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Repentance In The Life Of A Christian - Part 1 of 2

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• 2 Samuel chapter 12. 2 Samuel chapter 12. And as you're turning there, remember, I will be away next Sunday. All right, 2 Samuel chapter 12, and we're going to read the first seven verses. 2 Samuel chapter 12, beginning with verse one. And the Lord sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him, and he said unto him, There were two men in one city, the one rich and the other poor. The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds, but the poor man had nothing save one little ewe lamb, which he had brought and nourished up, and grew up together with him and with his children, and did eat of his own meat and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom

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• and was unto him as a daughter. And there came a traveler unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him, but took the poor man's lamb and dressed it for the man that was coming to him. And David's anger was greatly kindled against the man. And he said to Nathan, As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die. And he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing and had no pity. And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul.

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• The title of the message today is Repentance in the Life of a Christian. And the truth of the matter is this is going to be an introduction. The real message is going to come when I return, but there is just so much in this chapter and I am only going to be able to deal with basically one sentence today. But let me just go ahead and say that repentance is absolutely necessary unto salvation. There is no salvation apart from repentance. And we could say that repentance is unto life. In Acts chapter 11 and verse 18, when those people in Jerusalem heard that the Gentiles had received the Word of God, the Bible says, When they heard these things, they held their peace and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life. So repentance is unto life. Our Lord began his ministry in Mark chapter 1 in verse 15 when he said, The time is fulfilled, the kingdom of God is at hand, repent ye and believe the gospel. And then of course in Luke chapter 5 in verse 32 our Lord said it like this, I came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.

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• So when you start putting together some of the things that our Lord said, then you have to understand that there is no true faith without repentance. It's impossible to believe the gospel apart from and without repentance. We could accurately state that repentance and faith are the two sides of one coin. By that I mean this, if one truly repents, at the same time he truly believes; if one truly believes, at the same time he truly repents. So we must not separate that which God has joined together.

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• And let me just simply make a statement. It may startle you, but it's still a fact. The Lord did not come just to, quote, unquote, save us from hell and judgment. Isn't that amazing? I told you it startled some of you. Matthew 1 in verse 21, the angel told Mary, Thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins. Our Lord came to save us from our sins, so being saved from death, destruction, and judgment is just a byproduct of being saved from our sins. So our Lord basically came to save us then from our sins according to the Word of God. So now just as repentance is absolutely necessary in the beginning of the Christian life, it is also necessary in the continuation of the Christian life.

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• The proof that one has ever savingly believed is that he continues to believe. The proof that one has ever savingly repented is that he continues in repentance. John said it like this in 1 John 2 and verse 19. He said, They went out from us that it might be made manifest that they were not of us. For had they been of us, no doubt they would have continued with us. So the proof then that one has genuinely believed and genuinely repented is that he continues in the faith and in repentance. That's why our Lord said in John 8 in verse 31 to those who believed on Him, He said, If you continue in My word, then are you My disciples indeed. Literally, if you continue in My word, then are you My true disciples, or you are truly My disciples. So a true disciple then is evidenced by continuing in His word.

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• Now I want you to hold 2 Samuel, but I want you to turn to Acts 14 and then the book of Colossians chapter 1. Look in Acts chapter 14 first, then we'll go to the book of Colossians. In Acts chapter 14, I want to call your attention to verse 22. Acts 14, verse 22. The Bible tells us that Paul was confirming the souls of the disciples and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must, through much tribulation, enter into the kingdom of God. But note, if you would, he was exhorting them to continue in the faith. As I said earlier, the proof that you've ever really savingly believed is that you will continue in the faith. Now, look in your Bibles to the book of Colossians, chapter 1. Colossians 1 and verse 23. Colossians 1, verse 23. Here the Apostle Paul says, If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard and was preached to every creature which is under heaven, whereof I, Paul, am made a minister.

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• But notice the first part, if ye continue in the faith grounded and settled and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel. So again what the Apostle Paul is saying is the proof that we have ever savingly believed is that we continue in faith. The proof that we have ever savingly repented is that we continue in repentance. We never outgrow our need for faith and repentance.

