Faulty to Forgiven

David’s life was a series of ups and downs. His story in the Bible begins in 1 Sam 16, when he was anointed by the prophet Samuel to replace Saul as the king of God’s people (1 Sam 16:1-13; Ps 78). This did not mean that he was immediately crowned as king. He was probably 10-12 years old when he was anointed. Two years later, he served as the king’s musician (1 Sam 16:14-23). Five years after he was anointed, he defeated Goliath (1 Sam 17:1-54). Ten years later, he was appointed by Saul as a commander of his army and was very successful in battles, earning Saul’s daughter Michal in marriage and also Saul’s jealousy (1 Sam 18:6-30; 19:9-17; 2 Sam 6:20-23). He was almost killed by Saul so he fled, hiding and pretending to be a crazy man in order to stay alive (1 Sam 21).

He became king, finally, thirty-two years after his anointing. He was named king of Judah (2 Sam 2:1-7), then of Israel (2 Sam 5:1-5; 1 Chron 11:1-3). Then he re-conquered Jerusalem from the Jebusites (2 Sam 5:6-16). As king, he accomplished many great things. After defeating the Philistines, David brought the ark back to Jerusalem (2 Sam 6:1-19; 1 Chron 13:1-14; 15:1-16:43), which earned him God’s wonderful promises (2 Sam 7:1-29). Second Samuel 8:1-18 lists his victories and officials. He is portrayed as a just and merciful king, pardoning and befriending Saul’s son Mephibosheth (2 Sam 9:1-13). Then he defeats the Ammonites (2 Sam 10:1-19). For 13 years, from the time he was made king (from ca 993-980 BC), his life was filled with victories. However, this rose-colored history changed in 2 Samuel 11. The story is tragic:

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. (Now she was purifying herself from her monthly uncleanness.) Then she went back home.⁵ The woman conceived and sent word to David, saying, “I am pregnant.”

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.” ¹⁶ So while Joab had the city under siege, he put Uriah at a place where he knew the strongest defenders were. ¹⁷ When the men of the city came out and fought against Joab, some of the men in David’s army fell; moreover, Uriah the Hittite died (2 Sam 11:1-5, 14-17, NIV).

The unthinkable happened. The man of victory over armies was defeated by his own self. It seems unfathomable that he would fall in such a dramatic way. But the honesty of the Scriptures is unmistakable. Good and godly men and women are not temptation-proofed. Even the most faithful lover of God can sin. David, full of wisdom as a military strategist, was also stupid, thinking with his penis. David’s lips that were full of praises were also full of deceit.

In fact, David’s story is so shocking because he is not only portrayed as having one fault. The story reveals that David had many faults. First, he was not where he should be (11:1). It was the season of war and he was in his palace, getting up from bed in the evening! Secondly, when he saw naked Bathsheba he stared too long. Like a hot-blooded male member of human species, he was deeply attracted to beauty and wanted to possess her. Thirdly, he abused his power as king to summon Bathsheba to his palace (11:4). She did not really have a choice but to comply to the summons. It was either obedience or death for her. Fourthly, David slept with her and sent her away after purifying herself (11:4). He did not realize that their one-night affair led to her being pregnant (11:5). So, fifthly, David schemed against Urriah twice. He wanted to cover up his sin and shift the responsibility of impregnating Bathsheba to Urriah. When his plots to make Urriah sleep with Bathsheba failed, David ordered his general—Joab—to send Urriah to his death. David committed both adultery and murder.

Also, the story is full of irony because David is portrayed in the Bible as one possessing a godly heart. When Samuel went to the house of Jesse to choose the king, David was chosen by God because of his heart: “The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Sam 16:7). God Himself testified concerning David: he “a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do” (Acts 13:22). Unfortunately, it was also David’s own heart that was attacked by the tempter. No matter how good his heart was, it was still vulnerable to temptations.

David also thought that he had covered his tracks very well. However, God knows everything. God is smarter than we are. He sent His prophet Nathan to confront David:

This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. ⁸ I gave your master’s house to you, and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you all Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. ⁹ 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. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites (2 Sam 12:1-9, NIV)

           

Nathan’s direct confrontation forced David to make a decision. He could have birthed another sin—the sin of denial—but he chose to utter the most gallant statement of his entire life: “I have sinned against the Lord” (2 Sam 12:13). In Hebrew, David only said two words: hatati Yahweh. These two simple words would have the biggest impact in his life. Here lies his difference from king Saul, who sought to rationalize with God and defend what he did (1 Sam 15:20-21). Unlike Adam, David offered no excuses, no alibis, no blaming of Bathsheba. He dealt with his own self and sin—with boldness—and faced the reality that he was at fault. His heart is portrayed vividly in Psalm 51 (NIV), a psalm he wrote after Nathan confronted him:

Have mercy on me, O God,
    according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
    blot out my transgressions.
² Wash away all my iniquity
    and cleanse me from my sin.

