David's Sinful Census: Understanding God's Justice and Love

David's sinful act of conducting a census displeased God, leading to severe punishment, highlighting the importance of pure motives in actions.

### God's Firm Stance on Sin and Hidden Motives
* 😈 David sinned by conducting a census despite knowing it was **evil before God**.
* 🙏 "Sin is not something that should be called sin. It is a sin that displeases God when it is done, knowing clearly that it is an **evil act**."
* ❤ It is essential to embody both the attributes of the **loving and just God** to lead a **healthy spiritual life**.
* 📊 The act of census itself is not sinful, but the intentions behind it may contain **sin**.
* 👀 "God is interested in our **hidden motives, hidden intentions, hidden purposes**."
* 🙏 Even though David repented sincerely, God still punished him, showing that **forgiveness does not mean the absence of discipline**.
* 😨 "Living without fear, thinking that there will be no punishment anyway, is a **very serious matter**."
* 🌱 We need to be vigilant about our actions, thoughts, and hidden motives, and **strive to be pleasing to God**.

Today's sharing will be from 1 Chronicles chapter 21, verses 1 to 8. Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel. So David said to Joab and the commanders of the troops, Go and count the Israelites from Beersheba to Dan. Then report back to me so that I may know how many there are. But Joab replied, May the Lord multiply his troops a hundred times over. My lord the king, are they not all my lord's subjects? Why does my lord want to do this? Why should he bring guilt on Israel? The king's word, however, overruled Joab; so Joab left and went throughout Israel and then returned to Jerusalem. Joab reported the number of the fighting men to David: In all Israel, there were 1,100,000 men who could handle a sword, including 470,000 in Judah.

Suzy did not do it, God considered it evil, and struck Israel. God said, By doing this, you have committed a great sin. Now I ask for forgiveness of my servant's sin. Please forgive me, for I have acted very foolishly. Amen. Today, I lived without fear. I would like to share the grace of the word in the title. Let's greet the people next to you. You are firm about sin. When we think of God, which image comes to mind first? There are two images. First, for those who think of God, the image of love comes to mind first. And for those who think of God, the image of a fearsome and dreadful God comes to mind first. Which God comes to mind first among these two? The God of love or the fearful.

Perhaps many people first think of God as a loving God, but I believe that in order to lead a healthy spiritual life, we need to embody two attributes of God: the God of love and the God of justice. Both aspects of God, being a God of love and justice, need to be deeply rooted within us in order to have a healthy spiritual life. Today's passage deals with David committing two major sins, the first being the incident with Bathsheba, and now it is discussing the story of the census. Even though David clearly knew that conducting this census was a sin before God, he still committed this sinful act in front of God. Was this a sin? Did I make a mistake? Not even realizing that this was a sin, I have sinned before God.

Sin is not something that should be called sin. It is a sin that displeases God when it is done, knowing clearly that it is an evil act. Like David, there are times when we live before God with no concept or fear. If I make this choice, God will certainly not be pleased, and if I commit such an act, knowing clearly that it is an evil act before God and that it hurts God's heart, even though I know it is wrong, there are times when we still choose to do what we should not. However, in today's passage, God is very firm about sin. We may think that once we repent, God forgives all sins and makes them as if they never happened, but forgiveness is forgiveness, and punishment is also punishment. Moreover, because of one person's sin, another person's wrongdoing.

Because of choices, it is not only one person who is harmed but also how much damage can be caused to the people around due to this sin is recorded in today's passage. Therefore, like David, whether we should do something that God might consider evil or not, if there is a moment of hesitation among us now or if we have already committed those actions but the visible punishment that follows has not come down on me immediately, and if we continue to act without fear, completely losing fear, just continuing to live, through today's words, I hope we will have a time to be vigilant about such actions and thoughts. Always, when we think of God, not only as a God of love and mercy but also as a fearsome God, let us have fear and vigilance. I hope that now we will have a time to be vigilant about such actions and thoughts.

