WEBVTT 00:00:00.560 --> 00:00:04.719 2 Samuel chapter 4 is what we're going to be reading. Jen's going to come and read it for us. 00:00:04.900 --> 00:00:06.320 2 Samuel chapter 4. 00:00:07.100 --> 00:00:15.560 When Ish-bosh-sef, son of Saul, heard that Abner had died in Hebron, he lost courage and all Israel became alarmed. 00:00:16.359 --> 00:00:21.359 Now Saul's son had two men who were leaders of raiding bands. 00:00:22.000 --> 00:00:25.359 One was named Benem and the other Rechab. 00:00:25.359 --> 00:00:30.359 There were sons of Rimon, the Berothite, from the tribe of Benjamin. 00:00:31.320 --> 00:00:44.039 Beroth is considered part of Benjamin because the people of Beroth fled to Gideon and have resided there as foreigners to this day. 00:00:44.920 --> 00:00:49.060 Jonathan, son of Saul, had a son who was lame in both feet. 00:00:49.060 --> 00:00:54.859 He was five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel. 00:00:54.859 --> 00:00:57.920 His nurse picked him up and fled. 00:00:58.679 --> 00:01:02.399 But as she hurried to leave, he fell and became disabled. 00:01:03.100 --> 00:01:04.819 His name was Mephibosheth. 00:01:05.760 --> 00:01:13.299 Now Rechab and Berner, the sons of Vimon of Berothite, set out for the house of Ish-bosheth. 00:01:13.780 --> 00:01:18.460 And they arrived there in the heat of the day while he was taking his noonday rest. 00:01:18.459 --> 00:01:25.079 They went into the inner part of the house as to get some wheat, and they stabbed him in the stomach. 00:01:25.780 --> 00:01:29.000 Then Rechab and his brother Berner slipped away. 00:01:29.759 --> 00:01:34.699 They had gone into the house while he was lying on the bed in his bedroom. 00:01:35.619 --> 00:01:39.060 After they stabbed and killed him, they cut off his head. 00:01:39.639 --> 00:01:43.719 Taking it with them, they traveled all night by way of the Arabah. 00:01:43.719 --> 00:01:49.060 They brought the head of Ish-bosheth to David at Hebron and said to the king, 00:01:49.760 --> 00:01:54.340 Here is the head of Ish-bosheth, son of Saul, your enemy, who tried to kill you. 00:01:54.859 --> 00:01:59.640 This day the Lord has avenged my lord, the king against Saul and his offspring. 00:02:00.799 --> 00:02:06.060 David answered Rechab and his brother Berner, the son of Rebom of Berethoth, 00:02:06.060 --> 00:02:11.099 As surely as the Lord lives, who has delivered me out of every trouble. 00:02:11.699 --> 00:02:16.520 When someone told me Saul is dead and thought he was bringing good news, 00:02:16.939 --> 00:02:19.860 I seized him and put him to death in Ziklag. 00:02:20.599 --> 00:02:23.180 That was the reward I gave him for his news. 00:02:24.060 --> 00:02:30.640 How much more, when wicked men have killed an innocent man in his own house and on his own bed, 00:02:30.639 --> 00:02:36.739 should I not now demand his blood from your hand and rid the earth of you? 00:02:38.379 --> 00:02:42.659 So David gave an order to his men and they killed him. 00:02:43.199 --> 00:02:49.439 They cut off their hands and feet and hung the bodies by the pool in Hebron. 00:02:49.959 --> 00:02:55.519 But they took the head of Ish-bosheth and buried it in Abner's tomb at Hebron. 00:02:55.919 --> 00:02:56.279 Amen. 00:02:56.280 --> 00:03:01.020 Thanks so much, Jen. That's great. 00:03:02.020 --> 00:03:04.080 Well, keep that passage open in front of you. 00:03:04.159 --> 00:03:06.020 We're going to have a look at it in a moment. 00:03:06.139 --> 00:03:10.479 But before we get stuck into the passage, I want, if I can, just to say to you a few words 00:03:10.479 --> 00:03:16.439 about how we go about understanding Old Testament stories like the one that we've just read. 00:03:17.460 --> 00:03:20.520 We are here as disciples of Jesus Christ, 00:03:20.520 --> 00:03:26.460 believing that the Bible is not just a kind of interesting record of some things that happened in history, 00:03:26.460 --> 00:03:30.520 but that the Bible is the way that God speaks to us. 00:03:31.180 --> 00:03:35.260 The Bible is the place in which we engage with God. 00:03:35.360 --> 00:03:39.500 And by his spirit, he speaks to us, changes us and transforms us. 00:03:39.500 --> 00:03:44.520 So it's really important, isn't it, in these moments as we gather together as a church with the Bible open, 00:03:44.599 --> 00:03:48.860 that we are working hard to understand what this says carefully and thoughtfully. 00:03:49.219 --> 00:03:51.020 And that's important on your own as well. 00:03:51.560 --> 00:03:55.560 If you're a Christian this morning and you're not spending time in God's word, 00:03:55.659 --> 00:03:58.340 you are, if you like, blocking your ears to God's voice, 00:03:58.379 --> 00:04:01.659 because God speaks through his word as we open it together. 00:04:01.759 --> 00:04:03.060 And we want to be careful listeners. 00:04:03.060 --> 00:04:08.439 Now, I think that when it comes to Old Testament stories like the one that we have just read, 00:04:08.900 --> 00:04:13.219 our temptation, if you like, is to read it like a moral example, 00:04:13.420 --> 00:04:17.780 as if we're trying to use it to look for someone good that we can follow. 00:04:18.060 --> 00:04:20.939 You know, so, ah, you know, I want to be like them. 00:04:21.040 --> 00:04:22.519 That's who I want to be. 00:04:23.279 --> 00:04:27.699 But let me suggest to you that that's not a very good way of reading the Old Testament. 00:04:27.959 --> 00:04:29.959 And let me tell you that for two reasons. 00:04:30.180 --> 00:04:32.120 One of them is really clear in this passage. 00:04:32.120 --> 00:04:36.720 The first reason it's not a good idea to read the Old Testament looking for a moral example, 00:04:36.840 --> 00:04:38.379 someone who are, oh, yeah, I want to be like them, 00:04:38.860 --> 00:04:41.579 is because actually when you read the Old Testament, 00:04:41.780 --> 00:04:46.120 there aren't really that many people who you would really want to be like, yeah? 00:04:46.780 --> 00:04:51.980 Our story here is a pretty good example, isn't it, of that case. 00:04:52.819 --> 00:04:55.139 I mean, there are some exceptions in the Bible, 00:04:55.139 --> 00:05:00.120 but on the whole, the heroes of the Old Testament are rogues, flawed men and women. 00:05:00.120 --> 00:05:03.899 David himself is a good example of that guy who starts out really well, 00:05:03.959 --> 00:05:06.340 and we'll be finding that in the beginning of 2 Samuel. 