READY - Ask for Forgiveness

Recap: David commits adultery with Bathsheba, tries to cover it up because she gets pregnant and ends up murdering her husband Uriah. David then marries Bathsheba and the baby is born. God sends Nathan the prophet who tells David a story that makes David realize what he has done. 

This is how David replies once he figures out Nathan is talking about him. 2 Sam 12:13 Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.” Nathan replied, “The LORD has taken away your sin. You are not going to die. 

Romans 6:23 “the wages of sin is death…” There are many times in the Bible where someone sins and God strikes them dead because of it. Death was a realistic consequence since David had Uriah murdered. God did not have be merciful to David.

Nathan continues… 2 Sam 12:14-16,18a, 24 But because by doing this you have shown utter contempt for the LORD, the son born to you will die.” After Nathan had gone home, the LORD struck the child that Uriah’s wife had borne to David, and he became ill. David pleaded with God for the child. He fasted and spent the nights lying in sackcloth on the ground... On the seventh day the child died... Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and he went to her and made love to her. She gave birth to a son, and they named him Solomon. The LORD loved him; 

There were consequences to David’s actions even though he asked for forgiveness. However God does not stop blessing David because of his sin. He eventually has another son with Bathsheba named Solomon (this is the son who will eventually take David’s place as king of Israel.)

There’s lots of emotion and feelings that David would have experienced. Many of the psalms were written by David. Psalm 51 was written by David after Nathan came to him. It records all those emotions & feelings David had. 

Psalm 51

For the director of music. A psalm of David. When the prophet Nathan came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba.

1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. 

2 Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. 

3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. 

4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge. 

5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. 

6 Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place. 

7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. 

8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice. 

9 Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. 

10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. 

11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.

12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you.

14 Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, you who are God my Savior, and my tongue will sing of your righteousness. 

15 Open my lips, Lord, and my mouth will declare your praise. 

16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. 

17 My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise. 

18 May it please you to prosper Zion, to build up the walls of Jerusalem. 

19 Then you will delight in the sacrifices of the righteous, in burnt offerings offered whole; then bulls will be offered on your altar.

Through this story and prayer that David wrote, we can see some Steps for Forgiveness:

1. Admitting you have sinned (2 Sam 12:13)

When confronted with his sin, David didn’t make excuses. He admitted his wrong without trying to justify why he did what he did nor did he try to put the blame on Bathsheba or anyone else.

2. Accepting the consequences (Ps 51:4)

There are often real consequences to decisions. Bathsheba got pregnant. Uriah lost his life. Sin makes an impact on us and possibly those around us.

Just because there are consequences, it doesn't mean you can’t ask God for mercy (which means asking for him not to give you the consequences you deserve) (Ps 51:1) In 2 Samuel 12, David 

3. Restore the joy of relationship (Ps 51:12)

When we sin, we break our relationship with Christ. 

4. Don’t dwell on what has happened. (remove the guilt) (Ps 51:14)

Even though we ask for forgiveness, sometimes we keep on thinking about what we did wrong. We don’t always forgive ourselves. Know that God isn’t looking at our sin when he looks at us. Psalm 103:12 As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

5. Change your behavior (Romans 6:1-2a)

Romans 6:1-2a What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! 

If you have truly sought forgiveness, you should not continue to do that action. (But if you do, you can ask for forgiveness again.)

FAQ:

Why do we need to forgive?

Matthew 6:14-15 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Ephesians 4:32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

When do we need to ask for forgiveness?

Anytime we sin, we should ask God for forgiveness. If our sin has impacted someone else, we should ask them for forgiveness.

Matthew 6:11-12 Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 

Will God always forgive me?

Yes! 

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

2 Chronicles 7:14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Micah 7:18 Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy.

How many times should I forgive someone?

As many times as God has forgiven you… which means an infinite number!

Luke 17:3-4 So watch yourselves. “If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying ‘I repent,’ you must forgive them.”

**Note on Psalm 51:11 - We do not have to worry about the Holy Spirit leaving us. In the Old Testament, believers did not automatically have the Holy Spirit indwelling them. They would be anointed with the Holy Spirit for special purposes. David had been given the Holy Spirit when he was anointed by Samuel to be king (1 Sam 16:13). Because of his sin, David feared that the Holy Spirit would leave him (like he had done to Saul (1 Sam 16:14). In the New Testament, we receive the Holy Spirit when we are saved and he indwells us and we don’t have to fear him leaving us (John 14:16, Ephesians 1:13-14).

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This is the third lesson of a 5-part series I was asked to write for the middle school ministry at my Hawaiian Church, New Hope Leeward. The series is on the acronym READY.

READY - Examine Yourself

Last week we looked at Remember. This week we are going to look at Examine.

How to examine yourself:

1. Know and obey the truth. (This happens by reading our Bible and going to church, then putting the things we hear into practice.) (Psalm 119:9-12, 2 Tim. 3:16-17)

Spiritually we can be all over the place. We go through highs and lows. There are times we are close to God and times we are far from Him. There are so many stories in the Bible about King David and we see his writing in many of the Psalms that we can see highs and lows in his life and learn from him.

