AT A GLANCE

In 2 Samuel 3, David is growing stronger and Abner is making himself strong—but both reveal the danger of asking “Will it work?” instead of “Is it faithful?”

In this sermon cross-country  we consider how easily worldly wisdom can masquerade as success—and why faithfulness to God matters more than results.

INTRODUCTION

2 SAMUEL 3:1-11

One of the most dangerous things that can happen when you disobey God is that it works . Think about that. If every time we ignored God’s Word everything immediately blew up in our faces, disobedience wouldn’t be nearly as tempting.

But sometimes the shortcut works. Sometimes the compromise gets you what you wanted. Sometimes you ignore what God has said, do what seems best to you, and everything turns out just fine. Or so it seems.

And that’s when pragmatism becomes so deceptive. Pragmatism asks, “Will it work?” Faithfulness asks, “Is it right?” And the frightening thing is that something can work without being right. It can produce results without producing faithfulness. It can even appear to make you stronger while ultimately making you vulnerable.

That tension is all over our passage this morning. David and Abner were both getting stronger. Or so it seemed. As the story unfolds, we discover that some of the very decisions these men make in pursuit of strength will eventually bring tremendous destruction into their lives.

And that brings up a very important question: is what you’re doing now working a future destruction? Let this story serve as a warning that something can make you stronger in the short run and destroy you in the long.

EXEGESIS

Verse 1 There was a long war between the house of Saul and the house of David. And David grew stronger and stronger, while the house of Saul became weaker and weaker.

This is a broad synopsis of the divided kingdom. As is often the case in ancient Hebrew writing, the author tells us the point and then fills in the details. Here’s what the author means…

Verses 2-5 And sons were born to David at Hebron: his firstborn was Amnon, of Ahinoam of Jezreel; ³ and his second, Chileab, of Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel; and the third, Absalom the son of Maacah the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur; ⁴ and the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith; and the fifth, Shephatiah the son of Abital; ⁵ and the sixth, Ithream, of Eglah, David’s wife. These were born to David in Hebron.

Offspring were important to signal political strength and succession. All the kings were doing it. Here’s the trouble, Deuteronomy 17:17 prohibits it. “And he shall not acquire many wives for himself, lest his heart turn away…” Deuteronomy 17:17

David’s taking of many wives was likely not primarily the fruit of sexual desire, but of political ambition. Recall that Abigail was a Judahite, the widow of Nabal, a prominent figure in the region of Hebron.

Marrying her may have been an attempt to consolidate political power in Judah. Likewise, marrying Maacah of Geshur, may have been about establishing political alliances in the territory to the north of Ish-bosheth.

He’s being strategic, using marriage like a political treaty. Wonder how this is going to work out? Remember my rubric for gauging what is going to happen based on whether David sought the Lord or not? I don’t read that David sought the Lord in taking these wives. And the narrator doesn’t mention that the Lord was making David strong. 

And the conscientious reader cues in on some of these names and realizes that several of these sons of David, who at first glance represent David’s strength, will, in the end, turn out to be a pain in his side.

Amnon, born to Ahinoam of Jezreel, rapes David’s daughter, Tamar. Absalom, Tamar’s brother, murders Amnon in retribution. Years later Absalom slept with David’s concubine on a rooftop staking a public claim on the throne.

After David’s death, Adonijah made a similar move by asking Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother, to let him marry Abishag the Shunammite, who attended to David in his old age. Solomon viewed this as another treasonous power grab.

But we’ll let the story unfold and we’ll get to those details later. So, while David is having lots of sons with lots of wives, Abner is over in Saul’s house making a play on his throne. Or so it would seem. 

Verse 6 While there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David, Abner was making himself strong in the house of Saul. 

How so?

Verse 7 Now Saul had a concubine whose name was Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah. And Ish-bosheth said to Abner, “Why have you gone in to my father’s concubine?” 

The author does not say that Abner lay with Rizpah. It says Ish-bosheth asked him why he did. But when Abner responds in verse 8, he doesn’t deny it. He simply downplays it.

If Abner did in fact lay with Rizpah, the motive is clear because to lay with one of the king’s concubines was akin to usurping his throne.

It was a power move, just like it was a power move for Absalom and Adonijah. 

Let’s read Abner’s rebuttal.

Verse 8  Then Abner was very angry over the words of Ish-bosheth and said, “Am I a dog’s head of Judah? To this day I keep showing steadfast love to the house of Saul your father, to his brothers, and to his friends, and have not given you into the hand of David. And yet you charge me today with a fault concerning a woman. 

Now, again we don’t know if he did. But he didn’t deny it. Instead, he appeals to his loyalty to Saul’s family and in anger asserts that Ish-bosheth is only alive because he didn’t hand him over to David. Now you’d think that if he had not made this move on the throne, he’d come out and say as much.

Instead, he blows it off as if it’s no big deal to sleep with the king’s concubine. Seems to me Abner knew what he did. But mind you, this whole situation exists because Abner propped Ish-bosheth up as a puppet king.

But this call to account pushes Abner over the edge. It breaks whatever loyal bond Abner previously felt toward Ish-bosheth. It brings into question Abner’s motives in anointing Ish-bosheth as king to begin with. What it leads me to conclude is that Abner was strictly a selfish pragmatist. He did whatever worked in his own self-interests. Next, he brings God into the equation.

Verses 9-11 God do so to Abner and more also, if I do not accomplish for David what the Lord has sworn to him, ¹⁰ to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul and set up the throne of David over Israel and over Judah, from Dan to Beersheba.” ¹¹ And Ish-bosheth could not answer Abner another word, because he feared him.

