Do What You Can, and Let God Handle the Rest
Pastor Talbert W. Swan, II
Text: 2 Samuel 21:10-14
SCRIPTURE
10 Rizpah daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on a rock. From the beginning of the harvest till the rain poured down from the heavens on the bodies, she did not let the birds touch them by day or the wild animals by night.
11 When David was told what Aiah’s daughter Rizpah, Saul’s concubine, had done,
12 he went and took the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from the citizens of Jabesh Gilead. (They had stolen their bodies from the public square at Beth Shan, where the Philistines had hung them after they struck Saul down on Gilboa.)
13 David brought the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from there, and the bones of those who had been killed and exposed were gathered up.
14 They buried the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan in the tomb of Saul’s father Kish, at Zela in Benjamin, and did everything the king commanded. After that, God answered prayer in behalf of the land.
SUBJECT: DO WHAT YOU CAN AND LET GOD HANDLE THE REST
INTRODUCTION
What do you do when life has beaten you down so much so that you are at your breaking point? I don't care how long you have been going to church, how big your Bible is, or how much you love Jesus, every now and then, life will push you so close to the edge that you feel you are about to lose your mind. Every now and then, life will break you down and leave you feeling completely shattered.
There is the pressure of going to work and catching hell on the job. There is the pressure of having mounting bills and little income. There is the pressure of dealing with family drama. There is the pressure of dealing with racism and/or sexism. There is the pressure that comes from just waking up in the morning and having to deal with the problems that come from living in this thing we call life. And every now and then, life will break you down to the point where you will say, "you know what? I have had it up to here, I can't take it any more." You may have gone through so much hell that you have reached your breaking point.
Whenever you reach your breaking point, understand that God is so amazingly good that in His grace, He will give you just what you need every single day. As a matter of fact, the writer wrote, "morning by morning, new mercies I see." Every day you wake up, God greets you with fresh mercies, knowing that yesterday's mercy is not going to be enough to handle today's challenges. When you think about it, as you look back over your life, if it had not been for the mercy of God, you should have been dead a long time ago. But guess what? If you had known back then what you are about to go through, you would have said, "forget this, I can't handle that." But now, as you are going through it, every morning God gives you just enough peace, just enough strength, just enough grace, and just enough mercy to make it through each day.
MY GRACE IS SUFFICIENT
Here is what God said to Paul when He allowed Paul to reach his breaking point because of the thorn in his flesh: "I am not going to answer your prayers the way you want Me to. Here's what I'm going to do: I'm going to give you just enough grace, and My grace is going to be so sufficient that My strength is going to be made perfect in your weakness." God says, "when you've reached your breaking point, when you feel as though you can't go on any more, that is when My strength steps in." God gives you strength to go through your situation, and before you know it, somebody is asking, how did you go through that and not lose your mind? God gave you just what you needed to get through what you were going through. God is saying, "when you reach your breaking point, don't break down, break out."
If you’ve ever been grocery shopping and happened to buy some dough biscuits, you will discover that they come in a container and the only way to get the biscuits out is you have to hit the container, and when you hit it, the biscuits pop out. But guess what the dough saying to us? The dough is saying, "you see, I was in my container which was my comfort zone, but my creator did not make me to stay in my comfort zone. My creator recognized the only way to set me free from where I was comfortable was to hit me, and once I got hit, I had to break out of what I was locked into." Realize that when God hits you, God allows you to break out, and not break down.
Besides our own personal issues, understand when you look at all the hell we catch in the hood--when you look at the crime, the violence, and the economic dysfunctionality--those things can cause you to break down. Recently, a young man, star football player, college student going to Johnson C. Smith University, was seeking help after a car accident and was shot ten times by the police--things like that will break you down. When you see the proliferation of guns, gangs and drugs in our community, things like that will break you down.
Father Michael Pfleger, pastor of the Faith Community of Saint Sabina in Chicago, told a story about the fact that the Chicago River, for years, fed Lake Michigan, and Lake Michigan was also a source of drinking water for the residents of Chicago. The Chicago River became polluted, and consequently, much of the drinking water of Lake Michigan became contaminated and this caused people to get sick. The city fathers came together and said, what can we do? A scientist said, "the only way you're going to preserve the drinking water in Lake Michigan is you have to somehow reverse the current, because as long as the current is going in the wrong direction, it's going to carry pollutants into your drinking water, and it's going to jack-up people's lives."