³ For I know my transgressions,
    and my sin is always before me.
⁴ Against you, you only, have I sinned
    and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
    and justified when you judge…
⁷ Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
    wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
⁸ Let me hear joy and gladness;
    let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
⁹ Hide your face from my sins
    and blot out all my iniquity.

¹⁰ Create in me a pure heart, O God,
    and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
¹¹ Do not cast me from your presence
    or take your Holy Spirit from me.
¹² Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me…
¹⁷ My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;
    a broken and contrite heart
    you, God, will not despise.

The immediate response of Nathan to David’s confession was surprising: “Then David said to Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord.’ Nathan replied, ‘The Lord has taken away your sin’” (2 Sam 12:13). After all of Nathan’s passionate speech and God’s denunciation of David’s sins, Nathan’s response was quite unexpected. I would not have been surprised if Nathan said that it was already too late and that God had already abandoned him like his predecessor Saul. David would have readily accepted if this were God’s punishment for him. After all, he knew that he had sinned against God big time.

David did not even ask for forgiveness. He only confessed what is truth and what both God and Nathan already knew. Then he was forgiven just like that. The immediacy and unexpected forgiveness that happened to David was precisely what happened to Jacob and Isaiah as well. Jacob asked the man of God to bless him, but the man asked him, “What is your name?” (Gen 32:27). This sounds like a simple question, but it was actually a question that deals with the core of Jacob’s identity. Jacob means “deceiver,” and the man of God wanted him to admit who he is, a deceiver who victimized his own family: his brother Esau, his father Isaac and his brother-in-law Laban. When Jacob said his name and therefore admitted his faults, the man responded: “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel (Gen 32:28). The story of Isaiah in the presence of the holy Lord narrates the same confession-forgiveness sequence.

“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.” ⁶ Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. ⁷ With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for” (Isaiah 6:5-7, NIV)

In relation to what we are required to do, does God’s forgiveness sound cheap? I am grateful that it is. Otherwise, no one can afford it. I am grateful that God’s forgiveness is just a prayer away, that a contrite heart is all that God wants, that confession of what He already knows is enough, and that God is willing to restore me in His loving embrace. This was what the apostle John wrote about much later: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). The whole point of Nathan’s fiery charge against David was not to punish him, but to bring him to his senses. God confronted David not for him to be left feeling extremely guilty and ashamed.

We can find parallels between our lives and that of David. We all have faults (plural). David may have struggled with lust, but others might be struggling with food, desire for attention, and other things. Everyone has weaknesses and vulnerabilities. We may be strong against naked men or women, but we may be weak regarding gossiping, judgmentalism, slander, apathy and other attitudes that destroy other people. The good news is that people who have faults can receive forgiveness. God’s healing, restoring grace is available for those who are willing to face God with the same painful honesty about ourselves. This is the greatest step towards a rebuilt life.


(This is the third manuscript in the New Beginning sermon series. The first and second are also available in this blog.)

Reasons to Worship

2 Samuel 6:12-22

Under the leadership of Moses, the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years. Then Joshua replaced him as the leader, and he led the entrance and initial conquest of the promise land. When He died, however, the land was still enveloped with unrest and wars. The Israelites were unable to wipe out their enemies. The Philistines were the greatest opposition. This means that although the Israelites were already in the promise land, they still faced hardships from their enemies. God promised that Canaan was a land of abundance, but He did not say it would be peaceful. If they wanted peace, they had to obey God and defeat the settlers of the land.

For 400 years, since they settled the land, they continuously battled against their enemies. When Joshua died, there were other leaders who emerged, who we call the Judges. Sometimes the Israelites were defeated, and sometimes they would win and experience peace. The people thought that their losses were related to the fact that they did not have a king, so they asked the prophet Samuel to give them a king (1 Sam 8:1-22). Reluctantly, God gave them Saul (1 Sam 9:1-11:14). But Saul was not able to defeat all the enemies. It was only during the time of David that the Philistines were defeated and the whole of Canaan was taken over by the Israelites. We read David’s two decisive victories in 2 Samuel 5:17-25.

