ROOFTOP TRAGEDY

“Then it happened one evening that David…walked on the roof of the king’s house. And from the roof he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to behold.” ~ II Samuel 11:2

REFERENCE:

II Samuel 11:1-7

King David was a man after God’s heart, a valiant warrior, the sweet psalmist of Israel, a giant slayer, and the famed shepherd turned king. He had it all going for him; the love of his people and the conquest of all enemies. However, the enemy that would conquer him was lurking within his heart. That conquest began from the rooftop of his palace.

The account in our text chronicles the beginning of the stain on king David’s outstanding record. Through a rooftop tragedy, David injected the poison of satan into his blessings from God. He saw a woman taking her bath from his rooftop, lusted after her, lost his mind, and almost lost his crown. It was the beginning of a series of sins that displeased God.

Let us quickly observe the events that led to this tragedy on the rooftop:

a.     Neglect of Duty: As king, David should have led the charge of his soldiers to fight the Lord’s battles, but he delegated that to others and stayed back in Jerusalem. He had fought the Syrian war with his men (II Samuel 10:17) but perhaps felt he had become too big for war. If he had been at his duty post, he would have missed exposure to temptation. When we neglect our duty, we unwittingly invite temptation. An idle hand is the devil’s workshop.

b.     Love of Ease and Laziness: David got off his bed in the evening. It seems he was in his room and in bed all afternoon, relaxing and watching TV when he should have used his day to work, serving God and His people. David used to pray three times a day (Ps 55:17) and praised God seven times a day (Ps 119:164), but on this occasion, through sleep, laziness and ease, he wasted his day away. Matthew Henry said, “Idleness gives great advantage to the tempter. Standing waters gather filth. The bed of sloth often proves the bed of lust.”

c.     Roving Eyes: David saw a woman taking a bath. His eye was the entry point of the sin, as is mostly so for many. He must have looked and looked again until he got hooked. He did not heed his prayer in Psalm 119:37, “Turn away my eyes from looking at worthless things.”  From his eyes, his imagination got captured. Lust aroused, gave birth to sin, and sin ‘killed’ him.

The tragedy of the rooftop is a case of being at the wrong place at the wrong time and doing the wrong thing. It violates everything we stand for as believers; it is testing the waters of lust, peeping through the window of sin, and neglecting our spiritual armor – prayer. I pray that God will give you the discipline to stay within the boundary of His love and away from satan’s traps.

PHOTO QUOTE

ADDITIONAL TEXTS:

James 1:12-14, Job 31:1, and Psalm 55:17

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PRAYERS:

+ Lord, deliver me from the voice that tells me to take a break from seeking and serving God; it is often the beginning of a fall.

+ Lord, help me to make all my moments and days count for you. My hands will not be idle nor occupied by the devil.

+ I make a covenant with my eyes to look away from anything that will arouse lust in me.