The LORD will make you a house.

 

Friday, July 28, 2023


Psalm 71

2 Samuel 7

John 8:1-11


Observance: Samson, bishop (d. 565)


The LORD will make you a house.


We learn three things from this conversation between David, Nathan and God.


First, it is that we do not invite God into our presence. Rather, God comes alongside us, where we are, hiking through the wilderness. God gets down into the dust with us and puts up a tent. There is a reason why John made so much of this tent language in his first chapter: that the Word became flesh and pitched His tent among us. Whichever part of the Bible we are reading, we see God coming to the people, rather than the people moving towards God. This is of particular comfort when we feel like we haven’t prayed enough, or regularly. We might have been distracted by the dust on our feet, but God has always been there right beside us. We just have to look up.


Second, it is that God’s presence among us is not something to be feared. Have you noticed that, while driving, if a police car is part of the traffic, everyone starts to drive sensibly? That is the fear of the presence of authority. But God is not to be feared like that. A holy fear is a loving respect, not a craven terror. God came to the people living in tents, pitched a tent Himself, and is now going to upgrade their living quarters to a solid house. This is a loving generosity on God’s part towards us. God with us means blessings upon blessings.


Finally, what kind of house is God building? Here in 2 Samuel, it seems like David begins talking about a house made out of wood, but then God responds with using the word house more like a royal lineage, e.g. the House of Windsor. God uses this as a segue into a prophecy about the coming of the Lord Jesus, who is the king in the line of David whose reign will never end. Jesus is the good king, who will protect His people in a land just for them, a peaceful and a happy land. God the Father will love God the Son, and there will people from all over the world adopted into this heavenly family live in this house God has made. And since we are adopted sons and daughters of Father God who live in the house He has made, who will condemn us (Rom 8:33)? Jesus doesn’t (Jn 8:11). This house God has made for us is a happy home in which we shall live forever.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Monday, September 12, 2022

  Monday, September 12, 2022 Psalm 33 Habakkuk 1:1-11 Ephesians 1:1-14 In Christ we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he lavished on us. The lectionary has taken us from the beloved disciple to one of the most beloved of Paul's epistles: Ephesians. Paul must have loved this church very much: we get a sense of his fondness for them and their shared sense of purpose and worship just from the introduction. In what is likely just an introduction to a letter in the style of the ancient Roman world, Paul has managed to squeeze in the entire, wondrous story of God's work of redemption. Paul has framed it the way it ought to be framed: in a pastoral, encouraging tone. He has three main points here (remember, Paul proceeds logically to build up an argument, unlike John who circles around his main point). First: God intended to save us before the world was formed. Think back to the first l
Read more

“Short time or long – I pray to God not only you but all who are listening become like I am, except for these chains.”

  Monday, September 11, 2023 Psalms 28; 29 1 Kings 7:51-8:21 Acts 26:19-32 Observance: Deiniol, bishop (d. 384) “ Short time or long – I pray to God not only you but all who are listening become like I am, except for these chains.” The great many blessings of being under the protection of the blood of the Lamb fill our hearts with joy and peace. To have the Almighty Creator of the universe, the One who sits above the flood, filling the temple of our being with the cloud of His presence is what it truly means to be human. Every day is filled with adventure; every night turns to the rest of the victor. Certainly there are chains: sometimes they are physical chains, the suffering of being a Christian among people who do not love the Lord. Sometimes they are spiritual; the attacks of the powers of the air who try to distract us from the One we love. But they always fall away. Our Rock of Ages always frees us; always brings us out of the pit of despair. A won
Read more

Monday, September 19

  Monday, September 19 Psalm 45 Nahum 1:15-2:9 Ephesians 4:17-28 ...be renewed in the spirit of your minds... It is far too easy to read some of these Pauline lists of virtues and vices and feel like we have gone back to the dark days before the Reformation. The idea that if we behave ourselves then we can call ourselves “good people” is pagan, not Christian. Paul feels very strongly about how Christians behave, he “affirms and insists” upon it. But it is because of what has already happened that we should mind our step, not because of where we are going. Christ's resurrection is many things, but one aspect relevant for Paul's teaching this morning is that it demonstrates to us the radical new reality in which we now live. We too have passed (spiritually) from death to life; therefore, we experience a “renewal of our minds”. Instead of treading water until we die, we live lives. Everything now makes sense: God has spoken, so we have logic. God made us in His im
Read more