In 1 Chronicles, Chapter 21, verse 13, this is something I’ve been meditating on in these last days and I really think when we can come to this place, it will bring such as strength to us.  First Chronicles 21, let’s look down at verse 13.  Satan entices David to number the people.  We don’t know any reason behind what his thinking is but I think we can come to a pretty good conclusion by asking why anybody wants to take a census and to find out at this time how many warriors we have.  We won’t talk about the discussion of the conflict in numbers between Samuel and Chronicles but he numbers the people.  We know that his counselors came and said, “This isn’t necessary.  Don’t do this.  To look to the arm of the flesh is going to cause our eyes and our hearts to be turned toward ourselves and not trust in God who has made us victorious in all of these battles.”  But David insisted.  “I want to know how strong we are.  I want to know how fortified we are.”  “I want to know how safe my family is.  Do we have enough money saved up?  What about—I can’t do that and lose this job.  It could cost me my clearance.  It could cost me my job.  I’ve got to somehow keep my head down and not speak boldly for the Lord.”

Times are going to come when government jobs and many of these are going to put greater pressure on Christians just like they did on Daniel, and you had better be ready to throw the windows open and worship God; amen?  Is it in you?  Are you humble enough to do that?  Are you humble enough to look your job in the eye and say, “I don’t need you?  You are not my source.”  That’s exactly what David’s looking at here—the spirit that’s working behind him, Satan enticing him.  So, we know the story.  We may make reference back to it as we look at a couple of other verses here in the next session or two.  But we know the story.  He provoked God to anger.  God said, “I’ll give you a choice now.  The judgment’s going to come upon you (verse 12), three years of famine, three months to be destroyed before your enemies, or three days that the sword of the Lord, the pestilence, that death angel, will bring forth destruction throughout the coasts of Israel.  Now, what’s your choice?”  “And David said…, I am in a great strait: let me fall now into the hand of the Lord; for very great are his mercies: but let me not fall into the hand of man.”  There’s some true humility right there.  “You make the decision.”  He said, “I’m not making any decisions.  I’ve already gotten myself in this mess.  All I know is that God is merciful and I’m going to trust Him.”

What are we facing today?  What are we going to face as opposition from the world’s system?  Are we, at this day, learning truly to put our lives into the hands of God as it pertains to every area, every decision?  Are we fortifying ourselves in the arm of the flesh?  Are we counting all of the dollars in the market promised from certain departments of the government, or banks or companies?  I’ll tell you one thing.  When God gets upset with the fact that too many are looking to sources other than Himself who name His name, these things that we think are unshakeable can be shaken down in a day.  Humility is rejecting their wisdom, their methods, their gods and solely putting our hand and trust in the presence of God and the free gift of grace that He’s given us and to worship Him and Him alone.

Father, we thank You for Your Word and we just ask that You would cause us to choose against the natural mind, against the natural methods, and that we would come to that place of really understanding what it means to humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God.  God resists the proud, but You give grace to the humble.  Help us to humble ourselves in Your sight and You will lift us up.  We give You all the praise and all of the glory for that, in Jesus’ name; amen.