TEXT: II Samuel 11

SUBJECT: What David Could Have Done

My topic this evening is: What David could have done. The reference is to his sin of adultery, along with the treachery, murder, hypocrisy, and barrenness that followed. His sin is well-known. It made "the enemies of the LORD...blaspheme"; it makes the Lord's people shudder.

Was David a saved man? Yes. Was he mature in the faith? He was. Yet he fell into sin--into gross sin, no less. Why was his story put into the Bible? I Corinthians 10:12 explains: "Let him who thinks he stands, take heed, lest he fall". If a man of David's grace could do such things, so can you and I!

We know what David did. What I want to ask is: What could he have done to avoid the frightful sins of this chapter? The subject is a large one. The Puritans wrote thousands of pages on it. But I want to limit myself to this one chapter, and note a few things it suggests David could have done.

He could have kept busy, v.1. "Now it came to pass in the spring of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab..."

What's a king for? In England, the monarchy is a decoration and a reminder of a glorious past. But in Israel at the time, kings were there to fight! The people begged Samuel to "Make us a king...who will go out and fight our battles". That was the king's chief responsibility--to organize and lead the Lord's people into battle. David had shown himself quite good at this; as a young man, he cut down Goliath in "the name of the Lord of Hosts". He kept up the pace for many years.

But David was no longer a young man; he may have been about fifty or so. He had nothing left to prove; he no longer enjoyed the camaraderie camp life afforded; he just couldn't stand the thought of another night in a tent! And so, instead of leading the armies of the Lord, he sent someone else.

This would prove costly--not to David's army, but to his soul. There was nothing to do, it seems; he was napping in the afternoon. Then he went to balcony to loaf around some more. There, he saw the bathing beauty, and fell into gross sin.

David was not the last man to sin as a result of boredom. I have, haven't you? And not just us: This was the sin of Sodom, God tells us: "Pride, fullness of bread, and abundance of idleness" (Ezekiel 16:49).

Don't limit idleness to lying in bed, thinking up evil things to occupy your mind. Think of television; think of surfing the Internet. And idle chatter, too.

How often have we sinned out of "nothing better to do"? Lust, envy, malice, gluttony, drunkenness, gossip, these and a million other sins, are built in "the devil's workshop" with "idle hands".

David could have kept busy. So can you.

He could have turned his head, v.2. "...from the roof he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to behold. Two words should be pondered: "Saw" and "Behold". Every man knows the difference between "seeing" a woman and "beholding" her. "Seeing her" and "checking her out" we might say. David "saw" Bathsheba--nothing wrong with that. Then he "checked her out"--something very wrong with that. Like Achan, he "saw, coveted, and took".

What could have kept him from ogling the pretty girl? The muscles in his neck. All he had to do was turn his head. But he didn't. And that little omission nearly destroyed him.

Are there things you like looking at a little too well? Don't limit this to beautiful girls or handsome men. Computer catalogues belong on the list, too! Milling around the mall; going to car showrooms. And so on. The Proverb warns us: "Do not look upon the wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it swirls around smoothly..."

After staring at Bathsheba, it's no wonder David yielded to his lusts. If only he had turned his head. He could have done that. So can you.

He could have heeded the warning he received, v.3. "Someone said, `Is this not Bathsheba...the wife of Uriah the Hittite?'" If God loved David so dearly, why didn't He do something to stop him? He did! He told him "She's married!"

But David ignored the Divine warning. And paid dearly for it.

Very rarely do we fall into temptation without some warning. Conscience whispers "Don't do it". Sometimes a brother or sister in Christ says the same. Even Providence blocks our way for a time. But, if we insist on sinning, God will usually let us have our way. As He did with Balaam.

But why stop our ears against the pleas of a loving Father? Do you warn your children out of spite? Or for their good? It's for their good, of course! So are God's warnings to us. They're not meant to "rain on our parade" or "poop our parties" or "kill our joy"; they're meant to save us from the terrible pain sin must cause.

