Latest / Bible in a Year with Jack Graham / David Repents - The Book of 2 Samuel
Transcript
- 0:00Speaker 1: Let us pray. And Nathan said to David, Thou art
- 0:05Speaker 1: the man. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I
- 0:10Speaker 1: appointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out
- 0:13Speaker 1: of the hand of Saul. 2 Samuel 12.7 Lord, when
- 0:19Speaker 1: I make mistakes in life, I thank you that you
- 0:23Speaker 1: will place people in my life like Nathan that aren't
- 0:26Speaker 1: afraid to tell me the truth, even when it hurts.
- 0:30Speaker 1: I thank you that through my mistake, you constantly give
- 0:34Speaker 1: me opportunities to repent and turn from my bad decisions.
- 0:39Speaker 1: When these moments happen, give me the heart of David
- 0:43Speaker 1: that quickly acknowledges my mistakes and desires only to honor
- 0:48Speaker 1: and reconnect with you, Lord. Even if it may cost
- 0:52Speaker 1: me some things at first, because you are a merciful God,
- 0:56Speaker 1: I can praise you because your abundant mercy will cover
- 1:00Speaker 1: my sins and establish your presence once again over my life.
- 1:06Speaker 1: Like David's new son, Solomon, I declare that I too
- 1:11Speaker 1: will be able to give birth to the dreams and
- 1:13Speaker 1: promises spoken over me. Thank you, God, that there is
- 1:18Speaker 1: no sin or mistake that can separate me from your love.
- 1:22Speaker 1: I come to you with a repentant and open heart.
- 1:27Speaker 1: In Jesus' name, amen. Thanks for making prayer a priority
- 1:34Speaker 1: in your life. To hear the Bible come to life,
- 1:37Speaker 1: stay tuned for The Bible in a Year, brought to
- 1:40Speaker 1: you by BibleInAYear.com. The Bible in a Year.
- 1:55Speaker 2: David repents. In our last story, David remains home from
- 2:01Speaker 2: battle to rest. While his men fight on the front
- 2:04Speaker 2: lines of the Ammonites, David lounges in the sun, basking
- 2:08Speaker 2: in his triumph. David eventually grows complacent and sleeps with
- 2:13Speaker 2: the wife of one of his mighty men, Uriah. She
- 2:16Speaker 2: becomes pregnant, and David sends Uriah to the front lines
- 2:20Speaker 2: to be killed to cover up his sins. Now we
- 2:23Speaker 2: see David caught in a cloud of ignorance to just
- 2:26Speaker 2: how evil his sin was. God sends Nathan to reveal
- 2:30Speaker 2: to him his error, and David's heart melts in front
- 2:34Speaker 2: of a holy God. Inspired by the book of 2 Samuel.
- 2:41Speaker 3: Hello, I'm Pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of the
- 2:44Speaker 3: Bible in a Year podcast. In yesterday's reading, we heard
- 2:47Speaker 3: how David became complacent. choosing to stay at home rather
- 2:51Speaker 3: than fight the battles that the Lord had given him.
- 2:54Speaker 3: As a result, he faced the temptation of a beautiful woman, Bathsheba.
- 2:58Speaker 3: And he gave in to the temptation, and when his
- 3:00Speaker 3: lover became pregnant, he tried to deceive her husband in
- 3:04Speaker 3: order to cover it up. Ultimately, David had Uriah killed
- 3:08Speaker 3: to keep his sins hidden. But God sees it all,
- 3:11Speaker 3: and he was grieved, deeply grieved by the king's sin.
- 3:15Speaker 3: Today we'll hear what God says to David through the
- 3:17Speaker 3: prophet Nathan to open the king's eyes to his rebellion
- 3:21Speaker 3: and sin. When David realized the evil that he had done,
- 3:25Speaker 3: it breaks him, and he will soon discover that God
- 3:27Speaker 3: will exact a high price for David's unfaithfulness. But we'll
- 3:31Speaker 3: also see what a heart of true repentance looks like
- 3:34Speaker 3: as David turns back to God. So let's hear now
- 3:38Speaker 3: the reading for today.
