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"The Davidic Covenant, Pt.1" • 11.15.15 •
Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service
Intro
- The ark of the covenant, the symbol of God's
throne, has come to rest in the city of David. It's arrival had been preceded
by a wondrous parade.
- The people of Jerusalem are now learning to
live their lives in the light of God's authoritative presence once again. We
find the King meditating upon it in his home beginning in verse 1.
Text
•
II Samuel 7:1-3 : "Now
it came to pass when the king was dwelling in his house, and the Lord
had given him rest from all his enemies all around, that
the king said to Nathan the prophet, 'See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but
the ark of God dwells inside tent curtains.' Then Nathan said to the king, 'Go,
do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you.'" : Listen
to those words applied to David. He's the King of Israel, dwelling, sitting
comfrotably in his new custom cedar home. God has given him rest.
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The phrase speaks of David laying down and taking in some deep breaths. Why?
Because his enemies are not threatening him. God has secured him on every side.
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What a difference the Lord can make in a life! Would David have ever believed
that this peace could be a possibility in the caves of En Gedi or out in the
wilderness?
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In all that time, he held his proverbial breath, wondering if or when his
predicament would end. Here, he is able to exhale and enjoy God's goodness to
him.
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David is sitting in his living room with this prophet who we meet for the first
time. Nathan, whose name means "Whom God Gave" has obviously become a
trusted confidant.
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I imagine David looking out of his living room window at the tent that he has
erected for the Ark to dwell in. Perhaps he feels a bit guilty.
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He is dwelling in a state of the art home. The ark, the symbolic representation
of God's throne, sits within tent curtains.
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In David's mind, it's not right that he dwells in a place that is nicer than
God's and that mindset must challenge us! David wanted something better for His
Lord!
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There is a holy initiative that lacks greatly among the body of Christ. Too
often, we seem to relate to the man who when he had everything, built larger
storage facilities to expand his riches.
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He exists in a parable that Jesus told and we might admire and emulate him.
Listen to God.
•
Luke 12:20,21 : "But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be
required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’ So
is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."
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David wanted to see his position and his riches bring greater blessing to the
Lord! May that example resonate with us. It did with Nathan.
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Without allowing David to finish his thought, the prophet gives David the
'go-ahead.'
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Do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you! Whatever you're
thinking, do it! Unfortunately, Nathan, perhaps an inexperienced prophet, spoke
too soon. Verse 4.
•
II Samuel 7:4-7 : "But it happened that night that the
word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying, 'Go and tell My servant David,
‘Thus says the Lord: 'Would you build a house for Me
to dwell in? For
I have not dwelt in a house since the time that I brought the children of
Israel up from Egypt, even to this day, but have moved about in a tent and in a
tabernacle. Wherever I have moved about with
all the children of Israel, have I ever spoken a word to anyone from the tribes
of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you
not built Me a house of cedar?’" : This is
embarassing! A prophet from God has given the King a green light only to
discover that God has given a red light!
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Nathan's first biblical words are corrected by God! Even he must learn to seek
the Lord for a response first. This had to be a very long night!
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He had to learn the proper order of things. God would speak to him and then he
would relay what God said to him to David. He was not to speak of his own will
or imagination.
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To be fair, David's idea was a good and proper idea. Nathan undoubtedly wished
that he held the position and wealth to bring it to pass.
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But there is a deep lesson to learn here. You can have the right idea and a
willing heart and all the money in the world and still not have God's approval.
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Nathan goes back to David and retracts his original statement and begins to
relay God's. "Would you build a house for me to dwell in?" This is a
rhetorical question. It's not David's to do!
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God's commitment to Israel had been fine. In their entire history, God had
never needed more than a tent.
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In fact, recall that that tent, the Tabernacle, had been given to Moses via
heavenly instruction. (Exodus 25:40)
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The Holy Spirit testifies in Hebrews 8:5,
that it was a copy of things in heaven! There may be a subtle charge in David's
voice that God's way needed some modernization.
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But God had never mentioned this to any member of the Israeli tribes. What an
indictment!
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A house of cedar was the new fashion and the new trendy rage, yet, God wasn't
impressed with that! God dwells in heaven, where there are angels and streets
of gold!
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Cedar holds little appeal in heaven! What God did value was His King and His
people Israel.
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Alternately, may we remember that the attraction at any church meeting is the
actual presence of the Lord, experienced through worship and the Word!
