Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Adult Sunday School Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/bb/bb20061119.htm

1 AND 2 CHRONICLES: GAINING DIRECTION OUT OF THE AIMLESSNESS OF APOSTASY
Part II: Gaining Direction From God's Work In The Reign Of David, 1 Chronicles 10-29
F. Yielding To God's Agenda For Us To Exalt His Glory
(1 Chronicles 17:1-27)
  1. Introduction
    1. Any believer who wants to exalt God's glory in his life needs to yield to God's agenda for his life, even and especially if that agenda does not match the agenda he might have initially had in mind!
    2. This lesson is wonderfully illustrated in David's experience in 1 Chronicles 17 (as follows):
  2. Yielding To God's Agenda For Us To Exalt His Glory, 1 Chronicles 17:1-27.
    1. After David had been crowned king of Israel (1 Chronicles 11:3) and had correctly followed Scripture in bringing up the ark of God to a special tent in Jerusalem (1 Chronicles 15:1-16:43), he realized he was living in an ornate palace of rich cedar wood in contrast to God's ark that dwelt in a tent, 1 Chron. 17:1.
    2. To David, it seemed unfitting for him as God's subordinate to dwell in a humanly finer dwelling than did the God of heaven and earth, so he spoke to Nathan the prophet about this concern, 1 Chronicles 17:1.
    3. Nathan replied that David should do all that was in his heart, for God was with him, 1 Chron. 17:2. This meant that David's motives concerning this plan were wholesome.
    4. However, though David's motives had been condoned by God's prophet, his agenda did not match the agenda God HIMSELF had FOR David, so God quickly intervened to clarify this, 1 Chronicles 17:3-15:
      1. The very night after David's discussion with Nathan, the Lord appeared to His prophet with a message for him to give to David, or a message for both men, 1 Chronicles 17:3.
      2. That message revealed God had His own and a different agenda for David's life (as follows):
        1. The Lord told Nathan to tell David that he was NOT to build Him a temple, 1 Chronicles 17:4!
        2. The initial reason God gave for this different agenda was that God Himself had never felt slighted at His ark's being placed in a tent, for since the days of Moses on down through the era of the judges, God Himself had never hinted that He was dissatisfied for not living in a palace of cedars; since it was God's feelings that were to be ultimately considered versus David's, there was no need for David to build a temple for the Lord, 1 Chronicles 17:6!
        3. Second, God revealed that He had ordered David's life to be a showcase of His grace toward David, not of David's agenda to achieve his own plans for God regardless how good were David's motives: (1) God reminded Nathan and David that He had raised David up from being a lowly shepherd to become a great man, and to defeat his many enemies en route, 1 Chron. 17:7-8. (2) God revealed He was the One Who would establish Israel by subduing all of David's enemies so that Israel would no longer be oppressed by Gentile nations as in the era of the judges, 17:9-10a. (3) Thus, since God was sovereign in David's life, God would be glorified in his life, and achieve His OWN agenda FOR David rather than letting David set his own agenda for his ministry unto God.
        4. Third, God revealed that, to reveal His sovereignty, He would cause David's son after him to build a temple for God rather than assign David to build it, 1 Chronicles 17:10b-12.
        5. Fourth, the Lord revealed He would establish David's line forever, 17:13-14. This would glorify God as it would be done after David's death when only God and not David could achieve it!
    5. Deeply moved by God's message, David worshiped God and yielded to God's agenda for him, 17:15-27:
      1. When David heard Nathan's message from the Lord, he entered God's tent, sat down to signify we was a lowly subject to God, and glorified God for His great grace unto him, 1 Chronicles 17:15-16.
      2. David then expressed awe at the great plan God had to establish his line after him, 1 Chron. 17:17-19.
      3. He also esteemed God's greatness and His gracious exaltation of Israel as a people, 17:20, 21-22.
      4. Accordingly, David yielded to God's agenda for his life, urging the Lord to fulfill it, 17:23-27.
Lesson: Though David with all good intent had an agenda for God, God's agenda FOR David did not permit him to implement his own agenda so that God's SOVEREIGN GRACE could be seen in David's life by what GOD had arranged FOR David to DO, and for GOD to produce BY USE OF David's life.

Application: May we believers yield to the will of GOD FOR us RATHER THAN set our OWN agenda, for our lives are not to be lived for ourselves, but for the Lord and for His glory, 2 Corinthians 5:15!