I hope that events that break and turn things around will happen. First, if you look at the main text in Chapter 21, there are some parts that raise questions. The first is that a census was conducted. But what exactly is this census that God punishes David so severely for? Everyone, can't we all conduct a census? Not only in our country but in various parts of the world, people conduct censuses, establish strategies based on them, and prepare measures for the future when the population decreases or increases significantly. Anyway, through this census, don't we establish measures, make policies, and plan? Do you remember during the time of COVID-19, when if the number of people exceeded a certain limit, the alert level increased, and if it reached a certain number of thousands, it became a serious issue? They understood this kind of census, but there are times when God directly commanded a census in the Bible. Like after the Exodus, in the wilderness.

God commanded Moses to take a census. When the first generation died in the wilderness and the second generation rose, God ordered another census to be taken according to their tribes and ancestral families. However, in today's passage, unlike when God directly commanded the census, regarding David's census, God considered this act evil. In 1 Chronicles 21:7, it says, God was displeased with this thing; so He struck Israel. Sometimes, when a census was taken, there was no punishment, but in other cases, when a census was conducted, punishment followed. From this, we can understand that the act of census itself is not sinful, but rather the intentions or purposes behind the one conducting the census may contain sin.

Joab tried to stop what David intended. Joab said, May the Lord make his people a hundred times more than they are. But, my lord the king, are they not all my lord's servants? Why does my lord seek this? Why should Israel be guilty? But the king's word prevailed against Joab. So Joab departed and went throughout all Israel and came to Jerusalem. Then Joab gave the sum of the number of the people to David. All those of Israel were one million one hundred thousand men who drew the sword, and Judah was four hundred and seventy thousand men who drew the sword. But he did not count Levi and Benjamin among them, for the king's word was abominable to Joab. Now Satan stood up against Israel and moved David to number Israel. David's heart troubled him after he had numbered the people. And David said to the Lord, I have sinned greatly in what I have done; but now, I pray, O Lord, take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly.

I am now looking into and searching for such things, confirming how much of a great achievement I have accomplished through my own strength. But as General Joab said, these things can be multiplied by God as much as 100 times, whether to increase or decrease. It is God who multiplies by a hundredfold, and it is God who achieves. Isn't it what God has done, not what I have done? Therefore, all of this depends on God's hands, doesn't it? David is warning not to commit sin in front of God, reminding him that the ownership of this people is now in the hands of God. However, David is continually counting how many things he can boast about, how many things he has achieved, not as God's people or God's army, but as my people, my army, the things I have achieved. These hidden evil motives continue to calculate my glory in God's eyes.

David had such a wicked motive to gain glory and for his own glory. God is interested in our hidden motives, hidden intentions, hidden purposes. No matter what we do, no matter what we devote ourselves to, God looks at the center of our hearts. Even if it is an action mentioned in the Bible, following God's command, according to your hidden motives, God may be pleased with that action, or He may even say it is very wicked. In the New Testament, in the early church, Barnabas sold his land and gave the proceeds as an offering, which was a very good deed. There was a person named Ananias who did the same thing, sold a piece of property and gave it to the church.

It was, on the contrary, a very evil act. Although the actions were the same, one was considered good and the other evil in the eyes of God. There was an evil hidden motive among them, which was at the center of the hearts of Ananias and Sapphira. They had the desire to claim a certain glory for themselves. For example, in the Bible, isn't saving considered good? Regarding saving, does the Bible consider it good or evil? In Proverbs chapter 6, it says to go to the ant and learn. Ants gather food in the summer to prepare for the cold days. They work hard during the summer to save for the community. So, saving something like ants do to prepare for difficult times is biblical. Isn't there a similar event in the Bible as well? Saving diligently during the seven years of famine to prepare for the seven years of abundance, saving diligently during the seven years of abundance to prepare for the seven years of famine, helping many people during the seven years of famine.

