Restore My Heart!

Restore My Heart

Psalm 51

June 17, 2018

On Father’s Day I like to talk about a man of the Bible we need to know more about. A man who is a little more obscure, but today, I wanted to talk about someone we have all heard of and maybe know some of his story. But this man did something really, really sinful. His sin was great!! Yet, he was loved by God.

He committed sins you wouldn't expect a good man to commit. It wasn’t one of those, ‘oops, I spoke before my brain kicked into high gear.’ He didn’t gossip or anything kind of plain and simple. Actually, each aspect of his sin grew in its premeditation. This was a premeditated sin. He thought it up and planned it. Yet, he didn’t go looking for it.

His life may work for a reality TV program. His actions destroyed lives, yet somehow, he was not ruined by his sin.

I’m not sure if you’ve guessed who I’m talking about . . . But it’s King David. David is the guy who God said “is a man after my own heart.” He's a guy, who as a younger teen, ignored those who didn’t believe in him, and went against the giant Goliath, and killed him. He’s the guy who was chased and made all of the right decisions. Ultimately becoming king! And he’s the guy who wrote the most famous of Psalms, Psalm 23. But that’s not the psalm we’re looking at today.

The story goes like this ~

Believe it or not - - they had seasons when they went to war with their enemies. David always led his soldiers into battle . . . so with that in mind, let’s hear the story as it is found in 2 Samuel 11. It’s a simple 5 verse beginning ~

1 In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war,

David sent Joab out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army.

They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained in Jerusalem.

2 One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace.

From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful,

3 and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.”

4 Then David sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her. Then she went back home.

5 The woman conceived and sent word to David, saying, “I am pregnant.” – 2 Samuel 11:1-5

Now, remember, David is king of the most powerful nation of the world. He has more than one wife. So, to find out about her is not the worst thing he could do. But once he found out she was married. That’s where the story should have ended.

David had Bathseba visit the palace . . . and well, we know the rest of the story from there.

Now, David’s all freaked out. He’s committed adultery - - and now she’s pregnant. What should he do? Well, David thought up a great and devious plan.

Bathsheba’s husband, Uriah, was where David was supposed to be. He was off at war. So, David called for Uriah to come home from the battle and what man wouldn’t want to sleep with his wife after being away at war? Afterwards, nobody would know David was guilty. Great plan David!!!

But Uriah was more honorable than David. Scripture tells us he slept at the entrance of his home, with the servants. Why? Because how could he enjoy himself when all of his buddies are at war. The next night David got Uriah drunk and that didn’t work either. He slept again with his servants.

David had to be super frustrated. And we read this ~

14 In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah.

15 In it he wrote, “Put Uriah out in front where the fighting is fiercest.

Then withdraw from him so he will be struck down and die.”

So, Uriah carried his death sentence letter to the commander, handed it to him, and Joab followed orders and Uriah was killed in battle.

Eventually, David married Bathsheba. No one in Israel knew the story behind the story, but the Bible says...

27 The Lord was very displeased with what David had done. – 2 Samuel 11:27

In the next chapter of the Bible, a prophet named Nathan came to David and confronted him with his sin. Nathan laid it all out there for David, telling him how wrong he was. David made only one comment ~

13 David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” – 2 Samuel 12:13