Scott Wiley here, the Executive Director of Wisdom International. We're celebrating our 25th anniversary this year. What began as a radio programme in a single city has grown into a global ministry now in sixteen languages. We're hosting a banquet to celebrate all that the Lord has done and you're invited. Please visit wisdomonline.org slash twenty five.
That's wisdomonline.org slash 25. There's a link in the show notes. And now here's Stephen with today's message from Wisdom for the Heart. He's miserable, according to what he'll write later in the Psalms. He can't shake the guilt and shame.
He knows that the hand of God is heavy upon him. Think of it this way: a lamb that slips into a mud puddle might enjoy the cool liquid for a moment before it struggles to get out. A pig will slip into a mud puddle and say to himself, Man, I am finally home. This is living, right? The children of God are never completely comfortable with sin.
I personally can't think of a Better time for the voice of the church that believes the gospel to be heard than today. If there was ever a need. It is this hour. In fact, I was given an article by one of my staff pastors and Talking about one of the largest ever roundups of a child pornography ring, and dozens of people were arrested. Front page news, and I had that on my desk this week as I prepared to sort of open our study with this.
What made it even more startling to read was or see was that on the front page of the USA Today were mugshots of these individuals who'd been arrested. individuals that you would expect. could be trusted, individuals that should be. trustworthy And yet, among those arrested, hundreds are going to be caught up in this net. But among them, initially here was a picture, a mugshot of a police chief.
along with another police officer. A nurse. and the gray bearded Middle-aged Jewish rabbi. The article said more than 600 desktop computers have been seized. laptops, tablets, smartphones and other devices containing thousands of images and videos.
These images and videos now pointing a finger of incrimination, undeniable evidence these individuals have been caught redhanded. That expression began to swirl around in my mind, caught red. handed. I did a little study to find out when it started. It's been used and is used to this day in a number of different contexts.
Typically not in a positive way. I found that it appeared for the first time in 1432 in the Scottish Acts of Parliament under the reign of King James I. And it was a new law that attempted to deal with poachers. who were killing deer on other people's property. And the law read, and I quote, although I have translated it into more current English: if the offender be caught.
red-handed. He may be pursued and put to the knowledge of the landlord. In other words, there's no need for an expensive trial, no delay. Turn them over. He literally had the blood of the deer on his hands as incriminating, undeniable evidence.
A little more than 300 years later, Sir Walter Scott, in his novel Ivanhoe, used that expression red-handed, and from there it just sort of picked up and became a popular expression where Scott was referring to a hunter caught with blood on his hands. Having poached a deer, he was caught red-handed. Hand it. It's interesting, as I did a little study on this, to find other cultures have had similar. ways of using this concept.
In Japan, temple monks would paint on their coins, their money, an invisible coating of sap from poison ivy.
So that any thief would eventually break out with an irritating red rash. He'd be detected by his red. Hams. Back in England, the red coats Worn by England's top-tier military, you can still see them parading around Buckingham Palace. Very expensive coats would often be stolen from woollen mills, I read centuries ago, more valuable than they are certainly today.
They would be stolen while hanging on lines, just having been stained with red dye to dry out. And of course, the thieves could be easily apprehended, the red dye visible. from their hands. Also discovered that English nobles had the practice of dipping They're expensive pistachios. In this clear dye, so that if their servants stole any of them, their fingertips and tongues would turn bright red.
Being caught red-handed is traveled down. To us today, it refers to somebody caught either in the act. or with the evidence of wrongdoing in their possession. Being caught red-handed, then, is a metaphor for being caught without any excuse. There's no need for any denial.
You are literally stained, as it were, with the evidence of your wrong. You're wrongdoing.
Now in our last study, if you are with us, we watched the elaborate cover-up of a man whose hands were stained. King David had taken another man's wife for one night. Assuming he'd never be found out. Trouble is, she became Pregnant, and instead of revealing the truth, David. Plunged into this downward spiral of cover-up.
That eventually led to a conspiracy with his top general, Joab, and the death of this woman's husband. While in battle, we left our study in 2 Samuel chapter 11, where we were informed that at the end of the traditional period of mourning, Death of someone, which would have been seven days, David takes the widow. And brings her into his harem as one of his wives and assumes that nobody is the wiser. But there are eyewitnesses, certainly Joab the general, and he'll use it, as I mentioned, against him for the rest of his career. There's certainly the pregnant widow.
Uh joins him in this secret But there was another reliable eyewitness. And we found out who at the end of the chapter Simply Put God. Yeah. Chapter 11 ends. But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.
Even though the Lord wasn't apparently moving, acting, speaking, he was certainly. Watching. And he could see the blood. On David's hands.
Now, by the end of chapter 11, the student of the word assumes that chapter 12 takes place five minutes later, and it doesn't, it's a year later. Keep that in mind. By now, the gossips of the palace. Staff have sort of settled down. They knew what he'd done, though they hadn't, you know, probably any evidence.
They'd figured it out. A few cynics around the court were probably still, you know, moaning, I told you that nothing would happen to David. You know, he's God's pet. And it really does look like David has gotten away with adultery. And murder.
