A Word From Grace: Monday Edition - The Future of the Kingdom
Last week, we looked at 2 Samuel 7 and God’s forbidding of David to build him a temple. What I didn’t mention is that God told David that one of his sons, who would become king after him, would be the one to build a temple for Yahweh. Skipping to the next chapter of the story of David, there’s an interesting detail that’s easy to miss. 2 Samuel 8 records several of David’s military victories. In each of these accounts we’re told who was defeated, how many men were killed or capture, and what were the spoils of victory. After each victory, David gathered the gold, silver and precious stones belonging to his enemy and brought them back with him to Jerusalem.
All of this is pretty typical of Near-eastern military records, but an interesting detail arises when we consider the story of David as told by the books of 1 & 2 Chronicles. These books are simply a secondary record of the accounts of Israel’s history. In 1 Chronicles 22:3, 5 and 14, we’re told that David stockpiled these captured items for the future temple. Let’s think about this for moment. God tells David that he won’t be the one to build the temple and David’s response is to stockpile supplies for that temple even though he’ll never see it. This reveals to us something significant about David’s heart. David is willing to intentionally invest in aspects of God’s kingdom he’ll never see come to fruition.
One of the great temptations for Christians is to build churches and ministries with only themselves or their immediate contemporaries in mind. Often, this leads to style (the style they like in the moment) over substance (which transcends style). Or, in the case of families, we can focus solely on providing for the immediate needs of our children without thinking much of the future of their faith. David could have used the plunder to build himself a bigger palace or to make Jerusalem a city of extravagant splendor in the moment, but instead, he decided to invest in the future of God’s kingdom on earth. He gave up his own glory for the sake of God’s glory, knowing he would never see it come to pass.
Application – Consider how you’re investing in the future of God’s kingdom. All of us have a responsibility to pass on the kingdom by “stockpiling” the “spoils” of our faith victories (and the lessons from our defeats) for the sake of those coming after us. Today, many young people are leaving churches and ministries that were built without them in mind, having had no intentional investment in their lives. We have the opportunity to write a different narrative, but it requires intentional relational investment. Who can you invest in (for many this starts with your own household)? What can you pass on? How can you build into the future generations of the citizenry of the Kingdom?
With you in Christ,
Pastor Sean
All of this is pretty typical of Near-eastern military records, but an interesting detail arises when we consider the story of David as told by the books of 1 & 2 Chronicles. These books are simply a secondary record of the accounts of Israel’s history. In 1 Chronicles 22:3, 5 and 14, we’re told that David stockpiled these captured items for the future temple. Let’s think about this for moment. God tells David that he won’t be the one to build the temple and David’s response is to stockpile supplies for that temple even though he’ll never see it. This reveals to us something significant about David’s heart. David is willing to intentionally invest in aspects of God’s kingdom he’ll never see come to fruition.
One of the great temptations for Christians is to build churches and ministries with only themselves or their immediate contemporaries in mind. Often, this leads to style (the style they like in the moment) over substance (which transcends style). Or, in the case of families, we can focus solely on providing for the immediate needs of our children without thinking much of the future of their faith. David could have used the plunder to build himself a bigger palace or to make Jerusalem a city of extravagant splendor in the moment, but instead, he decided to invest in the future of God’s kingdom on earth. He gave up his own glory for the sake of God’s glory, knowing he would never see it come to pass.
Application – Consider how you’re investing in the future of God’s kingdom. All of us have a responsibility to pass on the kingdom by “stockpiling” the “spoils” of our faith victories (and the lessons from our defeats) for the sake of those coming after us. Today, many young people are leaving churches and ministries that were built without them in mind, having had no intentional investment in their lives. We have the opportunity to write a different narrative, but it requires intentional relational investment. Who can you invest in (for many this starts with your own household)? What can you pass on? How can you build into the future generations of the citizenry of the Kingdom?
With you in Christ,
Pastor Sean
Sean's Picks
Since I was a kid, my favorite songwriter has been Jon Foreman of the band Switchfoot. During this season of isolation, he’s been recording and sharing a song each day. Here are two of my favorites, with words that I think are appropriate to these challenging times.
Missions Spotlight:
The Walter Hoving Home
In our effort to continue to help those in need, we have moved the ladies from the NJ Home temporarily to our Garrison, NY location.
This has enabled us to welcome new ladies onto our NJ campus, while keeping everyone safe! Please join us in prayer for the ladies who will now enter our home, that God has protected them (and will continue to do so) and that they would find comfort and rest in His presence.
Click here for more information on The Hoving Home.
This has enabled us to welcome new ladies onto our NJ campus, while keeping everyone safe! Please join us in prayer for the ladies who will now enter our home, that God has protected them (and will continue to do so) and that they would find comfort and rest in His presence.
Click here for more information on The Hoving Home.
No Comments