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welcome to everyone it's good to be back in the house of our God and the Sabbath evening for our call to worship you can turn with me to Psalm 32 psalm 32 i'll begin reading in verse 1 a psalm of david a contemplation blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven whose sin is covered blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity and in whose spirit there is no deceit when I kept silent my bones grew old through my groaning all the day long for day and night your hand was heavy upon me my vitality was turned into the drought of summer say law I acknowledged my sin to you and my iniquity I have not hidden I said I will confess my transgressions to the Lord and you forgave the iniquity of my sin say law for this cause everyone who is godly shall pray to you in a time when you may be found surely in a flood of Great Waters they shall not come near him you are my hiding place you shall preserve me from trouble you shall surround me with songs of deliverance say law I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go I will guide you with my eye do not be like the horse or like the mule which have no understanding which must be harnessed with bit and bridle else they will not come near you many sorrows shall be to the wicked but he who trusts in the Lord mercy shall surround him be glad in the Lord and rejoice you righteous and shout for joy all you upright in heart amen will please turn with me to Psalm 100 a Psalm 100 a la will stand as we sing together [Music] well let us pray our God and Father it's a joy for us to be in the house of God on the Sabbath day we come before you and acknowledge that you are glorious that you are wondrous that you are Most High that you are Father Son and Holy Spirit from everlasting to everlasting the God who made this beautiful world the God who governs all his creatures and all their actions and the God and father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has redeemed us through that precious blood through that active obedience of our beloved Savior and through his death at Calvary we have redemption we give praise to you and as we gather together tonight as we sing these Psalms and hymns may you indeed cause us to do so in a spirit of reverence a spirit of joy and Thanksgiving and God may you be glorified and enthroned upon the praises of your people here as we look to Holy Scripture and we pray that your spirit would be at work in our hearts and in our minds that he would magnify before us the glorious grace of our great God as well our Father we would learn from the Scriptures that we would see them as that authoritative and infallible in an inerrant Word of the Living God and that we would be submissive to your truth and as we participate in the supper tonight may we proclaim the Lord's death until he comes may we remember in a special way with these these tangible elements the death of our Savior the broken body in the shed blood on behalf of his people and God made these things again draw out from us worship and praise and adoration and may you impart grace to our hearts and may you further conform us unto the image of your beloved son and we do pray that as we gather here tonight God would be all-in all in this place we ask now that you would forgive us for our sins and our transgressions as David rehearsed us here in psalm 32 how blessed is that man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity and how we see in the book of Romans that that that imputation of Christ's righteousness to the elect God these things are truly amazing that you made Christ who knew knows to be sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in him how we praise you for the gospel of our salvation and how we praise you that in the doctrine of justification by faith alone you are just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus and even now Lord God as we come come into this place and as we are confronted by the the holiness of God in the scripture and in our worship we confess our iniquities in our transgressions to you we ask that you would wash us in that precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ that we would indeed repair to that fountain that is open for sin and uncleanness and that we would know that that blessedness of the forgiveness of sin we ask God for any and all who've come here tonight and are strangers to these things that you would work in their hearts that you would convict them of their sin and show them the great grace of God Almighty and we pray that you would draw sinners unto Christ and that they would confess him in faith and repentance we pray that for other churches here in our community we pray that for the work in Surrey and in Vernon we pray all over the earth God as your gospel is proclaimed on this Lord's Day that that word would not return unto you void but it would accomplish the purpose for which you sent it and that men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation would confess faith in our Lord Jesus Christ God we asked that tonight you would look with favour upon this church in terms of the the physical needs we know there are many struggling with ongoing challenges and trials and we commit them to you into the word of your grace we pray that you would sustain them we pray that they would know the nearness of God as their good and that father even though the outer man does decay the inner man would be renewed day by day for all of us God we all come with various temptations and trials and afflictions we all come with various spiritual challenges and difficulties perhaps depression and melancholy and sorrow and we would pray tonight that the Word of God and the Spirit of God would find us out would encourage our hearts would strengthen us with might and the inner man and that father we would know that the goodness of God is our portion tonight we ask for your blessing to be upon the nation to the earth we know there are many nations where the that the people of God suffer for the cause of God and we would pray most hard that she would be gracious to your Saints laboring in these foreign lands that you would uphold and sustain and encourage them and that father they would indeed be protected we think specifically of that nation of China and the increased oppression going on there we ask for those who remain that you would just guard them and watch over them and we pray that more and more people would come to know Christ as Lord and Savior in that nation and all over the earth father we pray that you would cause your face to shine upon the nations that you would let the nation's be glad and that the peoples would know the way the salvation of our great God and we ask these things in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ amen well please turn with me in your hymn books to number 283 283 again we'll stand as we sing 283 [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] we can turn in your Bibles to second Samuel Chapter eleven second Samuel Chapter eleven our focus