- 3:41Speaker 2: A subtle cloud of darkness covered the land of Israel.
- 3:45Speaker 2: Although the sun still shined brightly, there was still an
- 3:48Speaker 2: ominous feeling permeating throughout the city of Jerusalem. Nathan, the prophet,
- 3:53Speaker 2: felt the unease, especially when he spoke with King David.
- 3:57Speaker 2: There was a flightiness to his demeanor that Nathan could
- 4:00Speaker 2: not ignore. The quick marriage between David and Bathsheba alarmed him,
- 4:05Speaker 2: and he inquired of God what was happening. God confirmed
- 4:09Speaker 2: Nathan's suspicions. David had murdered Uriah to cover up his
- 4:13Speaker 2: affair with Bathsheba. The new child was born out of sin,
- 4:18Speaker 2: and Uriah's blood cried out from the grave to God.
- 4:22Speaker 2: David did his best to numb the pain of his sins.
- 4:26Speaker 2: He did not want to think about Uriah or how
- 4:28Speaker 2: he and Bathsheba met, so David convinced himself to forget.
- 4:33Speaker 2: He buried his shame deep down. David was looking out
- 4:36Speaker 2: the same window as before when he saw Bathsheba. Lost
- 4:40Speaker 2: in thought, David could not hear Nathan opening the door
- 4:43Speaker 2: behind him. Nathan stood behind him for a while, allowing
- 4:47Speaker 2: David to be alone with his thoughts. David turned around
- 4:51Speaker 2: to see Nathan and smiled. The two embraced and sat down.
- 4:56Speaker 2: David could see the concern on Nathan's face and asked,'
- 4:59Speaker 2: What is wrong?' Nathan paused and looked at David again.
- 5:04Speaker 2: He sighed and stood up. Nathan began to weave a
- 5:07Speaker 2: story before David, saying, There were two men in a city.
- 5:12Speaker 2: One had many riches. He had great flocks, vineyards, and property.
- 5:17Speaker 2: His flock had over a thousand sheep, and his riches
- 5:20Speaker 2: only increased as he sold and bought them. The other
- 5:23Speaker 2: man was poor. All he had to his name was
- 5:26Speaker 2: a little lamb. However, he loved that lamb dearly. The
- 5:30Speaker 2: poor man would feed the lamb from his own arms
- 5:33Speaker 2: and nurse it to become strong. The lamb was like
- 5:36Speaker 2: a daughter to him. One day the rich man had
- 5:39Speaker 2: a guest. However, he was unwilling to take a sheep
- 5:42Speaker 2: from his own flock to feed his guest. Instead, he
- 5:46Speaker 2: stole the poor man's lamb to feed his guest. And
- 5:50Speaker 2: the poor man was left with nothing. David's eyes widened.
- 5:55Speaker 2: A look of shock and outrage was on his face.
- 5:59Speaker 2: Nathan wondered if David understood the story, yet David stood
- 6:02Speaker 2: to his feet and clenched his fists. That man deserves
- 6:06Speaker 2: to die. To take that man's only lamb when he
- 6:09Speaker 2: has thousands is selfish and wicked. He ought to... You
- 6:14Speaker 2: are that man, Nathan yelled, pointing his finger at the king.
- 6:19Speaker 2: God has anointed you to be king over Israel. He
- 6:22Speaker 2: delivered you out of the hand of Saul. He has
- 6:25Speaker 2: blessed you with riches beyond your wildest dreams. Not only
- 6:28Speaker 2: do you have a wife, but you have three, and
- 6:31Speaker 2: yet you strike down Uriah for his. David's soul began
- 6:35Speaker 2: to crumble as Nathan spoke for God, yet he said nothing.
