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Author
Brandt Gillespie
Summary: David, a man after God's own heart, struggled with deep issues of sin but also experienced God's unfailing love. He repented of his sins and asked for forgiveness in Psalm 51. When confronted by the prophet Nathan, David acknowledged his sin and mourned deeply. Our choices to sin can give others an excuse to sin, and we must strive to become more like God every day. The journey is hard, but the transformation is worth it.
There is a great difference between what are called sins of “omission” and sins of “commission.”
Martin Luther was famous for saying, “We sin in thought, word, and deed daily.” In today’s text, we see David, this “man after God’s own heart” as described by Luke in Acts Chapter 13 and verse 22. David struggled with deep issues of sin, yet he also experienced fully God’s “unfailing love” for him.
Psalm 51 and verses 1-3 is a prayer from David’s repentant heart.... “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.”
David chose to hide his sin until he was confronted by Nathan, the prophet. Nathan came to David with the disarming story of the poor man who had one lamb that he loved dearly. Nathan elaborated how a rich man stole this poor man’s only lamb to prepare it as a meal for a traveler who had stopped by the rich man’s house. This story caused rage to ignite in David who responded vehemently, “As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this deserves to die! He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity." Then Nathan said to David, "You are the man! This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: `I anointed you king over Israel .... Why did you despise the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites.” Then David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord." Nathan replied, "The Lord has taken away your sin. You are not going to die. But because by doing this you have made the enemies of the Lord show utter contempt, the son born to you will die" (2 Samuel 12:1-7).
God, in His unfailing love does forgive our sins, but when we sin, we cause the “enemies of the Lord to show utter contempt.” Our choices to sin create an excuse for others to sin. Those who are watching say to themselves, “If this person who says that they love and serve God continues living in their sinful pattern, then why should I do anything other than continue living in my sinful choices, pleasures and patterns?”
David entered into a season of deep mourning after he was confronted by Nathan. I do believe that David’s genuine repentance transformed his life and was one of the greatest reasons that he became the “man after God’s own heart.”
The journey of becoming what we have been called to be is NOT an easy one. It is hard and there are painful costs associated with the process, but ultimately the transformation in our lives makes it worth making this trip.
Lord, as we pray today, help us not shy away from Your calling to becoming more and more like You. I know that we will never fully get there until we shed this “earth suit,” and put on our “new (heavenly) body” but daily we move closer and closer to who You’re making us to become and to reflecting You.