"When The Kingdom Waited"
Scripture Text: II Sam. 12:13-23
This portion of scripture follows up the story in chapter 11 of the sin of adultery and then murder that David committed to take Bathsheba as his wife...
As human beings if we were to put a grade of sinfulness we would have to rate these two sins as the lowest of the low...
Here was a man who saw someone he wanted, and did everything within his power, and he had a lot of it as king, to obtain what he wanted, even to the point of committing murder...
But David was a man that though he sinned greatly, he was forgiven by God in spite of it all...
But we see in this portion of scripture today, that even though there was forgiveness of sin, great trial came to the house of David as a result of his sin...
First of all today we see in verses 13,14
I. THE PROBLEM OF SIN
In vs. 13 we read that David clearly had been forgiven of the sin that the Prophet Nathan confronted him with...
Before that, David thought it had been shoved under the carpet so to speak, but found out that it hadn’t...
He thought that he could just go on with his life as if nothing had ever happened, and that the blessing of God would be upon him as well...
Well, we know that sin causes problems...
All we have to do is look at our society today and realize that our problems that we face morally and spritually could be solved if people would get back to God, and stop sinning...
The very first thing we must realize about the Problem of Sin is that
A) Sin hurts the Father
Never forget that the very first one that Sin hurts is God...
David said in vs. 13, "I have sinned against the Lord."
David of course had sinned against Uriah in committing adultery, and murdering him, and also against Bathsheba, but the one we hurt the most is our Heavenly Father...
Psalm 51:4 Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.
I believe that this was the secret behind David’s forgiveness, and that is that he recognized the awfulness of sin...
The embarassment of being found out didn’t mean as much as the hurt that he was causing the Lord...
The only time that Jesus ever felt out of fellowship with His Father was when He bore the sins of humanity squarely upon His shoulders.
Sin breaks the Fellowship that man has with God, and no amount of the Love that God has can break past the wall of sin, unless there is the prayer of forgiveness...
If God couldn’t even have Fellowship with His own Son who was without sin, but bore it for you and I, how can we ever expect God to have fellowship with us who try to hide our sins?
Not only does Sin hurt the Father,
B) Sin Hurts the Family
Exo 20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
David’s sin brought death and destruction to what was now his family...
And ultimately sin will do the same to our families whether it be now or in eternity...
The breakdown of the morals of America cannot be traced to the Oval office...
It cannot be traced to our Schools...
It cannot even be traced back to our churches...
There is one place that it can be traced to, and that is the Family...
When the Family begins to get it together in the area of spirituality and morality, then all these other things will fall in place..
We would elect leaders who would hold up to the same moral standards that are in the Word of God, instead of just someone who we hope will line our pocketbooks with cash...
We would elect School Boards who would stand for the same values, and translate that stand on to the students who go through their halls...
Our churches would be better places as Church no longer is just filling some place on the totem pole of priorities, but becomes pre-eminent and most important in our lives, and is evidenced through our sacrifices for the church in time, talents, and treasures...
I encourage you to show your love for your family by your faithful attendance to church, and forsaking any sin that may be in your life...
The benefits to you and your families will be astounding...
Do like David did when he was confronted with sin, and go to God with:
II. THE PRAYER OF SIGNIFICANCE
When David was confronted by the prophet Nathan he didn’t begin to lash out at the prophet in self-defense of that sin he had committed...
As King, David could have ordered the execution of Nathan for speaking in such a manner, but he immediately acknowledged his sin in vs. 13...
The human nature often responds in a way that defends that area in our lives, instead of forsaking it...
We become bitter or better... We find fault, or we find forgiveness...
David was a man who knew that to turn bitter against the messenger of God was the wrong thing to do, so he turned to God instead of away from Him...
Nothing was as important as first of all getting that sin forgiven...
Nathan told Him that it would be forgiven, and he would not die, but that the child that Bathsheba would bear would die because of that sin...
Notice the attitude of David throughout the rest of this story...
