STUDY THEME: SEEKING GOD'S HEART: LESSONS FROM DAVID'S LIFE. 
"FAITHFUL TO THE END."  2 SAMUEL 23: 1-7, 1 KINGS 2:1-4.    5/28/2000
PLEASE OPEN YOUR BIBLE TO 2 SAMUEL 23.

The lesson today is the last in our series from the life of David. David
was the son of Jesse, and the 2nd and greatest king of Israel. He was
born in Bethlehem, and belonged to the tribe of Judah. He was the
youngest of Jesse's 8 sons. David was far from a perfect person but he
did have tremendous talent and dedicated his life to God in a very
extraordinary way. In spite of his imperfections, we Christians can learn
much from this ancient King of Israel. He was faithful to the end! Today
we study his last words before he died. 

The lesson writer is correct in stating that our society seems to be
becoming more secular all the while. It seems to be more impersonal and
thus robs human beings of the sense of meaning and fulfillment. Everybody
has a deep and profound and legitimate need for a meaningful life. 

The lesson writer hopes that this lesson will help Christians who are
troubled by such problems to find biblical ways to make their lives count
for God. We trust that today's lesson will make each of us have a sense
of genuine fulfillment in our commitment to Christ. The "Suggested Bible
Truth" is that 
God's people are to make their lives count for God." The suggested "Life
Outcome" is that we will make our lives count for God. To do this we must
maintain a close relationship with God. 

In today's lesson David spoke a prophetic oracle that testified to his
lifelong relationship with God. He spoke of an ideal king as righteous
and reverent. Such a king is a blessing to people. David rejoiced in
God's sure promise of an everlasting covenant. In his charge to Solomon,
David challenged his son to walk with the Lord in His ways. From David's
last words we learn several important truths about making our lives count
for the Lord.  

Do you ever wonder whether your life will mean anything after you die?
Perhaps you have not thought about what your life means to God or to
others. When I am gone, I want others to say, "Thank God for A.V. He did
make a difference." The question is, "Will I live my life now so that
will be possible?" We must make daily choices to live by God's revealed
standards if we are to make a difference

1.PLEASE READ 1 SAMUEL 23: 1-2.

Some of us may feel like the 4th grade student running the mile race in
the track meet. 
The boys had to circle the quarter-mile track four time. The fourth
grader was in the lead during the third lap and going into the fourth.
Just as he was coming into the last curve to enter the home stretch, he
left the track, cut across the field inside the curve, came back onto the
track and then came across the finish line. Though he did well
three-fourths of the way thru the race, he was disqualified on the last
lap. When asked why he did it, he innocently said, "I got tired." I'm
sure each of us can empathize with this youngster. 

Yet as adults we need to be challenged to be faithful to the Lord to the
end. Then He can say to us, "Well done, good and faithful servant."
Today's lesson will  enable us to learn biblical ways to help us be
faithful to the end and make our lives count for God. 

David's "last words" are recorded in 2 Samuel 23: 1-7. These words were
not the last words David spoke, instead, this prophetic oracle is
something like his last will and testament. An oracle was an important
prophetic utterance delivered under God's inspiration. David's oracle was
delivered in the form of Hebrew Poetry; the form of David's Psalms. This
is David's last poem. David's deathbed charge to Solomon in 1 Kings 2:1-9
are his last recorded words. Some of David's final words are similar in
spirit to the farewell words of other people of faith: Jacob, Moses,
Joshua and Paul. All of these testified to a life that counted for the
Lord. 

The first words, "The oracle of David son of Jesse," identified David's
family. Jesse was a true Israelite, a member of the tribe of Judah. The
first king of Israel came from Judah. The Messiah also came thru this
tribe. Therefore, David was qualified to be king and so was his son,
Solomon. 

In the oracle David spoke of "the man exalted by the Most High." Then in
Ps. 89:27
God said about David that he would make him "the most exalted of the
kings of the earth." To be exalted by the Most High was to be truly
exalted. 

Then David referred to himself as the man anointed by God. To be Israel's
king the person must be chosen by God. Samuel the prophet anointed David
with oil, but God chose David as king. 