This sermon is about what happened immediately after the whole land was finally conquered by the Israelites. David’s first action when he secured peace in the land was to lead the people in bringing the ark of the covenant to Jerusalem. This is what we read in 2 Samuel 6:1-22. The story has several fascinating themes, but we will just focus on one element of worship in the passage.

David went to bring up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing. ¹³ When those who were carrying the ark of the Lord had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf. ¹⁴ Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the Lord with all his might, ¹⁵ while he and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets.

16 As the ark of the Lord was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him in her heart.

17 They brought the ark of the Lord and set it in its place inside the tent that David had pitched for it, and David sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings before the Lord. 18 After he had finished sacrificingthe burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord Almighty. 19 Then he gave a loaf of bread, a cake of dates and a cake of raisins to each person in the whole crowd of Israelites, both men and women. And all the people went to their homes.

20 When David returned home to bless his household, Michal daughter of Saul came out to meet him and said, “How the king of Israel has distinguished himself today, going around half-naked in full view of the slave girls of his servants as any vulgar fellow would!”

²¹ David said to Michal, “It was before the Lord, who chose me rather than your father or anyone from his house when he appointed me ruler over the Lord’s people Israel—I will celebrate before the Lord. ²² I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes. But by these slave girls you spoke of, I will be held in honor.”

One the most immediate realizations we can have from the passage is the fact that David was a very enthusiastic worshipper. The passage narrates that “David was dancing before the Lord with all his might” (6:14) and he was “dancing and leaping before the Lord” (6:16). He was really into it that he did not notice how vulgar he had become (6:10). He was so enthusiastic that his wife criticized him: “How the king of Israel has distinguished himself today, going around half-naked in full view of the slave girls of his servants as any vulgar fellow would!” (6:20). But when he received his wife’s rebuke, he was indifferent. He did not care. He even declared that for the sake of worshipping God: “I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes” (6:22).

I am not going to deal with the forms of worship this morning. For me, the old debates—between solemn and celebrative worship, or between silent and loud music, or between traditional and contemporary, or between singing hymns and choruses—are not fruitful. So I am not going to argue today that you are not worshipping unless you dance half naked (or completely naked, as in the case of Saul (1 Sam 19:23-24), or clap your hands joyfully, or dance around unashamedly. I am also not going to tell you are not a true worshipper unless you are completely silent at the sanctuary. Next week, I am going to talk a bit about undignified worship, but today, we are just going to answer one question: “What prompted David to express his worship to God unashamedly?”

We can only understand David’s joy and enthusiasm if we read Psalm 132 alongside 2 Samuel 6.

Lord, remember David
and all the hardships he endured.

² He swore an oath to the Lord,
he made a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob:
³ “I will not enter my house
or go to my bed,
⁴ I will allow no sleep to my eyes
or slumber to my eyelids,
⁵ till I find a place for the Lord,
a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob”

⁶ We heard it in Ephrathah,
we came upon it in the fields of Jaar.

⁸Arise, Lord, and come to your resting place,

you and the ark of your might (Ps 132:1-6, 8)

Worship God for Victories

In Psalm 132:1, David admits that he lived a very difficult life. Since Samuel anointed him (1 Sam 16:13), David experienced many hardships in life. He became the target of King Saul’s murderous plots (1 Sam 18:10-11; 19:1-17). Saul pursued him and he fled many times to different cities to that he can preserve his life (1 Sam 23:1-13, 26-29; 24:1-22). He carried the guilt of the death of the priests and residents of Nob, who were killed by Saul because they helped David (1 Sam 22:6-23). In order to preserve his life, he was forced to pretend to be mad at Gath (1 Sam 21:10-15). Then soon as he was crowned king, the Philistines united to pursue and kill him (2 Sam 5:17-25). David’s life was not a walk in the park; it was more like a swim in a piranha-filled river.

But in 2 Samuel 6, all of these difficulties are a thing of the past. Saul is dead, and the Philistines were already defeated. His enemies are gone. He can sleep at night without holding on to his sword. His political struggles are over. This is why we see in 2 Samuel 6 a joyful man, and whose shoulders are no longer filled with burden. He was once afraid, but now he is at peace. He feels liberated. He has a great life ahead of him, free from all the burdens he constantly faced before. God even promised him: “I will also give you rest from all your enemies” (2 Sam 7:11). How can he not worship God? Without a care about what others see or think, he just expressed his worship to God.

