King David walked towards his palace after winning the military battles in succession with his men.
He could hear his people praise him! He could hear them talk of the terror that had fallen upon all the other nations around them. And David felt delightful! He wasn’t only happy that he and his army had conquered all the armies they attacked. But then, he felt very good about the fact that his fame was spreading fast and wide!
Coupled to his victory of defeating all the 18,000 Edomites in Salt Valley, David became even more famous. It indeed felt good to be celebrated!
And so, after some time a season came: a time of the year where kings usually go to war. And as usual, Joab: David’s army commander knew that they would be going to war with the King.
At least, Joab had seen the King enquire of the Lord in all of their battles, and that brought them great victory. He probably decided to go to David’s palace then to find out what battle strategy they were going to use.
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“No Joab! I won’t be going to war this spring. Go with the men!”
“But My King!” Joab probably had expressed feeling surprised. “My King, this is the time that Kings usually go out to war!”
“I know all that Joab! I know that Kings normally go out to war at this time. But I am not going this time. I am giving you the mandate to lead the army! I probably will stay in the palace and meditate on the laws of the Lord day and night. You have my authority, Joab! You’re my army commander! And I’ll ask of the Lord to give you victory.”
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And so, as recorded in 2 Samuel 11, at the time of the year when kings usually go to war, David dispatched his men to go out to battle. But David himself stayed in Jerusalem.
Then, one evening, after his midday rest, David got out of bed and was walking on the roof of his palace. He probably might have just gone there to get some cool breeze. Or maybe to have a good view of his kingdom from on top of his roof. Of course, the roof top of his palace probably was one of the highest points in Jerusalem.
Or David might have felt idle, since around such times he usually would be on the battle ground with his men. But here in this case, he didn’t go to battle that spring.
Or he probably was tired of staying in his room. And so he wanted to try something new by going out to walk on his roof. But if only he had known what awaited him, David probably wouldn’t have gone strolling on top of his roof.
Lo and behold, as he strolled on the roof of his palace at that height, something caught his attention. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath!
Oh! The king probably forgot that it was getting to evening, and that might have been why this strange woman was having her bath by then! Oh! If only David had gone out to battle with his men! He probably could have spared his hormones that moment! Unfortunately, David forgot that he had to just flee from that sight!
You see, the woman was of unusual beauty! She was lovely and beautiful to behold! David could not resist looking. The words of the Books of Moses clearly didn’t come to mind as he beheld the woman who gently caressed her body. Neither did he remember Psalm 1 to have quickly fled to his chambers to meditate on the Lord that evening .
And so what did David do?
He sent for her. And we know the rest of the story! The King slept with her, and she took seed. Later he got to know that the woman, whose name was Bathsheba was the wife of Uriah, one of his army men!
And at the end, not only did David commit adultery with Bathsheba, but he again schemed and got her husband killed in battle. David committed murder!
Oh! If only he had decided to go out with his men at the time when Kings usually go to war! He would have saved himself from all this.
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There were times of the year that kings went out to war. In that same regard, there are times that Christians are supposed to be on the grounds of battle and pushing back the darkness all around us! There are times that as a believer, you’ve got to be on your knees on the grounds of fervent prayer and meditation!
I have come to know as a Christian, that although the Lord admonishes us to pray at all times, evenings and dawns happen to be the times that many seek the Lord in prayer and in meditation of His word. These times, to us, could be like the times in David’s era where Kings go out to war!
Be mindful of what you do, where you walk, what you watch, what you talk about, and where you find yourself at these times. For sin could just be presented to you when you least expect it!
Don’t get carried away by the successes you’ve chalked in your Christian life to find yourself soon walking on the roof of Pride like David, where you wouldn’t want to be on the grounds like other men in the Lord’s army.
If you choose to be on the grounds as all other men in God’s army, you’ll give pride no room to elevate you to that place where sin glares at you in the face!
1 CORINTHIANS 10:12.
“THEREFORE LET ANYONE WHO THINKS HE STANDS [WHO FEELS SURE THAT HE HAS A STEADFAST MIND AND IS STANDING FIRM], TAKE HEED LEST HE FALL [INTO SIN].
Ponder!