Isn't Joseph being used nobly for the work of salvation? But on the other hand, Jesus talks about the foolish and wicked rich man in a parable. He had a great harvest, more than his barns could hold, so he obtained a lot of grain. However, he kept saving and storing it up only for himself, thinking about eating and drinking alone for a long time. Eventually, the parable ends like this in the Bible: You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself? That's how the parable ends. It's not the act of saving itself that is the problem, but it's about the motives and intentions behind it, which can be seen as good or bad in the eyes of God, depending on.

And sometimes it's evil, right? So most of the time, it's not the thing itself that's the problem, but the attitude and motive behind it. If there is a impure or not good intention in the midst of doing that, if there is a heart that does not trust in God, then half of the heart that does not believe in God can be seen by God as evil and lacking faith. If applied to us, whether we do any business, make any trade agreements, do any service, become a leader, become a church leader, or even step down from that leadership position, it's not really the issue itself that matters. It's about what motive leads to that action, why I did it, why I made that choice, whether it's towards believing in God or towards unbelief. It's because of that motive that the results and evils are divided there. It's about our hidden motives towards something.

Please take a moment to reflect on yourself. Whether you are taking on something, looking ahead to something you have contracted, or considering holding on or letting go of something, please examine the motivation behind it. Honestly, consider it before God. If I truly believe in God, should I do this action? If not, should I let go of it before God, or should I grab hold of it again before God? If there is something that needs to be stopped, you must stop it immediately. If there is something that you must do but are not doing, or if you are at a standstill, you should grab hold of it again, rise, and run. You must keep it going. If there is God's will in it, that's where it should be. The first question is whether the act is evil, not evil, or good. The second question raised in today's text is this. If you look at today's text, you will find such a question.

Could it be that if you repent, you should be forgiven? If you read today's passage, David repents, doesn't he? Then if he repented, why did God still kill the Israelites? Doesn't God seem really strange? He should have repented, shouldn't He? He should have done what He repented for. This is not the God I knew. God is a God of mercy, grace, compassion, and love, but sometimes He seems a bit too easygoing. It's not that I can say I have such a heart, but such a mindset is not in place. Perhaps looking at God too lightly is what is mentioned in Chapter 21, verse 8. When you see it, David said to God, I have sinned greatly by doing this. Now, please forgive your servant's sin, for I have acted very foolishly. Amen. David's sincerity is a true sincerity that pulls at the heartstrings.

I am earnestly repenting and seeking forgiveness before God. However, despite David's sincere repentance, God sent the prophet Gad to David to discipline him. Before imposing discipline, God gives David three choices. The situation is described in 2 Samuel 24:11-12. Gad approached David and said to him, This is what the Lord says: 'Take your choice: three years of famine, three months of fleeing from your enemies, or three days of severe plague throughout your land? Think this over and decide what answer I should give the Lord who sent me.' These are three very severe options. None of them are easy, and none of them offer a less painful outcome. First, if there were three years of famine, how many people would starve to death? What about having three years of plenty followed by three years of famine?

It's not even there, just right away, the three-year famine begins. Secondly, if you lose in the war and are chased for three months, how many more people will die due to the war during that three-month period? The process of being chased for three months is a great ordeal. Lastly, if a plague spreads throughout the country for three days, well, the medical facilities are not as good as they are now, not to mention. So many people will have to die as a punishment. In any case, David chooses the third among them, the plague. There are many people who misunderstand forgiveness. There are many verses in the Bible about forgiveness, aren't there? Let's look at just one verse together, 1 John chapter 1, verse 9. Let's read it together in our own voice: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. Amen.

There are many times when it seems like we can be forgiven and forget when we cry and repent, but that's not the case in reality. If you look at the Bible, God always forgave sinners when they repented, but He also imposed punishment so that they could remember their sins and not commit them again out of His love. When Adam sinned, it was the same. After Adam sinned, he was supposed to die, but he didn't just die, no, he didn't. Adam sinned and as a consequence, he lost the eternal life he was enjoying. He was expelled from Eden and received punishment. However, this does not mean that God completely severed his relationship with Adam. Through repentance and sacrifice, to some extent, Adam was able to restore his relationship with God. The same goes for David, the first sinner.

