Psalm 51
Scripture – “A David Psalm, After He Was Confronted by Nathan About the Affair with Bathsheba.”
Observation – ‘After’… the word haunts me.
David’s desires played out in a sexual affair then a cover-up murder that involved the grave abuse of authority and military power. But recognition of his evil came after he was confronted.
What darkness would have taken over David’s heart had Nathan neglected to confront him? Was it courage, boldness, or stupidity that prompted Nathan to confront a lying, adulterous, murderous, and calculating authoritarian?
If only David would have been convicted of his sin at the moment of its conception. If only he would have been attentive to the grieving of the Spirit of God as his selfish desire was growing within him. But it was after he was confronted.
Application – I am David. I am Nathan.
I am David in that my desires can go unchecked in pursuit to fulfill a want or desire that I justify with my own twisted reasoning.
I am Nathan in that I see trouble brewing in friends’ lives and I know I have a responsibility as a brother in Christ.
Oh to live without the ‘after’… but to recognize my sin, repent of my sin, resist it, and walk out renewal of the Spirit in the moment.
Oh to live with such love and concern for my friends to be in relationships of accountability where we can freely speak into each other’s lives.
There is so much truth in 1 John 1:7 “But if we walk in the light, God himself being the light, we also experience a shared life with one another, as the sacrificed blood of Jesus, God’s Son, purges all our sin.” We need each other. I need you Nathans of my life to call me to account when I refuse to listen to the still soft voice. I need courage to be a Nathan for you to, so that together we can walk in the light and put an end to secrets that wait in darkness to destroy.
Prayer – Psalm 51:4-6 “You’re the One I’ve violated, and you’ve seen it all, seen the full extent of my evil. You have all the facts before you; whatever you decide about me is fair. I’ve been out of step with you for a long time, in the wrong since before I was born. What you’re after is truth from the inside out. Enter me, then; conceive a new, true life.”
Lloyd Letkeman
Lloyd is married to Carol and the two of them are Regional Mission Mobilizers – Prairie Region for Mennonite Bretheren Mission.