tonight is on chapter 12 verses 1 to 15 but I did want to set that section in the larger context because it's crucial that we see the sin of David in chapter 11 as Nathan confronts him in Chapter 12 so beginning in chapter 11 at verse 1 it happened in the spring of the year at the time when Kings go out to battle that David sent Joab and his servants with him and all Israel and they destroyed the people of Ammon and besieged Rabbah but David remained at Jerusalem then it happened one evening that David arose from his bed and walked on the roof of the king's house and from the roof he saw a woman bathing and the woman was very beautiful to behold so David went and inquired about the woman and someone said is this not Bathsheba the daughter of aalayam the wife of Uriah the Hittite then David sent messengers and took her and she came to him and he lay with her for she was cleansed from her impurity and she returned to her house and the woman conceived so she sent and told David and said I am with child then David sent to Joab saying send me Araya the Hittite and Joab sent Uriah to David when the Araya had come to him David asked how Joab was doing and how the people were doing and how the war prospered and David said to Uriah go down to your house and wash your feet so Uriah departed from the King's house and a gift of food from the King followed him but Uriah slept at the door of the King's house with all the servants of his Lord and did not go down to his house so when they told David saying Uriah did not go down to his house David said to Uriah did you not come from a journey why did you not go down to your house and Uriah said to David the Ark and Israel and Judah are dwelling in tents and my lord Joab and the servants of my Lord are encamped in the open fields shall I then go to my house to eat and drink and to lie with my wife as you live and as your soul lives I will not do this thing then David said to Uriah wait here today also and tomorrow I will let you depart so your I remained in Jerusalem that day and the next now when David called him he ate and drank before him and he made him drunk and that evening he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his Lord but he did not go down to his house in the morning it happened that David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah and he wrote in the letter saying set Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle and retreat from him that he may be struck down and die so it was while Joab besieged the city that he asked you assigned Uriah to a place where he knew there would be where there were valiant men then the men of the city came out and fought with Joab and some of the people of the servants of David fell and Uriah the Hittite died also then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war and charged the messenger saying when you have finished telling the matters of the ward of the King if it happens at the King's wrath Rises and he says to you why did you approach so near to the city when you fought did you not know that they would shoot from the wall who struck Abimelech the son of guru guru Bichette was it not a woman who cast a piece of millstone on him from the wall so that he died in thei bus' why did you go near the wall then you shall say your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also so the messenger went and came and told David all that Joe had said to had sent it by him and the messenger sent said to David surely the men prevailed against us and came out to us in the field then we drove them back as far as the entrance of the gate the archers shot from the wall at your servants and some of the king's servants are dead and your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also then David said to the messenger thus you shall say to Joab do not let this thing displease you for the sword devours one as well as another strengthen your attack against the city and overthrow it so encourage him when the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead she mourned for her husband and when her 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 displease the Lord then the Lord sent to Dave Nathan to David and he came to him and said to him there were two men in one city one rich and the other poor the rich man had exceedingly many flocks and herds but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb which he had bought and nourished and it grew up together with him and with his children it ate of his own food and drank from his own cup and lay in his bosom and it was like a daughter to him and a traveler came to the rich man who refused to take from his own flock and from his own herd to prepare one for the wayfaring man who had come to him but he took the poor man's lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him so David's anger was greatly aroused against the man and he said to Nathan as the Lord lives the man who has done this shall surely die and he shall restore fourfold for the lamb because he did this thing and because he had no pity the Nathan said to David you are the man thus says the Lord God of Israel i anointed you king over Israel and I delivered you from the hand of Saul I gave you your master's house and your masters wives in Dior keeping and gave you the house of Israel and Judah and if that had been too little I also would have given you much more why have you despised the commandment of the Lord to do evil in his sight you have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword you have taken his wife to be your wife and have killed him with the sword of the people of ammon 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 thus says the Lord behold I will raise up adversity against you from your own house and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor and he shall lie with your wives and the sight of this son for you did it secretly but I will do this thing before all Israel before the son so David said to Nathan I have sinned against the Lord and Nathan said to David the Lord also has put away your sin you shall not die however because by this deed you have given great occasion to the the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme the child also who is born to you shall surely die then Nathan departed to his house amen well let us pray our Father we thank you for the written word of the living and true God and God even passages like these they they shocked us they scare us and as calvin says they cause the hair on our on our heads and necks to rise up but God they demonstrate to us the graciousness that you manifest the forgiveness of sin not to produce or instigate or invite us to go out and do likewise in order that we may receive that grace that certainly demonstrate the glory of Jesus Christ and the power of atoning blood god help us now as we navigate through this passage help us to know the presence and the aid of the holy spirit and may these things speak peace to our hearts and we ask in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ amen it's obvious what is