David's last reference to himself was "Israel's singer of songs." Among
David's many abilities are his musical talent. Of the 150 psalms in the
book of Psalms, 73 of them are ascribed to David. This great warrior was
a splendid musician who loved music and had a gift for expressing all
kinds of emotions thru his songs. 

Probably David's most familiar song is Psalm 23. This song reflects
David's lifetime relationship with the Lord. His youthful years as a
shepherd provide the setting for the song. David learned to trust the
Lord as his Shepherd during those years, though he probably composed the
psalm as an adult. David certainly practiced what he wrote as he began
his journey "thru the valley of the shadow of death." 

After identifying himself, David told how he was give the oracle. He said
"The Spirit of the Lord spoke thru me." The content of this oracle came
from the Spirit of God thru David. 

David declared that "his word was on my tongue." This was David's poetic
way of saying that God gave him the words of the Oracle that he spoke.
The Spirit controlled his thoughts and inspired him with the prophecy as
He spoke it. 

David's oracle was authoritative because it was from God. David was a
person after God's own heart when as a youth He was anointed the next
king. In these verses spoken at the end of his life, David is still a man
in intimate fellowship with God. Thru many ups and downs David had
maintained his relationship to God. His example can challenge us to make
our whole lives count for God as we establish and maintain a close
relationship with God.  

2. Please read 2 Samuel 23: 3-4. 

Another biblical principle that will enable us to be faithful to the end
is to continue finding ways to live a life that blesses others. Any one
of us can be a blessing to others if we are a people of faith who
practice what we profess. 

In God's call to Abraham the Lord promised to bless him and said that he
in turn was to be a blessing. All of us whom the Lord has blessed ought
to be channels of blessing to others. When the dimension of blessing
others is added to the other two, we have the three main dimensions of
the kind of life that God wants us to live: moral, spiritual, social. The
prophet Micah summed these up in Micah 6:8 as "doing right, loving mercy,
and walking humbly with our God."  

How sad to come to the end of life without these qualities. Many people,
including those considered successful, come to the end of life empty
because they have spent their lives seeking selfish things. Ian Fleming,
the author of the James Bond books, was interviewed shortly before his
death. He was asked about the satisfaction of fame. he replied, "Ashes,
old boy--just ashes!" What a contrast to people who have lived for God
and others.! 

The second key to making your life count for God is to live your life in
such a way that you bring blessings on others. David's life was a
blessing to others. In his family he tended his father's sheep and
carried messages and supplies to his three brothers who fought in Saul's
army. Even though he already was chosen to be Israel's next king, He
served Saul in the palace with his harp, as a leader in Saul's army, and
as a conqueror of the Philistines. He served Israel throughout his life
as a godly and just king. At the end of his life, He served Solomon, the
next king, by helping him get ready to build God's house. 

In David's oracle He said, "The God of Israel spoke" to him. As the God
of Israel, God called certain descendants of David to serve Israel as its
kings, and a descendant of David, Christ, is to be the King of all kings.
The same God who established Israel as an earthly kingdom would establish
the people of God as an eternal kingdom. 

The first two sentences in Vs. 3 present the same idea in different
words: "The God of Israel spoke; the Rock of Israel said." God is called
the Rock of Israel." The term rock
symbolized security and refuge. As a name for God, it pictured God as
being unchangeable and faithful. God was the rock on which David stood.
He reminded Israel that God also was their Rock. 

In His message to David, God gave him two characteristics a godly king of
Israel must have. First, he must be one who "rules over men in
righteousness." In Ps. 72:1 that is a prayer for Solomon, the psalmist
prayed, "Endow the king with your justice, O God, the royal son with your
righteousness". As a ruler over men, the king must rule in a way that God
will approve as the right or just way to rule.

The second characteristic of a godly king must be one who "rules with the
fear of God." If the first characteristic emphasizes the kings actions,
this characteristic emphasizes his attitude or heart. The king's inner
attitude toward God was to be one of deep humility and reverence, seeking
to relate to God in a way appropriate for who God is. His reverence
produces fear of not relating to God in the right way. as much as fear of
relating to Him in the wrong way.

