There
is no time in our Christian walk when we are more susceptible to temptation and
sin than when we are not fully and actively engaged in our God-given
assignments. It is so true that an idle mind is the devil’s workshop. This was
the case for David, and it will also be the case for us if we are not watchful
and actively pursuing God and His purpose for us. We concluded from 2 Samuel
10:15-19, that we need to stay alert at all times, more so when we are not
facing any challenge in life. We must not forget Peter’s warning that we have
an enemy who is always prowling around to seek an unguarded moment in us to
devour us.
The event that led up to David’s great fall was his passivity. Instead of leading
his men in the fight to further subdue the Ammonites and the Arameans, he sent
Joab. Second Samuel 11:1 seems to imply that when he should be out on the
battlefield, he chose to stay home. That idling moment left him vulnerable to
the temptation that led to his sin of adultery. Verse 2 describes what happened
in that fateful afternoon. David went up to the rooftop of his house and there
his eyes caught hold of the beautiful Bathsheba taking her bath. What caught
his eyes was unavoidable, but what he did afterward could have been avoided.
Instead of letting what he saw rest, he inquired after her. The report came
back that the naked lady he saw bathing was “Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam,
the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” At that point, David could still walk away
but he chose not to. He allowed his lust for her to consume him, so he asked
for her to be sent. And that fatal attraction became an illicit rendezvous. And
as providence would have it, in that one tryst Bathsheba became pregnant. When
Bathsheba realized that she was pregnant, she sent word to inform
David of her pregnancy. What David did afterward was inexcusable, and we will
talk more about it in our next conversation.
What are some lessons for us? Firstly, we are most susceptible to
temptation when we are idling. So do not stay idle, search out God’s purpose
for us, and take time to fulfill them. Secondly, let’s consider what
Martin Luther, the reformer had said, “We cannot prevent birds from flying over
our heads, but we can keep them from making nests on top of our heads.” It is
true that we cannot prevent tempting thoughts from coming into our minds, but
we do not need to dwell on them and be consumed by them. A temptation, so long
as we do not act upon, is not a sin, but the moment we act on it, it becomes a sin.
Thirdly, we must take seriously the Lord Jesus’s instruction on prayer
especially the line that says, “…lead us not into temptation but deliver us
from evil.” Seek our Heavenly Father’s protection daily. We need it, knowing
that there is a prowling, menacing lion, seeking to do us in. Live for God and
don’t yield to temptation! The consequence can be huge!
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