happening here in Chapter eleven david engages in gross sin in great sin against the living and the true god we see that he goes and he engages in adultery with Bathsheba and then he attempts to cover it up now unfortunately for David Uriah is actually a man of integrity David sets it up in such a way that Uriah will no doubt lie with his wife so that when it's found out she's pregnant everybody will assume that it's Uriah's baby but Uriah as a man of integrity will not go into his wife while Joab while the servants of Yahweh are on the battlefield and so David then enacts another plan he concocts a plan to have Uriah killed on the battlefield and he sends that letter with Uriah himself to give to Joab again this Sharia the Hittite is a man of great integrity as he's displayed here in this particular passage he goes out to battle of course Joab follows distress instructions from his gang and Uriah is set forth in the hottest part of the battle and he dies on the battlefield you'll notice that God is absent from chapter 11 except for the last statement there's no reference to God whatsoever except at the very end when it says but the thing that David had done displeased the law last we forget God even though he is silent in terms of this particular chapter he is not blind he observes what happens he sees what's going on and now he acts in his initiative to correct David to rebuke David and to bring David back on a path to forgiveness Calvin does says say concerning this story he says here is a story which should make our hair stand straight up on end whenever we think of it that a servant of God as excellent as David should fall into such a serious and enormous sin that he could be judged as the most morally lacks and promiscuous person in the world I want to look at first of all the instruction by God's servant in verses 1 to 6 secondly the indictment of Israel's King in verses 7 to 12 and then finally the demonstration of God's grace in verses 13 and 14 notice how the passage begins at verse 1 then the Lord sent Nathan to David in chapter 11 David is in control David sees Bathsheba and he sends his man to go and fetch her David then sends for Uriah the Hittite so that Uriah will lie with his wife David then sends a letter to Joab instructing him on how to dispose of Uriah the Hittite well now it's the Lord's initiative God is in control and the Lord sent Nathan to David and this is a great mercy it's a great blessing and it's a great encouragement God does not leave David in his sin God finds him out God exposes him in order that God may indeed forgive him Davis says they show these words that the Lord sent they show us that grace pursues and exposes the sinner in his sin they teach us that Yahweh will not allow his servant to remain comfortable in sin but will ruthlessly expose his sin lest he settle down in it you may succeed in unfaithfulness but God will come after you John Calvin says let us note that there is nothing better than when God sends us messengers of his wrath for then he can make us feel his mercy and and cease to enjoy our sins so that we may apprehend his vengeance and our conscience may torment us to the extent of humbling us to seek pardon and remission in him until he has accepted us so this is the initiative of God's grace in that he sent Nathan to David the Prophet now consider David's condition here he had been at least nine months in unrepentant said he engages in this particular activity Uriah the Hittite dies Bathsheba then mourns for her husband and then David sends for her takes her she bears a child that child is ultimately going to die as a consequence a temporal consequence of David's sin but he kept silent about his sin it makes us or helps us to understand that statement there in psalm 32 it helps us to understand in Psalm 38 when he talks about his iniquities overwhelming him he was silent as a murderer and as an adulterer before the living and true God he was not seeking repentance he was not in his own ingenuity or integrity of heart say well I need to fix things I need to get things right no he's in a settled course at this particular time and God sends the Prophet to him in this initiative now notice the parable that the Prophet tells it's very easy to follow it's very easy to understand the rich man in the story is King David and the poor man is Uriah the Hittite we notice that the long description of this Uriah the Hittite poor man in second in chapter 12 it tells us about how he loves this you lamb you know you think about people today that put little sweaters on their dogs and they take pictures of them and that sort of thing we think that's out outlandish well look at what's happening here this this man treats this you lamb like it's his daughter he has a great affinity for this lamb he loves it and it highlights for us the relationship that obtained between Uriah and Bathsheba this was the the wife of his youth this was the woman that he loved this was the woman that meant everything to him and it's the same sort of analogous relationship with reference to this you lay out notice that the man has a visitor and so the rich man instead of going into his own flock and fetching out a lamb to kill for his visitor he takes just like we read in chapter 11 verse 4 David took Bathsheba the same way this rich man takes this poor man's you lamb it is a perfect analogy to the situation and after the parable we see the response of King David in verses five and six he is outraged he is livid he is upset he calls for the death penalty when this particular crime does not necessitate the death penalty Exodus 21 one does not stipulate or twenty two one does not stipulate the death penalty for property theft but David is so outraged because this man did not have any pity in fact look at what David says in verse five David's anger was greatly aroused against the man and he said to Nathan as the Lord lives the man who has done this shall surely die or literally he deserves to die and he shall restore fourfold for the Lamb because he did this thing and because he had no pity Robert alter says Nathan's rhetorical trap has now snapped shut I mean from a homiletic vantage point what nathan is doing here is marvelous I mean this is spectacular preaching this is phenomenal preaching he has David hook line and sinker and David has no clue whatsoever that it's him there is no consciousness in David's mind that this story about the rich man and the you and the poor man is about King David and Uriah so alters says Nathan's rhetorical trap has now snapped shut David by his access of anger condemns himself and he becomes the helpless target of the denunciation that Nathan will unleash he doesn't know what's happening in this particular situation notice the reason again verse 6 at the very end because he had no pity now notice the of Israel's King in verses 7 to 12 again this is one of those homiletically ingenious situations then Nathan said to David you are the man imagine being David in that particular instance when the very wrath and fury and judgment of God