His Kingdom Come!
Who is your King? Humble dependence on God • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Good morning.
My name is Stefan Lorde, and I’m one of the Deacons here at Greenhouse Church.
Those of you who have been with us for any amount of time in the last 25 weeks, would have seen that we have been following the Theme “Who is your King: Humble Dependence on God”. In it, and in the book of Samuel, we saw the people of God, and how they wanted a King. They elected the king that they wanted, for the purpose of being like the other nations, though God wanted them to be set apart from the nations.
We saw the rise and fall of Saul
We see the rise of this young man named David
We are taken through the story of this Kingship, and have been seeing a stark contrast between the king that the people chose and the King that the Lord wants. Saul, for example, makes rash decisions that cost people their lives. David, as we saw last week, consults the Lord for everything, even in the most obvious of circumstances.
Last week, Brother Steve wonderfully took us through chapters 5 and 6, where David is anointed King over Israel. The people come and ask him to unify the nation and be their ruler. Steve also pointed out that they used a different word from ‘king’. I guess they remember what happened the last time they made a man king. David then goes to the land of the Jebusites and captures it, establishing it as the capital of the country.
Zion צִיּ֑וֹן, as he calls it, emerges from the ground.
It is a natural fortress, about 2,510 ft above the chaotic sea of enemies that seek to crash against it, wave after wave. This is reminiscent of when God causes the land to emerge, out of the chaotic waters in the creation story. No wonder he calls it Zion, which means “dry land”.
Next, David wants to make Zion the religious capital, too. He brings the ark of the covenant and puts it on the high place of Jerusalem. Near the end of chapter 6, David pitches a tent for the ark of God, and offers sacrifices. He then holds a feast for all the people of Israel. The Bible says in 2 Samuel 6:19
and [he] distributed among all the people, the whole multitude of Israel, both men and women, a cake of bread, a portion of meat, and a cake of raisins to each one. Then all the people departed, each to his house.
Some of us are thinking of our nation’s leaders right about now, right? Don’t you wish your leader could be like David?
“Mr President, what are your plans to end hunger in our nation?”
“Well, that’s a good question, citizen. What my administration is looking into is...”
blah blah blah! David gives food to the whole multitude of Israel. Bread, meat, and dessert. Anyways, let’s move on before we get too upset at our nations’ leaders.
David comes back home from being the best thing to happen to Israel since Joshua, and instead of welcoming arms, he’s berated by his wife. The Scriptures say that she “despised him in her heart” (v. 16). That must have been so discouraging for him, especially after David gave her father not one, but 200 Philistine foreskins for her dowry. However, David responds with grace, and shifts the focus to the worship of God and humility.
She doesn’t bear any children, in verse 23. 2 Samuel 6:23
And Michal the daughter of Saul had no child to the day of her death.
In a context where women were valued based on their children, it’s ironic to know that you called the Lord’s anointed a worthless man, and you died a worthless woman as a result.
Pause for effect
Today, we move on to Chapter 7. This chapter is the last one that we are going to cover in our sermon series, “Who is your King?”. From the beginning of the chapter, David is set up to be the true, promised covenant King of Israel. From verse one, he’s not even called David anymore. Look! 2 Samuel 7:1
Now when the king lived in his house and the Lord had given him rest from all his surrounding enemies,
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And Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you.”
David is a son of humanity; the seed of the woman. When Goliath comes up to Israel’s armies looking like a giant serpent, David smashes his head with a stone and then cuts it off completely. He goes on to crush all of Israel’s enemies, reflecting that victory over the seed of the serpent.
David is from the line of Judah, the promised line of the King. Saul, as you remember was from the tribe of Benjamin, but... in Genesis 49:10 Jacob blesses Judah’s line from which the true King is destined to come.
The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.
David lovingly shepherds the people of Israel into peace and unity, and even gives them bread from on top a mountain, just like Moses, who was also a shepherd.
He even blesses the people!
In short, the immediate answer to the question of “Who is your King?” should be David.
However, as Steve had pointed out last week, David is not perfect. In 2 Samuel 5:13
And David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, after he came from Hebron, and more sons and daughters were born to David.
Michal – Saul’s daughter (1 Samuel 18:27)
Ahinoam – of Jezreel (1 Samuel 25:43)
Abigail – widow of Nabal (1 Samuel 25:39-42)
Maacah – daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur (2 Samuel 3:3)
Haggith – mother of Adonijah (2 Samuel 3:4)
Abital – mentioned in 2 Samuel 3:4
Eglah – mentioned in 2 Samuel 3:5
When we were looking at the life of Saul, we noted that he took the glory for his son’s battle victories. We noted back then that it seemed a small issue, especially seeing as he was the king. However, we saw that this small issue turned into a huge problem, as Saul gets worse and worse until his ultimate downfall. Here, we see this short sentence that the Bible doesn’t spend much time on. We almost seemed to gloss over it, and don’t pay it much attention.