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• I've often said that I have done far more repenting since I have been saved than I did when I was saved. Because when God saved me, I repented of some sins in particular for which I had been convicted and sins in general. But after God saved me and I began studying the Scripture, I found out I had a whole lot more to repent over than just what I thought I had at the beginning. And after over 50 years of preaching, I still find there are things in my life that I have to repent over. And Alice keeps telling me if I had just listened to her, I could have taken care of all this the first year of our marriage, but, you know... But the truth of the matter is everybody needs to repent and it is something that needs to continue.

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• Now before I even share with you what I am going to point out today from Scripture, there are several truths that we must keep in our heart as we look at the Scripture today. First of all, repentance, like faith, is the gift of God. Repentance, like faith, is the gift of God. By that I mean this. Faith cannot be worked up, neither can repentance. Faith does not come at our pleasure and at our leisure, neither does repentance. It is indeed the gift of God.

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• Now, I quoted Acts 11, verse 18. Let me do so again. When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life. The word granted is the Greek word didomi. And it literally means given. It means to give as a gift or to furnish and supply and endue. So God gave as a gift to these people repentance.

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• He endued them with it. Now I want you to turn in your Bibles to 2 Timothy chapter 2. Just quoted Acts 11. Look in 2 Timothy chapter 2. And you are going to see that here is the same exact Greek word again, didomi. 2 Timothy chapter 2 beginning there with verse 24. 2 Timothy 2 verse 24, And the servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient,

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• in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves, if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth, and that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will. So let me ask a question based upon verse 26. When do men recover themselves out of the snare of the devil? The answer given in verse 25 is when they acknowledge the truth. So here's another question, when do men then acknowledge the truth? According to verse 25, it's when God gives them repentance. You will never acknowledge the truth without repentance. So notice if you would please, repentance again is a gift of God. God actually gives repentance. Repentance does not belong to man, nor does it belong to anyone else or anything else. Unless God gives His gift of repentance, then no one would ever repent. So the very first thing we need to keep in mind is that repentance is a gift of God. The second thing we need to keep in mind is this, when we repent, we're merely exercising the gift that God has given unto us.

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• You remember that passage in John chapter 15, where our Lord said, Without me you can do what? Nothing. Without me you can do nothing. Well, repentance is something, which means that we cannot repent without Him. We cannot have faith without Him. The truth is that even as Christians, God must give us His gift of repentance and then He must empower us and enable us to exercise and use that gift. So, one of the great temptations to sin is to falsely and erroneously think that we can repent at our leisure. So many Christians think that, you know, they can go out and do whatever they want to as long as they come up and say, I'm sorry. Let me tell you something.

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• Being sorrowful is not necessarily the same as repenting. The Bible does teach us that there is a worldly sorrow that leads into death, and there is a godly sorrow that leads into repentance. And I must hasten to say that there are times that apologies are in place and are absolutely necessary. But one can apologize and not be repented. So do not confuse real, genuine repentance with just simply saying, I'm sorry, or even having a sorrowful attitude.

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• If you'll look in your Bibles to 2 Corinthians 7 and verse 10. 2 Corinthians 7 and verse 10.

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• 2 Corinthians 7 and verse 10. Notice what the apostle says. For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation, not to be repented of, but the sorrow of this world worketh death. So there is a godly sorrow that works repentance to salvation, not to be repented of, but the sorrow of this world worketh death. Well, what in the world is the sorrow of this world? Well, there is no man that wants to be caught with his hand in the cookie jar. What is the sorrow of this world? The sorrow of this world is something like this, Oh my, oh my, oh my.

