The highlights will remain, the good ones. The bad ones will be washed away in Christ. But the highlights, you know, hey, you did this right, and you did that right, and you know, well done, good and faithful servant. When you did it to the least of these, you did it to me. Yeah, but what about all the other creepy things he did, driving to get to the place where he did these nice things?
Oh, that—that's a autobiography, is it not? It's okay for me to cut people off on the road on the way to church, long as when I get to church I serve. That would be—that's upside down. This is Cross Reference Radio with our pastor and teacher Rick Gaston. Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville.
Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the Book of Second Samuel. Please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about Cross Reference Radio. Specifically, how you can get a free copy of this teaching.
Now, here is Pastor Rick as he continues his message called "God's Gentle Overruling" in Second Samuel chapter seven. David said to Solomon, my son, as for me, it was in my mind to build a house to the name of Yahweh my God, but. The word of Yahweh came to me. He doesn't say by Nathan, but that's how it came. Nor does he say Nathan got it wrong, saying, "You have shed much blood and have made great wars.
You shall not build a house for my name because you have shed much blood on the earth in my sight." So God is saying to David, "I don't want such a warrior." Associated with my house, David. I understand these things. I blessed you through those battles. But man is created in the image of God, and it is not God's first intention that man should kill each other. It is what has come out of the curse, and everything that we have to trek through is God saying, "I will have free will, love.
I will have it, no matter what the cost." And it is doable. And then we say in times, well, what about this and what about that? And God says, "What about it? You're going to love me anyway. If I don't answer your questions, I find God doesn't answer a lot of my questions in prayer.
In fact, most of them are not answered. When I come to the study of the Word, I get to places I don't understand this, and none of the commentators are really doing it for me. God speaks to me, but other things out there, like I just I don't get the answers. How come, God? That's the arrangement.
I submit to it, to it, and so do you. I hope.
So, in this sense, because of the violence, God distanced Himself from David. Is a sermon built into it? He also says in one Chronicles twenty eight, David again speaking, but God said to me, "You shall not build a house for my name, because you have been a man of war and have shed blood." This is the Old Testament now, and the New Testament it changes because Paul the apostle built many houses for the Lord, and Paul the apostle was responsible also for the death of Stephen, at least in his heart. Verse six: For I have not dwelt in a house since the time that I brought the children of Israel up from Egypt, even to this day, but have moved about in a tent. And in a tabernacle, temporary dwelling places.
I'm sure the original one was just worn out and beat up. All the things that went on in Israel from the times of judges to the Philistine attack, Shiloh was probably, you know, ransacked. The Ark at one point was lost to the Philistines.
So God says, "Well, wherever the Ark was, whatever tent you put up for me, I was content with that. I made no protest." David, it was you. It was you that got so excited about the ark that you wanted to do more, and again, God is not telling him, "No, I don't want that." He is just saying, "I was comfortable as it was. I'm going to bless this, and I'm going to bless you, just not the way you think it's coming." It actually, David gets a far greater blessing. From God than being approved with this site plan, it's a far greater blessing because he could have just, sure, build me the house, but he doesn't do that, as I've already said several times.
And so, tenses, of course, a very big thing in scripture. You could preach a whole sermon on just tenses.
Some of them are past tenses, some of them are present tenses. Anyway. Of course, a tent, a tabernacle—they're portable dwelling places. You can pack them up and move on. And they are in the midst of people.
The people this way, where the people could go, the tent could go. That's why later God will say the people will face Jerusalem and pray because the tent is no longer mobile. Abraham, as with Yahweh, was content to dwell in a tent, a mobile dwelling, and yet. What did Abraham take with him wherever his tent went? The altar would be built, and then he'd leave the altar behind, pack up his tent, and go to the next place and do it all over again, leaving a witness wherever he went, so that this to this day, as you read through Genesis, even if you are reading casually, which I don't know how to read casually through the Bible, I can read War and Peace in an hour.
But I can't get past a chapter in the Bible. Really, I can't. But it seems that way. Just boy, this is easy. Look at that.
But he comes to the Bible. Oh boy, I got to write this down. I wonder what that means. Where's that located? And he just you can't read.
But if you read Genesis, you get to Abraham. You keep seeing boy making another altar, and he's leaving it behind. And the pagans did not understand that because they worshipped their altars and they felt they should be kept. Anyway, verse seven. Wherever I have moved about with all the children of Israel, have I ever spoken a word to anyone from the tribes of Israel whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, Why have you not built a house of cedar?