But just in case you're thinking he did, and he's at this moment in between chapter 11 and chapter 12, in that. A 10 to 12 month period of time having the time of his life, think again. Psalm chapter 32 gives us a peek into his heart. It's a psalm that David will write later describing that year period. during that cover-up.
We don't have time, but let me just quickly quote one or two of the lyrics. He says this: Blessed is the man whose transgression is forgiven. That's how he starts. Then he goes into detail. When I kept silent, that is, when I covered up my sin.
My bones Waste it away. He says. through my groaning all the day long. For day and night your hand, he's speaking God, was heavy. Upon me, my strength was dried up like a hot summer day.
He's not having the time of his life. He's buried with guilt. One commentary put it this way: he's not relaxing. He's not sipping lemonade on his patio. Count on it.
He has sleepless nights. He can see his sin written across the ceiling of his room as he tosses and turns. He sees it written across the walls. He sees it on the plate where he tried to choke down his meals. He sees it on the faces of his counselors and his wife, Bathsheba.
He has become a miserable husband, an irritable father, a poor leader, and a songless composer. He is living a lie, but he cannot escape. The truth Well put. He's miserable. The passing pleasure of sin has long since passed.
He can't shake it. And by the way, that's That's the mark of a genuine believer. This actually spells hope. For David. He's miserable, according to what he'll write later in the Psalms.
He can't shake the guilt and shame. He knows that the hand of God is heavy upon him. Think of it this way: a lamb that slips into a mud puddle might enjoy the cool liquid for a moment before it struggles to get out. A pig will slip into a mud puddle and say to himself, Man, I am finally home. This is living, right?
The children of God are never completely comfortable with sin. And you've found that to be true, haven't you?
So the timing of God is delayed, but it's perfect. It's been a year now and David's hidden it. As far as he's concerned, There are no visible stains. It's time for God to move. And with that, chapter 12 opens.
Notice verse 1. And or then 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 You lamb. which he had bought.
And he brought it up. And it grew up with him and with his children, and it used to eat of his food. and drink from his cup. and lie in his arms. And it was like a daughter to him.
By the way, if you're an older believer, you've read through this story. Slow down for a minute. If you're reading it for the first time, you'll notice that Nathan's not coming to David like we as older Bible students think, okay, David, I'm going to deliver to you a parable and you're going to find yourself in the parable. He doesn't announce that, he begins to tell him a story. as if it's happened.
And he really pours on the emotional language, doesn't he? As he describes the bond between this little lamb. and this poor man, and you can just see his children. This is their pet. Did you notice he's doing things for his little lamb that you would not do for your pet?
More than likely, he's letting it, did you notice, eat? right off his plate. And drink right out of his cup, you would not let your dog do that. Right? You wouldn't.
You wouldn't. Yeah. I mean your cat would do it without permission. And then demand refills, but that's another story, okay? You probably wouldn't do that.
Nathan, by the way, is using words. loaded to the Hebrew ear with implication. Let me point out a couple of them. In verse 3, he said that this little lamb lay in his arms. That word is never used between a pet and the owner.
It's a word commonly used for a man embracing, hugging his wife.
So already he's He's sort of noodling around the edges. Here. He also does something else. The phrase that comes next is this lamb was like a daughter. That's actually the same Hebrew word, the first part of it, that you find in the name.
Bat Sheba. The lamb was like a bath. to him. And that must have Arrested. perhaps unconsciously, David's heart pricked.
Notice verse 4.
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 guests who had come to him. But he took the poor man's lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.
Now again, Nathan is using loaded words. In fact, the word for traveler here that I read is a word for someone. who was walking around. It's a different kind of word, not for someone traveling from home to some location. It's actually a word for somebody who's just walking around.
And the interesting thing is that it appears that same verb in the Hebrew language back in chapter 11 to describe David who was walking around his roof. Again, Nathan is... He's loading it up. Here. David isn't necessarily connecting the dots, but But there is something happening to him emotionally because he responds with rage.
Notice verse 5. 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. Keep in mind David just sentenced himself.
Now before we get there Don't you find it interesting to see in David our own ability? to condemn others for doing less than what we have done ourselves. Quick To see in someone even the slightest sliver of what we do. and coming down so hard. The Lord Jesus talks about this, and this is another sermon, but I just want to drop it in here as an aside in Matthew 7.
How is it that we can see the splinter of wood in someone's eye when we have a beam protruding from our own? The splinter And the beam, by the way, are made out of the same thing. same substance, wood. In other words, the person who sins the most in some area is able to spot that same sin in someone else's life, even though it's only a fraction of theirs. The rich man stole something.
David is incensed. What did he steal? Oh, I am? What did David steal? A wife.
A man's life. That sheep stealer ought to die. Why?
Well, because he stole something he had plenty of. Because he acted without pity towards somebody who couldn't defend himself, because he abused his power to do whatever he wanted, because he ripped a family apart with grief. Yes, all of the above. And David just comes off his throne and he sputters in rage as God lives. Oh, we're going to bring God into it, but as God lives, that man who did that deserves to die.
And you can just imagine Nathan pausing. For a fact. as David's sentence just reverberates around the palace walls. And then it gets quiet. And Nathan looks David in the eye and says in verse 7.
