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the Word of God____Unit 2: The Historical Books |
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1 & 2 Samuel: From Judges to Kings
If you are losing faith...
Do you feel as though you are drifting further and
further from God? If so, here is what you must do.
Amman is the modern
capital of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Today, it is a bustling city of more
than three million people, and one of the major crossroads of the Middle East.
In Bible times, it was also important, although it was not as big as it is today. The Bible tells us that Amman (then known as Rabbah) was the place where King David of Israel sent Uriah the Hittite to certain death. It is an ugly story, but one that teaches us an important lesson.
We read in 2 Samuel 11:1 that David sent Joab to lay siege to Rabbah. David, however, remained in Jerusalem, and there he made a tragic mistake. We have already covered the story, but let’s quickly review it. David saw Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah, one of his trusted officers, bathing, and he lusted after her. Then David committed adultery with Bathsheba, and later she discovered that she was pregnant (verses 2-5).
Then David made the situation even worse. He called Uriah back from the war so Uriah could spend the night with his wife. David hoped Uriah would then think Bathsheba had become pregnant by him. But that didn’t work. Uriah was a loyal soldier who identified with the hardships of the men at the front. He refused to go home to his wife (verse 9).
David could not persuade Uriah to change his mind. So David arranged for Uriah to be sent back to the war. David instructed that Uriah be assigned to the most dangerous part of the battle, and then be abandoned by his men to be killed (verses 14-15). The plan worked. Uriah was killed, probably while storming the old citadel that is now surrounded by modern Amman. So David was able to marry Bathsheba.
Despite this ugly incident, God loved David. He loved him for his courage — David slew Goliath when everyone else was afraid. God loved him for his loyalty — David risked his life to save his sheep from a lion. David was a good shepherd, willing to lay down his life for his sheep. God could identify with that.
So what happened to cause this courageous, loyal, God-fearing man to so tragically betray his faithful servant Uriah? That was not like David. But then, supposedly converted people sometimes do very unconverted things. David had allowed his spiritual condition to deteriorate. God recorded this incident for us, not to embarrass David, but to teach us a lesson: What happened to David could happen — is happening — to some people reading this feature.
David had slipped a long way. This was not just a bad day — a momentary lapse. It is obvious that David had embarked on a course that was leading him further and further from God. Think about it. Adultery and murder are serious sins, but David could have repented when he realized what he had done. But he didn’t repent immediately.
Bathsheba did not know she was pregnant until some time later. David had ample time to come to his senses and acknowledge the sin. But what did he do? He compounded it. Totally leaving God out of the picture, he tried to cover up the problem, first with subterfuge and then with murder.
David was in serious spiritual trouble. Unfortunately, some who are reading this feature have gotten themselves into the same condition David was in. They, too, are in deep spiritual trouble. They began to live God’s way, but now they are ready to give it up. They started out well, with hope and enthusiasm. But something has happened. The spark is gone.
Are you that way? Are you just going through the motions of living a Christian life? Do you feel hopeless, discouraged, condemned? Are you about to lose out?
If so, you are on the verge of ruining the most wonderful and important relationship that any human could be given — your relationship with God the Father and Jesus Christ our Savior. The tragic thing about all this is that no one is to blame but yourself. You know that, but you don’t know what to do. God knows about your situation, too, and he does know what to do! Look what he did for David.
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| "Then Nathan said to David, ‘You are the man!’ 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’" (2 Samuel 12:7, 9). |
God was not prepared to give up on David. He must have watched with great concern as David’s spiritual life collapsed. We can only imagine David’s state of mind in those awful weeks or months — his despair, his growing feeling of alienation from God, the hollowness as the Holy Spirit within him began to be quenched.
But David did not look for God. So God went looking for him. God sent Nathan the prophet to try to bring David to his senses (2 Samuel 12:1-15). It worked. David heeded Nathan’s correction and repented. He admitted, "I have sinned against the Lord" (verse 13).
God was not about to stand by and let this wonderful man destroy himself spiritually. Think about this if you have allowed yourself to get into David’s condition. Do you feel cut off — that your prayers are going unheard? Are you losing your zeal for God and his way? Do you find yourself drifting back into your old ways and lacking the will to do anything about it? Do you feel that God has lost interest in you, and that you really can’t blame him, given your lack of interest in him?
Then remember how God came looking for David. Also consider Christ’s parable of the lost sheep (Matthew 18:10-14). In it, the shepherd leaves the 99 sheep and goes looking for the one that is lost. Here’s how it ends: "Your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost" (verse 14).
David was one of those little ones — and so are you. That means that somewhere out there, God, like a shepherd, is looking for you. So do what David did. Admit the problem, whatever it is. And pray. Yes, it’s hard if you have gotten away from it. But don’t be too proud to ask for help.
After David repented, he wrote Psalm 51, which shows how deeply he understood the seriousness of his sins. He realized how badly he had let God down, and now he wanted to be restored to full favor. He prayed: "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me" (verses 10-11).
David wanted once more to experience God’s salvation. "Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me" (verse 12). He wanted to have back everything he had so nearly thrown away.
But why? Not just for himself. David understood his calling. Notice the next verse: "Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you." David asked God to restore him to faithful service.
Even if you have lost faith, God won’t give up on you. As Paul tells us, "He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1:6). You don’t have to give in to feelings of despair and hopelessness. There is a way out. Ask God to work with you as he did with David.
Continuation of the commentary
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