King David returns to Jerusalem with a less than enthusiastic reception yet his compassion and mercy appear to remain. The historical account of David’s reign winds down with his kingdom restless and divided, the sword ever present, yet God still faithfully working to fulfill his promises.
Read the Bible Text – 2 Samuel 19:9-20:26
– Ben Smith
Inspired by Acts 15:1-21…
We had an issue! It was obvious that if we didn’t do something about it our church family would be divided.
It was such an exciting time for us being a new church. As we talked about Jesus, so many people put their trust in him – and people from all kinds of backgrounds.
Through the twists and turns that has become the norm in King David’s household we see God painfully faithful to his word. His judgment remains on David’s house as Absalom rebels and David flees. Yet it is God who remains on the throne, and preserves David’s place on it, frustrating the usurpers, protecting his king and removing those who defy him.
In the ups and downs that we know in life, who calls the shots? How do you benefit by trusting God in the good and the bad?
Read the Bible Text – 2 Samuel 14:45-19:8
– Ken Noakes
Love, Truth and Obedience are three Christian values that together define Christian Love. Christian love, is love where truth is valued. Christian truth tells us how to obey. Christian obedience demonstrates true love.
In the previous posts from this series we have looked at each.
What happens if you corrupt any one of those values?
In this sermon we see that Human depravity reaches further into David’s offspring reaping rape, deadly revenge and inept leadership so that the throne of the Lord’s anointed is under threat from within its very own heart, despite appearances.
Read the Bible Text – 2 Samuel 13-14
– Josh Ord
What is love that is pleasing first to God? It has something to do with obedience in the context of truth. We have considered ‘Love’ (Part 3 of this series) and ‘Truth’ (Part 4 of this series), so this time let’s focus on ‘Obedience’.
Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him. And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him, and he in them (1 John 3:21-24)
A love that is pleasing to God is a love that obediently follows his commands.
In this sermon you will hear about how King David, high on worldly success and power and secure in his earthly position, demonstrates the all-pervading reaches of human depravity as he defies God’s law, defiles his marriage bed, deceives and destroys others. Yet in awesome contrast, God prefigures and demonstrates his judgement, grace and everlasting love, even through the death of a son.
Read the Bible Text – 2 Samuel 11-12
– Ken Noakes
What does it look like for Christians to love the other? It has something to do with that which is true and something to do with obedience. We considered ‘Love’ last time (Part 3 of this series), so this time let’s focus on ‘Truth’.
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. (1 John 3:16-20)
Without love, truth will not be valued. Without truth, it is difficult to know how to obey. Without obedience, it is impossible to demonstrate true love.
To understand Love, it will help to understand how it is integrally connected to Truth and to Obedience, such that you cannot separate the three. These three ideas intersect with one another at almost every point.
Taking our lead from the letter of 1 John, we have looked at Perfect Love (Part 2 of this series). We turn our attention now to the relationships between Love, Truth and Obedience.
Let’s consider ‘Love’.
In the sermon King David demonstrates how to be successful as a king in Israel by obeying God fully. He humbly and lavishly celebrates the presence of God as he brings the ark into the new capital of Israel. Yet it is God who will bless David through his promise to build his “house” into an everlasting kingship bringing blessing to his people. David’s ensuing strength, wisdom and justice give prompt testimony to the faithfulness of God’s promises.
Read the Bible Text – 2 Samuel 7
– Dave Swan
