Thou Art The Man

[0:00] The following sermon is made available by Lakeside Bible Church in Cornelius, North Carolina.

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[0:39] The pivotal statement in this narrative includes that last sentence in chapter 11, along with the first sentence in chapter 12. The thing that David did was evil in the sight of the Lord.

[0:54] And the Lord sent Nathan to David. These verses reveal that God is not content to leave us in our sin.

[1:06] Though it is painful to endure, it is out of God's grace that he confronts us. He sends messengers to confront us in order that he might lead us to repentance and supply us with his mercy.

[1:22] That's the theme of these verses. Did you notice that? The Lord sent Nathan. Thus says the Lord to David. The Lord brings him to repentance.

[1:34] And the Lord says, I have forgiven you. This is the work of the Lord. Without this divine confrontation in David's life and without the divine confrontation in our lives, we would be spiritually hopeless.

[1:51] Here we see not only God's hatred of sin, but we see his love of forgiveness. And it is the confrontational dynamic, the sending of this messenger to David, that shows us the reality of God's love.

[2:07] This part of the story reveals exactly how God orchestrates his confrontational work. Let's look first at God's messenger. Right at the beginning at verse number one, This very first line of the chapter asserts that God is not a mere passive onlooker when it comes to his creation.

[2:32] Nothing in the Bible teaches that God has set creation in motion and then stepped away to let it develop as it pleases.

[2:43] The scriptures actually attest to the fact that God is actively working in every part of creation in order to bring about his purposes.

[2:55] He didn't leave David to himself in hopes that David would ultimately figure it out and come to the realization of what he had done. That would have never happened. We saw what happened in chapter 11.

[3:07] When David was left to himself, he just continued on. He continued in sin over and over and over. It would take the divine confrontation of God to make a difference for him. So God took the initiative and he sent a messenger to confront David in his sin.

[3:24] And we learn an important truth here about God's character. Not only does he see, as in verse 27 of chapter 11, that it displeased the Lord he saw what David did, but he also acts in his good time to bring about his demonstration and purposes of sovereign grace.

[3:46] Dale Davis said this, we need to dally on those opening words, for they speak of the vigilance of grace. They show us that grace pursues and exposes the sinner in his sin.

[3:59] They teach us that God will not allow his servant to remain comfortable in sin, but will ruthlessly expose his sin, lest he settle down in it.

[4:12] You may succeed in unfaithfulness, he says, but God will come after you. What immense and genuine comfort every servant of Christ should find in these first six words of the chapter.

[4:23] Not that God's pursuing grace is enjoyable, Davis says, but what if grace did not pursue? What if God abandoned us when we succeed at sin?

[4:38] Consider that for a moment. What if God had decided not to pursue David in this moment? What would have been the result? Surely he would have only continued in.

[4:48] His heart was very hard at this point. The entire purpose of this narrative here is to show that God in his grace pursues us. He pursues the sinner. He pursues the Christian who is lost again in sin.

[5:02] He pursues us. He is not content for us to remain in sin. The confrontation described was not Nathan's idea. It's not as if the prophet had become aware of David's sin and took it upon himself to confront the king.

[5:20] No. This is the work of the Almighty. Nathan was merely the instrument of grace that God chose to use in this moment. God in his word has established many messengers, actually.

[5:36] Whether it be through the preaching of the gospel, whether it be through the confrontation of sin and other believers as we seek to disciple one another and help one another grow in our relationship with Christ, each of us have been called as a messenger of God to confront the sin of this world and the sin of our lives.

[5:54] Let me just consider for just a moment some of the ways that God has demonstrated this in his word. Think about the dynamic of the family. Parents, in particular, are commanded in the Bible to be the first and most prominent form of confrontation when it comes to the sin of their children.

[6:12] The scriptures teach us that it's actually our love for our children that lead us to act in this way, in a disciplinary way. And in doing that, we actually demonstrate the love of God for his people.

[6:25] Think about Proverbs chapter 13, verse 24. Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.

[6:39] Ephesians 6, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. Deuteronomy chapter 6, God says, Not only are you to read and understand the commands that I give you, but you are to put them on your heart.

[6:57] You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you arise. There has been a call placed on the life of every parent to discipline the kids, to confront sin in our children's lives.

[7:14] There is a responsibility and a call for us in other elements within our families to confront sin. It's not just for parents. The parents have been called to do this.

