840 You have been healed 364 00:38:10,620 –> 00:38:14,919 Think of that by his words 365 00:38:16,800 –> 00:38:18,800 You have been healed 366 00:38:20,639 –> 00:38:24,239 Blessing flows from his wounds 367 00:38:26,040 –> 00:38:28,159 The greatest ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ 368 00:38:30,040 –> 00:38:32,040 Flows from his wounds 369 00:38:32,520 –> 00:38:33,260 These are his wounds 370 00:38:33,260 –> 00:38:36,340 Without those wounds. He would not be your savior 371 00:38:36,340 –> 00:38:41,340 It is by those wounds that you are healed. Now, obviously 372 00:38:41,800 –> 00:38:46,260 There is a glorious uniqueness about our Lord Jesus Christ 373 00:38:46,260 –> 00:38:52,020 Our wounds are nothing like his but I want to suggest that there is still a principle here 374 00:38:52,959 –> 00:38:58,739 Your wounds may be deep and they may be painful, but it may be from your wounds 375 00:38:59,739 –> 00:39:02,879 That God gives you your greatest 376 00:39:03,820 –> 00:39:05,820 ministry to the wounded 377 00:39:06,120 –> 00:39:09,060 It may be from your wounds 378 00:39:10,860 –> 00:39:14,840 That God raises up your greatest ministry 379 00:39:16,179 –> 00:39:18,179 to the wounded 380 00:39:18,560 –> 00:39:20,560 That’s the way of Christ 381 00:39:22,260 –> 00:39:24,260 Whoever would have thought 382 00:39:25,100 –> 00:39:28,379 That you could grow through your 383 00:39:28,860 –> 00:39:30,860 wounds 384 00:39:32,459 –> 00:39:36,699 And here we are in this wounded world imagine a community 385 00:39:37,620 –> 00:39:42,939 A community of people who learned to pray for people and against demons 386 00:39:44,679 –> 00:39:50,159 Imagine a community of people who learned to trust the king who refused to take matters into their own hand 387 00:39:50,379 –> 00:39:54,780 But when the king fails they trusted the ultimate justice of God 388 00:39:54,780 –> 00:40:03,459 Imagine of a community of people who were wounded but instead of their wounds going septic and 389 00:40:04,500 –> 00:40:09,760 Leading to lives of bitterness their wounds become the very basis of a ministry 390 00:40:10,659 –> 00:40:12,659 That reaches out into a wounded world 391 00:40:14,100 –> 00:40:18,139 Could you see hw much this world needs such a community? 392 00:40:20,399 –> 00:40:22,399 And that is precisely 393 00:40:22,919 –> 00:40:29,419 What God calls us to be 394 00:40:29,419 –> 00:40:30,679 Let’s pray together shall we 395 00:40:32,340 –> 00:40:38,540 Father we see this vision, and we’re drawn to it knowing that it’s only possible by your grace 396 00:40:41,060 –> 00:40:46,959 Some of us right now see the face of someone who has wounded us give us grace to discern the true enemy 397 00:40:47,280 –> 00:40:54,899 Give us compassion help us to see that person as somebody who could one day be redeemed 398 00:40:57,659 –> 00:41:02,120 Deliver us from the pride and greed that make us want to take matters into our own hands 399 00:41:03,739 –> 00:41:06,500 You see how mixed our motives sometimes are 400 00:41:08,439 –> 00:41:10,439 You are the King 401 00:41:10,820 –> 00:41:15,820 Your judgments are right and your justice never fails. Help us to place our trust in you 402 00:41:17,479 –> 00:41:21,399 Thank you for the healing that flows from the wounds of Christ 403 00:41:23,560 –> 00:41:30,560 Use the wounds of my life as a channel of your Grace 404 00:41:32,760 –> 00:41:34,760 To others 405 00:41:35,979 –> 00:41:38,939 Through Jesus Christ my Savior and Lord 406 00:41:42,280 –> 00:41:44,280 Amen