Last week I asked you what you were afraid of, what fears could paralyze you. And we talked at length about a common fear of most everyone, the fear of being forgotten and alone. There is a close cousin of fear I’d like to ask you about what makes you anxious. Anxiety is a little less intense than fear but it may be worse because its constant, its nagging, it seems ever-present. Anxiety is that sense of worry that will keep you up at night in preparation for something that is about to occur. You’re likely to face anxiety is you’re a type A person, if you’re constantly thinking about the next task or if you have allowed yourself to be manipulated into being the family peacemaker. Some anxiety is appropriate and really the determination of that appropriateness is whether or not you are concerned over something that is your legitimate responsibility. You see I may get anxious over not having my sermon ready by Friday… and that is appropriate concern. But some of the time I allow myself to become anxious and to be concerned about things for which I have no responsibility. In fact that is the case most of the time.
You know I become anxious at times because we don’t see more decisions for Christ in our church. Now is that appropriate or not? Well help me here. Who convicts of sin and righteousness and of judgment? Who is it the one that invited a person to come to Christ? Is it me? Is it you? Its the Holy Spirit. And what does God call me and you to do in that work, but to share and to pray? Now the real question of legitimate responsibility and appropriate anxiety is to whether or not we share and whether or not we pray. So if your anxious at times as I am about more people receiving Christ at Cassville, why don’t you commit yourself to prayer and sharing and leave the work of the Holy Spirit to the Holy Spirit and lay aside that anxiety.
Well can you guess what our text is about today? Its about… anxiety. You may not see that initially but its there, right there in the first verse just between the lines. David is anxious. He is not fearful. He is not under some kind of tangible and direct threat. Saul is not chasing him. In fact he is living large, in the lap of luxury. David lives in a cedar house. He is not anxious about something he has done that is bad, but about doing something good, but something that was not his responsibility. In that moment of anxiety David shares with Nathan the prophet.
After David was settled in his palace, he said to Nathan the prophet, "Here I am, living in a palace of cedar, while the ark of the covenant of the LORD is under a tent." 2 Nathan replied to David, "Whatever you have in mind, do it, for God is with you." 3 That night the word of God came to Nathan, saying: 4 "Go and tell my servant David, `This is what the LORD says: You are not the one to build me a house to dwell in. 5 I have not dwelt in a house from the day I brought Israel up out of Egypt to this day. I have moved from one tent site to another, from one dwelling place to another. 6 Wherever I have moved with all the Israelites, did I ever say to any of their leaders [1] whom I commanded to shepherd my people, "Why have you not built me a house of cedar?"’ 7 "Now then, tell my servant David, `This is what the LORD Almighty says: I took you from the pasture and from following the flock, to be ruler over my people Israel. 8 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name like the names of the greatest men of the earth. 9 And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning 10 and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also subdue all your enemies. "`I declare to you that the LORD will build a house for you: 11 When your days are over and you go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. 12 He is the one who will build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. 13 I will be his father, and he will be my son. I will never take my love away from him, as I took it away from your predecessor. 14 I will set him over my house and my kingdom forever; his throne will be established forever.’"
15 Nathan reported to David all the words of this entire revelation. 16 Then King David went in and sat before the LORD, and he said: "Who am I, O LORD God, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? 17 And as if this were not enough in your sight, O God, you have spoken about the future of the house of your servant. You have looked on me as though I were the most exalted of men, O LORD God. 18 "What more can David say to you for honoring your servant? For you know your servant, 19 O LORD. For the sake of your servant and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made known all these great promises. 20 "There is no one like you, O LORD, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears.
Now look back at the text, the place where the scene opens. Where is David? And what adjective does the writer use to describe the condition of David? David is in his palace… and he is settled. There is in this opening scene a picture of a Sabbath rest. Everything is complete and everything is good and its time for just a while to rest in the presence of God and to enjoy the goodness and the provision of God. But David can’t rest. He can’t enjoy the goodness of God. He can’t because he is in a house of cedar, while the ark of the covenant is in a tent.
