2 Samuel 11:26-12:7, 13 * August 9, 2009 *
Pentecost 10 * Pastor Leyrer
Dear Friends in Christ,
The story is told that Oliver Cromwell,
As we reflect upon and continue our sermon series under the theme of a “Great Cloud of Witnesses,” perhaps you have been struck – as I have been – with just how utterly human these people are whom we rightfully consider great heroes of faith. Some of those we’ve examined these last weeks were indeed strong and exemplary in nearly every area of life. But others have been shown to us “warts and all.” Today is another example.
I don’t know about you, but I find a great deal of comfort in that. The fact that God didn’t give up on these people and even chose to use them mightily for His purposes gives each of us hope.
Unless, of course, you’ve never messed up in your life. If that is the case, I give you permission to now leave the room because this message will not apply to you.
On the other hand, for those of us who have messed up at one time or another; for those of us who have either out of weakness or anger or temporary spiritual indifference found ourselves making some choices we later regretted and maybe even caused others pain, there is much we can learn this morning from
DAVID, THE GREATEST OF THE KINGS OF
King David is one of those larger than life figures in the Bible. After Jesus Christ and Moses, there is more written about him in the Scriptures than anyone else. Even for those with only a passing knowledge of Old Testament history the very mention of his name calls to mind a number of mental images…
We think of David the faithful shepherd boy, chosen by God at a young age to become the leader of His people. Or we think of David’s courageous and miraculous victory over the giant Goliath. Or we think of David, the sweet singer and divinely inspired author of approximately half of the Psalms, including the beautiful and beloved Psalm 23.
However, the incident in our text does not cast David in a very flattering light. In fact, it depicts what was clearly the darkest period in his personal and spiritual life. Today we see David warts and all. But fortunately, it was also a period that David, by God’s grace and through the means of a faithful pastor, worked through and came out stronger.
If we were to summarize what took place and put it in the form of an equation, it would be this: Confrontation + Confession = Absolution + Restoration.
Some of you may remember the story. It all began, we are told in the opening
verse of 2 Samuel 11, in the spring of the year “at the time when kings go off to
war.” The winter rains were done
and the harvest was in. David sent out his army, but he
himself stayed behind in
One evening as he was spending time on the roof of his palace, probably to enjoy the cool evening air, he looked down and saw a woman bathing in what she undoubtedly thought was the privacy of her home. David learned that her name was Bathsheba and that she was married to a soldier by the name of Uriah. The story should have ended here.
But she was beautiful, and David couldn’t – wouldn’t – take his eyes off her. He was intrigued and enflamed and maybe a little bored. Taking full advantage of his position as king, he had her brought to him and they slept together. Some time later Bathsheba informed David that as a result of their night together she was going to have a child.
David was now faced with a choice. He could have come clean and confessed his sin before God and man, but he chose the path of deception. He arranged for Uriah to come home from battle ostensibly to give him a progress report. Then he “rewarded” Uriah by telling him to stick around and take some well deserved R & R, including spending the night at home with his wife. Later, when it became apparent Bathsheba was pregnant, everyone would assume the baby was theirs.
But Uriah didn’t feel right about this special treatment, especially when his fellow soldiers were spending their time in the open field. So in a show of solidarity to his comrades he camped out in front of the palace with the king’s servants. David tried to persuade him again the next night, but with the same results. The plan was not working.
This is when things began to escalate. David had already sinned by coveting another man’s wife and committing adultery. Now in order to save face and preserve his reputation he engineered a cover-up. He had Uriah return to a battle with a sealed message for Joab, commander of the troops. The order was to do whatever necessary to make sure that Uriah became a casualty of war. And that’s what happened.
Shortly thereafter, in what many certainly considered a magnanimous act of compassion and sensitivity, David took the grieving widow Bathsheba into his home and graciously made her one of his wives (he had others). Things would play out with no one but a few trusted subordinates being the wiser. From David’s perspective all’s well that ends well.
There was just one problem. “But the thing David had done displeased the Lord.” Men can be fooled, but God cannot. The fact of the matter is that David himself was not fooled. Some of his most personal Psalms recount the mental and physical anguish that accompanied his unconfessed sin.
