2 Samuel #16: an exposition of 2 Samuel 14:1-33. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday evening, July 7, 2013.
Intro:
To be reconciled is to win over to friendliness; cause to become amicable. Further it is to bring into agreement or harmony; make compatible or consistent. We live in a fallen world. We are a fallen people. We are in constant need of reconciliation. As the fallen sons and daughters of Adam we get crossways with one another. We find ourselves at odds. Even within the church we struggle at times. You hurt my feelings. I make you mad. It’s part of the human condition. While any reconciliation requires grace and forgiveness the greater the harm the more difficult the task. As parents we’ve all had that experience of saying to our children, “Tell him you are sorry.” To the other, “Tell him it is okay.” “Now, give him a hug.” That can be a difficult thing to do when your brother has tormented you all afternoon and tricked you into eating those hot peppers. Not that I’m still bitter about it. Of course he also hid my Beanie Boy but that’s not important. Reconciliation is not always immediate and it’s not always thorough. But let’s move beyond boyhood pranks. What about when one son rapes his half sister and then is murdered by her brother? That may take more than a half-hearted apology and a lukewarm hug! Our text this evening is found in 2 Samuel chapter 14.
Text: 2 Samuel 14:1-33
David’s family is in a mess and it is largely due to his own foolish behavior. David fell into great sin with Bathsheba. He plunged even deeper by not owning up to it but rather trying to cover it. Adultery hidden behind murder is not a righteous solution. The prophet Nathan is sent by God to uncover David’s sin and cause him to deal with it. David repents and experiences the forgiveness of God but forgiveness does not eliminate consequence. The child, conceived in sin, dies. But God is gracious and gives them another child. Israel gains the final victory over the Ammonites and all seems to be back on track. Then comes the sin of Amnon. Compounded by Absolam’s hatred and David’s inaction. Finally Absalom exacts vengeance and flees to Geshur.
We pick up the story sometime later with verse 1 of chapter 14.
As we work our way through the text we learn that…
Thesis: Sin infiltrates and undermines every human attempt at reconciliation.
This whole section starting in 2 Samuel 11 is about sin’s devastation. Story after story reveals the depth of depravity and its far reaching consequences. This is why the Bible informs us that God hates sin. God hates sin because it destroys. This is why we are commanded to flee from lust, have nothing to do with immorality. Sin always takes you further than you wanted to go, keeps you longer than you want to stay and cost you more than you want to pay.
On the surface, this chapter is about bringing a father and son together after a horrible family crisis. But this is an ugly chapter. Dominated by sin and ruled by hostility. On the surface there is the appearance of godliness but it has the smell of death about it.
There are two (2) things I want to point out.
- Manipulation and calculated language provides a very superficial reconciliation.
- What passes for reconciliation proves to be a deepening of division.
Conclusion:
Let me contrast this tragic tale with the story of another father and son.
A son who broke his father’s heart through sin and rebellion.
The story is told in Luke chapter 15.
That son “came to himself.”
Recognized his sin.
Determined to return to his father and confess his wrong.
That father genuinely loved his son.
Never gave up on his son.
As the son returned he found a father whose face was already turned toward him in anticipation.
He found love, forgiveness, mercy and grace.
This is God-centered, God-directed reconciliation and it is our only hope!