David could have listened to the warning. So can you.

He could have thought of other people.

A lot of people were involved in the king's affair. And hurt by it. Who were they? Bathsheba, for one. If he "loved" her so dearly, why didn't he think what he was asking her to do--to betray her husband? Uriah was hurt, too; and no one was more innocent than he; the king's most loyal soldier must be cuckolded and killed. What about the king's servants? They knew what he was up to; it must have grieved them to see his callousness. Joab was entangled too, having to obey the king's evil commands. Other lives were put at risk, at the battle Rabbah. The whole nation was embarrassed by the king's folly.

A lot of people were involved in David's affair. Was he thinking of any of them? Only one: himself! "Let the nation be hanged, so long as I can get what I want!"

It's commonly said: "Do whatever you want, as long as it doesn't hurt anyone". I agree. The problem is: all sins have a way of hurting other people--even the most private sins. Achan's sin was a secret as can be. But thirty-six men died as a result of it! (cf. Joshua 7:5).

In the Church, one man's sin can grieve the Holy Spirit. And then, what do we have? Hollow sermons, meaningless prayers. clanging songs. Nothing! If you don't care for yourself, care for others. "Do not look on your own things only, but on the things of others".

David could have thought of other people. So can you.

He could have considered the consequences, vv.5,24. "I am with child...Uriah the Hittite is dead".

You'd think David would know this: Sexual intercourse often results in pregnancy. And impregnating another man's wife, often results in someone dead. Of course he knew these things, but in the passion of the moment, he forgot them. He forgot "the deceitfulness of sin".

Richard Brooks described temptation as "a baited hook" and as "a golden cup with poison inside of it". It looks good on the surface; it's fun at the moment. But consequences follow. Necessarily. They're often much worse than you might expect.

A man has two or three drinks after work. Not that bad...till he gets in the car and runs over a child crossing the street. A girl runs away from home. Not that bad...till she's picked up on the road and mutilated. A man has an affair with his secretary. Not that bad...till the tests come back positive. A man boasts, "Take your ease; you have goods laid up for many years". Not that bad...till his "soul is required of him that night!"

These things are theoretically possible, of course, but statistically unlikely. Why worry? Here's why: "When lust conceives it brings forth sin. And sin, when it is finished, brings forth death". That's true--in one way or another--in 100% of the cases. Saved or lost, sin takes a terrible toll.

David knew that--after the fact. The trick is learning it before that. David could have considered the consequences of sin. We can too.

Lastly, he could have remembered the Lord, v.27. "But the thing David had done displeased the LORD".

Who is "The LORD" David displeased? He is "The Judge of the whole earth". It is not wise to commit a crime in front of the judge who is going to try your case. But that's what David did. And not only David; it's what we do. "He who made the eye, shall He not see?" Yes He does; "God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether it is good or whether it is evil". Solemn thought. I am answerable to God.

Who is "The LORD" David displeased? He is God [His] Savior". The God who "saved [him] out of all [his] afflictions". Is this any way to return His kindness? Is this the proper reply to His love? Surely the claims of love outweigh those of Law. David did more than disobey the command; He hurt God.

So do we when we act foolishly. If it was wrong for David to do this, how much worse is it when we do it? For, in Jesus Christ, we know God much better than David did. David wrote, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" But we know what it means: It means God joined the human race and went to the cross for our salvation. Surely, we wouldn't grieve such a wonderful God? Yet we do when we sin.

And so, keep God in all your thoughts. For in this way, you'll be able to resist the temptations that are out there waiting for you--that are calling your name as I speak.

When you're tempted, do what you can. When you do, you'll find, "[Our Lord's] grace is sufficient for you".

To those who try, the promise is made:

"No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted above what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it".

God give us grace to try. And then do for us what we cannot do for ourselves. For Christ's sake. Amen.