However, in last week’s sermon, we learned that this is a major red flag. Elder JB even mentioned a few weeks ago that even though the Bible doesn’t outright command us not to take multiple wives, the consequences are always disastrous. How many wives does David have at this point, church? That’s right, the number of completion. Though David by no means stops taking wives in the future, we can see that the only completion that 7 wives will bring is a complete mess! And we haven’t even got to Bathsheba yet!
I’m sorry, church. I had to spoil the story for you. I have to give you the bad news about David. I have to ruin that image that you have in your mind of the shepherd boy turned mighty King that we get from Bible story books. But, I have to ruin it, not only to show the true humanity of David, but to give us hope for the story to come of a KING that is going to be perfect. A KING that has no flaws, and a King, praise God, that makes no mistakes! Amen?
David is King. In fact, the best King that Israel had (I mean, there were only two). But, David is perhaps the best and most godly one that Israel will have have until the fall of the kingdom a few generations later. When you read the book of Kings/Chronicles, you will see that all of them are judged based on whether or not they walk in David’s footsteps. David’s kingdom has finally been established by God, and his first order of business is to build a house for God! It is not right in David’s mind that he is living in a house of the finest materials, and God is dwelling in a pitched up tent outside.
Now when the king lived in his house and the Lord had given him rest from all his surrounding enemies, the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells in a tent.” And Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you.”
However, though David had a habit of consulting God on every big and little thing in the past, he strangely doesn’t consult God here. But, his heart is in the right place! There is nothing wrong with serving the Lord in this way. You want to give a larger offering this week because God blessed you with a good thesis topic? Go ahead! You want to donate half your wardrobe to the Ambassador’s Charity Trust that our brother Blessings organised in Malawi? God won’t be mad! But sometimes, we can still be in error, despite our good intentions. This is why it is good to Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
God doesn’t tell us here in 2 Samuel why he doesn’t allow David to build a house for Him. In fact, God tells David that He’s quite satisfied with His little tent.
God wants to do something for David, though, that flips his idea.
Some of you who went to the games event last week may have played UNO. For those of you who are UNO enthusiasts, would know that one of the most powerful cards to play is the reverse card. Entire families have come to blows because the reverse card was played. God plays the reverse card on David before he can play. David wanted to build God a temple. God plays His reverse card and promises to build David a dynasty. The temple that David wanted to build for God didn’t even last 400 years before it’s destroyed. In fact, not even 50 years pass before it’s invaded and sacked by Shishak, King of Egypt.
However, the Kingdom that God wants to build for David, though it will suffer violence too, will last forever. In fact, it is a two-fold establishment. 2 Sam 7: 13
He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
God has promised a Kingdom.
God has promised a Kingdom.
This Kingdom will be an Abrahamic Kingdom. 2 Samuel 7:9 “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.”
Who do we know that God promises to bless with a great name? Gen 12:2
And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
This Kingdom will be an Adamic Kingdom. Adam means mankind, and so this promised Kingdom is for human beings, God’s people.
Question
Where did Adam first live? The Garden! Notice how God deals with the humans under this Kingdom. 2 Sam 7:10
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,
This Kingdom (here’s a tough one) will be a Noachic Kingdom. No, I did not make that up. The Lord declares that, 2 Sam 7:11
[...] And I will give you rest from all your enemies[...]
For those of you like brother Steve who are fluent in ancient Hebrew (just kidding), what is the ancient Hebrew word for rest as in, to settle down? נוּחַ
This Kingdom will (obviously) be a Davidic Kingdom. God promises that, though David himself wouldn’t be the one to construct the Temple, there is coming one of his sons that will. He is the one we read about in verse 13 that shall build a house for God’s name. After hearing all this, David responds in humility and worship to God, completely baffled and overwhelmed that God will do this for him. In fact, the rest of the chapter is David offering up a prayer of thanksgiving and adoration, remembering what God has done for him in the past, and humbly depending on Him for what He has promised to do in the future.
God has promised a King
God has promised a King
In the time before the Kings of Israel, there was the period of the judges. During this time, and in the book of Judges, you see the refrain repeated at key points in the story: “In those days, Israel had no King”. This should make the reader look forward to someone that will be a King that will somehow solve Israel’s problems. The Lord spends a lot of time talking about the Kingdom and the throne. But, what good is a dukedom without a duke? What use is a presidency without a president? What good is a Kingdom...without a...?