00:05:06.420 --> 00:05:08.519 But when you get towards the end of the story, 00:05:08.579 --> 00:05:11.439 you find that he kills a man in order to get his wife. 00:05:12.220 --> 00:05:14.680 So if you look for moral examples as you read the Bible, 00:05:14.879 --> 00:05:16.199 as you read the Old Testament stories, 00:05:16.540 --> 00:05:23.340 what you end up doing really is just making up your own ideas of what you would like to be like. 00:05:23.339 --> 00:05:30.239 But the second reason why looking in the Bible just for moral examples is a bad idea is because of this, 00:05:30.659 --> 00:05:34.599 and that is that you and I don't really need moral examples, 00:05:34.599 --> 00:05:38.579 because our problem is not an absence of moral examples. 00:05:39.120 --> 00:05:45.979 Our problem is that we need a saviour and a rescuer for being immoral, yeah? 00:05:46.519 --> 00:05:47.719 For disobeying God. 00:05:47.720 --> 00:05:54.140 Our big problem in life is that we have sinful hearts that are unable to obey God and love God and live for him. 00:05:54.960 --> 00:05:57.820 You know, the point of 2 Samuel is not so much read it and go, 00:05:58.300 --> 00:05:59.280 I want to be like David. 00:05:59.640 --> 00:06:00.720 It's not so much that. 00:06:01.460 --> 00:06:03.100 You're supposed to read 2 Samuel and go, 00:06:03.900 --> 00:06:05.180 I want David's God. 00:06:06.080 --> 00:06:07.460 I want David's saviour. 00:06:08.160 --> 00:06:10.560 I want to know God like David knew God. 00:06:10.620 --> 00:06:12.860 I want the forgiveness that David experienced. 00:06:13.860 --> 00:06:16.780 I want to see how God is at work like David saw. 00:06:16.779 --> 00:06:19.919 I want to see how God rules and reigns and saves and rescues. 00:06:20.239 --> 00:06:24.939 I want to see how God deals with moral failures and losers like David and like me. 00:06:25.939 --> 00:06:28.139 Not just looking for a hero or a saint. 00:06:29.479 --> 00:06:32.459 And this is really important then for how we understand the book of 2 Samuel. 00:06:32.599 --> 00:06:33.579 So listen up to this, 00:06:33.659 --> 00:06:37.539 because I think there are a number of different ways that the Old Testament does this. 00:06:37.619 --> 00:06:40.819 But one particular one that I want to draw your attention to is this. 00:06:40.819 --> 00:06:47.699 Is the Old Testament points us to knowing God and a saviour by giving us types. 00:06:48.740 --> 00:06:49.259 Types. 00:06:49.779 --> 00:06:54.100 Or if you like, foreshadows or mini pictures of the whole thing. 00:06:54.339 --> 00:06:56.459 Or models of the saviour. 00:06:56.620 --> 00:06:58.740 Or signposts to the saviour. 00:06:59.500 --> 00:07:01.779 Now these types aren't perfect. 00:07:01.959 --> 00:07:03.779 They don't have to be because they're not the real thing. 00:07:03.860 --> 00:07:06.100 They're just the signposts to the real thing. 00:07:06.159 --> 00:07:08.939 They're just a type of the real thing that's still to come. 00:07:08.939 --> 00:07:13.019 But as people who know Jesus, because we read the whole Bible, right? 00:07:13.079 --> 00:07:15.560 So we know the end of the story. 00:07:15.719 --> 00:07:17.759 We know the coming of Jesus Christ. 00:07:18.060 --> 00:07:24.420 Actually, we read in the Old Testament and see how it points us forward in types to the coming Jesus. 00:07:25.839 --> 00:07:27.220 Now one last little bit of detail. 00:07:27.339 --> 00:07:31.079 I think there are three main types in the Old Testament. 00:07:31.480 --> 00:07:35.019 Or three big signposts to the Lord Jesus. 00:07:35.019 --> 00:07:39.159 Based around three different jobs that are given to Old Testament characters. 00:07:39.779 --> 00:07:43.139 And they are prophet, priest and king. 00:07:43.639 --> 00:07:44.819 Prophet, priest and king. 00:07:45.379 --> 00:07:47.519 God's people in the Old Testament have prophets. 00:07:47.699 --> 00:07:51.419 People like Elijah or Isaiah or Ezekiel or Malachi. 00:07:51.899 --> 00:07:55.079 And their role is to speak on behalf of God. 00:07:55.599 --> 00:07:58.779 The prophet is to speak God's words. 00:07:59.259 --> 00:08:00.539 They speak on behalf of the Lord. 00:08:00.680 --> 00:08:02.000 Thus says the Lord, they say. 00:08:02.099 --> 00:08:03.279 And people are to listen. 00:08:03.279 --> 00:08:08.239 Then we have the priests, those who provide sacrifices to deal with sin. 00:08:08.799 --> 00:08:11.199 People like Aaron and Eleazar and Eli. 00:08:12.159 --> 00:08:16.799 People working in the temple to provide the forgiveness of sins through the sacrificial system. 00:08:17.379 --> 00:08:19.219 And then there are the kings. 00:08:19.739 --> 00:08:23.239 Those people who rule and reign over God's people. 00:08:23.799 --> 00:08:26.500 People like Saul and David and Solomon. 00:08:26.500 --> 00:08:34.639 And in the New Testament, as we read the New Testament, what we find is that Jesus becomes the prophet, the priest and the king. 00:08:34.639 --> 00:08:39.220 So Jesus is the one who comes and doesn't just say, thus says the Lord. 00:08:39.500 --> 00:08:41.340 He says, I am the Lord. 00:08:41.519 --> 00:08:43.819 I am the word, he says. 00:08:44.279 --> 00:08:47.199 He comes not just really as the priest working in the temple. 00:08:47.480 --> 00:08:51.819 He becomes both the priest, the sacrifice and the temple, doesn't he? 00:08:52.159 --> 00:08:53.899 As he provides forgiveness for sins. 00:08:54.100 --> 00:08:58.059 And he becomes the king of God's people as he rules and reigns. 00:08:58.059 --> 00:09:00.139 Jesus, I've come bringing a kingdom. 00:09:00.899 --> 00:09:02.939 The kingdom of God is at hand, he says. 00:09:04.000 --> 00:09:12.199 And so as we read the Old Testament and you read to Samuel, what we are seeing is being pointed forward to Jesus in the area of these types. 00:09:12.200 --> 00:09:20.420 So as we look at King David, he's not an example to follow so much as he is a signpost to Jesus, a type of Jesus. 00:09:21.320 --> 00:09:25.780 Sometimes David is a really brilliant, clear signpost. 00:09:25.940 --> 00:09:31.400 And sometimes is he a battered, bruised, pointing in the wrong direction kind of signpost. 00:09:31.879 --> 00:09:35.240 But all the time he is a type of what is to come. 00:09:36.200 --> 00:09:37.759 Now, one last bit of introduction. 00:09:37.759 --> 00:09:42.360 I want to say that this is brilliant. 00:09:42.720 --> 00:09:45.480 It is brilliant that the Bible is like this. 00:09:46.580 --> 00:09:51.019 You know, I know that you might be thinking, oh, my goodness, Steve, this is making this all very complicated. 00:09:51.159 --> 00:09:54.080 I've got to think of prophets, priests and kings when I understand the Old Testament. 00:09:54.220 --> 00:09:55.340 I'm not looking for moral examples. 00:09:55.340 --> 00:09:57.080 I'm looking for something that points me to Jesus. 00:09:57.639 --> 00:09:59.500 Maybe you think, oh, that all sounds very complicated. 00:09:59.939 --> 00:10:01.500 But I don't think it is. 00:10:01.559 --> 00:10:02.679 It's brilliant, this. 00:10:02.679 --> 00:10:08.399 It's brilliant to understand the Bible like this because it is full of joy and hope. 00:10:08.799 --> 00:10:15.919 It's a message of grace and glory as we see more clearly Jesus in the Old Testament and in the New Testament. 