by Holland Davis

I’m studying 2 Samuel 11-15 for this weeks Vantage Point study and God hit me with this little piece of Revelation….

After David sins and repents, God gives David and Bathsheeba another son… David names him Solomon which means Yahweh’s Restoration or Peace.  In David’s mind, Solomon was a peace child.  A sign that God had restored David to fellowship.  David sends word to Nathan… God has given us a child and now we have proof that we are at peace with God.  Nathan sends word and says… his name is Jedidiah which means Beloved of Yahweh.

One child… Two Perspectives

David looking through the lens of his sin looks at Solomon as a symbol of reconciliation with God.  But Nathan, looking only through the lens of God’s love and grace sees the child as one who is loved by God, the future king of Israel after David.

Grace Changes Everything

When we are sin conscious, then everything you do is filtered through the lens of your right or wrong standing with God.  I’ve sinned, so I must be restored to fellowship.  I got a ticket for speeding, it must be because I yelled at my kids.  I’m having a bad day, it’s because there is something wrong with my relationship with God.  It’s a torturous way to live.

But when you are God conscious, you are only aware of the fact that you are loved by God.  Things happen and you run to your Father who loves you.  You get a ticket and you see it as an opportunity to bless the nice officer who pulled you over.  Disappointment is an opportunity for God to do something amazing.  It changes what you believe matters because you are focusing on God and His love instead of your sin and God’s judgment.

Maybe you need a new name

There was a song that was popular a few years ago entitled… I will change your name.  The premise is you will be no longer identified by your brokenness, your sinfulness, your emptiness or your fallenness.  Instead you are identified by God’s love, forgiveness and righteousness.  It’s a change in the way you think about yourself.  The technical word for it is REPENTANCE.  Stop being conscious of your sin, start being conscious of God and His love for you.  Start today and see the difference it will make in your life.