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Marlin Fannin—January 15, 2021
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We are all responsible for our actions and our relationship with God; it's something we all have to do.
Years ago, a member said to me, 'I would rather see a sermon than hear a sermon.' I think we've all been through that and how true that is. People say, 'Do what I say, not what I do.' So, they weren't concerned about what they did; they just wanted us to follow whatever their command was.
Many don't practice what they teach, or what they preach, and that's truly a bad example. That's why it's so important to set a good example for people, both in and out of the Church.
I would like to go over some good examples, and also maybe a couple of bad examples that we can learn from; we can learn from the good and we can learn from the bad.
ABEL:
Abel was the first martyred! The first one recorded in the Bible who was killed. Adam and Eve were created and they had two sons: Cain and Abel.
Genesis 4:4: "And Abel also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat of it. And the LORD had regard unto Abel and his offering, but He did not have regard unto Cain and his offering. And Cain was extremely angry and his countenance fell" (vs 4-5).
So, we see that Abel offered a right kind of offering, that he was instructed and taught on what to sacrifice and what pleased God, and what He commanded.
But Cain thought that he would just bring some fruit or vegetables from the garden, and didn't offer a lamb like he was supposed to. He got mad, as many people do when they see other people doing the right thing. They get jealous, which Cain did, and he ended up killing his brother.
Heb. 11 talks about Abel and that he was a righteous man and did what he was supposed to do, and he offered an offering that was the right way and not as Cain. So, he was counted as righteous.
1-John talks about 'righteous Abel' and how he did the right thing. In Hebrews he is listed as one of the righteous and a good example to start out with.
Abel wanted to serve and please God; he wanted to do the right thing. His brother Cain was defiant and did not.
DANIEL:
Daniel was a righteous man and he served God and even put his life on the line, as well as some of his companions.
Daniel 1:1: "In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. And the LORD gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with part of the vessels of the house of God, which he carried into the land of Shinar to the house of his god. And he brought the vessels into the treasure house of his god. And the king spoke to Ashpenaz, the master of his officers, that he should bring some of the children of Israel, and of the king's seed, and of the nobles" (vs 1-3).
We don't know of what linage Daniel was, whether of the king or some of the other nobles, but he was of 'royal blood.'
Verse 4: "Young men in whom was no blemish, but who were handsome and skillful in all wisdom; and who had knowledge and understanding, even those who were able to stand in the king's palace; and that he was to teach them the writing and the language of the Chaldeans. And the king appointed for them a daily portion of the king's food, and of the wine, which he drank, that they should be educated three years, so that at the end of that time they might stand before the king. And among them were four of the sons of Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah" (vs 4-6).
We see here that their names were changed; v 7: "To whom the chief of the officers gave new names. For he called Daniel, Belteshazzar; and Hananiah, Shadrach; and Mishael, Meshach; and Azariah, Abed-Nego."
They had particular names that were given to them, Hebrew names that were good names and meant certain things. But the Babylonian names did not.
I'd like to go through the book of Daniel, and in the King James Version Study Bible read the footnote, which I thought kind of adds to the story and the names there.
Footnote (KJV)—the name changes are a good example of attempting brainwashing.
In other words, taking away their identity, the good names that the Hebrew meant, to Babylonian names.
All four young men had good Hebrew names that reflected their Godly heritage. They were given instead, Babylonian names that denoted praise of Babylonian gods.
Daniel—whose name in Hebrew meant God is my Judge—was changed to Belteshazzar, which is Baal will protect.
The god of Babylon!
Hananiah means God is gracious was changed to Shadrach, which means inspiration of the sun.
We see the sun-worship, they worshiped the sun-god!
Mishael, which means God is without equal in Hebrew, they changed to Meshach, which is belonging to Aku.
Azariah means in Hebrew the Lord is my helper was change to Abednego, which means servant of Nego.
Their new names were intended to give them a Babylonian, rather than Hebrew, identification; taking way the heritage from their names, Godly names, that meant something to reflect the Babylonian gods.
The rest of the book shows that although the Babylonians could change the names of the young men, they could not change their character.
I thought that was interesting as far as what the Hebrew names meant and what their names were changed to that reflected upon the gods of Babylon.
Daniel 1:8: "But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the king's food, nor with the wine, which he drank. Therefore, he asked permission of the chief of the officers that he might not defile himself."
Daniel knew the dietary laws, and he did not want to eat the foods of Babylon, which contained, probably, all kinds of unclean things.
