MERCY TO A DECEITFULLY WICKED HEART

It is an amazing fact that God ordains the treachery of the human heart to achieve his purposes and glorify himself.

We've a story to tell: There was a very wealthy man who had many flocks and herds. In the ancient at east this was wealth. There was also a poor man WHO had nothing except one female lamb. The poor man nourished this lamb a raised it from youth. He treated like if it was part of the family, drinking from his cup and eating from his plate. A traveler to the rich man and took this poor man's lamb to cook it for the rich man that was come to visit, despite the fact he had many of his own sheep at could have been prepared for the meal.

This is a story of our own creation. It is a story that was told by the prophet Nathan to King David at the height of his power (II Samuel 12.1-4). We will record David's reaction when Nathan asked him what would be done with such a man who did this don't poor man, "And David's anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, As the Lord lives, the man that has done this thin shall rely die; and. all restore his lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity" (12.5-6).

How deceitful are our hearts! David was the same man who in faith slew Goliath. He was the same man that refused to slay King Saul because was convinced that he could not hurt the Lord's anointed. He was the same man that established Jerusalem as the center or religious worship for the Lord. He was the same man that wanted to build a temple to his Lord. He was the same man that gave Mephisbosheth the only sole crippled survivor of king Saul's line that was left alive a place at his royal table for the rest of his life. He was the same man who united all the Jews in the same kingdom of Israel. He was called a "man after my own heart" by the Lord. He was the man to whom God promised there would be a man from his line on the throne forever.

This David, king of all Israel naturally wanted to know who this man was that Nathan had told him about. These were Nathan's words,

...you are the man, thus says the Lord God of Israel, I anointed and delivered you out of the hand of Saul; and I gave you your master's house, and your master's wives into your bosom, and gave the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have given you then such and such things. Wherefore you have despised the commandment of the Lord to do evil in his sight? you have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and have taken his wife, and also he was slain with the sword of the children of Ammon. Now therefore, the sword shall not depart from your hand because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to your wife. Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of he sun. For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel." (II Samuel 12.7-12).

What a humiliation for David! But there is more, the son that Bathsheba would give birth to would die. One would think that this treacherous act of David toward his God would ONLY result in evil. But in the great mystery of God's mind and purpose, He chose this lineage to produce Israel's greatest king - Solomon! And what is more, from Bathsheba would come Christ!! See Matthew 1. We can see other examples of this kind of work by God in the cases of Samson, Rehab the harlot, Jacob the supplanter, Rachel his scheming mother, Peter the Christ-denying braggart, and Paul the murderer of Christians to name a few.

This means brethren at we cannot know what tool God will use to bring glory to himself, or what persons, who to the eyes of men, look very unlikely to become godly leaders in our churches. And this is how is should be brethren. Because when we are weak we are strong.