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Sadly, too may have become enamored with the Cedar Houses of their day and
forgotten that God's presence is always the supreme attraction.
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This was not likely David's outlook, but it's wise for us to remember that if
worship is about God, then how we worship should be informed by God's
direction, not our affection! Verse 8.
•
II Samuel 7:8,9 : "Now therefore, thus shall you say
to My servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: 'I took you from the sheepfold, from following the
sheep, to be ruler over My people, over Israel. And I have been with you wherever
you have gone, and have cut off all your enemies from before you, and have made
you a great name, like the name of the great men who are on the earth." : Nathan had a specific role before the Lord. As a prophet, his
was to convey God's Word to God's people.
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David's role before the Lord was to perform God's Word. Both men, prophet and
King, however respected among their peers are God's servants!
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In the same way that God is unimpressed by the treasure we could offer Him, He
never refers to any of us as more than His servant, in terms of how we serve
Him!
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Today, for those who have come to faith in Christ, we can boldly say that we
are sons and daughters of the King. When it comes to our work for Him none of
us rise above simple servants.
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God begins His message by reminding David of where he had been. David had been
a shepherd, one of the more lowly positions in their society.
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Nobody was looking for David to lead his family, much less lead Israel! His own
family assumed his insignificance and failed to mention him when Samuel came
looking for a King!
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Even Samuel himself would have annointed the other brothers ahead of him if
left to himself!
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It was God who took him from the sheepfold, not from leading, but from following
the sheep! God had made him to be ruler over Israel! Then, God stayed with him
wherever he went!
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Whether in the palace protecting him from Saul's spears or in the wilderness,
keeping him from Saul's capture, God actively, supernaturally, protected David
at ever turn.
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Had David defeated his enemies along the way? No! God had done the work. God
cut off, eliminated, each of David's enemies before Him.
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God was responsible for making David's name great in the Earth! What had David
done? What could David have affected for himself? It doesn't matter. God had
chosen Him and made it so!
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Please take careful note of this: In all of this section thus far, God has
taken the credit at every step. The repetition of the word "I" is
significant.
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It is God alone who had done this for David's, as well as Israel's, sake! This
is something very healthy for us to keep in mind.
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In our calling, from salvation to glorification, our emphasis for glory should
always go to Him!
•
II Samuel 7:10,11 : "Moreover I will appoint a place for
My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their
own and move no more; nor shall the sons of wickedness oppress them anymore, as
previously, since the time that I commanded
judges to be over My people Israel, and have caused you to rest from all your
enemies. Also the Lord tells you that He will make you a
house." : This promise is not only to David,
but to David's people as well.
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David knew that God had "exalted his kingdom for the sake of His people
Israel." (II Samuel 5:12) God
affirms that belief here.
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God would appoint a place, He would "provide Israel with a homeland"
(NLT) and plant, or establish them
into that position permanently. In David's time, this was beginning to take
shape.
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But before too long before there was no longer a national state. Consequently, this
promise contains elements that are future to our moment.
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For those who wonder why our church believes in an enduring support for the
nation of Israel, you need not look much further. God's promise is to a
physical, literal nation of Israel!
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In saying that, let me also be very clear: Israel today, as constructed is NOT
a Christian nation. For that matter, the United States is NOT a Christian
nation! Both are apostate nations!
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As a nation, we support them as our allies in democracy. The people of God, the
church, continues to evangelize and look forward to the time when Israel will
again heed God's voice.
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Here in II Samuel, God speaks of a
time when they will no longer be moved, the word speaking metaphorically of an
earthquake, referring generally to a disturbed or anxious condition.
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Additionally, there will be peace among God's people and there will come a time
when her enemies, the sons of wickedness, will no longer humble or afflict
Israel.
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That had been their testimony from the time of the Judges! There have been
constant enemies that we have studied biblically, most recently, the
Philistines, who sought to abuse Israel.
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Today, the nation of Israel is surrounded by it's enemies! The world is
generally hostile toward Israel but a time is coming when God will establish
Jerusalem as a place of peace.
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David will get to see a preview and experience a part of that in his lifetime.
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Can you imagine David's head swimming in this information? It's more than he
can handle! God's people Israel have been given great promises which can
neither be annuled or broken.
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As God's King, David is centrally located within those promises, but the truth
even gets better. Nathan adds, "God is going to build you a house!"
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"Wait God, I just finished my new cedar house! I don't need a new
one!" Obviously, the word house, in this context, will refer to an
enduring dynastic Kingdom!
