Temptation

Many of us have read that King David was a great king and a man after God’s own heart. The Holy Spirit lived inside him and used him to speak encouraging words. [Jesus said,] “David himself, in the Holy Spirit, declared, “‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet.”’ - Mk. 12:36 (ESV) {From Psa. 110}. Although David was indwelled by the Holy Spirit and spoke by Him, how could the events surrounding Bathsheba occur? David was guilty of lust, adultery, premeditated murder, and instructing others to perform sinful actions. We might say, “he was really messed up.” Where was the Holy Spirit when all this took place? How could the Holy Spirit allow a person to do such things? How could the Holy Spirit remain inside such a “messed up” person? In this history, we observe a mystery of the way God works with His creation. He has given them free will, the privilege to make decisions and choices, while holding them responsible for the resulting implications. At the same time, He will never leave them despite their sometimes appalling choices. In the case of Bathsheba, David’s repentance did not prevent a baby’s death, but it brought him back to following the pathway of God. Such is the case of modern Christians which all have the Holy Spirit living within them. We can make decisions and choices that leave us, “messed up.” While the Holy Spirit may help them to recognize harmful choices, He will not prevent the person from ultimately making their individual choices. Although we all sin on numerous occasions, He will not leave the Christian alone. It is true, He cannot remain close to sin, but He does remain with those who have been continually forgiven of sin. As long as our intent is to follow His guidance, our sins are immediately and continually absolved, “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” – 1 Jn. 1:7 (ESV). {the verbs “walk”, “have”, and “cleanses” in this sentence are continual} Like David, our choices and decisions may sometimes be minimally or grossly sinful. They may cause physical and emotional discomfort or pain, but He will not leave us. He is continually working to sanctify us for the next part of our existence.