God Overcomes Less than Perfect Homes

“Although my house be not so with God; yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things, and sure: for this is all my salvation, and all my desire, although he make it not to grow.” (2Sa 23:5 AV)

David is reflecting on the condition of his house compared to the everlasting covenant God made with him.  He knows that his sin with Bathsheba as one of the causes of trouble in his house.  The young baby, Amnon, and Absalom all died, whole or in part, because of his adulterous affair with Bathsheba.  However, one thing to bear in mind is Amnon and Absalom made their own choices.  Yes, Nathan the prophet told David that he would lose four sons because of his sin.  But three of the four made their own bad choices and were responsible for their actions.  God did not cause Amnon to rape Tamar, Absalom to rise in insurrection, or Adonijah to prematurely claim the throne.  These men did what they did of their own mind.  The point here is, David choose to rejoice in God’s faithfulness, mercy, and grace rather than whatever failures he or his family made.

There is another way of looking at this as well.  David mentions the covenant.  He knows it is unconditional and eternal.  He knows that a future descendant of his will indeed sit on the throne and reign in righteousness.  He knows, by virtue of putting two and two together, a future descendant will indeed be the Messiah.  He knows that even though in the short term his family may have failed a bit, the promise is still in force and eventually there will be the greatest blessing a man could ever know.

So, the point is this:  God’s mercy can and does overcome our failures.  No matter how many mistakes we may make in life, God’s mercy can overcome it.  We strive to have a godly home.  However, children and grandchildren have their own wills.  As parents, we are not perfect.  We have made mistakes.  But time and God’s mercy is what overcomes our human nature.  If God can overcome David’s sin, they He certainly can overcome ours.  The key is to acknowledge and repent of our sin.  Then have faith that, in time, God will fix what we have may have failed to do.