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• Now everybody's gonna know what I did. It's gonna come, everybody's gonna find out. I'm gonna be embarrassed. Really? That's the sorrow of this world. We're sorry that we got caught. We're sorry that we were exposed. We're not really repentant. So there is a sorrow then that produces death. When you talk about repentance, the Greek verb is metanoeo, and the noun is metanoia, and it literally means a change of mind. It means to change your mind concerning God, sin, Jesus Christ; you change your mind and therefore you change your conduct and you change your actions. Repentance, therefore, would be something similar to this. If I were a drunkard and I tell everybody that I now repent of drunkenness, that means I change my habit, I change my conduct, I change my action, and of course, I cease being a drunkard. However, if you saw me next week drunk as a skunk on the side of the road, you know I never really repented. Because repentance involves an awareness of sin, the wickedness of sin, the vileness of sin, and when you talk about repentance, there is a turning from and a turning to.

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• We turn from our sin and we turn to God. We turn from our wickedness and we turn to obedience. So when an individual repents, then he is basically changing his mind which alters his course of conduct and his course of action. So obviously in repentance there is a turning from and a turning unto.

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• Now what I want to do today is this. I want us to look very briefly at the life of David and see what we can learn, not only concerning human nature, but concerning repentance as well. You must remember that David was a man after God's own heart. So obviously he would certainly be a good example for us. And yet the amazing thing is this, as godly as David was for most of his life, it was God who had to deal with him and bring him to repentance and restoration. So, I want you to look in 2 Samuel chapter 12 and look at verse 1. 2 Samuel chapter 12 and verse 1.

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• Notice, if you would, the first sentence. And the Lord sent Nathan unto David. That is a mouthful. And the Lord sent Nathan unto David. David did not send for Nathan. I am sure that in times past David probably sent for Nathan many times because Nathan was not only a prophet of God, he was also David's spiritual counselor. So David in time past had sought for Nathan, but when it comes to this, God sends Nathan to David. In other words, God is the initiator and God is the originator because repentance is His gift. Now the truth is that David did everything he could to hide his sin. He was not seeking repentance. He was seeking to cover his sin. He was unwilling to confide in Nathan. He was unwilling to consult Nathan. So God just sent Nathan to David.

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• I want to say this now before I forget it. One of the greatest mercies that God can give to us is to expose our sins and wickedness. No matter how embarrassing, no matter how humiliating, no matter how devastating, one of the greatest mercies that God can give us is to expose our sin and our wickedness. And one of the greatest judgments that God can place upon us is to enable us to keep our sins secret and hidden. And oftentimes God does indeed judge people just like that.

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• Now, everyone knows the story of David and Bathsheba. You remember her husband Uriah the Hittite. David has committed adultery with Bathsheba and she discovers that she is indeed with child, with David's child. So David forms a plan in his mind and he wonders how in the world I can cover my tracks and cover my sin. And so David then sends to Joab and he says, send me Uriah from the battle front.

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• And like I need some information, I need to know how things are going. Well, if David needed information, anyone could have furnished it. But he specifically asked for Uriah, that is for sure. And so he knew that Uriah would come, and then Uriah would go home to his own house, be with his wife, and of course, then Uriah would probably think that that child was his, and David's secret would be kept. However, I want you to note in this Uriah was a much better man than David. Uriah was a man of integrity. Look in 2 Samuel 11 beginning there with verse 6. 2 Samuel 11 verse 6, And David sent to Joab, saying, Send me Uriah the Hittite. And Joab sent Uriah to David. And when Uriah was coming to him, David demanded of him how Joab did, and how the people did, and how the war prospered. And David said to Uriah, Go down to thy house and wash thy feet. And Uriah departed out of the king's house, and there followed him a mess of meat from the king.

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• You know, every time I read that I thought, you dirty dog. Just like a good steak is going to cover the sin, you know. Watch verse 9. But Uriah slept at the door of the king's house with all the servants of his lord, and went not down to his house. When they had told David, saying, Uriah went not down to his house, David said unto Uriah, Camest thou not from thy journey? Why then didst thou not go down into thine house? Now watch his answer. And Uriah said unto David, The ark, that is the ark of God, the ark and Israel and Judah abide in tents; and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are encamped in the open fields. Shall I then go into mine house to eat and to drink and to lie with my wife? As thou livest and as thy soul liveth, I will not do this thing. Wow! So here is Uriah and he is saying, look I can't do this. The ark of God is out in the field.

