THE END OF AN ERA

2 Samuel 23-24 (1 Chronicles 28-29)

INTRODUCTION.

We come to the end of our studies in the life of David. I have enjoyed journeying with David through his life – I hope you have too.

We met him in the fields of Bethlehem looking after sheep. Here as a young man, Samuel the prophet, anointed him to be the future king of Israel.

He rose to national prominence when he killed the Philistine giant, Goliath.

He then served in the courts of King Saul and became a successful military leader. So successful, in fact, that Saul became insanely jealous and tried on more than one occasion to kill David.

Eventually David had to flee for his life and became a fugitive for about 10 years. These were hard years for David and the band of followers that joined him. It was during these years that God was training him and moulding him for kingship – many of his wonderful psalms came out of this difficult time in David’s life. A life of comfort and ease is seldom a sign of God’s blessing – remember that Jesus promised > John 16:33

33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (NIV)

We are not called by God to be comfortable. We are called to be disciples and while there are many blessings it is a life of discipline and hard work. Jesus never promised his disciples that following him would be easy and when we make it out so we are doing a disservice to the gospel of God.

When David did eventually become king he was successful, but life still was not always easy. Sometimes this was due to external troubles and sometimes because of his own sin and their consequences. What makes David stand out in the pages of history is not the fact that he was good military and political leader, which he was, but that he “had a heart after God’s own heart”.

David made some big blunders and committed some terrible sins. Even at the end of his life he was still having to deal with his pride in ordering a census of the people [2 Samuel 24] Through it all his faith and hope in God remained and grew and when he did sin he repented and returned to God.

Now he is at the end of his life. He has been king for 40 years. He had united the nation of Israel, expanded her borders and increased the wealth of the nation. He is ready to pass the kingship over to his son Solomon.

This is “The End of an Era”

David knows his time on earth is near the end. Before he dies he has something to say.

If you knew your time in this life was at an end what would you say to those you are about to leave?

Let’s listen to David’s last words.

1. 1.     THE CHARGE TO HIS PEOPLE.

Before David gives a direct charge to the assembly before him he reminds the people of what God has done for him. It had been David’s desire to build a temple for God – for the Ark of the Covenant – but God had denied David this desire because he was a man of war.

David could have become impatient and irritated with God – he could have tried to manipulate and scheme to follow his own agenda but David is a man with a heart for God and is willing to accept God’s plans for him and to shelve his own.

Solomon would be the one to build the temple.

It was hard for David to accept God’s “no” and have his dreams and desires for a Temple unfulfilled.  But he accepts it without resentment and instead of whinging about what he hasn’t been able to do, he praises God for what he has been able to do! What a man!

1 Chronicles 28:4

4 “Yet the LORD, the God of Israel, chose me from my whole family to be king over Israel for ever. He chose Judah as leader, and from the house of Judah he chose my family, and from my father’s sons he was pleased to make me king over all Israel. (NIV)

It is too easy for us to be disappointed and get distraught and frustrated about the things we can’t do and to forget about the good things that God has / and can accomplish in and through us.

In the closing years of his life instead of pining away over his unfulfilled desires David focused on the good things God had given him.

Now he calls together the nation’s leaders to address them for the last time. What will David say to these people? No doubt many things he could advise – military tactics – national policy –

BUT David tells them only one thing …

1 Chronicles 28:8   8 “So now I charge you in the sight of all Israel and of the assembly of the LORD, and in the hearing of our God: Be careful to follow all the commands of the LORD your God, that you may possess this good land and pass it on as an inheritance to your descendants for ever. (NIV)

David knows that the only way his people will find peace and contentment is to live life God’s way. Any other way, no matter how attractive and appealing it may seem on the surface will always lead to disillusionment and failure in the long term. Even if that is not so in this life, then most definitely in the after life.

Nothing has changed. As David’s son Solomon would later write “There is nothing new under the sun”.

In the Bible, in the gift of His Son, Jesus Christ to the world, in the sending of the Holy Spirit, God has given us all that is necessary for life and for how to conduct our lives. If we follow God’s way, we may not be rich, or famous, or successful in this world BUT we will have a peace and a joy and a contentment like nothing in this world can give.

So David’s advice to his people is simple – “Follow God”.

1. 2.     THE COUNSEL TO HIS SON.

David now turns and addresses his son Solomon. Here before him is evidence of God’s grace and forgiveness. Solomon is the son of Bathsheba with whom David had an adulterous relationship. David’s repentance for his sin is deep and honest and God allows a son from Bathsheba to be David’s successor.

David is at the end of his kingship and Solomon is on the threshold of his. Solomon is a young man with tremendous potential. What counsel can he give him?

These will be his final words during his last days on earth and so he chooses his words very carefully, words based on his own experience as king for 40 years.

1 Chronicles 28:9

9 “And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge [know] the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you for ever. (NIV)

1)    KNOW GOD.

The first thing David says is “Above all other things I want to pass on to you, I want you to know God!”

It seems almost too obvious to mention, doesn’t it.  BUT David is aware of the tyranny of the urgent. He has been king for a long time and he knows that there are many things to keep a king busy – so busy that he doesn’t take time to know God.

If you could pull your child aside and pass on advice for life, what would you say? Or may be more importantly as parents [and grandparents and aunts and uncles] what are we passing on to the next generation, now? What character and lifestyle are we investing in them?

There is so much to do – so much to keep us busy – so many good things that we can do BUT are we sometimes guilty of being so busy with things that we neglect to know God.

It is always possible to be doing good things and be missing the best thing.

Sometimes the greatest enemy of the best is not the worst but the good!

“Solomon, my son, know God. Above all else get to know God deeply … intimately!”

2)    SERVE GOD.

…serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts…

“Solomon, my son, serve God completely – don’t hold anything back – don’t make him force you to serve him.”

Solomon must have seen David at worship – singing his psalms – a passion for God. David was not perfect but he was passionate for God.

