Will a Man Rob God?

There were two men in a certain city. One of the men was rich and the other was poor. The rich man had very many flocks and herds, but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb. The poor man brought it up and it grew up with him and his children. In fact, it would eat his food and drink from his cup. The little ewe lamb would even lie in his arms and sleep and was like a daughter to the poor man.

In the meantime, a traveler came to the rich man's house and it was time for a feast. But instead of taking something out of his vast flocks to prepare for the guest, he took the poor man's ewe lamb and killed it for his feast. The story is found in II Samuel 12:1-7. We, like David, get very angry upon hearing of man's ingratitude in stories like this.

A Chinese preacher related a story about a man who went to the market with seven coins in his pocket. As he traveled the outdoor marketplace he came upon a beggar. Taking pity on the beggar, the man gave him six of the coins he had and continued about his business with just the one coin left. The beggar, instead of being thankful, followed the man and stole the last coin. Again, our sense of decency is angered. How revolting! What kind of wretch and infidel would be so calloused as to rob someone who had befriended him?

But do we not treat God in such calloused fashion? God gives us six days to make money, fulfill our hobbies, do the shopping, take our naps, play, watch ballgames (they are on every day now), and get done the things that need tending to. Yet with all that time, we are like the beggar of our story, we pursue God and take His one day-the first day of the week. With all the hours God gives us, we can't even spare Him three hours of Bible study and worship? Do you suppose God is convinced we are serious about Christianity? He feels like we stole His ewe lamb for selfish reasons.