Your Record Doesn't Matter

{Ask} Who are some really recognizable Bible characters?

{Ask} What was it about David that made him so memorable?

• He was a little boy who killed Goliath when the entire army of Israel was too afraid to fight him.
• He was a memorable soldier and leader.
• He was chosen by God to be the king of Israel, but had to wait for the current king (Saul) to die. During this period, he was hunted by the armies of Saul, nearly murdered, and exiled from his kingdom.
• He wanted to build the temple, but God would not allow it because he had killed people.
• He wrote music to the Lord & most of the book of Psalms.
• He sinned with Bathsheba and they had a baby before they were married.

{Ask} Overall, was David a good guy or a bad guy?

We can probably say that David was a really good guy. And you know what, he thought so too! Consider the list that we just made: all of this great stuff about young, nerdy shepherd boy who grew up to be a strong, handsome, popular leader. That is the stuff that all the great stories are made of! And he did so much good for his country and everyone loved him! Of course, he was a good guy.

Isn’t it interesting that out of all the stories that God probably could have included in the Bible about David, that He had to include one bad story? One story so that our awesome King David has to have this huge blemish.

Why do you think God put the story of David’s sin with Bathsheba in the Bible?

For us to learn about our own sin, the consequences, and God’s forgiveness.

First of all, what is this story of David’s sin with Bathsheba?

{Read 2 Samuel 11:1-4 together.}

Part of David’s job description as king of Israel was to go to war and lead the troops in person. But David had a really well-trained and successful army and a fantastic general named Joab, so this time he sent them to battle without his supervision. They didn’t really need him.

We don’t really know all of the circumstances as to why David stayed behind. We can’t say with any certainty that he made a bad decision there. We know that it became a bad decision because of things that happened later, but we can’t say that it was wrong that David stayed behind. Maybe David just needed a vacation, or he had a cold, or he had an important meeting to attend. We just don’t know…

But we do know that while David was home, he went somewhere he shouldn’t have gone. He went to his rooftop at the same time that all of the women in the city took their baths on their rooftops. Not that going to the rooftop to hang out is a bad thing. It’s just a bad thing to do when all of the women are taking a bath. Obviously… Just like the maintenance men here wouldn’t try to clean the ladies bathrooms when there are ladies it. It just isn’t appropriate.

{As a side note – back in those days, they didn’t have indoor plumbing, so they would collect rainwater on their rooftops in big tubs, and “shower” up there. Men at certain times and ladies at different times, so that there wouldn’t be anything inappropriate. It would have been common knowledge for men to stay off the rooftop when the women showered and for women to stay off the rooftop when men showered.}

Well, David is hanging out on his palace rooftop, at a really bad time, and instead of being all like “Oops… I will come back later.” He stayed. This is the moment where David’s actions clearly become sin. He should have turned around and gotten off of that rooftop and back to his throne room. But he chose to hang out on the roof.

And it wasn’t like he was taking a nap with his eyes closed. A certain neighbor lady caught his attention BIG TIME. She was apparently beautiful – not her fault. And taking a bath on the roof – a good thing. And very, very married – a problem. But when you get the attention of a king back those days, you do what your told. You didn’t argue. Bathsheba was summoned to David’s house and to his room.

When she left that day, David probably felt really guilty and really bad. But it was a secret. Her husband wasn’t home. He would never know. David’s servants were risking their lives and their families if they ever told anyone. As far as David was concerned, no one would ever know.

It was one bad decision. One sin, and against such a great record like David's, who ever needed to know that he has sinned like this anyway? He could just bury it. Forget it ever happened. Pretend Bathsheba was as much a stranger as she had been before he saw her on that roof.

But all of our sin has consequences. No matter how secret we think it is.

2 Samuel 11:5

And the woman conceived, and sent and told David, and said, I am with child.