Verse 12: 'I beg you, prove your servants ten days. And let them give us vegetables to eat and water to drink."
So, they did, they tested them and at the end, v 17: "As for these four youths, God gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom. And Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams."
Verse 15: "And at the end of ten days their faces looked fairer and fatter in flesh than all the youths who had eaten the king's food.
Verse 19: And the king talked with them. And among them all were found none like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they stood before the king. And in all matters of wisdom and understanding that the king asked them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters who were in all his kingdom. And Daniel continued to the first year of King Cyrus" (vs 19-21).
I remember one of the ladies that used attend Church worked at the school where our grandkids attended and they went through the (lunch) line and they were going to serve them something that was unclean. The member, who was an associate teacher, and she was really surprised because they stood up and said, 'We can't eat this.' So, the school went ahead and fixed them a tray that was clean, that they could eat. She was really impressed because they weren't very old and they stood up and say they couldn't eat this.
That's what Daniel said, 'Test us!' They did and they found out on the diet that he proposed that their complexion and everything, their health was much better than the others.
God was with them and He gave them knowledge and wisdom. Nebuchadnezzar has a dream (Dan. 2) and I'll just read parts of it because we're all familiar with this. Nebuchadnezzar asked all the 'wise' men, the soothsayers and magicians about the dream. They said, 'You tell us the dream and then we'll give you the interpretation.' But he said, 'No! I want you to tell me what I dreamt, and then tell me the interpretation.'
They said, 'This is not possible, no man can do this.' So, Daniel and his friend's lives were on the line, too. They went before God and God revealed to him what the dream was, and he was able to go in and tell the dream to Nebuchadnezzar.
Daniel 2:16: "Then Daniel went in and asked of the king that he would give him time, and that he would make known the meaning to the king. Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, That they might pray for the mercies of God in heaven concerning this secret, that Daniel and his companions should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. And Daniel blessed the God of heaven" (vs 16-19).
So, Daniel began to thank God for revealing that dream to him.
Verse 23: "I thank You, and praise You, O God of my fathers, Who has given me wisdom and might, and have now made known to me what we desired of You, for You have made known to us the king's matter."
Verse 25: "Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel in before the king, and said this to him, 'I have found a man of the captives of Judah who will make the interpretation known to the king.' The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, 'Are you able to make known to me the dream which I have seen and its interpretation?' Daniel answered before the king and said, 'The secret which the king has demanded cannot be shown to the king by the wise men, the enchanters, the astrologers or the magicians. But there is a God in heaven Who reveals secrets and makes known to King Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Your dream and the visions of your head upon your bed are these'" (vs 25-28).
Then Daniel interpreted the dream! He was certainly blessed by Nebuchadnezzar and given position.
I want to give another example that includes Daniel, and then we'll go to his three companions and what happened to them.
This is many years later; Daniel 6:1: "It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom a hundred and twenty satraps… [like a vassal king] …that they might be over the whole kingdom. And over them were three presidents (Daniel was one of them)… [he had a very high position] …so that these satraps might give account to them, and the king should not suffer loss. Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the presidents and satraps because a surpassing spirit was in him. And the king was planning to set him over all the kingdom" (vs 1-3).
Verse 4: "Then the presidents and rulers sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom. But they could find no occasion or fault because he was faithful. Neither was there any error or fault found in him. Then these men said, 'We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel unless we find it against him concerning the law of his God.'"
Daniel served God; the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! He didn't serve the gods of Babylon!
Verse 6: "Then these presidents and rulers assembled to the king, and said this to him: 'King Darius, live forever…. ['buttering' him up] …All the presidents of the kingdom, the prefects, and the satraps, and the officials and governors, have consulted together that the king establish a statute, and to make a strong decree, that whoever shall ask a petition of any god or man for thirty days, except from you, O king, he shall be thrown into the den of lions. Now, O king, establish the decree and sign the writing, so that it may not be changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians which cannot be revoked'" (vs 6-8). Once it was written down, it could not be revoked!
Verse 9: "Therefore, King Darius signed the writing and the decree. And when he had learned that the document was signed, Daniel went to his house. And his windows were open in his upper room toward Jerusalem; and he kneeled on his knees three times a day and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did before" (vs 9-10).
That didn't change Daniel! He was going to continue to pray for His God with his windows opened looking toward Jerusalem, remembering how it was when he was there in the kingdom before the captivity because of their sins against God and worshipping other gods.
