Fully Devoted: Israel, Act 1Sample

Is This Justice?

David’s story began with so much hope and promise, but tragically, he failed to fulfill the purpose he was meant for. He fell short. He missed the mark. He sinned. 

God sends Nathan, a prophet, to confront David. 

... When he came to him, he said, “There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him. Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him.” David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, “As surely as the LORD lives, the man who did this must die! He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity.” Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! …” 2 Samuel 12:1-7 NIV

David is made painfully aware of just how severely he has missed the mark. And through the prophet Nathan, God spells out the consequences that will result from David’s actions. Because sin always has consequences.

David is told that calamity will be brought on him, and that the child he conceived with Bathsheba would die. 

This can create some unsettling questions about the goodness of God and the nature of His justice. At face value, it seems as if God is punishing an innocent child for the sins that David has committed. 

But remember, God is compassionate, gracious, patient, faithful, merciful, and also just. 

This passage might be inviting us to wrestle with this question: How could it possibly be just for God to take the life of a child for the sins of its parents?

And the truth is, while there are a lot of really brilliant and faithful scholars and pastors who have tackled this question with good answers, those answers still may not feel very satisfying. Which then begs the question: Are we even supposed to be satisfied by the explanation for this event? Or is this story meant to unsettle us? 

And maybe that unsettling feeling is meant to bring us to another question: Can we still trust that God is good even when we don’t understand or even agree with the choices He makes? 

For some of us, this might be the real thing God wants to provoke in us through this story. How much do we really trust Him? Because the measure of our trust isn’t determined by how willing we are to follow someone we agree with, but how willing we are to follow them even when we don’t agree.

Peter really thought he trusted Jesus. So much so, that he made the bold claim: 

... “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.” Matthew 26:33 NIV

Jesus responds to Peter’s declaration by informing him that before the night was over, Peter would deny Jesus not just once or twice, but three times. Instead of humbling himself and trusting Jesus, Peter doubles down: 

... “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.” ... Matthew 26:35 NIV

Most of us know how the story goes. Peter really thought he trusted Jesus. But then that trust was tested. Jesus was taken into custody by the religious leaders. All the disciples fled. 

But Peter followed Jesus all the way to the courtyard of the home where Jesus was put on trial. And while there, Peter was asked if he was a friend of Jesus. Not once or twice, but three times. And Peter denied even knowing Jesus. All three times. 

Can we still trust God when we don’t understand what He’s doing? What about when we don’t agree with what He’s doing? 

The death of David and Bathsheba’s child isn’t easy to understand or even agree with. It’s a story that can put our trust in God to the test. So, how will you respond? 

Will you choose to trust that God is still good and loving even when you don’t agree with or understand some of the things He does? 

Journaling Questions

• What questions do you have about this story? What feelings and emotions are you processing? 
• Do you trust God even when you don’t understand? What is your trust based on? Your understanding or His character?  
• Ask God to give you the courage to bring your questions to Him, to process your doubts with people you trust, and to choose to keep following Jesus.

Memory Verse

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome ... 1 John 5:1-3 NIV