"It's not really a sin if it doesn't hurt others" This idea is often used to justify or minimise moral decisions. But this story show how personal sin has consequences, both for other individuals and for the nation and surrounding nations.
The fall of David began when he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. It was 'the time of year when kings go out to battle', yet David remained in Jerusalem. And when it happened that he glimpsed a woman bathing, he did not check himself at that first glance, but had a second look. Then he noticed she was beautiful, and then he sent to find out about her. When he discovered she was married, David had the information he needed to know that he should get out for good. We as onlookers think "Stupid, stupid David. Get your brain back up into your head!" But (and I'm extrapolating from experience here) we've all been there, maybe with sexual temptation, maybe with other desires.
And so the delicious but dirty deed was done, and the deception deepened. The first and natural consequence of David sleeping with Bathsheba was that she become pregnant. So David tried to cover it up by recalling Uriah, an honest and loyal soldier, and tricking him repeatedly into sleeping with his wife. When this failed, he had him killed in battle. And that, as David thought and hoped, was that. But God knew, and David's deeds displeased the Lord.
It took a parable from Nathan to bring David to his senses. We need people around us who can feed to us the Word of God. Who knows how this could have turned out differently if Nathan or some other person had confronted David earlier in the spiral? (Granted, being king, he could have killed them, but anyway). David realised that he had sinned against God. His adultery, deception and murder was evil in God's sight. And the consequences for his sin were severe.
Sin is like a disease, and the consequences are the symptoms. Symptoms are idiosyncratic to each person, but show the underlying problem. Sometimes they are more severe, sometimes more subtle. Sin also infects other people, relationships, and the environment. The curse of sin was on David's family, and "the sword shall never depart from your house". We see this happening through the next generations, as David's sons hate and kill each other. There are civil wars fought between factions raised up by and against David's family. So too is fulfilled the curse to "raise up evil against you out of your own house" as Absalom, David's beloved son, turns the minds of the people against his father and attempts a revolution. Sin brings death, both to grown ups as David's sons are killed, and to the child, as the baby of David's affair with Bathsheba dies. Later, in the last chapter of the book, David disobeys the Lord again by taking a census, and the nation must deal with the consequences of his sin. He chooses the punishment from the Lord (a plague) knowing that the mercy of God is far greater than any mercy from men.
The curse of sin was great, but the mercy of God was greater. David was forgiven of his sin, because "the Lord has put it away". Sin creates outcasts, but God restores. But the consequences of sin remain.
Far greater minds than I have struggled far longer than I and used far more words than I to attempt to encapsulate the mystery of sin. An all-powerful God has put away sin through Jesus Christ, is putting away sin through Jesus Christ, and will put away sin through Jesus Christ, yet does not remove all the curse and consequences of sin in the world today. Surely he can, surely he wants to, but surely he does not.
In a world riddled by the disease of sin, all we have is hope, hope in the one who is not infected. I'll wrap up with the words of hope from the wise woman from Tekoa (1 Samuel 14:14). "God devises means so that the banished one will not remain an outcast".
No comments:
Post a Comment