Text: 1 Samuel 8:7And the LORD told him: "Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king.
Meditation:
As the counting of votes in the Philippines progresses to this moment one thing is obvious, Christians bet is on the losing side. I tell you it’s like a bitter pill that’s hard to swallow. After being convinced that what we are doing is God’s will for the country, whom we are endorsing is God’s will for the post then it makes me wonder why. As I turned my back from viewing the latest poll outcome from the internet I grabbed my Bible groping for insights when suddenly the Lord seemed to whisper these words to me, “I lost twice in the election too”. Immediately the picture of Christ, Pilate and the Israel electorate came to my mind. The candidates were Christ and Barabbas. Armed with the greatest motivation to reconcile Israel back to God He consecrated His life for this cause. God in various ways and various times attempted to show the people who Jesus is; that He is the begotten son of the true King and was sent to Lord over Israel and the world. When people sought for capability Jesus manifested supernatural powers, when they sought for knowledge He gave them Godly wisdom and truth nobody can prevail and when they sought for integrity He challenged anyone who can convicts Him of sin. But alas! When Pilate called for election, Israel casted their votes to the person who was popular in their hearts, Barabbas. Jesus lost that election not because He’s not capable but simply because God’s will is not welcome in Israel and so He was nailed to the cross being watch only by a handful disciples at that time.
Once again God impressed to my mind the time the true King lost the favor of Israel. They asked for another king, a king that will fit their view, patterned according to the popular profile of kings from neighboring nations. God lost that election too not because He’s incapable but because the heart of Israel shifted once again away from God.
7And the LORD told him: "Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. 8As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 9Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will do." 1King 8:7-9
As I pondered more on this election outcome, a universal truth expressed once by John Maxwell surfaced to my mind; “before you can touch someone’s hand you have to touch his heart”. You just can’t pull a person to your side if his heart does not belong to you. You have to invest something into his heart and whether it is good or bad is not the question; a sort of connection must be there.
Noynoy’s victory was a result of his parent’s long haul investments to the heart of public. Erap’s surprising occupation of 2nd place despite his former record attests to the fact that he is still close to the hearts of Filipinos because of his being a movie actor for quite long. Villar, landed at the 3rd place despite the enormous amount of money he spent during the campaign period. Gibo obviously alien to the hearts of many Filipino and Eddie V…..still alien to many Filipinos, rejected by those who outwardly oppose God and doubted by some brethren landed in the 5th place.
The 2010 election improved a little bit. Technology trimmed down the possibility of fraud and manipulation and made to surface the contents of the heart of the Filipino people. Whether someone says that the people’s choice is not right, winning election is a matter of investing something into the hearts of people; it will take time, it will asks for sacrifice and at worst investment can be sown on the wrong hearts, that’s why God long ago was lost twice.
BUT REMEMBER THIS; GOD IS NOT A LOSER LIKE OTHERS USED TO THINK. CHOICES OF MAN ARE ALLOWED BY GOD THAT MAKE US REALIZE WHETHER WE CHOSE WISELY OR POORLY. SOMEDAY JESUS WILL RETURN NOT AS A SAVIOR BUT A TRUE KING AND JUDGE, NOT ELECTED BY MAN BUT APPOINTED BY THE TRUE KING AND HE WILL JUDGE THE HEARTS OF ALL MEN. WHICH SIDE YOU ARE IN NOW? I WISH YOU ARE ON THE RIGHT SIDE.
Smile :)
Ptr Roger.