You Right. That man. That rich man, David. is you. I can imagine That David's jaw, as one author said, probably dropped open.
He probably blinked a couple of times looking at Nathan. inquisitively at first, and then his eyes opened wide with Suddenly Recognition. He probably slumped back to his throne as his heart began to beat against his chest. He didn't know that anybody knew outside of that closed circle, and they'd kept the secret. He hadn't even thought of the fact that God knew.
He knew God knew. And the prophet of God has just arrived. To spill it. David has been caught, effectively read. Hand it.
David had stains on his heart. that had already begun to eat like corrosive rust away at his peace and joy. His communion with God. Is there something, by the way? A friend that you hope never gets out.
As you look at that text, and by the way, this isn't just to look at David, it's to look in the mirror of the word at ourselves. Is there some stain you're hoping never gets detected? Is there some evidence that you hope never? Surfaces. What if a prophet of God by the name of Nathan showed up at your doorstep this afternoon?
What would happen to the palms of your hands? and the beating of your heart. One author told the interesting story of a man named Rogers Cadenhead. Happened not too long ago. I clipped it, put it away, pulled it out.
Thought it would be a A timely illustration. When Pope John Paul II died, Rogers and others do this.
Some make a pretty decent living off it. Purchased A web domain. Assuming it would be needed later. That web domain He purchased He registered as www.benediction. Sixteen dot Come.
Then he waited. He'd guessed correctly. That would be the Pope's new name. The new Pope's name. He knew that Rome would want it.
He had watched as another name. Pope Benedict 16. had sold on eBay for $16,000.
Now you're wishing you had had the idea yourself, and you didn't do it. He figured that his would be worth more money, and it would be. The article said, in a surprising twist. Rogers informed the Catholic officials who came knocking, and they did. that he didn't want money.
He was a Catholic himself. and wanted the church to have the domain. Instead, he wanted two things. He wanted a free night in the Vatican Hotel. And he wanted complete absolution, no questions asked.
For the third week of March 1987. Makes you wonder what happened. On the third week of March. Whatever it was, that man was carrying it. He was being buried by it.
He didn't want the news out, but he just wanted it wiped. away. I wonder if you're hiding something from God. Is it a business practice that God would never honor? Or your spouse if they found out.
Is it a A relationship you You're nursing along that you shouldn't have. Is it a test score you didn't deserve? Is it a diploma that you didn't earn? Could it be a An award. You didn't merit.
A resume where you didn't completely tell the truth. Is it something from the past you've never admitted? Is it something like David that when we look at a text like this, it surfaces. And your hands feel stained all over again. It robs your joy and your sleep.
And your communion with God, because you know deep down that God knows. Two. What happens next? Is the ultimate solution, and it isn't found in some churches absolution. A church can't wipe stains away.
In fact, before David can interrupt Nathan... with saying anything. What we're often remiss in not noting is that Nathan continues on and delivers some consequences to. David's sin. There are three of them.
First, If I could put it into a sentence form, violence and death would become a part of David's household. Look down at verse 10.
Now, therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house. Because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.
Now, if you study the final years of David's reign from this point forward, the sword. Never. never stops swinging. Never. Murder.
Among the royal family will become the scandal of Jerusalem. It's going to be front page. It would make a serial show fit for 21st century television. It's going to stain the legacy of David's reign. Secondly, not only will violence and murder become part of his household, but illicit lust and immorality.
In fact, in the very next chapter, Lust and Rape. will enter the palace grounds among members of the royal family. David will be powerless to remedy it. In fact, it's going to end in even more murder. There will be immorality that David would never dream of.
Why?
Because his children will see his compromise and his sin, and they will take it a thousand miles further than he would have ever wanted or dreamed. They're going to run with it because that mud puddle is home to them. And they'll excuse themselves on what they've seen their father do. And that's one of the challenges and penalties of being a parent or even being a leader. In verse 11, Nathan says, Thus says the Lord: Behold, I am going to raise up evil against you out of your own house.
I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor. This is, by the way, judgment on David's ongoing sin. Having more than one wife. And he, this neighbor, Shall lie with your wives. In plain view.
Verse 12, you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun. In other words, God is going to allow a sinner to take what David did secretly and parade it. And this is going to be fulfilled by Absalom. David's son, as he overthrows his father's throne or attempts to. But in the meantime, of that coup, as David is running for his life, Absalom takes David's harem, pitches a tent on the top of the palace roof, and defiles all of them sexually as a show of his power now, and certainly his utter contempt and hatred for his father.
I can remember my father often telling us four boys, my father grew up on a farm and has that. That rural wisdom at times that comes out, and he would often say to us as we grew up that we could not sow a life of wild oats and then pray for a crop failure. Even though David will be forgiven, there is still the principle of reaping. and sewing and There are some consequences that will linger that For the believer who has asked forgiveness will continually take before the Lord for strength. If anybody thinks David gets a free pass.
You just haven't read the rest of this story. That was Stephen Davey, and this is Wisdom for the Heart, a production of Wisdom International. Learn more at wisdomonline. org
