In reading 2 Samuel 12, I noticed how quick David was to say, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die,” not realizing that Nathan’s story about a rich man who stole a poor man’s little lamb was about him. How easy it is for me to see sin in others while willingly overlooking it in myself. That reminds me of one of my favorite parts of C. S. Lewis’s book, “Mere Christianity.”
I remember Christian teachers telling me long ago that I must hate a bad man’s actions but not hate the bad man: or, as they would say, hate the sin but not the sinner. …I used to think this a silly, straw-splitting distinction: how could you hate what a man did and not hate the man?
But years later it occurred to me that there was one man to whom I had been doing this all my life — namely myself.
However much I might dislike my own cowardice or conceit or greed, I went on loving myself. There had never been the slightest difficulty about it…
Christianity does not want us to reduce by one atom the hatred we feel for cruelty and treachery. We ought to hate them…. But it does want us to hate them in the same way in which we hate things in ourselves: being sorry that the man should have done such things, and hoping, if it is anyway possible, that somehow, sometime, somewhere, he can be cured and made human again.”
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
Heavenly Father, Forgive me for being quick to judge and slow to serve. Forgive me for being quick to see the speck in my brother’s eye while being slow to see the log that is in my own. Help me, please, to labor diligently to dig that log out, so that I can help my brother and glorify You, my perfect king. Help me to heed the words of Galatians 6, that I would restore with gentleness my brothers and sisters who are caught in any transgression, helping to bear their burden with humility and wisdom. Give me wisdom to talk to my Christian sisters and brothers with boldness, compassion, love, and empathy, remembering the words of Titus 3 that I myself was once foolish, disobedient, and led astray, a slave to various passions and pleasures, passing my days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another, that I was not saved because of my own righteous works but according to Your own mercy. Help me to remember that apart from Your incredible grace, I could fall as hard and far and fast as David did. It is by Your grace that I stand and by Your grace that I pray. In the Name of Jesus. Amen.
Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.
Have you ever gone to a corn maze (or a sorghum maze if you’re in the south)? I’ve taken my kids a few times and discovered I really don’t like them. I hate how easily one wrong turn can lead you down the wrong path, forcing you into another wrong turn and another, until you finally find yourself at a dead-end where you then have to try retracing your steps to get back where you were 30 minutes ago. I’m just not a fan. How about you?
In reading 2 Samuel 11, I couldn’t shake how many times someone could have made a different choice and changed the whole course of events. Chapter 11 begins with the words, “In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel. And they ravaged the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.”
What if David simply had gone to battle instead of staying home?
Then David “arose from his couch and was walking on the roof of his home late in the afternoon.”
What if David had been commanding his armies or counseling his people?
What if David had spent the afternoon in prayer and Bible study?
So often in life it’s how we spend our leisure time that really trips us up!
When we’re worn out, worn down, and trying to relax, what do we do? What do we turn to? Food, Facebook, or the phone? Sex, shopping, or scrolling? How differently things could’ve been in David’s life if he’d spent his afternoon differently.
Then David sees a beautiful woman bathing.
Accidentally seeing someone bathing is not a sin, but what if this wasn’t the first time David had gone up to his roof and noticed Bathsheba.
Had David made an intentional choice to go up on his roof, hoping that he would see Bathsheba?
And what about Bathsheba? Was it really just an accident that she was bathing in the afternoon in such a place that the king who lived nearby would see here?
We don’t know, but how different things could’ve been if Bathsheba had bathed somewhere else or had been more careful to shield herself from David’s view.
And then David sent a messenger to find out more about the woman, and he is told that she is the wife of one of his mighty men, Uriah the Hittite.
Why did David send someone to find out more about her? Was he planning to take her as another wife or maybe a concubine?
But then, I wonder, how did David not know who she was? Bathsheba was the wife of Uriah, one of his chosen mighty men (2 Samuel 23:8-9) the daughter of Eliam, also one of David’s chosen mighty men, (2 Samuel 23:34) the granddaughter of Ahithophel, one of David’s chief counselors (2 Samuel 23:34, 2 Samuel 15:12), and she lived near enough to David’s home that he can see her clearly from his roof. Did he really not know who that bathing woman was?
What if David had never inquired of her? David had more than enough wives already. Surely he didn’t need to find out anything about this beautiful young woman.
Next David sends someone to take Bathsheba to his palace and she becomes pregnant.
What if the messenger had refused to help David?
What if Bathsheba had refused to come, preferring shame, imprisonment, or even death to breaking her marital vows?
