1 Chronicles 21:1-8
Now Satan entered the scene and seduced David into taking a census of Israel. David gave orders to Joab and the army officers under him, "Canvass all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and get a count of the population. I want to know the number." Joab resisted: "May God multiply his people by hundreds! Don't they all belong to my master the king? But why on earth would you do a thing like this—why risk getting Israel into trouble with God?"
But David wouldn't take no for an answer, so Joab went off and did it— canvassed the country and then came back to Jerusalem and reported the results of the census: There were 1,100,000 fighting men; of that total, Judah accounted for 470,000. Joab, disgusted by the command — it, in fact, turned his stomach! — protested by leaving Levi and Benjamin out of the census-taking. And God, offended by the whole thing, punished Israel.
Then David prayed, "I have sinned badly in what I have just done, substituting statistics for trust; forgive my sin — I've been really stupid."
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
“I’ve been really stupid.” I bet every single one of us has said this at one time or another. Haven’t you gone against your better judgment at some point, then regretted it terribly? Remember, David was a KING… he was a man after God’s own heart… yet he still could be thrown off track by the devil. So why do we think we are any different?
If you read the rest of 1 Chronicles 21, you learn that God gave David three choices for punishment…three years of famine, three months of running from his enemies, or three days of an epidemic. David chose the epidemic, and seventy thousand Israelites died because of his sin.
When we listen to the devil, there are consequences. We may not be responsible for the death of 70,000 people, but our sin still upsets God. Jesus gave His very life for our sins. So every time you choose to listen to the devil, remember the blood of Jesus. Every time you start to go in the wrong direction, think of what it cost your LORD and Savior. Whenever you are tempted to judge others… to lie, cheat, steal, or do whatever Satan is taunting you to do… consider the cost, because there always is one.
Because of the blood of Jesus, God doesn’t so readily come to us with a list of consequences and make us choose, as He did with David. And aren’t we grateful for this? Isn’t Jesus’ blood more than enough? Isn’t His sacrifice on our behalf to pay a debt He didn’t owe the only motivation we should ever need to turn and run the other way when Satan approaches?
The next time you feel a tug on your heart that you know is not God… the next time you feel tempted to be really stupid… think of David and what such a decision cost him. More importantly, think of the cross and what your sins have already cost Jesus. Thank Him for this incredible, amazing, incomparable gift… and do everything you can to show your gratitude each and every day.
©2012 Debbie Robus
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