Built me a house of cedar. Again, Nathan's getting this. He still hasn't gone to David. Nathan is getting the message to take to David. And it's remarkable that he can remember all of this and even get it into writing.
One Kings chapter eight verse twenty seven. But will God indeed dwell on earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain you. How much less this temple which I have built? Those were the words of Solomon when the temple finally went up.
Solomon knew this. This is just a representation. God is. Present, he is not. It's not pantheism.
He's not, you know, in this wood, but he's here in the room. And whatever happens to this wood, he'll know about it. If he can number the hairs on your head, which I pride myself in making it easier for him.
Some of you are abusive in this area, and just want to remind you of that. Your smug hairdos, but God sees everything, of course. And if He can number the hair, and that's important.
Sometimes you lose sight of that. Does God even care? Is even I mean, is He big enough? If He's not answering my prayers, is He sovereign enough to deal? And God said, "Look, I know the hairs in your head.
You're more valuable to Me than than sheep. Don't worry about this. You just trust Me by faith." What does He tell the church at Smyrna? They're going to throw you in jail. They're going to kill some of you.
But hold true. That's what he comforts them, and it seems like they said, "Hmm, okay." I personally believe the gift of martyrdom is a gift, and I believe that when it comes time to die for Christ, He gives that martyr everything they need to die the right way.
Now they're not obligated; they can opt out, or they can embrace it, and. We've seen this through history, anyway. Shepherd here in verse seven, of course, metaphor for the leaders; they were to be like shepherd with sheep, have the shepherd's heart, which in Jeremiah's age was absent in leadership. Jeremiah had it. Verse eight.
Now, therefore, thus shall you say to my servant David: Thus says Yahweh of hosts: I took you from the sheepfold, from following the sheep. To be ruler over my people, over Israel, so no one could claim I made David great. Just like with Abraham, God made David what David was, and that's going to factor into what He blesses him with. Verse nine, and I have been with you wherever you have gone, and have cut off all your enemies from before you, and have made you a great name, like the name of the great men who are on the earth. Reputation.
God is always with His people. We know this. Just Matthew ten. But the very hairs of your head are numbered. Look at that.
That's why that was in my head. I had it in there to quote. And okay, you're not impressed with that, and I'm a little bothered that I forgot it was there.
So God took years to cut off these enemies, and there were more enemies to face. The Philistines and Saul turned out to be the easier enemies in His life. They were external enemies. It was that internal enemy that really caused David the problems in life and brought forth more enemies, external ones. And of course, I'm talking about his sin with Bathsheba and then his pride afterward, that got everybody into trouble.
But soon David would make, as I mentioned, new enemies, and the saga would continue. His reputation was legendary since the day he killed Goliath. But what I find remarkable is he continued to expand the legend, and not by you know. You know, stolen honor or anything like that. He actually had many exploits.
So it wasn't that God blessed him this one day. He did this great thing, and then that's the end of the story. One hit wonder from his battlefield conquest, his courageous acts of mercy.
Well, what was David so merciful?
Well, one was, well, of course, twice with Saul in the cave. One with Naabal when Abigail just you know a word in season and just told David think about this, and he responds to that, which is quite impressive because he had he was ready to kill. This a man who had already known how to kill, and then of course he united the kingdom, and he did it in a very blameless and honorable manner.
So yeah, his. He he was a legend even to the Philistines. They're singing songs about you. He's a legend until he he dies. And when I always thought the temple should be called David's temple, not Solomon's, because what did really Solomon do?
David really did all the heavy lifting. Verse ten. Moreover, I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them. That they may dwell in a place of their own and move no more, nor shall the sons of wickedness oppress them any more as previously.
Well, they're going to be about ten promises as mentioned. Not all of them will go with "I will," but there's several of those in the English, different Hebrew words, but it's the same. Point, God is saying, "I'm going to do this, and I'm going to do this, and I'm going to do this, all for you, David, all because this man was so taken by the presence of God." It is, in fact, this chapter is so profound in the Bible that Ethan, a great sage in Israel, a man of profound wisdom and a psalmist. He writes a psalm just about this covenant. Psalm eighty nine is all about this covenant.
I have some of it here. Psalm eighty nine, verse three: I have made a covenant with my chosen. I have sworn to my servant David, and and he just continues to say, "Your seed I will establish forever, and build up your throne to all generations." So the scope of this blessing that's coming, David. Imagine if God said to you something like this. Or even something like this to someone in your family, and so because of these honors bestowed on David, which are unique in history, Ethan later recognizes it for what it is and writes a song about it.