00:10:16.979 --> 00:10:21.919 You know, it means, doesn't it, as you read the Bible, you don't go away going, must try harder, Steve. 00:10:22.419 --> 00:10:24.759 Must try harder to save myself. 00:10:24.939 --> 00:10:27.159 Must try harder to be a moral good person. 00:10:27.159 --> 00:10:33.639 Instead, I go away going, wow, Jesus saves people like me. 00:10:34.740 --> 00:10:37.059 Jesus saves people like me. 00:10:37.500 --> 00:10:38.639 What great news. 00:10:38.819 --> 00:10:39.819 I belong to him. 00:10:39.959 --> 00:10:43.100 He is my king, a better king than David. 00:10:44.319 --> 00:10:46.360 I'm in his kingdom and I belong to him. 00:10:46.919 --> 00:10:50.139 So with that in mind, let's have a look at this passage from 2 Samuel chapter 4. 00:10:50.240 --> 00:10:53.439 And I'm going to start by making sure that the story is straight in our mind. 00:10:53.439 --> 00:10:56.939 So look down at your Bibles and let's work through it together. 00:10:58.059 --> 00:11:02.360 Our passage this morning starts with a terrified King Ish-bosheth. 00:11:03.199 --> 00:11:06.620 Ish-bosheth, if you remember him, is king of the northern tribes. 00:11:07.079 --> 00:11:08.939 But his father Saul is dead. 00:11:09.039 --> 00:11:10.339 His brother Jonathan is dead. 00:11:10.419 --> 00:11:12.639 The commander of his army is dead. 00:11:12.719 --> 00:11:16.079 And I'm guessing that Ish-bosheth is beginning to see a pattern. 00:11:16.080 --> 00:11:26.440 And so despite his horror and dismay in verse 1, when you actually find him in verse 5, Ish-bosheth is taking a nap. 00:11:27.440 --> 00:11:33.420 Now taking a nap in the middle of the day is not really a great idea, especially if you happen to be in a class at school or at work. 00:11:33.700 --> 00:11:37.740 But the writer is not making a point to us about the laziness of Ish-bosheth. 00:11:37.740 --> 00:11:41.440 Instead, he's trying to say to us that he is vulnerable. 00:11:42.340 --> 00:11:50.419 In the Greek edition of the Old Testament, the Septuagint, it underlines this by adding in verse 6 that his housekeeper had also dozed off. 00:11:50.419 --> 00:12:00.339 In other words, what we are finding here in verse 5 and 6 is an unguarded, vulnerable, sleepy king who should be awake. 00:12:00.939 --> 00:12:06.079 Which means that when Rakab and Barna, who verse 2 have told us are a couple of commanders from Ish-bosheth's army, 00:12:06.500 --> 00:12:09.419 when they come and find the king, they're able to walk straight in, 00:12:10.099 --> 00:12:14.199 pretending for the sake of anyone who asks that they're coming to collect wheat. 00:12:14.200 --> 00:12:20.460 Such are the poor defences around the king that in verse 6 you're told that they come right into the inner part of the house, 00:12:20.500 --> 00:12:23.560 by which they mean that they've made it to the king's bedroom. 00:12:23.780 --> 00:12:27.220 They are at the edge of the king's bed while he is dozing. 00:12:28.100 --> 00:12:30.600 And what do they do while he's dozing off there on the bed? 00:12:31.180 --> 00:12:34.940 They stab him in the stomach and escape. 00:12:35.660 --> 00:12:39.040 If you look down at verse 7, it repeats that point with a bit more detail, 00:12:39.259 --> 00:12:43.940 which is that as well as king killing Ish-bosheth by stabbing him in the stomach while he slept, 00:12:44.200 --> 00:12:48.600 they also chop off his head and run away with the head. 00:12:49.320 --> 00:12:50.560 Now that's pretty gruesome. 00:12:51.620 --> 00:12:53.000 But they have a plan, don't they? 00:12:53.680 --> 00:13:00.080 So the plan is that they head out, pun intended, to Hebron where David lives. 00:13:00.720 --> 00:13:03.160 But again, importantly, they don't go down the main road. 00:13:03.160 --> 00:13:05.980 We are given the detail that they go the way of the Arabah, 00:13:06.259 --> 00:13:08.560 which is presumably so that no one will spot them. 00:13:08.620 --> 00:13:11.640 This is the back road down to Hebron. 00:13:12.379 --> 00:13:17.919 I guess getting caught with the king's head in your backpack is a little suspicious if somebody finds you. 00:13:18.699 --> 00:13:22.419 If you look down at verse 8, you'll find that they've arrived at David's house in Hebron. 00:13:22.799 --> 00:13:25.100 And they think David's going to be really pleased with us. 00:13:25.259 --> 00:13:27.919 Look, we've brought the head of your enemy Ish-bosheth. 00:13:28.559 --> 00:13:30.659 So they say, don't they, verse 8b, 00:13:30.659 --> 00:13:35.259 Here is the head of Ish-bosheth, son of Saul, your enemy, who tried to kill you. 00:13:35.679 --> 00:13:39.620 This day the Lord has avenged my lord the king against Saul and his offspring. 00:13:40.399 --> 00:13:43.559 Now this turns out to be a massive miscalculation, doesn't it? 00:13:43.579 --> 00:13:46.839 The boys clearly didn't know the story of 2 Samuel chapter 1, 00:13:46.899 --> 00:13:49.500 where the Amalekite runner told David that he'd killed Saul, 00:13:49.879 --> 00:13:51.679 thinking, oh, I'm bringing good news for you, 00:13:51.779 --> 00:13:54.199 and actually ended up being executed for it. 00:13:54.200 --> 00:13:57.920 So David likewise executes these two guys, telling them, verse 11, 00:13:58.500 --> 00:14:02.980 that killing an innocent, defenseless man in his own bed is a wicked thing to do. 00:14:03.060 --> 00:14:03.700 It's murder. 00:14:04.420 --> 00:14:08.840 And so David makes an example of them by chopping off their hands and their feet 00:14:08.840 --> 00:14:11.360 and hanging them at the pool of Hebron, 00:14:11.900 --> 00:14:15.080 if you just wanted a bit more gore at the end of the story. 00:14:15.860 --> 00:14:18.640 Now that's the story, isn't it, of 2 Samuel chapter 4, 00:14:18.639 --> 00:14:21.500 but let us see together how it points us to the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:14:21.840 --> 00:14:24.240 And let me take you, if I can, through four steps, 00:14:24.600 --> 00:14:28.500 four steps that are made in the story that help us see the Lord Jesus 00:14:28.500 --> 00:14:30.600 here in 2 Samuel chapter 4. 00:14:30.740 --> 00:14:35.600 The first one is this, step one, God makes David king. 00:14:36.279 --> 00:14:37.439 God makes David king. 00:14:38.460 --> 00:14:41.059 I hope as we are looking at 2 Samuel together 00:14:41.059 --> 00:14:44.519 that you're beginning to see this over the past few weeks, 00:14:44.519 --> 00:14:50.620 that the whole sweep of the story is this inevitability of David becoming king. 00:14:51.000 --> 00:14:54.279 You read the story and you're not meant to be kept in suspense, really. 00:14:54.340 --> 00:14:58.220 You're meant to go, oh, actually, this is only going in one direction. 