By David Stahl
When I think of the things King David did in his walk with the LORD I have to shake my head and say, but for the grace of God there go I. You know we are no better and may have done far worse than him in his short comings. But, I have always wondered why King David thought he had the right (even in God) to just take another man’s wife? But if you study the scriptures (as we are commanded to) closely we will find this was not the first time King David took another man’s wife. After King Saul took his own life (1 Samuel 31:4-6) Michal Saul’s first daughter was taken by David to be his wife as King Saul promised him, only one problem Michal was already married, “And he said, Well; I will make a league with thee: but one thing I require of thee, that is, Thou shalt not see my face, except thou first bring Michal Saul’s daughter, when thou comest to see my face. 14And David sent messengers to Ishbosheth Saul’s son, saying, Deliver memy wife Michal, which I espoused to me for an hundred foreskins of the Philistines. 15And Ishbosheth sent, and took her from herhusband, evenfrom Phaltiel the son of Laish. 16And her husband went with her along weeping behind her to Bahurim. Then said Abner unto him, Go, return. And he returned.” (2 Samuel 3:13-16)His wife? Yes, Saul gave Michal to David (see 1 Samuel 18:27) then in a fit of anger King Saul gave Michal to Phaltiel the son of Laish (see 1 Samuel 25:44), but now many years later King David is coming after his wife? Now I am not beating up Brother David, but earlier in 2 Samuel we may find a clue that lends itself to why David felt he had the right to take Bathsheba. “And David perceived that the LORD had established him king over Israel,and that he had exalted his kingdom for his people Israel’s sake. 13And David took himmore concubines and wives out of Jerusalem, after he was come from Hebron: and there were yet sons and daughters born to David.” (2 Samuel 5:12-13)Why not Bathsheba? After all I am king and I took Michal (and got away with it) so why not with Bathsheba? Now we would say how could God stand by and allow this travesty to happen? We would have thought how could a Holy God allow this wrongful, unjust, and unrighteous act to happen, but that was not God’s testimony of the event. Remember it is God who says something is right or wrong, just or unjust, righteous or unrighteous, godly, or ungodly not us. If fact God said nothing, God was deathly quiet (what long suffering) with their relationship until Michal got upset at David when he came dancing into Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6:20-23) with the Ark of the Covenant. Verse 23 says, “Therefore Michal the daughter of Saul had no child unto the day of her death.”Maybe God’s longsuffering ran out with her open defiance and ridicule, maybe God’s opinion of David taking Michal from her husband was revealed in Michal never bearing children, a huge deal for a king and a huge deal for an Israelite woman. This story sheds the light on many areas in our lives. You know people ask me if Jesus is the fulfilling of the Old Testament why do we have to study the Old Testament, well that answer is clear so we will not make the same mistakes the people in the Old Testament made. Paul told taught this central truth to the Church at Corinth, “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. 12Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. 13There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God isfaithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” (1 Corinthians 10:11-13)yet they did not learn and sadly we too seem to have the same problems not learning the same lessons.
You know I believe there are many things what we call sin that God does not. I can say you have sinned, but if God does not say you have sinned then you have not sinned. Many Christians would have been fast to accuse King David of his sin in taking Michal from her husband (even in his tears), but God did not call it sin. Sadly for David I believe MAYBE his past conquest of Michal MAY have embolden him to desire Bathsheba when he spied her taking a sponge bath on the roof. One thing for sure God hates sin and He wants us to stop. Sin was Jesus’ number one topic, yet today we hear little about sin from our church leaders. We hear of our destiny to rule and reign with Christ now and in the ages to come, well my brother I promise if you cannot allow God to deal in your heart with your sin nature you will never rule and reign with Christ in heavenly places. One of the biggest obstacles we face in allowing God to deal with our sin nature is we think sinning is about hurting others and ourselves well this is true to a certain extent, but when we sin it is NOT about us and others as much as it is always about us sinning against God and His word to us. Now there are two points here. The first, our sin is against God’s character and nature and the second is our sin is against God’s word telling us not to do something. Sin is not the act committed, but doing that which God told us not to do. God tell us, “do not lie,” but we do. “Do not steal,” but we do. “Do not you name it,” but we do. It is not the lying or the stealing that is the sin (now we must not lie or steal), but the act of doing that which God told us not to do. Remember what sin is; sin is to miss the mark, to know right, but willfully do wrong. What is the mark we miss? The mark we miss is not keeping God’s commandments and word to us because in our heart we desire what we want to do. I do not know about you my friend, but when (not if) I sin I know it. There is no surprise the Holy Spirit convicts me (thank God) after the fact, but at first I choose to do that which God told me not to do. I knew right, but I willfully choose to do wrong, sin. It is our love for God and our desire to learn how God functions and operates is what God uses to head off our wrong thoughts and changes our heart condition to prevent wrong choices. Paul tells us,“Unto the pure all things arepure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving isnothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. 