Now don’t you just admire David. Isn’t that a great faithfulness? David can’t rest. I tell you I wish the story had just stopped there or least been told differently, because it sure would preach a lot better. Can’t you hear the sermon now? Oh I could turn up the volume and decry how some of you are lazy and ungrateful and unfaithful because you’re driving a new car, while the church has 1982 Dodge Van with a leaking air conditioner.
This is impressive and Nathan the prophet seems to think so as well. I mean after all how could such good intentions be wrong? They’ve got the resources. There is no need for a capital campaign. The king is willing to sacrifice whatever he must. And so Nathan affirms this plan and assures David that God is with him. But… God is not. You see not only did David fall prey to the anxiety of good intentions… but so did Nathan, the prophet of God.
And so that night, the Lord catches up with Nathan. It’s a two-fold prophetic word. First there is an initial command. “David… you are not the one to build a house for me. I have moved from tent to tent with the people of God. To whom did I ever say, build a house for me of cedar?” Which is to say, where did you ever get that idea, David? And the answer is from the anxiety of his good intentions.
Now listen, this is the most important principle of the story. It is not the responsibility of the servant of God to anxious about his or her good intentions. It is the responsibility of the servant of God to be diligent in his or her obedience to God. Because the anxiety of good intention can blind you to what it is that God really wants you to do. God may really be calling some of you to help with the children’s ministry but the anxiety of your good intentions somewhere else has so permeated your thought process that you’ve lost all discernment. And discernment is the essential quality of this whole principle. How will you discern what is the will of God and what is another good intention with exhaustive anxiety? Well in the life of David, which I suppose is a good model we see a strong devotional life, and a heart that trust God, which we’ll note in minute, but that’s not enough. You also need the encouragement and accountability of Godly counsel, someone you know who is close to the Lord who has the guts to tell you, no. In this account, Nathan tells the King… no.
I said this was a two-fold prophetic word for David and it is. Not only does God tell David no, but he deals with compulsion that often drives good intentioned anxiety. “But God if I don’t do it… who will? I mean there’s a need and I can meet it, and if I don’t….” God says in the second part of his word to Nathan for David that he will raise up a son, one of his offspring who will build the temple, one whose throne will be established forever, one who will be of the lineage of David, and still the son of God. Well, the immediate fulfillment of this word is of Solomon who built the temple of God, but moreover it is a prophetic word of Christ, who declared himself to be the temple of God.
At any rate, building the temple and all the good intentions that go with it are not David’s responsibility. In fact, God declares to David that he will build a house for David and all of Israel. God has other responsibilities for David and if he becomes consumed with the anxiety of his good intentions he’ll miss them altogether.
And so Nathan brings the word to David and he responds with such integrity. I told you a minute ago that David was a man of discernment because he trusted God. I can find no better evidence of that than right here in these remaining texts.
Then King David went in and sat before the LORD, and he said: "Who am I, O LORD God, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? 17 And as if this were not enough in your sight, O God, you have spoken about the future of the house of your servant. You have looked on me as though I were the most exalted of men, O LORD God. 18 "What more can David say to you for honoring your servant? For you know your servant, 19 O LORD. For the sake of your servant and according to your will, you have done this great thing and made known all these great promises. 20 "There is no one like you, O LORD, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears.
David doesn’t throw a fit that he can’t do what he wants to do. He doesn’t try to do it anyway. He doesn’t allow himself to be manipulated by the pressure and anxiety of good intentions. He has not let his ego become wrapped up in his accomplishments for the Lord. He does not fret over the fear that the task must be done by him, or it won’t get done at all. He hears and he trusts… God.
Now what about you? Are you anxious over things that are not legitimately your responsibility? Are you being faithful and obedient in the things that are your responsibility? Do you have the devotional life and the godly accountability to know the difference? And when God responds are you faithful to go… or to stop… and most importantly… to trust?
The apostle Paul faced a bit of anxiety in his life, and I like what he said about it. Be anxious… for nothing, do you think that means good intentions, but instead with prayer and supplication make your request known to God. And the peace of God that passes understanding will guard your heart… in Christ Jesus.
