“King David grew old,
the years took their toll,
and he couldn’t get warm even
when they covered him with bedclothes.”
-1 Kings 1:1
Verse 1 tells us that David grew old.
2 Samuel 5:4 says David was 30 years old when he became king.
He reigned for 40 years total.
So when we do the math (30 + 40), David was 70 years old at this time.
Yet we’re told he was frail and that his health was failing.
Now, compare this to Moses.
At the ripe old age of 120 years, we’re told he had excellent eyesight and was in pretty darn good shape for someone his age.
Now, there’s only about a 450-year difference between Moses’s and David’s time.
So it’s not like the average life expectancy greatly changed between the two eras.
The Jewish sages say that David’s condition was from a lifetime of fighting battles under harsh conditions in the desert wilderness.
While there is some truth to that.
I sense a spiritual cause here.
I’d say his condition was more due to the heavy burden of past sins now weighing heavily on his soul.
Let’s face it.
In the latter half of his life, David did not live like a man redeemed by the Lord.
The sins of adultery and murder had scarred his soul and taken their toll.
David not only lost his innocence.
He lost his spiritual vitality and shalom.
It reminds me of rock stars who spend their youth bingeing on sex, drugs, and alcohol.
After the age of 50, take a good look at their faces.
Their eyes look empty.
Their bodies are bent and worn out.
They look like the walking dead way too early in life.
That’s what deep sin and heavy guilt can do to a person.
It can eat you from the inside until it shows on the outside.
David is a perfect example that even someone who has been saved can feel this weight.
And that’s your takeaway for today.
The effects of your sin and the many decisions you make against God may not show up right away.
But they will show up eventually.
We’ve all seen friends, leaders, and even people in ministry.
They start strong but end up worn down.
More often than not, it comes from disobedience, especially later in life.
So remember that sin leaves marks.
And the opposite is true.
A life lived in obedience to God, at the end of the day, leads to a supernatural peace that surpasses all understanding and brings physical vitality.
I’ll close with these words of Caleb that he uttered before going to conquer the Promised Land.
He was 85 years old at the time.
And here’s what he said:
“I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me. Just as my strength was then, so is my strength now—for war, and for going out and coming in.”–Joshua 14:10–11
That’s your lesson for today.
Disobedience can hollow a person out.
Faithfulness can keep a man sharp…
Even at 85!
Ya feel me?
Done.
CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT
“Though our outer self
is wasting away,
our inner self
is being renewed
day by day.”
— 2 Corinthians 4:16
“Do you not know
that your body
is a temple
of the Holy Spirit
within you?”
—1 Corinthians 6:19
“But the fruit
of the Spirit is
love, joy, peace,
patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness,
self-control.”
—Galatians 5:22–23
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