After committing adultery, crying and fasting, repenting, and being forgiven, does it just become a thing of the past? No, it doesn't. The first child David had with Bathsheba dies. And in reality, just as he had disrupted Uriah's household and destroyed it, later through his son Absalom, his family and even the kingdom were completely ruined. However, God did not completely abandon him. He forgave him, responded to him when he sought, gave him new opportunities, and eventually restored his throne. God disciplines sin, but for those who do not understand this fact well and misunderstand, God is not that scary. Repentance is easy. It's so easy to repent, that people who have repented for the same sin...

It is the fear of living without fear, repeating the same sins over and over again, unable to break free from that sin. Living without fear, thinking that there will be no punishment anyway, that even after committing this sin, my life will recover, and I will continue to live the same life as before, without any punishment. It is a very serious matter, so serious that one cannot even realize the seriousness of it. How many people have died because of this sin since the creation of heaven and earth? How many of such incidents are recorded in the Bible? After the relationship between God and humans was severed due to sin, so many people died due to wickedness in the Noah's flood incident. Throughout history, how many families have collapsed, how many nations have perished, and how many people have died because of sin? To God, this is a very serious matter. That's why God's

From a leadership perspective, you cannot take this sin lightly or just overlook it easily. It is a part where you cannot avoid making a firm disciplinary decision. Proverbs 13:24, let's read it together. Whoever spares the rod hates their children, but the one who loves their children is careful to discipline them. Amen. Do you think God truly loves us? Because He truly loves us, He has no choice but to discipline us. If someone goes the wrong way and is not disciplined, then that person is not a father but just a passerby. It doesn't matter if I become like that; it's just indifference. While preparing this sermon, I felt this way. If God truly decides and abandons the sinner for the sins committed, if He carries out that discipline, then if we receive punishment from God, then from now on, we will truly be disciplined.

God is so scary that you would tremble. It would be so scary to experience the concept of God all at once. Knowing that God is fearsome not just in your head but actually experiencing it. So, what is trauma? When a trauma occurs, when we encounter a certain event once, just by seeing it again, our body reacts first, that situation comes to mind, our body and mind give us warning signs. Right? So, when we experience the punishment for sin with our whole body due to sin, we realize, Oh, this is a truly sinful act, I should never commit this sin again until I die. It would be a serious matter. Fear of experiencing the direct judgment of God for this sin, and the fear of not committing that act, that action. Those who have not experienced God's direct judgment on sin and punishment for sin.

I am afraid to be honest, I haven't experienced such a severe hardship. I haven't received any punishment from God like breaking my legs or experiencing a serious illness in the hospital. I haven't gone through such a tremendous event like David. So, rather than the image of a fearful and just God, I tend to lean towards the image of a loving, forgiving, and merciful God. I believe that God will forgive rather than instill fear. Therefore, I live without fear a lot, even when I commit sins. There are many times when I feel confident and upright even after committing sins, because those sins are known only to me and God. It's because those sins are known only to me and God, that's why. Bad deeds, bad thoughts, bad

I have committed many wicked thoughts, but I have not received a severe punishment, so I just repent to God once and pass lightly. Understanding the attitude of faith that just moves on by shouting I repent to God once, we need to rethink once again. It cannot be said that only visible punishment like David's is necessary. Of course, in the case of David's census sin, 70,000 people died. Because God does not kill those without sin, although it is not recorded in the Bible, God killed 70,000 people who had sin and reasons. But before that, God showed grace and mercy. At that time, for a brief period of three days, God remained silent. At that moment, 70,000 people died. Think about it. God does not always punish, and it is not just a punishment when painful things happen due to God's wrath. It is simply your sin.

