A Legacy for the Next Generation

01/02/2022

Sermon Outline

Text: 1 Chronicles 28-29

Focus: A Legacy for the Next Generation

Introduction

One of the major questions that a careful modern reader of the historical books of the OT can ask is: why did the author of Chronicles repeat, omit, and add contents of 2 Samuel and Kings? Why did God lead the authors of Samuel-kings and Chronicles to write what they wrote, and for what purpose? Who are the original readers of these books? In order to make it easy to understand and apply the message of today, I will give a detailed introduction of Chronicles and then make survey of some verses that we shall examine and apply to our context from 1 Chronicles 28-29.

Before I get into the detailed introduction, I want to invite you to know that 1&2 Samuel was written to exiles telling how Kingship in Israel was instituted not without a false start and some bumps in the road. Two kings had experienced personal tragedy, seeds of destruction have been sown, and the royal ideal remain unfulfilled. But these books keep alive the royal ideal expressed in the Davidic Covenant “of an everlasting dynasty.”

1&2 Kings trace Israel’s history from the accession of Solomon to the exile, covering a time span of over four hundred years. The story is mainly a tragic one, as Israel violated the demands of the covenant with the LORD and experienced the consequences of disobedience. The bad and the ugly of some key side of history is that Solomon planted the seed of idolatry and forfeited most of the kingdom, seemingly jeopardizing God’s covenant with David. The kingdom Divided, with David’s dynasty ruling only Judah and Benjamin.

In the North Jeroboam 1 inaugurated an idolatrous cult that rivaled Jerusalem temple worship, and Ahab made Baal worship a state sanction religion. When God confronted this evil through his prophets, the kings of Northern kingdom persecuted them. God finally punished the rejection of his authority by sending the northern kingdom into exile.

In Judah, idolatry also threatened the nation’s security, but two kings in particular, Hezekiah and Josiah, promoted spiritual revivals that enabled Judah to outlive the northern kingdom. But in the end Judah also went to exile. However, there is a silver lining in the story, for God’s promise to the Davidic dynasty never died and continued to foster the hope for a revival of the nation’s fortune. It was while they were in exile when historical books of Samuels and Kings were written to help them understand why they were in exile- All this took place because the Israelites had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them up out of Egypt from under the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. 2 Kings 17:7a.

The key to understanding the message of 1&2 Chronicles and applying it to our Church today is understanding the primary theme as was intended for the original readers. Chronicles offers a history that overlaps with and complements the account offered in Samuel-Kings. However, there are significant differences in scope and purpose. Chronicles focuses on the Davidic dynasty and consequently the kingdom of Judah. Overall, its historical portrait is more optimistic than what we find in Samuels and king, which highlights the nation’s moral descent and political decline. Why? Because Chronicles was written for a different original readers-the post-exilic community. Chronicles through its more IDEALIZED presentation of the PAST, is much more optimistic as it holds the key figures of the past as PARADIGMS of the IDEAL LEADER TO COME-Messiah. At the time of the original readers of Chronicles, the post-exilic community readers had come back, had rebuilt the temple through leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah, but they had no yet a Davidic Dynasty King on the throne. They were struggling with questions like: The temple rebuilt but…Is God still interested in us? Are the covenants still in effect? Are we still the people of God? Where is the son of David? How do we relate to God now? How do we experience the security and blessing of God? There are many circumstances, and instances when we struggle with the like questions.

The IDEALIZED Messiah is to be realized 500 years after exile in the Person, life, and work of Jesus Christ who yet is to change their messianic expectation. From the chronicler perspective let’s briefly examine some selected verses from 1 Chronicles 28-29. We will examine how David left a legacy to Solomon and attempt to apply the idealized message of post-exilic community to our Christian church context today.

Outline

Leave a spiritual legacy for the next generation (1 Chr. 28:9-10)

In these verses David appeals to his son Solomon to serve God with his whole heart and a willing mind and charge him to build the temple.

9“And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the Lord searches every heart and understands every desire and every thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. 10 Consider now, for the Lord has chosen you to build a house as the sanctuary. Be strong and do the work.” (28:9-10).

