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Devotional For The Week – 1 September 2008 Sermon Title: True Worship Requires Repentance Have you ever been lost? You know the feeling - the settings are different, the place looks strange. What do you do? You look around. In an attempt to get out, you familiarise yourself with the new area. Soon, the strange surroundings become familiar. You get used to being on the wrong path. Without a guide, you make your own guidelines and continue down that path. In the same way, we too can become lost on our spiritual journeys. King David, whose custom was to go into battle, found himself in that position one spring. Having sent his men to war, he visited his palace roof and saw Bathsheba, the wife of his soldier Uriah, bathing. He summons her and sleeps with her, taking that first step into unfamiliar settings. She becomes pregnant. Instead of repenting, King David set his own guidelines. He tried to cover up his ways by asking Uriah to return from battle so that he could sleep with his wife. That way, the child would appear to be his. But Uriah declined out of concern for his men in the battlefield. King David then decides to kill Uriah to cover up for his sin. The plan succeeds and Uriah dies. King David then takes Bathsheba as his bride. The baby will be assumed to be Uriah’s raised by the very charitable King David. What do you do when you’re lost? Acknowledge you are in the wrong. When we’re lost, we need to repent, to admit that we are at fault. In King David’s situation, God sent Nathan the prophet to convict him of his sin. Realizing that he had done wrong, King David acknowledged his sin. He did not try to excuse himself for what he did. Acknowledging that we have sinned is the first step to correction. It shows we are aware that we are on the wrong road and that we are responsible for our error. Without it, there is no motivation to change. We would then continue to travel down the wrong path. Act: Stop, turn and seek direction. Once we admit we are lost, we must turn and seek God. King David did that, realising that it meant that he would have to face the consequences of his sin. His sin deserved the punishment of death – both his and Bathsheba’s. But because of his repentance, God forgave and spared him from death. However, because he murdered Uriah and committed adultery with Bathsheba, the child born of their union would die. God punished King David for his sin. That was the consequence of his wrong actions. It was necessary for God to do this because David’s sin meant that the kingdom of Israel would be seen in a negative light by the pagan nations around. It would appear that the God of Israel was not serious about sin. God had to make it clear that sin would not be tolerated, that there were consequences to disobeying him, and so God struck the child with an illness and let the child die. When we seek God’s direction, we need to accept His will. Knowing that the child would die from the illness, David fasted and prayed to God, hoping that God would spare the child. But the child died. David accepted this and “got up from the ground, washed himself, put on lotions, and changed his clothes. He went to the Tabernacle and worshipped the LORD.” (2 Samuel 12:20) David behaved in this way because he understood that the death of his child was the punishment decreed for him. He accepted this and resumed his relationship with his God, without grudge – indicating a true acceptance of God’s control over his life. David saw repentance not as a chance to get something out of God but as a means of reconciling his sinful self with God, a move to return to worship. What happens when you repent? When David repented, God’s grace fell on him and out of his union with Bathsheba they had another son, Solomon, the wisest man on earth, a king loved and cared for by God. What God has done for David, he has done for others – Bathsheba, the adulteress, Rahab the prostitute, Jacob, the liar – all eventually becoming members of the family tree of Jesus Christ. God continues to weave redeemed sinners into His perfect plan; all we need to do is repent and return to worship Him. Prayer Response Lord, I have sinned and lost my way, strayed from the commitment I made with You. I admit that I am wrong. Forgive me, God, for ignoring my sin, for continuing in it out of pride and foolishness. I now seek to return to you. I know that this means accepting the consequences of my action. But I thank you Lord for your mercy and forgiveness. I offer You again my heart in worship. Devotional based on a sermon by Rev Joel Yong
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