Kingdom Keys - Samuel Series

So maybe you’ve heard it said, ‘read your bible’ so you tried and failed. Our hope as leaders is that all of us will pick up God’s word and come to understand the true nature of God. After all, the bible is God’s Word curated over centuries detailing His nature, His will, the meaning of life and humanity’s historical interactions with Him. The Bible details the hidden keys to the Kingdom. Hence, the reason we are reviewing a new book each week.

This week we move to the book of Samuel. For those keeping count - 55 chapters, The authorship of the book is attributed to Samuel, Nathan and Gad but we don’t know for sure. We do know the book was written to show the history of God’s relationship with his people. It connects the time of judges to the time of kings. In the end, the book of Samuel shows us Human leadership is often flawed but God redeems some and punishes others. In the end, God’s sovereignty is absolute.

The book of Samuel offers a number of interesting truths. However, this morning I’d like to focus on one of the hardest for a culture like ours - accepting God’s will for us, our community and our nation. We are an independent tribe who believe in, “pulling yourself up by your bootstraps”, “making your own luck” and “grinding it out” until we have achieved whatever idea of success we were striving for. It’s part of the American dream. “You can do it!”

But what happens after you achieve success? Because make no mistake, success in any form is as dangerous as failure. What happens when you reach the place where you ask, is this all there is? Make more money. Acquire more stuff. Achieve more power. The scriptures show us:

Nebuchadnessar became prideful

Saul becomes insecure

but

Hezekiah decided to supervise scholars in copying the scriptures

And David, during his time on top, famously fails, only to rally to ponder how he could better serve His people as well as improve his relationship to the Lord.

In 2 Sam 7, the Lord revealed to the Prophet Nathan and David what is usually referred to as the Davidic covenant. A declaration with much meaning to David but one with great significance for Israel, the church and the world.

David in his gratitude wants to recognize God by building Him a house (a temple). God says no. That’s not your role. Your role in my will is to shepherd the people I have put in your care. And this is what happen next:

12 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. 13 He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 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. 15 But my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.’”

Imagine hearing those words. Our God who is all knowing, all powerful and is beyond time and space tells you the family, the people and the nation that while their are still consequences for actions; His love will never be removed from you, the kingdom you now are a part of will never end and your light and life will never perish.

The truth is those words are fulfilled in Jesus coming and are conferred to all who are willing to trust in Jesus. So how are we to respond to His favor in our lives?

Do we, having received this promise, become more like David by rallying from our past failures:

Accepting the role as a servant?

Being dependent on His provision for everything?

Forsaking our wants and desires for whatever God asks of us?

If you said “Yes” to all these questions, then let's discuss how else we obey God's blessing.

First, we don't abuse grace. We can sometimes treat grace as an excuse to remain the way we are. But the grace of God is not a license to abuse God's heart towards us. Romans 6:1-2 says, "What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?"

Second, We can obey God's blessing by being changed by grace. Titus 2:12 tells us that the grace of God trains us "to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age."