An Unbelievable Deal (2 Samuel 7)

When my kids were really young – Birthdays/Christmas – Grandparents – Money. – Sometimes, it would be a larger bill. And what business does a 3yr old have with a $20 bill? So – Deal – Trade me 1x $20 for 5x $1? 5 is more than 1, right? (Eyes would get so big. – Daddy is so awesome!) Glady trade. And we were both happy making the deal.

Grace – Don’t you feel bad taking advantage of your own children? Me – Not at all! They all used to poop, pee, puke all over me when they were babies. So no, I don’t. Not one bit. And then she’d make me undo the deal. – And then everyone felt like they lost.

Maybe your parents did that to you too – Or life experience has taught you – Because we all know – Trading – Too good/easy to be true? Chances – Not true. Don’t trust it. Don’t do it. X book. Common wisdom. Street smarts. – BUT – Made us skeptical. Don’t believe it. – Even when it comes to God.

If you’re just joining us… Series: Search for a King. – Today – 2 Sam. 7. Bible. (Encourage) Turn. Turn on. Screen.

Context: David is securely on his throne. And things politically, military-wise, and spiritually are all going well. The kingdom has been united. Enemies nations defeated. And most importantly the ark of the covenant representing God’s presence is back in Jerusalem. 

(Again…) Ark – Big, wooden box overlaid with gold. On top there were two golden angels facing each other with their wings covering the mercy seat in the middle. Where God’s presence dwelt. 

Text: 2 Sam. 7 Now when the king lived in his house and the Lord had given him rest from all his surrounding enemies, ² the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells in a tent.” (Cedar – Extremely expensive. Best of the best. Tent – Temporary. Not exactly luxurious. – Tent/Camping VS Glamping VS Hotel) ³ And Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you.” (If a wealthy person came to Garden City – I see you guys don’t own your own space. This is a temporary rental. I’ll give you the funds to build your own church – You don’t have to rent and set up and tear down. Expand Kids and Students spaces. You know what I’d say? – Amen. Do all that’s in your heart. The Lord is with you. We can talk after the service. – PJD)

1. Our hearts should be full of ambition, expectation, and humility for God. (Corbin Hobbs – Different message but applies so well here.)

David is living the life right now. The kingdom is going great. There’s nothing he has to worry about. He’s in a position to just sit back and enjoy, especially for all the years he spent in the pasture as a shepherd and on the run for his life. But in the midst of peace and rest – What’s on David’s mind/heart? God! His mind is on God. He’s concerned about God’s house, about God the true King. He shows his delight and trust in God. Because he understands everything in his life including the kingship and rest are from God. He didn’t get to the throne himself or defeat his enemies by himself.

When things are going well for you – What’s on your mind? Your next purchase. Next holiday. Next toy. It’s always the next thing. Bigger and better. Usually, our minds are on ourselves.

But David here – My house is better than God’s. That’s not right. Out of balance. – Assessment – Is your life out of balance? Listen – There’s nothing wrong with enjoying things in your life. In fact, God our Father loves to give you good things to enjoy. It’s God’s goodness that puts us in positions to enjoy. That’s part of his goodness and blessing to you. That’s biblical. And it’d be erroneously “spiritual”, prideful, and disobedient to reject and not to enjoy God’s generosity towards you. 

Often people will look at the wealthy – judge them. Well they must have cheated their way. Taken advantage of. Stingy. Usually – envy/jealousy. Why can’t they have worked hard and excellently for the glory of God and God blessed it? God entrusted it to them. – I personally know millionaires that fly economy class. Who do set up and tear down at church even though they could easily hire someone to do all the hard work. – Incredibly godly people. It’s not for us to judge.

But God’s goodness and blessing is not primarily material.

X cling to and live for. (Basis for a lot of other religions.) So – Question for EVERYONE – Is it out of balance? Does your life, your calendar, your schedule, your budget reveal that your mind is only on you or primarily on God? When you get lost in your thoughts – Do you dream more of what your life could look like or what you could be doing for God? 

What do you wish your life could look like? Probably more money. To be more comfortable. Do and have more nice things. – If I gave you $1m today – What are the first 5 things you’d do with the money? Me? – Aircon, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, a pair of Jordans, and finally a batik shirt my wife has been wanting me to get so she’s happy. I’d be really happy with that haul. Maybe for you – new folding iphone or the flying Tesla. Whatever it is…

Does it have anything to do with honoring God? Do you leverage what you already have for him? Or is your mindset – I’ll do for God when I have more – next raise/promotion. Once I have all that I want/need. – If you’re not faithful now with the small things, what makes you think God is going to entrust more to you?

We need to get out of our scarcity/poverty mindset and be full of ambition for God, not primarily for ourselves. Dreaming big. Praying big. Attempting incredible things for God as the Spirit puts on your heart. – David – I want to build a house for God! That’s pretty ambitious. BECAUSE this is where life and joy is found.

