Jump Start # 946

2 Samuel 12:14 “However, because by this deed you have given occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born to you shall surely die.”

In our last Jump Start, we saw King David ordering the death of one of his valiant mighty men, Uriah, to conceal the adultery he had committed. The desperate David is now relying upon others in his deception and evil plots. Joab, David’s commander, carried out the withdraw of troops in a fierce battle so Uriah could be killed. Joab is now a part of this mess. David sent another message to Joab. This one was to make him feel better for what he has just done. The message read, “Do not let this thing displease you, for the sword devours one as well as another…” Translated, this means: “Don’t worry, these things happen.” Really? David’s attitude is cold in all of this.

Time passes. David’s secret seems to remain a secret. He marries Bathsheba and it looks like everything is going to work out. The text doesn’t tell us how much Bathsheba knew. We wonder if David told her the real reason Uriah died. I tend to doubt that he did.

God sends Nathan the prophet to stir David spiritually. In that famous exchange, Nathan declares to David, “You are the man,” revealing that David has stolen another man’s wife. He also reveals that God knows the truth about Uriah. David’s secret is no longer a secret. Joab knew. Now, Nathan the prophet knew. God knew. Now, David knew that God knew.

A series of very serious punishments, all involving death, are revealed by Nathan. Bathsheba’s baby will die. The sword will not depart from David’s home. David himself will be spared death. God forgives him but the pain of those sins will be witnessed over and over as his children devour each other in violence.

From our verse today, two thoughts.

First, David’s actions gave the enemy occasion to blasphemy. This is the very opposite of what God wants. Through our actions, God wants people to glorify Him. All the good that a church does can be wasted by the ill living of members. Those who really know you will either respect you for your values or see that your walk and talk does not match. When that happens, your credibility as a Christian is ruined. People make three judgments through you.

Maybe they shouldn’t, but they do.

• They judge your faith by your lifestyle. They see you. They hear you. They see your attitude. They see what you purchase. Strangers. Friends. Family members. From what you do people make a judgment about you and your faith. They see if your are genuine or fake. They see if you are really trying or playing a game.

• Those that know you make a judgment about the church you attend by your actions. They see you as a representative of the church. Rightly or wrongly, they assume all the members of the church are like you. If your actions are not good, this is what they will think of your church. If they feel that you have cheated them in business deals or have been dishonest with them, those deeds have colored what they think of the church you attend.

• Through you they make a judgment about Christianity as a whole and even Jesus Christ. Some believe religion is a sham. They don’t get that impression from reading the Bible. They came to that conclusion by witnessing people who claimed to be Christians who were living a sham.

There is an old saying that states, “What you are doing speaks so loud I can’t hear what you are saying.” Our actions tell on us. Our choices, attitudes, words and behavior reflect what we really believe.

David’s deception gave the enemy reasons to blasphemy. Our deceptions do the same. One reason evangelism may not be working is not our methods in talking with people but our credibility. The actions of some hurt the work of all. When someone says, “I know someone who goes to your church…” their next words determine what they think of the church because of that one person. They may say, “He’s a great person, very kind and helpful.” Then that person has a positive image of the rest of the church. But, if he says, “He cheated me on a business deal,” then he has a sour taste and will want nothing to do with the church.

David gave the enemies reasons to blasphemy. Are we doing the same?

Second, God caused Bathsheba’s baby to die. The next verse is very specific. It says, “Then the Lord struck the child that Uriah’s widow bore to David, so that he was very sick” (v. 15). That’s hard for many of us to grasp. That sweet little baby didn’t do anything wrong. That baby didn’t make any wrong choices. Strike David. Strike Joab. Strike Bathsheba. But, not the baby. This is not the first time this happened. Remember Joshua and Achan? Achan took some spoil and hid it in his tent. He was not to do that. His punishment was that he and his wife and all his children were put to death. Remember the flood? It wasn’t just adults who drowned. There were children and babies. These thoughts are hard to get. Some see a mean side to God in all of this. Some want to throw the towel in on God because of this. Kill the sinner, but not the innocent.

In David’s case, there may have been a bigger picture that God saw. David’s sons were soon to kill each other or be killed by others. A disaster was just about to be unleashed at home because of David’s sins. Bathsheba’s baby, conceived in adultery, would fall in line to be king. That wasn’t going to happen. Another child between David and Bathsheba, Solomon, would eventually be the next king.

The innocent often suffer because of the sin of others. A drunk thinks he can handle driving home. His car plows into another car and innocent children are crippled or killed. A man has an affair and it ruins his marriage. His children are forced to move out of the house they grew up in, switch schools and be shared every other weekend. Their world changes because of the dad’s sin. A person is caught cheating at work. He loses his job. His family suffers financially because of that sin. A gambling addiction…a drug addiction…a lying addiction ruins the family. One of the consequences of sin is that the innocent suffer. Sin hurts. Sin doesn’t just hurt the sinner, it hurts the innocent.

The baby died. That little grave was a reminder of the poor choices and deception that David made. There are many other graves that mark the sins that we have committed. Our sins have hurt our families and our congregations. Good and innocent people have been hurt by our sins.

This is a side of sin we don’t think about. Maybe we ought to.

Roger