falls right upon you you're outraged rightly so at the rich man in the parable you're outraged rightly so at this rich man who showed no pity and deserve to die and then you find out from the prophet of God that that rich man is you that is precisely what happens in this instance Alexander White says Nathan sword was within an inch of David's conscience before David even knew that Nathan had a sword he totally has him in this instance now notice the explanation given by the prophet of God to David in the first place he highlights God's grace it wasn't God's skin genus that instigated or invited David said it was not that at all and the graciousness and the kindness of God that is herein explained by the Prophet only serves to exacerbate the enormity of the crime when a man goes out and commits adultery and his wife is generous benevolent and loving it exacerbates all the more the heinous nough sinful in that particular man's sin again this is no stingy god this is no miserly god this isn't a God who has given you a few things David and you should just not go under but rather God has a lavish grace upon him notice the Lord anointed David king over Israel verse 7 you are the man thus says the Lord God of Israel i anointed you king over Israel the Lord as well delivered Saul David from Saul's and remember that Saul hated David Saul wanted to destroy David there were instances where Saul could have done that that damage to David and yet every time in every instance such that David could say at least twice in his life at the beginning of his life and at the end of like he says that the Lord has delivered me from all adversities David knew this reality in his own heart notice that David doesn't say to to Nathan oh hold on there for just a moment you know it was it was my grip it was my determination it was my ingenuity no God made him king over Israel and God delivered him him from the hand of Saul but then as well notice that the Lord gave David saw David's Saul's house and Saul's wives notice I anointed you king over Israel I delivered you from the hand of Saul I gave you your master's house and your masters wives into your keeping Lords you weren't hurting David it wasn't for a lack that you needed to go out and and seek out and take Bathsheba there was nothing wanting on your part other than your lust your unbridled desire and your wicked heart and then he goes on to say as well I gave you the book the house of Israel and Judah what happens at the time of David there's this consolidated Kingdom it obtains under Solomon as well but it will ultimately be divided but David has this this blessed position of occupied the kingdom or the throne with reference to both kingdoms of Israel and Judah so the Lord highlights these for him through the Prophet Nathan but then notice what God goes on to say and if that had been too little I also would have given you much more it's like God says I just gave and I gave and I gave and if that was lacking David all you would have had to do is ask you didn't have to go up on your palace or the roof of your palace you didn't have to look upon Bathsheba you didn't have to deceptively go and take her you didn't have to violate the seventh commandment going into her and you certainly shouldn't a violating the sixth commandment in covering up that misdeed by murdering her husband if that would have been too little I would have given you more see brethren that is our God he doesn't miserly or grudgingly dispense grace to his people the Apostle Paul tells us that he be graced us the Apostle Paul heaps up prepositions on words to make them more powerful and strong to indicate the graciousness and the merciful Ness of our God so again we don't take passages like these and say well you know David was forgiving of gross sin therefore I'm gonna go out and commit gross sin so that I can be forgiven - no that's not the way we take these passages but when we do sin we have an advocate with the father even Jesus Christ the righteous it seems to me or occurs to me that that's one of the more difficult passages in the Bible to appropriate practically my little children I write these things so that you may not sit we all get that we all track with that we all resonate with that as the people of God were supposed to be holy as the people of God were supposed to be obedient as the people of God were supposed to follow our Lord as the people of God were supposed to pursue holiness without which no one will see the Lord we get that part of John's statement that my little children I write these things to you so that you may not sin but if anyone does sin we have an advocate with the father even Jesus Christ the righteous it's a blessed reality isn't it the idea isn't well you need to you know whip yourself four four six Monte to put ashes in your soup you need to wear hair shirts you need to really show your penance before you can ever go to the Savior no we have an advocate with the father even Jesus Christ the righteous all of us should be very familiar with the Apostles Creed when we confess what the church is all I believe in the forgiveness of sins that's where our peace with God is the Lord is full of grace to David in this context however it exacerbates the enormity of David's sin Davis Ralph Davis says Yahweh begins with grace for sin to appear as lurid as it should it must stand in the blaze of grace treachery may only appear hideous when viewed against the fidelity it has despised so Yahweh itemizes His grace to David in verses 7 and 8 in this way Yahweh stresses the senselessness of David's sin and isn't all sin ultimately les why in the world would we defile ourselves pursuing that which is contrary to God it really is senselessness when we engage in violation of God's law and and I think that that's the backdrop we need to understand with reference to this situation now note specifically the accusation leveled in verse nine he speaks of the lawlessness of David's act he says why have you despised the commandment of the Lord why have you despised whenever we don't obey God's law it is a betrayal it is a revelation rather of what we think of God himself in fact compare verse 10 notice in verse 10 because you have despised me a despising of God's holy commandment is a despising of God himself he highlights the gravity of Dave David Zack notice in verse 9 why have you despised the commandment of the Lord to do evil in his sight this wasn't a walk in the park this wasn't your sort of normal everyday sin this is evil in the sight of God Almighty and then notice the treachery of David's act he details it he describes it the rich man took the ewe lamb barbecued it and served it to his friend that's not a great detailed sort of explanation but when it comes to David's treachery the profit details specifically what it meant for David to despise the commandment of God and again I think this is very helpful we need to load our consciences with the guilt of sin that will hopefully provoke in us repentance but notice he killed Uriah that Nathan says that you