[7:25] It's not that Nathan is the only one. It's not just designated for the prophets of the Bible. No, believers have a responsibility to this. Confront sin. Think about the church.

[7:36] First, the church has the corporate body. The Bible says it's the pillar and the ground of truth. The church is to naturally confront sin as a part of its call to proclaim the gospel.

[7:48] You cannot proclaim the gospel of Jesus without confronting sin. You can't do it. But so many churches have softened their proclamation of the gospel in order to appeal to the masses.

[8:02] But the scripture says that you cannot understand the gospel without first being confronted by the depravity of your own heart, the worthlessness of your own sin, the sinful condition that you lie on.

[8:13] Without that understanding, there's no reason for you to want Christ. Why would you? Why would you even need him? We have to confront sin. That's a part of our corporate responsibility as the church.

[8:24] But even within the communion of the church, the responsibility of church discipline has been severely neglected. Why? Because it's hard.

[8:37] It's difficult. And it's not just a modern problem. The early church in the New Testament struggled with it too. Think about 1 Corinthians 5.

[8:48] This is the responsibility of the congregation. Paul says, When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus, deliver this man who was in sin, unrepentant sin, deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh.

[9:02] And here was the purpose. So that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord. There was not a condemning spirit. It was a restorative spirit in what they did. That was the responsibility of the congregation to do that.

[9:14] We have that responsibility as the body of Christ. 1 Timothy 5.20, we see the responsibility of leaders in the church. As for those who persist in sin, Paul tells Timothy, Rebuke them in the presence of everyone so that the rest may stand in fear.

[9:32] We have to confront sin not only as the structure of the family and the structure of the church. What about the church as individuals, individual believers? We have this responsibility as the collective body, but also we have to help one another.

[9:49] One of the ways that we help one another and admonish one another and love one another is by lovingly confronting sin in one another's lives. Galatians 6. Brothers.

[10:01] Individuals. If anyone is caught in a transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him. 1 Thessalonians 5.

[10:13] We urge you, brothers, that is individuals, admonish the idle, encourage the faint-hearted, help the weak, be patient with them all, see that no one repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone.

[10:30] We are just as called to this as Nathan. Nathan had a specific purpose in the life of David, but you also as a believer have a specific purpose in the life of another, the purpose of the confrontation of sin.

[10:43] It's only after we've established that this was the work of God, God sent this messenger, this was his work that we can rightly understand Nathan and what Nathan did and how he did it and learn from him practically.

[10:58] First, we see Nathan was obedient to his call. He was obedient to his call. Look back at verse number one. The Lord sent Nathan unto David and he came unto him. Very simple.

[11:09] He obeyed the call. So should we obey the call. Now we don't know much about Nathan. The scripture doesn't say a lot about him, but it does say enough for us to understand that he was a faithful prophet of God and that he was a friend to the family of David and his throne.

[11:27] But his closeness with King David wouldn't have diminished the anxiety that likely accompanied this call. We might even argue that it is easier to confront a mere acquaintance than it is someone that you know well.

[11:44] But God wasn't calling Nathan to go and confront his friend. He was calling Nathan to confront the most powerful man in the nation and the surrounding region. Now imagine what could have been going on in Nathan's mind.

[11:58] He knew what had happened. God had revealed it. If not, the word had been getting out at this point. Surely others knew what David had done. What was going through his mind? If David was so intent on covering his sin that he murdered Uriah, what's going to keep him from murdering me if I go and try to confront him in that sin?

[12:16] He had every reason in the world to ignore this call. But he didn't do that. He was obedient to it. He was faithful to what the Lord wanted him to do.

[12:29] And there are moments when God directs a person to act in a specific situation. Certainly elders in the church are called to assume this responsibility as leaders. But every believer is called as a messenger whether it be preaching the gospel or exhorting the saved.

[12:47] For the New Testament believer, it's not a matter of calling. It's a matter of obedience. And so we first see that Nathan was just simply obedient to what the Lord had asked him to do. Second, he was gentle in his manner.

[12:59] He was gentle. How is it that he approached him? He didn't come in guns a-blazing, so to speak. He told him a story. Let's look at the story. There was a rich man that had exceeding many flocks and herds, but the poor man had nothing except for one little ewe lamb.