What happened in the middle, just leaving it, being silent, is in itself a punishment from God. God's silence is truly a terrifying punishment. You may think that my secret sins will be revealed in this world, but only then will I realize many things. Even if those sins are not revealed, at this moment, I may still be losing many things. For example, when Judas took his own life after his sin was revealed, we cannot say that he was punished only then. He had already been receiving punishment from some point, and he had already started to realize everything. When Satan took control of his heart, and when Jesus told him to do what he had to do at the Last Supper, he was already losing and connecting everything. Even until that moment, outwardly, he did not seem to have lost anything.

The disciples did not understand why Jesus was saying such things to him, and even one of his disciples, who was like us, Judas from Kerioth, could not imagine that Judas would betray Jesus. Outwardly, it seemed like nothing was wrong, as if he had not received any discipline, but in fact, his relationship with God, trust, faith, and salvation, all of it was from Jesus. He just let him be, just said, Go and do what you have to do. He remained silent about his actions, did not pick up the whip. Only when King Saul was about to die, did he finally receive punishment from God? Was it only then that he lost everything in that moment? No, the evil spirit had already taken control of him, and when he began to dwell in sin and evil, although outwardly he still seemed to have a throne, still seemed to have a lot of wealth, and still had a strong army, outwardly it all seemed.

He seemed to possess everything as if he owned it all, but he was already in a state of having lost too much. Why? God had already been silent to him. Samson's hair was cut, his eyes were gouged out, and only then did he truly lose everything. Not just from that moment, but even before, he had been living not according to the Spirit of God, but by his own emotions, becoming more wicked, provocative, and engaging with impure substances and corpses through the tears of women. He had already lost too much by getting close to them. Lastly, even the rich young man who came seeking Jesus, after hearing Jesus' words, didn't want to read any of them, leaving Jesus due to the unwillingness to read, and returned to his own life. In doing so, he lost so much, things that cannot be compared and are even more important. He failed. It's a failure. It's a real failure. This is a true failure in life. He will never be mentioned in this Bible again.

No, because of our individual secret sins, God has not yet punished us visibly, but aren't there things we do because of the remnants within us? Things that weaken our strength, situations where we cannot make the choices God desires, or areas where we pray to God but do not receive a response. Therefore, feelings of alienation and distance from God arise. We may seem fine outwardly, but we may already be missing many things in our relationship with God. We are drifting further away from God's grace, blessings, and providence. We might not even realize it. We need to wake up and listen to what God is calling us to do.

Will you not shout like this? Speaking Korean is really difficult. Yes, get a hold of yourself. If you keep going like this, you will really be in big trouble. How can you leave your child who is on the path of sin and death alone? Can anyone just stand by and watch? Isn't it because you can't get a hold of yourself since you can't hear the voice of God? God keeps shouting, but even though everyone else is doing the same, saying, Don't do that, can't you get a hold of yourself? Everyone around me shouted, Don't do that, but who is shouting next to me like this? Even though you have read a lot, you still can't realize it. Even though you shout like that, during the Exodus, King Pharaoh also said the same thing. As each of the ten plagues hit, the country was on the verge of severe destruction. So, these eight

When the tenth plague comes, the courtiers stand before the king and say, Have you endured until now, Your Majesty? Do you still not know that the country is now ruined? Do you still not know that the true God is real? Just let it go, Your Majesty. Do as God wills. Let him go. But until they lose everything in ten plagues, they don't realize. How much do you have to lose before you realize how scary sin is and how frightening it is to break off the relationship with God? When David's kingdom became a little stronger, Satan planted the desire to boast about the army. How is Satan tempting us? Satan is not foolish. He doesn't do the same or obvious things, or things we can predict. He does it in a subtle and appropriate way. Others do it quite a bit.

The world often tempts us with things that seem okay to do just because everyone else is doing it, making us think it's not a sin. It leads us into thinking that it's okay for us to do it as well. It cunningly makes us gradually rely less on God and slowly drift away from Him. Therefore, we need to be cautious of these things. While it may seem acceptable to our ego right now, it ultimately deteriorates our relationship with God. What kind of person was David? Why did David become a king? When Samuel was told to anoint a king, he said, People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. David didn't become king for superficial reasons like others; he was different at heart. However, that core is now deteriorating, turning into wickedness. In this situation, what will remain for David?

