“And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sin,” (Eph 2:1; Rom 5:5)

About a week ago, my dad arrived in town to receive some medical attention.  He had been experiencing some uncomfortable symptoms in his body. After a battery of tests, he was very disappointed with the diagnosis he was given. He felt the doctors had not investigated enough, and so were not treating his case accordingly. For the first time in all the years he had been receiving medical care, he was relectant to accept their report.

Saul, Israel's first king

Saul, the first king of Israel, had begun his reign well. Years later, however, David—a teenage boy who served as his personal harpist and armor bearer—defeated and slayed Goliath, the Philistine giant. In joyful celebration, the women sang a song to honor David. Saul was not pleased with the lyrics of the song: "Saul has killed his thousand, but David, tens of thousands."   Saul felt threatened and chose to spend the rest of his life trying to kill David. That choice not only turned him into a fearful, eratic, and senseless murderer, but also into a leader who lacked compassion and vision for the people and nation that he had been ordained to lead. Instead of looking after their well-being, he spent his time chasing his young subject David from one place to another. 

During one of those raids, King Saul slaughtered 85 of his priests and their families—men, women, children, babies, and cattle—as well as donkeys, sheep, and goats in order to reach David. All because one of them had assisted David.

The gift of choice is a powerful gift we have all been given by our Creator. Because  of this gift, we get to choose what to do, what to say, what job to choose, who to marry, where to live, the kind of friends to keep, who or what to worship etc.  Although some may perceive this as a sign of God's weakness, it is actually love without conditions. Unconditional love gives the objects of its affection the liberty to see and express things differently while letting them know what is right and wrong. That is what makes God's love for us so incredibly amazing!  

Because even though He has the ability to manipulate us like machines and control everything around us, He gives us the freedom to make spiritual and moral decisions. This is not weakness or insanity; it is called a relationship. God's love liberates us, and builds in us the confidence needed to make sound judgement, choose, and exercise dominion the way He instructed us to (Gen 1:27).

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