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Did you see how God turned this entire thing around? This whole story begins
with the King's desire to bless God and God turns it around to rain His
blessing upon the King!
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The essence of our relationship to God is primarily that of grace recipients.
The Lord continues with the terms of what most scholars call "the Davidic
Covenant." Verse 12.
•
II Samuel 7:12,13 : "When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I
will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will
establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish
the throne of his kingdom forever. " : God's
promise in building David a "house" begins with a physical descendant.
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David's days will be fulfilled. He will live out the days that God has ordained
for him and he will come to rest with his Fathers, a Hebrew way of saying that
he will experience an honorable death.
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David's Kingdom would continue immediately, physically through Solomon, who was
born to David by Bathsheba, her second son, his "seed."
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In the same way that David's Kingdom was established by God, Solomon would
share in that confidence and would build a house for the Lord's Name, the Temple.
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God's promise then extends well beyond the time of the Kings and well into
eternity! David's dynastic rule, the throne of His Kingdom will never be
interrupted.
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Here, we begin to understand that God has a future fulfillment in mind, in the
person of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, David's ultimate physical descendant.
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This was how the people of Israel understood this. The Holy Spirit writes in Hebrews of the excellence of God's Son
Jesus as His final revelation, quoting this verse to affirm that relationship!
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Turn over to Acts 2. Peter
understood this passage to speak directly of Jesus Christ, which he points to
in the conclusion of the first message of the church!
• Acts
2:29-36 : "Men and brethren, let me
speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried,
and his tomb is with us to this day. Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with
an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would
raise up the Christ to sit on his throne,
he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning
the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did
His flesh see corruption. This Jesus God has raised
up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore being exalted
to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of
the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.
For David
did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: ‘The
Lord
said to my Lord,
'Sit at My right hand, Till I
make Your enemies Your footstool.' Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that
God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.'" : Jesus descended physically, in human succession from David and
embodies the title, "Son of David" but he will be the Son of the
Father. Verse 14.
• II Samuel
7:14-17 : "I
will be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will
chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men. But My
mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from
before you. And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before
you. Your throne shall be established forever.' According to all
these words and according to all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David." : Solomon will still have an intimate relationship with the Lord.
- God promises to take on the full
responsibility of a Father toward Him by providing discipline.
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God's chastening hand would take the form of adversaries that would come up
against the Kings from foreign lands when they were disobedient to the Lord's
will.
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God would chasten, but never replace Solomon. Saul had gone beyond God's mercy,
but God promises never to take it from David's house!
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Ultimately, this will be fulfilled in Jesus Christ, whose Kingdom will extend
throughout eternity! But how can this be about Jesus when we look at this
phrase.
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"If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and the
blows of the sons of men." Could He have committed iniquity? Was it possible
for Him to sin? To this, we say "no."
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Theoretically, Jesus could have sinned, but lacking a sinful nature inclining
Him toward attitudes or actions, His sin would have to have been a matter of
will against His own nature.
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Instead, when we look at this verse, we understand that while Jesus did not
commit iniquity deserving of the rods and blows of the sons of men, Jesus was
treated as if He had!
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Turn in your Bibles to II Corinthians
5:21. Paul is describing the basis for the ministry of reconciliation, the
gospel that we carry as part of the church.
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The gospel is primarily God's attempt to reconcile Himself to sinful humanity.
He has taken issue with us, for the sake of our sin. How can a Holy God be
reconciled to sinful men?
•
II Corinthians 5:21 : "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for
us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." : Everything a disobedient King deserved to receive, Jesus DID
receive as a representative!
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He received the chastening of God through the rods and blows of men, though He
did nothing to deserve them, because we did everything to deserve them!
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This same Jesus is not building a temple for God as Solomon once did, but is
building His God a house, specifically a house for His Name! Listen to the
words of I Peter.
•
I Peter 2:1-5 : "Therefore, laying aside all malice,
all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babes, desire the pure
milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the
Lord is gracious. Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but
chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual
house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God
through Jesus Christ." : Solomon's temple, as ornate
and wonderful as it was, has nothing on the blood bought redeemed humanity that
contains the glory of the living God!
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His house and his Kingdom will indeed go forever before him! All of this was
spoken to Nathan who relayed it to a silent King, who could barely imagine
God's goodness to him!
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How much more should we sit in stunned and worship filled silence at His
goodness to us!
Conclusion
Let's pray.
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