Recall from two weeks ago that Abner picked a fight with Joab and then appealed to brotherly fellowship to get Joab to call off the pursuit. I said then that you can know the truth, proclaim the truth, and still resist the truth. Here’s what I mean. Abner has always known that the Lord gave the kingdom of Israel to David. He knew it when he anointed Ish-bosheth. He knew it when he made the move toward Gibeon.

But until there was personal offense with Ish-bosheth, Abner seemed happy to ignore this theological truth. Now that Ish-bosheth has insulted him, Abner now seems to cherish the divine edict that the kingdom belongs to David.

To me, Abner is the worst kind of pragmatist. He’s not only selfish, only doing what he believes will put him in the best position. But he’s also self-righteous about it. All of a sudden, Abner concerns himself with the man God says is supposed to govern?

All of a sudden, Abner gets a conscience? No, Abner played the brother card when he knew he was losing the fight to save his skin. (cf. 2 Samuel 2:26) Now Abner plays the theology card when he knows he’s been ousted in this camp and tries to justify flipping to the other.

Next time we’ll see that it was not very long before Abner was dead at the hands of Joab. And the saga continues. But let’s sit with Abner’s pragmatism for a while.

It was self-righteous, appealing to the Lord’s Word when it benefited him. And it was selfish, only looking out for number one.

PRAGMATISM RUNS DEEP

As I said before, there’s an Abner in all of us. When we ignore what the Bible tells us when it’s costly, but we stand on the truth of scripture when it benefits us, we’re living like Abner.

But here’s the deal, in this story, David acts just as pragmatically as Abner. Both men are seen doing whatever they thought would work. Whatever they thought was in their best interest. We simply cannot give David a pass on violating Deuteronomy 17:17 and trampling on the institution given to us as a representation of the gospel – marriage – as a vehicle to political advantage.

The same reason I would be wrong for having multiple wives, David was wrong. The principle, the Law, the precept predates David. He had the Law and he had the responsibility to submit to it. But he looked around and saw what worked for the nations around him and he went with it.

We have the privilege of hindsight with David’s life. We’re reading a story 3000 years old. And we don’t need to justify his actions. But neither should we prop ourselves up on a pedestal and look down our noses at him.

Here’s the truth: the same pragmatic spirit that motivated David’s taking multiple wives and Abner’s flip-flopping is alive and well today.

In fact, in the last century, we put a name to it – pragmatism. It asks, “Will it work?” rather than, “Is it faithful?” And it colors our worldview no less than it did David and Abner’s in their time.

Whenever we think first, “Will this work out?” or “Will this make me happy?” Or “Will this get me ahead?” rather than “Is this what the Lord wants?” or “What does the Bible say about this?” We’re thinking pragmatically, not biblically.

Whenever we think we can do whatever we want and pray the Lord blesses. We’re thinking like pragmatists.

Whenever we think we can ignore biblical principles and still thrive. We’re thinking like pragmatists.

Whenever we think like the world around us rather than seeking the wisdom of the Lord. We’re thinking like pragmatists.

What David’s story teaches us is that all of us, even men and women after God’s own heart, are works in progress. We are maturing. We are growing. We are failing, but repenting. And these are the only kind of people God has ever used with the exception of Jesus, who was God in the flesh.

But every other man or woman God has ever used in the history of mankind, has been flawed & broken…a work in progress.

Here’s the moral of the story whether we’re dealing with David in his prime, David in what is obviously sinful, or David when it seems ok, but in the end it’s going to bite him: the Lord is not depending on you being perfect to use you.

But He does expect you to be faithful.

Not perfect, because perfect is unattainable. But faithful. And by the grace of God, faithfulness is possible, because through the Holy Spirit you have been given all you need for life and godliness. You have direct access to the Lord who invites you to seek Him and gain wisdom.

He has given you His powerful Word, which is profitable that we may be thoroughly equipped, that by hiding it in your heart you might not sin against Him.

As you consider your own lives today, remember your identity, which Pastor Andy brought to our attention a few weeks ago from Colossians 3. “For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” Colossians 3:3

Remember the lifestyle that ought to accompany that new identity, which Pastor Bob brought to the forefront of our minds last week from Psalm 1. That the blessed man “walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers.” Psalm 1:1

We don’t know who wrote Psalm 1, but I sure wish David had heard it and heeded it rather than looking around him at the world and adopting their values and principles and taking multiple wives for political strength.

I wish he had instead “meditated on God’s law night and day” Psalm 1:2 and considered the implications of Deuteronomy 17:17 before he wrecked his life and the lives of many others.

We have hindsight on David’s life not to judge, but to learn. Not to condemn, but to repent.

WHAT WILL YOUR LIFE REVEAL?

What will people say when they look back on your life in 100 years? Will they point to pragmatic decisions you made without consulting the Lord, submitting to His will, & obeying His word? Or will they see increasing faithfulness and growing godliness?

The only hope you and I have of seeing faithfulness in our lives is that we have been raised with Christ, we have believed the Gospel, we have been born again by the Holy Spirit. There is nothing intrinsic in ourselves that we can appeal to to win this fight. It must come from Jesus, who laid His life down for you so that you could live for Him. 

How ironic that the thrust of this passage is two men supposedly strengthening themselves, yet both create tremendous trouble for themselves. Abner will be killed not long after this. David’s house will be divided, and his own son, Absalom, will eventually die trying to take his throne.

If we take away nothing else, let’s leave with this:

David reasoned, “This will strengthen me.”

Abner reasoned, “This will advance me.”

We often reason, “This will satisfy me.”

Instead, we ought to ask, “Lord, what is your will for me?”

Pragmatism begins with the outcome I want; faithfulness begins with the Lord whose will I want.