Attitudes

1 Kings 1:1–53, Mark 1:1–34, Proverbs 1:1–7

When Israel’s King David became advanced in years, no amount of blankets could keep him warm. They had no electric blankets, hot water bottles, or thermostats in those days so David’s servants found a young woman to lie in his arms. Imagine being willing to cuddle up to a very old man, not as a sexual object but to serve the king in a most unusual way. (1 Kings 1:1–2)  I can hardly imagine her attitude!

It is easier to grasp the attitude of Adonijah, one of David’s sons. He knew that his father was unable to rule, so he exalted himself saying, “I will be king” and made preparations to take that position. (1 Kings 1:5–6)

Bathsheba was dismayed. With great respect, she went to David and said, “My lord, you swore to your servant by the Lord your God, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne.’ And now, behold, Adonijah is king, although you, my lord the king, do not know it.” (1 Kings 1:17–18) She knew that if Adonijah took the throne, he would kill her and Solomon.

David remembered. He said, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my soul out of every adversity, as I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place,’ even so will I do this day.” (1 Kings 1:29–30) Even though David was not a perfect or sinless person, he was a man of his word, a very commendable attitude for anyone to have.

His men were loyal to him also. One of them said, “Amen! May the Lord, the God of my lord the king, say so. As the Lord has been with my lord the king, even so may he be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.” (1 Kings 1:36–37)

This attitude of allegiance was repeated by David’s servants. They came to congratulate him saying, “May your God make the name of Solomon more famous than yours, and make his throne greater than your throne.”

David also bowed himself on the bed and said, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who has granted someone to sit on my throne this day, my own eyes seeing it.” (1 Kings 1:46–48) He was totally willing to yield his throne to the son of his choice.

As for Adonijah, he feared for his life, but the new king Solomon said, “If he will show himself a worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the earth, but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.” He had Adonijah brought before him and the usurper wisely paid homage to King Solomon. The new king could have slain him, but Solomon said, “Go to your house.” (1 Kings 1:52–53) His merciful attitude was far different from that of his half brother.

Solomon has been considered a very wise man. He wrote many proverbs, particularly about wisdom. His attitude was to “know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity; to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth.” He urged that “the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance, to understand a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles” and declared, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.” (Proverbs 1:1–7) The grace of God gave Solomon an attitude that few had in those days. No wonder he had an incredibly good reputation.

Hundreds of years later, another man appeared who also had an unusual attitude. He had a powerful message about the coming Messiah, but gave it in great humility . . .

“John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, ‘after me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.’” (Mark 1:4–8)

Soon after, Jesus came and John stepped out of the limelight. Jesus invited humble fishermen to follow Him, healed the sick, cast out demons, and changed the world. While the godly men who went before Him displayed remarkable attitudes, His thoughts and manner were always exactly as they should be for He was God in human flesh, sinless, and determined to not do His own will but the will of His Father in heaven.

I can look to David, Solomon, John the Baptist and others as good examples, but only Jesus lives in my heart to enable me to not only have the attitude of my God, but live it out in faith and obedience.

What does the presence of God feel like?

When someone says, “I feel the presence of God,” how do they feel? How is God’s presence known? Do the hairs on the back of the neck stand up? Is there an emotional reaction? Does His presence feel oppressive? Or light? Or threatening?

The word “holy” is used more than 650 times in the Bible. Many of those references describe the nature of God. This word basically means “other than” or “different.” God is not like us. He is set apart, lofty, even mysterious. He is without sin and never makes mistakes. He is beyond our comprehension. Yet He made Himself known and we can see what He is like by taking a good look at Jesus Christ. Jesus is God’s revelation of Himself, and the way we know Him.

That said, how then can we “feel the presence of God.” Is that feeling based on what He says about Himself? Or is it possible to “make God in our own image” and sense something that is not God?

He has been showing me that how I understand Him will have a definite bearing on what the “sense of His presence” feels like. If my understanding of God is as He revealed Himself in the Bible, “sensing His presence” will be the same as those who described it in Scripture.

On the other hand, I’ve been thinking about the people who describe God’s presence as playful, teasing, their buddy, and with other very familiar qualities. I’ve sometimes thought about God like that too, but is this an accurate understanding? For me, incorrect thoughts of God affect my worship, my obedience, and can result in me being less alert to His commands, and to His words of correction.

Biblical thoughts about God deepen my worship, heighten obedience, and affect everything that I do. They also bring a far better response to His discipline, as the writer of Hebrews describes . . .

See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire. (Hebrews 12:25–29)

Job and the psalmist both wrote about this reverence and awe toward God. Job said, “Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.” (Job 28:28) and Solomon wrote, “To know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity; to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth— Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance, to understand a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.” (Proverbs 1:1–7)

John also wrote, “Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.” (Revelation 15:4)

Scripture is filled with descriptions of God’s holiness and power, His grace and glory. While He made us in His image, that reflection is flawed because of sin. Without Christ, we don’t look like God as He intended.

With Christ, He tells us to obey Him and to be holy as He is holy. I’m to be different than I once was and different from those who do not believe, but I know that is impossible apart from Christ. Without Him, I am helpless and would be lost forever.

I also know that the Bible says that He will never leave me or forsake me. This is wonderful, yet I cannot find any description of Him as my playful companion. Instead, everything He says about Himself should fill me with awe. He saved me, the chief of sinners. I should feel a deep awareness of His holiness, but also remember my own sin and shortcomings with a willingness to be led, even rebuked and corrected when necessary.

Most of all, when those who wrote Scripture were in His presence, they fell on their face in humble adoration and worship. When I am aware of God’s nearness, I also should be filled with awe. This is God Almighty, the Creator of all things, the Mighty One who died for me, and the Lover of my soul who will never leave me or forsake me. This God is an awesome God.