He reminds Solomon that serving God is not outward formalism ritual – going through the motions. For our service of God to be genuine it must involved our whole being – our emotions, our intellect, our all.

God looks into our hearts and minds and he knows whether our service is genuinely for him or if there are ulterior motives.

3)    SEEK HIM.

1 Chronicles 28:9-10

9 “…. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you for ever. 10 Consider now, for the LORD has chosen you to build a temple as a sanctuary. Be strong and do the work.” (NIV)

This is not just a casual looking. This is someone who is passionately searching for something that is precious and valuable.

Jesus told stories about a treasure in a field and a pearl of great price for which a person will give up and forsake everything else in order to have that treasure.

Jeremiah 29:13-14 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,” declares the LORD……

We seek God not because God is hiding away and doesn’t want to be found. On the contrary, God longs for us to come to him he wants us to know him and serve him and seek him.

ILLUS. George Goldsmith tells a story about when his children were little and one of them was lost on Weymouth beach front – Catherine, I think. And for two hours he searched for her – then he spotted her and he turn away and let her come up behind him and take his hand – she had found her Dad. Had she really? No, he had allowed her to find him and in fact he had been looking for her.

God wants us to know him and to find him – he is the Father of the prodigal watching and waiting to welcome us home. God is never far away. It is not God who is lost and gone away – it is us.  God longs for us to come to him – to know him and to serve him.

David could have advise Solomon on foreign policy, military strategy, structure of government and on and on … BUT He tells him the one most important thing – Know, Serve, Seek GOD!!

1. 3.     THE PERSPECTIVE FROM HISTORY.

Acts 13:36    36 “For when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his fathers and his body decayed. (NIV)

This is what the apostle Paul said about David as he looked back many centuries later. David’s life was tremendously significant. He was the greatest king Israel had. Although Solomon was wealthier and his kingdom bigger than David’s he never equalled the reign of his father.

The main reason was the David serve God wholeheartedly and Solomon only half-heartedly. They both had similar weaknesses – a roving eye. However, whereas Solomon allowed his wives to lead him away from God, David nevr did.

David had a passion for God and he served the purpose of God.

What is God purpose? From the time Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden until the end of time it is God’s purpose to redeem a people for himself. To rescue sinner and bring them to know him. To establish his kingdom.

David significantly served that purpose in that he was a the model and ancestor of a greater king – Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews – the King of kings.

Will it be said of you and me when we are gone that we served the purpose of God in our generation?

Every individual has a purpose for living. Not many have the high profile purpose like David. However, everyone who God brings to life on this earth is significant.

The tragedy of all tragedies is that we should live and die and not discover the purpose of God for our lives.

You have, like no other person on this planet, a particular contribution to make to this generation. It may not be as great as your dreams. On the other hand it may far exceed your expectations.

Whoever you are you can serve the purpose of God in your generation.

Each one us have special gifts and abilities and opportunities that are unique to “ME”. Like David, we will not be perfect but if we know and serve and seek God we can come to the end of our lives and look back with satisfaction and thankfulness that we have served God in our own generation.

1. 4.     THE PROMISE OF HIS GOD.

God’s Promise to David was this > 1 Chronicles 28:7 7 I will establish his kingdom for ever if he is unswerving in carrying out my commands and laws, as is being done at this time.’ (NIV)

This is repeating a promise he made to David back in 2 Samuel 7:16 16 Your house and your kingdom shall endure for ever before me; your throne shall be established for ever.’ ” (NIV)

What a promise!

You know that we are the beneficiaries of that promise.

David was a great king but not perfect. Solomon was successful but half-hearted. Those that followed were mostly failures, UNTIL a baby was born in the Town of David in the days of King Herod. He grew up and began to preach that “The good news of the kingdom of God”

He was David’s greater son – Jesus. KING JESUS. He died and rose from the dead and is thus King forever. God’s promise to David that his kingdom will be established forever has been fulfilled. As we come to Christ and serve the purpose of God in our generation, we like David, participate in Kingdom business. He calls us to be committed to spreading the good news of the Kingdom of God to all the world. That is what the Church is about. That is what being a Christian is about. Serving the purpose of God.

1. THE PRAISE OF HIS GOD.

I can do no better than to summarise David’s praise and worship of God in his own words >

1 Chronicles 29:10-13

10 David praised the LORD in the presence of the whole assembly, saying,

“Praise be to you, O Lord, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.

11 Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendour, for everything in heaven and earth is yours.

Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.

12 Wealth and honour come from you; you are the ruler of all things.

In your hands are strength and power           to exalt and give strength to all.

13 Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name.

What are some of the lesson we learn from this great man of God, David?

• We learn hope in spite of his humanity.
• We learn courage even in the midst of his own fear.
• We learn encouragement and praise that grew out of his hours of despair.
• We learn forgiveness in his dark moments of sin.
• We learn the value of serving the purpose of god even though our won dreams may not be fulfilled.

[Swindoll]

Thank you our Father and God, for being our Master; for using us though we are weak, forgiving us when we fail and loving us through all the Sauls and Goliaths and Jonathans and Abigails and Bathshebas and Absaloms and Joabs and Solomons of our lives. Thank you for showing us that we can be people like David … people who “have a heart after God’s own heart.”

“GOD IS MY LIFE”

2 Samuel 22 (Psalm 18)

INTRODUCTION.

How would you describe your life?

Imagine you are at a party or travelling on a plane and a person you have just met says, “Tell me about yourself!”

Most of us would say what we do – teacher, nurse, student, businessperson, housewife ……

We would tell where we live – if we are married or single – and go on to tell about our families, where we come from, etc.

We tend to describe our lives in terms of what we do, where we come from, our educational / sporting / artistic achievements.