[13:18] He had bought it and nourished it up, and it grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own table. It drank of his own cup, and it lay in his bosom, and it was unto him like a daughter.

[13:31] And there came a traveler unto the rich man, and he didn't want to spare anything from his own flock to feed the traveler. And so he took the poor man's lamb and dressed it for the man that was to come to him.

[13:47] Now, the shocking nature of David's sin in chapter 11, if you study it closely before you get to this story, it's infuriating.

[13:58] How could David do this? How could anybody do this? Much less somebody that's a believer, somebody that is supposed to be a man after God's own heart, and we desire at this point that God sends thunder and lightning on David's life, right?

[14:14] But that's not how Nathan approached him. It's the opposite of that. He was gentle in his manner. He told him a story first. He didn't approach him rashly or with a spirit of condemnation.

[14:29] And I think the reason for this is because Nathan's heart was to help David, not condemn him. If all we have in our mind in confronting our children or confronting another brother or sister in Christ in their sin, if all we have in our mind is our hatred for that sin and how we just want to condemn that sin in their life, but we ignore the love and the humility and the gentleness that God calls us to in that moment, we end up taking on a posture of condemnation and not actually trying to help the person.

[15:03] Nathan's approach to David wasn't to come in guns a-blazing and try to rain down fire from heaven on David. He came in gently. He came in telling him a story. He had a desire to actually help David.

[15:14] And then he was thoughtful in how he did it. The story that he told was not only accurate to David's sin, it was contextual to David's life as a shepherd. Nathan gave thought to this.

[15:27] He was careful. He was gentle. Why? Because he wanted to actually help David. And in our confrontations, we should be the same. We should be thoughtful, careful, gentle in order that we may actually help our brothers who are in sin.

[15:46] The New Testament actually commands this. We mentioned Galatians 6.1 a minute ago. The second half of that verse is you who are spiritual restore him in the spirit of gentleness. It plainly says it.

[15:57] We do this in a gentle spirit. Paul wrote to the Ephesians in chapter 4 what our relationship to one another should be. He says that it should be with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace, speaking the truth in love.

[16:17] What is our response to one another? Humility, grace, love, help, gentleness is how we approach each other. So Nathan was obedient, he was gentle in his manner, but then he was also direct in his confrontation.

[16:34] Look at verse number 5. Nathan tells this story and we see David's response. David's anger was greatly kindled against the man.

[16:46] We understand this to be a parable looking back. David understood it as if this was a real situation that he needed to judge as the king and so that's exactly what he's doing here. And he said to Nathan, as the Lord lives, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die and he shall restore the lamb fourfold because he did this thing and because he had no pity.

[17:07] The injustice in the story is infuriating and that's exactly the emotion that David expressed. And we can understand that. Nathan had him right where he wanted him.

[17:22] Rather, God had him right where he wanted him. The translation here of shall surely die, the literal translation of this is son of death.

[17:33] This is not an official sentencing. In fact, it's probably better to read it that this man is worthy of death. It is an indication of David's disdain for this rich man and what he had done.

[17:44] It's not an official sentencing. The official sentencing is in verse six. He says, he shall restore fourfold. Exodus 22.1 as a part of the law said that anyone who stole a lamb from someone else, this was the full extent of the law, was to restore that lamb fourfold.

[18:06] This wasn't punishable by death. It was just despicable that he would do this. So we would look at this man, David would look at this man and say, he is worthy of death. He's a despicable human being for what he has done.

[18:18] I will prosecute him, David says, to the full extent of the law. He will repay this poor man fourfold. As much as the law will let me pour on him, that is what I will pour on him as the king and as the judge.

[18:32] And it was exactly at this point that Nathan finds the perfect opportunity to directly confront the king. And the piercing statement comes at the beginning of verse seven.

[18:46] And Nathan said, thou art the man. Thou art the man. Was he gentle? Yeah. There's no contradiction here.

[18:58] A direct confrontation doesn't preclude a gentle manner. It was actually the gentle manner that made the statement most effective. The truth is, beating around the bush is not going to do you any good when you confront others.

[19:11] That's what a lot of churches and Christians do. They beat around the bush. They just hope that people will figure it out. But you won't figure it out. That's the thing. Those living in hidden sin are in the same predicament as David.

