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2 Samuel 11:2-4a

²One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful, ³and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, "Isn't this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite?" ^4aThen David sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her.

In the spring the kings would go out to war on the enemies of their nations. Instead of going out with his army, David sent his general Joab. David remained in Jerusalem. It has been said that an idle mind is the Devil's workshop. It sounds like David was sleeping in and rose to do a little peeping on his neighbors from his roof. He saw a beautiful woman bathing. Instead of turning his gaze, as would have been appropriate, he continued to look. His mind dwelt on her beauty, and he took the next step to ask who she is. The answer from his servant should have been a wake- up call, but then he took the next step and summoned her.

We can see the string of sins, each leading to a greater one. In the season before, God had given David a great victory over his enemies. Joab was leading the forces against an old enemy, the Ammonites. Why had David decided to stay behind? He was not an old man. Was his vacation from the war a purposeful choice to indulge himself in some way? From the looking to the contemplation, to the asking, to the invitation, David was sliding down a slippery slope.

The fall of many a man of God has the same sad story. One sin leads to another. If at any time in your life you decide to stop fighting the enemy to indulge yourself, it won't be long before you find yourself defeated. At any point David could have stopped and realized where he was headed. He would have avoided the devastating consequences.

Consider: Because he didn't choose to stop, he paid the price. Will you?