Lets have a look at a few images:
What goes through your mind here?
What is your plan? For me the options are call for roadside assistance, call my dad, call my wife or flag someone down.
What about here?
Imagine you have been fired - lost your job. What is the plan now?
Perhaps this is more frightening: If I was faced with this I would want a plan, and preferably I would want the plan 5 minutes ago. When the unexpected happens. When we experience tough moments. When we have impending chaos. We experience many emotions. No doubt. But if we're looking to navigate ourselves out of it all, we have one consistent thought:
What is the PLAN?
We are beginning our new series leading up to Christmas day. But this year, instead of spending allot of time in the New Testament, and the stories surrounding and including the birth of Jesus, we are going to instead explore the backstory to the birth of Jesus -the growing expectation that begun many years before Jesus ever walked the Earth.
And what we want to discover, again and again, is that God has always designed for our human history to be part of a much better story. A true story. A real story. The story of the unfolding work of God Himself. Saving, redeeming, and transforming the world for a coming final day of judgement and renewal of everything.
God, let it be known, has always had a plan for this world, is working His plan for this world, and has throughout history made this plan known to us!
This is our better story!
We will discover how God points to this better story in very particular ways throughout the Old Testament -and in the midst of arguably the highest point of Israel's history. The time of King David of Israel.
King David was one of Israel's greatest King's. He was a leader of constant faith and trust in God; Not perfect, flawed as we all are, but better than most of those before and after him. He was a powerful military leader, with great success on the battlefield; and He brought stability and strength to the nation after an first king who was not nearly as helpful to Israel.
The start of 2 Samuel 7 says allot about King David in his time:
This was time of high confidence in Israel's history; they were seeing the fulfillment of God's promises, and they were enjoying their own land, and great leadership to make it safe, secure, and prosperous.
Seems like Israel was set. Did they need to worry about the future right then and there? This was a time of unrivalled peace and prosperity - why would God seed thoughts of His future plans?
For God, history cannot simply be a matter of human affairs and happenings - the good, the bad, and the ugly. BECAUSE God is committed to being central to this history. Causing His good purposes to unfold in this world. When our times are good, and great, and especially through when our times are hard, seem to be darkening, and hope can be hard to find.
God pointed to a grand future for David's Kingship. A better story is AHEAD! And it would not turn out like any normal human Kingship. Listen to the Lord's words spoken through the mouth of one of the most famous prophets of David's day, Nathan:
Biblical scholars tell us that this prophecy of Nathan's is incredibly significant for both the overall writings of Samuel and all the prophets that would speak from after the time of King David. This piece of prophecy is the longest monologue from God since the times of Moses.
These facts tell us something special -listen closely to what God is saying here. There is something deeply significant, special, and important for us to hear and understand.
What is it?
•God makes a promise to David
•His Kingship set a pattern in place for a future time.
•From David's human linage a King would ultimately come who would "build a house for [God's] name…" and for whom God would establish the Kingly throne "forever."
God was declaring: a plan is now being clearly directed through your line David, that will end in a great King who will make a "forever" Kingdom from a "forever" throne.
This is no mere human kingship being spoken of.
A better Kingdom is coming!
• Isaiah would declare a coming son who would govern as the "Wonderful counselor, Mighty God, everlasting Father, the prince of peace." This is no mere human King.
• Jeremiah would speak of a coming "righteous branch", " a king" whose name would be "The Lord our Righteous Saviour."
• Ezekiel would assure Israel that a future leader was coming to be placed over them as the "one shepherd, my servant David…prince among them…" -and remember, Ezekiel is prophesying 400 years AFTER the life and times of David.
The prophets consistently spoke a coming Kingship, coming after them and their times. That was the plan of God. Of the pattern of David's, but with an eternal, God-like nature.
AND IT GOES FURTHER - The New Testament testifies to Jesus - His birth, life, death, and resurrection. And they tell us that Jesus was this Davidic ancestor. In fact,
In various places in the NT, Jesus is explained to:
• BE the son of David (Matthew 1:1)
• BE the One who would rise from the dead (Acts 2:30)
• BE The builder of the house for God (John 2:19-22)
• BE The possessor of a throne (Hebrews 1:8)
• BE The possessor of an eternal Kingdom (1 Corinthians 15:24-25)
• BE The son of God (Mark 1:1)
• BE The result of a virgin birth (Luke 1:32-35)
ALL OF THIS -points to something wonderful about God. He has a single, focused, plan for this world. His plan is Jesus. King Jesus. Promised through David Jesus. Powerful Jesus. Wonderful Jesus. Humble Jesus. Miraculously born Jesus. Loving Jesus. Saving Jesus. Healing Jesus. Restoring Jesus. Redeeming Jesus.
God's plan for your life is Jesus. God's future for your life is sure in Jesus. God's restoring of the world will be completed through Jesus. God's eternal life, eternal Kingdom, and eternal restoration will fill the world through Jesus.
YOU. HAVE. HOPE.
The strongest hope out there. The strongest story anyone could live and tell!
• No-one can be more secure than you.
• No-one can be more assured that justice will come fully for the world than you.
• No-one can be more confident of ultimate peace for the world than you.
This sounds arrogant. But I'm not saying this just because. It is written into the plan God has for the world. Through Jesus. Hear the strong themes in the prophecy of 2 Samuel 7. The future Kingship, the Kingship of Jesus, would make the people under King Jesus:
And let's be clear - this is not talking of David's time, or David's immediate descendants. Just read the record of the following Kings of Israel. The Kingdom of Israel after David falls into disorder, disunity, and ultimately is taken over by foreign powers.
These promises are referring to the descendant of David's who would bring about an eternal kind of Kingdom.
God was fully intent on bringing about the Kingship of Jesus beyond the failures, breakdowns, and disloyalties that would come immediately after King David's lifetime.
Church we have hope. No matter how good, bad, or ugly out times. There has been, is, and always will be a better story being told! SALVATION, nothing less…has been planned for humanity even through our worst history. In fact, especially through our worst history.
THE KINGDOM OF JESUS -Will bring security, justice, and freedom to all who come under Jesus Lordship. And ultimately, when Jesus returns, to the whole Universe.
AGAIN I SAY -YOU. HAVE. HOPE.
This Christmas. And every Christmas thereafter. And every day in-between Christmases.
So you've just experiencing the costly flat tyre. Just lost your job. In the midst of the chaos of family life. How does the Kingdom plan of Jesus help you?
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