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Keeping the Big Picture in View

May 1, 2026 at 10:28 AM Leave a comment

The more I read the Bible (and I’ve mentioned that I read through it each year), I cannot help but notice how easy it was for even those who were fully dedicated to the Lord and His ways, to fall. In some cases, it seems as though it takes very little for the fall or failure to occur.

What I’ve noticed is that in many to most cases, the failures occur when the person is allowing their feelings to guide them. Just a few examples will suffice. We know of King David, who was a man after God’s own heart (1 Samuel 13:14). In essence, David wanted to walk in the steps designed for him by God, so that God would be glorified in David’s life. David wanted to know God increasingly.

We also know that though he was faithful in most things, David fell mightily when he was led by his lust concerning Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11). He sees her bathing on her rooftop, which was made easy because the royal palace was higher and looked down over the city and homes of Jerusalem.

David had not done what all kings did in the spring of each year, by going out defending the land, etc., but chose to stay home. In doing so, he was likely bored sitting around the palace. In his boredom, he went out onto a balcony or rooftop and began enjoying the view of the city. There, he sees Bathsheba bathing, which of course meant she was nude. This also was not that unusual because homes in those days often utilized their rooftops for things like this since it would have been out of sight of people passing by on the streets below. Unfortunately, David saw her and he likely experienced lust immediately. Instead of running back inside his palace and confessing his sin to God, he dwelt on it. By dwelling on it, he began to want Bathsheba, to lie with her. The process is easy for us to understand. We see something, our heart/mind begins to want it and then we find a way to gain what we want.

Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. (James 1:15)

That’s the process, the way by which men and women fall through sin. The end result is death because our fellowship with God has been cut off at that point. So, we see that David fell, through his desires to have Bathsheba. It didn’t matter that she was married at the time to Uriah. It didn’t matter what others might have thought about David’s actions. It didn’t matter that David went out of his way to bring Bathsheba to the palace. Nothing mattered except fulfilling his lust where Bathsheba was concerned. Because of this one sin, the sword entered David’s house and it pulled father and son apart for years. Absalom understandably had lost a great deal of respect for his father, David. The repercussions of David’s actions were tragic for him, his family and his dynasty.

Interestingly enough though, God forgave David (though the son Bathsheba carried was taken by God). Yet, mercifully, God gave David (through  Bathsheba), another son – Solomon – who carried on the Davidic line.

In another example from Scripture, we see King Hezekiah who ruled over Judah. He did many to most things correctly and God honored Hezekiah because of it. He certainly seemed to be a humble king before God, relying on Him for strength, wisdom and to help save Judah from enemies.

Yet, in 2 Kings 20, King Hezekiah is told that he should get his house in order because the end of his life was coming. Instead of accepting this as God’s will, He turned to God in despair asking for an extension. There’s nothing really wrong with this, but what happens after this is where things go wrong for Hezekiah.

After God grants Hezekiah’s request to live longer, Hezekiah makes his big mistake. We move from God granting Hezekiah’s request, to Hezekiah, through pride, showing the emissaries from Babylon all the treasures of Judah. I think Hezekiah was feeling so great about God giving him another 15 years that he lost sight of the importance of God’s will. Babylon was an up and coming empire that God would use to conquer Israel/Judah, but at this point in Hezekiah’s life, Babylon was not much to be worried about. However, this situation would come back to haunt Hezekiah and Judah.

After the incident, the prophet Isaiah comes to Hezekiah and starts asking him questions about the visitors and Hezekiah’s demeanor toward them. Hezekiah admitted that he showed them everything regarding the treasures of Judah. He shouldn’t have done that of course, because Babylon would eventually take it all in the future.

Isaiah tells Hezekiah several things would happen.

17 The time will surely come when everything in your palace and all that your fathers have stored up until this day will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left, says the LORD. 18 And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood, will be taken away to be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.” (2 Kings 20:17-18)

To be taken as a eunuch meant his sons would lose their manhood and serve in the palace of the king of Babylon. But notice Hezekiah’s reaction to this news.

