In our last devotionals, we have seen how the Lord trained David to be king. It was grueling training, filled with experiences that God used to make David a man of integrity. Without question, the Lord will put similar challenges into your life, since you are a: “…royal priesthood…’”(I Pt 2:9). You are being spiritually trained to represent the Living Lord. If the President of the United States tapped you on the shoulder, asking you to represent the people of our nation, working for their benefit, at the sacrifice of your time and energy, most would willingly agree. The same is true for the Creator of the Universe. He is asking you to sacrifice your time and resources for the people of the Kingdom of God. What will you say?
“And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ Then I said, ‘Here I am! Send me.'” (Isa. 6:8). Will you do the same as Isaiah the prophet?
When David finally became the King of Israel, his training did not end. One is in spiritual training your entire life. That is your tour of duty. Your deployment lasts until you rotate to your heavenly home. It is a fulfilling and rewarding deployment, with all sorts of gratifying accomplishments, interesting experiences, and yes – trials.
Something happened to David, something that befalls many people of faith. He got complacent. He had an esteemed position and he had accomplished colossal things for the nation of Israel. He conquered enemies, aggregated enormous wealth and prestige, and was riding high on success. Then, one little nagging thing captured his mind, leading him to act shamefully. He minimized his responsibilities and he ricocheted from being a man of godly character, to becoming a man of manipulation and deception. That quickly, he changed.
When you represent the Lord, He will not allow you to walk off a moral cliff without a ‘heads-up!’ The Lord will intervene, since you represent His administration. Subtle and little degrading things lead to big pitfalls – he will step in and call you on the carpet. He’s your CO, and if you start wandering down a foolish path, he will demand your attention. When you get to look him straight in the eyes, he’s wise, he’s faithful, and he can be a no-nonsense kind of leader. He will warn you. But you also have executive decision-making authority he has granted you, and though he warns you of upcoming danger, you might go plunging off that cliff. After all, you are captain of your own soul – right? Nope.
David arrived at his position of authority, then became complacent.
“In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel. And they ravaged the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.” (2 Sam. 11:1).
Well this is great. No danger here. Everything is going well, military matters are soundly managed, opponents are being overcome. David has been a great leader, and his subordinates are fulfilling their function admirably. What’s wrong?
Remember, every word in Scripture is important. The writer points out the fact that: kings go out to battle. So what? The writer adds more info: But David remained at Jerusalem. The writer is alerting the reader that something was amiss, something was out of sync. David was relaxing, not fully dialed in. There was a hiccup here – David should be at war.
Complacency was sneaking into David’s life. He began to round corners. He’d had a hard life with difficult circumstances, and he’s kicking back a little. No big deal.
“It happened, late one afternoon, when David arose from his couch and was walking on the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful.” (2 Sam. 11:2). All the alarms and bells are clanging in every readers mind. David’s oblivious to the danger. Eye candy! Naked, eye-candy.
He’d fought fierce enemies, he’d subdued nations, and he’d consolidated Israel into a mega-power. But, now he was in serious trouble – and he didn’t know it. Readers are yelling at him to turn away, don’t look anymore – run! (As if we could change history!). David is blind to his vulnerability, or worse. He willingly engages in sexual fantasy.
Job, the oldest book of the Bible, tells how he dealt with this age-old problem of sensual titillation: “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin? “(Job 31:1). The word ‘gaze’ does not mean to glance, but to inspect. It is not casual. David was looking carefully, invading this woman’s privacy and failing to rein himself in. He was supposed to be leading his fighting forces in battle, but he’s laying around in the after-noon, watching NASCAR or PGA golf, and twists himself into a sexual pretzel.
Jesus warned us about men’s proclivity to visual sexual imaginings. “But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matt. 5:28). Jesus makes a point about the danger of sexual impropriety. “If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away.” (Matt. 5:29). Raging hormones fueled by visual stimulation is so compelling, it makes men lose their minds. We all get it. Jesus warns about the destructive nature of illicit sex by making the exaggerated statement of ripping out your eyeball, so that you do not crash and burn. David has many wives, and concubines – and yet he wants more! Sex is about more than sex.
Pornography is a raging tidal wave in the Christian community.
Okay, okay. If David just stops here – he’ll be safe. Right? He’ll just have to deal with the shame of inspecting, then imagining, and invading this woman’s privacy. It doesn’t matter if the woman was being provocative or not. He might need to apologize to the woman, then he and the Lord will need a serious face-to-face. Nip this issue in the bud and readjust with healthy sexual outreach to one’s own wife, enjoy her, and her love. Dodge a bullet here, and readjust, and get some help for the sexual fantasy stuff.
David’s got plenty of spiritual support: Samuel the prophet and Nathan the prophet (2 Sam 7). Wise and godly men were present and willing to help, even with the shameful issues that one faces. One does not need be a victim to one’s addictions. What will David do?