2 Samuel 16-18

When David was being cursed by Shimei, a relative of Saul, he did nothing to stop him. Shimei was even throwing stones at David, and David’s men wanted to kill him because of it. But David said, “Lead him alone. He speaks for God.”

The thing David knew was the fact that he was guilty of the thing he was being accused of. He had shed blood. Shimei was not wrong.

The thing is, we are told by God to hold each other accountable. We are to point out sin in a fellow believer so that guilty brother will repent. But when you are on the receiving end of that, it can hurt. It can feel like someone is throwing stones at us. Our first response might be to defend ourselves, fight back, maybe even enlist the help of our friends to fight with or for us.

But what if God is using that person to point out a sin in us that needs addressed? What if we end up fighting God? 

David was wise enough to stop that fight before it got started. He took the blows as from God, not Shimei. He considered it from God, even though it hurt to do so.

If only we were that wise.