Well, so much for no one ever knowing.                                                            

Basically when Uriah came back from battle, he was going to realize that this kid was not his. And Bathsheba would be stoned to death. And if she ever revealed the father of the child, he would be stoned to death as well. David was the king. He couldn’t risk that. So he allowed his sin to multiply. Instead of coming clean with Uriah and Bathsheba and God, and begging for forgiveness and mercy from them, he sought to cover his sin.

2 Samuel 11:6-13

6And David sent to Joab, saying, Send me Uriah the Hittite. And Joab sent Uriah to David. 7 And when Uriah was come unto him, David demanded of him how Joab did, and how the people did, and how the war prospered. 8 And David said to Uriah, Go down to thy house, and wash thy feet. And Uriah departed out of the king's house, and there followed him a mess of meat from the king. 9 But Uriah slept at the door of the king's house with all the servants of his lord, and went not down to his house. 10 And when they had told David, saying, Uriah went not down unto his house, David said unto Uriah, Camest thou not from thy journey? why then didst thou not go down unto thine house? 11 And Uriah said unto David, The ark, and Israel, and Judah, abide in tents; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the open fields; shall I then go into mine house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? as thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I will not do this thing. 12 And David said to Uriah, Tarry here to day also, and to morrow I will let thee depart. So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day, and the morrow. 13 And when David had called him, he did eat and drink before him; and he made him drunk: and at even he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but went not down to his house.

And when that didn’t work…

2 Samuel 11:14-17

14And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15 And he wrote in the letter, saying, Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he may be smitten, and die. 16 And it came to pass, when Joab observed the city, that he assigned Uriah unto a place where he knew that valiant men were. 17 And the men of the city went out, and fought with Joab: and there fell some of the people of the servants of David; and Uriah the Hittite died also.

Ultimately David’s army lost this battle, but it “worked out” for David, because it turned Uriah into a war hero – who valiantly gave his life to defend his country. And it also left David free to honorably marry Bathsheba – the war widow. And now, no one would question the baby that would come “early” a few months later.

The sin was covered. No one knew. No one would know. This small blemish on David’s nearly flawless record was all but wiped out.

How do you think Bathsheba felt marrying David after he had her husband murdered? 

Maybe she didn’t know that was why her husband died in battle. 

A little relieved that now no one would know? 

Distrustful? He obviously didn’t truly love her. 

He already had several other wives.

{Ask} How does covering our sin affect our lives? 

It causes more problems and makes other not trust us. It leads us into deeper and deeper layers of sin.

We believe that David wrote Psalm 51:10 after this period of time his life. After sin and all of its nasty immediate consequences.

Psalm 51:10

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

What does it mean to have a pure heart?

To have right motives, taking action and speaking words for good reasons – not getting our own way or covering up our sins.

What does it mean to have a right spirit?

It means being faithful to what we know to be right – not being sidetracked by our own selfish desires when temptation comes along.

Did David have either a pure heart or a right spirit when he sinned with Bathsheba?

No. God needed to send an intervention so to speak.

2 Samuel 12:1-10, 13

1 And the Lord sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him, and said unto him, There were two men in one city; the one rich, and the other poor. 2 The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds: 3 But the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished up: and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own meat, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter. 4 And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him; but took the poor man's lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him. 5 And David's anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die: 6 And he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity. 7 And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man.

Ouch! At this moment, God revealed through Nathan that David was in fact a sinner. It is hard to feel guilty about sin, when it seems to be totally covered up. It is hard to want forgiveness for your sin, when you think that nobody knows. But through these verses we see, that God always knows. God sees everything that we do. We absolutely cannot hid from Him. We can’t hid our sin, and we can’t hid ourselves.

Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul; 8 And I gave thee thy master's house, and thy master's wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things. 9 Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. 10 Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. 11 Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. 12 For thou didst it secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun. 13 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.

·      Confess your sin to God and those you have sinned against immediately.

·      Accept that there are going to be consequences – and those consequences might hurt.