Preached by Pastor Bryan Clark
Sunday, February 28, 2021
The Promise part 3 (2Sa 7:18-28)
Feb 28, 2021 Intriguing quote in Shall We Dance (2004), (Richard Gere’s wife). Looked it up on IMDB, this quote was the first one listed. Had 4x as many likes as any other quote. Something here that resonates deeply:
“We need a witness to our lives. There’s a billion people on the planet… I mean, what does any one life really mean? But in a marriage, you’re promising to care about everything. The good things, the bad things, the terrible things, the mundane things… all of it, all of the time, every day. You’re saying ‘Your life will not go unnoticed because I will notice it. Your life will not go un-witnessed because I will be your witness’.”
We want our lives to matter, and we believe they will if they are noticed by someone. I wonder if this spiritual hunger is what fuels a lot of blogs, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tik-tok. We want someone to take notice, to care about us, to watch us. That would communicate, “You matter. Your life counts.” Need for someone to look at us, smile and a nod, ‘I see you. You exist. You are real to me in this world and we are glad you showed up.’
If you understand that human need, emotionally, you can connect with David here.
In the first half of the chapter, God has promised to care “about everything. The good things, the bad things, the terrible things, the mundane things.”
God says, “I will notice it.” How does David respond?
7:18 Then King David went in and sat before the LORD, and he said: “Who am I? Blown away that God would notice/give him attention.
7:20 “What more can David say to you? Speechless. David gropes for words to express his astonished praise. Flabbergasted. Dumbstruck. Why the spiritual goosebumps? For you know your servant, Sovereign Lord. You noticed me, you witnessed me. In the quote from the movie, this need is addressed in a covenant (the covenant of marriage).
As we work through 2Samuel story by story, we’ve come to the David covenant. “There are few passages in the entire Bible more important and exciting than 2 Samuel 7” (YKC 472). This chapter is quoted so many times in the OT & NT that I gave up counting them all. David himself is speechless for 3 reasons. Reason 1 (18-21), Reason 2 (22-24), Reason 3 (25-29)
Not just history, but destiny (18-21)
7:18 you have brought me this far. 19 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,
7:20 This is what leaves me speechless: makes me feel known. 21 Made it known [future] Now David is right on target. Go back through 7:5-16, starting with 9 and it is all future. Place to be planted. Home of their own. End to oppression. Rest from enemies.
A wedding is not just a declaration of present love, but a promise of future love. So long as we both shall live. Don’t just want someone who loves us today,
Careful, I don’t want you to think I dissing certain counseling approaches.
Recently, there has been a real emphasis on “knowing your story.” Good and right. Often what that means is exploring your past. For example: Attachment patterns in the early years of life. Were caregivers attuned to your emotional needs? What traumas have you experienced? That all can be helpful. The problem is when it stops there.
Is that your whole story? // The Bible says that your story (the most important parts of it) will extend on for eternity. That would be like defining a movie by the first 5 seconds. What makes me feel known (speechless) is you revealed about my future.
If your counseling/talk therapy focuses more on your past story than your future story, just realize that that is incomplete.
APP: “Helping people anticipate their future is my favorite counseling technique.” Destiny (not just history) determines identity. ROG209
2Co 4:17 Our light and momentary trouble are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. Strikingly insensitive. Not minimizing their past pain. He’s maximizing their future gain. Compared with their future, it is light.
1Co 2:8 What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared for those who love him—10 these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. Not just history, but destiny
Not just for David, but you (22-24)
You did this not only for me. But for all your people…your people (23). 7:24 You have established your people Israel as your very own forever, and you, Lord, have become their God. Extends language of covenant (your people, their God) way beyond himself. David recognizes that this is so much bigger than him. Inclusive.
“Bryan, Why should I care about what God has promised to King David 3,000 years ago? Of course God made promises to him. David was an exceptional guy. That’s why there are books in the Bible about him. There aren’t going to be any Bible books written about me.
Is 55:1 Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! … I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David. Not just for David, but you.
NLT I will give you all the mercies and unfailing love that I promised to David.
2Co 6:18 “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” [Quotes 7:14, 7:8] 7:1 Since we have these [same Davidic] promises, Talking about Good news of Jesus, put then quotes 2 Samuel 7.
Super important. Why do some services minister to some people, while they do nothing for others? Many reasons: Holy Spirit. Up too late the night before. Argument o pen way to church. Haven’t been in Scripture that week. Big reason: They don’t own it for themselves. Voice in our head: “That is nice for others. But I am not included.” Small print, footnote: “This is true for everyone but me.” When you hear the Good news preach, do you personalize it, attach your name to it!
Not just for David, but you personally. Not just history, but destiny
Not just good advice, but good news (25-29)
7:25 “And now, Lord God, keep forever the promise you have made concerning your servant and his house. Do as you promised…7:28 Your covenant is trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant.
David is focusing on what God has promised to do.
7:27 I will build a house for you. Quoting 7:11 God graciously insists that He will be the builder and the house will be David’s, not vice versa.
Easy to forget to read this chapter as if 1-3 didn’t exist. They ignore it. Treat it like random trivia. Give the editor come credit. David starts the chapter by saying, I want to do something for God. The rest of the chapter is an explanation of why God won’t let him!
Scholars tell us that it was common in the ANE for a king to build or restore a god’s temple and then receive a promise regarding his reign or victories.
Amazing: What kind of God do we see here? His first concern is not that his people provide a “place” for him; he wants to assure that he provides a “place” for his people. This is not first/foremost about what you can do for me, but what I do for you. Not just good advice, but good news (25-29)
I learned a lot from a conversation 4-5 mo ago. Il977 Young couple love Trinity church. Grieving about some good friends of theirs who have quit church. “You know, Bryan, we get it. We don’t blame them. We understand where they are. We were part of the same church. Every sermon was about what we need to do for Jesus. After years of that, it is exhausting. If that was our experience of church, we probably would have quit too. We knew Trinity was different, but we couldn’t but a finger on it. One day it hit us.” Not just good advice, but good news.
Creation care, giving blood, poverty relief, food pantry, criminal justice reform, immigration, sex trafficking, tutoring, ESL, foster care, education, sustainability, healthy foods, Adoption, religious liberty, domestic abuse, free speech, pregnancy clinics, malaria, suicide prevention, racism, voting, political activism, mask. Why? /// Bryan, you got to tell people what to do. That’s what people really need to hear.
No. There is nothing you need to hear more than the good news of Jesus Christ. Week after week after week. We try, in our humble/frail way to highlight the astonishing grace/astounding glory of what God does for us in Jesus Christ. Only that will change us—as it seeps into our souls,
Not just history, but destiny. Not just for David, but you personally. Not just good advice, but good news.
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Prayer: Make the good news of Jesus penetrate to the core of who we are, infiltrate, motivate, saturate.