have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword see a conspiracy to commit murder all the conspirators are murderers if you engage in a conspiracy but you don't actually pull the trigger you are as guilty as the one who pulled the trigger and in some instances your guilt may be more so braver than the man who pulled the trigger I'm not suggesting any of you engage in this whatsoever but the point is it wasn't David that actually took a sword and cut Uriah's head off but it was David that took a sword and cut Uriah's head off you killed Uriah and then you took his wife as your own wife you violated the seventh word with her initially you have him rubbed out and then to add insult to injury you actually add her to your own harem David this is wrong and you shouldn't do that and then notice he brought shame upon Uriah remember your ayah the Hittite was a man of integrity Uriah the Hittite wouldn't go home to lay with his wife why because the Ark of the Covenant was on the battlefield Joab is commander was out on the battlefield his his fellow troops were out on the battlefield Uriah was a man of integrity he's one of David's mighty men that we learn of later in the former prophets but with reference to David's killing of of Uriah notice what happens here at the very end of verse nine and have killed him with the sword of the people of ammon that was shameful to be killed by your enemy was shameful to be bested on the battlefield wasn't Uriah's fault that he ended up dead on that battlefield but history following would say well did you hear about your eye at a hittite he he died at the hands of the ammonites no he died at the hands of israel's king he died at the hands of a man that had betrayed his god and had betrayed his calling he died at the hands of King David of Israel that's the sin in view now notice the consequence is described in verses 10 to 12 this is the major emphasis in chapters 13 to 20 of second Samuel see God forgives his sin I'm going to cut to the chase and tell you that God does forgive his sin but the forgiveness of our sins in the spiritual realm does not always mitigate against temporal consequences for our set in other words if somebody is sexually profligate and they contract AIDS and then they get converted that doesn't necessarily mean they're going to be cured from their AIDS those temporal consequences are still associated with our sin and David would know consequences David would know suffering and shame and hardship in a way that he already hadn't I mean running from Saul having to deal with the Philistines having all these different people in his life that were out to kill him probably looked like a walk in the park compared to what he's going to face in chapters 13 to 20 in second Samuel notice what God says through the Prophet he says therefore the sword shall never depart from your house go back to 11:25 when David is especially philosophical with the servant in terms of how he should instruct Joab verse 25 of chapter 11 then David said to the messenger thus you shall say to Joab do not let this thing displease you for the sword devours one is well is another excuse me strengthen your attack against the city and overthrow it so encourage him so David gets the news of Uriah the Hittite he says we'll go back to Joab and just tell him you know that's the way the cookie crumbles the sword devours one sometimes devours the others musing philosophically probably happy and content that Uriah the Hittite is dead here he sees that the sword will never depart from his own house what's going to happen here soon in chapter 13 his son Amnon is going to be murdered executed by his son Absalom because of in sexual rape Amnon takes Tamar and he rapes her Absalom doesn't like this so Absalom dispatches Amnon Absalom himself meets his end in chapter 18 and then Adonijah tries to take the throne when it rightly goes to Solomon - Solomon dispatches at a Naija so the sword didn't depart from David's house but notice what else he says 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 thus says the Lord behold I will raise up adversity against you from your own house this would happen through his son Absalom remember Absalom usurped David Absalom hung out at the city gates any-any would and romanticized the hearts of the children of Israel and they came over to his side Absalom stole the kingdom from David David had to physically leave from Jerusalem David had to depart because his son rose up and took his throne but notice what else the tax specifies that occurs in 2nd Samuel 16 in verse 11 thus says the Lord behold I will raise up adversity against you from your own house and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this son for you did it secretly but I will do this thing before all Israel before the son now this actually occurs in chapter 16 remember Absalom has raised up Absalom has wooed the hearts of many in Israel Absalom is the usurper of the of the crown and throne and so this a hipa fell gives Absalom counsel he says take gave it's wives and concubines take him up on the roof of the palace ironically the same roof from whence David's spied on Bathsheba take them up there and have relations with them and you might ask why was that counsel of a hit the felt good because those following Absalom if he Absalom reconciled with David the followers of Absalom would be executed for treason and so a hit the fells council is most excellent you need to distance yourself and show there is a breach between you and David and a breach that's not going to repair and by deuce doing so you will strengthen the hands of your followers that is conspicuous if eclis what the tax highlights happens so a hit the fellows council take them up there have relations with them in the sight of all Israel so that all Israel know that there's no way that David and Absalom are going to reconcile that actually happened that actually occurred his own son does this to drive a wedge further in their relationship and to strengthen the hands of his followers it's a pretty severe indictment of Israel's King this event it's pretty heavy-duty but it's pretty heavy-duty sin in chapter 11 he committed adultery and murder a man after God's own heart we can't ever forget that and at this point brethren I don't think it's the right response away well he wasn't a believer here yes he was a believer how does he pray in Psalm 51 take not thy Holy Spirit from me restore unto me the joy of thy salvation give me something back that was lacking or Psalm 23 he talks about going astray and God bringing him back psalm 32 we've already seen it I I kept silent about my sin Psalm 38 my iniquities have gone over my head he did gross sin in the sight of God and so the Prophet comes and he indict sin and that leads us finally to the demonstration of God's grace in verses 13 and 14 notice David's confession in 13 so David said to Nathan I have sinned against the Lord that's it that's all you're not gonna grovel you're not gonna put ashes in your soup you're not gonna put a hair shirt on you're not gonna