King David thought he had gotten away with it. After getting Bathsheba pregnant, he sent her husband off and arranged to have him killed in battle. After she grieved her husband’s death, David married Bathsheba, and they were none the wiser.
There’s that pesky verse in Scripture that says, “Behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out” (Numbers 32:23, ESV).
Be sure your sin will find you out!
Nathan was David’s friend, but he was also a prophet of God. He boldly went to the king, and after telling him a pretext story, he slammed David for his sin, possibly risking his life if David became angry. But David humbled himself, confessed his sin, and was restored (II Samuel 2).
But there were consequences. There are always consequences!
Where are the prophets of God today? Do we have such men anymore who are not enamored by those in power and who represent God to those who blatantly sin? Our country would be better off if a few prophets began publicly rebuking our leaders who willfully and openly sin.
Lying, manipulating, and scheming have become common practice today, and not just in politics. We’ve become complacent, accepting all of it as just a part of life. We no longer blush at sin, nor are we embarrassed by it. Like the frog placed in a pot of water that is slowly heated up, our culture has come to a boiling point. Is our goose cooked?
Samuel was another prophet. He anointed Saul as King, but when Saul strayed from strictly following God’s law, Samuel confronted him, also possibly risking his life. Saul became very slack in following the law. He sacrificed before going into battle and blamed-shifted when confronted about it. The people made me do it!
When told to completely destroy the Amalekites, Saul kinda sorta did it. He did spare King Agag and kept the best of all the livestock, but other than that, he finished the job.
Partial obedience is disobedience! The price of Saul’s sin was the kingdom being torn from him. He did not sin nearly as bad as David did, but the difference between the two was stark: David repented; Saul made excuses.
There are many more examples of those in power or authority being confronted by Godly men and women. We can be relieved knowing that God is not keeping track of failed, sinful leaders anymore. However, Heaven is not blind to the abuse of power, especially as it relates to abusing God’s children.
One day, every leader will stand before a Holy God and give an account of their lives. We may not see justice in this life, but there will be justice served in Heaven!
Our Founding Fathers were men of faith, regardless of what those who want to rewrite history say. They believed in leaders being held accountable. They believed that a higher standard was needed for those entrusted with authority. That’s one of the reasons there are people today who want to erase our godly heritage and history.
We have dropped our standards election cycle after election cycle. “All politicians lie,” we say, so we simply accept it. We claim our candidate isn’t as bad as the other guy, as if that makes it okay. We see the results in a nation where character and integrity no longer matter and then wonder why our nation is in such a mess.
Following tomorrow’s midterms, we may not be asking, as Mrs. Powell asked Benjamin Franklin after the Constitutional Congress, whether we have a republic or a monarchy — we may be asking if we have a republic or a communist dictatorship.
God help us!
Something to pray about.
Semper Fidelis