How can we lead the people of the king before God? Each of us believes that God looks at us individually, gives us responsibilities, duties, and talents. Among these, how can we lead others to God with what God has given us? Whether it is in my home, our company, our department, or our church, even if we feel insignificant, if we do not start from there and cut it off, we may lose many things like David today and may face crying out with more tears. Before moving on to that stage, I earnestly hope that we will be allowed to have faith in cutting off what we can cut off from now on. I conclude my words. God loves us because He loves us as His children, He disciplines us.

You love us so much that you cannot leave us alone. Even if God sometimes seems to be indifferent, He will silently accomplish it. When the time comes, I want to go back to God without fear and He will forgive me. Just as God forgave David and gave him another chance, I earnestly hope for the same grace for us. I believe that He will give it to us. During this time, let's remember God who looks at us together, and we will praise together in the desire to be pleasing to You, Lord.

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수원평안교회[호매실]

The Importance of Embodying Both Love and Justice in a Spiritual Life

David's sinful act of conducting a census, despite knowing it was wrong, highlights the human tendency to sin without fear of the consequences.

The passage emphasizes that God is firm about sin, emphasizing the importance of fear and vigilance in our actions and thoughts.

It underscores the need to embody both the love and justice of God in order to lead a healthy spiritual life.

The Sinful Act of Census-Taking in the Bible

Census-taking was a common practice for strategic and policy planning, but in the Bible, David's census was considered sinful and displeasing to God.

The act itself was not sinful, but David's intentions and his desire for personal glory led to punishment.

This passage serves as a warning against the sinful motives of seeking personal achievement and glory in the eyes of God.

The Significance of Hidden Motives in Biblical Interpretation

Hidden motives and intentions are crucial in how actions are perceived by God, as seen in the examples of Barnabas and Ananias in the early church.

The Bible emphasizes that the goodness or wickedness of an action is determined by the underlying motives, as illustrated in the parable of the rich man and the story of Joseph's saving during famine.

Ultimately, the focus is on the purity of intention and the level of faith in God, shaping the interpretation of one's actions.

Reflecting on Repentance and Forgiveness Before God

David's sincere repentance did not prevent God from sending a prophet to discipline him, offering three severe choices for punishment.

The options presented to David were all challenging and would result in significant suffering.

Despite the biblical promise of forgiveness, David still faced harsh consequences for his actions.

The Role of Repentance and Discipline in God's Forgiveness

In the Bible, God always forgave sinners upon repentance but also imposed punishment for them to remember their sins.

Adam and David both experienced forgiveness but also faced consequences for their sins.

The text emphasizes the seriousness of sin and the necessity of God's discipline as a reflection of His love.

The Experience of God's Judgment and Mercy

The fear of experiencing God's direct judgment for sin leads to repentance and a fear of committing the same act again.

The writer leans towards the image of a loving and forgiving God, feeling confident in their sins because they believe that God will forgive them.

The text emphasizes that God's punishment is not always obvious, as His silence and the internal consequences of sin can also be a form of punishment.

The Consequences of Betrayal and Failure in the Bible

Judas betrayed Jesus despite outwardly seeming unchanged, ultimately facing punishment from God.

Samson lost everything after living a sinful and wicked life, disregarding the Spirit of God.

The rich young man failed to follow Jesus' words, leading to a significant loss in his life and relationship with God, serving as a warning for readers to pay attention to their own actions and relationship with God.

The Temptation of Sin and the Deterioration of David's Kingdom

Courtiers urge the king to realize the country's ruin and the reality of the true God before it's too late, highlighting the frightening nature of sin.

Satan subtly tempts David to boast about his army, leading to the deterioration of his core and kingdom.

The text emphasizes the need to be cautious of subtle temptations that gradually lead us away from God, and the hope for forgiveness and grace in our relationship with Him.