What if she had fled like Joseph had when Potiphar’s wife tried to get him to lie with her and he ended up in prison? (Genesis 39)
By the way, this phrase, “David sent messengers and took her,” reminded me of 1 Samuel 8 when the Lord warned the Israelites through the prophet Samuel about the troubles that a king would bring upon them. This same Hebrew word for “take” is used again and again in 1 Samuel 8. The king will take their sons and their daughter, their fields and their grain, their servants and their donkeys. And here, David, the king, has taken even the wife of one of his most valuable warriors.
Then David asks Joab to bring Uriah back home, hoping that Uriah would spend some time with his wife, so no one would find out how she had become pregnant.
Like Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden after they had taken the forbidden fruit, David chose to hide his sin.
Maybe David was afraid of hurting his friend, Uriah.
Maybe David was afraid of losing his position as king.
Maybe David was simply afraid of losing face.
What if David had come clean at this point and repented of his sin?
What if David had brought Uriah home so that he could confess his sin to him and seek his forgiveness?
Proverbs 28:13 ESV says, “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.” Think of how differently this story would’ve ended if David had confessed his sin and sought mercy from Uriah and Bathsheba.
Next when Uriah refuses to go home to be with his wife, then David tells Joab to “set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down and die.” (11:15) and Uriah was killed in battle.
What if Joab had refused to be a party to this?
People might say, “Joab HAD to obey the king,” like they say that Bathsheba had to obey the king.
Don’t believe those lies. You DON’T have to do it. You don’t. Sure, you might get in trouble. Yes, you might face some embarrassment or other consequences, even severe, or life-threatening consequences, but no one ever has to choose sin.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were thrown into the fiery furnace (Daniel 3) because they refused to bow down to the king’s golden idol.
Daniel was thrown into a den of lions (Daniel 6) because he refused to stop praying.
God will always provide a way of escape (even if it’s death) that you may be able to withstand temptation. Read 1 Corinthians 10 for more on this.
David’s sin hurt lots of other people: Uriah, Bathsheba, the child Bathsheba bore, not to mention David’s other wives and David’s other children, as well as Joab and the Israelite army and the list goes on and on. But so does ours.
When we lie or cheat or boast or complain, we hurt other people.
When we think malicious thoughts about others and make plans in our minds to hurt them, we are hurting them as well as ourselves and others. We have got to remember that those people were made in the image of God and when we put our desires above them, it hurts them and it hurts God.
David knew that what he was doing was wrong. David knew the Ten Commandments. He knew it was sin to covet his neighbor’s wife and commit adultery, but he did it and then tried to cover it up. He knew God had said DO NOT MURDER. That’s why he had Joab arrange the murder for him.
Your sin might not look like David’s sin. Maybe you will never get another man’s wife pregnant or have anybody killed, but your sin separates you from God just as much as David’s sin did.
“For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”
Mark 7:21-23
God was displeased with David’s sin, and God is displeased with our sin, too. God made a way for David to be saved, and God made a way for us to be saved, too.
As we will read tomorrow, David’s innocent son died, but so did God’s. God sent His own Son in the flesh, Jesus Christ, fully God and fully man, to be born as a human baby, to live a perfect and sinless life and to die on the cross to pay the punishment that our sins deserve. And He promises to us eternal, abundant, new life in Christ – AS SOON AS we trust in Him His Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us, to be our ever-present help, our ever-present counselor … and for all eternity to dwell in heaven with Him.
David needed to repent, to turn away from his sins, and so do we. The only way we can do that is to place our trust in the Lord and seek Him for strength to overcome temptation moment by moment and day by day. David fell because he had stopped seeking God; his eyes were on earth instead of on heaven.
Let’s pray and ask God to help us to resist the devil and submit to Him.
Heavenly Father, I need Your help. I can’t do it on my own. My spirit is willing but my flesh is weak. Help me to trust You moment by moment. Help me to be so careful how I spend my leisure time. Help me to get the rest I need so I can be strong in the moment of temptation. Help me to resist the devil and submit to You. Help me to see that way of escape that You will provide for me each and every time. Help me to be in Your Word day after day, remembering that it is my weapon to fight against the devil. Help me to hold up that shield of faith so I can extinguish all the flaming darts that the evil one throws my way. Help me to fasten the belt of truth firmly around my waist and strap the breastplate of righteousness tightly to my chest. Give me the strength and courage I need to stand firm and fight this battle, so that I will not bring shame to Your name. I love You, Lord. You are worth the fight. Death is not the worst thing. Denying You whether in word or deed is. Help me, Lord, for the glory of Your Name. Amen.