- 6:40Speaker 2: Nathan continued and said, Thus says the Lord, The sword
- 6:45Speaker 2: shall not leave your household. There will be strife in
- 6:49Speaker 2: your household and war among your children. David wept on
- 6:53Speaker 2: the floor before Nathan. Sobbing filled the room as David
- 6:57Speaker 2: wailed before God on his knees. David put his hands
- 7:01Speaker 2: over his face and whispered, I have sinned against you,
- 7:05Speaker 2: my God. Nathan looked down at David, grieved over what
- 7:10Speaker 2: he was about to say. David, the child that has
- 7:14Speaker 2: just been born will pass away. but God will restore you.
- 7:19Speaker 2: He will not leave you. David continued to lie on
- 7:23Speaker 2: the ground, sobbing. Nathan left the room and allowed David
- 7:27Speaker 2: to weep before his God. After this, as had happened
- 7:31Speaker 2: with many children in those days, the infant became sick.
- 7:35Speaker 2: David sat before God in silence. He fasted. He prayed.
- 7:41Speaker 2: He sought God intently for seven days on behalf of
- 7:45Speaker 2: his newborn son, however the sickness claimed him, and the
- 7:49Speaker 2: child passed after a week. David was alone in a
- 7:53Speaker 2: dark room where he often prayed to God. Tears had
- 7:57Speaker 2: dried on his face and his body was trembling from
- 8:00Speaker 2: lack of food and water. David could hear murmurs from
- 8:03Speaker 2: some of his servants behind him. Still looking forward, David asked,
- 8:08Speaker 2: Is my son dead? The servants were silent for a
- 8:12Speaker 2: moment and said, Yes, he is dead. David stood up,
- 8:19Speaker 2: washed himself, and changed his clothes. He worshipped God into
- 8:23Speaker 2: the night, singing a song of brokenness and praise. His
- 8:27Speaker 2: voice echoed through the chambers as David sang, Have mercy
- 8:32Speaker 2: on me, O my God, because of your faithful love.
- 8:36Speaker 2: Because of your abundant mercy, cover my sins. Wash me,
- 8:41Speaker 2: cleanse me from all that keeps me from you. David
- 8:45Speaker 2: played his harp as he once did in the hills
- 8:48Speaker 2: of Bethlehem. Slowly his heart began to grow warm from
- 8:52Speaker 2: God's presence. David and Bathsheba mourned their son together and
- 8:57Speaker 2: found comfort in one another's arms. For the first time,
- 9:01Speaker 2: instead of merely having sex, they made love. And the two,
- 9:05Speaker 2: as husband and wife, bore a son. The son's name
- 9:08Speaker 2: was Solomon. He would hold a special place in God's heart.
- 9:13Speaker 2: God would continue with Solomon... as he once did with David,
- 9:17Speaker 2: and it would be through him that the house of
- 9:19Speaker 2: God would be established.
- 9:25Speaker 3: As today's scripture passage begins, the prophet Nathan is paying
- 9:29Speaker 3: the king a visit. Only this time, he isn't bringing
- 9:32Speaker 3: good news of God's favor upon David. God has seen
- 9:36Speaker 3: what David has done, killing Uriah to cover up his
- 9:38Speaker 3: unfaithfulness and the child with Bathsheba, and it greatly displeased him.
- 9:44Speaker 3: So he sends Nathan with a message to the king.
- 9:48Speaker 3: Nathan tells David a story. It's a story of two men,
- 9:51Speaker 3: one rich and one poor. The rich man had many flocks,
- 9:55Speaker 3: but the poor man was blessed with just one sheep
- 9:57Speaker 3: for whom he cared deeply. Yet when the rich man
- 10:00Speaker 3: needed food for a special guest, he took the poor
- 10:03Speaker 3: man's one sheep rather than take one from his own flock.
