I Will Go to Him – Finding Hope in Loss

David, a man after God’s heart, sinned greatly.  He committed adultery and had the woman’s husband killed.  A sickly child was born from this sin.  The child  lingered seven days while David fasted and prayed hoping the Lord would allow the child to live.  When the child died, David said, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘Who knows, the Lord may be gracious to me, that the child may live.’ But now he has died; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.’” (2 Samuel 12:23)

David was a passionate and intense man who lived life to the fullest. Despite this grievous sin David was also a strongly spiritual man.  And his spirituality led to practicality: the child was dead and he must go on with life. This is not as cold-hearted as it seems.  David grieved, as any of us would, while the child was alive and suffering.  He knew the child was sick as a direct result of his sin so he grieved and mourned even while he prayerfully hoped for healing.  Once the child died, while I’m sure David still grieved, he knew there was nothing more he could do for the child.  As he got on with life he worshipped the Lord, even in the loss, and especially in the loss.

I believe “I will go to him” is a simple statement from David that can be paraphrased: The child died and I will, too.  But I find much more hope in the statement.  The child died and I will go to him.  The implication is that David would see the child again in another place.

While there are many lessons for believers in this story, two stand out to me:

• We need to let go of what we cannot change and accept that God is and will always be sovereign.  This does not mean we will not experience sorrow or grief, but it does mean that we trust God in the sorrow and grief.
• We will be reunited with those we love and have lost, if they are believers; if they have accepted God’s grace. Obviously, this child could not form a rational thought, much less consciously accept grace from God, yet David knew he would see the child again. How much more critical for those who can claim Christ as their Savior.

For a period of several weeks a few months ago I heard of the death of someone I knew nearly every day.  They ranged from a 95-year-old pastor to a 39-year-old father of two.  Several of the deaths were Covid-related.  Yesterday was the one-year anniversary of my mother-in-law’s death.  We continue to grieve her loss and shed tears over it because we miss her.

There has been great loss in our world and there has been great faith exercised in the loss.  Loss hurts deeply and grief is real and necessary.  But in the midst of grief, there is hope for the believer: I will go to him, but he will not return to me.  Death is a finality in this world, but a Christian’s life continues in a far different world, a world lived in the presence of a God who is love, who will wipe every tear away, and who longs to restore us to a right relationship with Him.

I grieve with those who are grieving and weep with those who are weeping (Romans 12:15), but I also rejoice with those who are rejoicing through their tears: I will go to him. And while it is not the intent of David’s statement, if we capitalize the “H” in the word “him,” we indicate that we will go to God; we will enter His presence and the eternal joy He has promised those who accept His grace.

This is key – we must accept His grace.  Sinners, who comprise 100% of the world’s population, must turn from sin to the sacrifice on the cross, understand and believe that Jesus did what only He could do as God and as man, which was to take on the burden and penalty for our sins (death) and pay the price we could not pay.  Only then can one state with confidence born of faith, I will go to Him.