When God's kind of king rules in righteousness and the fear of God,
wonderful blessings come to his subjects. Such a king will be "like the
light of morning at sunrise on a cloudless morning." A godly king's life
and reign shines on his people
 like the sun shines on the world after a dark night. His influence is
clean and fresh and life-giving. He shows his people how to live by
revealing the righteousness of God thru his life. 

A godly king will be "like the brightness after rain that brings the
grass from the earth." Just as sunshine is essential for nature to
produce its fruit, so is a godly leader essential
for his or her subjects to produce the potential for good that each one
has. 

This godly person is one whose life is characterized by a deep, personal
reverence for God, and whose life is governed by obedience to God's laws.
What a challenging goal for each of us.

3. PLEASE READ 2 SAMUEL 23: 5-7.

In Vs. 5 David asked a rhetorical question: "Is not my house right with
God?" David had lived thru much of Saul's reign and had seen God take the
throne away from him. Saul's lack of fear of God and obedience to His
will brought judgment on him and his house- hold. David was different
from Saul in that he was a man after God's own heart. Though he sinned,
he sought forgiveness and turned back to God. He sought to lead his
household to be right with God.

Then David asked: "Has He not made with me an everlasting covenant?" God
made a covenant with David and his descendants to rule over Israel
forever. Ps. 89 is a song about this covenant. The psalmist quoted God as
saying about David in Ps. 89:29 "I will establish his line forever, his
throne as long as the heavens endure." 

Concerning this covenant, David said that it was arranged and secured in
every part. In Ps. 89:34 the Psalmist quoted God as saying to David, "I
will not violate my covenant or alter what my lips have uttered." David's
throne was established forever like the sun and he moon. A king might
forsake the law and fail to keep the commands. If he did, he would be
punished and even destroyed; but David's throne was established forever.
This was a promise from God, and David believed the Lord's promise was
sure and secure. Like Abraham, David believed God would keep His promise.
Although David could not know how it would be done, he was sure God would
do what He had promised. 

Because of God's covenant, David believed that God would bring to
fruition his salvation. This salvation probably included continued
deliverance from his enemies. God delivered David from Goliath, the
Philistines, his own enemies, and even his own sons. Because of God's
promises, David believed God would continue to deliver him. Also, this
salvation surely included God's promises to be David's God forever, for
he wrote in Ps. 23:6 "Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the
days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." The
salvation that David and other O.T. believers looked forward to was
fulfilled in Jesus Christ. 

God's faithfulness in the past was the basis for David's belief that God
would give him his every desire in the future. David desired a temple for
the Lord. God promised that Solomon would build it. David desired that
one of his descendants would sit on his throne forever. God promised to
fulfill that desire. The ultimate fulfillment of that promise was the
Lord Jesus Christ. 
 
We should be careful what  we desire. Israel desired a king who met
certain qualifications. God granted them their desire and gave them Saul.
Saul failed because he didn't meet God's standard for a king. Granting
Israel its desire actually was a judgment on them. We must make sure our
desires come from a heart and will that seeks after God's heart and will.

Obedience and God's promises bring God's blessings. Disobedience brings
God's judgment. David confessed to be right with God; others were not
right with Him. Concerning these, David said "But evil men are all to be
cast aside like thorns." Notice the contrast in these verses. People who
are right with God experience the fruitfulness of salvation for all
eternity; evil men are like worthless thorns that are thrown away. People
who are right with God are given their every desire and at last are
gathered by God to Himself; evil men perish.

As a shepherd out in the field with his sheep, David knew about the
problems of thorns. He had dealt with them many times. In Vs. 7 David saw
evil people as dangerous and painful to handle. As a person would not
grasp thorns to uproot them, the wicked would be rooted out and burned
using a tool to push them into the fire. David had been God's instrument
of judgment on the nations in Canaan. God destroyed evil men with the
implements of war. 