If nothing else, David, the King of Israel, has had an eventful life. He is coming to the end of his life and we are coming to the end of our studies about David. In many respects David’s life is no easier at the end than at the beginning. He started off fighting the Philistines and running from King Saul. In his latter years he has had to flee for a rebellion led by his son Absalom. Absalom is murdered and David is heartbroken. He returns to Jerusalem and then has to go out again to fight his old enemy, the Philistines.

However, David is not as young as he once was as we read in   2 Samuel 21:15

15 Once again there was a battle between the Philistines and Israel. David went down with his men to fight against the Philistines, and he became exhausted.

Chapter 22 is probably David’s last psalm. It is repeated almost word for word as Psalm 18.

In many ways it is an expression of what God is to David – what God means to David – what he has done for him and trough him.

We could break this Psalm down into many section and I have done so into (No not 3) six.

In summary David is saying in this psalm, God is My Security, My Rescuer, My Righteousness, My Success/Light, My Resources, My Hope!

As he looks back over his life from his twilight years David gives testimony to the goodness and faithfulness of his God.

1. 1.     My Security. (v.2-7)

David has known many uncertain times in his life, in the early years when he was on the run from the murderous King Saul and in later years fleeing from his ambitious son. He has known times of deep sorrow for his sin. He has known times of exuberant worship and personal and political success.

Through it all he has learned that he is not the one “who can look after himself” – He acknowledges that he has a deep need for God in every area of his life. In fact without God he is nothing.

Look at how he describes God in the first few verses ~ 2 Samuel 22:2-3 2 ..

“The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;

3 …..   my shield and the horn of my salvation. (Strength)

He is my stronghold, my refuge and my saviour —

David is saying “I don’t have the where-withal to protect and look after myself only in God am I safe and secure”.

Maybe we don’t feel this deep desire and need for God because we fail to realise just how pathetically weak and feeble we are. We feel invincible, we feel secure! After all, we have the NHS, the DSS, our insurance policies, we have our human rights to protect of freedom BUT we fail to grasp just how very vulnerable we are. Our lives hang by a very delicate thread.

As David looks back on his life he praises God who has keep him secure through all the changing scenes of life.

David has faced death many times ~ vv.5-6 ~ waves of morality, torrents of destruction, strangled by the grave, trapped by death.

To David God is no some distant deity – he is personal and intimate – “I run to him for refuge, I call to him, I sing to him, I cry to him ….I pray!!!”

David was immersed in God.

Do you and I know God like that?

Psalm 18 has an extra verse at the beginning ~ Psalm 18:1

1  I love you, O Lord, my strength. (NIV)

Is that your testimony today? Can you say openly and honestly to God, “I love you Lord”?

2. My Rescue. (v. 8-21)

In these verse we have vivid and very descriptive picture language of the power and greatness of David’s God.

2 Samuel 22:8-16 ~ Earthquake ~ fire ~ lightening ~ Thunder ~

The might and power of the God who comes to David’s rescue. His troubles and his enemies who seemed so big and strong overwhelmed David. Then God rescues him and David realises that these troubles and enemies are insignificant compare to his God.

He describes God like a mighty earthquake. People who have experienced earthquakes say it is a terrifying thing. Buildings wobble as if they were like jelly. The ground moves like water. People scream and rush into the streets. Everything that seems so threatening and so powerful suddenly turns to instability and weakness when God appears on the scene.

2 Samuel 22:20

20 He brought me out into a spacious place;

he rescued me because he delighted in me. (NIV)

We have little difficulty believing difficulties that David faced because we face them. Not Philistines and murderous kings but the trials and tribulations of everyday life ~ the hurts and heartaches, the failures and disappointments and it is in those times that we find it so difficult to believe that God loves us. But he does. He delights in us David says. He cares for us. He feels our ache.

Sometimes like David we may feel exhausted from the battle. Maybe you are going through a rough time right now. You put on a brave front and possibly others think you have got it all together but you know in your heart that things are not right. You feel threatened, insecure, overwhelmed by life itself ~ cry out to God – he will come to your rescue. He may not remove the problem but he will rescue you. (We will see how in a moment).

Sadly, sometimes, instead of crying to God for help when we are in trouble we do pray. However, we think we can work it out and we pray simply to tell God what he should do.

God rescues me because he delights in me BUT he does so on his terms not mine!

1. 2.     My Righteousness (v.22-28)

As we read these verses in which David says he has been blameless and pure and faithful we do a double take and ask, “Well what about his sin with Bathsheba? What about the murder of Urriah? What about David’s lying to the priests of Nob that resulted in their massacre?”

Wait a minute! David how can you claim to be so righteous and holy??

David’s words here are not a claim to personal purity of character. Remember that this is the same David who wrote ~

Psalm 51:1-5

1 …      blot out my transgressions.

2 Wash away all my iniquity

and cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I know my transgressions,

and my sin is always before me.

4 …     5 Surely I was sinful at birth,

sinful from the time my mother conceived me. (NIV)

David has no illusions that he is a sinner. At this point he is not writing as a sinner standing before God but as God’s king facing the enemies of God who wish to destroy him. In as much as he is involved in God’s work his cause is a just and righteous one.

We can never appeal to our righteousness when we are asking God to bless us as though we were without sin. There are times when we are standing for God against all that will oppose him that we know our cause is a righteous one.

David knows that in spite of his sin and wrongdoing he has basically wanted to do God’s will.

David knows that although our position before god is one of receiving mercy and grace, it is also true that in those who have received God’s grace and mercy, God honours faithfulness and integrity.

We also need to remember that the OT looks forward to the coming Messiah. This Psalm is a case in point. It is quoted in Romans 15 and applied to Jesus. It points to a greater and truer David, the One who is a man after God’s own heart even more than David was.

It is ultimately in Christ that true righteousness is found. It is in him that we receive it by faith. It is in Him that David received it evenly though it was retrospectively.