Daniel prayed three times a day, and these men found out and reported it to the king. The king was displeased, because he realized that he had been setup, and was upset about Daniel being thrown into the lion's den. When the king went down there the next morning and asked of Daniel was all right.
Verse 20: "And when he came near the den, he cried with a grieved voice to Daniel. The king spoke and said to Daniel, 'O Daniel, servant of the living God, is your God Whom you serve continually able to deliver you from the lions?' Then Daniel said to the king, 'O king, live forever. My God has sent His angel, and has shut the lions' mouths, and they have not hurt me because before Him innocency was found in me…. [found innocent of the matter] …And also before you, O king, I have done no harm'" (vs 20-22).
So, the ones who had set the king up, trying to get Daniel killed a horrible death by throwing him into the den of lions, that they and their families were thrown into the den of lions and punishment came upon them, which they had hoped to be done to Daniel.
What a good example that that is for us today, as we think about the times we might go through in the future. If we're with God, God is going to be with us, and to have the courage of Daniel and realize that God will take care of us.
Also, what an example it must have been to the captives that were taken from Judah, to hear about and understand about Daniel, hear about how God had taken care of him.
We must be can example for God within and without! So, it had to be very encouraging to them.
SHADRACH, MESHACH AND ABEDNEGO:
Now we'll talk about the trial we're all familiar with of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who formerly were Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. We know that the King Nebuchadnezzar made this great image. It was said that whenever they played the lyre and the harp, the bagpipes and music that 'you shall fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
Daniel 3:11: "And whoever does not fall down and worship, he should be thrown into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. There are certain Jews, whom you have set over the business of the province of Babylon; Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. These men, O king, do not heed you…. [they're not listening to you] …They do not serve your gods nor worship the golden image which you have set up" (vs 11-12).
So, Nebuchadnezzar goes into a big rage! You can image that his eyes probably bulged out and his face turned blue. I'm sure that you would not be around this man, the king.
Verse 14: Nebuchadnezzar spoke and said to them, 'Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego that you do not serve my gods nor worship the golden image which I have set up?'" So, he gives them a second chance!
Verse 15: "Now, if you are ready, at the time you hear the sound of the horn, the pipe, zither, the lyre, harp, and bagpipe, and all kinds of music fall down and worship the image, which I have made. But if you do not worship immediately, you shall be thrown into the middle of a burning fiery furnace. And who is that god who shall deliver you out of my hand?"
In other words, 'I am god, people worship me, and they worship the image that I set up.'
Verse 16: "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, 'O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer a word to you on this matter." In other words, we won't go over here in a corner and talk about!
Verse 17: "If that is the case, our God Whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods nor worship the golden image which you have set up" (vs 17-18).
Verse 19: "Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with wrath…"
Verse 21: "Then these men were tied up in their cloaks, their tunics, and their robes, and their other clothes, and were thrown into the middle of the burning fiery furnace. Then because the king's commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceedingly hot, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego to throw them in" (vs 21-22).
You know the rest of the story where God did spare them, and Nebuchadnezzar saw someone else in there with them.
Verse 25: "He answered and said, 'Behold! I see four men loose, walking in the middle of the fire, and there is no harm done to them. And the form of the fourth is like a son of the gods.'"
They were given a hire position in Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom.
Verse 28: "Nebuchadnezzar spoke and said, 'Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego Who has sent His angel and has delivered His servants who trusted in Him…'"
They put their trust in God, and that's where we must put our trust!
"'…and has defiled the king's words, and has given back their bodies from the flame, so that they might not serve nor worship any god except their own God. And a decree is given by me, that every people, nation, and language who speak anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be cut in pieces, and his house shall be made a dunghill because there is no other God Who can deliver in this way.' Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego in the province of Babylon" (vs 28-30).
They saw the same example of faith that the king saw! They saw a living sermon, action, and the people believing in their God and following their God, and not the gods of Babylon.
I heard one time that this minister was speaking, I don't think it was one of the Churches of God, and he was going over the book of Daniel and he was talking about them not bowing down and worshipping them and he kiddingly said, 'I think that if it were me when he said okay, you have to bow down and worship this image, I would have probably said I think this is a good time for us to bend over and tie our shoes! I thought that was kind of humorous, but that might be true of most of us.
Anyway, they were filled with the faith and trust and belief in God and the knowledge He was going to deliver them.
NAOMI:
We've heard an excellent message by Michael Heiss on the book of Ruth, and others have given messages and Bible studies on it. I don't think we've taken into account Naomi as an example, and what a good example she must have been.