[19:22] Their heart is hardened toward their own sin. They see the sin of everyone else, but they don't see their own sin. And it takes a direct confrontation, albeit a gentle manner, but a direct confrontation to expose the sin according to God's truth.

[19:37] Picture this unfolding. He tells this story. David, maybe you can picture the blood beginning to boil as someone who was a poor shepherd at one point. And he explodes in a fit of anger.

[19:51] This man, full extent of the law, and then as soon as those words come out of his mouth, Nathan looks back, maybe points a finger and says, David, you are that man.

[20:02] You are the man. This is your sin. We can't downplay the reality and seriousness of sin. And Nathan wasn't downplaying it here.

[20:16] We need to be loving and gentle, but we also need to be direct and clear. Otherwise, we will never actually confront the sin at all. And then we move to God's message.

[20:27] Much more quickly, we will move to God's message. That was the messenger. Look at the second half of verse seven. Nathan said to David, you're the man.

[20:38] You are the one that this story is about. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel is what he says there. Adding to the piercing statement that this story was actually about David comes the anguish of hearing the following statement.

[21:00] Thus says the Lord. David was aware of Nathan's prophetic office. He had been used of God already in David's life in this way.

[21:11] But the power and weight of Nathan's words are found in the fact that they weren't actually Nathan's. Nathan's purpose in coming to the king that day was not his purpose.

[21:24] It was God's purpose. Therefore, the message that Nathan brought was not his own message and that's what actually gives it power and weight. He says, not only you are the man, but here's what the Lord has to say about this.

[21:37] Thus says the Lord. It doesn't matter, David, what Joab thinks about this. It doesn't matter if Bathsheba has gone along with this. What matters is what the Lord says. It's the word of God that is to be the foundation of everything that we do, including confronting the sin of others.

[21:56] The Bible is the basis on which we identify and confront sin. Confrontation without the Bible is legalism and it serves to condemn rather than restore.

[22:10] Listen, it does not matter what you think and it does not matter what I think. All that matters is what God says.

[22:21] Thus says the Lord, Nathan says. We do not confront people on the basis of our preference. We confront them on the basis of the truth of God's word and if the scripture is absent from your dispute, you are guilty of what Jesus called judging.

[22:42] Judging is when we confront people on the basis of our expectations but what the Bible calls us to do is confront people on the basis of God's expectations and it's the self-righteous judgment of professing Christians that leads to this legalism that has infiltrated the church and we must learn that thus says the Lord God is the only thing that matters in this life.

[23:08] Your preference does not matter. What you wish it was like does not matter. All that matters is thus says the Lord. The piercing moment in this confrontation is when David finally realized this is God's message to me, not Nathan's.

[23:29] And there's a work that the word of God does here. first, God's word reveals the absurdity of our sin. It reveals the absurdity of our sin.

[23:41] Look again at verse 7. Thus says the Lord God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel. I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul. I gave thee thy master's house and thy master's wives into thy bosom.

[23:54] There's no indication in the scripture that David ever married one of Saul's wives. That's not the point of that statement. He's saying, I gave you everything that belonged to Saul. I put in your hands. I delivered it all to you.

[24:06] And I gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah. And if that had not, if that had been too little, God said, I would have done more. I would have given you such and such things.

[24:18] Listen to what C.S. Lewis said, that great writer, the Chronicles of Narnia and so many other things. He said in an essay or maybe even a sermon called The Weight of Glory, he said this, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the gospel, it would seem that our Lord finds our desires not too strong but too weak.

[24:47] Now we would look at David's sin and we would say that man, his lust, his desire for Bathsheba was just too strong and C.S. Lewis would argue that actually his desire was too weak and he goes on to explain. We are half-hearted creatures fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered to us.

[25:08] Like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at sea, we are far too easily pleased, Lewis said.

[25:23] Rather than bask in the height of joy and blessing that comes from walking purely with God, David settled for something that was far less.

[25:34] The emphasis in these verses is not meant to be on those tangible things that God had actually blessed David with but it's on the fact that our satisfaction, all of it, and the necessity of our lives is found ultimately in God and in his hand of provision.

[25:50] He is all that we need and in him is the fullness of life. So the question that God asked David is completely legitimate. Why would you do this? Why would you need this sin when I have given you me and my power and my blessing?

[26:06] He settled for far less. The scripture backs this principle up. Psalm 16 is one part of it. You have shown me the path of life. In your presence, God, is fullness of joy.

