The preacher admits he ignored a leaking shower until water began dripping through the kitchen ceiling, because things left to themselves never repair themselves. That image opens the painful story of King David’s family, where again and again he refused to confront the evil under his own roof (2 Samuel 13-15). The sermon makes a hard claim: avoiding confrontation with sin can be as destructive as the sin itself, and the discomfort of a difficult conversation is nothing next to the tragedy of doing nothing. Listen if a warning light has been blinking in one of your relationships while you keep waiting for the right moment.
Discussion questions
For your small group or for personal reflection after the sermon.
- In 2 Samuel 13 we read that David was furious with Amnon but did not rebuke him, because he loved him as his firstborn. What does this reaction reveal about David, and what did it lead to in his family?
- Trace the path from the wrong done to Tamar to David fleeing Jerusalem: three years of Absalom's exile, two years of silence, and a kiss without a conversation. At which points could David have responded differently?
- Rafał says that avoiding confrontation in the face of evil is just as dangerous as evil itself. What do you make of that, and why is it so easy to call looking the other way love or keeping the peace?
- The prophet Nathan named David's sin lovingly but firmly and walked with him toward the repentance described in Psalm 51. How is that kind of confrontation different from simply pointing out someone's fault?
- The sermon recalls well known leaders whom no one around dared to tell, "You must not," and the story of someone who lovingly spoke hard words to Rafał. Who in your life has permission to tell you the truth, and how do you receive it?
- What warning light is flashing right now in one of your relationships, whether marriage, family, friendship or community, and what first step can you take this week instead of waiting for the right time?