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• Israel and Judah are in the field. Joab my commander is in the field. I'm not going to go to my house and enjoy myself while they're out there suffering and doing that. I'm just not going to do it. So the truth of the matter is now David's ploy has failed. So what David does now is he stoops even lower to cover his tracks. Notice if you would verses 12 and 13. And David said to Uriah, Tarry here today also and tomorrow I will let thee depart. So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day and the morrow. And when David had called him, he did eat and drink before him; and he, that is David, made him drunk. And at even he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but went not down to his house. So here's a man that is made drunk by the king, hoping he will forget his integrity and go to his house. But even in his drunken stupor he says, no, I am not going to do this.

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• As thy soul liveth, I will not do this. Not while the ark of God is in the field and all of my compatriots are suffering. I will not do it. So that ploy has failed as well. So notice if you would now what David does. Look if you would please in verse 14. 2 Samuel 11 verse 14. And it came to pass in the morning that David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah. And he wrote in the letter saying, Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him that he may be smitten and die. And it came to pass when Joab observed the city that he assigned Uriah to a place where he knew that valiant men were. And the men of the city went out and fought with Joab, and there fell some of the people of the servants of David and Uriah the Hittite died also. Then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war. Now, obviously, when David wrote this letter, and he tells Joab to put him in the hottest part of the battle, well, Uriah was a valiant man.

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• He would certainly not refuse to do that. But then what David said was, retire from him, that he may die. Let the Ammonites kill him.

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• Now, I want you to watch this. Verse 19, and he charged the messenger, saying, When thou hast made an end of telling the matters of the war unto the king, if so be that the king's wrath arise, and he say unto thee, Wherefore approached ye so nigh unto the city when ye did fight? Knew ye not that they would shoot from the wall? Who smote Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? Did not a woman cast a piece of a millstone upon him from the wall that he died in Thebez? Why went ye nigh the wall? Then say thou, Thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also. So the messenger went and came and showed David all that Joab had sent him for. Now, I want you to note something. David has purposely and premeditatedly planned the murder of Uriah. But it's not just the murder of Uriah. Because when they retired, what did Joab say? Some of the king's servants are dead.

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• There were others that were killed as well. Who would not have been killed had it not been for David? So David now is thinking, I'll just get him out of the way. That's all there is to it. I'll get him out of the way. And so he had him killed. Now that Uriah is dead, David undoubtedly thinks that his secret is safe because he married Bathsheba and only the two of them really knew their sinful relationship. I can assure you that Joab surmised it, he guessed it, because Joab knew the truth concerning Uriah's death and he knew that David had a reason for wanting Uriah dead. And the Bible tells us that when Bathsheba found out that her husband was dead, she mourned for him. And you know I cannot help but wonder, did Bathsheba ever really find out the truth concerning the death of Uriah? Did David ever tell her? Did she guess it? Now here's a question. David has done everything that he can to keep his sin a secret, to cover it, to hide it.

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• My question is this, how long did David endeavor to cover his sin? How long? Well, let me put it to you like this. This is important for several reasons. Number one, it will not only teach us how God moves, but also number two, it teaches us how we should move. For instance, all my children, of course, are grown and gone, so are my grandchildren. But when my children and my grandchildren sinned and did wrong around me, I did not wait a month later to chastise them and to whip them for what they did wrong.

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• As Barney Fife would say, nip it, nip it in the bud. Okay? So when they sinned, I would immediately chastise them because I wanted them to associate their sin with chastisement. And I realized the longer I let it go, the worse it's going to be. Okay? That's how we deal with our children. That's usually how God deals with His children. But in this instance, how long did David seek to cover his sin? How long was it before God really dealt with him? When it says, and the Lord sent Nathan unto David. Here's the answer.

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• Anywhere from nine months to a year. If you look in 2 Samuel chapter 12, beginning with verse 14. 2 Samuel 12, verse 14, Howbeit because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die. And Nathan departed unto his house, and the Lord struck the child that Uriah's wife bare unto David, and it was very sick. David therefore besought God for the child, and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night upon the earth.