00:14:58.399 --> 00:14:59.480 David is becoming the king. 00:14:59.600 --> 00:15:02.319 God had promised it to him back in 1 Samuel chapter 16. 00:15:02.819 --> 00:15:06.899 And the events that we've been looking at are working to the end of God making David king. 00:15:07.519 --> 00:15:11.279 Death of Saul in battle, the defeat of the Israelite armies by Joab and his men, 00:15:11.559 --> 00:15:13.539 Abner changing sides, all these things. 00:15:13.539 --> 00:15:16.480 Even verse 4, this detail about Mephibosheth, 00:15:16.839 --> 00:15:18.980 who's the boy who is dropped by his nurse. 00:15:19.379 --> 00:15:21.980 All of those point to the fact that there is no one left 00:15:21.980 --> 00:15:24.299 to challenge David for the throne of Israel. 00:15:24.919 --> 00:15:25.740 David will have it. 00:15:25.839 --> 00:15:26.759 God will make it happen. 00:15:28.059 --> 00:15:29.879 Now, the point is that God is in charge. 00:15:30.339 --> 00:15:32.500 God is going to make David king in his own good time. 00:15:33.079 --> 00:15:35.500 That's why David says in verse 9 to these two thugs 00:15:35.500 --> 00:15:39.379 that it is the Lord who lives who has delivered him out of trouble. 00:15:39.959 --> 00:15:41.199 In other words, Rechab and Barnet, 00:15:41.199 --> 00:15:43.459 you don't need to get involved here. 00:15:44.339 --> 00:15:46.059 This is not your thing to do. 00:15:46.299 --> 00:15:47.620 God is doing this. 00:15:48.000 --> 00:15:49.799 God will deal with this. 00:15:50.019 --> 00:15:51.759 You don't have to take it into your own hands. 00:15:52.539 --> 00:15:54.519 God will rescue me from Ish-bosheth, says David, 00:15:54.620 --> 00:15:56.779 just like he's rescued me from everything else. 00:15:57.500 --> 00:15:58.620 So that's the first step. 00:15:59.079 --> 00:16:00.339 God makes David king. 00:16:00.740 --> 00:16:02.420 Now, just see with me, just very briefly, 00:16:02.500 --> 00:16:03.759 just how helpful that is. 00:16:04.960 --> 00:16:08.840 We live, don't we, in a world where God rules and reigns. 00:16:09.800 --> 00:16:12.200 And where the reign of God's king is inevitable. 00:16:12.759 --> 00:16:14.700 Jesus will reign. 00:16:14.960 --> 00:16:16.180 You don't have to worry about it. 00:16:16.519 --> 00:16:17.540 You don't have to make it happen. 00:16:17.980 --> 00:16:21.200 You don't need to stress that you don't see it working out perfectly yet, 00:16:21.240 --> 00:16:23.600 because God will make his king king. 00:16:24.519 --> 00:16:25.440 That's what will happen. 00:16:26.200 --> 00:16:28.240 And so you can have great assurance, can't you? 00:16:28.900 --> 00:16:32.580 The second step adds an important word to clarify that first step. 00:16:32.800 --> 00:16:33.400 And it's this. 00:16:33.640 --> 00:16:36.940 God rightly makes David king. 00:16:37.080 --> 00:16:38.900 He rightly makes David king. 00:16:39.500 --> 00:16:40.400 Now, this is important. 00:16:40.399 --> 00:16:44.819 God's king, David, and the kingdom he rules will be established in rightness, 00:16:44.939 --> 00:16:46.620 not wrongness. 00:16:47.019 --> 00:16:50.100 It will be established in righteousness, not wickedness. 00:16:50.379 --> 00:16:52.240 That's, again, what David means in verse 11, 00:16:52.240 --> 00:16:54.299 when he calls these men out for their wickedness. 00:16:54.840 --> 00:16:55.539 You know, David's saying, 00:16:55.879 --> 00:17:00.679 I'm not going to weasel my way to the throne by acts of cunning and deceit and murder. 00:17:01.299 --> 00:17:03.579 No, I'm going to act righteously, 00:17:03.699 --> 00:17:05.839 and that's how I'm going to find my way to the throne. 00:17:06.599 --> 00:17:08.579 It's not the throne at all costs. 00:17:08.579 --> 00:17:11.359 It's righteousness establishing David's throne. 00:17:12.480 --> 00:17:18.199 Again, what's interesting in the story so far is how often David has not grabbed the throne 00:17:18.199 --> 00:17:20.099 in morally dubious ways. 00:17:20.179 --> 00:17:21.259 He's had lots of opportunities. 00:17:21.480 --> 00:17:23.679 If you know the story of one Samuel, 00:17:23.679 --> 00:17:27.079 you'll know that David has lots of chances to kill King Saul, 00:17:27.259 --> 00:17:29.179 but refuses at every time. 00:17:30.439 --> 00:17:34.199 He finds Saul asleep with his spear next to him 00:17:34.199 --> 00:17:36.539 and has the opportunity to kill him, but doesn't. 00:17:36.539 --> 00:17:40.440 He's in a cave when Saul comes into the cave to go to the loo. 00:17:40.759 --> 00:17:42.379 He could have killed him then, but he doesn't. 00:17:43.720 --> 00:17:48.159 David doesn't do that because he knows that God will rightly establish him as king. 00:17:49.379 --> 00:17:51.279 If you turn in your Bibles to Proverbs 16, 00:17:51.480 --> 00:17:52.819 you'll see this idea there. 00:17:53.000 --> 00:17:54.960 It's going to come up on the slide if you don't want to turn to it, 00:17:54.980 --> 00:17:55.859 but you can turn to it if you like. 00:17:55.940 --> 00:17:58.000 Proverbs chapter 16, verse 12. 00:17:58.819 --> 00:18:00.319 Kings detest wrongdoing, 00:18:00.319 --> 00:18:06.039 for a throne is established through righteousness, we're told. 00:18:06.939 --> 00:18:08.960 Now, again, you can see, can't you, just at this point, 00:18:09.039 --> 00:18:11.619 how David is a signpost to Jesus. 00:18:12.539 --> 00:18:15.980 Jesus is tempted by the devil right at the beginning of his ministry, 00:18:15.980 --> 00:18:19.059 and he is offered by the devil all the kingdoms. 00:18:19.419 --> 00:18:21.720 Listen, I'll give you all of this, he says. 00:18:21.859 --> 00:18:22.819 Just follow me. 00:18:22.980 --> 00:18:23.579 Bow down. 00:18:24.119 --> 00:18:25.039 Follow me, he says. 00:18:25.139 --> 00:18:25.799 Worship me. 00:18:26.379 --> 00:18:27.480 And Jesus refuses. 00:18:27.480 --> 00:18:28.440 Why does he refuse? 00:18:28.720 --> 00:18:31.779 Not because all the kingdoms won't be his one day, 00:18:32.380 --> 00:18:35.140 but because Jesus will rightly be made king, 00:18:35.200 --> 00:18:36.960 not through an act of wickedness. 00:18:37.799 --> 00:18:39.620 King Jesus will be a good king, 00:18:40.160 --> 00:18:41.799 a king established by righteousness. 00:18:42.980 --> 00:18:43.980 So that's step two. 00:18:44.140 --> 00:18:45.440 So God makes David king. 00:18:45.579 --> 00:18:47.420 God rightly makes David king. 00:18:47.819 --> 00:18:50.860 Thirdly, and this is complicated, but you need to stay with me. 00:18:50.860 --> 00:18:55.539 God rightly makes David king, even using wickedness. 00:18:56.220 --> 00:18:57.180 It's a bit more complicated, 00:18:57.379 --> 00:19:00.019 but it might seem initially to contradict what we've said. 00:19:00.099 --> 00:19:01.639 But notice this twist in the story, 00:19:01.700 --> 00:19:03.339 or really, I suppose it's an irony, isn't it? 00:19:03.720 --> 00:19:06.240 That Rechab and Barna think that their wicked act 00:19:06.240 --> 00:19:07.759 will give David the kingdom 00:19:07.759 --> 00:19:10.500 and win them a place in his heart. 