This passage is an ultimate test of one's faith in God! How great is our faith? Thankfully, Jesus is our Redeemer, so our relationship with God is now very different than it was in David's time. But Jesus did not promise us an easy life, in fact quite the opposite. In Old Testament times, life was mostly about blessings and curses. If you lived right for God, then you would be blessed with what might look like the "easy life". We see that especially revealed in the book of Job, where his suffering was perceived by his friends to be because of something he must have done wrong against the Lord. In stark contrast, Jesus has promised, "You will be hated by everyone because of My name, but the one who perseveres to the end will be saved." Temporary hardships for eternal peace, and not everyone will endure: "But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it." (Matthew 7:14, NLT) We are almost guaranteed the difficult path, but perhaps that's why we're commanded to be so kind, generous, encouraging, loving, and forgiving with each other.
"Then the king said to Zadok, "Take the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the Lord 's eyes, he will bring me back and let me see it and his dwelling place again. 26 But if he says, 'I am not pleased with you,' then I am ready; let him do to me whatever seems good to him." (2 Samuel 15:25&26, NIV)
This passage is an ultimate test of one's faith in God! How great is our faith? Thankfully, Jesus is our Redeemer, so our relationship with God is now very different than it was in David's time. But Jesus did not promise us an easy life, in fact quite the opposite. In Old Testament times, life was mostly about blessings and curses. If you lived right for God, then you would be blessed with what might look like the "easy life". We see that especially revealed in the book of Job, where his suffering was perceived by his friends to be because of something he must have done wrong against the Lord. In stark contrast, Jesus has promised, "You will be hated by everyone because of My name, but the one who perseveres to the end will be saved." Temporary hardships for eternal peace, and not everyone will endure: "But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it." (Matthew 7:14, NLT) We are almost guaranteed the difficult path, but perhaps that's why we're commanded to be so kind, generous, encouraging, loving, and forgiving with each other.
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