Her husband had died and her two sons had died and she heard that things were going well back in the Bethlehem area and how God had blessed them with rain and everything and the crops were good and she was going back.
Ruth 1:11: "And Naomi said, 'Turn again, my daughters. Why will you go with me? Are there yet sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? Turn again, my daughters, go. For I am too old to have a husband. If I should say, "I have hope," if I should have a husband also tonight, and should also bear sons, would you wait for them until they were grown? Would you shut yourselves up, and not have husbands until then?….'" (vs 11-13). In other words, would you wait until they grew up!
"'…No, my daughters, for it makes me very sad for your sakes that the hand of the LORD has gone out against me.' And they lifted up their voices and wept again. And Orpah kissed her mother-in-law. But Ruth clung to her. And she said, 'Behold, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods. Return back with your sister-in-law.'" (vs 13-15)—because they worshipped the gods of Moab!
But evidently Naomi had showed them the true God, the God is Israel—Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—and worshipped Him and she had evidently set a great example.
Verse 16: "And Ruth said, 'Do not beg me to leave you, to return from following after you. For where you go, I will go. Where you stay, I will stay. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.'" So, Naomi had set a good example for Ruth to be able to say this, and for both here daughters-in-law to want to go with her!
Ruth said, 'I'm going to cling to you; I'm not going back.
Verse 18: "When she saw that she was determined to go with her, then she quit speaking to her."
What a bond that Naomi must have set with her daughters-in-law, that they wanted to go with her. Naomi must have been very kind and very loving.
Verse 9: "May the LORD grant you that you may find rest, each in the house of your husband.' Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept."
She must have been very compassionate and loving toward them, because she kissed them and they started weeping.
Verse 14: "And they lifted up their voices and wept again. And Orpah kissed her mother-in-law. But Ruth clung to her." Held onto her, she wasn't going to go!
Such an example that Naomi had set! Ruth wasn't going back to the life they had in Moab. 'I want to be with your people and I want to serve your God.'
Naomi must have had, by her faith and character shown the true God, the God of Israel. They saw a living sermon; not something that was preached, but a way of life and action:
- serving God
- living God's way of life
- being an example
- loving them
- showing kindness
- showing patience
Those things I don't think we've ever brought out; maybe somebody did. I thought that it would be good to bring them out.
We're very familiar with Ruth an what goes on there and how she married and becomes the linage of Jesus Christ. What a great example Naomi must have set there!
PHINEHAS:
Numbers 25:1: And Israel dwelt in Acacia Grove, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab. And they called the people to the sacrifices of their gods. And the people ate and bowed down to their gods. And Israel joined himself to Baal Peor. And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel. And the LORD said to Moses, 'Take all the heads of the people and impale them before the LORD facing the sun, so that the fierce anger of the LORD may be turned away from Israel.' And Moses said to the judges of Israel, 'Every one of you kill his men who were joined to Baal Peor.'" (vs 1-5).
Verse 6: "And behold, a man of the children of Israel came and brought to his brethren a woman of Midian, in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation."
He blatantly went ahead and in sight of all the people took this woman into the tent.
Verse 7: "And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation and took a spear in his hand. And he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and pierced both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman, through her belly. So, the plague was stayed from the children of Israel. And those that died in the plague were twenty-four thousand" (vs 7-9).
Verse 10: "And the LORD spoke to Moses saying, 'Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned My wrath away from the children of Israel in that he was zealous for My sake among them, so that I did not destroy the children of Israel in My jealousy. Therefore, say, "Behold, I give him My covenant of peace. And he shall have it, and his seed after him, the covenant of an everlasting priesthood because he was zealous for his God and made an atonement for the children of Israel"'" (vs 10-13).
What an example that he set there and turned God's anger away that the rest of the people were spared. God tells us that He made an everlasting covenant with him and his seed in the priesthood. So, somewhere we know that his descendants are still alive upon this earth, because God promised that.
JOSEPH:
We know that Joseph ran from sin. He said, 'How can I sin against God?' He was taken to Egypt after being sold as a slave to the Midianite, and he became a servant of Potifer, an official of Pharaoh, the chief of the executioners, an Egyptian man.
Genesis 39:6: "And he left all that he had in Joseph's hand—and did not concern himself with anything that he had except the bread which he ate. And Joseph was handsome in form and good looking in appearance."
