Wednesday. THE REPENTANCE OF DAVID. NOTES: 2 SAM. XII. I to 26. 1. Having taken the first wrong step, it is easier to take the second; nay, it often almost seems as if we were obliged to take the second. A boy running downhill, who can't stop till he gets to the bottom, is a very apt illustration of a man who begins to go wrong. The path of sin is a steep downhill path. One wrong deed leads to another, as we see again and again in the Bible, and as we must know from our own experience. We need not dwell upon the ugly story of David's adultery with Bathsheba, and his subsequent murder of Uriah, the husband, to hide his crime. To see how true it is to life, we have only to compare it with the stories recorded in the modern newspapers. But now we turn over the leaf to read the beautiful account of the repentance. 2. Nathan's parable of the ewe lamb is exquisite. We have often a very accurate judgment in estimating the sins and faults of other people, whilst singularly blind as to our own. This might be turned to account. Being a good judge of character should help us in our spiritual life. 3. David, without hesitation, passed a sentence of death, but when Nathan came to apply it, David's decision was set aside. The same punishment is not meted out to the same offence under all circumstances, even in human courts of justice, much less in Divine. This compassionate consideration for others should guide us in our dealings with those in fault. We must never forget that while the sin must be dealt with severely, the sinner must be treated tenderly. 4. "Thou art the man!" What a thunderbolt! What an unexpected revelation! All at once, after a year of darkness, David saw his conduct in its true light. The story is told with consummate skill. These simple, straightforward words of condemnation stand out for all time. Whenever we wake up to the consciousness of having done wrong we hear them whispered in our heart. Our colloquial expression, "the cap fits," is another way of saying the same thing, "Thou art the man!" 5. When Nathan had done speaking, David replied, frankly and humbly, "I have sinned." It was a genuine confession; therefore Nathan immediately rejoined, "The Lord also hath put away thy sin." David must indeed have been comforted by that unreserved absolution. This is one of the great benefits of Confession nowadays-the assurance of forgiveness. 6. Truly God brings good out of evil; and from this incident we have inherited two rich blessings(a) That wonderful outpouring of a penitent heart, the 51st Psalm. (b) That bright and early intimation of a future life, "I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me." 7. By far the most important question raised by the life of David, and by the history of this sin in particular, is-How can a man who is capable of committing such foul sins be called a man after God's heart? It is a question that has troubled many Christians, and that is made the most of by unbelievers. The answer is not far to seek, though it is missed by so many. Those who know and love the Psalms will have discovered the secret for themselves. God judges by character. It often happens that a man of really fine and noble character does some deed of great enormity that damns him with the world. We must always remember that the world condemned Christ and Socrates. We must never forget that the man who is capable of the highest things is also capable of the lowest. Mountain climbing is very dangerous, we may easily fall down a precipice. Our future state does not depend on two or three deeds conspicuously bad, but on our career as a whole. Only God's eye can view a life, man's is often obstructed by a single flaw. "The sin that practice burns into the blood, And not the one dark hour which brings remorse, -Tennyson, "Merlin and Vivien." Thursday. THE REPENTANCE OF S. PETER. NOTES: LUKE XXII. 54 to 63. 1. The threefold denial of S. Peter, both in its prediction and in its accomplishment, is given by all four Evangelists, with a variety of detail that proves they are independent writers, but does not show they contradict themselves. The accounts are as follow : First denial. All say the question was put by a damsel, whom S. John tells us was the portress. Second denial. S. Matthew says, "another woman"; S. Mark, "the same damsel"; S. Luke, "another man”; S. John, "they say." The last is the key to unlock the problem. There is a great crowd round the fire, the portress tells her suspicions, several people repeat the accusation. Third denial. This explanation is further brought out in the narratives of this third denial. S. Luke says, "another"; S. John, "a kinsman of Malchus"; |