It's a long song too. I mean, it's like I don't know, sixty verses. It's fifty-two verses.
So he got a little carried away. But if he can recognize this, then we should. And it's not easy because we come from a different culture. We pick up Second Samuel seven and we read about all this, and we say, "Okay, I get the theology," but do we really get the spirit of it all? Of all that went into this, that God could not just find anybody to do this with.
He could not say to Saul, "I'll do this to you." He could not say to Jonathan. It took someone like David. For God to do this, and God says, "I know. I see David's fault. I have to.
I'll take those too. I think largely when we get to heaven, the highlights will remain—the good ones. The bad ones will be washed away in Christ. But the highlights, you know, hey, you did this right, and you did that right, and you know, well done, good and faithful servant. When you did it to the least of these, you did it to me.
Yeah, but what about all the other creepy things he did, driving to get to the place where he did these nice things?" Oh, that—that's a autobiography, is it not? It's okay for me to cut people off on the road on the way to church, long as when I get to church I serve. That would be—that's upside down. But you get it. More interesting things about this tenth verse is that God says that you'll move no more, but the Jews have moved several times.
And of course, we've talked about they don't have a temple right now. They're back in the land. God has put them back. They have no place to dwell in peace, as it's promised here. There will be.
Nor shall the sons of wickedness oppress them any more, as previously.
So this verse is is not fulfilled in its entirety. It's had fragments fulfilled, but it is not fulfilled. Israel has no peace. You know when. The Jews.
You go to Israel and you go to a tourist site, and you'll see a busload of Jewish children there too. And the chaperones, who are parents of the children, just like we go on a school trip to the Smithsonian or something like that, your parents can go too, and they chaperone the kids.
Well, there the parents are carrying pistols. Because there's no peace, they used to carry rifles, and they should still carry rifles. Because a pistol can't beat a rifle, as a rule. Anyway, there's no peace there in Israel to this very day. They have no dwelling, no ark, no altar, no lampstand, no prophets, no priest, no Levites, and no tribes.
Hosea chapter three, verse four: For the children of Israel shall abide many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar, without ephod or teraphim. They're going to be broken down, and things won't remain the way they are. The visible struggle between the things given to them by God versus the idolatry that tries to creep in—they'll still be there, but they won't be visible like they were in the days. Of the prophets when the temple existed, and so, Lord, why are you bringing up you you know this move no more? Do you intend to move us again?
And yeah, there will be several of them.
So this verse remains to be fulfilled in its entirety. Verse seven, pardon me. Verse eleven. Since the time that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel and have caused you to rest from all your enemies, also Yahweh tells you that He will make you a house. This is a counter blessing.
God, I'm going to bless God, and God overrules and blesses David. It's not called a covenant here. Later in Second Samuel twenty-three, it is referred to as a covenant, and it's just a love covenant, really, because God is not really getting anything from this. He's already got David. David's descendants will not be like David.
Most of them will be just monsters and fools. You know, it's Christianity is not automatic. Just because your parents love the Lord is no guarantee you're going to love the Lord. Do you have guts enough to take your faith, or you just going to let the devil just you know stroke your flesh and then you'll be happy? We will find out, but you have no reason to fail because God will be with you if you want Him to be, and He is invincible.
He will make you a house that is a dynasty, a lasting kingdom. David, your name's not going to fade. When people bring up Saul, they're going to think something that is really not good. Why choose name their children after Saul?
Well, he's our first king. Yeah, but what kind of man was he? I mean, what if Jezebel was your first queen? Would you name your kids Jezebel?
So anyway, David is going to have a dynasty, and God will oversee it, and the highlights will remain. And all those things that were wicked highlights will be burned away. Verse twelve: When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. This was big with the Jews since the days of Abraham. Abraham did not get you know technically Abraham wasn't a Jew.
I like to say that he really was a Hebrew. But he wasn't, and the details he wasn't connected to Jacob. But anyway, it is something to think about. If somebody gets obnoxious with it, the blessings of what's going to happen to my children and my name—it was big with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and it was—it became big with David. Moses really didn't get caught up, and he only had two sons, as far as we know.
It wasn't something that was Moses was so into doing. What God told him with the nation, that that's that's what shine you know his highlight. David has this dynasty, a twofold prophecy here in verse twelve. First, Solomon will build the physical temple. Second, one greater than Solomon will carry on.