A freed human ought to worship God. A human who found new life ought to worship God. Like David, all of us have experienced freedom from suffering as well. For some of us, sickness and death may have been pursuing us lately, and yet here we are: alive and well. For some of us, financial problems may have overtaken us lately, and we experienced God’s blessing. For some of us, sorrow may have been looming like dark clouds over us, and then we experienced God’s sunlight. For some of us, iron balls of busy schedule and exhaustion may have been tied around our feet, but we have been liberated. We have all faced difficulties over the last few days weeks, but when we received freedom from them, have we liberally worshipped God?

Worship God for Accomplishments

When we read Psalm 132:2-6, we realize that David actually made a vow to God that he would not rest until the ark finds its place in the house of God. As an Israelite, he knew the significance of the ark and its embarrassing history.[1] There was even a time when the ark as captured by the enemies (1 Sam 4:11). He knew that the ark has been resting at Kiriath Jearim for seventy years already (1 Sam 7:1). His dream was to move the ark to Jerusalem, the capital city. In the time of Saul, Jerusalem was still in the hands of the Jebusites. It is only in 2 Samuel 5:6-15 that David finally captured Jerusalem.

In 2 Samuel 6, David was now moving it to Jerusalem. From the day David was anointed to the moment when the ark is being moved to Jerusalem is a staggering 24-year period. Moving the ark to Jerusalem was a 24-year dream! It was 24-year project! It took David twenty-four years in order to fulfill his vow to the Lord. In between these 24 years were bitter struggles and near-death experiences. Therefore, moving the ark to Jerusalem, for David, was a massive accomplishment. He struggled for 24 years, and right now in 2 Samuel 6, he was witnessing the fruits of his labors and sacrifices. How can he not worship God?

God has given us victories. He has empowered us to accomplish our dreams. We do not come to worship God as if He has done nothing in our lives. The church is not a gathering of people with amnesia, people who have forgotten about God’s great blessings upon them. We are a gathering of people who remember God’s goodness and greatness. May God open our eyes so that we can see the victories He is granting us, both great and small. Our response to all these things is worship.

Worship God for New Beginnings

David was not only thankful. He was also excited. In the history of the ark, whenever the ark moved, miracles and victories happen. When Joshua led the Israelites to cross the Jordan river, the ark was right in front (Josh 3:6). When they caused Jericho’s wall to crumble, the ark was also at the front of the procession (Josh 6:13). When David and his people were moving the ark, “the ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite for three months, and the Lord blessed him and his entire household” (2 Sam 6:11). David knew that when the ark moves, blessings come with it. So he was excited!

This excitement is evident in Psalm 132:8, “Arise, Lord, and come to your resting place, you and the ark of your might (Ps 132: 8). The prayer for God to “Arise” is repeatedly found in the OT (Num 10:35; 2 Chron 6:41; Ps 17:13; 68:1). For God to rise meant for Him to move in a new way. It is for God to make decisive actions and interventions. Interestingly, Solomon used the same words when the ark was brought to the Temple in 2 Chronicles 6:41, “Now arise, Lord God, and come to your resting place, you and the ark of your might. May your priests, Lord God, be clothed with salvation, may your faithful people rejoice in your goodness.”

In both Psalm 132:8 and 2 Chronicles 6:41, there was a great sense of anticipation. Both David and Solomon felt it. Something awesome was about to happen. When the ark moves, not only victories happen. When the ark moves, people are “clothed with salvation” (2 Chron 6:41). In the time of David, the ark was on the move. The Lord was again going before them. The future is full of abundant blessings. If David did not worship with gladness and excitement, we can only call him a fool. He had reasons to celebrate, so he celebrated without reserve.

Conclusions

2 Samuel 6 represents a turning point in David’s life. He already accomplished a lot. The complete fulfilment of the Lord’s promise to Abraham was reached through his leadership. Are you a grateful worshipper? But David was not only worshipping because of these past victories. He was also worshipping because he was excited about what God would do next. Are you excited about God’s work in your lives?

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[1] God commissioned its creation in Exodus 25:10-22. He anointed Bezalel and other craftsmen to make the ark (Exo 31:1-5). The ark would stay at the Holy of Holies, within in the Tabernacle. When the Israelites entered the promise land, the ark was kept at Shiloh (1 Sam 3:3), but when the Philistine army came to attack the Israelites, they thought that bringing the ark to battle would give them victory (1 Sam 4:1-4). Unfortunately, they were defeated and the ark was captured (1 Sam 4:11). It remained at the hands of their enemies for seven months (1 Sam 6:1) but when the Philistines were afflicted with a plague, they returned the ark to the Israelites (1 Sam 6:1-21).