After the king was settled in his palace and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent.”
Nathan replied to the king, “Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the Lord is with you.”
But that night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying:
“Go and tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord says: Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in? I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day. I have been moving from place to place with a tent as my dwelling. Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their rulers whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?”’
“Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men on earth. And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also give you rest from all your enemies.
“‘The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you: When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with a rod wielded by men, with floggings inflicted by human hands. But my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.’”
Nathan reported to David all the words of this entire revelation.
Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and he said:
“Who am I, Sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? And as if this were not enough in your sight, Sovereign Lord, you have also spoken about the future of the house of your servant—and this decree, Sovereign Lord, is for a mere human!
“What more can David say to you? For you know your servant, Sovereign Lord. For the sake of your word and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made it known to your servant.
“How great you are, Sovereign Lord! There is no one like you, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears. And who is like your people Israel—the one nation on earth that God went out to redeem as a people for himself, and to make a name for himself, and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving out nations and their gods from before your people, whom you redeemed from Egypt? You have established your people Israel as your very own forever, and you, Lord, have become their God.
“And now, Lord God, keep forever the promise you have made concerning your servant and his house. Do as you promised, so that your name will be great forever. Then people will say, ‘The Lord Almighty is God over Israel!’ And the house of your servant David will be established in your sight.
“Lord Almighty, God of Israel, you have revealed this to your servant, saying, ‘I will build a house for you.’ So your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to you. Sovereign Lord, you are God! Your covenant is trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant. Now be pleased to bless the house of your servant, that it may continue forever in your sight; for you, Sovereign Lord, have spoken, and with your blessing the house of your servant will be blessed forever.” (2 Samuel 7:1-29 NIV)
Happy Father’s Day! Dads like to make plans. To fix things. Would you agree? Two weeks ago, Dave Francis and I were flying back from our District Convention in Austin. On our way to the airport, we got a message: Our first flight was delayed, and we would miss our connecting flight. But that’s okay. We had a plan! We raced to the airport and got there in time to get on an earlier flight. But we were put on standby and didn’t make it on. That’s okay. We still had a plan. We got in line to talk to an agent. Actually, we stood in five lines and never got to talk to anybody. All while our flight got delayed two more times… It wasn’t okay. None of our plans worked. Finally, we got on our delayed flight, dejected, ready to be stuck in Dallas. We weren’t going to make it home. Except, somehow, the flight landed on time, we made our connecting flight, and we got home right when we were supposed to. All our plans failed, but God worked it all out.
Isn’t that how life goes? Some of us right now are stuck and can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. You’re right in the middle of Plan B or Plan C or Plan W. I don’t mean that things always work out great in the end. But isn’t it true that when you look back over your life, you can see God guiding everything? There’s a verse in Proverbs that says, “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps” (Proverbs 16:9). Here we were at the airport frantically trying to come up with a plan, while God already had it all worked out. “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps.” We can trust in God.
King David had a plan. Our sermons this summer focus on the life of King David. Last week, we heard how God chose David to be king of Israel. We learned something very important: “People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the ________ [heart]” (1 Samuel 16:7). Today, we’re skipping ahead in David’s life. In the meantime, David killed the giant Goliath. He spent years and years fleeing from King Saul, who was trying to kill him. It didn’t go according to David’s plan! He finally became king. “The LORD had given him rest from all his enemies.”
So King David had a new plan. He said, “I’m going to build God a house.” He wanted to build a temple. Isn’t that a great plan? Not long ago, we had the same plan here at Christ the King: Build a new church building for God. Experts will say that if you want your plans to succeed, you need to tell them to other people. So David told God’s prophet Nathan: “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent.” And Nathan said, “Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the LORD is with you.” In other words, “A temple? Great! Go for it!”
Except, that night, God talked with Nathan. Nathan had assumed that God wanted David to build him a temple. Is it good to assume we know what God wants? No! Can you imagine how their conversation went? “Say, Nathan? Did you tell David it was a good idea to build me a temple?” “Yes, God, I did! Isn’t that great?” “Nathan, did I say that I wanted David to build me a temple?” “Well, no. But you could sure use one, right God?” “No, Nathan. So go back to David and say…”
God’s message to David was completely unexpected. He said: “Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in? I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought the Israelites up out of Egypt to this day.” For 500 years, God had lived in a tent. Do you know what tent? It was called the Tabernacle. The Israelites worshipped and offered sacrifices to God at that tent. Have you ever thought this through? For 500 years, God’s house was a tent. But God didn’t complain. He doesn’t live in buildings made by people. His goal is to live in the hearts of his people by faith.
So he said to David: “The LORD himself will establish a house for you: When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom…. Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.” See what I mean by unexpected? David said, “God, I’m going to do something great for you! I’m going to build you a house.” But the LORD said, “No, David. I’m going to do something great for you. I’m going to establish your house.”
There’s a word for this: Grace! God’s undeserved love for us. Here God’s grace is so clear: “David, don’t worry about building me a house. Look at the house I’m going to build for you! I’ll raise up a son to rule after you. I’ll establish his kingdom. He’ll build the temple for me.” Do you remember who that was? Solomon! “And David, it’s not going to stop with him. I’m going to make it so that your kingdom lasts forever. All by grace. You’re not going to build a house for me. I’m going to build a house for you! Your life is all about what I’m going to do for you!”