David also said that thorns are burned up where they lie. Because they
are worthless, thorns are destroyed. The psalmist testified in Ps. 73:
18-19 how God showed him that the wicked were on slippery ground and
would be brought down to ruin and destruction. Terrible consequences
await evil people, but eternal benefits await those who make their lives
count for God by believing His promises and receiving His salvation. In
Ps. 1 the righteous are compared to a tree planted by a river and the
wicked the chaff that the wind blows away. 

How sad to live and to come to the end of life without such confident
hope as people of faith have in the earthly and eternal promises of God.
But Oh the reverse! How joyful to live and to die with confident hope in
God. Only those freed from the fear of death are really ready to live in
ways that count for God and others. They know that God will be with them
in this life and beyond death. They also take the long view of reality
and trust God to fulfill His promises to every generation until the end
of time. Thus a third key to making your life count for God is to believe
God's promises  and hold to them confidently.
PLEASE TURN IN YOUR BIBLE TO 1 KINGS 2. 

4. PLEASE READ 1 KINGS 2:1-4. 

The last words of David which we have looked at were a kind of last will
and testament, not his words as he lay dying. The events described in 2
Samuel 24 may have occurred after the words in Ch. 23, and the incident
narrated in 1 Kings 1 certainly did.

David would soon "go the way of all the earth." He had ruled for 40 years
and may have now been 70 when he died. David had lived a full life. The
Hebrews recognized death at the end of a full life as natural because all
creatures die.  Before he died, David chose Solomon as his successor,
thus avoiding a later struggle for the throne. After choosing Solomon,
David charge him with certain duties. Some had to do with political
enemies with whom Solomon would have to deal if he was to be secure as
king. David also charged him to live responsibly before God. 

Earlier David had recognized that Solomon was "young and inexperienced,"
so David charged his son to be mature. Any king would face difficult
issues and threats to his rule, so Solomon needed to be all God intended
him to be. That involved carefully doing what God had commanded people to
do. So David charged his son to "walk in God's ways"---literally to "keep
the charge of the Lord your God by walking in His ways." Then David made
sure Solomon understood that these were God's "decrees and commands", his
laws and requirements, as written in the Law of Moses." If Solomon kept
these, God could bless him in all he did. 

David used four words in Vs 3 to refer to God's revelation. Each word has
a specific meaning, but David's intention in grouping them was to stress
God's whole revelation. In essence he stated, "Solomon, live, think, and
be directed by God's whole teaching." He was reminding Solomon that God
already had revealed what He wanted in terms of lifestyle and inner life.


Walking in God's ways would cause Solomon to "prosper." God would fulfill
His "promise" to David. The word "walk" refers to lifestyle. David
charged Solomon not only to be something but also to do something. The
result would cause Solomon to "prosper" and would benefit God's people. 

God wanted a descendant of David to be on Israel's throne forever. Yet
could God bless and preserve a king if he led the nation away from God?
The issue raised was not whether God would keep His promise. It was
whether God could afford to let His promise be used against Him. Sadly,
later Israelite history shows the failure of David's descendants to keep
the throne secure by their obedience. The result was the destruction of
David's throne until Jesus, the ultimate Son of David came to reestablish
it in a more glorious and eternal fashion. 

We do not know the full meaning of our lives while we are alive. We do
not know who is listening and watching. We do know that God has revealed
His way for us to live and that obeying Him opens the door for Him to
have His way in the world. We must instruct generations after us about
God's commands and must challenge them to live in faithfulness to God. 

David died in a good old age, full of days, riches, and honor, and his
son Solomon reigned in his stead. His epitaph was inscribed by the Holy
Spirit. Acts 13: 36 says "For David, after he had served his own
generation by the will of God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers."
May we too be enabled to serve our generation as faithfully as David did
his and be people after God's own heart. 

NEXT SUNDAY WE BEGIN A THREE MONTH STUDY THEM: ADOPTING A BIBLICAL
WORLDVIEW. AFTER ALL, EVERYONE HAS SOME WORLDVIEW. 
A.V. DAUGHERTY  5-28-2000.