David Wrote a Letter
II Sam. 11:14-25
Intro: One
of the most horrible stories in the Bible is the story of David and Bathsheba. David
– a man after God’s own heart, is about to plunge into the lowest state that a
God-fearing man can plunge – he simply failed to fear God.
David’s downfall started with…
A. The
Shirking of his Duty – vs. 1 …at the time when kings go forth to
battle…David tarried still
He wasn’t where he was supposed to be, doing what he was
supposed to be doing, and look what happened!
We have many in our churches today that are backing down,
stepping down, backing up, when they should be advancing.
We can’t expect to defeat the devil if we are disengaging
while he is engaging.
It’s not time to retire – it’s time to re-fire!
The shirking of his duty led to…
B. The
Satisfying of his Desires – vs. 2-4
The Three Steps of Sin:
1.
He Saw
2.
He Enquired
3.
He Took
And just when he’d thought he had gotten away with it, it
resulted in…
C. The
Shame of his Deed – vs. 5 she was pregnant with the child of their
adultery.
If there ever was an example of the “Young and the
Restless”, it was David after getting that news.
If there was ever an example of “Desperate Housewives”, it
was Bathsheba after realizing she was having a baby.
Instead of getting right with God, David kicked into damage
control mode.
He sent for Uriah, and tried to cover up his sin. It didn’t work. Uriah wouldn’t play along
with his little scheme.
So, David did one of the most unbelievable things
imaginable.
He sat down, and he wrote a letter.
·
2 Samuel
11:14 And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter to Joab…
I. It was a Letter
of Blood
The letter that David sent Joab was Uriah’s death sentence.
David was VERY aware of WHAT he was doing, and HOW it would
turn out.
That was made very obvious in verse 19-21 when Joab prepped
the messenger for his report.
David had seen this happen before, and knew what he was
doing.
David’s sin was premeditated and he knew the seriousness of
his sin, but he did it anyway.
II. It was a
Letter of Betrayal – vs. 14
David’s sin was not a secret sin; it involved many other
people.
His sin betrayed the trust and confidence that other people
had in him.
He sent the letter by the hand of Uriah; a trusting friend
of integrity and character.
David’s deed took advantage of a friend, betrayed the trust
of someone that looked up to him.
·
2 Samuel
11:14 …that David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah.
Sin is always so selfish and uncaring for those that are
hurt by it.
David’s quest to hide his sin
made him quick to hurt his servant
When we sin, we ALWAYS hurt others.
As parents, our children are looking up to us, and they
trust us. How often does our sin hurt
them?
Our brothers and sisters in the Lord have confidence in us,
but our sin hurts them many times.
III. It was a
Letter of Bondage
After the deed was done, the letter REMAINED IN THE HAND OF
JOAB.
Every time David saw Joab, he no doubt thought about that
letter he had sent him.
Every time Joab saw David, or Bathsheba, or Solomon, he
thought about that letter that David had sent him.
David had ZERO INFLUENCE over Joab after that.
Joab did exactly what he wanted, and David couldn’t do
anything about it.
·
In chapter
18, Absalom is hanging from a tree, and Joab rebukes a man for obeying the
king (vs.11)
Then he proceeds to go directly against the king and kills
Absalom in verse 14. And David let him by with it.
Then he rebukes David for weeping over the death of his son
in 19:5, and David let him by with it.
·
In
chapter 23, we see a long list of mighty men; men of valour and
renown. But Joab’s name is missing.
I’ve many times thought it was Joab’s lack of loyalty that
was the reason, but now I wonder if it was the fact that he still had the
letter from David – and it limited him from reaching his full potential.
The fact that the letter had been written put David in
bondage.
The fact that Joab knew about it put him in bondage.
EXAMPLE: Those
around us that see us living in sin will forever remember it.
What if the cashier down at the 7-Eleven shows up Sunday
under conviction, and she sees one of the members that has been parked by the
magazine section? Do you think she will
be confused or still under conviction?
What if the boys on the job you’ve been telling dirty jokes
to shows up, will it hinder your ability to worship?
What if your kids see you at home living like a heathen, and
then watch you at church worshipping; will it help them?
Sin always puts people in bondage!!
Conclusion:
Notice verse 25: David’s weak attempt at damage control!!
1.
Let not this thing displease thee.
2.
Make thy battle more strong.
3.
Overthrow it.
4.
Encourage thou him.
How??? After his sin,
he’s trying to get others to just go on like it didn’t happen??
Every day of your life, you are writing a letter.
Who’s reading it?
Who’s holding YOUR letter?