Have you ever been mad at someone, not just for a few minutes, but for hours or days? Have you ever allowed your anger to stew like a 8-pound chuck roast left in a crockpot to bubble all day, causing a seed of bitterness to take root deep in your heart?
How did that effect your relationship with that person? How was your attitude toward them? Did that bitterness ever make it hard for you to think kind thoughts or speak kind words about them?
Now, how about your feelings toward God? Have you ever been mad at God for days or weeks? Have you ever felt like He didn’t treat you or a loved one the way He should’ve? Did you ever let that anger plant a seed, no matter how small, of contempt toward God?
How did that effect your relationship with or your attitude toward God? Did it make it hard for you to meet with Him or submit to His commands?
In my life, I’ve noticed that often my bitterness toward a person is intimately tied to my disappointment with God.
Maybe a friend, a parent, a sibling or even a spouse has hurt you deeply. They’ve let you down. They’ve attacked you and disappointed you. They’ve done you wrong. Maybe it’s substance abuse or pornography. Maybe it’s lying and deceit. Maybe it’s an emotional or physical affair. Maybe it’s a lack of regard for your thoughts and feelings.
How has that relationship with a human being effected your relationship with God?
How have your feelings toward a person effected your feelings toward God?
In today’s passage in 2 Samuel 6, we read about Michal, King Saul’s daughter and David’s first wife, who despised David in her heart when she witnessed his joy before the Lord. Michal had been hurt again and again by David, a man she had loved. David had taken other wives and then had allowed her to be sent away, only to be brought back after she’d married another man. I don’t know that Michal ever trusted in God. In fact, Michal may have been a pagan idol-worshipper, but we do know that it grieved her deeply to see David dancing with reckless abandon in the presence of God and all the house of Israel. Click here to read through an overview of Michal’s life in the scriptures.
Thinking through Michal’s response to David’s joyful worship, I asked myself these two questions:
When have my feelings of disappointment toward a fellow human being resulted in me treating them with disdain and contempt rather than love and forgiveness?
When have my feelings of disappointment with my Heavenly Father resulted in me turning my back on Him rather than turning my face toward His open arms?
Heavenly Father, Your ways are certainly not our ways. You are always holy and righteous and good, and we are not. You have told us what You require of us, yet we have disobeyed You again and again. We have shunned Your scriptures. We have mocked Your Words and Your workers. We have treated Your Creation and Your commands with contempt. We have blamed You for circumstances that we have brought upon ourselves. We have turned our backs to You instead of our faces. Please, Father, forgive us. Remove the root of bitterness from our hearts, bitterness toward our fellow sinful man and bitterness toward You, our perfect Father. Renew a right spirit in us. Give us a new heart, a new mind, and a new soul. Strengthen us to love others as You have loved us. Help us to love You, our Lord and God, with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Help us to cast all our cares upon You and to trust that You care for us. Help us to fully believe that You are at work, working all things together for good for those who love You and have been called according to Your purposes, bringing beauty out of the ashes of our lives. In the Name of Jesus Christ who died in my place I pray. Amen.
Today as I asked God what I should write about in today’s blog post, I couldn’t shake the thought that I was supposed to write on the topic of genders. So, in fearful obedience, here it goes.
Growing up in the ’70s and ’80s, the thought that there were anything beyond two genders never even entered my mind. My sister and I were girls. My mom was a girl. My dad was a boy. My cat, Bandit, who I’d adopted off the streets as a stray was a boy, too. I always wished that my mom and dad would have another baby, a boy, so I could have a little brother to play with and boss around. My world was made up of two genders: boys and girls, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, men and women, males and females.
Though I wasn’t a Christian and though I believed that the world and everything in it had evolved through a series of random events, it was still clear to my rational , scientific brain that everything that reproduced was either a male or a female. Roosters and hens, bucks and does, worker bees and queen bees, males and females.
In today’s chapter, 2 Samuel 5, verse 13 says, “And David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, after he came from Hebron, and more sons and daughters were born to David.” David was a male, and every single one of David’s concubines and wives were female. All of David’s sons were male, and all of David’s daughters were female.
My dad and my cat both had operations that prevented them from fathering babies, but they were still male. In fact, my dad could have grown his hair long, and worn a mini skirt, heels and a stuffed bra, and it wouldn’t make him female. He could even have changed his name to something more neutral or feminine, and left my mom for a guy, but my dad would still have been a male. Why? Because that’s how he was born. Dare I say, that’s how he was made by His Creator? When my father was knit together in his mother’s womb, he received an x chromosome from his mom and a y chromosome from his dad, and he was born a boy.
