linda bass

The character flaw which I believe is the greatest problem in the church today is, 4) being men-pleasers. So many churches today tell the people what the want to hear rather than remaining true to the teachings of the Bible. I can hopefully prevent one or more of these character flaws from overtaking my Christian walk by reading my bible,spending time in prayer, and attending a church that preaches the true gospel.

What this verse teaches us is that Jesus is the Son of God, that He has risen from the dead, and He will rescue us from the coming wrath which is God's judgment upon sin. The most inportant of these is Christ resurrection from the dead. If Jesus had remained in His tomb,then Satan would have won and mankind would be forever lost in sin and without hope.

The Holy Spirit's working is necessary to effective ministry because it is the Spirit that convicts a person of sin and draws them to Christ. What happens when the main power behind our ministry is will-power is, it becomes a work of the flesh. The role of miracles in Paul's evangelism was, it resulted in deep conviction followed by repentance and faith in Christ.

I think there was so much opposition to Paul's ministry in Thessalonica because, conversions to Christianity would have a strong impact on the synagague and its finances. Paul kept preaching the gospel in spite of the violent action against him because Christ had chosen him to preach the gospel. A violent reaction to our ministry doesn't always means we should stop. Often when ministry is effective in reaching the lost,the enemy will do all he can to discourage believers to stop sharing the gospel.

The punishment that David deserves is death. The baby,which was the result of David and Bathsheba's adulterous affair,dies. David's sins hurt God's glory because his sin was actually against God. Our sins reflect on Jesus Christ by causing Him grief and sorrow.

It might have been dangerous for Nathan to confront the king,because David could have had him executed or banished from the kingdom. Nathan used a parable about a poor man and his pet lamb. A rich man had guests,but instead of killing one of the sheep from his flocks to serve as a meal,he killed the poor man's lamb. When David condemns the rich man for his greed, Nathan tells him, "you are that man!" When confronted with his sin,David acknowledges his guilt.

David honors Mephibosheth because of his friendship with Jonathan. David promised Jonathan he wouldn't kill off any of his family when he became king. This teaches us that David was a man of his word.

God fulfilled His promises in the Davidic Covenant through Jesus. Christ's kingdom will be everlasting and will have no end.

God disciplined David and his descendants by punishing them for their sins.

The main promises of the Davidic Covenant are 1) a great name 2) a homeland for the Jewish people 3) peace 4)a dynasty 5) a son who will build the temple 6) an everlasting kingdom. These promises are unconditional. this means that God will always keep His part of the Covenant no matter what. the promise most important to me as a Christian is, an everlasting kingdom.

Nathan is quick to give David approval to build the temple because he is aware of God's spiritual anointing upon David. Nathan should have sought God's will first before giving David his blessing to build a temple. The danger of leaders and followers too quickly approving major spiritual directions without waiting upon the Lord is, decisions are being made in the flesh.

David is personally absorbed in joyful worship. His worship is from that heart rather than just being ritualistic. His dancing teaches us that he desires to worship with his entire being. The Psalms David wrote teaches us the important of praise.

The Ark should have been trasported with members of the tribe of Levi carrying it on their shoulders. It was the responsibility of David and Uzzah to know what provisions the Mosiac Law contained concerning transportation and handling of the Ark. There is an old saying that goes "Ignorance of the law is no excuse". David's mistake teaches us it's important to seek God's will concerning any major decisions we need to make.

God struck Uzzah dead because he touched the Ark. Only the Levites had the authority to touch the Ark. David probably became angry for one of two reasons. David feels his motives are right in bring the Ark into the city,so he can't understand why God would bring judgment. Also David has been humiliated in front of 30,000 onlookers. The national celebration he had planned for the Ark's return has turned into a disaster.

Joab slays Abner because he was seeking revenge for his brother's Asahel's death. Joab's slaying of Abner wasn't justified. Asahel's death by Joab's hands was an accident and wasn't intentional. What Joab did was clearly murder and not a righteous avenging. This had no affect on the king's unification plans because David showed the people he had no part in Abner's death. Joab was so blind because he was so full of anger that he wasn't thinking clearly Our spiritual blindness can get in the way of God's plan for our lives when we insist on doing things in the flesh rather than being led by the Spirit.

