More undignified than this

May 15, 2009

Today's Reading: 2 Samuel 5-6 and Mark 8

Travel to enough spirit-filled churches, and you will probably hear the verse about Michal quite often. It is usually used as a cautionary tale for those who are critical of another’s worship.

I suppose that we could infer this from its ending. Michal was childless all of her life, after all. Should we assume the same fate if we tell others that their worship is stupid?

The sad part is Michal was apparently the woman that David truly loved, and yet it looks like the love they had went sour.

That is, this is the impression that I get from what I read here. I mean, have you ever seen a couple caught in a spat? Generally, I don’t like the idea of having an argument with my spouse in public, because it usually leads people to believe that the whole marriage is like this.

This is the really only impression that we get of Michal after a certain point in the Bible. At one point in time, she actually helped save his life. This was during the time that Saul was looking for David. Michal used the head of an idol and put in on a pillow, and then pretended David was sick. Saul’s guards didn’t seem to think that their orders to take in David applied to that, so they actually came back to Saul. Man, was Saul ticked.

Long story short, David got away. I believe Michal was punished for her actions, and I can only assume that this punishment was rescinded once David came to power.

Maybe what this story shows is how undignified we should be in the light of God. I am not certain how David was worshiping, as it seems he was “exposing himself like a pervert”. Was David a flasher or something? I think I am missing some cultural thing that I’m just not in the mood to look up.

Back to the point about David’s worship. It sounds like he went all out, and he was undignified.

It reminds me of the reading in the New Testament, where Jesus heals a blind man. For some reason, he spits in the man’s eyes. I don’t know about you, but I don’t understand why he spits. Wouldn’t that normally be an insult?

Still, if I was blind, I would have gallons of spit poured upon my eyes if it meant that I could see. It would be undignified, yes, but it would work.

Oddly enough, this spit doesn’t heal the man. In fact, it seems to work part way, and then Jesus lays his hands on him and heals him.

Perhaps this is what we have to endure to get some blessing: a little undignification.