David knows of God’s heart. “His life is characterised by God’s mercy, God’s grace, God’s love. There is no spiritual symmetry [equally] between David and God; it’s totally lopsided on the side of God. Unknown David is named and known. Unequipped David is triumphant. Undefended David finds refuge. Undeserving David is forgiven. Unworthy David recovers his kingship”. [Peterson]

David’s story is a gospel story. God doing for David what he could never do for himself. A sinner saved. It is that story that is completed in the Jesus story.

1. 3.     My Success. (v.29-30)

2 Samuel 22:29-30           29 You are my lamp, O Lord;

the LORD turns my darkness into light.

30 With your help I can advance against a troop;

with my God I can scale a wall. (NIV)

David speaks in these verses of the great accomplishments he has been able to achieve, entirely by the protection and help of God.

It is God like a burning oil lamp that gives light, and warmth and understanding to David. God has inspired him and given him energy enough to leap over walls ~ maybe as he writes this, sitting in his palace in Jerusalem, he recalls how God enabled him to capture the fortress of Jerusalem in the first place. [2 Sam.5]

David has been king now for many years ~ he has had a few set back but he has survived. He could have patted himself on the back and said “I am the come-back-kid” He could have put it down to his own ingenuity and skill. BUT David has learned that without God there is no success.

It is a lesson we all must learn or we will fail. People may acclaim us and we may be proud of our accomplishments BUT God will not be and in the end that is all that matters.

David knew that God was his success.

1. My Resources. (v.31-46)

It doesn’t matter how clever or gifted or talented we are ~ it is of little consequence which school / university we went to ~ it doesn’t matter how popular we may be or how much money we have IF our achievements are not God’s then they are failures.

In these verses we have David acknowledging that all that he is, all that he has achieved, all the skills and abilities he has are given to him by God.

God hasn’t removed all the obstacles and difficulties in his life but he has strengthened and equipped him to overcome them.

2 Samuel 22:34

34 He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;

he enables me to stand on the heights. (NIV)

God has trained and taught David to be the man God wants him to be. God has taken him along a certain road of life and David has learned the lessons of faith, in the fields with the sheep, in the battles with Saul ~ all those years as a fugitive God was training David for kingship.

God not only gives us our natural talents and abilities he also wants to train us to have a heart for him and if we think we can serve God without a heart for him we are fooling ourselves. So we need to develop the habits of prayer ~ the study of scripture ~ the disciplines of discipleship ~ ONLY with this kind of “God-training”, relying on His resources will we be useful in God’s kingdom.

David didn’t learn these things living in a monastery. He learned them in the rough and tumble of life. There were times when he was alone with God. His godliness was worked out in very difficult circumstances.

If we are waiting for a better time to serve God ~ when things are easier at the office ~ when the children are grown up ~ when we have paid off the mortgage ~ when … when …. when … THEN we will never have a Heart after God’s own Heart. There is no easier time coming in this life.

David’s life didn’t get easier ~ David became more and more dependent on God ~ “My Resources”

1. My Hope / My Life. (v.47-51)

2 Samuel 22:47

47 “The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock!

Exalted be God, the Rock, my Saviour! (NIV)

The Lord lives therefore I have Hope. I have a future. I have a destiny.

The most significant thing about David’s life is that he is alive to God.

The Context and conditions out of which David lives his life are not conducive to godly living. His life was influenced by God BUT it was also influenced by the surrounding culture – Philistine Culture and Canaanite morality – that is violence and sex. Yet here is David born and living in the Iron Age of violence and sex – not exempt from their influence but not restricted by them either.

The conditions we live under are also not favourable to godly living. The climate of violence, sex, war and immorality seemed to have changed little since then. These are human conditions and therefore the only conditions in which we are called to live for God.

David lived a full life – a God life!

The kind of life that Jesus promised his disciples ~ John 10:10 …… I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (NIV)

If we attempt to live life without God – it doesn’t just make us ungodly but small and puny.

It is easy to live our lives in a way that pays lip service to God. We come to Church, we doff our caps, we may even have a ministry in the Church BUT we can still live following our own agendas ~ doing our own thing ~ fitting God in were it is convenient to our prearranged lifestyles.

If that is the case we will miss the glorious way of life God has for Christians – the extravagance of what he wants to do in us.

“David with all his rough edges never got around to loving his enemies the way his descendant Jesus would do it; his morals left a lot to be desired. These are told to us not to legitimised bad behaviour but show us that we share the same conditions.

They are set before us to show us that we don’t first become good and then get God. First we get God – [rather God gets us] – and then over a patient lifetime we are trained in God’s way”. [Peterson]

If we want to be “Davids” – those who have a heart after God’s own heart – then God must not simply be part of My Life – He must be MY LIFE.

When the greater Son of David, Jesus, came he showed us in a way that David never could what a God-life really is  – he called us to be “in Him” ~ “in Christ” – to share his life – to give us his life –

Colossians 3:4 4 .. Christ, who is your life,  …(NIV)

What is my life?  >>>>>>>>>>>>  What I do? Where I come from? What I have achieved?

These are not unimportant BUT they remain of little consequence unless GOD IS MY LIFE.

FORGIVEN but ….

2 Samuel 13 – 19. (selections)

INTRODUCTION.

We hear often in our society the claim that says “I can do as I please!” Some of the reasoning given to justify such a claim is “It is not hurting anyone!”

One of the claims of the sexual revolution is that two consenting adults can do what the like and it doesn’t affect anyone else and it is none of their business.

This individualistic attitude is very prevalent in our society and we would be foolish to think that we in the church are not influenced by such attitudes.

Individual actions do not only affect the persons involved.

The famous quote “No man is an island” is true.

ILLUS.: If a married man has an affair with another woman it affects his wife and children – as well as the husband and children of the woman, if she is married. It influences the extended families of both of them and of their spouses. It will also have an affect on their jobs – probably a detrimental affect – the ripples become ever wider ……..

How I live and what I do will to a greater or lesser degree impact other.

This was one of the hard lessons that King David was going to experience for the rest of his life.