[26:21] At your right hand there are pleasures forevermore. This is the work of God's word. When we come to the scriptures it reveals to us just how awesome God is.

[26:35] As Paul said, I have counted all things but loss in order that I may achieve the surpassing value that is in Jesus Christ. He is the pearl of great price.

[26:46] He is the treasure hidden in a field. When you see God for who he is, everything that this world offers is much too weak of a desire. Desire greater things. Desire the work of God.

[26:57] Desire the power of God. Desire purity with God. So it reveals the absurdity of our sin. God's word reveals the nature of our sin. Look at verse 9.

[27:08] You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword. You've taken his wife to be your wife. You have slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house because thou hast despised me and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife.

[27:29] Word of God tells us what sin is. It exposes it in our lives and when we study the Bible we will quickly find our sin being exposed.

[27:41] Why? Because the Bible is the revelation of God and sin is anything that goes against God's truth. Therefore one of the works of the Holy Spirit through the word is to literally expose our sin.

[27:59] Without the scripture we can't even know what sin exists in us. The writer of Hebrews said it this way that the word of God is living and active. It's sharper than any two-edged sword.

[28:11] It pierces even to the dividing of soul and spirit of joints and marrow. It discerns the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

[28:29] The work of the word exposes our sin. That's what it did for David. But I want to note one specific phrase before we move on. In verse 9 Nathan says or God says through Nathan why have you despised the commandment of the Lord?

[28:45] Despised is the word used. Why have you held in contempt or found contemptible the commandment of the Lord? But look how he phrases it in verse 10. Because thou hast despised me.

[28:59] Because you have found contemptible me God says. Davis is helpful again here. By his adultery and murder David had despised God's commandments his word.

[29:12] He treated them as though they didn't matter. To despise God's word however is to despise the one who has given the word. To trample on his commandment is to trample on the commander.

[29:24] Therefore in verse 10 God cries you have despised me. The true nature of sin is contempt of God. The true nature of holiness is love for God.

[29:38] Well then we find that God's word reveals the judgment of our sin as well. The absurdity it exposes the true nature of it and then it reveals the judgment and we're not going to dive into the consequences of David's sin because we're going to do that in a couple of weeks.

[29:52] We're going to focus just on the consequences of forgiven sin. But the significance here is that there are consequences for every sin.

[30:03] Every sin. For the believer and for the unbeliever. God's holy nature demands this and the Bible reveals it to us.

[30:15] It doesn't just say what our sin is it says what the result of that sin is. But it also says that there's not only natural consequences to our sin that is if you put your hand in a fire you will be burned right?

[30:29] You live in sin you will reap the natural consequences of that sin. But not only are there natural consequences God judges our sin in a judicial sense.

[30:41] Romans chapter 6 the wages of sin death that's the judgment not just that this life will be over even believers die bodily it's the spiritual death the separation the separation from God but then he says but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ God judges all sin the Bible tells us that without the Bible we wouldn't know what our sin is and then we wouldn't know that without following Christ we are destined for eternal punishment eternal spiritual death in hell the Bible shows us that the Bible begs for us to heed that warning and if you don't follow Christ you will be responsible for bearing that punishment but the good news of Romans 6 that the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus is that God became a man in the form of Jesus Christ in order to pay that punishment on behalf of all who believe in him it's the

[31:49] Bible not only that reveals the judgment but it reveals that Jesus has taken that judgment if you will just believe so trust him follow him and then we see finally and most gloriously in this passage God's mercy look at verse 13 David said to Nathan after all of this he's heard the message of God now he says I have sinned against the Lord that's quite a difference here than the David that we found at the end of chapter 11 at the end of chapter 11 we see David sending a message back to Joab that says Joab don't worry about this don't let this seem evil in your sight no big deal but now he's heard the word of God and now it's a big deal because his sin wasn't against Uriah ultimately it wasn't against Bathsheba even in his own confession in Psalm 51 that we'll study intently in a couple weeks he says against thee and thee only have I sinned the true goal of confronting sin should always be to restore the sinner and I know

