Sermon Tone Analysis

Last Words:

Do you remember a time when you were on fire in your relationship with Jesus.

Maybe it was when you were younger, maybe college, or a time when God changed your life to a point that your greatest desire was to be with him and to talk with him.

Can you remember a time like this?

I remember as a new Christ follower I could not contain my passion.

I had this burning passion that could not be contained.

Then I think back to a couple of weeks ago, when I am just worn out.

And as I think about this moment in time, I just felt beat up and wore down like I was doing nothing right.

Then I had this though to myself: If this was my last season in life, if today was my last day would I be finishing strong.

-The bulk of people who failed to finish well in scripture failed in the last half of their life.

Howard Hendricks

The statistics show that most people in ministry do not finish their walks strong with Jesus.

They also show that most Christians do not finish their walks with God strong.

This quote:

The bulk of people who failed to finish well in scripture failed in the last half of their life.

It just kept coming back to me.

It is so easy to start strong with God, but how does one finish strong with God.

David wanted to finish strong.

If this was your last season of life,

Would you be finishing strong!

Had did biblical figures finish:

Running: Abraham, Joshua, Daniel, Paul, Peter;

Walking (fell short of God’s intention, ramifications of disobedience plagued them, even though they finished with God): David, Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah;

Limping (on a decline in the latter phases of their life): Gideon, Eli, Solomon;

Disqualified: Absalom, Ahab, Saul.

Summary: The real problem is obedience and character development, not skill.

If we look at David’s life as a whole he had some high highs and he had some low lows.

But at the end of the day at the end of his life he was the king of Israel and he has some great insights that I think we all need to hear today so that we can finish our race strong.

A pastor did a study of 95 year olds and asked them if they could do it over what they would do differently.

Here is what these old timers said:

Reflect More-David wrote a lot of the Psalms

Risk More -David Risked-We see him early in his life risking his life to kill a giant that the king was scared to fight.

Do mire that will live on after your life.

These old timers were giving advice on how to live life more to the full.

Just like this pastor had some components to live a full life David wants to give us some components so that we can finish strong.

3 Components that will allow us to finish strong!

If we want to finish our walk strong:

The 1st Component is we must embrace our lane (1-6)

Who is bigger than David.

I mean if you were wanting to be an NBA bball player could you picture hearing Michael Jordan’s last words.

There is a huge crowd here.

The King is about to give his last state of the Union address in front of the country.

The leaders were here to hear the last words from their king:

28:1 royal administration in the ancient Near East.

The categories listed in this verse include representatives of each tribe (a vestige of the twelve-tribe system that preceded the monarchy), all officers of the military (both king’s bodyguard and national army), royal stewards, administration of the palace (scribes, eunuchs, advisers, “cabinet” officials) and David’s special forces (an elite group of operatives that did not necessarily function within an organized military structure).

No reference is made to priests or Levites, but perhaps their presence is assumed (v.

21).

a. Embracing our lane means we can’t do everything

I want to do it all sometimes, I mean who has as many kids as I do but David had to realize he needed to play the part that God had for him.

David had to come to the point where he realized I have a plan but I am willing to lay down my plan for God’s plan.

Do you remember what Jesus said:

Why?

There was a reason David could not build the house.

We all have baggage and our baggage may mean there are certain things we cannot do, but it does not mean we cannot walk with God and finish strong with God.

Summary: To finish well means we have to deal with those weaknesses and sins that tangle us up by being authentic and confessional (repentant) about them.

Are you staying in your lane?

Are you being authentic with God?

Time this kid came and worked out with my brothers team.

b.

Embracing our lane sees the possibilities.

A two year old who has a fence blocking them in sees the fence as restriction and not as protection.

David saw this fence in his life not as a restriction but as a freedom to serve God.

David was chosen

David was free of comparisons

What God called David to do

What God called Solomon to do

They were on the same team, but had different roles.

We are free to be who God created us to be.

If we want to finish our walk strong:

2. The second component is we must have a vision bigger than ourself (7-8)

a.

An Eternal Vision lives for eternity.

Why did David not throw a pity party when God told him it is not you because David believed that God’s plan was bigger than his plan.

David wanted to build a building

God wanted to build an eternal kingdom.

David said I will give up my small vision for God’s greater vision.

David got to be a part of something bigger

GOSPEL MOMENT-David Covenant

DAVIDIC COVENANT DEFINITION

Their hope must not be in David, whom they see but whose strength and wisdom are limited, but in God, whom they do not see but whose presence, power, goodness, and wisdom are forever.

It was God who chose the house of David, God who determined who would build the temple, God who gave the commandments in which are life and peace, and God who would remain when David was gone.

Israel must not despair the loss of their great king but realize that their only hope is in God.

Are you living for eternal things?

An eternal vision desires to obey (ALL)

Heather and I had a great vision for our life when we got married:

To know God and make him known!

Have money is not a bad things in itself.

I have peers who have made a lot of money-when things have gotten tight, it has been easy to think what am I doing?

This last week we had a coming to Jesus meeting with my family because even though this is and has been our vision it is not always easy to live out.

But God reminded me that this is the most important thing for me, for my family for our church is that this is who we are we are a church that knows God and makes him known.

In those hard times it is easy to want to live for the temporal but God was reminding me to live for the eternal.

This part of the address is to the leaders of Israel and Israel itself.

Here is the reality church: If we cannot get it right we cannot expect the world to get it right.

If we do not love God how are we going to expect the world to get it.

David was about to be gone: Their hope had to be in the only eternal being, Jesus Christ Himself.

Application:

This last week we had a coming to Jesus time with our kids.

We had to slow down and remember what our original vision as a family is: To Know God and make Him Known.

Is your life going to live beyond the grave?

If we want to finish our walk strong:

3. The last component is we must invest our lives in others (9-10).