In the life of David, we arrive at arguably the most pivital moment. The infamous account of David and Bathsheba. Even those who know little about the bible have likely heard some reference to this story. The first word that comes to mind when these two names are said together is usually adultery, the next, murder. Only 2 chapters earlier, we marveled at David's forgiveness and integrity when it came to Mephibosheth. We were filled with wonder at how God revealed His plan of salvation through David's actions toward Mephibosheth. If I had only heard of David for the first time, I would actually have been rather shocked to see what he does in this chapter. He shirks from his duties as king, he lusts after a married woman, he commits adultery, he tries to use deceipt to cover up his sin, and finally he resorts to murder. Where did the man after God's own heart go? I chose to break this chapter down into smaller parts due to the importance of understanding David's failure.
What do we see in the first five verses? One, David decides to ignore his God-given responsibilities as king of Israel and stays home from battle. I am not sure if his decision was based on just plain laziness, self-preservation, complacency, or pride (thinking he was too good to go to battle). But whatever the motivation, he stopped doing what God had anointed him to do - be the leader of His people. When we stop doing what God has called us to do, we similarly set ourselves up for temptation and failure. It's like playing football. If a player during the course of a game gets tired and decides to "take a few plays off" as coaches like to say, it's during those plays that the player is more likely to become injured. He lets his guard down, he's not paying attention to the threats around him, and when he falls, he usually doesn't see it coming.
Secondly, David's mind becomes restless and begins to stray towards fleshly things. We see him pacing his rooftop in the middle of the night. He can't sleep. He's probably bored out of his mind now that he no longer is active. What better time for Satan to entice the eyes? (He's good at that...remember the Garden?) Bathsheba was very beautiful and she was naked. Maybe David looked away at first. But his spiritual weakness was no match for his restless mind and powerful fleshly desires. His own sinful practice of polygamy showed he did not properly respect the sanctity of marriage. And a sense of entitelment may have crept into his soul with the power that comes with being king. He has Bathsheba brought to him with full knowledge that she is a married woman. He has sex with her and she becomes pregnant. David what have you done?
Unfortunately, David's sin with Bathsheba is a common cycle. We stop being productive in the things of God (stop going to church, praying, reading our bibles, sharing the gospel, meeting others needs, showing love to our spouces, ignoring our children, etc.), we get comfortable and lazy, our minds start to wander to fulfilling the flesh, we get restless, sin becomes so attractive, and we give in.
So how do we avoid self-destruction? Proverbs 3:6 says in all thy ways acknowledge Him and He will direct thy paths. To me, the converse of this verse is if I'm doing something, no matter what it is, and I cannot acknowledge God in it, I should not be doing it. And that means EVERYTHING we do. If I go to a sporting event or movie, if I can't say "thank you God for allowing me to have some fun at this game or movie", I shouldn't be there. It's when I do things that I would rather hide from my Father, that I get into trouble.
Be careful that you don't fall into the trap of compartmentalizing God in your life. He's not just there for church stuff. He's there for ALL your daily activities, regardless of how mundane, unchurchy or trivial they may be. When we include Him in all things, the intimacy with Jesus grows even stronger. He DOES sweat the small stuff! Let Him be a part of every stupid detail of your life! When that happends, you leave no room for Satan to operate!
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