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2
Samuel 14
14 Like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be recovered,
so we must die. But God does not take away life; instead, he devises ways
so that a banished person may not remain estranged from him.
Think with me about this wonderful verse. Here the wise woman of Tekoa says, We
are in the business of dying.
That’s our thing. Like
water falls to the ground, we die.
And death is like the ultimate banishment. Death is the ultimate exile. But God is not, fundamentally, in the
exiling business. He’s not, fundamentally,
in the banishing business. He’s
not, fundamentally, in the death business. God is in the business of
reconciling. He is constantly
devising ways for banished people to be brought back.
This is the good news. If things are left to their own
devices, our life just pours out like water on the earth. We are in the business of dying. God is in the business of
restoring. We are in the business
of being banished. God is in the
business of bringing us back. That
is what He’s like.
The Apostle Paul looks at the central event of all
history – the cross – and he says this:
[SLIDE – cross]
God was reconciling the world to Himself in the
Messiah (Christ) (2 Corinthians 5:21)
God is in the business of reconciliation. And He does it through His King. In Hebrew it’s the word Messiah, in
English we say Christ. It is God’s
very heartbeat to reconcile sinners to Himself through Christ.
And that’s what this chapter is all about.
This morning we will learn that God longs to
reconcile banished people through His Christ. David was called messiah or christ in
his day – but he was like messiah with a small ‘m’, christ with a small
‘c’. Jesus is Messiah with a
capital M, Christ with a capital C.
And God’s desire is always to reconcile through His Christ.
Do you know
that about God?
Whether you’re not yet a Christian or whether
you’ve been one for 50 years, your biggest struggle this morning and my
biggest struggle this morning is to believe this about God – God’s heartbeat is to reconcile you through
Christ. His heartbeat is to
receive you. His posture towards
you this morning is this. And our
greatest challenge is to believe that.
The verse on the screen goes on – BE reconciled to God. Through Christ, God is holding out His
arms to you – BE reconciled.
Do you believe that God really forgives? That He really forgives you? That He really forgives you for
THAT? Or do you picture God
standing on His rights, making us pay, making us work off our debts? Is that your picture of God? Does He make us redeem ourselves? Balance the scales?
Or does God really receive us as forgiven
children? Could it really be
possible that the God of the universe longs to reconcile us?
This morning
we will learn that God really is as He is described in verse 14. He’s always thinking about reconciling
people. It’s always on His
mind. It’s true what the prayer
book says, it’s His nature always to have mercy.
But God’s reconciliation is quite different to what
David shows in 2 Samuel
14. 2 Samuel 14 could almost be
entitled, “How not to reconcile
a sinner.” Let me explain. And to do that, we’ll need to do a bit
of background on this book.
In 2 Samuel we are 1000 years before Jesus joined
the human race. 1000BC. And here,
in this description of David, we have a mirror image of Christ and His
coming kingdom.
[SLIDE – mirror]
We thought about this with the children
earlier. King David is a picture
of King Jesus.
Both of them are anointed to rule. Both of them defeat their enemy when
they look very weak. Both of them
are enthroned in Jerusalem. Both
of them subdue the nations under their rule. But David came first as a miniature
picture of Christ. Throughout 1
and 2 Samuel we see him mirroring Christ.
But once David commits adultery
with Bathsheba and murders her husband Uriah – then the mirror is
broken.
[SLIDE – broken mirror]
From 2 Samuel chapter 11 onwards what we have is a
broken reflection of Christ’s kingdom.
From here on in we see what happens when sin comes into a man, a
family, a kingdom and it wreaks havoc.
You might remember chapter 12, Nathan comes to
David to convict him of his adultery and murder and he does it by telling
a story. In this parable, a poor
man has a little ewe lamb and loves it and takes care of it, it drinks
from his cup, eats his food, sleeps in his arms and a rich man comes and
steals the lamb and has it for dinner.
David is outraged “As surely as the LORD lives, the man who did
this deserves to die!” (v5) And Nathan says “You are the man!” (v7)
David had convicted himself because he had stolen Uriah’s beloved Bathsheba – he
acted far worse than the rich man in Nathan’s story. Well David is cut to the heart and says
“I have sinned against the LORD.”
(v13). He also writes Psalm
51 which we had read for us – a confession to God. Nathan tells him that he is forgiven
his sin but that from now on the sword will never depart from his house.
(v10). The mirror is cracked – no
longer will David’s Kingdom reflect Christ’s but instead it will show the
effects of sin on the kingdoms of this world.
And the fall out is heartbreaking. In chapter 13 we read the desperate
story of Tamar – the daughter of David, raped by her half-brother Amnon,
the crown prince. At that time David
was outraged, but he did nothing.
He didn’t confront Amnon.
He didn’t bring him to justice.
He didn’t go to Tamar and comfort her or restore her dignity and
reputation. And so two years later,
one of David’s other sons, Absalom, takes matters into his own
hands. As Tamar’s full-brother
Absalom kills Amnon in revenge and then flees to Geshur.