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• Now, you know the story how, of course, the child died. So the question is this, how old was the child? Was the child just a day old, two days old, a month old, or three months old? And the answer is we do not know. So probably it would be, I would say, 10 or 11 months, somewhere close to a year that David endeavored to hide his sin. Now, here's my next question. What are we to think of David's state during this period of time? So, for nearly a year, he's done everything he can to hide his sin. He's even had Uriah murdered. Could you and I imagine that David's heart never smote him for this thing? Can we imagine that he never lamented before God concerning it? I would hope that God sent Nathan to David immediately after the child was born. I don't know that he did. That's totally up to God. But obviously by the time that Nathan went to David, others pretty well knew about David's sin.

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• That's why he said in verse 14, Howbeit because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme. Now, I want you to stop and think about this. I've said this many times. I'm going to say it again. Our sins always affect others. There is no one that can keep his sins to himself. The Bible says in Romans chapter 14 and verse 7, For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.

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• David's sin certainly affected Bathsheba. It affected Uriah. It affected those other men that died with Uriah. It affected Joab, their families, and it also affected his enemies because now the enemies of God are mocking the man after God's own heart. So mark it down that our sins always involve others whether they are involved in the sin or not. I oftentimes think of pastors. I hear all the time about pastors sinning and falling and doing ungodly things. It ruins their lives. It ruins their families. It ruins their ministry. It ruins everything.

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• And when someone comes along and says, well, it's my life. I can do what I want to with it. No, no, no, no. That's just like some drunk saying, well, I can drink and drive if I want to. It's nobody's business of mine until he runs head on and kills a husband and wife and three or four kids. Then it happens to be somebody else's business. Our sins always affect other people.

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• Now, so what was David's state of mind? What was his state of heart? According to what David wrote, during this nine, ten, eleven months, David's life was a living hell. I want you to remember something. Sin always promises pleasure and excitement. But it always produces death and destruction. So I want you to turn in your Bibles, if you would, first of all, to Psalm 32. I want you to see what David says concerning his state. Psalm 32, and notice if you would please, verses three and four. Psalm 32, verse three. David says, When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me.

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• My moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Now note what he said in verse three. When I kept silence, when I refused to acknowledge my sin, when I refused to confess it, when I kept silence, my bones waxed old. It was affecting him physically. Through my roaring all the day long, it affected him mentally and emotionally. Then he said in verse 4, For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me.

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• He knew that God was chastening him. He knew that God was whipping up on him. Then he said, My moisture is turned into the drought of summer. When he says his roaring, that speaks of his cries of anguish and distress. He cried, but he cried in vain because there was no repentance. Alexander Carmichael in 1677 wrote this concerning Psalm 32 verses 3 and 4. He said, My bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long.

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• David here not only mourns for sin as a man, but he roars as it were like a pained beast. He seems fitter for a wilderness to cry out than for a secret chamber to weep in. At other times he can water his couch in the night. Now he roars all the day long. At other times, his moisture is dried.

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• Now his bones, the pillar of his house, shake and wax old. There is nothing more miserable than a child of God who is unrepentant. If you would turn right over to Psalm 38, you will see how David enlarges upon his condition. Psalm 38. Notice verse 1. Psalm 38 verse 1. He says, O Lord, rebuke me not in thy wrath, neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure, for thine arrows stick fast in me.

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• His conscience was stinging him badly. Thine arrows stick fast in me, and thine hand presseth me sore. There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger; neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin. For mine iniquities are gone over my head. Catch that now. As a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. My wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness. I am troubled; I am bowed down greatly.

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• I go mourning all the day long. For my loins are filled with a loathsome disease, and there is no soundness in my flesh. Boy, you are talking about a description of a broken, helpless, sick, and anemic saint. He is too weak to carry his guilt, and he is too corrupt to do anything about it. That is why he said in verse 4, For mine iniquities are gone over my head.