00:19:11.259 --> 00:19:13.659 But God's king, David, refuses to accept their actions 00:19:13.659 --> 00:19:15.139 and calls them out as morally wrong. 00:19:15.539 --> 00:19:17.019 He kills them for their wickedness, 00:19:17.079 --> 00:19:18.639 saying instead, God will redeem me, 00:19:18.720 --> 00:19:19.480 God will rescue me, 00:19:19.480 --> 00:19:20.740 God will give me the throne. 00:19:20.740 --> 00:19:23.960 And God does give David the throne, yeah? 00:19:24.220 --> 00:19:27.120 God does rescue David from Ish-bosheth 00:19:27.120 --> 00:19:29.299 and from the armies of Israel. 00:19:29.500 --> 00:19:31.140 How does God do that? 00:19:31.660 --> 00:19:33.279 How is it that God rescues him? 00:19:33.599 --> 00:19:35.839 How does God in the end save him from Ish-bosheth? 00:19:36.279 --> 00:19:40.880 Well, using Rechab and Barna and their wicked action. 00:19:41.839 --> 00:19:44.460 In other words, Rechab and Barna were wrong 00:19:44.460 --> 00:19:46.140 to kill Ish-bosheth, 00:19:46.140 --> 00:19:49.860 but they were right that God would avenge David 00:19:49.860 --> 00:19:50.700 and make him king. 00:19:51.200 --> 00:19:54.460 And even their freely chosen wicked action 00:19:54.460 --> 00:19:58.060 could not stand in the way of God making David king. 00:19:59.259 --> 00:20:00.000 Now stay with me, 00:20:00.040 --> 00:20:01.780 because this I think is the big moment in the story, 00:20:01.840 --> 00:20:03.380 and this is the big help for us this morning 00:20:03.380 --> 00:20:04.900 if we will get this. 00:20:05.759 --> 00:20:06.940 In the story, 00:20:07.540 --> 00:20:11.140 you are given this picture of the sovereignty of God 00:20:11.140 --> 00:20:15.280 that is so great and so powerful, 00:20:15.400 --> 00:20:17.020 he is so in charge, 00:20:17.580 --> 00:20:19.420 that even the freely chosen, 00:20:19.620 --> 00:20:22.720 naturally desired wicked intentions of human hearts, 00:20:23.200 --> 00:20:25.460 selfish intentions of Rechab and Barna, 00:20:25.960 --> 00:20:29.520 the wicked actions springing from those things 00:20:29.520 --> 00:20:33.800 can only ever achieve God's righteous purposes. 00:20:35.759 --> 00:20:36.740 Now let's get this straight. 00:20:37.040 --> 00:20:40.000 This is not the end justifies the means for God, 00:20:40.000 --> 00:20:41.240 as if God is going, 00:20:41.359 --> 00:20:41.880 well, you know, 00:20:42.700 --> 00:20:43.819 it's all going to work out in the end, 00:20:43.920 --> 00:20:45.640 so their wickedness doesn't really matter. 00:20:45.759 --> 00:20:46.920 It's not that at all, is it? 00:20:47.440 --> 00:20:49.519 Now what you've got in 2 Samuel 4 00:20:49.519 --> 00:20:53.680 is God working at such a high and sovereign level 00:20:53.680 --> 00:20:57.359 that they can be free to pursue 00:20:57.359 --> 00:20:59.359 their wicked desires and actions, 00:20:59.980 --> 00:21:04.180 and yet can only ever achieve God's plan and purposes. 00:21:04.819 --> 00:21:06.859 He's not for a moment endorsing their wickedness 00:21:06.859 --> 00:21:08.259 or giving them a free pass 00:21:08.259 --> 00:21:10.440 because it results in something good. 00:21:11.339 --> 00:21:13.140 The other point is that God's sovereign power 00:21:13.140 --> 00:21:16.440 even uses the sins of culpable people 00:21:16.440 --> 00:21:19.339 because we can never stand in the way of God. 00:21:20.220 --> 00:21:21.240 In 2 Samuel 4, 00:21:21.599 --> 00:21:23.660 Barna and Rechab are free moral agents. 00:21:23.859 --> 00:21:25.240 They do what they want to do. 00:21:25.519 --> 00:21:27.039 They live out the intentions of their heart. 00:21:27.140 --> 00:21:28.319 They do exactly what they want, 00:21:28.680 --> 00:21:29.480 even when it's wicked, 00:21:29.640 --> 00:21:30.839 but they do it in a world 00:21:30.839 --> 00:21:32.799 that happens to be ruled by a God 00:21:32.799 --> 00:21:34.000 who is so sovereign, 00:21:34.440 --> 00:21:35.480 so powerful, 00:21:35.879 --> 00:21:36.839 so in charge, 00:21:37.220 --> 00:21:39.980 that even their wickedly intended actions 00:21:39.980 --> 00:21:42.379 will be used to achieve his righteous purposes. 00:21:43.980 --> 00:21:46.099 Think about the implications of it with me. 00:21:46.220 --> 00:21:48.399 Think about it from Barna and Rechab's perspective. 00:21:49.299 --> 00:21:50.480 Notice in the passage 00:21:50.480 --> 00:21:53.079 that they are absolutely responsible for their sin. 00:21:53.460 --> 00:21:54.159 Do you notice that? 00:21:55.980 --> 00:21:57.200 God's sovereign purpose 00:21:57.200 --> 00:21:59.240 does not wipe out their moral responsibility 00:21:59.240 --> 00:22:00.160 for what they do. 00:22:01.079 --> 00:22:02.720 You know, Barna and Rechab can't stand before God 00:22:02.720 --> 00:22:03.019 and say, 00:22:03.120 --> 00:22:03.519 well, listen, 00:22:03.980 --> 00:22:06.519 you used what we did to make David king. 00:22:06.599 --> 00:22:08.240 That makes it all right, doesn't it? 00:22:08.859 --> 00:22:09.880 They can't say that, can they? 00:22:10.120 --> 00:22:10.559 At all. 00:22:11.319 --> 00:22:12.059 Not for a moment. 00:22:13.500 --> 00:22:14.339 Think about it like this. 00:22:14.380 --> 00:22:15.500 Let me try and illustrate it for a moment. 00:22:15.640 --> 00:22:17.160 Imagine for a moment 00:22:17.160 --> 00:22:20.000 that there is a giant concrete wall 00:22:20.000 --> 00:22:20.859 at the end of the road. 00:22:21.740 --> 00:22:21.859 Okay? 00:22:21.859 --> 00:22:24.420 A giant, immovable, 00:22:25.079 --> 00:22:27.640 un-knocker-downable concrete wall 00:22:27.640 --> 00:22:28.400 at the end of the road. 00:22:28.500 --> 00:22:28.660 Okay? 00:22:29.040 --> 00:22:31.019 And there are signposts along the way 00:22:31.019 --> 00:22:32.540 showing you that it's there. 00:22:32.800 --> 00:22:32.900 Yeah? 00:22:32.940 --> 00:22:34.600 There are markings on the road that say, 00:22:34.660 --> 00:22:34.960 you know, 00:22:35.680 --> 00:22:38.700 un-knockdownable concrete wall ahead. 00:22:39.240 --> 00:22:39.420 Yeah? 00:22:39.480 --> 00:22:40.100 Something like that. 00:22:40.180 --> 00:22:40.300 Right? 00:22:40.340 --> 00:22:41.980 So you know that it's there. 00:22:42.480 --> 00:22:44.040 And so you drive your car, 00:22:44.540 --> 00:22:47.040 but you totally ignore any of the signs. 