REVERSE THE CURRENT
Do you not know when you look at the proliferation of crime and violence in our communities, all that is, is sewage and contamination that has come from a current--a flow of economic injustice, poverty, and racism--and those things have carried all of this sewage into our community? I am hoping that somebody, today, would dare to take a stand and say, "we've got to reverse the current. We do not have to have all these guns in our community."
Now I know the NRA people are saying, "oh, no, Pastor Swan, guns don't kill people; people do." You are right. But it's people with guns who kill people. What I am trying to figure out is, why do we need all of these guns? Where do these guns come from? How is it that our kids have access to these guns? These guns that are coming into our community are sewage, and we must reverse that current that is coming into our community. We do not own one single plane that flies from South America into this nation, yet look at all the drugs in our community. There is a multinational drug cartel that has inroads into our community because of their connection to corporations in this nation. That is sewage that is keeping all of this negativity flowing into our community.
With all of that sewage, with all of that negativity, with all of that poverty, someone must stand up and declare, "I am going to change the current. I am not going to break down or melt down. I am going to step up and I am going to break out. I am not just going to let stuff happen, I am going to rise up and make things happen. I don't just go to church to sit, look, sleep, shout, dance, scream, give my neighbor high five and leave; I go to church on Sunday to get some power, so I can go in the community on Monday, and be used by God to reverse the current."
When you look at the proliferation of crime and violence, we see more of our people being affected by crime than anybody else. In so many instances, at the other end of that gun, there is some one that looks just like us. Cain is killing Abel in our community. Because of this proliferation of crime and violence, it is breaking our village, and because of this, somebody must say, I am going to stand up and I am going to speak out. I am going to do what is necessary to make sure that we reverse this current.
TEXT
Our text is tragic, and yet out of this tragedy there is a bright spot of hope--a bright spot of hope from this sister by the name of Rizpah.
Bible readers, recognize, by way of context, that we begin this chapter with David inquiring of the Lord as to why there is famine in the land. That simply means that in spite of their hard work, they had nothing to show for it; in spite of them giving their best, life was not giving it back to them.
The Lord said to David, the reason there is famine in the land is because of the blood on the hands of Saul." So, David surmises that he had to go kill the remaining relatives of Saul. Understand, by way of cultural context, that whenever a new blood line assumed the throne, the first order of business was to kill off all of the former king's relatives, so no one from the former king's family could have a claim on the throne. And so, David uses religion to justify his political military maneuvering. The Bible says they go after Saul's family in retaliation. It's a retaliation drive by, and they kill five of Saul's grandsons and two of Saul's sons birthed through his concubine, Rizpah.
OVER MY DEAD BODY
The Bible lets us know that as soon as that takes place, they leave the dead, decaying bodies of Rizpah's sons and Saul's grandsons out in the open. As soon as Rizpah gets word of what's going down she says, "no, no, no. Over my dead body!" “Not on my watch!” “I have had enough!” Do you see the picture? It's a mother crying because her sons are dying.
We read in verse ten: Rizpah daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on a rock. From the beginning of the harvest till the rain poured down from the heavens on the bodies, she did not let the birds of the air touch them by day or the wild animals by night. Rizpah, this heart-broken mother who has been pawned by the powers that be; Rizpah, who has been used and misused as a concubine of Saul, soon discovered that, in this world, if you are not careful, people will use you and then have no use for you; people who you do good for will get all they can from you and then once they get it from you, if you ever need them, they are nowhere to be found. Rizpah has been used as Saul's concubine, and now her sons are dead. She has nothing to show for being used and Rizpah finally says, "you know what, I've had it up to here. I'm not going to take any more because the last thing you're going to do is dehumanize the dead bodies of my sons."
Do you see this black mother, as she covers her sons' bones with a cloth? Then she stays out there, day and night, from April until October, and every time some scavenger tries to come and tear away the flesh of her children, she fights them off. Do you see this mama? Here comes a jackal. You better not. Here comes a vulture. You better not. Here comes a wolf. You better not. She fights them all off. Imagine that from April until October! This black mama says, "I've had it up to here. You will not do any more damage to my children. Over my dead body!"
You know what blessed me about this is even though Rizpah had been pawned, and even though she was a helpless victim up until now, she gathers all that was in her and said, "you know what? I don't have to be a victim any more." If you don't get anything else, leave this service with a new mentality that says, "you know what, I do not have to be a victim any more. I do not have to just take stuff happening. I do not have to roll over and be somebody's doormat." Whenever you are a doormat, you get stepped on, you get dirtied, and then you get left outside, and they close the door on you. You may even get thrown away.
