Ridiculous Love

I remember first hearing about, and being inspired by, David's Mighty Men during my years at NNU. I preached this message a few weeks ago in our hospital chapel.

2 Samuel 23:8-17: These are the names of David's mighty men: Josheb-Basshebeth, a Tahkemonite, was chief of the Three; he raised his spear against eight hundred men, whom he killed in one encounter. Next to him was Eleazar son of Dodai the Ahohite. As one of the three mighty men, he was with David when they taunted the Philistines gathered [at Pas Dammim] for battle. Then the men of Israel retreated, but he stood his ground and struck down the Philistines till his hand grew tired and froze to the sword. The LORD brought about a great victory that day. The troops returned to Eleazar, but only to strip the dead. Next to him was Shammah son of Agee the Hararite. When the Philistines banded together at a place where there was a field full of lentils, Israel's troops fled from them. But Shammah took his stand in the middle of the field. He defended it and struck the Philistines down, and the LORD brought about a great victory. During harvest time, three of the thirty chief men came down to David at the cave of Adullam, while a band of Philistines was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim. At that time David was in the stronghold, and the Philistine garrison was at Bethlehem. David longed for water and said, "Oh, that someone would get me a drink of water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem!" So the three mighty men broke through the Philistine lines, drew water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem and carried it back to David. But he refused to drink it; instead, he poured it out before the LORD. "Far be it from me, O LORD, to do this!" he said. "Is it not the blood of men who went at the risk of their lives?" And David would not drink it. Such were the exploits of the three mighty men.

When I read this story, I always think to myself, “Man, that water in Bethlehem must have been some good water!” I imagine that the well might have been famous in all of Israel. Perhaps travelers would make a point to stop by the well any time they were near Bethlehem to partake of its refreshing goodness. Each time that King David visited his hometown of Bethlehem, he probably ran right for the well to have a nice swig.

The goodness of the water also reminds me of a story that I heard several years ago from a good friend in California. In order for this story to make sense, I have to tell you a little bit about one of the most beloved restaurants in the state: In-N-Out Burger. The restaurant’s motto is, “Quality you can taste,” and let me tell you, you can taste it! At In-N-Out, the menu is very simple and consists of only hamburgers, fries, soft drinks, and milk shakes. Since the first In-N-Out was opened in 1948, the menu hasn’t really changed. As such, they’ve been spending the past 60 years perfecting those few menu items using only the finest, freshest ingredients. At last count, they are running about 250 restaurants in California. Yes, the In-N-Out hamburger is very good. The hamburger is so good, that some people will go to great lengths to get a burger.

Now I’m going to tell you the story that my friend told me. My friend has some family members who are pilots. They work for a private jet company that flies rich people from one place to the next. On one occasion, the pilot and his rich client found themselves on business in a Latin American country. Although he was surrounded by the finest of foods in a fancy hotel, the rich businessman desired a burger from In-N-Out. In fact, he wanted that burger so badly that he demanded his pilot to fly back to California to buy an In-N-Out burger and bring it back to him!

We could talk for a long time about good water and good food. However, the real theme of this passage in 2 Samuel 23 is not the good water, but the ridiculous act of love that these mighty men showed toward King David. That’s why the title of my talk today is “Ridiculous Love.” So what happened in this story? We have a group of warriors who are extremely tired. They’re tired of fighting and tired of fleeing. Finally, they have found a safe place, and it’s time to rest. But instead of resting, these three mighty men choose to risk their lives by breaking through the enemy lines just to bring their king a drink of water. Wow!

