I have always loved that David is referred to as a man after God’s own heart. I can so relate to David. He made big mistakes. Yet the Bible never states that David lost that title. In fact, David’s final words are written in 2 Samuel 23, verse 1 says, “they were the utterance of the man exalted by the Most High, anointed by the God of Jacob, the hero of Israel’s songs.”
Exalted and anointed? David? Yup, David. The same David who made some poor choices in his life. Like, having an affair with his friend’s wife and then having that friend killed to cover up a pregnancy.
But David always stayed close to God.
There were times he wasn’t close enough to hear God’s voice warning him against his sin. But once his sin was revealed, he knew where to run. He never let the enemy convince him he had gone too far to go back. Somehow, he understood that his past behavior had nothing to do with his position with God. He was loved and chosen, regardless of what he had done.
I think I should clarify some things.
I am not saying that we can live any way we want. That is absolutely not true. In fact, I fully believe God calls us to live holy lives.
What I am saying is that when we mess up - and we will because becoming holy is a process - we can go back to God, repent, and live for Him again. Think I’m wrong? Look at David’s story again.
In 2 Samuel 12, after David got Bathsheba pregnant and killed her husband, the prophet Nathan called him out. David realized the depth of his sin and repented. Nathan told him the baby would die. When the child became ill, David asked God to heal him. David wouldn’t eat, laid on his face, and begged God for healing. He knew it was the consequence of his own destructive sin. Here is what happened in Samuel 12:19-20:
“David noticed that his attendants whispering among themselves… ‘Is the child dead?’ he asked.
‘Yes,’ they replied, ‘he is dead.’
Then David got up from the ground. After he had washed, put on lotions and changed his clothes, he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and at his request they served him food, and he ate.”
He literally got up, dusted himself off, and went about his business. And the FIRST order of business was to worship God! How could David worship after what had just happened? He knew who God was, and who he was to God.
The road to holiness is long.
We will mess up along the way, but it doesn’t disqualify us from His plan. When you find yourself in a horrible place because of something you did, do what David did:
1. Repent. Don’t just say “sorry”. Ask God to show you the depth of that sin, then choose to turn from it and never go back.
2. Communicate with God about the situation. Do what you can to change it, trust God with the rest.
3. Whether or not God changes your circumstances – dust yourself off and praise Him.
4. Go on about your Bible-reading, Jesus-loving, holy-becoming life.
The enemy would love nothing more than to prevent you from following God. He will try to use your sin to get you to walk away. Don’t let him. Remember, nothing can keep you from the love of God.
Follow our Contributing Writer - Libbie Hall
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