Every family experience difficulty, hardship and trouble at some point. There are two kinds of hardships that families experience. That which is from without e.g. – things like the death of a loved one, theft of property, illness, injury through accident etc… – these, as hard and as painful as they are will often tend to pull families together rather than drive them apart.

Other forms of trouble come from within. e.g. unforgiveness, neglect, bitterness, and all the anger that come when parents live to satisfy their own fleshly passions and desires .… or when children are rebellious and reckless and disrespectful.

When there is friction between husband and wife or parent and child, that is a lot harder to

cope with than external struggles, especially when these internal difficulties are cause by someone’s sin in the family.

David sinned when he lusted after and then committed adultery with Bathsheba. Then he lied and schemed and eventually murdered Urriah, Bathsheba’s husband. He then tried to cover it up and live as if nothing had happened. David was to learn a principle of life that we are later warned about in the NT.

Galatians 6:7-8

7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. (NIV)

BUT didn’t God forgive David. Didn’t we see in Psalm 51 how David repented and God restore him. YES!

1. 1.     God’s Grace is always available to Repentant Sinners.

It is quite true that God forgave David. However, it is a deception to believe that forgiveness removes consequences.

God warns us not to be deceived into thinking that we can sin with impunity.

A man reaps what he sows.

We can easily be conned into believing erroneous teaching about the grace of God – we can easily think that if we simply confess our sins and claim God’s forgiveness then all the consequences of our wrongdoing will simply be whisked away.

God is gracious and he does forgive sins. Grace means that God, in forgiving, doesn’t destroy us as we deserve. Grace means that God, in forgiving, gives us the strength to endure the consequences of our wrongdoing. Grace frees us so that we can obey our Lord and Saviour. It does not mean that sin’s consequences are automatically removed.

ILLUS.: If I steal a car and go joy riding and crash. I break my leg and cut my head and write-off the car. If I ask for forgiveness, God will forgive me but I will still have a broken leg and a cut head and probably face prosecution.

We accept without question that in the physical realm there are consequences of things like car crashes – a broken leg is a broken leg whether I am forgiven or not.

The same happens in the emotional and spiritual realms – e.g. when a parent wilfully and irresponsibly acts against God’s principles, not only does the parent suffer, but so too does the whole family.

This is what happened in David’s life.

Those who live to satisfy their own sinful desires will harvest the consequences… Galatians 6:8 (NLT)

If we use the imagery of planting and sowing, we see life as a daily planting of one kind of seed or another. Sowing seeds of carnality as David had done with Bathsheba reaps a harvest of trouble.

“The pain of the harvest eclipses the pleasure of the planting” – Swindoll.

Let us never be deceived into thinking that sin is not pleasurable – it is exciting and adventurous and stimulating to satisfy the pleasures of the flesh. Even the Bible tells us that sin has its pleasures even if they are short-lived.

Of course we don’t think about, or don’t want to think about, the pain of the harvest while we are set on enjoying the pleasure of the sowing.

We focus very well on how we can have our sins forgiven and on how gracious and merciful and forgiving God is. We tend to focus less on how to prevent falling into sin in the first place.

ILLUS.: Next year I have the dubious pleasure of a son who will want to learn to drive. I could take a corrective approach to his driving “Andrew, before you get in the car I want you to know that I have taken out an insurance policy on the car. When you have a accident here is the number of the insurance agent!”

OR “Andrew, these are the rules of the road – if you learn them and obey them you could go a long time without even an dent. I can’t guarantee you won’t have a dent or two, and you do need insurance BUT it is better to prevent an accident than to try and sort it out afterwards.”

Most of us learn  1Jn.1:9 [Anyone quote?] before we learn Romans 6 …..1 John 1:9 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (NIV)

This is wonderful to know that our sins can be forgiven! Does that mean we can sin willy-nilly knowing that God is gracious?

Romans 6v1. [Anyone quote?]  Should we go on sinning so that God can show us more and more kindness and forgiveness? Of course not!” (NLT)

BUT it is better if we don’t sin in the first place. Thus Paul continues in Romans 6v12-13. [Anyone quote?] “Do not let sin control the way you live, do not give in to its lustful desires. Do not let any part of your body become a tool for wickedness, to be used for sinning. Instead, give yourselves completely to God since you have been given new life. And use your whole body as a tool to do what is right for the glory of God.” (NLT)

God is gracious but God’s grace doesn’t usually take away the consequences of sin.

1. 2.     Grace doesn’t always remove the consequences of our sins.

We need to be clear at this point. David was forgiven …1 Sm.12v13 Nathan.. “The Lord has taken away your sin. You are not going to die ……”

David acknowledged his sin “I have sinned” – if he had done that the night after he slept with Bathsheba I am fairly sure the consequences would not have been so disastrous.

God declared through the prophet Nathan, “The sword will never depart from your house”

But I thought David was forgiven? He was “The lord has taken away your sin” – that’s forgiveness BUT the consequences are still there.

Not everyone who sins will have the same consequences! God in his sovereignty fits the consequences to each person. In David’s case the consequences were serious.

Twice in Ch.12 Nathan warns David that trouble will come from within his own household – His own family will rebel against him.

David wilfully and deliberately went against God’s instructions – not only did he suffer as a result – so too did many people who were close to him.

It is a lesson we need to learn and learn well – Few actions are private – what I do or neglect to do – whether good or bad will have a ripple effect and touch the lives of others – sometimes with devastating consequences as in the case of David.

1. 3.     Sin always brings trouble.

(Not all trouble is a direct result of sin) – the consequences of sin are a tangled mass and those not directly responsible also suffer!

The next 4-5 Chapters of 2 Samuel catalogue the trouble that came to David.

(1)  Bathsheba’s child died.

Despite the fact that the child was the product of an adulterous relationship both David and Bathsheba no doubt loved it. The child’s death brought grief to David and Bathsheba – and the child suffered.

