2 Samuel 15:2-4 – Now Absalom used to get up early and stand beside the road that led to the city gate. Whenever anyone came by who had a complaint to bring to the king for arbitration, Absalom would call out to him, “What city are you from?” The person would answer, “I, your servant, am from one of the tribes of Israel.”

Absalom would then say to him, “Look, your claims are legitimate and appropriate. But there is no representative of the king who will listen to you.” Absalom would then say, “If only they would make me a judge in the land!”

Absalom typifies those who seek to establish their own position or control within the Work of the Holy Spirit. They claim to be faithful servants of God, but they are masters of church politics.  Not the politics of the world, with candidates and campaigns for government office, but rather manipulation to have power and control within the church. Absalom’s strategy was to gain influence by political manipulation.   He cultivated personal loyalty, wanting people to be loyal to him rather than to the rightful King.

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“Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,’ says the Lord , who has compassion on you.” (Isaiah 54:10)

Every day we see sensational events reported in the news – sometimes horrifying disasters and calamities, other times important scientific breakthroughs or personal triumphs.  We cannot ignore these events, but at the same time our relationship with the Lord should remain constant regardless of what happens around us.  The events of this life, and the situations we encounter in this world, are merely temporary.  Our eternal inheritance is the only thing that lasts forever.  We strive to keep this eternal perspective – the most important thing is the constancy of the Lord’s love for us, and His eternal plan for us, even if we live in an age of turmoil and change.   continue