Living with Uriah's Purpose

"And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they desroyed the children of Ammon, and beseiged Rabbah.  But David tarried still at Jerusalem."  II Sammuel 11:1

One evening, David was walking on his roof when he caught sight of a beautiful woman bathing.  David summons the woman called Bathsheba, wife of Uriah, to the palace.  He then sleeps with her and a couple of weeks later, finds out she is pregant with his child. David then formulates a plan to have her husband Uriah called back from the battlefield in hopes that Uriah will sleep with his wife and the baby can appear to be his, and not David's. Upon Uriah's arrival, David directs him to go home to his wife. Unfortunately, Uriah does not follow David's directions and sleeps at the door of David's palace. When David asks him why he did not return home, Uriah explains to David,

"The ark, and Israel, and Judah, abide in tents; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my Lord are encamped in the open fields; shall I then go into mine own house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? as thou livest, and as they soul liveth, I will not do this thing" (verse 11).

     Do you get a sense of Uriah's conviction and purpose?  Uriah had a calling in his life and nothing was going to stop him from fulfilling his purpose. His reverence for God and loyalty to his brethren, including his captain, Joab, is inspiring and godly. It amazes me how he put aside his own desires and wants in order to fulfill his duty as a soldier in God's army.  He could have chosen to fulfill his own purpose, but he chose the better part, God's purpose. When I read this portion of the text, I sense his reverence for God and the inspiring way in which he lived his life.   Uriah stepped up where David did not.
  The story unfolds that David then gets Uriah drunk in hopes of sending him home to be with his wife, but instead, Uriah stays at the king's palace. David sends Uriah back to the battlefield with orders to Joab to have Uriah placed at the forefront. Uriah is killed in battle, David takes Bathsheba as his wife, and Bathsheba gives birth to a child that dies shortly after. David repents of his sin and is forgiven by God, but his life is altered forever. 
      Some may wonder what David was doing at home when his brethren were out fighting in a war.  Afterall, at the beginning of this chapter, the Bible describes this time as one in which kings "go forth to battle" so why was David any different? David, who should have been out on the battlefield, fighting alongside his brethren, was at home enjoying the comforts of palace life.  My thinking goes that he lost sense of his purpose and ignored his duties as king.  Due to this, he ends up falling into sin with Bathsheba, for if he would have been out doing what he was called to do, he would not have had time to allow his eyes to wander.
         Do you know your purpose? If so, are you fulfilling it?  The danger is that when we are not fulfilling God's heavenly purpose, we set ourselves up to be distracted by the cares of this world which can lead to our demise. We were made to fulfill a purpose.  We naturally look for a purpose in life.  If we don't fulfill God's purpose, our flesh will try to find a substitute. Has God called you to be a preacher, a teacher, a pastor, a singer, a prophet, a prophetess, an evangelist, a community worker, a volunteer, a Christ-filled politician, a foster-parent?  The list goes on.  Then my encouragement to you is to set everything else aside and press towards your heavenly purpose.  As Paul says, we must press towards the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus(Philippians 3:14) The Bible describes fulfilling our purpose as one who runs a  race:

"Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run that you may obtain."  I Corinthians 9:24


"...Let us lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross...." Hebrews 12:1-2

Our prize is Jesus Christ's Kingdom.  Our purpose is to be used by God to minister to others in order to expand His kingdom.  We must press past the sin and the distractions.  Just like a runner, we must focus only on the finish line.  We don't have time to look to the left or to the right, even for a second.  That split second could mean forfeiting the prize. Like David, a moment of stepping out of his purpose cost him being able to build the house of the Lord.  Are you willing to pay that high of a price? Or will you be like Uriah who fulfilled his purpose until his very last breath?  I encourage, keep your eyes on Jesus Christ and learn from his example. His purpose was Calvary and he stopped at nothing until he made it to the cross.  Stop at nothing to fulfill your calling. Keep your eyes on the prize and see God use your life in a mighty way.