This parallels 1 Kings 2:2-4

2 “I am about to go the way of all the earth,” he said. “So be strong, act like a man, 3 and observe what the Lord your God requires: Walk in obedience to him, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and regulations, as written in the Law of Moses. Do this so that you may prosper in all you do and wherever you go 4 and that the Lord may keep his promise to me: ‘If your descendants watch how they live, and if they walk faithfully before me with all their heart and soul, you will never fail to have a successor on the throne of Israel.’

One of the way we can leave a spiritual legacy is to live a spiritual life, so that we can be able to pass it to the next generation of spiritual leaders by appealing to them and charging them to live that way and continue with serving God faithfully.

Leave a missional legacy for the next generation (1 Chr. 28:11-21)

If we look back at chapter 28:2-8, we can read and understand David left plans for Solomon to build the temple.  It was in his heart but not in God’s plan for him to do -verse 1-2-the structure of the temple in 17:1-4 is identified as “a place of rest for the ark.”

28:4 David’s statement that God “chose me from my whole family to be king over Israel forever” refers to his “family” or dynasty”-actually through which a Messiah is to come in future (Christ) according to God’s plan.

Verse 28:5 “Of all my sons—and the Lord has given me many—he has chosen my son Solomon to sit on the throne of the kingdom of the LORD over Israel.” -is deeper than this-it is eschatological Kingdom of God.

David is passing on an everlasting, ideal spiritual legacy that will be realized fully with the coming of Jesus.

This is the Edenic vision of God’s kingdom over the earth, which is the primary mission of the Church in Matthew 28, Acts and the New Testament letters that we read and teach today. This everlasting is “already and not yet.”

The theological concept of “already but not yet” holds that believers are actively taking part in the kingdom of God, although the kingdom will not reach its full expression until sometime in the future. We are “already” in the kingdom, but we do “not yet” see it in its glory.

Are we passing on the mission that God has for us and the next generation? A mission to share the good news, a mission to own their faith, a mission to be in and serve the “already and not yet” Kingdom of God?

Just as David passed on plans for the temple to Solomon - we have plans for our mission in the word of God - is it guiding us and informing our children’s future?

Leave a material legacy for the next generation (1 Chr. 29:1-9)

David (and the rest of Israel) - provided Solomon with the resources needed to fulfill his mission

(i). 29:1-3. David has expressed concern before about Solomon’s inexperience and about his own need to compensate for this by preparing materials for the Temple (v.2; 22:5, 14). David next contributed his personal treasure.

(ii). 29:4 Israel’s finest gold was imported from “Ophir” (cf 2 Chr. 8:18) -110 tons of gold and 260 tones of silver.

(iii). 29:5-7. The king appeal to each giver to consecrate himself, placing the act of giving on the same level of devotion as “ordination to the priesthood.” A theological term that Paul and NT teaching borrow to apply to the church, the royal priesthood of believers.

In much the same way - we should look at how we are stewarding our material resources and equipping the next generation to use it wisely, we can do that as an act of consecrating our lives, in an act of devotion in giving.

Conclusion

In conclusion, 29:9, 17, and 22 clearly explains how God is always ready to restore his people Israel, and the church today to the joy of his saving presence (1 Chr. 29:9, 17, 22). Verse 9 -A “willing response” to the needs of the LORD’s worship produced a great rejoicing on the part of both the King and the people; and still today, God loves cheerful givers (2 cor. 9:7). V. 10. David’s reaction to his people’s devotion was to praise the Lord (vs. 10-20). Verse 11, supplies to the conclusion to the Lord’s prayer, “For thine is the kingdom.” (Matt. 6:13). Verses 12-19-the truth that “everything” we have “comes from” God is the foundation for the doctrine of stewardship. (See Ps 24:1 and Luke 17:10). As much as Chronicles idealistic perspective and optimism was encouraging and giving hope the post-exilic readers, in the same way, chronicles is very relevant to the church at the time like this that the world and liberalism forces are bringing down the church. There is still hope, and the “already and not yet” Kingdom of God continues. Why should we not respond the “great salvation that God has offered as we wait for the second coming of Christ? God is always ready to restore his people, the church to the joy of his saving presence (1 Chr. 29:9, 17, 22)