00:22:47.300 --> 00:22:49.180 You totally ignore the markings on the road. 00:22:49.300 --> 00:22:51.700 And you smash your car into the wall. 00:22:51.820 --> 00:22:54.019 And you scrape along the wall 00:22:54.019 --> 00:22:55.380 as it kind of pushes you along 00:22:55.380 --> 00:22:57.080 as your engine still runs 00:22:57.079 --> 00:22:58.759 and your foot is still on the gas. 00:22:59.000 --> 00:23:00.119 The wall never gives way. 00:23:00.759 --> 00:23:01.919 But you crash into it 00:23:01.919 --> 00:23:03.579 and slide down like that. 00:23:03.699 --> 00:23:04.679 And the police turn up. 00:23:06.019 --> 00:23:07.039 And you get out of your car 00:23:07.039 --> 00:23:07.619 and they say, 00:23:07.659 --> 00:23:08.359 what happened here? 00:23:08.359 --> 00:23:09.619 And you say, 00:23:09.699 --> 00:23:10.099 well, listen, 00:23:10.719 --> 00:23:12.079 it didn't give way. 00:23:12.679 --> 00:23:13.240 So, you know, 00:23:13.359 --> 00:23:14.519 what's the problem? 00:23:14.759 --> 00:23:15.240 They say, no, no, 00:23:15.240 --> 00:23:16.139 we're going to charge you 00:23:16.139 --> 00:23:17.899 with driving without due care and attention. 00:23:18.479 --> 00:23:18.959 No, no, 00:23:18.959 --> 00:23:20.119 you can't charge me with driving 00:23:20.119 --> 00:23:21.159 without due care and attention 00:23:21.159 --> 00:23:22.439 because I didn't knock the wall down. 00:23:23.099 --> 00:23:23.859 I didn't knock the wall. 00:23:23.859 --> 00:23:24.639 In fact, actually, 00:23:24.740 --> 00:23:25.079 if anything, 00:23:25.439 --> 00:23:26.699 the wall pushed me along 00:23:26.699 --> 00:23:28.899 and I scraped my car down it. 00:23:29.179 --> 00:23:31.139 So you can't accuse me 00:23:31.139 --> 00:23:33.019 of driving without due care and attention. 00:23:34.059 --> 00:23:34.539 Listen, 00:23:34.639 --> 00:23:35.659 of course they can, 00:23:35.740 --> 00:23:36.119 can't they? 00:23:36.599 --> 00:23:38.539 The fact that the wall didn't give way 00:23:38.539 --> 00:23:39.839 is no excuse 00:23:39.839 --> 00:23:41.879 for your crashing into it. 00:23:42.399 --> 00:23:42.559 Yeah? 00:23:42.939 --> 00:23:44.139 And it's the same 00:23:44.139 --> 00:23:45.219 in 2 Samuel 4 00:23:45.219 --> 00:23:46.419 with the sovereignty of God. 00:23:46.420 --> 00:23:48.220 There is in our world 00:23:48.220 --> 00:23:51.920 an un-knockdownable concrete wall 00:23:51.920 --> 00:23:53.759 of God's sovereign plan 00:23:53.759 --> 00:23:54.779 in Jesus Christ. 00:23:55.300 --> 00:23:56.820 You can't knock it down. 00:23:57.779 --> 00:24:00.120 God will make his king the king. 00:24:01.039 --> 00:24:02.880 But it is not an excuse 00:24:02.880 --> 00:24:04.340 for you to behave 00:24:04.340 --> 00:24:05.680 in whatever way you like 00:24:05.680 --> 00:24:07.539 just because God's purposes 00:24:07.539 --> 00:24:08.539 will not be thwarted. 00:24:09.000 --> 00:24:10.279 You can't use the fact 00:24:10.279 --> 00:24:11.279 that God's sovereign plan 00:24:11.279 --> 00:24:12.220 cannot be toppled 00:24:12.220 --> 00:24:13.259 as an excuse 00:24:13.259 --> 00:24:14.920 for you doing whatever you want to do 00:24:14.920 --> 00:24:16.140 and crashing into it 00:24:16.140 --> 00:24:17.900 and scraping alongside of it 00:24:17.900 --> 00:24:18.580 as it pushes you 00:24:18.580 --> 00:24:19.600 in the direction of his will 00:24:19.600 --> 00:24:20.160 and his purpose. 00:24:21.780 --> 00:24:23.220 And that's what's going on here 00:24:23.220 --> 00:24:25.220 in 2 Samuel 4. 00:24:26.020 --> 00:24:27.280 Let me say gently, 00:24:27.460 --> 00:24:29.240 but I'll try and be as clear as I can, 00:24:29.780 --> 00:24:32.500 but I think it's almost certain 00:24:32.500 --> 00:24:34.340 that there are people in this room 00:24:34.340 --> 00:24:36.280 who are living their lives 00:24:36.280 --> 00:24:37.860 like that. 00:24:38.880 --> 00:24:39.920 You know, 00:24:40.440 --> 00:24:42.020 deep in your heart, 00:24:42.300 --> 00:24:43.900 that there is a concrete wall 00:24:43.900 --> 00:24:46.040 of God's will and purpose and plan. 00:24:46.720 --> 00:24:48.580 But you're driving headlong at it, 00:24:49.040 --> 00:24:49.940 crashing into it 00:24:49.940 --> 00:24:51.220 and scraping along it, 00:24:51.780 --> 00:24:52.920 hoping against hope 00:24:52.920 --> 00:24:54.500 that the fact that you haven't 00:24:54.500 --> 00:24:55.220 knocked the wall down 00:24:55.220 --> 00:24:56.280 might be sufficient excuse 00:24:56.280 --> 00:24:57.340 for crashing into it. 00:24:57.700 --> 00:24:58.740 But it's not. 00:24:59.400 --> 00:25:00.180 It's not. 00:25:00.580 --> 00:25:01.720 You know, you know, don't you, 00:25:01.800 --> 00:25:03.280 that Jesus is the king. 00:25:03.820 --> 00:25:06.500 You know that Jesus rules and reigns. 00:25:06.860 --> 00:25:07.620 But you perhaps think, 00:25:07.720 --> 00:25:08.200 do you know what? 00:25:08.840 --> 00:25:10.120 Let me just have a bit of fun 00:25:10.120 --> 00:25:11.960 before I do that, 00:25:12.440 --> 00:25:13.620 before I submit to him. 00:25:13.619 --> 00:25:15.919 God will let me off for that, 00:25:16.019 --> 00:25:16.319 won't he? 00:25:17.459 --> 00:25:18.719 Well, 2 Samuel 4 says, 00:25:18.839 --> 00:25:20.679 no, there is a wall 00:25:20.679 --> 00:25:22.119 of God's sovereign plan in Christ 00:25:22.119 --> 00:25:23.359 and it will not budge, 00:25:23.839 --> 00:25:24.859 but that's no excuse 00:25:24.859 --> 00:25:26.299 for driving headlong into it. 00:25:26.859 --> 00:25:28.679 So surrender to the king 00:25:28.680 --> 00:25:31.440 and don't take it into your own hands 00:25:31.440 --> 00:25:34.000 and act in morally dubious ways 00:25:34.000 --> 00:25:35.060 like Raqqab and Barna. 00:25:35.860 --> 00:25:36.660 Now that brings us 00:25:36.660 --> 00:25:38.000 to the final step this morning, 00:25:38.360 --> 00:25:39.299 which is this. 00:25:40.080 --> 00:25:42.039 God rightly makes Jesus king 00:25:42.039 --> 00:25:43.680 even using wickedness. 00:25:43.680 --> 00:25:44.279 Wickedness. 00:25:45.080 --> 00:25:46.400 I hope as you stand back now 00:25:46.400 --> 00:25:47.500 from 2 Samuel chapter 4, 00:25:47.580 --> 00:25:48.840 there's something strangely familiar 00:25:48.840 --> 00:25:49.620 about the story. 00:25:50.220 --> 00:25:51.720 You've got wicked men 00:25:51.720 --> 00:25:53.180 killing an innocent man 00:25:53.180 --> 00:25:54.340 to bring redemption 00:25:54.340 --> 00:25:55.840 through God's anointed king. 00:25:56.779 --> 00:25:57.900 And you know that story, don't you? 00:25:57.940 --> 00:25:58.740 That's what you should be thinking. 00:25:59.080 --> 00:26:01.039 I've heard this story before, Steve. 00:26:01.299 --> 00:26:02.100 I know this story. 00:26:02.360 --> 00:26:03.080 This is Jesus. 00:26:03.900 --> 00:26:05.700 Jesus is the innocent man 00:26:05.700 --> 00:26:07.660 who's killed by bloodthirsty men 00:26:07.660 --> 00:26:09.519 who are pursuing their own wicked ends, 00:26:09.600 --> 00:26:10.980 but under the sovereign hand of God 00:26:10.980 --> 00:26:13.360 end up providing righteous redemption 00:26:13.360 --> 00:26:15.440 for all who turn to God's king. 00:26:16.319 --> 00:26:16.960 In other words, 00:26:17.079 --> 00:26:19.079 Jesus in 2 Samuel chapter 4 00:26:19.079 --> 00:26:21.980 is greater than King David 00:26:21.980 --> 00:26:24.259 and greater than King Ish-bosheth. 