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• There is a heavy burden, everything is pressing in upon him. And then he said in verse 5, My wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness. So David then was experiencing what you and I would call real genuine conviction, and yet at the same time he was suffering because he would not confess and acknowledge his sins. Let me put it to you like this, in his sinful state David was not a happy camper. David was not the sweet, loving, innocent boy that he once was. He's now suffering because of his rebellion against God.

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• He is a miserable wretch. Of course, Psalm 51 is another psalm where David confesses and acknowledges his sin. And if you'll look just in verse 12, is what he prays. Psalm 51 verse 12, he says, Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, and uphold me with thy free spirit. So David had lost all of his joy. He was indeed a miserable wretch. You have to remember what Nehemiah wrote. He said, The joy of the Lord is your strength. Well, if David had no joy, he had no strength, and that's what he's complaining about in Psalm 38. He can't keep going. He can't live as he is living. Albert Barnes, in his commentary on Psalm 51 and verse 12, where David prays, Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, says this, Cause the joy of thy salvation to return.

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• This implies that he had formerly known what was the happiness of being a friend of God and having a hope of salvation. That joy had been taken from him by his sin. He had lost his peace of mind. His soul was sad and cheerless. And then he says this, Sin always produces this effect. And that is true. Sin always produces this effect. Charles Haddon Spurgeon on Psalm 51 and verse 12 said this, Salvation he had known, and had known it as the Lord's own. He also felt the joy which arises from being saved in the Lord, but he had lost it for a while, and therefore he longed for its restoration. Now listen to this, None but God can give back this joy. He can do it, we may ask it, and He will do it for His own glory and our benefit. The joy does not come first, but follows pardon and purity.

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• In such order, it is safe. In any other, it is a vain presumption or idiotic delirium. So what Spurgeon is saying is simply this. If you think that you can sin against God and maintain joy and happiness and peace of mind as a child of God, you are having DTs, delirious tremors. You are insane is what he is saying. You are out of your mind. You cannot do this. So Spurgeon is saying that there can be no happiness, there can be no joy until there is repentance and restitution if necessary and possible. Let me try to make a number of applications, and I want you to think with me.

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• I've only dealt with this one verse, And the Lord sent Nathan unto David. Do not allow anyone to entice you or seduce you into sin by promising an easy and speedy repentance, because repentance does not belong to you, it belongs to God. It does not belong to those who promise it. The truth is, repentance is God's gift, and unless He gives repentance, we do not repent. And it doesn't matter whether we're a Christian or a non-Christian. If God does not give us repentance, we do not repent. And if we do not repent as Christians, then our life is going to be one of misery and abject grief. It's just that simple. Okay? Now, listen carefully.

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• There are some sins that cannot be undone. Think about this. There are some sins that cannot be undone. How do you undo adultery? How do you undo murder? How do you undo a broken vow? How do you undo a broken trust? Yeah, the truth is you may be forgiven and God may give you repentance, but that does not restore life of the one that you have taken, nor does it restore purity, nor does it restore faithfulness.

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• I'm just simply saying there are scars and griefs from sin that we carry throughout our entire lives. You remember in Psalm 71, I think it is, David says, Remember not the sins of my youth. You know, as we get older, we tend to forget a lot of things. Isn't it amazing some of the things we want to forget we can't forget? And you can remember some of those sins in your youth.

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• And I've heard people say, and I've said it myself, would to God I had never done that. If I only could do it over, if I only had the knowledge then that I have now, I would have never done it. And you've heard me say this before. I've learned to pray adding to David's prayer request. David said, Lord, remember not the sins of my youth. And I want to add, and Lord, remember not the sins of my middle age and the sins of my old age as well. Because they're there. They're there. Now think with me. I said that there are some sins that cannot be undone. You know, although I despise a thief, theft is easy to

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• work out because the Bible demands restitution. So if Ron stole from me, depending on what he stole and how it worked out, I could get a two-fold or a four-fold or even a five-fold restitution. Some instances a seven-fold. So, if he stole a $100 bill from me, and he was caught, and he hadn't spent it, then God says he's to pay it back double. But if he's destroyed it and spent it, then he owes me $400. You can work that out.

