Hello, my ‘Walking with Jesus’ friends,
Funding of big projects is part of life both for individuals or families, as well as organizations or even governments. It’s likely you’ve been part of funding at least one big project during your lifetime. Let’s rejoin one of the great ‘defining moments’ in the history of the nation of Israel as King David is completing his great speech to all the officials and leaders of Israel near the end of his reign. David is an old man, and the time has come to pass the throne to his successor.
But this speech is more than a retirement speech, with this speech David is actually calling the leaders of Israel to join together in constructing a magnificent Temple for the God of Israel. David knows he will likely never see the completed Temple, but he wants to be sure he launches this project with his full enthusiasm and support. Also, with this speech, as we’ve seen the past two days, King David is announcing that Almighty God has chosen his family to begin a God anointed Monarchy as the leadership for the nation of Israel for generations to come. And King David has announced that God has selected his son Solomon to ascend to the throne of Israel. (1 Chronicles 28)
Yesterday we witnessed King David challenging all the assembled leaders, and his son Solomon, to prioritize the construction of this great palatial Temple structure. It was to be constructed in Jerusalem, on the top of Mount Moriah where Abraham had brought his son Isaac more than 1000 years before. (Genesis 22)
David claimed he had received the building plans, and all the details for the fabrication of all the artifacts for worship, directly from the Holy Spirit of God. (1 Chronicles 28:12) There was great excitement in this vast throng of leaders, and it’s fair to assume Solomon was overwhelmed at the thought of following his father David on the throne of Israel and then taking responsibility for this massive project of building a Temple for God!
King David proclaimed: “With all my resources I have provided for this great Temple of my God…” (1 Chronicles 29:2) Solomon and the officials and leaders knew it was true, for David had been leading a massive ingathering project of all types of materials which would be needed and a small army of skilled workmen and women.
But then King David did something quite unexpected in this ‘defining moment’ speech. David proclaimed: “Besides, in my devotion to the Temple of my God I now give my personal treasures of gold and silver for the Temple of my God, over and above everything I have provided for this holy temple…” (1 Chron. 29:3,4)
All those leaders listening to King David were familiar with how leaders of other nations imposed taxes on the people to provide for great projects, but on this day, David was proclaiming a very different approach to funding this project of God’s Temple. Do you notice David was following the pattern of Moses and those rescued Hebrew slaves at Mount Sinai when God gave Moses the design and construction plans for the Tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant and all the other artifacts for the Tabernacle?
Exodus 25 tells us God had given Moses a special plan for the resourcing needed for that Tabernacle of worship: “The LORD said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites to bring Me an offering. You are to receive the offering for Me from each man whose heart prompts him to give… Then have them make a sanctuary for Me and I will dwell among them.” (Ex. 25:1,2,8)
Do you see it my friends? God’s promise to ‘dwell among His people’, and God’s request that it would be those who have willing hearts who would give of what they have to build this sanctuary for God to be with His people? Of course, those with Moses at the mountain were slaves who had escaped Egypt, and yet do you remember God had urged them to ask the Egyptians for gifts as they fled Egypt, and the Egyptians were so anxious to see the Hebrew slaves leave, due to the plagues, that they loaded the slaves down with gifts.
In fact, the Exodus record uses this phrase to describe this phenomenon: “The LORD had made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the Israelites and they gave them what they asked for; so, they plundered the Egyptians.” (Ex. 12:36) It was from this bounty that those Hebrew slaves gave generously for the construction of that first Tabernacle in the desert.
Now, nearly 500 years later, David was led by God to follow the same pattern, as he invited the officials and leaders of Israel to give generously and with willing hearts, following his lead, as he gave very generously from his personal resources. David challenged the leaders with this statement: “Now, who is willing to consecrate himself today to the LORD?” Do you notice that King David is calling his leaders to recognize that this is not any ordinary fund-raising project. This is giving to a project designed by God Himself!
The record tells us what happened: “Then the leaders and officers…gave willingly toward the work on the Temple of God. The people rejoiced at the willing response of their leaders, for they had given freely and wholeheartedly to the LORD. David the king also rejoiced greatly. David praised the LORD in the presence of the whole assembly…” Generosity is contagious isn’t it my friends, especially generosity with great joy and celebration! That’s what was happening here in Jerusalem on this remarkable day, for this great, voluntary, ingathering of precious resources for the construction of the Temple had not been experienced like this since the days of Moses, 500 years before!
Have you ever been part of a great, God given project such as this? I have, several times, and when you are confident your resources are being used to accomplish a God designed project it’s very exciting isn’t it my friends? King David wanted the leaders of Israel to understand that this Temple project was not simply another grandiose construction project in an attempt to build a king’s legacy, oh no! This was a God assigned project which would not bear the name of any human being nor be dedicated to any human leader. This would be a Temple constructed for the honor and glory and worship of the God of Israel!
And so right in the middle of David’s speech he broke into praise and worship of God: “Praise be to You, O LORD, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Yours, O LORD is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor for everything in heaven and on earth is Yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom. You are exalted as Head over all… Now our God, we give You thanks, and praise. We praise Your glorious name!” (1 Chronicles 29:10-13)
I think this might be a great place for us to pause as we look out over this great throng of Israelite leaders contemplating what God is calling them to do as they lead the nation in rallying behind King David’s vision of constructing a magnificent Temple to which the people of Israel will come worship Almighty God for many future generations. May I ask, what are you and I involved in which will assemble our children and grandchildren and the generations yet unborn, to worship and praise Almighty God, even long after our lives are ended?
Think about that as we worship, with this new song by Charity Gayle I just discovered… and we’ll come back here tomorrow as we continue in this great ‘defining moment’ with King David and the leaders of Israel.
Today’s Scripture: 1 Chronicles 29:1-13.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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