Not Even In The Top Ten

Something of seeming insignificance can be extremely important in God’s hands.   #daybydaylw   Interested in learning more about becoming a devoted follower of Christ? Go to follow.lifeword.org!   ~~~   David slept in just a little bit later than normal that morning. No battle or war was calling his name. He had finally put an end to the Philistine invasions and raids. He could enjoy the sunrise creeping up the horizon. Not too much to do that day, but he was looking forward to his dinner with Nathan. Nathan had always been a good friend, a faithful friend…faithful to the truth that is, and willing to tell David what he needed to hear. The sun was slipping down past the horizon when Nathan showed up and the two of them, along with their families, enjoyed a meal fit for a king. After supper, David and Nathan snuck off to one of the rooftops. David wanted to pitch an idea to Nathan. “Nathan, our journey started long ago, being delivered from the Egyptians. Our people have managed to cross the Red Sea and the Jordan River into this promised land. We have faced many miseries, but God’s mercy has been greater. And Nathan, our great country and people are finally at rest. We can breathe a little bit. And look at what I get to enjoy—the luxuries of being a king in this house that is strong and always smells of cedar! And what a celebration we had just a short while ago—the worship, the dancing, the joy of having the ark of the covenant brought back into our possession. But something bothers me Nathan. It bothers me that that ark is only covered by a tent. The ark of God, Nathan, covered by a tent, and yet here I am walking from room to room lined in cedar, strong and sure. This is not good! Nathan, you know we have to do something. We have to build a dwelling place for the ark, for the honor and glory of God!” Nathan, looked at David with understanding eyes, and calmly said, “Let’s go for it.” David and Nathan shook hands, hugged, and then Nathan went home to leave David thinking about what needed to happen first. Choose a location, gather materials. David was restless that night dreaming of the majesty of the house he would build for God. Nathan was restless as well, but for a different reason. It was the word of the LORD that kept David up. The word of God came to him and said, “You think my servant David could build me a house? Have I even asked for a house? Did I ask Moses to build me a permanent house? Joshua? Any of the judges? No, my son, I didn’t. My people were on the move by my direction, so I had to be on the move with them. So go back to David and prophecy this word over him.” When it comes to listing off the top ten most famous events that take place in the biblical storyline, we might put on that list Noah’s ark and the flood, David and Goliath, Daniel and the lion’s den, the crucifixion and resurrection, Peter walking on water, and a few others. What wouldn’t likely show up on that list is what takes place in 2 Samuel 7, our text for today, even though what we will read about and study is probably in the top five, if not the top three, of most important events in the Bible. It may not make the most famous list because there is not a war involved, not a miracle, but rather only a conversation, a promise, between David, a prophet named Nathan, and God. And yet that promise is the very reason why we are sitting here today. So my goal for the next couple of days is to explain what is going in this chapter and its significance, not just throughout the Bible, but it’s significance for us today.