These mighty men had fought alongside King David in many great battles, winning countless victories for the Lord and for Israel. Of course they were dedicated to their country and to their king. However, they were not only dedicated to obey King David. The loved him. They loved him more than a brother. Their love for King David was so strong and so ridiculous that it made history!
I want to focus on three aspects of the ridiculous love that these mighty men had for David:
1. It did not depend on logic
2. It was self-sacrificing
3. It was given even though it was not deserved

The mighty men loved David in a way that did not depend on logic. There was absolutely no sense in their decision to get water from the well in Bethlehem. Before performing any medical procedure, doctors always balance the risks and benefits of the procedure. If the benefits outweigh the risks, we proceed with the procedure. If the risks are too high, we choose an alternative. What were the risks involved with getting a cup of water from Bethlehem? The mighty men would have to come out of hiding and break through the Philistine lines. They could get beaten up, captured, or even killed. Even if they survived, they would miss out on some much-needed rest. And what would be the benefit of getting the water? David would get to drink a cup of tasty water. I’m pretty sure that they did have some water in the stronghold where they were staying. David was not going to die without the water from Bethlehem. Clearly the risks of this action outweigh the benefits. The mighty men chose to get that water only because they loved David so much. God has given us intelligent minds to help us make logical decisions. Sometimes, however, the actions that show love best just don’t make sense. Ridiculous love doesn’t make sense, and it does not depend on logic.

A second aspect of the mighty men’s love was that they loved David even if it meant that they would have to sacrifice themselves. They were ready to sacrifice their very lives to show David love. This is a very difficult part of love. We are all born with an inborn desire to live, to conserve our own life. There are countless stories throughout history where the human desire to live has been demonstrated. One incident that comes to my mind involved the Uruguayan rugby team whose plane crashed in the snowy Andes Mountains in 1972. Starving, cold, and injured, sixteen men from the rugby team managed to survive until their rescue 72 days after the crash. They were able to survive in part because they ate their fellow passengers who had died in the accident. I’m telling you, those men had a strong will to live! All of us have a strong will to live. However, there are things in life that are more important than preserving our own lives. One of these things is love. The mighty men had a ridiculous love. They were ready to give up their very own lives to express their love to David by bringing him a drink of water. That is a history-making love.

A third aspect of the mighty men’s love was that they loved David when he did not deserve it. David was a good king, and one of the greatest leaders in the history of Israel. However, he was not a perfect man. In fact, David performed some famous sins! The most notable sin was against a good soldier named Uriah. David’s armies were out to war when David saw Uriah’s wife, Bathsheba, taking a bath on top of her house. David committed adultery with her and she became pregnant. Trying to cover up the sin, David called to have Uriah brought back to his home in Jerusalem. However, when he wasn’t able to cover up the adultery, he put Uriah on the front line of the battle to be killed. Then, he was able to steal poor Uriah’s wife. We know that David was not perfect, and that he did not deserve such love. However, the mighty men loved their king, and they forgave him for whatever sins that he might have committed. They loved King David, not because he deserved it, but just because they loved him.

Even David himself recognized that he did not deserve this ridiculous love. In verse 17, upon receiving the cup from the mighty men, he says, “Far be it from me, O Lord, to do this! Is it not the blood of men who went at the risk of their lives?” “Que el Senor me libre de beberla! Eso seria como beberme la sangre de hombres que se han jugado la vida!” Feeling unworthy to accept this act of love from his men, he poured the water out before the Lord.

The three mighty men gave us an example of ridiculous love. But do we really need to be that extreme? Yes, we do! In John 13:35 (NLT) Jesus says, “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples." Love is the mark that we wear on our foreheads that says, “I am a Christian!” If we want people to know that we follow Jesus, we must be good at loving. And if we want non-Christians to be interested in who Jesus is, we must be the best lovers in the world!

How can we give ridiculous love to others? It is unlikely that I will ever have to, for example, risk my life to go to Abuelos and bring back a menestra to my buddy Dr. Kappen. However, I can give ridiculous love to my wife, all my family, my friends, my co-workers, my brothers and sisters at church, and my patients. I can give love that is not logical, even when my scientific brain tells me that the risk outweighs the benefit. I can give love that is self-sacrificing, even when I’m really tired and I want to care for myself. And I can give love to everyone, not just to those who “deserve it”, such as the nice, the good-looking, the popular, or those who love me. When we love like this, we are pleasing the Lord. When we love like this, we’re showing the world that we’re Christians. If we can love like this today, we will, like David’s three mighty men, make an impact on others and on history.