This was the first of many consequences that would result from David’s sin.

(2) One of David’s sons raped his half-sister.

In Chapter 13 we have the account of Amnon being attracted to his half-sister Tamar – who is the blood sister of Absalom.

2 Sm.13:1-2 “…Amnon son of David fell in love with Tamar, the beautiful sister of Absalom, son of David. Amnon became frustrated to the point of illness on account of his sister Tamar, for she was s virgin and it seemed imossible for him to do anything to her.”

As the story unfolds it becomes clear that this is not love at all but blind selfish lust. With the help of a scheming friend Amnon tricks Tamar by pretending to be ill. When she comes to bring food to her ill half-brother, he rapes her.

She is disgraced and humiliated and goes to live in virtual widowhood in the house of her brother Absalom.

Modern rape and sex-abuse victim can surely identify with her misery and pain. She was innocent and need to feel no reproach for her own actions. However such is the nature of injustice that it is the innocent that feel defiled and who go crying for the sins of another.

(3)  A brother hates a brother.

For two years Absalom was eaten up with bitterness and hatred towards Amnon for what he did to Tamar.

Where was David during all this time? You can’t tell me that David didn’t know what was happening. BUT he did nothing! A classic case of passivity – you see it is difficult to give moral guidance to your children when you have been a bad example.

David allowed himself to be manipulated by Absalom into permitting all the king’s son to go to the place where Absalom’s sheep were being sheared.

(4)  A brother murders a brother.

Lust. Rape. Hatred. What next? Absalom murders his brother Amnon for what he had done to Tamar.

“The sword will never depart from your household, David.” David’s heart must have ached as he saw what was going on around him.

(5) Absalom rebels against David.

After he has killed Amnon Absalom flees across the Jordan River. In time he returns to Jerusalem but David won’t even look at him for two years. Eventually they are reconciled but it doesn’t last long and Absalom leads a revolt against David. David, the king, has to flee Jerusalem for his life.

(6) Absalom humiliates David in public.

Remember God’s words through Nathan, the prophet to David. 2 Sm.12:11-12. “Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity upon you; Before your very eyes I am going to take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will lie with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.”

In chapter 16 we read how Absalom pitches a tent on the roof of the palace for the whole city to see and there sleeps with his own father’s women. Where did David’s sin begin – on the roof of his palace – and here his own son’s srdid display rubs his nose in it.

(7) Absalom is murdered.

Later the final step in this devastating chain of consequences comes when Joab, David’s commander-in-chief, pursues and murders Absalom against the direct wishes of King David. And we have at the end ch.18 one of the most heart rending passage of scripture when David is told of the death of Absalom.

“The king was shaken. He went up to the room over the gateway and wept. As he went, he said: ‘O my son Absalom! My son, my son Absalom! If only I had died instead of you – O Absalom my son, my son!”

Is David only mourning the death of his son?  Surely David regrets the day he even looked at Bathsheba and carried on a year of deception. The harvesting of his sins is almost more than he can bear.

Galatians 6:7  Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.

We must not be deceived into thinking that bad consequences only result from the wrong actions.  There are also bad consequences when we neglect to do the right things.

As Christians we are instructed NOT to sow seeds of corruption BUT to positively sow seeds of righteousness.

Neglecting to engage with God in prayer, in Bible study, in worship also has serious consequences. Failing to have fellowship with other Christians, to show care for others, to be a witness for Christ, …….   These omissions also have consequences. They stunt our spiritual growth and hinder our effectiveness in God’s kingdom. And in the long term we are not happy and fulfilled.

If your spiritual life is dull and boring and ineffective maybe some self-examination on these areas is necessary. What kinds of seeds am I sowing or neglecting to sow in life?

Back to David – Forgiven? Yes!

Hard Consequences? Yes!

Was all lost? Did God abandon David? Was David no longer of use to God? No!

Despite his sin David had a heart for God – he continued to trust God – God restored his kingdom and blessed him.

Solomon was born to David and Bathsheba – God named Solomon, Jedidhiah meaning “loved by the Lord”. How gracious is God to allow the next king to be born of the woman David had committed adultery with.

We do sin and there will be consequences but that does not mean all is lost.

ILLUS.: In the 1970’s Charles Colson was adviser to US President Richard Nixon – he was implicated in the Watergate scandal at the White House. About that time he became a Christian. BUT the consequence of his actions meant he had to go to prison -–becoming a Christian didn’t remove the prison sentence.

BUT through those consequences for his sin God lead him into a key ministry to prisoner in the USA after his release.

ILLUS.: Gordon MacDonald was a pastor and Bible teacher and fell into sin – he was publicly disgraced and humiliated – but through repentance and forgiveness God restored him – he suffered the consequences BUT allowed God to work through those. He has subsequently written a number of books relating to what he has learned – esp. “Rebuilding your broken World”

Sometimes through acts of foolishness our world can be broken OR sometimes through neglect we can allow our world to simply become run down and ineffective.

Forgiveness is always available.

Consequences are not always removed – we can become paralysed and defeated …. “If only …  If only …”

OR Like David we can come humbly and repentant to God with the cry of Ps.51:12 … “Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me”.

In spite of what David did and what he suffered he knew something of God’s heart – he knew that God’s Grace is greater than all our sins.

“YOU ARE THE ONE!”

2 Samuel 12:1-14 (Psalm 51)

Introduction.

A brief  overview of last week’s sermon …….. [Last week’s OHP]

(Fatal Attraction)

2 Samuel 11:1-27

1. 1.           The lead up to David’s sin.

² Acts of sin are seldom isolated but usually have a history.

1. 2.           The act of David’s sin.

² We are more vulnerable to acts of sin when we are idle, successful, unaccountable.

1. 3.           The cover up of David’s sin.

² Not acknowledging our wrongdoing usually panics us into compounding our sins by trying to conceal them and lie about them.