16They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.” (Titus 1:15-16) You see it is not the act, but, “unto them that are defiled and unbelieving isnothing pure.” Who shall see God now and in ages to come? Only those with a pure heart and clean hands. Now it says “nothing is pure.”When the Bible says “nothing,”all things, or every it means just that leaving none out. We see it is in their “minds and conscience”(their heart condition) the choice to be pure or not is made. This means we can do wrong things in the eyes of man, but God who sees and knows our heart may not call it wrong and will not ascribe it as sin to us. Again I believe there are many things man calls sin to manipulate and control people, but God may not call it sin. Let us look at the last word, “reprobate,”Strong’s #96; void of judgment, not standing the test, not approved, that which does not prove itself such as it ought, unfit, spurious. Here we see these people were “abominable and disobedient”because of their lack of judgment or their inability to make the right choice at the right time. God must get us to stop sinning if He is going to use us and for this to happen we must open ourselves to His dealings and judgments in our lives so that He can reveal to us the wickedness of our heart.
Of the two points mentioned above the first point speaks volumes of our love for God. When we sin (and we know it) we are not sinning against anyone but God. We see this truth expressed in the words of Joseph and King David. First in the words of Joseph when he was enticed by Potiphar’s (his boss) wife. “And it came to pass after these things, that his master’s wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me. 8But he refused, and said unto his master’s wife, Behold, my master wotteth not what iswith me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand; 9There isnone greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou arthis wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?10And it came to pass, as she spake to Joseph day by day, that he hearkened not unto her, to lie by her, orto be with her.” (Genesis 39:7-10) In verse eight we see Joseph made up his mind not to sin before he got in the situation. Joseph must have seen her looking at him he must have had some awareness of her desires towards him so he stiffened his resolve in God (before he was confronted) that he would not destroy the relationship between him, his earthly master, and his heavenly Master. What is the value of awareness? Sometimes the value can be our soul. And then in verse nine we read where Joseph said, “how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?”Joseph knew the sin (he knew that which was right) was not the act, or against Potiphar (but it would have surely destroyed their relationship), nor even against himself, but against God. When we sin it is against God and God alone. King David knew what Joseph was feeling when Nathan the Prophet stood before him. In 2 Samuel we read where Prophet Nathan exposes King David’s ungodly relationship with Bathsheba and wanton murder of her husband Uriah who was a soldier in King David’s army. We pick up where King David recognizes his sin, “And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan said unto David, The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die. 14Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also that isborn unto thee shall surely die. 15And Nathan departed unto his house. And the LORD struck the child that Uriah’s wife bare unto David, and it was very sick.:” (2 Samuel 12:13-15) King David realized two things here, one he sinned against God and two when we sin against God there is always a consequence for our disobedience. Now it may not be swift in coming, but some day it will come and we will know why it has been visited on us. Here swiftly God’s judgment fell, “And the LORD struck the child that Uriah’s wife bare unto David.” Please notice, “the LORD struck the child.” King David was found out for the man he was and now discovered he had to face his consequence; the open shame and death of his first born child with Bathsheba. David recognized his error (please read the entire story) and then took responsibility and the consequences for his actions. God is looking for this in us. If we fail (and we will) God is looking for us to recognize our sin (after all He has given us His precious Holy Spirit to help with this) and then bear up under His judgment with the strength He provides. Maybe this is why God said of David that “he was a man after my own heart.” In Psalms we read where King David gets down to the heart level with God, “For I acknowledge my transgressions:and my sin isever before me. 4Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done thisevil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, andbe clear when thou judgest. 5Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. 6Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden partthou shalt make me to know wisdom.” (Psalms 51:3-6) True forgiveness of our sin begins when we recognize we have sinned against God and then ask His forgiveness and others if need be. When we do wrong we will know that it is wrong, because we know what His word says and we are sensitive to the wooing of the Holy Spirit like Joseph and King David. Do not focus on the sin (now if you are sinning STOP) Jesus died for that sin, but instead focus on God and His amazing forgiveness and strength.
