19/01/2022

The victory of  David over the much stronger Philistine is part of the history of Israel and is a familiar story of the weak overcoming the strong. The theme is that the apparantly weak are in the Lord's care and so infinitely stronger than it seems for no-one can resist the power of God.

The Church of the New Testament was totally without strength in the beginning. Jesus was dead and so all hopes were dashed and the followers of Jesus must have been in despair. Some had literally given up their everything to follow him. Many of these had certainly expected him to oust the Hellenized, the Herodians and return to the Lord worshipped by their forefathers as rulers of their promised land. John does not tell us what he and Mary had expected from the Jesus they knew and loved.

The third day was still an unclear mystery to them. There was the empty tomb.No-one immediately remembered Jesus hints of what would happen to him. Many had left Jerusalem. Even the Apostles had dispersed. Some of them had wasted three years in attendance on Jesus. Their hearts were broken. They were weak and alone.

When they recognised the risen Lord, what a change must have overtaken them and they began to understand the meaning of the teaching and events they had been witnessing. The Church was weaker than it has ever been since then but the Lord was with this "David". 

Our Church today has all the trappings of power but needs to remember that it is in weakness that we find the Lord's truth and strength.

Dear Lord let us avoid the triumphalism of your Old Testament and find you in the teaching of the beatitudes and the example of your Son. Let the Holy Spirit be with us that we can recognise truth and become weak in the eyes of the world but filled with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.