Weeks 19-20: David's Words of Wisdom

Well, here I am behind on this blog again. While I’ve not been as faithful to posting as I had hoped, I’m amazed at how excited I am for the reading each and every day. It has been such a blessing to read through God’s story; I pray that you hang in there and continue this journey. I had to set aside this blog to get my new blog ready and also to prepare for my kids’ summer break. Just to let you know, I’m not trying to be an overachiever by starting another blog. It’ s a ministry that has been on my heart for a while, but I’ve just not had the courage to move forward. When our year of reading through the Bible together is completed, I will absolve this blog into my “real” blog. Now on to our reading. Over the course of the past few weeks, the reign of King David has come to an end. This week, we see his son, Solomon, take the throne. Before we say goodbye to him, I want us to look at the end of his reign. After his disgraceful act of sin with Bathsheba, David experiences multiple acts of betrayal throughout the remainder of his reign. Those closest to him seem to be the ones quickest to turn on him. There are so many beautiful truths throughout these few weeks of reading that I cannot possibly touch on them all.  If you have not, I encourage you to read 2 Samuel 22; “He rescued me because He delighted in me;” “With You I can attack a barrier, and with my God I can leap over a wall;” “As for God, His way is perfect, the word of the Lord is pure. He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him;” “God is my strong refuge. He makes my way perfect.” Ladies, until we know God this confidently, we do not know Him at all. He goes on to speak about destroying his enemies. Although he sounds rather violent, keep in mind the big picture and you will see the truth we must learn. He is the king of God’s chosen people. His role is to establish them as a holy nation; therefore he takes serious the job of getting rid of those who seek to destroy God’s people, who seek to entice them away from Yahweh. It’s really pitiful how lazy we are as “Americanized Christians,” when we should be no less vigilant than David against our enemy. This man of God does blow it again by taking a census that God had not commanded, but again he proves to be a man of sincere repentance and a teachable heart. As we approached the end of his life, we saw a king focused entirely upon making preparations for the temple of God that he would never see built. Every single detail was covered. We see the beauty and model for giving to God; the people gave to the temple with “a whole heart,” “giving joyfully and willingly to You.” Then David leaves one instruction to his son, Solomon, the child born from his most disgraceful act, the one who God would make the next king, “As for you, Solomon my son, know the God of your Father, and serve Him with a whole heart and a willing mind, for the Lord searches every heart and understands the intention of every thought.” David dies and Solomon begins his reign, but before we dive into Solomon’s kingship, let’s look at the last words he spoke to his son to learn what a relationship with God (think about that-a relationship with God; the undeserved privilege should overwhelm us) should look like. David doesn’t leave him with advice on making laws or how to rule or leading the army. He tells his son how to have a relationship with God. This parallels the first commandment, which Jesus restates in the New Testament; love God wholly. If we want to have a real, intimate relationship with our Father, we must listen to the wisdom of the man after God’s own heart. David was not perfect, but he got it:
           
David’s Words of Wisdom
David left Solomon with these words, a two-part instruction on how to be king. At that time, the king was God’s anointed, the spokesperson for God’s people. As His new testament children, we are now His anointed. This truth applies just as relevantly to us today.

1.      Know the God of your father:
-know=diligently seek; discover, pursue, familiar friend

2.      Serve Him with a whole heart and a willing mind:
-serve=worship, labor for, bondservant
-whole=complete, undivided, peaceful
-heart=resolve, passion, determination
-willing=to delight in, having pleasure in, want
-mind=whole person, desires, thoughts

What we learn from this one verse is that our life should center around diligently seeking God, pursuing Him until He is a familiar friend to us. This is a verb indicating an on-going process; we are constantly discovering God. The result of knowing Him is serving Him, but David describes how we serve God. This is where we’ve become lazy. A person who truly knows Him will serve God with their whole heart and with a willing mind. We worship God and labor for Him with an undivided heart; a heart that is not at war with other desires; a heart that is wholly and entirely resolved, determined. Serving God with a willing mind means there is no hesitation; it is not a burden or chore; it is not begrudgingly but is the delight of our live. It is what we want and is our absolute pleasure. With our whole person, our thoughts and desires, we take pure delight in serving Him. This is far more than some passive attempt to serve God by attending a once a week church serve. This is having an everyday existence centered around God; yes, in our work and chores and errands. David wanted his son to be a king that sought God, not power or prestige. We should be people who seek God rather than success or self-promotion or accolades or prominence or acceptance from others. The very purpose for every breath we take and step we make is to know and serve the One who made us, loves us and saved us.