As we move into chapter 14 we have Joab who was
commander in chief of the army and for whatever reason, he wants to see
Absalom and David reconciled. So
he basically hires an actress – the wise woman of Tekoa – to spin a sob
story for David and trick him into reconciling with Absalom. After all, two chapters earlier,
Nathan’s sob story about the little ewe lamb worked a treat. So they figure it will work again. And it does.
But notice what they assume about David to get him
to reconcile. In both v17 and v20
the woman says to David ‘my lord the king is like the Angel of God.’
The more literal translations like the ESV or the
King James say ‘THE Angel of God.’
That’s who she’s referring to.
The Angel of God is a character that appears throughout the Old
Testament. And He speaks the words
of God and performs the works of God.
He’s even called God. The
title ‘Angel’ just means ‘Sent One’ and so this figure is literally the
Sent One of God. And this was just
one of the names by which Jesus was known in the Old Testament – THE
Angel of God. Jesus was present
and active throughout the Old Testament.
And this woman is saying ‘David, we know that you are like Jesus –
you are like the Sent One of God.
You are a miniature portrait of King Jesus. So David – act like it.’
The wise woman expects David to act in divine
ways. So in v14 she effectively
she says:
“God reconciles people to Himself – therefore YOU
should reconcile Absalom to yourself.”
Do you see the logic? David
is challenged to offer godlike forgiveness. He is asked to be like Jesus, to be
like the King who brings about God’s reconciliation.
So expectations are high. In this chapter David is meant to be a
mirror of the very reconciling love of Jesus. But the mirror is broken.
And so in this broken kingdom both the sinner and
the forgiver get it wrong.
First Absalom shows shallow repentance. Then David shows grudging
forebearance.
[SLIDE]
Neither side shows us what true repentance and
forgiveness look like but it will be instructive to see how they get it
wrong.
First Absalom.
From v25 we have a detailed description of how handsome Absalom
is. This should make us mistrust
Absalom immediately. In the books
of Samuel everyone who’s big and impressive looking is trouble. Saul, Goliath and now Absalom. Verse 26 - he even weighs his hair
after cutting it. We have here a shallow man.
And looking at v32, you get the impression that he
has no understanding of the gravity of his sins. In v32 he says
Now then, I
want to see the king's face, and if I am guilty of anything, let him put
me to death."
“If he is
guilty”? Absalom was definitely
guilty of murder. There was
absolutely no question. In chapter
13 he had murdered the king’s own son, Amnon, who was heir to the
throne. And he had done it with
two years pre-meditation, in cold blood and with many witnesses.
When Absalom comes before the king in v33 there is
a gesture of humility – he bows
– but no words of apology. This is
not like the prodigal son coming home saying “I’ve sinned against heaven
and against you, I’m no longer worthy to be called you son.” Instead there seems to be the attitude
of ‘I am your son, either acknowledge me or kill me but here I am – I’m
not apologising for me, I’m not apologising for what I’ve done, just deal
with me.’
Here is shallow repentance. Apparently the German poet Heinriche
Heine was asked on his deathbed whether he thought God would forgive
him. Heine said “Of course God
will forgive me, that’s His job.”
It’s just a presumption.
God is obligated apparently, God can’t get out of it, it’s written
into His contract. That’s how many
people think. And so there’s no
contrition over sin. No
sorrow. No humility. And Absalom’s attitude seems to be like
that. ‘Here I am. Either Forgive me or kill me – but I
won’t apologize – you’ve just got to deal with me as I am.’
What do we think of Absalom?
Actually I’ve got some sympathy for Absalom. Here’s a man who took in his sister
Tamar after she was raped. Here’s a
man who took matters into his own hands only when David proved to be so
impotent in bringing the rapist to justice. And here’s a man who in this chapter is
brought to Jerusalem but left on the outskirts. He never gets to see the king’s
face. It’s limbo. It’s purgatory.
I understand why from v29 he kept pestering Joab to
gain an audience with the king. I
even understand why in v30 he sets Joab’s fields on fire to get his
attention. Wouldn’t you be
frustrated?. David has not been
proactive. David has offered only
grudging forebearance. And Absalom
just doesn’t know where he stands.
I can understand why Absalom just says – ‘Let me face the king and
if I’m guilty I die, if not we’re reconciled but don’t leave me in
limbo.’
So let’s now consider David’s grudging
forebearance.
In v21 there are such high hopes. He’s going to bring back Absalom.
You start to wonder: Will this be just like the father in the
parable Jesus tells, running to his son, flinging his arms around him and
kissing him, throwing the biggest party Israel has ever seen? Will it be like that? No, v24:
24 But the king said, "He must go to his own house; he
must not see my face." So Absalom went to his own house and did not
see the face of the king.
Everyone has to force David’s hand in this
chapter. Joab and the wise woman
have to go through this whole deceit.
Absalom has to keep pestering.
And even though the chapter ends in v33 with a kiss of
reconciliation, it’s been a long time in coming and it’s not accompanied
by any words, nor by any acts of restoration. It just seems to be a formality.
How much of our ‘forgiveness’ looks like this? It’s not proactive, it’s not
heart-felt, it doesn’t actually reconcile the people involved, it’s just
a truce, it’s grudging forebearance.
