What makes a person willing to offer himself to God?

The King and His Death

(1 Chronicles 29, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, May 27, 2018)

[1] And David the king said to all the assembly, “Solomon my son, whom alone God has chosen, is young and inexperienced, and the work is great, for the palace will not be for man but for the LORD God. [2] So I have provided for the house of my God, so far as I was able, the gold for the things of gold, the silver for the things of silver, and the bronze for the things of bronze, the iron for the things of iron, and wood for the things of wood, besides great quantities of onyx and stones for setting, antimony, colored stones, all sorts of precious stones and marble. [3] Moreover, in addition to all that I have provided for the holy house, I have a treasure of my own of gold and silver, and because of my devotion to the house of my God I give it to the house of my God: [4] 3,000 talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and 7,000 talents of refined silver, for overlaying the walls of the house, [5] and for all the work to be done by craftsmen, gold for the things of gold and silver for the things of silver. Who then will offer willingly, consecrating himself today to the LORD?” [6] Then the leaders of fathers' houses made their freewill offerings, as did also the leaders of the tribes, the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and the officers over the king's work. [7] They gave for the service of the house of God 5,000 talents and 10,000 darics of gold, 10,000 talents of silver, 18,000 talents of bronze and 100,000 talents of iron. [8] And whoever had precious stones gave them to the treasury of the house of the LORD, in the care of Jehiel the Gershonite. [9] Then the people rejoiced because they had given willingly, for with a whole heart they had offered freely to the LORD. David the king also rejoiced greatly.

[10] Therefore David blessed the LORD in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are you, O LORD, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. [11] Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all. [12] Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. [13] And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name.

[14] “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. [15] For we are strangers before you and sojourners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no abiding. [16] O LORD our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a house for your holy name comes from your hand and is all your own. [17] I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. In the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you. [18] O LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep forever such purposes and thoughts in the hearts of your people, and direct their hearts toward you. [19] Grant to Solomon my son a whole heart that he may keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, performing all, and that he may build the palace for which I have made provision.”

[20] Then David said to all the assembly, “Bless the LORD your God.” And all the assembly blessed the LORD, the God of their fathers, and bowed their heads and paid homage to the LORD and to the king. [21] And they offered sacrifices to the LORD, and on the next day offered burnt offerings to the LORD, 1,000 bulls, 1,000 rams, and 1,000 lambs, with their drink offerings, and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel. [22] And they ate and drank before the LORD on that day with great gladness.

And they made Solomon the son of David king the second time, and they anointed him as prince for the LORD, and Zadok as priest. [23] Then Solomon sat on the throne of the LORD as king in place of David his father. And he prospered, and all Israel obeyed him. [24] All the leaders and the mighty men, and also all the sons of King David, pledged their allegiance to King Solomon. [25] And the LORD made Solomon very great in the sight of all Israel and bestowed on him such royal majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel.

[26] Thus David the son of Jesse reigned over all Israel. [27] The time that he reigned over Israel was forty years. He reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. [28] Then he died at a good age, full of days, riches, and honor. And Solomon his son reigned in his place. [29] Now the acts of King David, from first to last, are written in the Chronicles of Samuel the seer, and in the Chronicles of Nathan the prophet, and in the Chronicles of Gad the seer, [30] with accounts of all his rule and his might and of the circumstances that came upon him and upon Israel and upon all the kingdoms of the countries.

At the End of an Era: David and the people offered willingly

The end of David's reign drew near. He had given a solemn charge to his son and to the leaders of Israel looking forward to the great project ahead of them, the building of the Lord's temple. Above all, the king called Solomon and the other leaders to a life of obedience to God's commandments.

The king admitted to the assembled leaders that Solomon was young and inexperienced. He would need help from God and men. David had done what he could for the building of a house for the Lord God. Now he called on others to give of themselves and of their substance. They were to give willingly and not out of compulsion. This was their opportunity to consecrate themselves to the service of the Lord.

The good response of the leaders was cause for much rejoicing. They celebrated together, but not as a matter of self-congratulation for their generosity. They knew that the Lord had done it all. They rejoiced in Him. They said something in verse 11 that people have said for centuries since: “Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty.” The kingdom of Israel was God's kingdom. The One who made the heavens and the earth was the worthy recipient of all the praise of His people. He was the Ruler over all. The people were delighted to give Him thanks.

At the Beginning of a New World: Jesus gave Himself willingly and lives on

David and the men who were with him understood that their mortal lives on this earth were brief. They knew that anything of lasting worth came from God. Whether the people brought abundant riches or gave the exceptional uprightness of excellent character to the Lord, God was the Source of these good gifts. They thanked Him and gave Him praise. Jerusalem rang with the joy of honest worship. Before long, Solomon sat on his father's throne and David had lived to see the day. Soon after that great moment, David's time on earth came to an end. He had his forty years of strife and victory as Israel's king. He died at a good old age and Solomon reigned in his place.

It would not have been right for the people to worship David or to gather in assembly to give praise to Solomon. David and Solomon were great men, but they were not gods. They humbled themselves before the Almighty. The greatest leader of the Jews would be different from David or Solomon. He would be fully man and fully God. He was willing to receive the worship of His disciples. If the children had not cried out “Hosanna” to Him, the very stones on the streets would have declared His praise. In His divine nature, Jesus was not young and inexperienced. He did not need to ask others for gold and silver in order to accomplish His mission. He is God above all and our great King forever. “Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15).

God taught us about the coming of His Son through many great men in the Old Testament who prepared the way for Jesus. All of these leaders died, even the amazing David. As Peter said about David in Acts 2:29, “His tomb is with us to this day.” Something different happened with Jesus. Because He is resurrected and still lives, His grave is forever empty. At just the right time Christ will return with a kingdom that will never end. He needs no succession plan.

Sermon Point: Our King lives forever. It is our privilege to give willingly and to live eternally.

Old Testament Reading—Psalm 59 – God rules over Jacob to the ends of the earth

Gospel Reading—John 21:20-25 – The Amazing Jesus