1. 4.           The consequences of David’s sin.

² Our sins ALWAYS have consequences – for us and for those around us.

We saw how David was idling away his time in his Jerusalem Palace when he should have been on the battle front. He sees from his balcony a beautiful woman bathing in her courtyard – he sends for her, sleeps with her – a month or so later Bathsheba sends word to David that she is pregnant.

David attempts to cover up his sin. He brings the lady’s husband, Uriah, back from the battle front in the hope that he will sleep with his wife so that everyone will think he is the father. Uriah, even drunk, is infuriatingly honourable and won’t go to his warm marital bed while his comrades are in the open country! David then sends orders to Joab, his commander-in-chief, to put Uriah in a place where he knows he will be killed. The deed is done!

After a suitable period of mourning David marries Bathsheba – the child is born – there are probably a few raised eyebrows but no one would say anything – after all there are a few skeletons in most royal cupboards!

It was over and done with!!

BUT “Sin can’t be confined to the past so easily. Even if the courts don’t penalize it; even if public scandals don’t expose it; even if we manage to carry on the hypocrisy as David probably did, doing our job, going to church, saying our prayers, reading our Bibles, just as if it had never happened at all, still the skeleton is there rotting away in the cupboard.” [Roy Clements]

We can’t cover over our guilt – its stain is always there – suffocating our spiritual life. There is only one person in the Universe who has the means to remove those stains.

Until, like David, we come to God to deal with our sin and guilt it will remain!

Eventually David learned this lesson because God send a preacher called Nathan to him to confront him with his sin!

In the aftermath of his confession and repentance David wrote Psalm 51 ..READ

1. SIN AND GUILT – What we must accept.

Sin is very subtle – it has seeped into every fibre of our being – it creeps up on us – it makes us think that we are in control – it is seen in the fact that we want to play god – David’s sin with Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah occurred because he ceased to focus on God and tried to play god.

It is seen in the subtle use of the word ‘send’ in chapter 11.

He ‘sent’ Joab to the battle front – he ‘sent’ to inquire about Bathsheba – he ‘sent’ and got Bathsheba – then a cluster of ‘send’s 2 Samuel 11:6            6 So David sent this word to Joab: “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent him to David. (NIV)

Later David ‘sent’ for Bathsheba and married her –

However there are two other ‘sends’ that show that David is not quite in control as he thought – 2 Samuel 11:5 5 Bathsheba sent word to David, … “I am pregnant.” (NIV)

AND Joab ‘sent’ and told Daivd the news of the fighting – other soldiers beside Uriah were killed.

The final ‘send’ comes in 2 Samuel 12:1

1 The LORD sent Nathan to David. ……….. (NIV)

The foundation of sin is that we humans try to play god! This was the very temptation that Adam and Eve fell into …. Genesis 3:4-5         4 “….. the serpent said to the woman. 5 “.. God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (NIV)

It is pushing God into the background and elevating ourselves. At this point in his life David had pushed God into the background – he wasn’t paying any attention to God – David has taken centre stage.

The subtlety of sin is that it doesn’t always feel like sin when we are doing it – it can feel fulfilling and satisfying – even religious sometimes – it makes us feel godlike as if we are in control –

“David didn’t feel like a sinner when he was with Bathsheba, he felt like a lover – and what can be better than that? He didn’t feel like a sinner when he sent for Uriah – he felt like a king – and what can feel better than that?” [Peterson]

Before we can deal with our sin we have to face that fact that we are guilty of sin. David hadn’t done that until Nathan stood before him and said “David, did you hear the one about the rich man who took the poor man’s lamb?” And David burned with anger at such behaviour – and Nathan pointed his prophetic finger at David “You are the man!”

What we must accept is that fact that we are guilty! No excuses, no cover up, no blaming others   Ps. 51:3  For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.

David teaches us that the first thing we must do is look inside our hearts and face up to the truth of what we find. Self-examination is never easy – it is tough.

ILLUS.: Like the story of the old mountaineer who had never seen much of civilization – one day wandering on the mountain he found a mirror. He had never seen a mirror before. On seeing his reflection he said, “My word, if it isn’t a picture of m’ ol’ Pappy!” He took the mirror home, thoroughly pleased with himself and hid it in his private possessions. A while later his wife searching through his private possession found the mirror. Looking at it she exclaimed, “Huh, so that is the ugly old witch he has been going around with behind my back all these years!”

It is a great shock to us when we see ourselves for what we really are. And discover that we are really ugly old witches inside!

David uses the 4 known Hebrew words to describe his violation against God.

EVIL – TRANSGRESSION – INIQUITY – SIN

EVIL – What is it?  Only understand it in contrast to good – and only God is Good!>

ILLUS.: A scientist was waiting for a train when the Express went through. He saw a man walking along the corridor of the train. He starting thinking. How fast was the man travelling? He was walking at about 5mph but the train was travelling at 70 mph. But you can’t walk at 70mph. So was he travelling at 5mph? or 75mph? or 66.333mph?  That is how insight into the theory of relativity was born. Relative to a person sitting on the train the man was walking at 5mph BUT relative to the man standing on the platform he was travelling a 5 mph relative to the speed of the train. SO what he was doing depended on what he was related to ……. all very confusing!!

BUT we have pushed that kind of thinking into every area of our thinking including moral issues. “It might be wrong for you BUT it is right for me!”

BUT the Bible removes such relativity and relates us to God –

Psalm 51:4      4 ….. I have sinned and done what is evil in your sight,

David could have responded to Nathan – “Well All the kings in the area behave like this!”  BUT David recognised that what he had done was wrong before God – therefore evil!

TRANSGRESSION – lit. ‘rebellion’ or ‘revolt’. once I know what God says there is always the possibility that I will rebel. “I know what you said God, but I will do it my way!” – purposefully stepping across the line!