He trusted Joseph, he set such a good example and was dedicated to him and loyal to him. So, he set Joseph over all of affairs. I'm sure that Joseph had to go into the house to take care of business—paperwork and different things as we call it today.
Verse 7: "And after these things it came to pass that his master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph. And she said, 'Lie with me.' But he refused and said to his master's wife, 'Behold, my master does not know what is in the house with me, and he has given all that he has into my hand. There is none greater in this house than I. Neither has he kept back anything from me except you because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?'" (vs 7-9).
Joseph had been taught by his father Jacob, and he understood that this was wickedness and sin, which is against God, breaking His commandments. It says that 'Abraham judged God's laws and His commandments and judgments and God said of him, 'I know you will teach your descendants after you, as well.' So, Jacob must have taught Joseph that this is sin and wickedness and he couldn't do this.
Day after day she kept on him and finally he came in one day and she grabbed his coat and he turned and took off. She kept his robe there and she was mad and upset that she couldn't persuade him. How many other people had she persuaded to do this? Joseph may not have been the first one. We know the story and how she lied about it, and Joseph was put in prison because of false lies!
- How many lies are told against God's people?
- What have they had to endure down through the ages?
All the different things and the lies of Satan that cause us to have things come upon us that we didn't really deserve to have brought upon us.
We see where we're told by Paul; 1-Corinthians 6:18: "Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man may commit is outside the body, but the one who commits sexual immorality is sinning against his own body. WHAT! Don't you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, which you have within you from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought with a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's" (vs 18-20).
We're told to flee sin of any type that will cause us to do something that is against God and certainly against His laws and commandments.
We've looked at some good examples; now I want to look at a bad example here:
ELI and HIS SONS:
This shows what a bad example that anyone in the priesthood or ministry—you don't have to be in the priesthood or ministry—and we all preach by our examples to our family, friends, neighbors, co-workers. They think you believe this way—not keeping certain holidays and you keep the Sabbath—and they're going to be looking at us. If something happens they're going to be judging us. That's why I say, 'Preach by example. Not do as I tell you to do, but you follow my example.'
1-Samuel 3:11: "And the LORD said to Samuel, 'Behold, I will do a thing in Israel at which both the ears of everyone who hears it shall tingle. In that day I will confirm to Eli all that which I have spoken concerning his house, and when I begin I will also make an end, for I have told him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity, which he knows, because his sons made themselves vile and he did not restrain them'" (vs11-13). Eli knew what his sons were doing!
Let's see what they were doing; 1-Samuel 2:12: "And the sons of Eli were worthless men. They did not know the LORD. And the priests' custom with the people was: If any man offered sacrifice, the priest's servant came while the flesh was boiling, with a flesh-hook of three prongs in his hand. And he stuck it into the pan or kettle or caldron or pot. All that the flesh-hook brought up the priest took for himself. So, they did in Shiloh to all the Israelites that came there. Yea, before they burned the fat, the priest's servant came and said to the man who sacrificed, 'Give flesh to roast for the priest, for he will not have boiled flesh from you, but raw!' And if any man said to him, 'Let them not fail to burn the fat at once, and then take as your soul desires,' then he would answer him, 'No! But you shall give now! And if not, I will take it by force.'" (vs 12-16).
In other words, if you don't give it to me, I'm going to take it from you!
Verse 17: "And the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD, for men despised the offering of the LORD."
So, we see what bad examples do; they begin to despise the offering. They had come to sacrifice with a willing heart to God, and here are Eli's sons doing all corruptness and demanding all these things. So, people didn't even want to come and sacrifice. You can see how their attitude would be.
Verse 18: "And Samuel served before the LORD, a child girded with a linen ephod."
Verse 22: "And Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did to all Israel, and how they lay… [not only were they planning the sacrifice, not doing as God instructed, but there also]: …with the women who gathered at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation." Evidently having sexual relations with the women!
Verse 23: "And he said to them, 'Why do you do such things? For I hear of your evil dealings by all the people. No, my sons, for it is no good report that I hear. You make the LORD'S people to transgress'" (vs 23-24).
When God's people see that those in charge and supposed to represent God are not worshipping God, then that causes the people to transgress, as well. It turns the off and turns them against God. They think, 'What is God doing that He allows all this wickedness to go on.'
But we know the rest of the story, that Eli's sons were killed and Eli himself fell over backward when he heard that the Ark of the Covenant had been taken and he broke his neck. He was a very heavy man and he fell over backward and broke his neck; so God did intervene!
