Scripture convicts all

I cannot tell you how many times I have been told after preaching, “I wish this or that person would have been here to hear your sermon.” Many times, I thought to myself, did you miss the fact that sermon might have been intended for you?

The same holds true as we read scripture. Scripture is not intended for us to use to condemn others. Scripture should never be used to persecute others. Scripture should never be used to negate a person or groups of people because all of us are made in the imago Dei or image of God.

II Samuel, Chapters 11 and 12, we find a story telling of David abusing his powers as king and his encounter with the prophet Nathan, which is very instructive to us both individually and collectively.

David abuses his power as king. Power that had been given him by Almighty God when the prophet Samuel anointed him to be king. David abuses his power by forcing a married woman to have sexual relations with him. The woman had no choice because of the status of women and the fact that David was king. What made things even worse, was that this woman’s husband was fighting a war for David.

When David found out that he had impregnated the woman, he called her husband back from war. He did everything he could to encourage Uriah to sleep with his wife to cover up what David had done. And when all failed, David used his power as king to send the man to a certain death in battle…