(Read 2 Sam 12:13-19)
This morning we continue our series “Grace that is Simply Amazing.” After Nathan confronted David, the King confessed and said, “I have sinned against the LORD.” David knew he was wrong and he had been exposed by the Lord’s prophet. I am sure David was not sure what would happen next. He could have lost his position, he could have lost favor with the Lord, and he could have even lost his life. Although he was the King and he was used to being in charge, Nathan was there representing God, so David was submitted to anything Nathan had to say. Nathan was the mouthpiece of God so I am sure David waited, with bated breath, on what Nathan would say next. The prophet said, “The LORD has forgiven you, and you won’t die for this sin.” I am sure that was a big relief for David and I am sure he felt a big weight lift off his shoulders. But before David could get too comfortable, the prophet said, “Nevertheless, because you have shown utter contempt for the LORD by doing this, your child will die.” Wow. There was a price to pay and the price was the life of the child. David and Bathsheba had sown bad seed and they would have to endure the harsh consequences of their poor decisions.
The child was born and David begged the Lord to spare his life. David went on a fast, he wept before the Lord and he laid on the bare ground all night long. The elders of his household pleaded with him to get up and eat with them, but he refused. David was hoping he could change God’s mind. David prayed, fasted, cried and pleaded, but on the seventh day the child died. David’s advisers were afraid to tell him. They thought he might go crazy and do something irrational. They were talking amongst themselves when David saw them whispering and realized what had happened. David asked, “Is the child dead?” To which his elders replied, “Yes, he is dead.” And with that David hit the lowest point in his life. He knew he had done wrong. He had shed innocent blood and now there was more innocent blood on his hands. Not just any blood, but blood of his own blood, blood of a week-old baby.
At the time of this writing my youngest child, Ethan Elijah Piña, who was born 12 weeks early on April 13th, is still in the NICU and he is doing very well (praise God). As I think about Ethan I shudder to think about the pain David and Bathsheba must have felt when their baby died. It’s just a reminder that our God — a God of Grace, Love and Mercy — will sometimes allow us to deal with the harsh realities of our poor decisions.
So what does this mean to you today? A few things.
1. You will have a hard time changing God’s mind. Nathan told David, in no unclear terms, that the baby was going to die. David fasted, prayed, cried and pleaded with the Lord, but on the seventh day of the baby’s life the child died, just like God said. There are a couple of scriptures that one could use to possibly make an argument that it is possible to change God’s mind, but for the most part, once God reveals to you what is going to happen, you can count it done. In this case it worked against David, but in most cases it works in our favor. When God reveals to you what is going to happen, before it happens, you can count it done. Come hell or high-water, it’s only a matter of time before it manifests.
2. Prayer should be in agreement with, and not contrary to, the will of God. Prayer is not about you telling God what to do, or about you giving God a laundry list of “wishes.” Prayer should be in agreement with the will of God. There are prayers that you pray when you don’t know what God’s will is. However, when you do know what God’s will is, like David knew in this case, your prayers should be in alignment with His will. Any prayer that goes against the will of God is a prayer that will go unanswered.
3. The God of Grace, Love and Mercy will sometimes allow you to deal with the harsh realities of your poor decisions. Will God get you out of messes that you create? Will God sometimes cause a crop-failure on the bad seed sown? I am a witness that He will. Our God is a good God and He loves us enough to get us out of many tight situations, even when we placed ourselves there in the first place. However, there are times when God will allow us to reap what we have sown, even when the seed was bad. There are times when no amount of prayer, pleading or crying will get us out of what we got ourselves into. David and Bathsheba committed sin and their baby died because of it. No prayer was going to change that. So while we are learning about Grace, don’t mistake Grace to mean that there are no repercussions for foolish decisions. You don’t need the Bible or any preacher to tell you that. Your life has taught you that lesson very well.
Closing Confession: Father, I know there are very few examples in scripture of anyone changing Your mind. I seek to walk with You, to discover Your purpose and plan for my life, and to live in accordance with Your will. When I find out what Your will is, instead of fighting against it, I will accept it, both good and bad. When I don’t know what Your will is concerning a certain situation, I pray for guidance, wisdom and insight, and I pray that Your will would be done. However, when I clearly know what Your will is in a given situation, I formulate prayers that line up with Your will. I pray the prayer of agreement and I align my lips with Your purpose. I align with You and I seek to flow in agreement with Your will. I don’t formulate prayers that go against Your will, because I know that would be a waste of time, energy and effort. I love You, I know You love me, and I seek to live my life in accordance with Your will. You know I am not perfect and I cannot count the many times when You have gotten me out of situations I got myself into. By Your Grace and Mercy You have blessed me in spite of my foolish decisions. However, I also realize that there are times when You allow me to deal with the harsh realities of my foolish decisions. On those occasions I don’t blame You, I don’t allow my heart to cross over into contempt, and I don’t develop bitterness towards my God. I simply realize that I made a bad decision and I have to live with the results. But by Your Grace, even then, I am able to overcome and move on. I enter this day thankful for Your Grace, Love, Mercy and Peace. You are my God and I am glad about it! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper.
