2 Samuel 18:28-33 – A total consecration for God

Running as fast as he could, Ahimaaz was the first to reach David. As he was approaching Mahanaim where David was eagerly waiting, he hollered out breathlessly  saying, “All is well.”  Then coming before the king, he prostrated and said to him “Blessed is the Lord your God, who has delivered up the men who lifted their hands against my lord the king.” The king, however, was only interested to know about his son. So he asked Ahimaaz, “Is it well with the young man Absalom?” Ahimaaz avoided the answer. He said that when he was sent by Joab and the other runner, he only saw a great tumult and did know the reason. He was probably giving a very indirect hint. Since his answer suggested that he was not fully apprised of what had happened, David told him to stand aside. He went aside and stood still as instructed.

Just then the Cushite arrived with the same good news. Gingerly, he said to the king, “Let my lord the king receive good news, for the Lord has freed you this day from the hand of all those who rose up against you.” Again David was only interested to know about Absalom. Diplomatically and with great tact the Cushite answered, “Let the enemies of my lord the king, and all who rise up against you for evil, be as that young man!”. He heard what he did not wish to hear and immediately knew that his son had been killed in the battle. Straightaway, he beelined for his chamber and he bawled uncontrollably. He wished that it were him who had died instead of  Absalom. The depth of his love for Absalom was seen in the five times he uttered the two words “my son.”

Without a doubt, the LORD was with David’s men in this fight with Absalom. Hence the Cushite could confidently say “…the Lord has freed you this day from the hand of all those who rose up against you.” This reminds us that if the Lord is for us, who can stand against us. Rebellion and treason exact a price. In this case, it was the death of a treacherous son. Absalom’s rebellion is a grim reminder of our own rebellion against God. Like his treason against the king, ours is against the King of kings. Like his rebellion that demanded the death of a son, ours also required the death of a Son. In our guilty place, the perfect and sinless Son of God died, hung on that cursed tree at Calvary for us. The fight Absalom was involved in was for a physical kingdom but ours was for the eternal kingdom. In both situations, restoring the kingdom required the death of a son. In Absalom’s case, David could not bear the price he paid, but in our case, it was a price God willingly paid. Think silently for a while. Imagine the great grief of David at the loss of his son. Now think of how much more painful it must have been for God to watch His perfect Son hanging between heaven and earth, dying not for his treason but ours. We owe God and our Lord Jesus Christ a great debt of gratitude, a debt we can never repay even with a million lifetimes. The only appropriate response in the light of all that God had done for us is the complete and total surrendering of our lives to Him. Nothing short of a hundred percent response would ever be a worthy response. What is our response?!