Jesus, the Son of David

Behold the Lamb of God.

1. Intro: Israel’s prophets, priests and kings.

Matthew 1:1-17

Abraham - Isaac - Jacob - 12 tribes - Israel - Moses/Exodus (Prophet) - Tabernacle/Law - Priests - Judges/Kings - David is the ultimate example of an OT king - A man after God’s own heart.

God is writing a story - he’s chosen a family to covenant with. He is providing in this family a framework, categories that reveal our needs.

He reveals our need for a prophet, someone to tell us the truth about God, who helps us to know how to live in relationship to him.

He reveals that we need a priest - someone to mediate, to intercede for us, to provide atoning sacrifies acceptable to God on our behalf.

Finally though, he reveals through the story of the family of Abraham that humanity needs more than the truth, more than a mediator, we need a leader, a ruler, an authority to guide us into righteousness.

Israel thinks they know what they need. They think they need a human leader, a human king.

2. God’s promise delivered.

2 Samuel 7:12-16

English Standard Version Chapter 7

8 Now, therefore, thus you shall say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel. 9 And I have been with you wherever you went and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. 10 And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more. And violent men shall afflict them no more, as formerly, 11 from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover, the LORD declares to you that the LORD will make you a house. 12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, 15 but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. 16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever

God loves David, he saw in David a man after his own heart. He marked David as an anointed leader of His people.

David’s life reflected a man who trusted God, loved God’s people who would lead them in humility.

David is probably most known for a mighty deed of war where he stood in front of the army of Israel to fight their greatest enemy, a giant of the philistines called Goliath. He trusted the Lord and won the victory for God’s people.

David would dance in the presence of God, delighting as the ark of the covenant entered into Jerusalem for the first time.

David would worship God, writing Psalms and hyms that we still have recorded in our bible today.

AND YET - David’s life was also a mass of contradictions. Despite his very good beginning, the story goes on to show that he was decidedly imperfect. He was dishonest. He was sinful. He was guilty of some of the darkest sins you can imagine.

Despite this, God has promised that he will bless David, and make his name great - he will raise up his family after him,

16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.

The problem however is that in mere 40 years after his death, his son Solomon saw the kingdom divided, and in the following centuries the divided kingdoms would fall to outside empires.

It looked as though God’s promise to David would not be fulfilled. The people of Israel longed for a righteous king to rule over them.

So do we! How much of our political process is marked with an ache in all of us that we have a righteous leader. We were made to be led in righteousness. Earthly kingdoms, earthly rulers, they are all flawed and failing and all will fall in time. But God had made a promise to David to establish his kingdom forever.

How will he do it?

3. God’s promise remembered.

Isaiah 9:6–7 (ESV)

The people who walked in darkness

have seen a great light;

those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,

on them has light shone.

3  You have multiplied the nation;

you have increased its joy;

they rejoice before you

as with joy at the harvest,

as they are glad when they divide the spoil.

4  For the yoke of his burden,

and the staff for his shoulder,

the rod of his oppressor,

you have broken as on the day of Midian.

5  For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult

and every garment rolled in blood

will be burned as fuel for the fire.

6  For to us a child is born,

to us a son is given;

and the government shall be upon his shoulder,

and his name shall be called

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

7  Of the increase of his government and of peace

there will be no end,

on the throne of David and over his kingdom,

to establish it and to uphold it

with justice and with righteousness

from this time forth and forevermore.

The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Is 9:2–7.

Judah and Israel were spiritually rotting.

Widespread idolatry and injustice plagued society.

Leaders failed to trust in God, opting for political alliances instead.

Isaiah's message called the people back to faith in God, contrasting their present failures with the hope of a future righteous king.

Isaiah is reminding them that there is a king whom God has promised. And God is giving more information about who this king is and what his kingdom will be like. It far surpassed any expectation up to that point.

He will bring light into darkness.

He will bring joy into sadness.

He will bring freedom for the oppressed.

He will bring peace to the warriors.

How? through the birth of a child who would bear all the names we couldn’t begin to imagine.

Wonderful Counselor, - he’s wise.

Mighty God, - he’s God!

Everlasting Father, - He loves us unendingly and perfectly.

Prince of Peace. - He is victorious and brings peace!

How can this be?

God is promising a king who would come from the line of David, and who would transform the world through his rule.

English Standard Version Chapter 7

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel

4. God’s promise fulfilled.

God keeps his promises. He sent Jesus not only as the perfect prophet in the place of Moses, not just the perfect priest. Not just as the perfect sacrifice, but now also as the perfect king!

English Standard Version (Chapter 1)

“Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”

35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God

God fulfills his promise to David, he fulfills the prophesy of Isaiah by taking on human form, being born of the virgin Mary, and taking the throne of David. This throne that David’s throne was only a shadow of. This throne is not the throne of the Kingdom of Israel, but of the Kingdom of Heaven. He is the King of kings. The Lord of lords. Jesus has come to bring about all that was prophesied!

He was born to l bring light into darkness.

He was born to bring joy into sadness.

He was born bring to freedom for the oppressed.

He was born to bring peace to the warriors.

So now what are the implications for this reality. If Jesus is the King in the line of David, what must we know about him?

He is our Shepherd - remember, David was a shepherd first. He learned what it meant to care for those who were in need.

Jesus is our shepherd! 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.

Listen to his voice. He will lead you well.

He fights our battles - remember the story of David and Goliath, it’s not meant to be a motivational story about how we can defeat our giants. It’s meant to be a shadow of the reality that we need someone to slay the giant for us!

Tim Keller says: Jesus is the true and better David, whose victory becomes his people's victory, though they never lifted a stone to accomplish it themselves.

You cannot save yourself. Jesus has vanquished our sin! He has conquered over Satan. He has even defeated death! We cannot do it!

English Standard Version Chapter 2

For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, 10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. 11 In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. 13 And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.

He deserves your full allegiance.

English Standard Version Chapter 12

25 See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” 27 This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29 for our God is a consuming fire.

Let your life be marked by a full devotion to Jesus!

He is worthy. He is the King.

Trust him.

Worship him.

Live for him.

Invite others into his good and kind rule.