Devotion #4: King George and the Ducky
When my firstborn, Kylie, was a little girl, VeggieTales were all the rage. It was hard not to love these videos of Bible stories that had come to life with animated vegetables. My husband, Josh, and I even dressed up as Larry the Cucumber and Bob the Tomato for a costume party one year. I will let you guess who went as whom! One of our favorites was the story of “King George and the Ducky,” which was a very loose depiction of the account of David and Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11). Of course, instead of Uriah, it was Junior Asparagus, and instead of Bathsheba, it was a rubber ducky. To fully appreciate this cinematic masterpiece, I highly recommend you take a moment to watch it.
The writer of Romans mentions King David here in chapter 4, verses 4-8, “Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: ‘Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.’”
I really like how it is worded in the New Living Translation, “When people work, their wages are not a gift, but something they have earned. But people are counted as righteous, not because of their work, but because of their faith in God who forgives sinners. David also spoke of this when he described the happiness of those who are declared righteous without working for it: ‘Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight. Yes, what joy for those whose record the LORD has cleared of sin.’”
Unfortunately, David’s sins and indiscretions were not as innocent as cartoon vegetables and a rubber duck; they involved lust, adultery, lies, and murder. When David was confronted with his sin (2 Samuel 12), he mourned over what he had done, turned back to God, and was granted forgiveness. This passage we just read in Romans quotes a Psalm written by David about his confession and forgiveness. You can find it in Psalm 32:1-2, “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.”
In 2 Samuel 12:13, the prophet Nathan tells King David that, “The LORD also has put away your sin.” What a beautiful picture of God’s forgiveness! He did not have to work for that forgiveness; it was given. His debt of wrongdoing was “covered.” Later in the book of Romans we read, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). In Ephesians, the Apostle Paul reminds the church, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Have you ever desired a do-over? A clean slate? A chance to set things right? You can have that; your sins can be forgiven. It is not because of your work but by God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone. “Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight.” Thanks be to our God!