I’ve come to believe that true freedom is found in complete surrender. In surrender, our tensions are relieved and our fears are released.
In 2 Samuel 12, the prophet Nathan confronts King David about his adulterous relationship with Bathsheba and the coinciding murder of her husband, Uriah. He warns David of the impending judgment that God is bringing down on David’s house. The prophet informs David that God will spare his life, but because of his sinful actions, the Lord will take the life of the child born to him by Bathsheba as a result of their affair.
If you heart winces here a bit as you wrestle with your concept of God’s goodness, don’t be alarmed. As I read it, I grappled with it, too. My theology says that God doesn’t author sickness, disease, or death. Rather, He defeats them. After all, Satan is the one who comes to kill, steal, and destroy. So how do we reconcile what’s happening here in this passage?
The deal is that sin comes with consequences. Those consequences don’t just impact us. The effects of our sin hurt all those who are around us. Sin damages everything. Nothing is left untainted in sin’s path.
The Devotional Guy™
You and I inhabit a cruel world filled with people that do unspeakably evil things. I literally just finished reading an article that mentioned a man who posted a video of him and a friend slitting a dog’s throat. Throngs of people are up in arms regarding their right to reproductive freedom while they skew aborting babies as some rational form of birth control. I witness the results of abuse and human trafficking every single day. I minister to individuals who were permanently disenfranchised by the very people who were supposed to love them the most. Where do you turn when those you should have been able to trust most violate that trust? These are the ugly facts we don’t want to accept. But they aren’t a result of a good God willing to do us harm. Rather, they are an outcome of our sinful unwillingness to submit our lives to living under God’s will.
God is good. He is not the cause of sickness, disease, or death. To the contrary, God is our deliverer, our redeemer, and the very source of life.
God is good.
This is the truth that David recalled in the moment that he surrendered himself to God. He prayed vehemently for God to spare his child. But, the child died. Yet, David remembered, just as God had been when he faced Goliath, God is good.
In his moment of surrender, David discovered true freedom. Upon learning that his child had died, David washed his face, ate, and went to worship God. David rested in God’s goodness.
In the same way, we see Jesus surrender His will to the will of His Father as he prayed in the Garden shortly before His arrest, trial, and execution. But, ultimately, Jesus knew that the will of His Father was good.
There is simply no safer—or better—place to be then when we find ourselves in the center of God’s will, no matter how stormy it gets.
God is good. All the time. No matter what.
I pray you are blessed by this post.
Rainer Bantau
The Devotional Guy™
#bgbg2#BibleGateway
The Devotional Guy™ Rainer Bantau © 2023
The Devotional Guy™ 
Thank you for reading my blogpost and welcome Tommy blog! I’m happy that this post resonated with you. I agree that it’s hard processing some of what goes on around us. There’s a lot of loss, heartache, and brokenness that I’d rather do without. However, I don’t think God calls us to be isolated from the world. Rather He calls us to community. And you should turn off the news now and then. Remember, the news only gives us glimpses of the world. It’s an incomplete picture painted by ratings (getting you to watch). I hope that helps. Blessings.
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This was my first time reading your blog and I am glad I chose this article to read. I surrendered myself to God last year. I faced a plethora of successful attempts by the enemy to override this surrender. Now knowing Jesus has saved me from the shame and guilt of choosing to walk with him then straying, I can hold my head up and realize that God is good and faithful. I try not to listen to the news for these very acts you have mentioned disturb me so. But maybe I am wrong in doing so; I grapple with that. Ignorance is not bliss. Maybe if you have something to add to my wanting to shut out the trafficking, abortion and worldwide sin, I would appreciate it. Overall thanks for the message!
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You’re welcome, Rich. Thanks for stopping by my blog and sharing your thoughts on my post. I’m going to check out your blog as well. Gratefully—TDG.
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What a powerful and uplifting post! Your perspective on true freedom through surrender is truly inspiring. I’m grateful for your thoughtful exploration of 2 Samuel 12 and how it relates to the concept of God’s goodness amidst the consequences of sin. Thanks, brother!
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You’re welcome, my sister in Christ. You’re right. It absolutely isn’t easy to fully surrender. Yet, the more we resist, the heartier God’s pursuit becomes. Thanks for reading today’s posts.
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Thank you, Sue. Communicating the truth of God’s word more compassionately —both orally and in writing—is something I’ve been working on, so I’m glad to receive your encouragement.
Yes, we all sin. Yet, our sin doesn’t just impact us, but all those around us and the world we inhabit. Thank you so much for reading and taking the time to share your perspective on my post.
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Full surrender is not easy, due to our flesh. But it is well worth it. Thank you for the encouragement, Rainer.
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Compassionately written, Rainer. Thank you. In a dark world, it is so good to know God is good–all the time. Even though we endure the consequences of our sin or somebody else’s, we can have peace in His presence.
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