2 Samuel 9:1-11:27
John 15:1-27
Psalm 119:49-64
Proverbs 16:1-3
2 Samuel 11:3 and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” 4 Then David sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her. (Now she was purifying herself from her monthly uncleanness.) Then she went back home. 5 The woman conceived and sent word to David, saying, “I am pregnant.”
David sent someone to find out about her and then to bring her to him. This was no secret. People knew. Now I am sure that he sent people whom he knew he could trust, but you know that it had to get around. What kind of example was this for the King to set. I often think of the things that I do and what a terrible example I set as a Christian. I wonder how many people have walked away and talked to someone saying about me, "And she calls herself a Christian". Or maybe, "Well if that is what Christians do then they are no different than me." And just like David at those times it is usually because I acted on my own impulses, desires and/or emotions. And also like David there are consequences.
2 Samuel 11:10 David was told, “Uriah did not go home.” So he asked Uriah, “Haven’t you just come from a military campaign? Why didn’t you go home?”
When David tries to cover up his sin, the integrity, valor and faithfulness of Uriah the man that he wronged is thrown in his face. He compounds sin on sin and it doesn't work. This is another level of bad example for all those who knew. I am sure that word was getting around and now it is even worse. When we sin we of course need to confess it to God and repent from it but ones that someone else sees and knows about we need to also turn from it and denounce it and apologize to those we have wronged. And try to make it right in some way. In doing so we are acknowledging our weakness and sinfulness and acknowledging that God's way is best. But that is not what David did and often it is not what we do.
2 Samuel 11:14 In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah. 15 In it he wrote, “Put Uriah out in front where the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will be struck down and die.”
Now I hope that none of us has gone as far as to plot to kill someone to get what we want. Especially not someone as faithful and full of integrity as Uriah. David being the king and having that power was able to arrange it and think that he was clear of being caught. But people knew and it had to influence their opinion of him. We also all know that God sees all things and that every sin we commit is against Him. We can't hide it we can't cover it up and we can't escape it. As I have been saying we should be different as Christians. Even when we sin.
John 15:19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.
When we sin we are acting as the world acts and the world would have no problems with many of our sins but they will have a problem with us when we don't sin. We do not belong to the world so we should have a problem with our sins. And I think we should have a problem with the example we set to our children, those who don't know Christ and those who are young in their faith. At least that is what God has been convicting me of lately.
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