David remembers Saul's life by looking beyond Saul's dark and troubled side to Saul's greatness as a king and warrior of Israel. The Chronicler remembers Saul's life by speaking of the Lord's judgment against Saul because of his disobedience and unfaithfulness. I'm not sure how God evaluted Saul's life.

David finds strength in the Lord when things are going bad by seeking to enter a calm,quiet,reflective,receptive state. David adopts the devotional exercises of spending time and meditating on the Psalms. The focus of David's faith is his trust in the Lord.

The men blame David because they felt they should of stayed home to defend their families rather than going north with the Philistines. The situation is so explosive at this point because the men were talking about stoning David. What David does in this situation is,he prays and turns to the Lord for strength and guidance. David is probably feeling depressed and filled with hopelessness. David doesn't act immediately because he wants to seek the Lord's counsel before making any rash desicions.

What we learn about David's character in this incident with Nabal and Abigail is, he was quick to seek revenge because of Nabal's insult, yet was willing to have a change of heart when Abigail brought gifts of provisions in apology to her husband's behavior. What we learn of Abigail's character is, she was a wise and sensible woman. What we learn of Nabal's character is,he is a greedy and selfish person. I think this story was included in 1 Samuel because to show how easy it is to fall into sin when one makes a rash vow. Because of Abigail's wise intervention, David was able to not act on his vow to destroy Nabal's entire household. The story also gives us background as to how Abigail became one of David's wives.

David didn't kill Saul when he had the chance because he knew he would eventually become king according to God's timing,not his own. The motive that David and his men have for killing a king who is trying to kill them is, they will no longer have to fear for their lives and will be able to finally go home to their families. David's rationale for sparing Saul's life is, it is wrong to left a hand against the Lord's annointed. What this tells us about David's character is he is willing to wait on God's timing rather than taking matters into his own hands. What this tells us about David's faith is that he trusts in God's promise that he will succeed Saul as Israel's next king. What this says about David's leadership abilities in that he was able to dissaude his men from killing Saul is, he has the trust of his men.

Johatan visits David in the wilderness in order to encourage him. What risk there is for David is that Jonathan could have accidentally led Saul's men to David's hiding place. What risk there is for Jonathan is, Saul could discover their secret friendship and end up killing both of them. What Jonathan's visit meant to David was, David knew he had one friend he could count on who wouldn't turn against him.

What Abithar and the ephod had to do with "inquiring of the Lord" was that the ephod included the Urim and Thummim which where like lots to determine God's will in a given situation. David inquires of the Lord because he wants to know if he should attack the Philistines. The huge advantage a person who seeks God's will before acting is,being willing to be led by the Spirit rather than acting in the flesh. You can find God's will in key points in your life through seeking God in prayer,spending time in reading the scriptures, and listening to Biblical counsel.

David's men were attracted to him because of his leadership skills and his power as a warlord. What they had in common was that they were all fleeing from Saul for one reason or another. What difficulties David probably had in leading them was alot of the men were in rebellion against authority.

The nature of the covenant between David and Jonathan is that they have sworn friendship to one another in the name of the Lord. What David receives is Jonathan's promise that he want betray David to Saul. What Jonathan receives is a promise not to kill Jonathan's family when David eventually ascends to the throne. Both David and Jonathan benefit from the covenant because of their love and total trust of one another. The oath was not self serving because both parties benefitted. The significance that God is witness to the covenant is both David and Jonathan have sworn the oath to each other in the name of the Lord.

What this tells us about Saul's faith is that nothing is sacred to him. Saul pursues David even when David has sought sanctuary with the prophet Samuel because his fear and need to control has pushed him into rebellion against God. The people prophesy when the Holy Spirit comes upon them because this was God's way of keeping them from killing David. The relationship between this incident and the Day of Pentecost is the Holy Spirit coming upon a great number of people resulting in prophecy.