“Late one afternoon, after his midday rest, David got out of bed and was walking on the roof of the palace. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath. He sent someone to find out who she was, and he was told, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.”” (2 Samuel 11:2–3, NLT)
The scripture for today includes the account of when David first saw Bathsheba. This precise moment in David’s life began one of his greatest periods of suffering. This little incident was the cause of tremendous grief and pain in David’s life. From this moment on, David would be forever remembered as a terrible sinner. These two small verses hint at the sins that David would commit; adultery and murder.
2 Samuel 2:11 begins with David, the great soldier and future king, taking a break from war. While his armies battled, David stayed behind in Jerusalem to rest. While resting “late one afternoon”, David took a walk on the palace roof (2 Samuel 11:2). Looking over the city, David saw “a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath”. In this moment, David was consumed with passion. His sexual urges fired away, and David succumbed to them. By standing there and viewing this woman, David’s mind began to flirt with sin. He allowed himself to be tempted further by “sending someone to find out who she was” (2 Samuel 11:3). Then, fully consumed with lust, David sent for this beautiful woman whose name was Bathsheba.
Bathsheba was a married woman. She was the wife of Uriah. David didn’t care. He seduced her and had sex with her. He then impregnated her. To cover his sin, David had Uriah killed in battle and then took Bathsheba for his wife. Thus, he thought the adultery and pregnancy were hidden. But these sins were not hidden from God. God soon caused David grievous harm for his sins with Bathsheba. Their child died. David’s sin became public. David was forced to face up to his own faithless actions. But it all started when David flirted with sin on that rooftop, then succumbed to that sin through lust.
Though David did not sin by seeing Bathsheba that day, lust drove him right into the clutches of sin. You may think flirting with sin as a harmless act. You might tell yourself that flirting with sin still is not sin. And you’d be correct. However, flirting with sin opens you up to temptation. It is dangerous. It is often the first step down the road to ruin. Flirting with sin leaves you vulnerable to Satan’s lies and fateful decisions.
Geoffrey was an amazingly gifted stock analyst. He was able to see trends in the stock market in time to capitalize on them. He made his company a lot of money. To help Geoffrey see these trends in the stock market, the company gave him free reign to set up his staff. For several years, Geoffrey’s staff was made up of the best minds in the field. Then, in his fifth straight year of big profits, Geoffrey’s secretary left the company. During the hiring process, Geoffrey interviewed a beautiful woman. She was intelligent and witty, a joy to talk to and thoroughly competent in making the office run exceptionally well. He hired her. In the months following, she seemed to anticipate Geoffrey’s needs and was very helpful at helping him reach deadlines and keep track of commitments. Despite all this good, Geoffrey was highly attracted to the young woman. Though he was married, she was not. With the long hours they spent together at work, their relationship only strengthened. Geoffrey’s attraction thus increased. Then, Geoffrey began to flirt with sin.
It all started with a Christmas present. Geoffrey found out through a fellow analyst that his secretary enjoyed a “spa day” every now and then. She would go to a day spa and treat herself to a massage and special beauty treatments. Geoffrey’s heart rate increased. He fantasized about her naked on a massage table. He chastised himself for such thinking because he was a married man. Still, this didn’t stop the flirting with sin.
Over the next several months, Geoffrey began to compliment his secretary on her clothing and accomplishments. His secretary relished Geoffrey’s praise. Then, soon after, Geoffrey began to teasingly flirt with his secretary about her good looks and keen insights. The young secretary was pleased. More and more, Geoffrey allowed himself to flirt with his secretary with words. It was flirting with sin.
A year later, Geoffrey had an affair with his secretary. Using a business trip as an excuse, he brought along his secretary. They had adjoining rooms at a hotel. One thing led to another, and they found themselves in bed together. Their flirting with sin had now morphed into full-on sinfulness. When the affair fell apart, Geoffrey was hit with a sexual harassment complaint by his secretary. His marriage fell into ruin. His position at the company was terminated to save face. In many ways, Geoffrey had to start over at another company in another town after a bitter divorce. But it all started when Geoffrey flirted with sin.
You may lie to yourself about many things in life. Don’t lie to yourself about the dangers of flirting with sin. If flirting with sin can destroy the lives of King David and Geoffrey, some of the most intelligent and successful men of their day, it can certainly destroy your life as well. You might think some well-meaning compliments to a person of the opposite sex are harmless. They may be. They may also be flirting with sin. You might tell yourself that ignoring your responsibilities, telling white lies to your spouse, being jealous, or “borrowing” stuff from work are not a big deal. However, they too may be flirting with sin. There are many little actions that in themselves may seem harmless at first. In truth, they are little flirtations with sin that if indulged in the wrong way or fueled with sinful thoughts will result in fateful sinful encounters that could forever taint your life.
Every now and then, God may give you a warning sign as you stumble into little flirtations with sin. Don’t ignore it. Don’t tell yourself that these little actions will have no consequences. The Holy Spirit will at times warn your conscience of such little forays into sinful flirtations. It would be wise of you to heed the warning and back off your sinful flirtations.