If we have a throne, we need a man to sit on it. This man needs to be worthy. Saul wasn’t worthy. David starts out very good, but then disqualifies himself. He crushes the serpent Goliath, but becomes a serpent himself with Bathsheba.
Solomon builds the temple for the Lord, and it’s marvelous. But, the house he builds for himself is almost 3 times larger, and takes twice as long to build! God’s temple is on a high place, as we saw earlier, but Solomon builds shrines to other gods on other high places, including to the god Molech, who is worshiped by child sacrifice!
It seems that the sons of David repeat and multiply his sin, just like the sons of Jacob multiplied his sins, and the sons of Abraham multiplied his sins, and, sadly...just like all the sons of Adam in here today...multiply his sin. Church, we need a King that doesn’t multiply sin, but removes it. This King needs to fulfill all the requirements that God outlines in order to be worthy of the eternal throne.
David didn’t know at the time who that King would be. But we know. Right?
Question church:
What is the name of the King who will rightfully sit on the throne of David?
What is the name of the King whose name is above every name?
What is the name of the King who is the true Son of Man?
What is the name of the King who will give us rest?
Ten points to Greenhouse Church!
Let’s conclude with how we can know that Jesus is the true King. God promises, “I will be a father to Him, and he shall be to me a son.” In Matthew 3:17 Jesus is baptised, and God tears open the heavens.
and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
Adam fell. Jesus is led into the wilderness and, what is the first temptation? Food! Take food you’re not supposed to eat. How does Jesus respond. Matthew 4:4
But he answered, “It is written, “ ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”
In other words, I will trust in what God told me, unlike Adam.
The children of Abraham fell in the wilderness because they tested God 10 times. What was Jesus’ second temptation? Matthew 4:5-6
Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, “ ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and “ ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’ ”
Jesus responds, Matt 4:7
Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ”
David fell. The devil even promises Jesus the Kingdom, and all the Kingdoms of the world! Just rule in his way with violent schemes, like David did. Jesus says no! He is the King, but even as King, He will serve the Lord! He responds,
Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “ ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’ ”
All this is found in the book of Matthew. For you Bible nerds out there, you know that the book of Matthew is divided into 5 parts, each ending with a portion of Jesus’ teachings. Know what else is in 5 parts containing teachings? Yes, the Torah. Jesus is the new Moses, too, giving instructions, and even feeding the people from a mountain.
Lastly, Noah fell. Jesus, however proclaims that anyone who comes to Him, He will in no wise cast out. He invites us to come to Him, “all those who are weary and heavy-laden,” and He will give you rest.
Okay, this is a big one! Fasten your seat belts!
When God had finished creation, he rested on the 7th day. The people of God are to rest every 7th day, too. Seven times a year, there’re festivals where God’s people are commanded to rest. Every seven years, there’s another time for rest, and every 7 x 7 years, there’s the Great Jubilee rest where everything resets and goes back to the ideal. Jesus comes in and says that He is bringing that rest! He even declares Himself as Lord of the Sabbath. His death and burial coincide with the Sabbath, so that even He is resting. His crucifixion even happens 70 x 7 years after the return from exile.
Jesus comes and checks all the boxes.
He’s a better man than Adam
He’s a better Israelite than the children of Abraham
He’s a better teacher than Moses
He’s a better King than David
His Kingdom has come! LONG LIVE THE KING!
There is no question about it, church. The questions are for you!
Who is your King?
Does your life demonstrate Humble Dependence on King Jesus?
Are there still areas in your life that resist God’s rule and rest?
Are you living in light of His return?
Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s covenant promise—not just to David in today’s chapter, but to Adam, to Abraham, to Noah, to Moses, and to all creation. He is the true King, the seed of the woman who crushes the serpent’s head (Gen. 3:15), the blessing to all nations (Gen. 12:3), the greater Moses leading His people in a new Exodus (Deut. 18:15), and the Son of David whose kingdom will never end (2 Sam. 7:13).
But He is also the Lord of Rest—for those of you are crushed by deadlines and thesis writing, He is the One who invites you weary students to come and lay your burdens down under His rule (Matt. 11:28). To resist His kingship, like Saul, is to choose restlessness, to be in a constant war with God and with yourself. And yet, how often do we seek rest in self-rule, in human leaders, in wealth, in degrees and diplomas—only to find that those things leave us exhausted and empty? James 4:7-8 gives us the answer: "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you." True rest—lasting, unshakable rest—is only found in surrender to King Jesus in Humble Dependence, who has brought the reign of God to us, and will return to establish it in full.
The question is: Who is your King?