Do you believe that? Is your life all about what God has done for you? Or is your life dedicated to building a house for yourself? To building a name for yourself? Dads, we so easily get messed up, don’t we? Look around at our world, and you’ll see men building their kingdoms. Usually at the expense of women. Often at the expense of children. Always at the expense of God. That’s a bad plan. It can look innocent. Fathers work hard. Fathers push their kids to succeed. But do you lead your family to Jesus? If not, that’s bad plan. Can you see that? King David was a strong man, but he needed God to tell him this: “Your life is all about what I’m going to do for you!”
Our world needs more Christian men who trust in God’s Word. There are plenty of men who trust in themselves. We need more Christian men who lead their families to the cross of Jesus. There are plenty of men who lead their families away from God. We need more Christian men who live for God’s glory. There are plenty of men who seek glory for themselves. We need more Christian men who say with Joshua, “As for me and my household, we will serve the LORD” (Joshua 24:15). We need more Christian men who understand that “Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain” (Psalm 127:1). This was Nathan’s message to David: “You’re not going to build a house for God. The LORD is going to establish a house for you!”
I love David’s answer. Remember what unique phrase the Bible used for David last week? “A man after God’s own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14). Look at David’s reply: “Who am I, Sovereign LORD, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?” He understood God’s grace! David didn’t say, “It’s about time you’re noticing me, God!” Not, “Finally, all my hard work is paying off!” No. David said, “Who am I? What is my family?” God’s grace is so undeserved.
In fact, David said, “What more can David say to you? For you know your servant, Sovereign LORD. For the sake of your word and according to your will, you have done this great thing.” David was speechless in the face of God’s blessings. When Dave and I actually made it on that flight to come home, we sat for a few minutes without saying anything. I was thinking, “How did this work out? I don’t understand how this happened!” That’s our God! What more can we say?
So David just looked up to heaven and said, “All gods are the same. There are lots of different paths to the same god.” No! What a lie in our society today. He said, “How great you are, Sovereign LORD! There is no one like you, and there is no God but you.” Let those words sink into your heart! Did every God create the world? No. Did every God rescue his people from Egypt with the Ten Plagues? No. Did every God promise a Savior from sin? No. Did every God die on the cross for us? No. Does every God promise eternal life, not by what we do, but by his grace? No! David understood: “There is no one like you, and there is no God but you.”
That changed David’s plans. That changed David’s prayer. Instead of “God, look at what I’m doing for you!” He said, “LORD God, keep forever the promise you have made concerning your servant and his house. Do as you promised, so that your name will be great forever.” Can you see the change? “God, please keep your word to me and my family. Your promise to never leave us. Your promise to be with us when the waters rise and when the fires burn. Your promise to not hold our sins against us, but to forgive us. Your promise to prepare a place for us in heaven. Please keep your word to us!” It is the LORD who establishes the house. Can you see that?
But there’s just one problem. It doesn’t seem like God kept his promise. Sure, Solomon was born and built the temple in Jerusalem. But is there still a descendant of David ruling as king? Yes! There is a descendant of David ruling a great kingdom up to this very day. Do you know whom it is? Jesus. As the people praised Jesus on Palm Sunday, do you remember what they shouted? “Hosanna to the Son of David” (Matthew 21:9). Jesus is the Son of David who came to die on the cross for our sins, to rise from the dead to give us eternal life, and to reign, just like David did, only over everything forever. That’s how David’s kingdom endures forever: Through Jesus.
That’s why it’s okay when our plans don’t work out. King Jesus is reigning! His plans are better. You can trust him! That’s why it’s okay when God says “No” to our dreams. King Jesus is still reigning! His plans are better. How often in our lives don’t we say to God, “God, I’m going to do this for you!” And King Jesus, with a smile, says, “Thanks, but no thanks. Instead, I’m going to do this for you! Something you can’t imagine right now.” The LORD is so gracious to us. He establishes our homes and blesses us through Jesus far beyond anything we possibly deserve.
Does that change your plans? I’m not a perfect dad, but can I share what I pray for my family? “Dear Jesus, don’t let us ever fall away from you. Even as the world turns away from you, in your grace, don’t let us ever turn away from you. Bless our children’s faith in you. May they always believe in you, no matter what. Bless our children’s future spouses. May they marry Christians who encourage them in their faith. Don’t give us wealth if it’s going to turn our hearts away from you. Don’t give us success if it’s going to make us think we don’t need you. Do whatever you need to keep us close to you and to prepare us for what’s to come. In Jesus’ name.”
That’s what David prayed: “Now be pleased to bless the house of your servant, that it may continue forever in your sight.” “God, bless our house!” Dad, lead your family to Jesus. I asked a father this week how his family was doing. He said, “Every year, when school gets out, my wife and kids and I spend a whole week just praying together, again and again each day, that God would bless us.” I asked, “You’ve been doing that all week?” He said, “Of course.” Of course. That’s what a father does. Because the LORD establishes the house. May God bless our houses.
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