Nothing was as important to Him as getting to his prayer closet and praying the prayer of significance...
The Kingdom could Wait!
His family was in need, and nothing was more important than responding to that need!
All the resonsibilities of the Kingdom could wait...
All the prestige and requests of the people could wait...
He had to find God, and intercede on behalf of his loved ones...
Some of our families would be a whole lot better off if some of us Moms and Dads would realize there is no kingdom as important as our families...
Some of us could let our Kingdoms wait while we intercede on behalf of our families...
The children of America are losing out with God as they are sacrificed on the Altars of prestige and prominence that accompany a successful and lucrative career...
Students involved in a research project at the University of Illinois called 2000 homes at random between midnight and 2 A.M. on a Friday night in the city of Chicago to see if parents knew where their children were. In 75% of the homes called, a child answered and didn’t know where the parents were.
Kingdoms of social life, careers, and all don’t mean nearly as much as that family that is under your care!
Is it important to the life of your child for you to attend church?
A study once disclosed that if both Mom and Dad attend church regularly, 72% of their children remain faithful. If only Dad, 55% remain faithful. If only Mom, 15%. If neither attended regularly, only 6% remain faithful. The statistics speak for themselves - the example of parents and adults is more important than all the efforts of the church and Sunday school.
- Warren Mueller, Homemade May, 1990
Some of our Kingdoms can wait!
Not only could the Kingdom wait, but
B) The King Could Want
The Bible says that in vs. 16 that he gave up all the comforts by fasting, and laying on the earth all night long, and continually for 7 days in prayer...
Not even the appetites that drive us so much could move David away from his time of intercession for his son...
God had already said what was going to happen, but David was going to do all he could to see if according to vs. 22 the Lord would allow the child to live...
As I read this story though I guess the most difficult part of it is when I see in vs. 18 that God did exactly as He said He would, and allowed the child to die...
The servants who watched David all these days stood in the back and whispered to themselves as they watched their King praying...
"How is David going to react now?" We see what he did while the child was sick, but now what is he going to do when he finds that the child is dead?
There are times our prayers aren’t answered like we had hoped, and the world wonders how we will react...
My next point brings me to the greatest evidence of David’s faith and trust in the Lord that I know, and that is when he offers:
III. THE PRAISE OF SINCERITY
It is one thing to offer praise and worship to the Lord when all is going our way, but what about the times it isn’t?
The Bible says in vs. 20 that David arose from off the ground, and to the astonishment of those around him washed himself, changed his clothes, and went into the house of the Lord, and worshipped!
We see on David’s Part
A) The Renewal of Faith
Not the rejection of Faith, but the Renewal of Faith!
Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
What Faith! What Trust!
How often have we heard of someone giving up on God when a tragedy happened in their life?
In many minds today David had every human right to be upset with God, because God didn’t answer the way he wanted him too!
Is there anything worse than losing a loved one?
Here was a man at the apex of human suffering, yet with hands lifted high to the Lord God...
Do the trials of life cause you to worship more, or do they cause your hands to droop at your side while wondering why God did this to you?
We see that the way David reacted in this situation was a real testimony to those around him...
The test of the reality of our faith is the way we respond to the trials around us...
As I read this, I must pray, Lord, give me the kind of faith and trust that no matter what happens in my life, I can still enter into the House of the Lord and worship...
What was it that kept David in this particular moment?
I believe that after the Renewal of Faith there came :
B) The Reality of the Future
David said in vs. 23 that one day he would see his son again, but only in the sense that he would go to him...
David believed in Heaven, and the reality of eternity...
I know this blessed reunion has already taken place in heaven...
But we must never lose hope in all the struggles of life, always keep our blessed hope in front of you and in focus...
Our kingdoms here on this earth will all pass away, but eternity in heaven or hell is waiting for you and I...
Some of our Kingdoms can wait! Someone once said, I’ve never seen a hearse with a U-Haul behind it...
David had a reason for Praising God with Sincerity, and it was because he knew there was so much more than what can be seen with the physical eye.