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• But when I say there are some sins that cannot be undone, don't just stop and think about adultery and murder and fornication. I want you to consider gossip, slander, talebearing. Years ago I read of an incident where a man slandered and lied against his neighbor. The man was a Christian and for whatever reason he did it. And he got under deep conviction and he went to his pastor and he told him, I've lied, I've slandered my neighbor, and I want to seek restoration and forgiveness.

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• What do I need to do? And the pastor said, well, before you go to the neighbor and confess it and acknowledge it and ask forgiveness, he said, here's what you must do first. He said, do you know the people to whom you lied and promoted the slander? Yes, he said, I do. He said, well, you must take a chicken feather and go place it on each of their doorsteps.

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• And then you come back tomorrow and I'll tell you what to do. So he did that. And the next day he came back, he said, well, I placed the feathers on the doorsteps of the people that I communicated these lies and slander to.

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• Now what do I need to do? The pastor said, now you need to go back and pick them up and bring them to me. Well, the man was gone a number of hours and he came back and he said, It's impossible. He said, the wind has blown those feathers hither and yon. I know not where they are. And the pastor said, neither can you recall your words nor the words of those neighbors and to whom they have spoken and spread the slander and the libel. We may be forgiven. And God may give us repentance, but there are just some sins that you cannot undo. You cannot unspeak an unkind word. You just can't do it.

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• And everyone in this room has said at one time or another, would to God I've never said that. But I'm just simply saying we have to understand there are some sins that cannot be undone. Here's the second application. Though God may suffer or allow His people to fall into sin, yet thankfully He will not allow them to continue in their sin. God sent Nathan unto David. Inevitably, invariably He is going to bring us out of our sin.

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• That doesn't mean that we will not be chastened. It doesn't mean that we will not suffer grief and heartache and anguish. But it does mean that God is just not going to let us stay in that state of sin and rebellion. He will bring us out of it. David learned a very valuable lesson. In fact, let me just see if I can find the verse that I'm thinking about. It's actually a good verse. Because the Scripture tells you concerning David, let me see if I can find it right here, I think it was in 2 Samuel chapter 15, one of these passages, but anyhow the Scripture says that David only sinned in regard to Uriah and Bathsheba. In other words, that doesn't mean that was his only sin. What it does mean is that was the only time he willfully transgressed the Word of God. So generally speaking, David was indeed a man after God's own heart. And generally speaking, David was indeed an obedient individual. And so the Scripture tells us then that it was in this one particular area that David really went off the deep end, and David sinned against God, and God had to judge him, and God had to deal with him.

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• Now, I'm still trying to find it exactly. Yeah. But anyhow, maybe 1 Kings 15, I don't see it right now, but it just says that this was the only area in which David really went astray. So here's the point I'm going to make. If this is the area in which David went astray, let us learn from David's experience so we won't have to experience the same thing that David did.

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• Stop and think about that. God gave us an excellent example of what not to do. And he also gives us an example of how serious sin really is. He has also told us that unless he gives repentance it does not come. The third and final application is this. It is God that first seeks us in salvation. And it is God that first seeks us in restoration. And the Lord sent Nathan unto David.

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• I was preaching in Greenville, South Carolina many years ago, and there was a lady there who was practicing a song that she was going to sing that night for a special. It was early. She had a very beautiful voice. And the chorus of the song went like this, I found him, I found him. And I listened, and I let her finish, and I looked at her. I said, you know, you have a beautiful voice, and you sing that song very beautifully.

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• I said, the only problem with it, it's just not true. She said, what? I said, well, the Scripture says he came to seek and to save that which was lost. And he seeks his lost sheep until he find it. You did not find him. He found you. She said, in that case then, and she started singing, he found me, he found me. Well, that's fine. That's wonderful. But do you realize the same thing is true in our Christian life? It is God who seeks to restore us. And it's God who gives us repentance and brings us back to himself. Let's pray.

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• Father help us, teach us, grant us Lord that we may learn from David and that we may bring our lives in conformity to Your Word. May we serve Thee in faith and repentance, in Christ's name we pray, amen.

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• ♪

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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-04T21:19:49Z