whip yourself you're not going to show that you mean business brethren I think at times we think this kind of stuff is too little he deserves to grovel he deserves to cry out more and more and more until God brings grace to him gave his comments some may consider this confession to brief after all David only says two Hebrew words and Nathan gives him an assurance of pardon does David get off too easily is he only expected to say the right formula we would prefer him to wallow in his guilt and plead beg and agonize over the possibility of pardon if only he would rise an obvious misery we should know better but we still assume that intensity of repentance contributes to atonement that's the problem we think that somehow our groveling or our whipping of ourselves or our hair shirts or our addition of ashes to our super or our you know monastic life somehow contributes to the transaction of atonement no atonement is wrought through the doing in the dying of our Lord Jesus Christ that is the basis of our acceptance with God yes it's a simple confession but it's a legit confession the burl burg Bible which is I understand is a a German Study Bible 1726 to 1729 the comment is here the words are very few just as in the case of the publican in the Gospel of Luke remember the publican God be merciful to me the sinner he doesn't even look up into heaven the Pharisee has this long prayer thanking God that he's not like other men especially like these sort of publicans here and the publican can't even look up into heaven he beats his breast and says God be merciful to me the sinner brethren atonement is not conditioned upon our prayer now certainly there is a repentant spirit certainly there is that change of mind certainly there is that that that faith response to the offered mercy in our Lord Jesus Christ but the length of our prayer the extent of our prayer the the response of our prayer is not what makes atonement it's why in the past we have exhorted in this pulpit that if you have sin in your heart or life confess it before taking the supper you don't need five weeks to do that you can do what David does I have sinned against the Lord now for those who say well if we do that it'll foster this easy believe ISM this cheap grace sort of thing I guarantee you David is not a specimen of easy believe ism or of cheap grace david is thoroughly ruined David understands that and the only thing David can say is I have sinned against the Lord back to the burl burg they say that is a sign of a thoroughly broken spirit there is no excuse no cloaking no palliation of the sin there is no searching for a loophole no pretext put forward no human weakness pleaded he acknowledged his guilt openly candidly and without prevarication that's great imagine if one of our political leaders saved the country you know millions and millions of dollars by actually Manning up and standing before Congress of the Senate and saying I have sinned against the Lord great thank you we can deal with that it's all this prevarication it's all this well it wasn't really me it's all this arguing and trying to shift the blame notice that David doesn't do that David doesn't say well you know if Bathsheba hadn't been bathing naked I wouldn't be in this mess David doesn't blame the Prophet Nathan say well you know you're stepping out of line I'm the king of Israel and you shouldn't talk this way David doesn't proffer his so-called good works before God well you know this is the only occasion thus far in my kingship when I've done something so daster he doesn't do that he owns his sin the simplicity of it highlights and demonstrates that he owns his sin and one other thing before we move on I suspect at times we as God's people are suspicious of repentance on the part of those who get caught right sometimes people get caught and then they repent we go wait a minute he only repented because he got caught praise God he got caught so that he would repent what's wrong with us why do we do that why are we holier than God why are we more what well it would have been good for him to be musing over Romans 7 and get affected in his heart and come forth yeah it would have been good if he'd done that but praise God he sends Nathan to show David his wickedness so that he'll repent repentance is repentance whether it's before you get caught or after you get caught so put that to bed brother well you know he only confessed his sin because he got caught by his olders or he only confessed his sin because he got by as his or she got caught by her husband he only confessed his sin because you know he had chocolate all over his face and his mother knew that he stole the cookies human repentance his repentance and praise God that he oftentimes catches us so that we will actually repent now know God's affirmation concerning his sin verse 13 be and Nathan said to David the Lord also has put away your sin you shall not die so the prophet Nathan who highlights the gravity of David's sin is now highlighting the gravity of God's grace God's mercy God's kindness again none of us who are blood-bought none of us who are legette are going to say wow this is my ticket to go out and sin with all kinds of abandon because God will always forgive me no that's not what we do but when we do sin we have an advocate with the father even Jesus Christ the righteous the Lord also has put away your sin you shall not die now in terms of this statement John Diehl says though he should die a corporeal death the Lord's physically David does die and he's going to die yet not by the immediate hand of God or by the sword of justice as a malefactor a murderer and adulterer as he according to the law deserved to die he did deserve that nor should he die a spiritual death though his grace had been so low and his corruptions had risen so high so the Lord God promises through the Prophet that he has put away the sin he's atoned for that sin he has covered that sin that's one of the fundamental meanings of atonement it is to cover now man tries to cover sin by deception man tries to cover sin by hiding man tries to cover sin by lying but God actually does cover sin and he covers it in the blood of Jesus Christ our Lord and this is what he to the Lord also has put away your sin you shall not die but again there be temporal consequences associated with David's rebellion and in verse 14 however because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme see when we sin we give great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme oh they're no better than us they're there God must not be any more holy than Bale they conduct themselves in the same sort of way I mean in Bale worshiping countries.the the Kings do that sort of thing they go and they pursue other women and then they kill people to get in their way David's just like the rest of that by this sin you've given occasion to the enemies of God to blaspheme and hear specifically he speaks concerning the death of the child however because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme the child also who was born to you