- 10:07Speaker 3: David was so blind to his own sin in this
- 10:10Speaker 3: moment that he wasn't connecting the dots. He was sure
- 10:13Speaker 3: Nathan was telling him about someone else in his kingdom
- 10:16Speaker 3: and He didn't restrain himself from demonstrating the outrage at
- 10:20Speaker 3: such callous, greedy behavior by the rich man. The penalty
- 10:24Speaker 3: for such actions, David said, must be death. That's when
- 10:27Speaker 3: Nathan broke the news to David. The man in the
- 10:30Speaker 3: story was David himself. God had given him more than
- 10:35Speaker 3: he could ever have imagined. He had rescued him from
- 10:37Speaker 3: Saul and established a powerful kingdom. And yet David had
- 10:41Speaker 3: turned from God's word. He had taken Uriah's wife, and
- 10:45Speaker 3: had an honorable man killed to hide his sin. Because
- 10:49Speaker 3: of his sin, David would suffer great consequences. Rebellion and
- 10:53Speaker 3: strife would fill his home, and his own children would
- 10:56Speaker 3: turn against him and each other. And unlike David's sins,
- 11:00Speaker 3: which had been committed in secret, David's disgrace would be
- 11:03Speaker 3: on display for all to see. David's sin was exposed,
- 11:07Speaker 3: and David should have known this because he believed in
- 11:10Speaker 3: a God who knows everything. but don't miss the magnitude
- 11:15Speaker 3: of what happened next. When Saul sinned, he made excuses
- 11:18Speaker 3: and blamed others. David ultimately owned up to his sin.
- 11:23Speaker 3: And we see the repentant heart, a man after God's
- 11:26Speaker 3: own heart who is now repenting. It is the same
- 11:29Speaker 3: repentant heart that God wants in us. Listen to David's
- 11:33Speaker 3: words and God's reply in 2 Samuel 12, 13. David
- 11:37Speaker 3: said to Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And
- 11:41Speaker 3: Nathan said to David, The Lord also has put away
- 11:44Speaker 3: your sin. You shall not die. God would spare David
- 11:48Speaker 3: from the judgment he deserved, but that did not mean
- 11:51Speaker 3: that his sin would have no consequences. God would restore David,
- 11:55Speaker 3: but the child born of his sin would be taken
- 11:57Speaker 3: from him. Not long after the child became ill and
- 12:01Speaker 3: David pleaded with God for the baby, he fasted and prayed,
- 12:04Speaker 3: asking God not to let the child die. But after
- 12:07Speaker 3: seven days, the baby passed away. David knew something had
- 12:11Speaker 3: changed and asked if the baby was dead. When the
- 12:14Speaker 3: suspicion was confirmed, David did something we might find unusual.
- 12:18Speaker 3: His servants certainly did. He got up, washed himself, and
- 12:22Speaker 3: changed clothes. Then he praised and worshiped God. Even in
- 12:26Speaker 3: his brokenness, with his heart ripped apart by grief, David
- 12:30Speaker 3: turned his praise to God, who is the giver and
- 12:34Speaker 3: the taker of life. Like a lost son, David now
- 12:37Speaker 3: has returned to his fathers. Soon David and Bathsheba would
- 12:41Speaker 3: have another child, one they named Solomon. And this child
- 12:45Speaker 3: would grow into a man of great wisdom whose life
- 12:47Speaker 3: God would bless and guide and use to establish the
- 12:50Speaker 3: house of the Lord. Let's pray together. Dear God, we
- 12:55Speaker 3: know that sin has consequences, terrible consequences. So Lord, protect
- 13:01Speaker 3: us and keep us from sinning. But when we sin,
- 13:04Speaker 3: may we come to you with confession and true faith
- 13:07Speaker 3: and repentance. We ask that you would forgive us and
- 13:11Speaker 3: change our hearts and change our lives. We thank you
- 13:14Speaker 3: for the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ, which makes
- 13:17Speaker 3: it possible for us to be forgiven, that though our
- 13:20Speaker 3: sins are as scarlet, they can be white as snow
- 13:24Speaker 3: through Jesus our Lord. God, give us a heart that
- 13:27Speaker 3: seeks after you and a heart that is devoted fully
- 13:31Speaker 3: to you. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you for listening
- 13:36Speaker 3: to today's Bible in a Year podcast. I hope you
- 13:38Speaker 3: are enjoying it as much as I am. This is
- 13:41Speaker 3: Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. You can download the
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- 14:13Speaker 3: God bless you.