| A Boss After God’s Own Heart 7 / ABAGOH >>> |
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A Boss After
God’s Own Heart (ABAGOH)– Part 7 A mighty one has fallen |
2 Samuel 1:19-20; 25-27 – AMP – Your glory and splendor, O Israel, is slain upon your high places! How the mighty have fallen! Tell it not in Gath, proclaim it not in the streets of Ashkelon, or the daughters of the Philistines will rejoice, the daughters of the uncircumcised (pagans) will exult. (…) How the mighty have fallen in the midst of the battle! Jonathan lies slain upon your high places. “I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan; You have been a good friend to me. Your love toward me was more wonderful Than the love of women. “How the mighty have fallen, And the weapons of war have perished!
This
is an extract of the funeral song that king David composed and taught
to Judah when he heard about the death of king Saul and his son Jonathan,
whom David loved so much. They were killed in the battle field as they
were fighting against the Philistines. Two mighty men had fallen and
David greatly mourned over this loss. Little did he know that he would
also fall one day before an enemy called lust. Standing on the roof
of his palace, King David had a broader and wider overview. He was positioned
in such a way that he saw what he was not supposed to see and exposed
himself to temptation. That’s why we should make sure that we do not
put ourselves in a position that can lead us into sin. Do not go to
places where you can be allured into sin. Do not surround yourself with
people whose influence can cause you to fall into sin and do not expose
yourself to temptation by any means. We are not supposed to flirt with
sin or take it lightly. You might think that you are strong but you
might find yourself in a shameful act of sin without knowing how you
got there in the first place. We see what happened to Samson who thought
that he can flirt with sin and remain strong. He was captured by the
enemy, his two eyes were pierced and he died a sad death. He was born
and lived like a mighty hero. But he jeopardized his calling, his consecration,
his anointing and his supernatural power. As a result, he died like
a fool dies. Be aware and conscious of your weaknesses and do not ignore
them, because the awareness about your weaknesses will help you to protect
yourself and you will not fall in the trap of the devil. The Bible says
in 1 Peter 5:8 “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the
devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour”.
If you don’t hide yourself under the Rock of your salvation, which is
Christ Jesus, the devil will surely find you and tear you apart. He
is always looking for someone to kill because it is his nature to steal,
kill and destroy.
So king David decided to transgress the law and have his way. He who
was supposed to be a model, he who had been appointed by God to teach
the fear of the Lord to the people and make sure that they walk according
to God’s vision decides to violate the boundaries. David knew too well
what the Law of Moses said about covetousness, adultery and murder.
He knew too well that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob hates iniquity
and loves righteousness. David himself had been the victim of an unfair
treatment by the previous king Saul and God had delivered him always.
But at that very moment, when he was enticed by his fleshly desires,
the pleasure of sin was just too attractive. I don’t know if he ever
thought about the consequences that his sinful act with Bathsheba could
have, but people generally do not think too far when sinful temptations
creep in, especially in the area of sexual sins. David slept with Bathsheba
and she became pregnant. It could be that Bathsheba gave in to that
sinful act with her king because she was weak and vulnerable at that
moment. Her husband was a very devoted soldier who was constantly on
the battle field with the army of his master, and it is possible that
he did not spent enough time with his wife. Maybe she felt lonely at
that moment and was not able to resist before the valiant and handsome
king David. That’s why we want to make sure that we keep the right balance
in everything we do, so that a particular area of our life will not
suffer.
Now the facts are there. Bathsheba the wife of Uriah is pregnant with
David, king of Israel and boss of the nation. The question now is, how
will David get his way out of this situation? He is in a bad shape.
David is now confronted with some very tangible facts about his sinful
act and he must take a decision concerning what to do next. King David
decides to cover up and hide away from his responsibilities. What will
Uriah think of his master whom he so much admires and respects if he
knows that his king stole his wife and got her pregnant? What will the
people of the land think about the hero of Israel and Judah who used
to be praised in songs by the daughters of Israel? (1 Samuel 18:6-7).
The reputation of him who taught Israel how to give God the highest
praise by dancing before the Lord with all his might is now at stake
(2 Samuel 6:14). He who used to write beautiful poems and songs to the
Most High God is now trying to hide like a thief. What will the whole
nation think about their beloved king who once defeated one of their
greatest enemy by killing a giant Philistine soldier called Goliath,
but had now fallen before a Goliath who had been asleep inside of him
for so long, the Goliath called lust, just waiting for the appropriate
time to rise up at a very unexpected moment and beat him with such humiliation?
Let’s make sure that we identify and fight the right Goliaths and kill
them in our lives. There are indeed some Goliaths hiding inside of us,
waiting for the right moment to strike. The Bible says that nothing
good dwells in the flesh (Romans 7:18). That’s why we must mortify the
deeds of the flesh (Romans 8:18). The only suitable place to put the
flesh is at the cross. As we fellowship with Jesus, the Holy Spirit
will shine His light in us and reveal to us the areas of our lives that
need to be corrected.
Now David has to think about the next step to take and he comes up with
a wicked and evil conspiracy. He gives specific orders to Joab, the
commander of his army; and by so doing he causes an innocent person
to participate in his sin. First of all, Joab is asked to go get Uriah
the husband of Bathsheba from the front. Joab is surely asking himself
why the king is calling a devoted and committed soldier away from the
battle field at a moment when he, as commander of the army, needs every
soldier to be present and fight because the battle is fierce against
the enemy. He thinks that the king’s behavior is somewhat strange because
as a mighty warrior himself, king David knows very well that in the
fire of adversity, that’s when everybody must join in and fight to sustain
the war strategy against the enemy. That is not the time to quit, get
distracted or remove the soldiers from their appointed position on the
battle field. But well, even though he does not understand because he
is not aware of the situation with Bathsheba, Joab has to obey the king’s
command. David’s plan is to send Uriah home to his wife in the hope
that he will sleep with her. In this way, everybody will think that
her pregnancy is from her husband and David will come out clean. First
adultery, then malice and falsehood. And it is not the end yet.
One sin calls for another sin to cover it up and we find ourselves in
a vicious circle. The Bible says in Proverbs 28:13-14: “He who covers
his transgressions will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes
his sins will obtain mercy”. In Psalm 32:5 we read: “I acknowledged
my sin unto thee and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess
my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of
my sin”. And we have this promise in 1 John 1:9: “If we confess
our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse
us from all unrighteousness”. David did not repent after the first
sin of adultery that he committed. He hardened his heart and the devil
inspired him with another sin to cover up the first one. It does not
matter who we are, what titles we have, it does not matter what we have
accomplished in the society and in the kingdom of God, no matter what
great talents we have and how wonderfully God uses us in His work, we
should always keep a humble, teachable and repentant spirit. No one
is exempted because all have sinned and come short of the glory of God
(Romans 3:23). The highest the elevation, the greatest the fall will
be. God resists the proud but He gives grace to the humble (1 Peter
5:5). Let’s not deceive ourselves. We must constantly check our hearts
to make sure that we are walking in humility before God and before men.
The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 10:12: “Wherefore let him that thinketh
he standeth take heed lest he fall”. mt