00:26:24.920 --> 00:26:26.220 In 2 Samuel chapter 4, 00:26:26.319 --> 00:26:28.079 Ish-bosheth's death in weakness 00:26:28.079 --> 00:26:30.660 hands the throne to the righteous David, 00:26:30.759 --> 00:26:31.079 doesn't it? 00:26:31.380 --> 00:26:32.779 Whereas in the New Testament, 00:26:33.680 --> 00:26:35.240 Jesus' death in weakness 00:26:35.240 --> 00:26:37.259 enthrones him as king, 00:26:37.839 --> 00:26:40.039 as God the Father in sovereign power 00:26:40.039 --> 00:26:42.220 installs the eternal son 00:26:42.220 --> 00:26:42.980 in human flesh 00:26:42.980 --> 00:26:44.240 to the throne of the universe 00:26:44.240 --> 00:26:45.639 by allowing him to die 00:26:45.639 --> 00:26:46.899 at the hands of wicked men. 00:26:48.220 --> 00:26:50.180 Men whom he didn't fight, 00:26:50.599 --> 00:26:51.960 not because Jesus was asleep, 00:26:52.480 --> 00:26:54.039 but because he trusted in his father. 00:26:55.000 --> 00:26:56.000 And now that king, 00:26:56.139 --> 00:26:56.659 King Jesus, 00:26:56.819 --> 00:26:57.859 is ruling from heaven 00:26:57.859 --> 00:27:00.279 as all things are placed beneath his feet, 00:27:01.700 --> 00:27:03.599 knowing that if the wickedness 00:27:03.599 --> 00:27:05.299 of his execution on the cross, 00:27:05.599 --> 00:27:06.519 if all that could do 00:27:06.519 --> 00:27:08.220 was install him as king, 00:27:08.220 --> 00:27:10.380 then nothing in all of history 00:27:10.380 --> 00:27:12.160 will be able to stop God's plan. 00:27:12.860 --> 00:27:14.279 Jesus will be king, 00:27:14.400 --> 00:27:15.559 of that you can be sure. 00:27:16.819 --> 00:27:17.720 That's what we need to see 00:27:17.720 --> 00:27:18.700 as we finish, isn't it? 00:27:18.720 --> 00:27:19.519 This is the brilliance 00:27:19.519 --> 00:27:20.579 of 2 Samuel chapter 4. 00:27:20.839 --> 00:27:22.500 What you're getting in 2 Samuel 4 00:27:22.500 --> 00:27:25.100 is a snippet of the story of history. 00:27:26.240 --> 00:27:27.539 You know, we don't get to see 00:27:27.539 --> 00:27:29.360 the whole story of our own lives, do we? 00:27:29.380 --> 00:27:30.799 But we get to see it in David's life 00:27:30.799 --> 00:27:32.339 and we get in 2 Samuel 4 00:27:32.339 --> 00:27:34.480 a snippet of the whole of history 00:27:34.480 --> 00:27:37.099 as God in sovereign power 00:27:37.099 --> 00:27:38.319 uses the wickedness 00:27:38.319 --> 00:27:40.140 of sinful men and women 00:27:40.140 --> 00:27:42.480 to rightly install his son, 00:27:42.640 --> 00:27:43.680 Jesus, as king, 00:27:44.180 --> 00:27:46.059 meaning nothing can stand 00:27:46.059 --> 00:27:46.900 in the way of his rule. 00:27:47.720 --> 00:27:48.259 And more than that, 00:27:48.299 --> 00:27:49.099 it means that you and I, 00:27:49.259 --> 00:27:51.240 although we live in a world of chaos, 00:27:51.380 --> 00:27:51.960 we live in a world 00:27:51.960 --> 00:27:53.620 where God is sovereignly in charge 00:27:53.620 --> 00:27:54.720 and able to achieve 00:27:54.720 --> 00:27:55.920 his purposes in glory, 00:27:56.460 --> 00:27:58.000 even in the midst of the chaos, 00:27:58.180 --> 00:27:59.420 even using the chaos. 00:28:01.059 --> 00:28:03.559 See, think about what's going on here. 00:28:03.559 --> 00:28:04.919 You know, there probably should be 00:28:04.919 --> 00:28:06.039 a warning over this passage, 00:28:06.139 --> 00:28:06.319 shouldn't there? 00:28:07.319 --> 00:28:08.659 We're perhaps used to this, 00:28:08.740 --> 00:28:11.359 but this is a gruesome passage, right? 00:28:12.000 --> 00:28:12.960 What have you got here? 00:28:13.000 --> 00:28:14.220 You've got a murder in a bedroom, 00:28:14.419 --> 00:28:15.319 you've got a beheading, 00:28:15.759 --> 00:28:16.819 you've got a going on the run 00:28:16.819 --> 00:28:18.639 with someone's head in your backpack, 00:28:19.339 --> 00:28:21.700 you've got blood, death, madness, chaos. 00:28:22.720 --> 00:28:24.379 And that's our world, isn't it? 00:28:25.319 --> 00:28:26.179 You know, even in this room, 00:28:26.299 --> 00:28:28.059 we know what that world is like, 00:28:28.119 --> 00:28:28.359 don't we? 00:28:28.500 --> 00:28:30.319 We know what it's like to flee from nations 00:28:30.319 --> 00:28:31.539 where our lives are in danger. 00:28:32.279 --> 00:28:33.220 We know what it's like 00:28:33.220 --> 00:28:35.019 to live in the face of civil war 00:28:35.019 --> 00:28:36.059 played out in the front 00:28:36.059 --> 00:28:37.119 of our friends and our family. 00:28:37.460 --> 00:28:38.259 We know what it's like 00:28:38.259 --> 00:28:39.039 to live in a city 00:28:39.039 --> 00:28:40.579 where there are knives on the street 00:28:40.579 --> 00:28:42.019 taking the lives of young people. 00:28:43.259 --> 00:28:44.940 We know especially what it's like, 00:28:45.000 --> 00:28:45.379 don't we? 00:28:46.099 --> 00:28:46.879 We know what it's like 00:28:46.879 --> 00:28:47.500 to have housing 00:28:47.500 --> 00:28:48.980 that's so uncertain and expensive 00:28:48.980 --> 00:28:49.740 that we don't know 00:28:49.740 --> 00:28:51.079 from one month to the next 00:28:51.079 --> 00:28:51.700 where we'll be living. 00:28:52.960 --> 00:28:53.960 We know as families 00:28:53.960 --> 00:28:55.079 what it's like to have children 00:28:55.079 --> 00:28:56.220 wander away into sin 00:28:56.220 --> 00:28:57.240 and break our hearts. 00:28:57.879 --> 00:28:58.779 We know what it's like 00:28:58.779 --> 00:28:59.859 to have friends die. 00:29:00.460 --> 00:29:01.180 We know what it's like 00:29:01.180 --> 00:29:01.779 to have families 00:29:01.779 --> 00:29:02.480 that break apart. 00:29:02.579 --> 00:29:03.099 We know what it's like 00:29:03.099 --> 00:29:04.139 to have health that fails. 00:29:04.519 --> 00:29:05.480 We know what it's like 00:29:05.480 --> 00:29:06.899 to have freeholds 00:29:06.899 --> 00:29:07.519 as a church 00:29:07.519 --> 00:29:09.299 that we might never own. 00:29:10.859 --> 00:29:12.079 And what does 2 Samuel 4 00:29:12.079 --> 00:29:12.839 say to that? 00:29:13.740 --> 00:29:14.460 What's the message 00:29:14.460 --> 00:29:15.379 of 2 Samuel 4? 00:29:15.839 --> 00:29:16.599 I'll tell you this, 00:29:16.660 --> 00:29:17.799 this is what the message is. 00:29:18.839 --> 00:29:19.599 It's this. 00:29:20.480 --> 00:29:21.200 In a verse, 00:29:21.799 --> 00:29:22.460 this is the message 00:29:22.460 --> 00:29:23.339 of 2 Samuel 4. 00:29:23.339 --> 00:29:24.939 And we know 00:29:24.939 --> 00:29:26.899 that in all things 00:29:26.899 --> 00:29:28.139 God works for the good 00:29:28.139 --> 00:29:29.240 of those who love him, 00:29:29.919 --> 00:29:30.779 who have been called 00:29:30.779 --> 00:29:31.899 according to his purpose. 