 “The word of the LORD that you have spoken is good.” For he thought, “Will there not at least be peace and security in my lifetime?” (2 Kings 20:19)

Notice here that Hezekiah is only concerned about the next 15 years, when apparently, nothing bad would occur while he reigned. It would be after Hezekiah died that these things would happen to Judah. I believe that Hezekiah was so overjoyed to be given another 15 years that God was going to give him, that he temporarily lost his ability to think critically as he had done so many times before. Now, he seems more relieved that he personally dodged a bullet than anything else.

Here’s my point. We all have weaknesses and a propensity to fail/fall. Satan knows us better than we do and the things that will cause us to fall and bring about spiritual death. When this happens, it doesn’t mean we have lost salvation nor does it mean that what we’ve done is unforgiveable. It means we need to correct the problem as soon as we become aware of it and move on back to God’s embrace.

That’s the problem with sin, isn’t it? It can too often easily overtake us and defeat us. I’m reminded of this in my own life at times. I sometimes wonder how I can go from feeling great about life to feeling overwhelmed by it. The darkness can come on you in an instant and we are all capable of making stupid decisions, which translate too often to sin.

So what do we do? In Ed Welch’s book, Side By Side, in his last chapter, he writes about keeping the story in view. By that he means that we should try to continually focus on the big picture regarding our salvation. Welch compares our past, which is filled with sin and failure to our ultimate future in Christ. But he also points out our present situation and how much God pursues us daily.

God’s persistent love through the ages moves to redemption and forgiveness of sins in the present. Everything hinges on this. If we are left in our sin, then we are separated from God. Only Christ’s surprising sacrifice for us can bring the holy God so close that he never leaves.[1]

In essence, Welch tells us what the Bible tells us, that we are chosen in Him before the foundations of the world. Welch then asks the question, “And what does this story of being chosen and predestined for adoption have to do with past victimization, rejection, loss? It certainly does not minimize them. If anything, it shows their wrongness even more vividly because they are against God and his original intent. What the story does is counterbalance our past with a story of love, grace, and belonging that says, ‘Evil and misery will not win,’ and ‘Things are not what they seem.’

Ultimately, Welch’s point is that eventually, all believers will move beyond the conditions we live under now. One day, we will be perfectly whole in Jesus. We will possess new, glorified bodies, incapable of becoming ill or dying. We will have completely new minds that only think thoughts that glorify Him. Our mouths will only utter words and sentences that bring honor to God and esteem to others. It is difficult to fully identify with this future state for the believer because we live in a sin laden world, one that constantly tries to force its evil onto all people, including believers.

Later on in this last chapter of Welch’s book, he asks two questions that are worth noting.

1. Do you ever think about when heaven will come to earth? What do you think it will be like?
2. Do you ever wonder what it will be like without sin?

I’m willing to bet if you are serious about your faith in Jesus, you’ve thought of those questions. I have. Unfortunately, I cannot imagine life without sin, either from others or from myself. In fact, I have no real idea of just how often I might sin each day. While some days are better than others, I don’t believe any day is perfect, without sin.

But Welch, like the Apostle Paul and others, emphasizes the fact that “Our inheritance in Jesus is assured, because the Spirit himself holds it for us.”

The big picture of God’s love for us and His “reclamation project” of our lives is something that we should revel in. It is God’s story of just how much He loves us and has proved it by doing what He did to reclaim us.

When we look forward to sinless perfection, we are inspired to grow today into who we will be.

It is difficult for us to fully comprehend God’s love for us, isn’t it? As Paul stated, For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.  And now stays faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity (1 Corinthians 13: 12-13).

This is the difficulty in living as a believer today. We know full well what we are up against and because of it we long for the time of our release. It’s coming and that should help us realize that this life and it’s difficulties will not last forever. This process is our experience of sanctification, which will last until we leave this life. There’s simply no getting around that truth.

Satan wants us focused on our failures and sin. Instead, look up. Focus on the freedom and full renewal to be given to us when we leave this life into the arms of our Savior. It is in focusing on our future sinless perfection, as Welch says, that we can recommit ourselves by cooperating with God as He molds us into what we will become in Him.

[1] Side By Side, Edward T. Welch, pg 157

Entry filed under: christianity, Religious - Christian - Prophecy, salvation, sanctification.