Joel M Bradshaw

3“You know that because of the wars waged against my father David from all sides, he could not build a temple for the Name of the Lord his God until the Lord put his enemies under his feet. 4But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side, and there is no adversary or disaster. 5I intend, therefore, to build a temple for the Name of the Lord my God, as the Lord told my father David, when he said, ‘Your son whom I will put on the throne in your place will build the temple for my Name.’–1 Kings 5

“The Lord declares to you [David] that the Lord himself will establish a house for you: 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. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever” (2 Samuel 7:11b-13).

1. David wanted to build God a temple to make the tabernacle permanent.
2. God said some combination of “No, not yet, not you.”
3. In 2 Samuel 7, God was more focused on building something for David instead of David building something for Him.
4. In our 1 Kings chapter today, we see Solomon starting the process of fulfilling God’s promise to David.
5. David was God’s guy, but he didn’t always get what he wanted.
6. It just might be possible that God is planning on doing something great with the generation you are influencing instead of directly doing that great thing with you.
7. In what relationships are you investing? Who are you influencing? Where are you intentional? Leave a legacy of faith that honors God.–JMB