He Makes Us Great

Bible Passage: 2 Samuel 22:26–51

Introduction: We’ve been giving our attention to King David over the past few months. As we conclude the season of Lent and celebrate Palm Sunday, we now conclude our study of David’s psalm here in 2 Samuel 22. David has described in vivid detail the tremendous challenges that he faced from his battle with Goliath, through the years of fleeing from Saul, to the betrayal of his own son, Absalom. A review of the extraordinary conflicts that characterized David’s career makes us wonder that he survived, let alone triumphed over his enemies. But triumph he did.

As today is Palm Sunday, we reflect today upon the triumphal entry of Christ into the city of Jerusalem shortly before his crucifixion. David’s exultation in reflecting upon his own victories call upon us to respond with joy and exuberance at the triumph of Christ our Lord. But there is a further application to our text this morning. David’s triumph and Christ’s victory belong to us. Christ’s great victory was not over his human adversaries, but over the powers of darkness and ultimately over death itself. And as we have died with our Lord Jesus, so we will be raised according to the pattern he set before us. We’ll see in our text the way this pattern is repeated again and again. In this life, we too may expect the same kind of victories that David and his greater son, Jesus Christ, have achieved.

God's Enabling Might

2 Samuel 22:29-31

The opening section of this psalm, which we looked at a few weeks ago, began with a recounting of the horrible dangers that David experienced throughout his lifetime. And with those dangers, the LORD showed forth his mighty power by coming down and delivering him. We’ve seen this kind of deliverance before. This reminds us that God rescued Israel from Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. David described his deliverances from the hand of Saul and of Absalom in terms that evoked scenes from the Exodus. Now, in the section before us this morning, David is no longer the victim needing deliverance, he is a mighty warrior before whom all his enemies fall. This is also a pattern we’ve seen in Israel’s history. The passage before us echoes the story of the conquest of the promised land under Joshua. As Jericho and of all the other Canaanites cities fell to Israel, so too the Gentile nations have come cringing and bowing before David. God’s great power enabled Joshua and the hosts of Israel to conquer the giants and the other formidable foes that stood in their way. Likewise God’s mighty power has been seen in David’s victories. It is not, however, by David’s prowess that he conquers. It is all by God’s might.

Verse 29 begins with David acknowledging that God is his “night vision glasses”. He lightens his darkness. The might of Yahweh has made him into a fearsome warrior, one who is courageous so he can run against a troop of enemies and has the ability to leap over a wall. God has made David a great warrior and an awesome king. Note the emphasis. The little word, “by” is crucial. Unlike our modern leaders, David won’t attribute any of his greatness to himself. All of it is from, by, and with the enabling grace and power of the LORD his God. So it must be with you. Review your life. How has God made you what you are? To whom belongs the credit for your advantages? What have you done well? To who belongs the praise?

2. God’s Gentleness in Making David (and you) Great

2 Samuel 22:32-46

In verses 32-40, David continues to exalt the LORD, his God, for the extraordinary blessings David has enjoyed at his hand. As David looks back over he course of his career, he sees evidence after evidence that it is God who has made him great. In verse 36, we read, “…your gentleness has made me great”. This clause might better be translated, “you have bowed down and made me great.” If that’s right, this verse stands at the center of verses 32-40. Throughout this section we again hear echoes of the conquest under Joshua. God made his covenant with David and David is here recording God’s faithfulness in keeping that covenant. God made a covenant with Israel at Mt. Sinai and in the conquest he kept that covenant for his people.

God has made his covenant with you. You are the people he has redeemed and won by the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus. He has come down and has made you great. Do you not see it? Maybe not for now. But you will judge angels. C.S. Lewis reminds you in The Weight of Glory,

““It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare. All day long we are, in some degree helping each other to one or the other of these destinations. It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities, it is with the awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all of our dealings with one another, all friendships, all loves, all play, all politics. There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations - these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit - immortal horrors or everlasting splendors.””

By God’s great grace you are destined to be one of those everlasting splendors. If I could see you as you will be on that day, I, with Lewis, would be seriously tempted to fall down and worship you. You are made great now. That will be manifested then. Already, you are exalted with Christ at the right hand of God, raised up and seated with Christ at his right hand. You may be despised or ridiculed now, but David’s description of what God did for him is small compared to the work God is doing in you and for you by his Spirit. In your battles, whether physical or spiritual, God equips and arms you, making you more than conquerors through His power. Do not be afraid. The Father has equipped you with strength for the battle and by his power he is, in Christ, making all your enemies fall before you. Clothed in this greatness, you triumph by his great power.

3. God's Praiseworthy Greatness

2 Samuel 22:47-51

Starting in verse 47, David responds to his record of the way God’s glorious power and might have made David great. He breaks into an exuberant doxology. As with David, a proper reflection on the extraordinary grace, power, and wisdom with which our God has worked in and through you must precipitate in mighty praise for the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. “The LORD lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be my God, the rocke of my salvation”.

Your Lord Jesus Christ is the great fulfillment of this psalm. The Father has kept his covenant promises to him. And since you are united to Christ, by faith, you are made mighty in him. All this is true of right now. But, as we’ve read in our study in the books of Samuel, David’s path to greatness led him to wait seven years in the dessert, while constantly fleeing from Saul. He didn’t seem great out there in the desert. Likewise, our Lord Jesus’ path to glory and conquest led through the valley of death. The triumphal entry, which we commemorate this morning did not lead straight to Christ’s glory at the Father’s right hand. To the human eye, the events we celebrate at Holy Week seem more a failure than a great triumph. But as with David, as with Israel, and as with Christ, the shadow of death is always followed by the sunrise of glory. It shall be so with you.

Conclusion - True greatness and success are derived not from personal achievements but from a relationship of utter dependance upon the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. The path the Father directs you to walk on toward the greatness he has promised you will often surprise. Your path may not look like a straight line. However, recognizing God's power at work in and through you will enable you to overcome whatever challenges you may face. Your path to the conquest of your enemies may be circuitous but it will lead to victory. By God’s great power he will fulfill your destiny. He will stoop down and make you great. Please stand as we give thanks.