Lead with Grace

How often do we desire “justice” when someone hurts us or when we see somebody mistreated, or a heinous crime took place and the authorities believe they have the perpetrator? We look at these hurtful people with great distain. It is so easy to look at people unknown to us, people we have no connection with and desire grave justice. “They deserve everything they get”, we might say. How do you navigate your mind when you see someone shoplift, a lazy or always late employee, someone who makes an illegal U-turn, a lone driver in the carpool lane, or a person on a news clip caught on tape during an armed robbery? What about the person who cuts you off on the road and almost causes a major accident, do you like me wish your car came with a missile launching option? We all have our “hot buttons” those things that set us off into to angerville or to the land of “justice”.

In 2 Samuel 24 you read about King David incited by Satan to take a census of his military strength. God was the one who brought victory in all of David’s battles, but for some reason…let’s call it pride David wants his warriors to spend the next nine months or so to count every able body for his army. God wasn’t against taking a census as we see in Exodus 30:11-16, but the fact that this was to see how powerful and successful David’s kingdom was instead of raising money for the work of the Lord. It was for David’s glory not God’s. Even David’s top general and least spiritually receptive Joab was against this kind of census. Biblical scholar William Barclay wrote, “Pride is the ground in which all the other sins grow," which was the case here. It took over nine months’ time to take the census and for David to come to his senses. After the count was given he repents. The next morning the prophet Gad identified the sin and spoke the Lord’s judgment over David and the nation Israel. David was indeed guilty, and what is so amazing is that God gave David the choice of what the punishment would be. The punishment was not just for David but for all of Israel as their own sin angered the Lord.

The next morning the word of the LORD came to the prophet Gad, who was David’s seer. This was the message:  “Go and say to David, ‘This is what the LORD says: I will give you three choices. Choose one of these punishments, and I will inflict it on you.’”  So Gad came to David and asked him, “Will you choose three years of famine throughout your land, three months of fleeing from your enemies, or three days of severe plague throughout your land? Think this over and decide what answer I should give the LORD who sent me.”  “I’m in a desperate situation!” David replied to Gad. “But let us fall into the hands of the LORD, for his mercy is great. Do not let me fall into human hands. 2 Samuel 24:11-14 (NLT)

Notice the choice that David made, he banked on the mercy of the Lord his God; he put his life and that of his nation in the hands of the Lord’s grace. He later is asked to build an altar to the Lord as a burnt and peace offering. It was then that the plague on Israel stopped.

It is our pride that causes us to judge, causes us to see people and life through a negative lens. Our pride blinds us and hardens our hearts towards those who are evil, wicked and the ignorant. Those are the very people who need us to lead with grace, to lead with a heart of compassion and hopefully love them towards repentance.

Take a personal inventory:

Where do you need God’s grace? (They usually spring up in relationships). Who do you need to be gracious to? Who has pushed your hot buttons so much that you are praying for a missile launcher for Christmas? How do you see your hosts who never return any of your attempts of contact? Where might you find areas of pride in your life? (Saying nowhere might be a good indicator that there is some). Where do you need to repent? Is there an area in your life that Satan is trying to get access to? (Are you contemplating any areas of compromise?)