INIQUITY – Lit. ‘to twist it’ – I know what God says but I am going to alter the meaning and shape it to what I want it to be. I am going to twist and pervert God’s will to fit with what I have decided.

SIN – lit. ‘to miss the target’ – same idea Paul had in .. Romans 3:23 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (NIV)

For months and months David had suppressed, excused and covered over his sin – now he says … Psalm 51:2-4

2 Wash away all my iniquity          and cleanse me from my sin.

3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.

4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight,

It is not easy to face up to the reality of our sin and guilt – For many of us this first step is the most difficult.

2. CONFESSION AND REPENTANCE – What we must do.

This is the next step!

Psalm 51:4      4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight,

so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge. (NIV)

Against you, you only, have I sinned – What about Bathsheba? What about Uriah? Of course they were wronged BUT David is expressing what every person has to accept. In the final analysis our sin is against God and God only! We can never come to terms with our sin until we have personal dealings with God about it.

Sin and guilt is not just some psychological hang up as many psychiatrists would like us to believe. It is an objective reality that stands between me and my maker.

It is not enough that a psychotherapist can help me come to terms with my guilt. It is not even enough for a person I have wronged to forgive me – I have to stand before God and give account to Him as the Holy and Just Judge.

Confession and repentance is not simply admitting that I was wrong – that I let myself down – that I should have done better. We must not confuse confession and repentance with remorse – Remorse is sorry for myself and the consequences I suffer OR for being caught out. Repentance is an acknowledgement that my sin is against God and dealing with him about it personally.

3. FORGIVENESS AND RENEWAL – What we must desire.

It is all very well acknowledging our guilt. It is possible that we can wallow in our feelings of guilt and enjoy feeling sorry for ourselves. If we are going to get out of our guilt we must want things to be different – we must desire change!

David declares that he wants to be cleansed and renewed! … Psalm 51:7-10

7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice.

9 Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity.

10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. (NIV)

David knows that there is no sharp dividing line between the health of his body and the health of his soul. Guilt damages our wholeness. Guilt can produce physical symptoms. .. Psalm 32:1-4 1 [Of David. A maskil.]

Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.

2 Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him

and in whose spirit is no deceit.

3 When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.

4 For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;

my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Selah (NIV)

David was in a mess spiritually, physically and psychologically because of his repressed, rationalized and hidden sins – these needed to be taken away and only God can do that.

{Not all physical and psychological illness is a direct result of sin – BUT it can be and much or it is!}

David recognises that what he needs is not a tablet to suppress the symptoms or a Band Aid to cover them BUT he needs radical therapy – in fact he needs a heart transplant Psalm 51:10

10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. (NIV)

He acknowledges that sin is in the very essence of his character.. Psalm 51:5

5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. (NIV)

We are corrupt and sinful in our very nature – Our wills are corrupt – our minds are corrupt – our emotions are corrupt. The very core of our human personality is twisted by sin. It is in the nature of humanity to sin – it comes naturally to us –

ILLUS.: No parent ever sets out to teach their children to lie and cheat YET every child does it

We need to pray not just for forgiveness for the individual sins that we commit BUT for a new and pure heart!

God is not in the business of wallpapering over the cracks – he is in the business of re-creation …… 2 Corinthians 5:17 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! (NIV)

This is why we so often shrink from this kind of thinking – Often we would rather stay as we are – we are like pigs rolling in the mud we don’t want to be clean, we don’t want to be pure – we like the way we are!! So may be that is why David prays …. Psalm 51:12 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. (NIV)

4. GRACE AND MERCY – What we must believe.

– All the above steps will mean little to us in practice unless we believe that God is gracious and merciful and that He wants to forgive and restore us.

In spite of his sin David understands something of the character of God – he has an extraordinary confidence in God’s willingness to forgive.

This psalm is an affirmation of faith as much as it is a plea for mercy …………. Psalm 51:16-17 16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.

17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart,

O God, you will not despise. (NIV)

David had in the past enjoyed a personal and intimate relationship with God – more than anything in the world David longs for the restoration of that relationship…. Psalm 51:11-12 11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation……..

God whatever you do, don’t abandon me ….

David had witnessed how God had withdrawl from King Saul and David is terrified that such a thing could happen to him …. God would be perfectly just in treating him that way BUT David is confident that it will not be that way because he understands something of God’s heart  .. He knows that the basis of his plea is God’s mercy and love alone! …. Psalm 51:1  Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love;…….

Love and compassion – these are the feelings of a father for a child. David knows that this is what lies in the heart of God. He knows that God is just and has every right to forsake him and send him to hell BUT in the depths of his being David knows that God will accept a  … . broken and contrite heart,……

This is what we have to come to if we are to experience the forgiveness that David knew.

Maybe you are saying to yourself ….“Yes I do feel guilty – I know I have to deal personally with God about this. I want to change but how can I be sure that God will accept me? How can I know that if I come to God and confess all the awful things that I know are inside me that he will not reject me and tell me to get lost?”

David didn’t have the whole Bible – he just have a few books and he lived before Jesus died on the cross – we have the full picture of God’s unfailing love and compassion for sinners. The cross of Christ is the sure sign that God can and will forgive those who come to him in repentance — Do you believe that!!!

Forgiveness is something that God gives us as a free gift. Like David we have to seek it on our knees before God – We can’t claim it as a right – it is not automatic – we have to ask for it. YET we can have confidence that we will receive it NOT because we deserve it BUT because God is a God of unfailing love and compassion.

David’s sin was enormous – we cannot – we must not minimize it – but it is minute in comparison to the grace and mercy of God.

When Nathan confronted David with his sin he could have become angry and told David to get lost.

We can do the same – We can continue in our guilt – we can try to bury it – we can try to excuse it – we can pretend that nothing is wrong – — if that is the case we will be the losers!

David shows us a better way – accept your sin and guilt; repent and confess your sin before God; desire forgiveness and renewal; and believe with all your heart that God will accept you because of the kind of God that he is.