ODJ: Open the Door

December 17, 2018 

READ: 2 Samuel 11:1-17, 12:1-13 

David confessed to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord” (12:13).

Each Friday, five brothers in Christ open the door to a conference room and then we open our hearts. We share our sins, our successes—our very lives—together. We take an hour each week to share Scripture and pray honestly, laying bare before God the stuff that’s been hiding inside. Why? Because “the human heart is the most deceitful of all things” (Jeremiah 17:9). Through accountability, we strive to build one another up and help keep one another from falling.

David’s tragic fall is a reminder of what can happen when we open up the wrong door and surrender to sin. The king was home while his army was out faithfully fighting a fierce enemy (2 Samuel 11:1)—the first time in Scripture we find a king not heading into battle with his soldiers.

Lusting after Bathsheba, a woman married to one of his most trusted warriors, David used his kingly authority to have her brought to his chambers (v.4). Later, Bathsheba let the king know his sinful actions had resulted in pregnancy (v.5). Trying to hide his immorality, David had her husband killed in battle—which resulted in the death of several other soldiers as well (v.17).

God sent the prophet Nathan to expose the depths of David’s sin and the harm it had caused (12:7-10). David repented and sorrowfully confessed his wrongdoing (v.13; Psalm 51).

But while it was necessary for him to repent, if David hadn’t put himself in a susceptible situation with no one to hold him accountable, both past and future devastating effects in the lives of others could have been avoided (2 Samuel 11:17, 12:11-12,15-19, 16:21-22).

May we open our heart’s door to accountability from other believers in Jesus. God can use them to help us slam shut sin’s door.

—Tom Felten

365-day plan: Hebrews 11:1-40