One of the things I pray repeatedly for Garden City – 2 Thess. 1:11-12 ¹¹ To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power, ¹² so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Ambition/Expectation – God desires to do great things for his glory. He wants to use Garden City to reach the nations here in KL. To send us out to love and serve our city. To build his church. To deepen our love for him. I believe he desires to say yes to every resolve and good and every work of faith if we will only ask and go for it.

Humility – It’s God who makes us worthy. It’s by his power. According to his grace. And for his glory. (Come back to this.) AND – Not every thought that crosses my mind is from God. Always need to discern. David – Seeks out counsel. Is this from God? Is this what God desires? Cause I may have this big dream but if God redirects, then I’m redirecting. – 3 Keys to Hearing from God – 1. Word of God 2. Spirit of God 3. People of God. – Note: None of these are from inside you.

And sometimes – The Spirit will bring to mind something…that will get you started in the right direction but will take you to a different destination than you originally thought. First Mission Trip – Nations – China/India/Dubai – I’m going there. Nope – I’m sending you to KL. KL? – No offense – At least 20 reasons why not. 1-18 are all the same – No fall/winter. 19 – No good Mexican food. 20 – No Bojangles. 

⁴ But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, ⁵ “Go and tell my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord: Would you build me a house to dwell in? ⁶ I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent for my dwelling. ⁷ In all places where I have moved with all the people of Israel, did I speak a word with any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?”’ 

God – Hey, I appreciate the gesture – But I’ve not asked for this… I don’t need it. – Heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool. I don’t dwell in houses made by the hands of men. (Isa. 66, Acts 7, 17) Good try though.

⁸ Now, therefore, thus you shall say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel. ⁹ And I have been with you wherever you went and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. ¹⁰ And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more. And violent men shall afflict them no more, as formerly, ¹¹ from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will give you rest from all your enemies. (Repetition – I. And I will. – God is reminding David where he came from. It’s God that made David somebody. It’s God’s presence with David that has brought him success. And it’s ultimately God who will take care of his people as their King and give them the kingdom and rest they long for.)

Moreover, the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house. ¹² When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. ¹³ He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. ¹⁴ I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, ¹⁵ but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. ¹⁶ And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’” ¹⁷ In accordance with all these words, and in accordance with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David.

God – David – You want me to build me a house? No, I’m going to build you a house. Ultimate reversal. – UNO. One of the most important promises given in the OT. – From David’s lineage is going to come a king whose kingdom is forever. One to whom God will be a Father and he will be a son. And this Son will build a house for God’s glory.

2. God’s promises to us are far greater than everything we give to him.

Ask – Who is doing more for whom? (PJD) Is David doing something greater for God or is God’s promise to David greater? God’s promise is clearly greater. God is the one who is ultimately giving to David. – What a deal – Youtube – Can I borrow a dollar? And they get $1k. I wish someone would ask me. – Like what’s happening here…

Anything we give or do or dream of doing for God is ultimately so small. Deal – Completely one-sided. There’s nothing David has to do to get this promise. God doesn’t need us to do for him. Rather – He needs us to receive what He does for us. – Gospel/Christianity. – Following God is not so much about what we do for him and it is what he is doing for us.

Notice the promise – Not conditional. His plan is guaranteed. – There’s nothing that’s going to stop it. Not sin. Not the devil. Nothing. – Sure. Established. Defining purpose and characteristic – For my name. It wasn’t a reward for David’s goodness. It was for God’s glory despite David’s shortcomings.

Two Responses – 1) What’s the point? God doesn’t need it. I’m not going to give anything. OR 2) God is so good. He deserves my everything. How can I give everything I have, my life to him as a magnificent offering – as a sign that he is worthy to the world.

Fast forward. 1 Chron. 22 as David is gathering the materials – the house for the Lord should be of great magnificence and fame and splendor in the sight of all the nations. – And David is commended by God for his ambition. – 2 Chron. 6:8  But the Lord said to David my father, ‘Whereas it was in your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was in your heart.

So we should pray and dream big for God. And at the same time – Recognize – God’s promises and blessings to us are far greater than what we could ever give him. God’s promises are worth more than any earthly possession. 

God invites us – Give me what little you have and I’ll give you far more in return. His intentions for us are so good and far greater than we could dream for ourselves. But we have to let go of what we have to take hold of what he wants to give us. – If anything, I’m getting the better deal out of it. 

David’s response…¹⁸ Then King David went in and sat before the Lord and said, “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far? ¹⁹ And yet this was a small thing in your eyes, O Lord God. You have spoken also of your servant’s house for a great while to come, and this is instruction for mankind, O Lord God! ²⁰ And what more can David say to you? For you know your servant, O Lord God! ²¹ Because of your promise, and according to your own heart, you have brought about all this greatness, to make your servant know it. ²² Therefore you are great, O Lord God. For there is none like you, and there is no God besides you, according to all that we have heard with our ears. ²³ And who is like your people Israel, the one nation on earth whom God went to redeem to be his people, making himself a name and doing for them great and awesome things by driving out before your people, whom you redeemed for yourself from Egypt, a nation and its gods? ²⁴ And you established for yourself your people Israel to be your people forever. And you, O Lord, became their God. 

