Late one afternoon David got out of bed after taking a nap and went for a stroll on the roof of the palace. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath. - 2 Samuel 11:2
The Bible tells us that sin begins right in our heart. The sin of adultery begins with the eyes. The Bible also gives us examples of people who let them-selves fall into the sin of adultery. One of these was King David. You may remember him as the king of Israel, the great warrior, the writer of psalms, the man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22). Yet even David was vulnerable in this area.
At some point, David, the middle-aged king, had let himself become lazy. So it’s not surprising to find him on the roof watching Bathsheba bathing. When David saw Uriah’s beautiful wife bathing, David committed adultery on the roof. Long before he took Bathsheba to bed, the deed was done. It starts in the eyes, works its way to the heart and emotions, and then moves to the rest of the body.
The sin of adultery begins with the first look, which too often leads to the second and third and fourth. You need to get yourself out of the way of temptation—you need to refuse to remain in a situation that might cause you to sin. Even though God promises to give strength to withstand temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13), you ought to do what you can to stay out of its way. You need to do what David should have done—get off the roof!
For Further Study: 2 Samuel 15:1-14; 16:15-22
Excerpted from The One Year Devotions for Women, Copyright ©2000 by Jill Briscoe. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.
For more from Jill Briscoe, please visit TellingtheTruth.org.
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