Bad examples certainly deter us if we let them. That's the key, if we let it! We've seen all kinds of things down through the ages in God's Word about what people did. We've seen in our Church history that have gone on that weren't right. But the key is to still keep that relationship with God, to realize that God is in charge.
You're going to have people like this, because Satan is going to spread those tares, and have wolves in sheep's clothing. All of these things to try to discourage us and turn us away from worshipping God.
This is going to be a two part message, because I'm just going through the Old Testament and the next message I give I will give example in the New Testament.
DAVID:
We all know the story of David and Uriah, one David's top generals, one of the main leaders.
2-Samuel 12:1: "And the LORD sent Nathan to David. When he came to him and said to him, 'There were two men in one city, one rich and one poor. The rich one had exceeding many flocks and herds, but the poor one had nothing except one little ewe lamb which he had bought and nourished up. 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 was to him like a daughter. And there came a traveler to the rich man and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd to dress for the traveler that had come to him. But he took the poor man's lamb and dressed it for the man who had come to him'" (v 1-4).
He had an example there, a story, the wisdom that Nathan used in going to confront David with this. Knowledge and wisdom is the way to go about it, because you can imagine, 'How am I going to address the king?' But God gave him the wisdom and the knowledge in this parable.
He says that this man only had one little lamb, and it was taken by one who had all these others.
Verse 5: "And David's anger was greatly kindled 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 the lamb fourfold because he did this thing, and because he had no pity'" (vs 5-6).
Exodus 22:1: "If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it or sell it, he shall restore five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep." David was going by this example!
Then Nathan drops the bombshell on David; 2-Samuel 12:7: And 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 out of the hand of Saul. And I gave you your master's house and your master's wives into your bosom, and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah. And if that was too little, I would have given to you such and such things besides. Why have you despised the Word of the LORD to do evil in His sight? You have stricken Uriah the Hittite… [a top general, a mighty man] …with the sword and have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the children of Ammon'" (vs 7-9).
We know that he delivered his own death warrant! He set him up next to the wall where he would be killed.
Verse 10: "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 evil against you out of 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 sun, for you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun" (vs 10-12).
That did happen, Solomon's son Absalom did this.
We see what sin does! Here David had all these wives, and evidently it was a time in Israel that it was kind of peaceful and David wasn't out to war with the rest of them. I'm sure that Uriah's wife, as it's been brought out many times, that she knew David came out a certain times every day—afternoon or evening—and she was bathing up on the roof where he could see her. He gave into that temptation!
All of us need to set an example of God's way. We either set it by our ways, or by our talk or actions. We either set a good way or a bad way in representing God and reflects upon Him!
Don't give an occasion for Satan to tempt us and allowing us to sin against God as David fell for it. For the rest of his life turmoil was in his house. It didn't stop. His sons were eventually killed, took David off his throne and David had to flee. Absalom killed his oldest son who had raped his half-sister. Then later on when Solomon took office, another one of his sons was killed because he wanted to be king. The rest of David's life his household was miserable, because of his giving in to sin with Bathsheba.
David repented, and he's still going to be king over Israel as a spirit being, when God comes back with His Kingdom. Isaiah and Jeremiah tells us that. But David repented, and Psa. 51 is about that repentance, where he said, 'Wash me, clean me up and give me a right heart.'
That's what we need to do! When we fall short and sin—we all sin, we all transgress—we need to repent and repent big as David did.
Matthew 5:15: "Neither do they light a lamp and put it under a bushel basket, but on the lampstand; and it shines for all who are in the house. In the same way also, you are to let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works, and may glorify your Father Who is in heaven" (vs 15-16).
So, those are some if the examples in the Old Testament, and they were helpful to me to go over those and hopefully helpful to you.
Scriptural References:
- Genesis 4-5
- Daniel 1:1-8, 12, 17, 15, 19-21
- Daniel 2:1619, 23, 25-28
- Daniel 6:1-10, 20-22
- Daniel 3:11-12, 14-19, 21-22, 25, 28-30
- Ruth 1:11-16, 18, 9, 14
- Numbers 25:1-13
- Genesis 39:6-9
- 1 Corinthians 6:18-20
- 1 Samuel 3:11-13
- 1 Samuel 2:12-18, 23-24
- 2 Samuel 12:1-6
- Exodus 22:1
- 2 Samuel 12:7-12
- Matthew 5:15-16
Scriptures referenced, not quoted:
- Hebrews 11
- Psalm 51
MF:bo
Transcribed: 8/16/21
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