shall surely die then Nathan departed to his house well brethren in conclusion I think there's a few things we ought to capitalize on and then move into the supper in the first place we ought to appreciate the initiative of God that first Clause in chapter 12 verse 1 is glorious then the Lord sent Nathan then the Lord sent Nathan kids praise God if your parents catch you doing bad things praise God if you don't get away with stuff praise god almighty because that means there's a purpose there's there's remedy there's redemption hopefully not always obviously but we need to appreciate the initiative of God that he doesn't leave us in our sin if we are genuinely blood-bought if we are genuinely those for whom Jesus died if we're believers in Christ Jesus our Lord and we fall into a pattern of sin God has his ways to find us out God has his ways to recover us and God has his ways to bring us back into the fold and in this case he used the faithful preaching of the Prophet Nathan and this amazing parable to highlight David's culpability for his sin secondly we ought to appreciate the grace of God the grace of God to David prior to this occasion David was always dependent upon the grace of God David was always considered a man after God's own heart and in order for that to be true he must have been a recipient of God's grace and you see that with David from the call or the identification of David in 1st Samuel chapter 16 you know there's this special relationship between God and David and it's a relationship founded upon grounded in the very grace of God Almighty secondly the grace of God toward David after his fall into sin so David says I have sinned against the Lord and the Prophet says the Lord also has put away your sin grace mercy loving-kindness as well the grace of God toward David as a result of the redemptive work of Jesus Christ make no mistake brethren in psalm 32 david is preaching jesus in psalm 32 david is rejoicing in jesus in psalm 32 david is highlighting jesus paul does the same thing in romans chapter 4 citing gave its words from psalm 32 you say well he didn't know Jesus he did know Jesus by type by shadow by prefigurement the Old Covenant system pointed those people forward pointed them to that seed of the woman revealed to us in genesis 3:15 that seed of the woman that would crush the serpent that victor that champion that messiah and in fact as persons read this in the original setting they would long for the heir of david in 2nd samuel 7 and they would see that even David's in here does not invalidate or does not make shipwreck the promise of God to bring forth Messiah Luther makes this observation it's actually from his commentary on Galatians if I haven't said this recently I'll say it now reboot there on Galatians for the good and happiness of your soul it's like sitting with a pastor who knows the doctrine of justification by faith very well and just keeps hammering you with it not actually not hammering Luther doesn't hammer in the Galatians commentary he probably does the heretics along the way but in terms of the people of God he's very gracious very Christo's very gospel II very justification by faith ish and very much an encouragement to the weary soul to find its rest in the person in the work of the Lord Jesus but in Galatians 3 he says we must learn by all means that forgiveness of sins Christ and the Holy Spirit are granted and granted freely only when we hear with faith even our huge sins and demerits do not stand in the way praise God Almighty that even our huge sins and demerits do not stand in the way and then finally with reference to the report repentance of David he doesn't argue with the Prophet it's always suspect you know when somebody is found out well you know it wasn't me what do you mean it wasn't you I I saw you in the act David doesn't do that David acknowledges that he is in fact the man he did not blame others for his sin again he didn't say well you know Bathsheba was a little bit more discreet Bathsheba was a little bit more modest if Bathsheba had to been where she was people do that with their sin don't they they blame everybody else we have a whole society built on that we have a whole society that caters to this victim mentality it's never your fault it's always somebody else's it's always your parents it's your church it's your education it's never you and don't make any mistake about it people are seizing upon this they are capitalizing upon this they are the victims eternally and infinitely so not so the genuinely repentant not so those humbled by God's grace those humbled by God's grace don't argue with God and they don't play the victim they don't try to say well you know it wasn't me or if only she had this he doesn't offer his good works as a bartering chip he confessed and he forsook his sin it would cost him in terms of his temporal life there would be hardships from chapters 13 to 20th of them as I mentioned his life would never be the same in terms of his comfortable peaceful existence with God well not that it was very comfortable and peaceful before when he's running from solid from the Philistines but this in fact would be a difficult time in his life Davis again says to be the man after God's own heart is not to be sinlessly perfect but to be among other things utterly submissive to the accusing Word of God great way to sort of summarize that to be the man after God's own heart is not to be sinlessly perfect I think that's what we think we read that David was a man after God's own heart and we conclude that he must have been sinlessly perfect there's only one sinlessly perfect in the Bible and it's David's son he's not David David was obviously not sinlessly perfect how do we reconcile the comment that he is the man after God's own heart with the commentary in 2nd Samuel 11 that he engaged in adultery and murder it's right here to be the man after God's own heart is not to be sinlessly perfect but to be among other things utterly submissive to the accusing Word of God he receives it he repents and he finds mercy from God if we had more time we read read psalm 32 but I think you get the point he is rejoicing over the reality that God has in fact cleansed him from his sin well let us close in a word of prayer here father thank you for this account and thank you that as it demonstrates great sin it demonstrates even greater grace and how we praise you for that and how we ask Lord God that we would be kept by the power of the Holy Spirit from engaging in great sin from engaging in sin as John says I write so that you may not sin God when we do send help us to flee fly to the advocate help us to go to Christ help us to maintain short accounts with you to confess and forsake our sins and to find mercy from you father we thank you for your grace displayed to us from Genesis to Revelation we thank you for your grace displayed to us on the personal level that you've brought us together here that you've redeemed us through the precious blood of Jesus and you've called us to this feast tonight the celebration it's