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Printer Friendly VersionEllyn Sanna was twelve years old when she went on a camping
trip to New England with her family. Four kids and two parents were packed
inside the family car. The tent was stowed away on top of the vehicle as they
traveled from site to site, setting up camp as the light faded. She tells
that there were many happy memories from that vacation, but there was also
the feeling of deep loneliness and being misunderstood.
She was the youngest of the four and too young to go on the
long hiking trips with the other siblings, yet too old to be happy staying
behind with her mom and dad. It was an awkward age, and she felt painfully
aware of her physical appearance. At night she would huddle alone at the picnic
table, resentful and miserable as she watched groups of teenagers walk by
her at the camping sites. She relates how she desperately wished that she
were older and less shy, that she was anyone but herself.
One of those bright beautiful sunny days her parents decided
to take their family to a lighthouse on a rocky point reaching far out into
the Atlantic Ocean. As they pulled into the parking lot and made their way
to the entrance, they discovered that the fee for going to the top of the
lighthouse was ten dollars per person. The price was too steep for the family
to pay, even for such a scenic view.
A sister pointed to the sign that stated, “Children twelve
and under free.” Then she said, “Ellyn could go up.”
Her parents agreed that she could come back and tell them all
about the beautiful scenery from atop the lighthouse. So all alone she climbed
to the top. She said, “For once I was just the right age: old enough
to be allowed out of my mother’s sight, young enough to pay no fee. Panting
after the long, winding climb, I emerged into the wind and light at the top.”
She relates how breathtaking the view was from her vantage point.
The ocean stretched out before her, and she could see the waves rolling to
the shore. The wind tore at her clothes and the sun warmed her head and filled
her with wild joyful singing! “I felt as though I could fly, as though
the Holy Spirit were in the strong gusts, ready to lift me off my feet into
heaven.”
Ellyn continues, “I stayed there as long as I dared. Knowing
that my family would be waiting impatiently, I went down the spiral stairs
at last. But inside my heart, I felt as though I carried a promise from God.
At twelve, I didn’t know what to call the feeling inside of me. But I
know now it was hope.”
Absalom lay peacefully in his mother’s arms as his kingly
father, David, observed. The name means “peaceful,” but this male-child
would burst upon the pages of Israel’s history with a vengeance. His
attributes to humanity would include murder, seduction, hatred, rebellion,
and war. Even in death he would not have peace.
Absalom had a promising future, a hope-filled horizon ahead,
but it came crashing in on him. As the old children’s rhyme would say,
“All the king’s horses and all the king’s men couldn’t
put Absalom together again.”
What caused Absalom to fall? How can we avoid his error-filled
ways?
The Bible tells that trickery by Absalom’s half brother,
Amnon, who raped Absalom’s sister, Tamar (II Samuel 13), sparked a deep-seated
hatred, and revenge spread quickly in Absalom’s soul and dominated every
waking moment. Revenge asks how to take the law into one’s own hands
to carry out the punishment of the guilty. Someone once said, “The person
who tries to get even by making others suffer for their sins is interfering
in God’s business.” Absalom didn’t care if it was God’s
business or not…it was his business. David never punished Amnon for his
despicable act, but Absalom planned in his heart the steps necessary for revenge,
and carried them out (II Sam. 13:32).
The character of revenge includes:
*A relentless pursuer never satisfied until hatred is fulfilled.
*Desire, not for justice, but for selfish victory over another.
*Restlessness until action is taken.
*Fanaticism that leaves logic in the dust.
What about your life? Has someone hurt you so deeply that you
have lost sight of equitable punishment and allowed revenge to rob you of
life’s peace? Get a grip on revenge now. Ask God for forgiveness. Deal
with the matter with human help. Get on with life.
If Absalom lived now he would not be a part of the moral majority.
He systematically planned his brother Amnon’s death. After the act he
flees to Talmai, his maternal grandfather (II Sam. 13:38). At his grandfather’s
home he found asylum in spite of his revenge.
The question of morality is on the mind of the nation. Who is
right and who is wrong? Where is the standard of morality laid? The government?
The whims of people? Religious institutions?
Christians look to the Bible as the foundation for our morality,
for which the Ten Commandments, not Suggestions, form the basis. The Beatitudes
are the principles of sacred attitude (Matthew 5:1-12). Truth, righteousness,
and holiness become the theme songs for our song in life…all of which
point to moral responsibility.
There is a depressing verse in 2 Samuel 16 that states, “…Then
all Israel will hear that you have made yourself a stench in your father’s
nostrils.” (v. 21b NIV). Somewhere in Absalom’s heart he separated
from his father and mother. It may have started when David refused to punish
Amnon for Tamar’s rape, but probably it developed years before in quite
subtle ways. David’s busy schedule running a nation, going off to war,
and ruling a palace all interfered with his relationship with Absalom.
Mother Teresa once said, “The biggest disease today is
not leprosy or tuberculosis, but rather the feeling of being unwanted, uncared
for, and deserted,” and that’s how Absalom felt.
What legitimate activities have separated you from someone you
love?
C.S. Lewis wrote that, “Love is to be vulnerable. Love
anything and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you
want to be sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one.
Lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness, but in that casket,
safe, dark, motionless, airless, it will change. It will not be broken, but
it will be unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. The only place outside
of heaven where you can be safe from all the dangers of love is hell.”
Please don’t lock up your love from people!
Remorse never entered Absalom’s heart or mind when he became
entangled in the large oak tree (II Sam.18:9). He had failed in life. What
started out as such hope, such promise, such potential died caught in the
branch of a tree, with Joab’s javelin sunk deep into his heart. He probably
cursed and blamed his father, as he had done all of his life, just before
he took his last breath.
Many people die without any remorse for the things they did
or the way they acted. Revenge, immorality, separation, and hatred dominated
them in life and contributed to their fall in life.
Absalom fell hard in life. He could have learned from his failures,
discovered who his real self was, and turned to God. But he failed to try
to be moral and righteous. He became negative about life and made excuses
for himself and blamed others. Is that you?
The question that must concern us is how can we avoid this kind of scenario? Only as we ask God for help, repent of our sinfulness, and daily consecrate ourselves to the living God can we avoid a life like Absalom’s!