The High Cost of Low Living

The High Cost of Low Living (1978)Can a child of God sin? Yes. Can a child of God sin and not suffer? Absolutely not.Consider King David, a man above every other man—none more noble, gifted, or humble than David. And yet David fell into a deep, dark sin. David committed the sin of adultery. As a result, the woman conceived. So, David then committed the sin of murder.In order to better understand the high cost of low living, we need only look to at the causes of King David’s sin.It was a sin of idleness. David was not doing wrong in the time leading up to his affair, except that he was failing to do right. He should have been with his compatriots in war. God wants us to stay occupied. We are called to the harvest field or the battlefield.It was a sin of carelessness. David began to take his many victories for granted. He presumed God was going to keep blessing him. And an unguarded strength is a double weakness.It was a sin of impulsiveness. David wasn’t planning to sin that day. Adrian Rogers explains, “Sin is a combination of undetected weakness, an unexpected opportunity, and an unprotected life.”It was a sin of callousness. When his scheme to cover up his sin was compromised, David ordered for Bathsheba’s husband, Uriah, to be killed in battle. He planned it, connived it, and orchestrated cold-blooded murder. And his heart turned calloused.It was a sin of stubbornness. Despite the conviction he felt, David went one whole year without repenting. But God did not forget David’s sin, and He wouldn’t let David forget, either.Just underneath David’s facade, his sin weighted, wounded and weakened him. There were words of rebuke, arrows of conviction, and hands of pressure from God.David was finally confronted by the prophet, Nathan, and was convicted and chastised. He had to pay the consequences for his sin. But God was faithful to forgive him.God is faithful to forgive us, too.Apply it to your lifePerhaps it’s time for you to be confronted, too. Somehow you think you’re just going to muddle through and gloss over your sin. And you stubbornly go on day after day thinking, “Maybe God has forgotten.” He has not. Repent of your sins and ask God for forgiveness.