Jump Start # 3878
2 Samuel 11:2 “Now when evening came David arose from his bed and walked around on the roof of the king’s house, and from the roof he saw a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful in appearance.”
Our verse today is the beginning of a major moral collapse and crash in David’s life. David and Bathsheba, that’s all one has to say. Adultery. Deception. Lying. Murder. Scandal. Confession. Brokenness. Forgiveness. In that long decent, several people died. For David, who was on the top, he came tumbling down.
There are layers of lessons, consequences and things to be learned here. David is not the young teen facing a giant. He isn’t the brave and committed soldier who flees from Saul. He’s not the following the Shepherd as he had written in the Psalms. In his 50’s, David seems to take his foot off the accelerator of faith. Things are going well in the kingdom. And, he seems to be coasting spiritually. And, just like that, the serpent of old, the dragon, the roaring lion hits David.
Having preached on this recently, I’ve read all kinds of articles about this temptation and sin. Some paint David as a dirty old man. Some cast blame on Bathsheba. What most miss is that the devil doesn’t play around. When he tempts, he throws as hard as he can.
Notice how this temptation is worded: he saw a woman bathing and the woman was very beautiful in appearance. He didn’t see a great grandma bathing. He didn’t see an ugly woman bathing. Beautiful in appearance, and the timing was perfect. David didn’t see an empty bathtub. The roaring lion doesn’t play with it’s prey. It pounces. It mauls. It is aggressive. It is swift. It is fastballs coming right at us. An innocent stroll on a roof top, becomes an opportunity for Satan to pound loudly on the doors of our heart. An opportunity. A glance. A stare. A thought. A plan. And the door is opened widely and Satan is invited into our hearts. Just like that. So quickly. So easily. So perfectly planned by the devil. David didn’t see a shiny chariot. He didn’t see a bag of money. It wasn’t a race horse that David saw. The devil knew what would catch his eyes. The devil knew David.
God has included this sad story in His book for a reason. It is much more than just a historical fact. It’s more than seeing that David was not perfect. It’s a lesson for us. How many times have we been on a rooftop minding our own business and that roaring lion puts something before our eyes. He knows us so well. It may be a bottle of alcohol. It may be some pills. It may be money. It may be a beautiful woman. Our eyes look, and that fastball thrown by the evil one catches us off guard and stings us. Letting our guard down, not being as focused as we ought to be, a co-worker, away on a trip, alone at home, tired, stressed, Satan comes knocking on the door of our heart. And, without thinking, we open that door and Satan comes in. He wrecks all that is good. He leaves us guilty, ashamed, embarrassed, and standing at the plate wondering what just happened.
David is not new in his faith. David has decades with the Lord. Preachers, elders and deacons have caved in to the fastballs of Satan and left the Lord. The key through all of this is how to remain focused. Oh, we get that during the storms of life. Our prayers are intense. We worship passionately. We need the Lord so much during the storms. But, what about those plain ordinary days when nothing much is going on. Just another day at work. Just another day in the neighborhood. Not a holiday. No visits to the funeral home. No special prayers being said. How easy it is to coast. How easy it is to drift. How easy it is not to pay attention. How easy it is to just go through the motions. And, just like that, Satan smokes a fastball right at us and we weren’t ready. We didn’t expect it. And, down we go. And, Satan smiles.
Staying focused, that’s the key.
First, realize that there is never a day, never a place, never a time when Satan will not try to trap you. A visit to the grocery store can turn into a major temptation. Another day at the office and Satan is waiting. A weekend get away, and Satan is already there. He’ll use people, even people that you know and love. He’ll use anything to take your eyes off of Jesus and for a moment, just a moment, to think about self.
Peter’s words, be on the alert, as he describes Satan as that roaring lion. If you have ever walked through a field where cows have been, you watch were you are walking. If you don’t you’ll be washing your shoes and socks. Watch. Don’t be naïve. Don’t fall asleep at the wheel. Pay attention.
Second, keep strong spiritual habits going. Praying passionately. Deep diving into God’s word. Encouraging saints. Worshipping with the church. Those are musts. During the summer, while on vacation, Satan gets us when our routine is no longer routine. The story of David and Bathsheba begins with in the spring when the kings go out to battle…David stayed at Jerusalem. That itself is not wrong. But David was out of his routine. Satan saw that. Satan was ready.
Third, temptation only becomes sin when we pursue it. In this account, David saw Bathsheba. That was innocent. David sent for her, that’s not innocent. What David should have done was go back inside. He should have picked up some official papers and taken his mind off of what he just saw. He should have prayed. He should have gotten out of that situation. For the David’s of today, turn the channel, leave the room, change the subject, pray. Satan can knock all day long. Just leave him at the door knocking. Ignore him. Resist him. But, once we open that door, trouble begins.
Staying focused in the summer of our faith can be hard.
Roger