Part of being human is facing temptation. Part of facing temptation is realizing your weaknesses. With this wisdom also must come the realization that you are capable of flirting with sin. If you flirt around with sin often enough, your own weaknesses may take you in directions that cause damaging effects, a loss of face, or even judgment from God. Please don’t underestimate flirting with sin!
Are there some little flirtations with sin you are guilty of even now?
2 Samuel 2:11 begins with David, the great soldier and future king, taking a break from war. While his armies battled, David stayed behind in Jerusalem to rest. While resting “late one afternoon”, David took a walk on the palace roof (2 Samuel 11:2). Looking over the city, David saw “a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath”. In this moment, David was consumed with passion. His sexual urges fired away, and David succumbed to them. By standing there and viewing this woman, David’s mind began to flirt with sin. He allowed himself to be tempted further by “sending someone to find out who she was” (2 Samuel 11:3). Then, fully consumed with lust, David sent for this beautiful woman whose name was Bathsheba.
Bathsheba was a married woman. She was the wife of Uriah. David didn’t care. He seduced her and had sex with her. He then impregnated her. To cover his sin, David had Uriah killed in battle and then took Bathsheba for his wife. Thus, he thought the adultery and pregnancy were hidden. But these sins were not hidden from God. God soon caused David grievous harm for his sins with Bathsheba. Their child died. David’s sin became public. David was forced to face up to his own faithless actions. But it all started when David flirted with sin on that rooftop, then succumbed to that sin through lust.
Though David did not sin by seeing Bathsheba that day, lust drove him right into the clutches of sin. You may think flirting with sin as a harmless act. You might tell yourself that flirting with sin still is not sin. And you’d be correct. However, flirting with sin opens you up to temptation. It is dangerous. It is often the first step down the road to ruin. Flirting with sin leaves you vulnerable to Satan’s lies and fateful decisions.
Geoffrey was an amazingly gifted stock analyst. He was able to see trends in the stock market in time to capitalize on them. He made his company a lot of money. To help Geoffrey see these trends in the stock market, the company gave him free reign to set up his staff. For several years, Geoffrey’s staff was made up of the best minds in the field. Then, in his fifth straight year of big profits, Geoffrey’s secretary left the company. During the hiring process, Geoffrey interviewed a beautiful woman. She was intelligent and witty, a joy to talk to and thoroughly competent in making the office run exceptionally well. He hired her. In the months following, she seemed to anticipate Geoffrey’s needs and was very helpful at helping him reach deadlines and keep track of commitments. Despite all this good, Geoffrey was highly attracted to the young woman. Though he was married, she was not. With the long hours they spent together at work, their relationship only strengthened. Geoffrey’s attraction thus increased. Then, Geoffrey began to flirt with sin.
It all started with a Christmas present. Geoffrey found out through a fellow analyst that his secretary enjoyed a “spa day” every now and then. She would go to a day spa and treat herself to a massage and special beauty treatments. Geoffrey’s heart rate increased. He fantasized about her naked on a massage table. He chastised himself for such thinking because he was a married man. Still, this didn’t stop the flirting with sin.
Over the next several months, Geoffrey began to compliment his secretary on her clothing and accomplishments. His secretary relished Geoffrey’s praise. Then, soon after, Geoffrey began to teasingly flirt with his secretary about her good looks and keen insights. The young secretary was pleased. More and more, Geoffrey allowed himself to flirt with his secretary with words. It was flirting with sin.
A year later, Geoffrey had an affair with his secretary. Using a business trip as an excuse, he brought along his secretary. They had adjoining rooms at a hotel. One thing led to another, and they found themselves in bed together. Their flirting with sin had now morphed into full-on sinfulness. When the affair fell apart, Geoffrey was hit with a sexual harassment complaint by his secretary. His marriage fell into ruin. His position at the company was terminated to save face. In many ways, Geoffrey had to start over at another company in another town after a bitter divorce. But it all started when Geoffrey flirted with sin.
You may lie to yourself about many things in life. Don’t lie to yourself about the dangers of flirting with sin. If flirting with sin can destroy the lives of King David and Geoffrey, some of the most intelligent and successful men of their day, it can certainly destroy your life as well. You might think some well-meaning compliments to a person of the opposite sex are harmless. They may be. They may also be flirting with sin. You might tell yourself that ignoring your responsibilities, telling white lies to your spouse, being jealous, or “borrowing” stuff from work are not a big deal. However, they too may be flirting with sin. There are many little actions that in themselves may seem harmless at first. In truth, they are little flirtations with sin that if indulged in the wrong way or fueled with sinful thoughts will result in fateful sinful encounters that could forever taint your life.
Every now and then, God may give you a warning sign as you stumble into little flirtations with sin. Don’t ignore it. Don’t tell yourself that these little actions will have no consequences. The Holy Spirit will at times warn your conscience of such little forays into sinful flirtations. It would be wise of you to heed the warning and back off your sinful flirtations.
Part of being human is facing temptation. Part of facing temptation is realizing your weaknesses. With this wisdom also must come the realization that you are capable of flirting with sin. If you flirt around with sin often enough, your own weaknesses may take you in directions that cause damaging effects, a loss of face, or even judgment from God. Please don’t underestimate flirting with sin!
Are there some little flirtations with sin you are guilty of even now?