This issue is especially personal for me for a whole myriad of reasons. I won’t go into all of them here but one of them is this: when my sister and I were young, my parents usually kept our hair cut short and dressed us in very simple gender neutral clothing. I liked climbing trees and getting dirty. I didn’t like playing with Barbies. My best friend most years was a boy. But did those things make me a boy? No. They didn’t. I was a girl, whether I liked it or not. That’s how I was born. That’s how I was made by my Creator. When I was knit together in my mother’s womb, I received an x chromosome from my mom and an x chromosome from my dad, and I was born a girl.
Back in the ’80s, when I was teenager, it was shameful to admit that you had homosexual desires. A person was said to “come out of the closet” when they confessed to homosexual tendencies. Now here we are in the “roaring 2020s,” and it’s shameful to stand up for Biblical gender identities, but today I’m taking a stand. I refuse to hide in the closet, ashamed of the Bible’s very clear teaching that God gave David sons and daughters. David’s sons were boys and his daughters were girls. God created them male and female just like He’s been doing from the beginning of time and to say anything else is a lie, a lie that hurts both the Creator and the creature.
Will you join me in prayer?
Heavenly Father, I come to You with the deepest gratitude for making me to be me. Thank You for making me a girl and granting me the gift of being a mom. Thank You for giving me sons and daughters. I pray that You will encourage the people of this generation to love You as their Creator by accepting themselves for how they’ve been made – their hair color and skin color, their height and their gender. You don’t make junk. We do. We take what You have made and we ruin it, hurting others and hurting ourselves. And hurting You in the process. Forgive us, Lord. I pray that You will also encourage the people of this generation to stand up for what they know is true, what the Scriptures so clearly state, that You are the Creator and that You create male or female. Help us not to be ashamed of the gospel and not to be ashamed of the truth of Your Word. Please, Father, help us to defend our faith with gentleness, respect, and humility, for the glory of Your Name and the good of Your creation. In the Name of Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.
Though we don’t know what exactly Noah said to those living around him, 2 Peter 2:5 calls Noah, “a herald of righteousness.” Though we don’t know exactly how Noah was treated by those who saw him building an ark in a desert, Hebrews 11:7 says that, “By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.”
We know more about John. We know that John “went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” (Luke 3:3 ESV) We know that John had fiery words to say to his Jewish brothers who came to be baptized by him.
“You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”
Luke 3:7b-9 ESV
I was reminded this morning that John’s father, Zechariah, was a priest, but we see here in Luke 3 that John answered the crowds, even those detested tax collectors and soldiers, who asked, “What shall we do?” And again and again John pointed people to the One who is mightier than him, the one who was yet to come, who would baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire, who would gather the wheat into His barn and burn the chaff with unquenchable fire.
But Noah’s life and John’s life ended very differentlly. Noah’s life was spared, while John was locked up in prison (Luke 3:20) and eventually beheaded (Matthew 14:1-12).
So I’m asking myself, am I willing to be a herald of righteousness?
Am I willing to preach repentance or am I too afraid of what people will say?
Do I fear the disapproval of man … or of God?
Heavenly Father, make me like John and Noah. Make me a herald of good news. Help me to preach repentance and the good news of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. I know how this story ends. I know that Jesus came, and I know that He is coming again. Help me to live for Your glory, rather than my own. Help me to love my neighbor more than I love my own comfort. Give me Your strength. Give me Your words. Guide me where You want me to go. In the Name of Jesus Christ, my Lord and my Savior, I pray. Amen.
This time I was struck by comparing Mary with Eve. Mary “treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart” while Eve listened to the temptations of the serpent and her flesh rather than listening to the truth and kindness of her Creator.
Heavenly Father, make me more like Mary. I want my soul to magnify You, Lord. I want my spirit to rejoice in You, God, my Savior. Thank You, Father for looking upon me in my humble state. You have indeed done great things for me. You lift up the humble, and You humble the mighty. You fill the hungry with good things, and You send the rich away empty. I want to treasure these times with my children, sitting side by side on the couch, reading Your Word together. I want to treasure the life-giving Word that I hold in my hands. Help me to ponder its truths, mully them over in my mind and treasuring them in my heart, that they will come out of my mouth in season and out of season. I want my thoughts to be Your thoughts and my words to be Your words. May everything that has breath praise You, Lord, for You are worthy to be praised. In the Name of Jesus Christ, my Savior and Lord, I pray. Amen.
Read through the Bible in 2 Years: 1 Samuel 13-15.
“Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.”
1 Samuel 15:22 ESV
Am I as faithful to obey God in the little things as I am to obey Him in the “big ones”?
I go to church every week without fail, but am I as faithful in reaching out to a hurting neighbor or stranger in need?
I read my Bible every single day, but am I as diligent in being patient and kind to my husband and children day after day?
I answer each and every question in my Bible study workbook, but am I as conscientious in sharing the gospel and making disciples of the lost.
I try to take every opportunity I have to teach others the goodness of God, but am I as careful on praying without ceasing and seeking the Lord’s guidance in my own daily life.
There are some areas of my life that I find easier to obey than others. How about you? What is easier for you to obey and where do you struggle?
I think some of the things that are easier for me to obey are because they are more enjoyable for me. I simply enjoy reading and singing and studying more than I enjoy serving and listening and being kind. But I’m afraid that some of the things are easier for me because they are more visible. Other people see me at church. Other people hear me teaching or participating in Bible study.
Oh, Father, help me to live for Your “well done.” Protect me from seeking man’s praise rather than Your praise. I want to live for an audience of One. You are my perfect judge. Your opinion is what matters. Help me to trust and obey. Day by day. In the Name of Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.
Galatians 1:10 ESV — For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Colossians 3:22 ESV — Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord.
People always joke about Leviticus being the hardest book in the Bible, with maybe Numbers and Job being close runners up. Well, so far this year I’ve read all three of those, and none of them light a candle to how hard Judges has been for me. To see again and again the depravity of man, even so called “good men” like Gideon and Samson, has broken my heart time after time.
Judges ends with these words,
“In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”
Judges 21:25 ESV
Whether people obey Him or not, Almighty Jehovah God is the Supreme, Sovereign Ruler. He is the King over Heaven and Earth. He rules over all creation, though mankind chooses to disobey Him, doing whatever seems right in their own eyes. All too often man follows his own deceitful, corrupted heart rather than following the Lord.
There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.
Proverbs 14:12 ESV
As an atheist, I saw helping others as a way I could make my mark in the world. I wanted people to think well of me. I wanted to be a good person. I made up all kinds of rules for myself and tried my best to keep them, but I couldn’t do it. I didn’t have any motivation higher than my own pride and I didn’t have any strength higher than my own will power. Like these men in Judges, I was doing whatever seemed right to me, whatever was right in my own eyes, and that way led me straight to the center of the City of Destruction via the Slough of Despond. (Have you ever read “Pilgrim’s Progress” by John Bunyan? Might I suggest listening to an audio version of it. I’ve been listening to this version on Christian Audio and love it.)
But the Bible reveals another path. A better path. A path of humility and power, God’s power.
Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.
Proverbs 3:5-8 ESV
Heavenly Father, Your Way is right. All Your ways are good. Help us to know You, rightly discerning the path of life. May Your Word be a light to our feet and a lamp to our path. May Your goodness be a fetter, binding our wandering hearts to Thee. Lead us straight to You. In the Name of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.
It seems that Micah is about using God rather than serving Him. He wants a priest and an ephod and carved images, not so he can rightly know and love God but so that he can get them to do what he wants.
God isn’t a genie in a lamp that we can rub when we want our wishes granted. God doesn’t live to do our bidding. We need to know God rightly so we can worship Him rightly. Wrong beliefs lead to wrong actions. Every. Time.
Heavenly Father, Thank You for Your immense mercy and grace. You didn’t have to love me. You didn’t have to save me. But You did. Thank You. I want to serve You for You are worthy. Give me discernment to recognize what is good and what is evil and give me the power to choose good. For the Glory of Your Name and Your Kingdom. In the Name of Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.
Judges 16 has lessons for both men and women. I have been blessed with two sons as well as two daughters. I see lessons here for both of them.
Sons: Be careful who you fall for. The wrong woman will lead you in the wrong direction. Strong men can become weak men in a woman’s hands. Get to know who a woman really is before you give her your heart. When you see that she has a selfish, manipulative, deceitful spirit, RUN!
Daughters: Be careful how you use your seductive powers. You can manipulate a man into doing things both you and he will regret. Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should. Don’t manipulate men, making them your puppet. It will only lead you astray.
Heavenly Father, I pray for my sons and daughters. May their hearts belong to You. May You be their greatest treasure. Protect them from the sins of deceit and manipulation. Teach them to guard their hearts. Fill their hearts with pure, holy desires that they would love what You love and hate what You hate. In the Name of Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.
Teach What is Good 
You must be logged in to post a comment.