3. The power to do anything for God is with God and not us.

David – God, you’re right. Who am I? Servant. I don’t deserve any of your goodness. All my successes were because YOU were with me. Because YOU fought the battle. YOU redeemed your people. YOU are our God. 

You want to do something great for God – Great! News – You don’t have what it takes. – It’s all God. Must understand this. God doesn’t choose you because of you or what you can do for him. He chooses because of himself. God X – I need someone special, someone with gifts, someone who is better than the rest – NO. If anything, he chooses the weak, the poor, the humble, the nobodys.

God is not all that impressed by what we can do for him. He can do with one word what is impossible for us. He created the universe with words – Do you think he really NEEDS us to do anything for him? What could we possibly do for God that he couldn’t do much better for himself?

David started – I’m going to do something for God to sitting before God and knowing him. (PJD) More than God desires for us to do something for him, he desires for us to know him and be caught up in amazement and wonder at who he is and what he’s doing. Amazement/Wonder that leads to gratitude and worship. 

²⁵ And now, O Lord God, confirm forever the word that you have spoken concerning your servant and concerning his house, and do as you have spoken. ²⁶ And your name will be magnified forever, saying, ‘The Lord of hosts is God over Israel,’ and the house of your servant David will be established before you. ²⁷ For you, O Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, have made this revelation to your servant, saying, ‘I will build you a house.’ Therefore your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to you. ²⁸ And now, O Lord God, you are God, and your words are true, and you have promised this good thing to your servant. ²⁹ Now therefore may it please you to bless the house of your servant, so that it may continue forever before you. For you, O Lord God, have spoken, and with your blessing shall the house of your servant be blessed forever.” – David prays in line with God’s promises… 

4. Great things happen when we pray God’s promises back to him. 

Ask – What does your prayer life consist of? Would anything change in the world for the kingdom of God, for the glory of God, if God were to say yes to all your prayers. Or would our lives just be better – More money, more comfort, better life, no more sickness, school, job, spouse, kids. And those are not necessarily bad things to pray for. But if those are the only things we pray for, then there’s a problem with our prayer life. 

When’s the last time you pleaded with God for lost people? For God’s kingdom to come to KL as it is in heaven? For his justice, righteousness, restoration, healing? For the building up of his church?

We should pray God’s promises back to God. – Most effective prayers. God has to say YES. He will say YES. – YOU HAVE TO KNOW WHAT GOD’S PROMISES ARE.

Joining yourself to the promises of God is the surest way to see God do something amazing in and through you. – Ambition, expectation, humility. God doesn’t need you, but he invites you to join in what he’s doing. 

Ultimately – All of God’s promises find their YES and AMEN in Jesus. – Including this promise in 2 Sam. 7…

David is not the king we’ve been looking for. There’s another king coming according to the promise. A better king, the true king…

David’s son – Solomon would go on to build the Temple. Partial/Near fulfillment of God’s promises. But…Solomon would also sin just like his father, David, and stray away from God. He also was not the king the people were hoping for…

Presence – Tent – Temporary? Even with the more permanent Temple – The glory of God would depart. And it wouldn’t return again until Jesus came…

Jesus – the perfect Son to the Father. The ultimate Temple – Love and approval and approval of the Father and the Spirit’s anointing. Free and innocent of all sin. Prince of Peace vs David – Man of War. Jesus – Bold statement/prediction – Destroy the Temple and raise it up in 3 days…His body. He would suffer the punishment of the sins of other sons and daughters…beaten and crucified. By his stripes we are healed. And Jesus would rise on the third day defeating sin and establishing his eternal kingdom that reigns over sin and death.

And he gives the Spirit to dwell within us – So WE are the temple. The house Jesus is building for his name – for his glory –  THE CHURCH. Jesus – I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail. – That’s a sure promise.

For his name sake – for His glory. AND your good. Your good is found in his glory. Inseparable. Always go together. Why – You can let go and take hold of God and attempt big things for his glory.

The gospel – Not what you give to God or do for God but what God has done for you. If you will surrender your life to him – He will give you himself. You give up yourself and you get God. But you have to let go of your life to take hold of what God has for you. Give me your…and I’ll give you my…

Sin. Righteousness

Shame. Honor

Brokenness. Healing

Addiction. Freedom

Depression. Joy

Chaos. Peace

Loneliness. Presence

Hopelessness. Future

Best deal ever – to let go of what little you have, the passing things of this world, and to take hold of all of God’s goodness to you in Jesus.