October 22, 2022 — We All Need Our Hearts Examined For “Selfish” Reasons

“But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord, and the Lord sent Nathan to David. He came to him, and said to him, “There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. The rich man had very many flocks and herds; but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. He brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children; it used to eat of his meager fare, and drink from his cup, and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him. Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was loath to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb, and prepared that for the guest who had come to him.” Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man. He said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die; he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity. Nathan said to David, “You are the man!” 2 Samuel 12:1-7

“The “check engine light” in your car. When it comes on, you can ignore it, you can break the light, or you can get the problem fixed. If you ignore it or break the light, eventually, you will harm the engine. If you fix it, everything goes back to normal. The same is true with guilt. It is the check engine light of the soul. When it comes on, do not ignore it, but take the problem to Jesus and get it fixed.” (preceptaustin.org commentary)

Just because someone seems to be doing an act of kindness does not mean that his or her heart is in the right place. In the case of David, one could say that he responded with kindness to take the wife of Urriah the Hittite into his palace once her husband had died in battle. But when we look deeper into the story, we discover that David arranged it so that Urriah would die in battle — so the sin of David would remain hidden. What David did not consider is that all sin is evident to G-d — no matter what lengths we go to hide them. Nathan tells David the story to highlight the hidden “selfishness” in the manner that humanity seeks to treat one another.

Coveting another’s goods, property or spouse is one of the most common sins in our society today. Coveting another’s spouse can lead to lust, which can lead to danger and dis-repair in relationships.

We should constantly look into our hearts to see what it is that drives our inner thoughts, needs, desires, and wants. If we are coveting another’s goods, property or spouse, we need to take time to examine our need for what is not ours — and what is behind that need. Remember: the Lord blesses us with all that we need, (not always with what we want) but definitely with what we need.

Let us pray,

Lord Christ, help us move forward from lamenting for what we do not have, to thanking G-d for all of the blessings we have. Amen.

Pastor Dave