We’ve previously looked at stories about David to know that he was a lowly shepherd boy, the youngest in his family. He was not the likely choice to be king. But he has a heart for God and he faces public and private giants. Sometimes his decisions honored God and sometimes they did not.

Acts 13:22 - After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.'

David starts off doing well. He is called a man after God’s own heart. In Psalm 119:9-12, we can see some of the ways David followed after God. It says, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.  Blessed are you, O LORD; teach me your statutes!“

David knew the Scriptures and obeyed them. The Bible is God’s Word and so important for us. It is our instruction book for life.  “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17

2. Reflect on your actions, words, thoughts & motives and see if they are in line with God’s will. (Psalm 139:23-24, Prov. 4:23)

Unfortunately, something happens over time where David is no longer making wise choices. We all have the potential to fall into this same thing.

“The spiritual life will never come naturally. Left to what comes naturally, regrettably we will sin. If we are going to live as spiritual [men and] women, it will result from a deliberate, conscious surrender to the Holy Spirit.” (Beth Moore, Living Beyond Yourself, p48-49)

Let’s take a look at 2 Samuel 11:1 “In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel. And they ravaged the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.” David should have gone to war with his men. He sets himself up for failure by not going with his men.

In the following verses, we read about David seeing Bathsheba bathing and he invites her to his house to sleep with her. She gets pregnant and to cover it up, David brings Bathsheba's husband, Uriah, back from the war so he sleep with her. Her husband refuses, so David gets him drunk and tries again. Uriah still refuses, so David has Joab, the captain of the army, get Uriah killed.

In 2 Samuel 11:26-27 it says “When the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she lamented over her husband. And when the mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD.”

In order to follow God and live life deliberately, we need to be in the habit of examining ourselves. David wrote in Psalm 139:23-24 Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

Somewhere along the line David had stopped doing what he knew he was supposed to do. He was so wrapped up in his sin that he was committing sins trying to cover up other sins. Proverbs 4:23 says “Watch over your heart with all diligence, For from it flow the springs of life.” What’s in your heart will show itself.

1. The Holy Spirit is with you to reveal things to you. (John 16:13-15)

2. There are people in your life who can also be used to help you examine yourself, when you don’t recognize issues in your life. (2 Samuel 12)

Luckily for David, he had people in his life who called him out on it. Read 2 Sam 12:1-7a,13 And the LORD sent Nathan to David. He came to him and said to him, "There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. The rich man had very many flocks and herds, but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. And he brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children. It used to eat of his morsel and drink from his cup and lie in his arms, and it was like a daughter to him. Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was unwilling to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the guest who had come to him, but he took the poor man's lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him." Then David's anger was greatly kindled against the man, and he said to Nathan, "As the LORD lives, the man who has done this deserves to die, and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity." Nathan said to David, "You are the man! … David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the LORD."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eho1_fkjiOA (Video recap of 2 Sam 11&12)

Nathan was a prophet that God used to help David examine himself. Sometimes we need others to point out an area of our life we need to examine. We need an outside perspective to help us see what we don’t see on our own. (Share a personal example of this??)

3. Continue doing the things that honor Him. (Col. 3:17)

Just because David sinned he wasn’t disqualified from being king. There were consequences to the decision he made, but he was still able to move forward and serve God.

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:17

4. Stop doing the things that do not honor Him. (2 Timothy 2:22)

After Nathan helped David to see what he had done, David admitted to his wrong and sought forgiveness. He fasted and wept over what he had done and asked the Lord for grace.

“Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” 2 Timothy 2:22

GROUP DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. Do you have healthy spiritual habits? Do you read your Bible? Pray? Listen to worship music? If so how frequently?
2. Do you have people in your life who question you about decisions you are making? Who?
3. Do you listen when you feel the Holy Spirit is prompting you?

Personal Reflection:

1. Is your faith authentic?
2. Do you live what you say you believe?
3. Is there unconfessed sin in your life?
4. Are your motives in the right place?

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This is the second of a 5-part series I was asked to write for the middle school ministry at my Hawaiian Church, New Hope Leeward. The series is on the acronym READY.

We Keep Accountable Because We Love

Do you have one of those friends who tells you what you don't want to hear? Like the little angel sitting on your
shoulder pointing out to you why you shouldn't make whatever dumb decision you're about to make?

At one point in college, I was going through a bit of a rough time and as a result, I wasn't reading my Bible or praying – I was just going through the motions. One of my roommates called me on it. To this day, I can still hear her telling me that I needed to change – "Good Christian girls can get pregnant before they're married, pastors can have affairs and leave their families..." If you don't live for God daily, you can end up like that too…

Time-Out

Ever watch White Wolves? For those of you that haven't had the privilege, a group of teens and their leader go on a backpacking trip, very much like the wilderness trip, with less canoeing. Their goal is to get to the top of Eagle Rock. They eventually make it to the top and disaster strikes! Their trip turns into a rescue mission and they go through struggle after struggle on the way. At one point, after yet another plan doesn’t work out as anticipated, Kara gets overwhelmed and yells out, “No, I can’t do this anymore, I wanna go home!”

Do you ever feel that way? Things get frustrating or scary or hard and you’d rather give up than keep going?