So God, in His grace, sends Nathan into David’s life. The exchange between them is what we heard in our text. Through the story he told about the rich man with his wealth of flocks and the poor man with his single pet lamb Nathan – unknowingly to David – exposed his the full range of his guilt.
At this point David doesn’t know the situation Nathan described wasn’t real. As far as he’s concerned, Nathan may be coming to him as king for his legal advice on how to handle this situation. One thing David does know is that it isn’t right. He is visibly outraged and angered that such a thing could take place and disbelieves that anyone could be so selfish and insensitive and cold. He pronounces a death sentence upon this man.
In so doing he pronounces a death sentence upon
himself. Because, as Nathan points out
to him, “You are the man.”
Now we see David in a more positive light, because what
happens next took no less and maybe even more courage than when he went to
battle with Goliath. Confronted with what he had done by his faithful pastor,
we read: “Then David said to Nathan, ‘I have sinned against the Lord.’” To which “Nathan replied, ‘The Lord has taken away your sin. You are not going to die.’”
How could Nathan say this? On what basis did God take away David’s sin? On the basis of One who would come from David’s line some thousand years later and who during His earthly ministry would often be referred to as “the Son of David.” Forgiveness of sins comes through the Savior from sin.
David’s confession was a recognition not only of his sin against God, but also of his need for God’s grace. And as the Apostle John tells us, “grace and truth come through Jesus Christ” (John 1:17).
This incident reminds us that sin – whether David’s or ours – is not simply dismissed or swept under the rug. It was and is atoned for by a Savior David knew was coming and a Savior we know has come. True repentance goes beyond simply admitting our mistakes; true repentance lays hold of the forgiveness of sins won for us by Jesus Christ through his perfect life in our place, sacrificial death as our substitute, and glorious resurrection as proof that the mission was accomplished.
Because of the work of that Savior Nathan could and did declare to David that his sin was forgiven. And with that pronouncement of forgiveness – the catechism calls it “absolution” – David was restored into a right relationship with His Lord.
Later on in his life David composed Psalm 32 and wrote these words which many Bible scholars believe to be a reference to this time in his life: “When I kept silent my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord’ – and you forgave the guilt of my sin.”
So the equation was complete. Confrontation + Confession = Absolution + Restoration.
In looking back at this incident there are lots of lessons to be learned and applied to our lives today. Let’s very briefly consider these three…
#1 – No one is above sin.
David is described in the Bible as a “man after God’s own heart.” Yet he sinned grievously. Consequently, he stands as a reminder to us
all of what Paul told the members of the Corinthian church (1 Cor 10:12): “So if you think you are standing firm, be
careful that you don’t fall!”
Because of our sinful nature there is no sin that we are not capable of committing. So we must beware of spiritual pride and stay close to the Word which fortifies us and equips us against temptation.
#2 – When we do fail – and we will – we can learn from David both what not to do as well as what to do. The way in which we deal with our sin is not to hide it or rationalize it or act as if it doesn’t exist. That kind of behavior inevitably leads to separating and distancing ourselves from God. What we must do with our sin is confront it.
That’s why every week as a part of our service we confess our sins before God. It’s not because God doesn’t know what we do unless we tell Him. Nor is it because God wants us to wallow in guilt and low self-esteem. No, we confess our sin so we can understand and with His help embrace His amazing grace to us in Jesus Christ. Following confession is the blessed pronouncement of our absolution. Related to this…
#3 – There is no sin for which Jesus did not die or that transcends God’s grace. Satan would have us think so. He would like us to reflect upon our faults and failings and lead us to the conclusion that we are unworthy of God. Jesus would have us take a different perspective.
Some of you may know the story of John Newton. At one time he was a slave trader in
Yet he was still haunted by the thousands of people he had once mistreated. Toward the end of his life he is quoted as saying: “My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things. That I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Savior.”
David would say the same thing. So can we. The focus is never to be on the greatness of our sins which, despite our intentions otherwise, will always plague us. Rather our focus is on the greater-ness of our Savior and the depth of His love for each of us, warts and all.
And that, more than anything else, is what we learn from King David today. Amen.