The worship of God to humanity. Listen, there is something big about the word Messiah, and there is something bigger about Christ. Messiah kind of locks it into the deliverer of the Jews, who will also bring light to the Gentiles. Christ says it's happened. He is not only the deliverer of the Jews; he's now deliverer of the Gentiles too.
So, in that sense, it is an expansion of the prophecy. And of course, the same meaning of the word. But if you were a Jew and you saw that, would you have the nerve to say he is the Christ? In other words, he's gone beyond Israel. He's not just Israel's deliverer.
And most of the Christian Jews you meet, you know, they take great pride in the Messianic Jews.
Well, really, you're just you're just a Christian. Let's not muddy the waters, but you ain't going to change the world on that one. From time to time, you'll meet one that has got it right, but most of the time, it's just the way it is. Anyway, back to this greater than Solomon, as I mentioned, Luke eleven, Jesus speaking. He says, "The queen of the south will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them." In other words, he's saying.
Put how you treat truth versus how others have treated truth, and you're going to be condemned. What is your problem? They got it right. How come you did not? Then he continues, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and indeed, a greater than Solomon is here.
So Jesus, of course, he just. Overtakes the verse, the promise of verse twelve. He's saying, "When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom." And that it happened with Solomon, but it in the greater fulfillment is in the Christ. And New Testament's all over this.
So is Isaiah nine seven, upon the throne of David, he shall sit upon the throne of David. And Isaiah came long after Solomon, a couple of hundred years after Solomon.
So of all the great men on the earth, God chose to associate His perpetual throne into the millennial reign of His the throne of His Son with this man David. We'll come to some more from the New Testament, and then at verse thirteen, He shall build a house for My name.
Solomon did that physically. Jesus spiritually, and I will establish a throne of His kingdom forever. That ain't true of Solomon.
Solomon is not the one reigning in the millennial reign. David's name comes up, of course. Christ does. House here refers to the temple in its context in First Kings six. Also, it is the throne of Messiah.
It's messianic perpetual rule because the Messiah is, of course, God, and it speaks about the throne. speaks of the right to rule. And finalized by a descendant of David in Christ. Romans chapter one verse three. Paul introducing his letter to the Romans, the Christians in Rome.
Incidentally, Rome in the days of Paul was a very violent place to live. It was high crime. It was a you know unless you could afford to live in a real nice neighborhood and hire bodyguards, which are usually Ex gladiators or military—you just didn't want to be out in the streets in Rome. Corruption was so heavy, but even the troops, the soldiers, and you know the police, the authorities would would mug you.
So this is old joke: of bad luck is having a police on a subway car with you at three in the morning, and he's moonlighting as a thief. If you've ever been on a subway at three in the morning, you know it's good to see a policeman. There's not many other people on there, but there, you know, it's good to see one. But when he's also a crook, you got problems. All right.
Anyway, Romans chapter one verse three concerning his son Jesus Christ, our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh. Nobody's got that distinction. David and the Lord are associated, not Solomon, not Hezekiah, not Josiah, King David. And Solomon's throne is not going to be established forever. That would make his, that would make David's throne subject to Solomon's throne, and that's not how it is.
Verse fourteen. And I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men.
Now, of course, that is Solomon he is referring to.
However, Christ was chastened for us; he took our sins upon us, and the blows of men were put upon him. He was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquity. Chastisement for our peace was laid upon him. Isaiah fifty three.
So there is that initial fulfillment. Then there is that climactic, profound fulfillment. And this is what we're getting here because the facts scream it out. There's no way to get away from connecting these dots to the old New Testament events in Christ Jesus. There's no way around it.
We can see it in the Old Testament fulfilled in Solomon, and then we see, wait a minute, this connects to Christ. And it's just theologically sound. This has been the latest edition of Cross Reference Radio. Pastor Rick Gaston is teaching through the Book of Second Samuel, which details the reign of David as king of Israel. There are so many life lessons to be learned during these years of David's life.
We're glad you've tuned in to hear more from God's Word. This radio ministry comes to you from Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville in Mechanicsville, Virginia. If you're interested in Accessing more messages, just like this one, you can listen online or download these messages at CrossReferenceRadio dot com. You can also subscribe to our podcast by going to your favorite podcast app. We can't wait for you to step into the next teaching that Pastor Rick has for us.
So come back next time for Cross Reference Radio.
