2 Samuel 13:15 – Then Amnon hated her with very great hatred, so that the hatred with which he hated her was greater than the love with which he had loved her. And Amnon said to her, “Get up! Go!”
In the family story of King David, circumstances progressively go more tragic as his own sons begin to act out the consequences of David’s own sin with Bathsheba (see 2 Samuel 12). David’s son, Amnon, develops an extreme attraction to his half-sister, Tamar. He longs for her, tricks her, lures her to his home, and rapes her. Afterward, the Bible tells us that Amnon hated Tamar, and sent her away.
This story is ugly and awful in every way. However, since it is recorded for us in holy scripture, there is something that God intends for us to learn from it. I want to bring out one of those points: Sin deceives and destroys. Amnon was consumed with his desire for Tamar. He believed that his life would be better if he could only sleep with her. However, once he does so, it is as if the lights come on for him, and he sees the horror of what he has done. And, as the story progresses, Amnon falls victim to a murderous plot of Tamar’s brother, Absalom.
I once heard a man talking about going into a night club during the daytime. He had some sort of business to do that made him have to enter the establishment, and when he entered, he was shocked. At night, the club had been vibrant, a tableau of flashing light, glittering walls, and vibrant colors. In the light of day, the club was dirty and false, covered with spray-painted Styrofoam and cheap glitter. All of the alluring look of the club at night had been accomplished by the deception of darkness.
Just like Amnon and just like the night club, all of us can be victimized by the deceptiveness of sin if we are not careful. Amnon allowed himself to be convinced of a lie, believing that sleeping with Tamar was what he needed. He thought about her, dwelt upon her, even made himself sick longing for her. He became blind to the facts. He failed to think of the consequences of his actions. He stopped reasoning from God’s perspective, and thought as an animal, with no control of himself or his lust. But after he had done the deed, he saw what had been driving his life. He saw what he had done. And, as an irresponsible person would do, Amnon turned his hatred away from himself and his lack of godly self-control, and he hated Tamar.
Now, let’s apply this. Sin always looks good to us. If it didn’t, we would never commit it. No one sins without wanting to in some way. We always act in accord with some sort of desire within us. So, sin plays on our desires, and offers us the glitzy view of the night club at night. But one of the favorite tricks of our enemy is to draw us into sin by our own foolish desires, and then turn on the lights to reveal to us how ugly and stupid our failure really is. We then feel doubly defeated, as the pleasure of the sin is gone and a true guilt over our foolishness remains. And, if it really goes bad, we will be like Amnon, and not even allow our guilt to draw us to repentance, but will instead take out our frustration over our foolishness on others.
Is there a sin that is tempting you? Look at it in the light of scripture. See it for the ugly mirage that it truly is. See it as the temporary pleasure that will be taken from you the moment you give in to it. See it as dishonoring God, mocking the very holiness of our Lord we love so much. Ask God to allow you to see with clear, biblically driven sight. And do not give into the destructive deception of sin.
Pastor Travis Peterson 