Some Important Lessons on Sin - II Samuel 12-13 and Luke 16
There are so many insights and truths in these three short chapters that it would be impossible to share all that God said to me as I read them this morning. That is usually the case, but today, it is certainly true. Please, let God show you what He wants you to see in these chapters, but I hope these notes will help you, too.
David's sin with Bathsheba started a long series of events that led to much misery in his family. Sin always takes you farther than you want to go, and it always costs you more than you want to pay. The truth is that even though David confessed his sin and repented of it, there were still consequences for his sin. God does that to deter us from further sin. It is for our good, not further punishment. God decided that David's sin would lead to the sword not departing from his family, because David had despised His law to commit the sin with Bathsheba. David knew it was wrong even before he committed the sin of adultery and murder. Therefore, it had more punishment and consequences for him. Another by-product of his sin was that it was an occasion for the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme the Lord. The unbelievers could use it to say that there was no God or that God's law was not really true because David did not follow it. Think of all of the times well known Christians have sinned and what others said and thought. Then, the baby that was conceived in this sin died. Of course, the baby went to heaven, but it was still a sad result of the sin. That did not have to happen. Notice, though that Bathsheba had another son, Solomon, who was highly favored by God. That shows that God does not hold a grudge against us when we sin and confess it.
The story of Amnon begins the continuing saga of the sword in David's family. Amnon committed much the same sin as David. Could it be that David's sin made it easier for him to do this? It could have had some effect in that way. The leaders and parents need to be good examples, because the children will follow in their footsteps. Then, there is Jonadab. Don't ever be a Jonadab, encouraging another person to sin. In the end Amnon did not love Tamar, but he hated her. That too is a result of sin. The sinful way he acted brought guilt and disdain for her presence. Absalom came along to punish him for this, because David did nothing. Why did he do nothing? It is possibly because he had sinned in that same way, so did not feel he could speak against this sin. That is not true, but it is how we feel many times.
Luke 16 has the story of the unjust steward. Remember, he was unjust, or the story will not make any sense at all. He lost his job from sin. Then, he was too lazy to do another kind of work, so he made friends by money. He gave them a break. Jesus commends his shrewd action, not his sin. He took what he had and did what he could to further himself. That is what Jesus commended not his sin. Jesus wants us as believers to use the little things of life like money to do good things and to make friends so we can be a good influence on people. Then, the story of the rich man and Lazarus contains many lessons, too. The rich man died and went to Hades because of his sin. Lazarus was comforted in Abraham's presence since he was a believer. The lesson on sin is that if his brothers would not heed the Bible, they would not heed someone going back from the dead to speak to them. That is how strong sin is in our lives. It consumes us, and it disorients us to the things of God, so that we will not listen to the plain truth. We must confess our sins to God, and then, we must deal decisively with sin in our lives to keep sin from having such devastating effects on us.
Tomorrow, I intend to read II Samuel 14-15 and Luke 17:1-19.
David's sin with Bathsheba started a long series of events that led to much misery in his family. Sin always takes you farther than you want to go, and it always costs you more than you want to pay. The truth is that even though David confessed his sin and repented of it, there were still consequences for his sin. God does that to deter us from further sin. It is for our good, not further punishment. God decided that David's sin would lead to the sword not departing from his family, because David had despised His law to commit the sin with Bathsheba. David knew it was wrong even before he committed the sin of adultery and murder. Therefore, it had more punishment and consequences for him. Another by-product of his sin was that it was an occasion for the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme the Lord. The unbelievers could use it to say that there was no God or that God's law was not really true because David did not follow it. Think of all of the times well known Christians have sinned and what others said and thought. Then, the baby that was conceived in this sin died. Of course, the baby went to heaven, but it was still a sad result of the sin. That did not have to happen. Notice, though that Bathsheba had another son, Solomon, who was highly favored by God. That shows that God does not hold a grudge against us when we sin and confess it.
The story of Amnon begins the continuing saga of the sword in David's family. Amnon committed much the same sin as David. Could it be that David's sin made it easier for him to do this? It could have had some effect in that way. The leaders and parents need to be good examples, because the children will follow in their footsteps. Then, there is Jonadab. Don't ever be a Jonadab, encouraging another person to sin. In the end Amnon did not love Tamar, but he hated her. That too is a result of sin. The sinful way he acted brought guilt and disdain for her presence. Absalom came along to punish him for this, because David did nothing. Why did he do nothing? It is possibly because he had sinned in that same way, so did not feel he could speak against this sin. That is not true, but it is how we feel many times.
Luke 16 has the story of the unjust steward. Remember, he was unjust, or the story will not make any sense at all. He lost his job from sin. Then, he was too lazy to do another kind of work, so he made friends by money. He gave them a break. Jesus commends his shrewd action, not his sin. He took what he had and did what he could to further himself. That is what Jesus commended not his sin. Jesus wants us as believers to use the little things of life like money to do good things and to make friends so we can be a good influence on people. Then, the story of the rich man and Lazarus contains many lessons, too. The rich man died and went to Hades because of his sin. Lazarus was comforted in Abraham's presence since he was a believer. The lesson on sin is that if his brothers would not heed the Bible, they would not heed someone going back from the dead to speak to them. That is how strong sin is in our lives. It consumes us, and it disorients us to the things of God, so that we will not listen to the plain truth. We must confess our sins to God, and then, we must deal decisively with sin in our lives to keep sin from having such devastating effects on us.
Tomorrow, I intend to read II Samuel 14-15 and Luke 17:1-19.