NOT A VICTIM ANYMORE
Rizpah went from being a pawn to being a queen. Rizpah went from being a victim to setting the stage for a new victory. The name Rizpah, in Hebrew, means burning coal. Coal is hot; it is on fire. Guess what coal that is on fire and under pressure becomes? A diamond. When there is enough fire and pressure, what was an ordinary, ugly piece of coal, all of a sudden becomes a diamond. So all of a sudden, Rizpah says, "you see, back then, I was just some coal. I got kicked around. But once I went through some fire, once I was under some pressure, it brought out my bling."
God is so good that He can take the bad mess you go through and use that pressure and fire to bring out your bling. How does it work? Let me give you three points:
I. We Can Stop the Epidemic of Negativity
We can stop this epidemic of negativity, of abuse, of crime and violence going on in our homes, our churches and our communities. When you want a helping hand, check out the one at the end of your arm. Quit looking for somebody else to do for you what God has given you the strength, the resources, and the power to do for yourself. God says, "learn to do for yourself." Is that not what Rizpah did? Rizpah said, "nobody is going to be responsible for protecting the dignity of my dead kids, and so I am going to protect their dignity; I am going to cover them. And if it takes months and months of fighting off scavengers, I will do just that, because the power is in my hand."
A story is told about a football game in which a team was playing a horrible first half. The first half was just going downhill fast, and soon they came to half time. the coach was very upset. The team knew they were in trouble, but the coach did not respond negatively. Instead, he said, "Listen, we are only down by two touchdowns, but we can win this game. Nothing worked in the first half; but something is going to work in this second half, because I have in one of these two boxes the solution to our problem. In one box is the problem as to why we did not do well, and in the other box is the solution. So, I want you, one by one, to file behind these boxes. Then, let's go out and win this game." He said, "When you look in the first box and see the problem, all you have to do is correct the problem by looking in the second box."
So one by one, they looked in the first box--problem. Second box--solution. And then they went out. They turned around that game, and though they went in down by fourteen at the half, they won the game by fourteen, outscoring the opponent by twenty-eight points in the second half.
If you are thinking, "well what was in those boxes?" I will tell you what was in those boxes. The box that said "problem" had a mirror in it. The box that said "solution" had a mirror in it.
When you look at the problems in our churches and our community, look in the box, and there is the problem. Look in the box again and there is the solution. Do you want to be a problem or a solution?
This is what it boils down to: I discovered that Christians are either lampshades or light bulbs. A lampshade looks good, but it does not shed any light. A lampshade is real nice to look at. It may have frills around it, it may have a nice color; but a lampshade does not do anything as far as shedding light in a dark room. But if you want some light, it is not about the lampshade; it is about the light bulb. If the light bulb is connected right, that light bulb can bring light to the dark. God deliver me from lampshade Christians, who just come to church to look churchy, come to church to look holy, or come to church to look good. We need some light bulbs, who are hooked up to Jesus, because when you are hooked up to Jesus, you can light up the world.
Your helping hand is at the end of your arm. We can heal the hurts in our homes, deal with the crime on our streets, restore the esteem in our youth and solve the problems of our community if we make up our minds that we are not going to look to anybody else to do it for us.
II. Your Personal, Public Demonstration can Result in Political and Social Transformation
The second thing the text makes reference to, which is so powerful, is that your personal, public demonstration can result in political and social transformation. Notice verses 11-13: When David was told what Aiah's daughter Rizpah, Saul's concubine, had done, he went and took the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from the citizens of Jabesh Gilead. (They had taken them secretly from the public square at Beth Shan, where the Philistines had hung them after they struck Saul down on Gilboa.) David brought the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from there, and the bones of those who had been killed and exposed were gathered up. The text says when David heard what Rizpah had done, from April to October--fighting off vultures and jackals--he had a reversal of his public policy, because sometimes, it takes a demonstration that other folk consider extreme. Extreme times call for extreme measures. God deliver me from saints who are just lukewarm, who don't really want to do anything but go to church and be comfortable. That is why if you come to Spring of Hope, and if all you want to do is hear a word that is going to make you feel good, then you are coming to the wrong place because the world is too deadly, hell is too hot, and black folk are in too much trouble for us to just come to church, sit, shout, and then go on our merry way. We need somebody willing to do something extreme.