time to rejoice in the Savior and what he did for us men and for our salvation and we pray in Jesus name Amen well you can turn with me over to first Corinthians chapter 11 will read with minimal comment the section there concerning the giving of the supper I did want to make a couple of preliminary observations in the first place we need to remember that we are not papists we do not believe in transubstantiation this is not an atoning sacrifice but rather it is a time wherein through physical tangible means God appeals to us as preachers and reminds us concerning the great truths of Christ's death his broken body and his shed blood again we're not engaged in a sacrifice bloody run bloody were not engaged in a in a change of the the symbols of the elements here from one thing into another that is not what's transpiring that is not what is at play we are not those who hold to transubstantiation remember as well that it's an ordinance for the church and therefore it's not for unbelievers if you're an unbeliever here tonight the first order of business is to believe the gospel to look unto Jesus Christ the Lord to look under that one who covers sin that one who deals with sin that one who dealt was said through his own blood shedding at the cross that is the first order believe on him and then later take the supper but the supper is not for unbelievers it's not a converting ordinance it doesn't make people Christians and then thirdly we need to remember that it's not for perfect believers because there are no perfect believers if you have sin in your heart confess it to God if you have sin in your heart deal with it if you have sin in your heart go to the advocate with the father even Jesus Christ the righteous it's not for perfect believers because there's no such thing it's not a reward for a good week it's not a reward because you read 15 chapters this week it's not a reward because you prayed for 38 minutes that's not what the Supper is it's a means of grace wherein we are called to reflect upon the death of the Savior in a special way and we trust that God confirms and strengthens and builds us up and conforms us even further unto the Lord Jesus Christ so we'll read the first the last section and then we'll read the center section after the brothers pass out the elements so beginning in first Corinthians 11 at verse 17 now in giving these instructions I do not praise you since you come together not for the better but for the worse for first of all when you come together as a church I hear that there are divisions among you and in part I believe it for there must excuse me there must also be factions among you that those who are approved may be recognized among you therefore when you come together in one place it is not to eat the Lord's Supper for in eating each one takes his own supper ahead of others and one is hungry and another is drunk what do you not have houses to eat and drink in or do you despise the Church of God and shame those who have nothing what shall I say to you shall I praise you in this I do not praise you dropping down to verse 27 therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord but let a man examine himself and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cop for he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself not discerning the Lord's body for this reason many are weak and sick among you and many sleep for if we would judge ourselves we would not be judged but when we are judged we are chastened by the Lord that we may not be condemned with the world therefore my brethren when you come together to eat wait for one another but if anyone is hungry let him eat at home lest you come together for judgment and the rest I will set in order when I come amen well if the brothers would come and pass out the bread we will read that center section after they do so and you may remain seated and turn to Psalm 130 a that's 130 alpha and we will sing that as they distribute the bread [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] in verse 23 Paul writes for I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which he was betrayed took bread and when he had given thanks he broke it and said take eat this is my body which is broken for you do this in remembrance of me well let us pray our Father in heaven we are amazed at the gospel of our salvation amazed at the reality that Christ the second person of the Trinity came into this world he took on our humanity he lived in obedience to that law he died as a substitute and a sacrifice on the cross and he was raised again the third day how we thank you for these things these truths these this great news and God in heaven I pray that this would just encourage our hearts that you would strengthen us and the inner man should cause us to reflect upon this not just once a month but each and every day let us live in light of the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ and we pray in his name amen we'll take together well you can turn to number 340 in your handbook 340 just a reminder that the juice is in the outer ring when the elements come around the juice is in the outer ring the wine is in the in the center portion will sing number 340 again please remain seated [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] in verse 25 the Apostle writes in the same manner he also took the cup after supper saying this cup is the new covenant in my blood this do as often as you drink it in remembrance of me for as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup you proclaim the Lord's death till he comes well let us pray father thank you for the privilege to corporately proclaim that death of the Lord Jesus Christ and thank you that you've given us this ordinance as as a means of grace to strengthen weary pilgrims in this world and cause us to reflect upon the reality that our Jesus our Lord it's going to come again in glory to judge the living and the dead thank you for getting us making us ready by grace preparing us through the the work of the Holy Spirit and giving us these times these refreshing tokens of your nearness and your goodness to us and may you bless and strengthen us now and we pray through Jesus Christ our Lord amen well take together well we'll close by singing hymn number 352 three five two we'll stand as we sing together [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead that great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the everlasting covenant make you complete and every good work to do his will working in you what is well pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ to whom be glory for ever and ever amen God go with us now and help us father to pursue those things that are pleasing in your sight fill us with the Holy Spirit and grant us grace to love that law given to us in the Word of God and help us as well father when we do sin to remember the advocate with the father even Jesus Christ the righteous may your peace be upon us now and we ask in Jesus name Amen well please be seated for a brief time of meditation you