The word “repent” means to “change directions.” I have always found that explanation of the word to be helpful. When I think of this word, I picture someone walking one direction and turning around and going the opposite direction. To repent means more than just stopping in your tracks, it means to set a new course. Another good picture is of someone making a u-turn in a car. As a guy who has always been directionally challenged, this explanation resonates with me. God did not bless me with an internal compass like he has a lot of people, so I have spent a lot of time in my life looking at a map only to realize that I need to turn around and go the opposite way.
There are a couple of things I’ve noticed about changing directions. One,something or someone needs to reveal that a change of course is needed. And two, one has to be humble enough to accept the fact that you are going the wrong way and be willing to make the change.
I stress the word humble here, because it is never easy for me to admit to my wife that I’ve made a wrong turn or that I’m lost. It is hard for me to humble myself in this way. Even after all these years and both of us talking about and even laughing about me lacking a sense of direction, it’s still hard for me to admit! I’ve noticed this is a trait in a lot of men and a sore spot in a lot of marriages. Someone has said that the reason Moses wandered in the wilderness for 40 years is because he wasn’t willing to stop and ask directions.
Several years ago, I got lost trying to find a new “short cut” driving from our home in Texas to my parents’ house in Oklahoma City. I was lost, but didn’t want to admit that I was lost. In the process of finding my way, I also lost track of my speed and got stopped by a “minister of reminder” (Texas Highway Patrol). While he was ticketing me for speeding, I asked him to settle an argument with my wife and me, and to tell her that I was on the right road and on the right track. He just laughed and said, “You are actually going the opposite direction from where you need to go if you want to go to Oklahoma City.”
That is what it means to repent. It is authoritative information and humility. It means to learn definitively that you are going the opposite direction from where you need to go and to be humbled to the degree that you are willing to turn around and change course. The experience is a vivid illustration of the true meaning of this biblical concept. As we will see in our study of David this week, repentance is an essential aspect of the Christian life.
2 Samuel 12:1-7
The Lord sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said, “There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.
“Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him.”
David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, “As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this must die! He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity.”
Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.’”
Summary of Text: David is confronted in his sin.
Memory Verse: Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit (Psalm 51:10-12 ESV).
Monday: Read the passage. How did Nathan confront David? In what ways do you think this confrontation was helpful to David? Why is it important to have people in your life speak truth? How does the word of God speak truth to you?
Tuesday: Read the passage. How was David impacted by the parable Nathan used? How did God use the story to change David’s heart?
Wednesday: Read the passage again. Memorize the memory verse. Read Psalm 51. What does this Psalm teach us about David’s ability to repent? Why is repentance so important?
Thursday: Read and memorize the memory verse. Read the passage. What kind of courage did it take for Nathan to confront David? Do you have this kind of courage? Where did Nathan get his sense of security and strength to make this confrontation?
Friday: Read the passage again. Do you have a Nathan in your life? Do you have people in your life who tell you the truth? Ask God to lead you to greater accountability in your life. Ask Him to show you how you can be this for the people you love.
Saturday: Read the passage. Read Psalm 51 again. Write down any new thoughts you might have about these passages.
Sunday: Make today a day of rest and worship. Pray for the right attitude and an open heart and mind today. Come to church.
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