From Messy to Mercy

Beautiful Bathsheba was taking a bath when David looked from his roof and saw her. In 2 Samuel 11 verse 2, the bible described Bathsheba as 'very beautiful to look upon'. Having seen her, David wanted more than to 'look upon' so he enquired after her, sent his messengers to bring her that he might have sex with her and he did. Bathsheba got pregnant with David's child and Uriah, her husband had not laid with her during this period. It was a messy situation for David. He wanted so desperately to cover his sins that he had innocent Uriah killed.

God was not pleased with David so He sent the prophet Nathan to him (2 Samuel 9 verse 1 - 12). David had commited this act secretly but God was going to judge him openly. "I (God) will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun (2 Samuel 12 verse 12). In verse 15, God struck the child that Uriah's wife bare unto David and it came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died (verse 18).

David had wronged the God he loved and served. Remember it was the same David that said in Psalm 122 verse 1, " I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the Lord. He was a man God said was after His own heart (Acts 13 verse 22) and in 1 Kings 14 verse 8, God said David kept His commandments and followed Him with all his heart.

Sometimes even as Christians, because we are not perfect, we find ourselves being drawn to sin and that is why Hebrews 12 verse 1 says we should lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beseth us. It is possible for certain sins to so easily beseth us. They are those things we know that are against God's will but we get so easily attracted to them. We find them so tempting and difficult or almost impossible to resist. We go ahead to do them and guilt sets in. One thing guilt does to a believer is that it takes away the joy of salvation. David acknowledged his sins in 2 Samuel 12 verse 13. In Psalm 51 verse 12, he asked God to restore the joy of His salvation.

God had mercy on David and in 2 Samuel 12 verse 24 " .. David laid with Bathsheba his wife ... and she bare a son, and he called his name Solomon and the Lord loved him". Note that in verse 15, Batsheba was called Uriah's wife but in verse 24, she was called Daivd's wife.

Trying to cover up our sins is a strategy that will always fail. Instead we should acknowledge our sins and ask for mercy. David did and he got it!