Beginning of the End - Ellen G. White

Chapter 71
David's Sin of Adultery and His Repentance
This chapter is based on 2 Samuel 11; 12.
The Bible has little to say in praise of human beings. All the
good qualities that people possess are the gift of God; their good
deeds are performed by the grace of God through Christ. They are
only instruments in His hands. All the lessons of Bible history teach
that it is dangerous to praise people, because when we lose sight of
our entire dependence on God, we are sure to fall. The Bible teaches
distrust of human power and encourages trust in divine power.
The spirit of self-confidence and exaltation prepared the way
for David's fall. Flattery, power, and luxury had their effect on him.
According to the usual customs among Eastern rulers, crimes that
were not tolerated in common people were overlooked in the king.
All this tended to lessen David's sense of the exceeding sinfulness of
sin. He began to trust in his own wisdom and might.
As soon as Satan can separate a person from God, he will
arouse the unholy desires of man's carnal nature. The work of the
enemy does not begin with something sudden and startling. It begins
in apparently small things--neglect to fully rely on God, the
tendency to follow the customs of the world.
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