Absalom was right – it would have been better for
David either to have judged Absalom as a murderer or forgiven and
restored him. But the limbo that
David put him in was destructive for Absalom and it sowed the seeds of
Absalom’s rebellion later in the book.
Clearly this is a broken reflection of Christ’s
kingdom. This is what our attempts
at reconciliation look like – shallow repentance and grudging
forebearance. This is NOT the
reconciliation that God offers in King Jesus. This is a broken mirror.
Well then, what does true reconciliation look like?
Well David himself experienced it. Psalm 51 – our second reading, let’s
turn to it.
After David was convicted of his own adultery and
murder, David prays this prayer.
And here we see such a different picture of reconciliation. It’s not shallow repentance but deep
contrition. It’s not grudging
forebearance but lavish grace.
[SLIDE]
Just quickly look at the deep contrition here –
v3-6:
3For I know my
transgressions, and my sin is always before me.
4 Against you,
you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you
are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge.
5 Surely I was
sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
This is amazing – David is effectively saying, “The
person I was when I committed adultery and murder is the person I have
always been.” We always think of
our sins as aberrations. ‘I wasn’t
myself’ we say. David knows
different. He says – “When I
sinned, that was just me with the handbrake off.” David comes before God without excuses
and without sacrifices. Verse
16.
I come before God with many
excuses and many sacrifices. I
tell Him how understandable my sins are, ‘if only you walked a mile in my
shoes’ and I come before Him with all sorts of pledges to do better in
future. Sacrifices of a kind. David says, v17, “Just bring a broken
spirit and a contrite heart, and know that you have nothing to offer.”
All of David’s confidence comes from outside of
himself in this prayer. He just
asks God to be the reconciling God that He is. Verse 1:
1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love;
according to your great
compassion blot out my transgressions.
David says, “I know you’re in the business of
reconciliation God. I have
confidence that even now your arms are wide open to me.”
But here’s the question: How on earth can God’s arms be open to
an adulterer and murderer? Surely
God’s justice demands that he be forever banished for these sins. Well, David knows there’s a way for
judgement to be averted. Look at
v7:
7Cleanse
me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
Stick with me on this. Do you know what hyssop was used
for? It was a bit of plant that
you used like a paintbrush and you used it to paint the blood of the
Passover lamb onto your doorposts.
Remember Passover. At
Passover the people remembered that they did indeed deserve the LORD’s
judgement. He came through the
land in judgement. And the only
way to avert the judgement was to sacrifice a lamb and to paint its blood
on the doorframes, then the LORD would see the blood and pass over your
house. Death was demanded by God’s
justice but the sacrificial lamb died in your place to keep you
safe. And David here calls on God
to use His hyssop. Apparently God has hyssop, apparently God
has a sacrifice, God has a Lamb and when His blood is applied to us,
judgement is averted and we are saved.
He’s talking about the blood of Jesus.
[SLIDE - cross]
One day David’s Lord – Jesus – would come and die
as the sacrificial Lamb to take God’s judgement that we deserve. And David knew it. David looked forward, we look back on
the cross where God’s lavish grace was seen. Any sin that could ever separate you
from God – was laid on that Lamb, and His blood purifies us from every
sin. That’s how you can have
confidence. That’s how you can
know that God will receive you. On
that cross the true Lamb died for your sins. On that cross the true King
opened His arms wide to receive you.
God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ. And when we come to God, we bring no
excuses, no sacrifices, just confidence in Christ. He is our sacrificial Lamb, He is our grace-lavishing
King. Because of Him, God’s
posture towards us is this. He
will receive us.
So think now of your own situation. Think of your own sin. You might think to yourself, ‘I haven’t
committed murder or adultery.’
Actually Jesus says we do that all the time – every time we’re
angry, we’re murderers. Every time
we’re lustful, we’re adulterers.
We need deep contrition as we come before King Jesus. Think now of how you need to humble
yourself in the embrace of King Jesus.
But think also about His lavish grace. He eagerly receives you. Let me state categorically, Jesus is not
like David in 2 Samuel 14. He’s
not grudging about it. He doesn’t
just let you live on the outskirts of His presence. If you feel on the outskirts of Jesus’
love, I’m here to tell you – you don’t have to be. You never have to be like Absalom, in
limbo with Jesus. Don’t mope around
the fringes, Jesus invites you into His embrace. Don’t bring excuses, don’t bring
sacrifices, just bring yourself in humble confidence that Jesus’ arms
really are open to you – they were nailed open for you.
To finish, why don’t we all say Psalm 51 together:
1 Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot
out my transgressions.
2 Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.
3For
I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is
evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and
justified when you judge.
5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my
mother conceived me.
6 Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach
me wisdom in the inmost place.
7Cleanse
me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than
snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have
crushed rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my
iniquity.
10Create
in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy
Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me
a willing spirit, to sustain me.
13Then
I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you.
14 Save me from bloodguilt, O God, the God who saves
me, and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.
15 O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your
praise.
16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring
it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken
and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
18In
your good pleasure make Zion prosper; build up the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then there will be righteous sacrifices, whole burnt
offerings to delight you; then bulls will be offered on your altar.
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