[33:06] I've echoed that a couple of times today but it's helpful here this is God's goal in the work of the word to confront our sin in order that we would repent of that sin and that's exactly what was accomplished in David's heart he didn't argue with God he didn't argue with God's messenger he stopped rationalizing why what he did wasn't that big of a deal and he humbly confessed his sin and again Davis helps us here to be the man after God's own heart is not to be sinlessly perfect but to be among other things utterly submissive to the accusing word of God the purpose of this statement of confession is simply to acknowledge that God's work had been accomplished remember all of this in chapter 12 this is the work of God not the work of Nathan and that work was accomplished God's goal in sending Nathan was to bring David to repentance and that relentless pursuit of grace did not fail it never does fail

[34:14] God's purpose was to send him in order to preach the truth of his message in order that he could lead David to repentance in that moment that is our role in confronting sin when we preach the gospel it is so that God will take his word and he will do a work in the heart of the individual to which we preach in order that he may draw that person to repentance that's the work of the word it's not our work commit yourself to apologetics that's helpful but there's no power in your apologetic commit yourself to knowing the ins and outs of the scripture that's great but it's the power of the word not your ability to articulate the word that will actually benefit those to whom we confront and the idea behind every confrontation is that we would deliver the word so that God can do his work which is to lead people to repentance so we see David's confession and then we see David's pardon 13 I have sinned against the Lord and immediately

[35:17] Nathan responds the Lord also hath put away your sin you shall not die why is David's simple statement of confession so important because it gives rise to the pouring out of God's mercy David's confession was met with the assurance that God had forgiven his sin and he would spare his life execution was the demand of the law adultery demanded that both David and Bathsheba die be executed and David had condemned himself when he responded to Nathan's story and said we will prosecute this rich man to the fullest extent of the law he was saying I deserve to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law but at the moment that he humbly!

[36:13] and contritely confessed his sin to God God said I have put away your sin it is God's mercy that is so brilliantly shining in this passage what did David do to deserve this pardon nothing nothing at all that's the whole point the mercy of God is based completely on his divine grace not our merit David didn't deserve forgiveness and neither do we but God delights himself in providing mercy mercy this is the entire purpose of this event these 15 verses is all about God's desire for mercy think about it who sent the messenger God God took the initiative he sent Nathan to David in order that Nathan might confront David not with his own displeasure but with God's displeasure of his sin and he confronted

[37:16] David with the truth of God's word and God used that to draw David lead him to repentance and why did he want to do that because God the whole time just wanted to give mercy he just wanted to give mercy that's why he did it why did he send Nathan because he loved David and he was not content to leave him in sin why does God send us to confront our children why does he send us to confront other believers why does he send us to preach the gospel to the unsaved because of his love because his desire ultimately is to pour out mercy we stand forgiven because of God's relentless pursuit of grace and it is his work from the beginning and what a glorious work it is Micah told us in his prophecy in chapter 7 who is a God like you pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance he does not retain anger forever because he delights in mercy loving kindness steadfast love he will again have compassion on us he will tread our iniquities under his feet you will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea

[38:32] Micah says and then in John chapter 3 in the great conversation with Nicodemus Jesus said God did not send me into the world to condemn the world but that the world through me might be saved in order that they might be saved through Christ atoning work condemnation is certainly a part of what God does he must judge sin and there are people who will die in their sin and go to hell but he delights himself in mercy he sent Christ not to condemn sinners he sent Christ to save sinners why should we commit ourselves to the gospel because God's desire is to save sinners and it should be our desire for God to save sinners just this weekend I watched a video maybe some of you heard of Richard Wurmbrand if you haven't I hope that you'll read his book it's called Tortured for Christ and he established the voice of the martyrs who put a video out about it it's a short one hour video I would encourage you to watch it

[39:35] Richard Wurmbrand was a Lutheran pastor in Romania in 1948 just a couple of years after the liberation of the Jews from Nazi Germany the Russians in their communist system their Marxist system which is just a quick commercial for why we should avoid Marxist systems even in our society atheism was the established religion and they came in and they overtook Romania and they forced communism and atheism on there and eventually it became an issue of persecution Richard Wurmbrand continued to preach the gospel they met in apartments secretly in order to have worship services but they continued to witness and share the gospel with Russian soldiers who were there to oppress them one day on his way to church a car pulls up puts a hood over his head throws him in the car and takes him to a prison and he spent the next 14 years of his life in prison and the reason he spent his life in that prison was simply because he preached the gospel three years after the liberation of communist

