Reading With the People of God #10 Kingdomنموونە

Focus of the month: (Kingdom)

7 Now, therefore, thus shall you say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be prince over my people Israel, 8 and I have been with you wherever you have gone and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. 9 And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more. And violent men shall waste them no more, as formerly, 10 from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will subdue all your enemies. Moreover, I declare to you that the LORD will build you a house. 11 When your days are fulfilled to walk with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. 12 He shall build a house for me, and I will establish his throne forever. 13 I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. I will not take my steadfast love from him, as I took it from him who was before you, 14 but I will confirm him in my house and in my kingdom forever, and his throne shall be established forever.’ ”.- 1 Chronicles 17:7-14

The Power of the Spoken Word

David had been waiting for the time he would be ruler and fulfill God’s selection as king. Following the reading plan, we, too, have wondered when David would finally be king and persevere through the incredible circumstances since I Samuel 16. It was there that God told Samuel that He was looking at the heart of a man to rule over His people. By the time we come to II Samuel 2, David had to cling to his relationship with God more than any other relationship. No matter the circumstance, God’s word to David and His people still held true, but we also see that the obedience or disobedience of the people in relationship with God influenced the time of fulfillment. Even the oath of a disobedient army commander brought a challenge to God’s will and caused turmoil, chaos, death, and destruction among His people. Loyalty to the choice of the people was placed before the fulfillment of God’s plan.

After Jesus prays for the will of God to be evident not only in Him but in those who follow Him, we read how powerful His words are as He declares in the garden where He is to be betrayed that He is God. He, too, fulfills the greatest promise given to man since the first sin in a garden. In this garden, we witness that man, again, challenges what is the true will of God. Taking matters into their own hands also brings destruction and chaos, but this time, the death that will occur IS the fulfillment of prophecy. God’s will to end eternal separation and bring a way of right relationship as the story of Jesus’ sacrifice begins to unfold.

In both passages we read today, we can learn that our words can hold the power to promote our fear of change and challenge or to promote the fulfillment of the Word of God. Whether the outcome may seem to not make sense, we must ask ourselves, “What are God’s words in the situation?” and “What power will my words hold to bring fulfillment to God’s words?”

* Primer contributed by Gaylyn Mott, Teacher, Musician, Yarn Artist, member of Cornerstone Community Church