Rizpah's act was a demonstration. You may not like demonstrations, but whatever job you work on, it is because somebody demonstrated. Whatever house you live in, it is because somebody demonstrated. Do you not know whatever freedom you have it is because somebody demonstrated? Do you not know that India broke the back of colonialism because Gandhi demonstrated? Do you not know that because Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu, Steven Biko, and Winnie Mandela, demonstrated, apartheid was abolished in South Africa? Do you not know because Martin Luther King, Jr., demonstrated, because Medgar Evers demonstrated, and because Rosa Parks demonstrated that there was a change in public policy? Well, maybe what we need to do is leave church one Sunday and demonstrate in the streets that we are not going to take any more crime and violence and mistreatment and burning down of churches in our city.
III. You Do All You Can and God Will Handle What You Can't
Finally, the text lets us know that you do all you can and God will handle what you can't. You do what's possible for you, and God will handle what's impossible for you. You do your best, and let God handle the rest.
The text says when Rizpah did that, David had all of the bodies buried in dignity. Notice, again, verse 14: They buried the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan in the tomb of Saul's father Kish, at Zela in Benjamin, and did everything the king commanded. After that, God answered prayer in behalf of the land. After they were buried in dignity, God heard the prayers of the people, and the famine was over. Why? Because they could not stop the famine themselves; all they could do was do their part, and once they did their part then God said, "now it is on Me to do My part." You just get to where I want you to be.
God said if you get there, I will handle things from there. That’s what it’s like to walk with God. There is a whole lot of stuff I can't handle myself but God says, "just get there and I will handle things from there."
That is what God told Abraham: "Abraham, I know you are an old man, but if you get there, I will handle things from there." Isaac was born because Abraham got there. Moses is down at the Red Sea. God says, "since you are here, I will handle things from here," and He made a freeway through the Red Sea. If you get there, God will handle things from there.
CONCLUSION
I just came to tell somebody today that what you’re going through won’t last forever if you let God handle it, (the storm don’t last always).
That emotional battle isn’t eternal
That financial struggle isn’t eternal
That sickness isn’t eternal
That job that makes you miserable, isn’t eternal
That problem that makes you cry isn’t eternal
That pain of betrayal and deception, isn’t eternal.
It’s temporary, if you let God handle it:
I may be crying today, but I’ll be smiling again in a little while
I may be broke today, but I’ll have more than enough in a little while
I may be in pain today, but my healing is on it’s way
I may be walking today, but my rides on it’s way
Tell your neighbor, “what you’re going through is only temporary.” If you let God handle it, it will change after while.
It’s temporary
Like when they have to turn the water off to fix the pipes
Like when your internet service gets interrupted
Like when your T.V. program gets interrupted and they say please excuse us we are experiencing technical difficulties
Don’t worry about the current circumstance….Just get to where God wants you to be. Don’t look at your circumstance…..LOOK TO THE HILL!
While we look (not ) at the (things which are seen):
Touch somebody and tell them, (don’t be looking at that).
Look means: To consider, think on, contemplate, regard, observe, set your attention on.
Yes I know there are giants in the land, (But I choose not to look at them,) I’m not regarding them, or considering or observing them.
Why? Because I’m regarding, contemplating, considering and observing something else.
You might think I’m crazy, but the truth is (I’m not looking at the giants because I’m looking at the invisible)
Yes mister giant, I know your there but I can’t really see you anymore because the invisible has become so big it’s blocked you out.
The invisible = the eternal, the never changing, the unalterable, the immutable, the undeniable realities of the faith dimension.
In other words: I’ve got my eyes full of the Word of God:
I can’t see sickness anymore (All I can see is, by his stripes ye were healed).
I can’t see that financial problem anymore (All I can see is) My God shall supply all your need.
I can’t see me struggling through the wilderness of just enough anymore, (All I can see is) My God is able to do exceeding and abundantly above all that I can ask or think according to the power that worketh in me.
Touch 3 people and Tell them (I see something).
I see me blessed, I see me Healed, I see my children off drugs saved sanctified and filled with the Holy Ghost doing the work of God.
I see me in my new car (It’s alright if you can’t see it, it don’t offend me) I see it.
I see me in my new house.
I see me in my new anointing
I see me married to that man or woman of God who is Holy and virtuous and pure.
Excuse me for a minute: I’ve got something in my eye
It’s called Vision, It’s Called the Eternal
I can’t help it if I start acting crazy it’s because I’m seeing something.
I know I’m talking different, and it might not make sense to you (but I’m seeing something).