[40:40] Nazis the first three years of his imprisonment was in solitary confinement 30 feet under the ground he says I didn't see the sun I didn't see the stars I saw no grass I saw no snow I saw no light of day for three years of my life they intentionally kept the cells of that prison as quiet as can be the guards walked around with soft shoes so that you couldn't hear them it was the silence he said the silence could be cut with a knife and day by day they would take him to the beating room and they would literally beat him nearly to death at one point they would hang him on this bar with his feet up and they would tie his arms so that he was just literally suspended with his back toward the ground and they would take a metal pipe and just repeatedly beat the bottom of his feet trying to get him just to name the names of the people that met with him as Christians that were spreading the gospel in Romania but he refused to do it he and his companion Christians ultimately when he was moved out of solitary confinement they would worship together day by day in the prison cell and they would sing hymns together and they would preach to one another just four or five of them they would preach to one another and the guards would come in every day whoever was speaking at the moment they would drag out to the beating rooms and they would literally beat them near to death and then they would bring them back to the cell and they would pick right back up where they left off and Richard

[42:03] Wurmbrand said we made a deal we made a deal with these guards we would preach they would beat and we would preach and they would beat that way everybody was happy we could preach the word to one another they could beat us if that's what they wanted to do and he maintained this love for 14 years he lived in this and there were many of them that died in that process that goes on that stayed that he was with in these prison cells that stayed for 25-30 years in this prison you know why they suffered that way because they cared about the gospel they cared to confront people in their sin not because they hated them not because they wanted to pour out God's wrath on their life but because they loved them and God loved them and God delighted himself in mercy and God delights himself in saving sinners and so they delighted in God saving sinners so it didn't matter what it cost their lives they were going to focus on the gospel they were going to share God's truth and then here we are many churches in our area won't even meet together right now and we think this is suffering we're not suffering this is inconvenience this is not suffering why did God send Nathan because he loved David why has he sent us because he loves us and he loves the people around us and it is our call to take that truth to them as hard and as awkward as that may be and one last note we see

[43:42] David substitute look at verse 14 how be it because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme the child that is born unto thee shall surely die well God's mercy removes the eternal consequences of sin in the life to come it does not always remove the consequences of sin in this life David would indeed face great consequences in fact there's even kind of a note of that in verse 5 when he says this man will have to pay fourfold David lost four children ultimately because of this sin we're going to deal with these consequences in another study and I don't want to read too much into this text but there is an allusion here to what Christ has accomplished in atoning for our sin

[44:45] David's life was spared but the baby's life was taken the guilty was pardoned while the innocent life was lost David and Bathsheba's son could not atone for their sin but there would one day come a son of David who would make a sufficient atonement for them Jesus Christ as tragic as the consequence truly is it points us to the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus we are the guilty ones that are pardoned while his was the innocent life that took our place wasn't just that it was taken is that it was taken in our place the sinless lamb of God was David's and our substitute and he provides his pardon freely to every person that will believe and follow him it cost you nothing but your life it's amazing that how when Jesus was calling the disciples he did not say you know if you give me a little bit of money and if you come on such and such day and do this many religious works that I will bless you he just says follow me you know what God says to you today

[46:20] Jesus cries out to you today you know what he says follow me follow me and to follow him means that you abandon everything else your sin the pleasures of this life realize that your life is not actually your own the power of this passage is revealed only as we understand that it was all the plan of God isn't that awesome isn't that awesome his mercy was not the byproduct of Nathan's earnest pleading with David no God orchestrated the whole thing in order that he might pour out his grace and mercy the tragic circumstance of David's sin ultimately serves as the backdrop that makes the love of God and his grace shine so brilliantly here's my last thing there's a lot for us to learn here and we must heed the warning of sin we need to be obedient to the call to confront sin and we need to learn to confess and forsake our sin but more than all of those things this story should turn our affections to the magnificent love of

[47:33] God and lead us to genuinely and humbly worship him thank you for listening to this sermon made available by Lakeside Bible Church feel free to share it wherever you'd like please do not charge for it or alter it in any way without express written consent from Lakeside Bible Church don't forget to visit us online at lakesidebible.church!

[47:56] or find us on Facebook and Instagram by searching for Lakeside Bible NC if you live in the Charlotte or Lake Norman area we'd love for you to attend one of our worship services we meet every Sunday morning at 10 a.m.

[48:08] we'd love to meet youNING