00:29:33.220 --> 00:29:34.099 And 2 Samuel 4 00:29:34.099 --> 00:29:34.859 tells you the truth 00:29:34.859 --> 00:29:35.439 of that verse 00:29:35.439 --> 00:29:36.379 in a story 00:29:36.379 --> 00:29:38.579 so that you can feel it 00:29:38.579 --> 00:29:39.819 as well as know it. 00:29:41.299 --> 00:29:42.079 Brothers and sisters, 00:29:42.199 --> 00:29:43.059 we need to see this, 00:29:43.119 --> 00:29:43.459 don't we? 00:29:44.159 --> 00:29:46.159 Romans 8, verse 28 00:29:46.159 --> 00:29:47.139 is not just a statement 00:29:47.139 --> 00:29:47.959 in Paul's letter 00:29:47.959 --> 00:29:48.980 to the church in Rome. 00:29:49.299 --> 00:29:50.039 It's the story 00:29:50.039 --> 00:29:50.980 of David's life. 00:29:51.619 --> 00:29:52.199 It's the story 00:29:52.200 --> 00:29:54.140 of the kingly rule of Jesus. 00:29:55.140 --> 00:29:55.860 And if you trust 00:29:55.860 --> 00:29:56.720 in Jesus Christ, 00:29:56.819 --> 00:29:58.299 it's your story too. 00:29:59.400 --> 00:30:00.460 This is our story 00:30:00.460 --> 00:30:01.920 as West Kilburn Baptist Church 00:30:01.920 --> 00:30:02.319 as well, 00:30:02.420 --> 00:30:04.259 of God working 00:30:04.259 --> 00:30:05.660 even evil things 00:30:05.660 --> 00:30:07.380 for the good of Christ's glory 00:30:07.380 --> 00:30:08.019 in our lives. 00:30:08.180 --> 00:30:08.759 Praise him. 00:30:09.460 --> 00:30:10.000 Praise him. 00:30:11.580 --> 00:30:12.700 Adam Ramsey 00:30:12.700 --> 00:30:13.279 has written a book 00:30:13.279 --> 00:30:14.420 called Truth on Fire 00:30:14.420 --> 00:30:15.400 and he puts it like this. 00:30:15.440 --> 00:30:16.299 It's a brilliant quote 00:30:16.299 --> 00:30:16.720 so I thought 00:30:16.720 --> 00:30:17.620 I'd just read it to you. 00:30:18.420 --> 00:30:19.519 Here it is as we finish. 00:30:20.519 --> 00:30:21.100 He says this, 00:30:21.099 --> 00:30:21.839 there are days 00:30:21.839 --> 00:30:22.679 in your future 00:30:22.679 --> 00:30:23.839 that are going to 00:30:23.839 --> 00:30:24.980 knock you to the ground. 00:30:25.759 --> 00:30:26.500 There are situations 00:30:26.500 --> 00:30:27.299 on your horizon 00:30:27.299 --> 00:30:28.659 presently unknown to you 00:30:28.659 --> 00:30:29.779 that will expose you 00:30:29.779 --> 00:30:30.679 to just how 00:30:30.679 --> 00:30:32.500 not sovereign you are. 00:30:33.980 --> 00:30:34.439 Disappointment 00:30:34.439 --> 00:30:35.399 will make its mark. 00:30:36.099 --> 00:30:36.559 Despair 00:30:36.559 --> 00:30:37.319 will coil around 00:30:37.319 --> 00:30:37.919 your heart. 00:30:38.119 --> 00:30:38.399 Disease 00:30:38.399 --> 00:30:39.480 will rob your family. 00:30:39.719 --> 00:30:39.939 Death 00:30:39.939 --> 00:30:40.559 will strike 00:30:40.559 --> 00:30:41.240 without warning. 00:30:42.259 --> 00:30:43.279 Where will you look 00:30:43.279 --> 00:30:43.879 when the skies 00:30:43.879 --> 00:30:44.579 turn black? 00:30:44.859 --> 00:30:45.599 Here's where 00:30:45.599 --> 00:30:47.339 you look higher. 00:30:47.339 --> 00:30:48.839 In the same way 00:30:48.839 --> 00:30:49.799 the sun shines 00:30:49.799 --> 00:30:51.959 with uninterrupted constancy 00:30:51.959 --> 00:30:53.980 above every clouded sky 00:30:53.980 --> 00:30:55.579 so is Christ 00:30:55.579 --> 00:30:56.359 reigning over 00:30:56.359 --> 00:30:58.119 every difficult circumstance. 00:30:59.059 --> 00:31:00.099 If God's ultimate 00:31:00.099 --> 00:31:00.839 in authority 00:31:00.839 --> 00:31:02.720 we needn't be held 00:31:02.720 --> 00:31:04.139 hostage by our anxieties 00:31:04.139 --> 00:31:05.879 because our lives 00:31:05.879 --> 00:31:06.879 are held securely 00:31:06.879 --> 00:31:08.379 in the hands 00:31:08.379 --> 00:31:09.480 of a loving father 00:31:09.480 --> 00:31:11.379 who is also 00:31:11.379 --> 00:31:12.919 the king. 00:31:13.759 --> 00:31:14.720 Let me pray 00:31:14.720 --> 00:31:16.220 and then we'll sing together. 00:31:31.779 --> 00:31:32.480 Heavenly Father 00:31:32.480 --> 00:31:33.759 we thank you so much 00:31:33.759 --> 00:31:34.279 for the way 00:31:34.279 --> 00:31:34.740 that you 00:31:34.740 --> 00:31:36.240 teach us 00:31:36.240 --> 00:31:37.220 these great truths 00:31:37.220 --> 00:31:38.079 about who you are 00:31:38.079 --> 00:31:38.740 and what you're like 00:31:38.740 --> 00:31:39.700 and how you work 00:31:39.700 --> 00:31:41.900 in stories 00:31:41.900 --> 00:31:43.059 like 2 Samuel 4 00:31:43.059 --> 00:31:44.299 which grab our attention 00:31:44.299 --> 00:31:45.119 and help us 00:31:45.119 --> 00:31:46.099 to feel the truth 00:31:46.099 --> 00:31:47.299 as well as know the truth. 00:31:48.279 --> 00:31:49.500 We thank you 00:31:49.500 --> 00:31:50.500 Heavenly Father 00:31:50.500 --> 00:31:51.779 that you have rightly 00:31:51.779 --> 00:31:53.019 installed Jesus 00:31:53.019 --> 00:31:54.000 as king 00:31:54.000 --> 00:31:55.139 even through 00:31:55.139 --> 00:31:55.839 the wickedness 00:31:55.839 --> 00:31:56.559 of the cross. 00:31:57.419 --> 00:31:58.039 Thank you 00:31:58.039 --> 00:31:59.079 that wicked men 00:31:59.079 --> 00:31:59.659 and women 00:31:59.659 --> 00:32:00.440 calling out 00:32:00.440 --> 00:32:01.119 for his death 00:32:01.119 --> 00:32:01.759 on the cross 00:32:01.759 --> 00:32:03.279 nailing him 00:32:03.279 --> 00:32:04.119 hands and feet 00:32:04.119 --> 00:32:04.799 to that cross 00:32:04.799 --> 00:32:05.659 all they did 00:32:05.659 --> 00:32:07.259 was enthrone him 00:32:07.259 --> 00:32:08.180 as king of kings 00:32:08.180 --> 00:32:09.519 and lord of lords 00:32:09.519 --> 00:32:11.599 the one who rules 00:32:11.599 --> 00:32:12.519 and reigns 00:32:12.519 --> 00:32:14.079 forgives our sins 00:32:14.079 --> 00:32:15.359 and brings us 00:32:15.359 --> 00:32:16.599 into his glorious kingdom. 00:32:17.679 --> 00:32:18.099 Thank you 00:32:18.099 --> 00:32:19.000 for the great confidence 00:32:19.000 --> 00:32:19.879 that gives us 00:32:19.879 --> 00:32:21.199 that like David 00:32:21.199 --> 00:32:22.299 we need not fear 00:32:22.299 --> 00:32:25.899 because we know 00:32:25.899 --> 00:32:27.359 that you are so sovereign 00:32:27.359 --> 00:32:28.879 that all things 00:32:28.879 --> 00:32:30.000 work together 00:32:30.000 --> 00:32:30.779 for our good 00:32:30.779 --> 00:32:32.480 as we love you 00:32:32.480 --> 00:32:33.659 and are called 00:32:33.659 --> 00:32:35.139 to belong to you. 00:32:35.799 --> 00:32:36.799 So we praise your name 00:32:36.799 --> 00:32:38.079 for all that we've seen 00:32:38.079 --> 00:32:39.099 in 2 Samuel 4 00:32:39.099 --> 00:32:40.139 and help us we pray 00:32:40.140 --> 00:32:41.580 to remember it 00:32:41.580 --> 00:32:43.320 in Jesus name. 00:32:43.900 --> 00:32:44.320 Amen. 00:32:44.820 --> 00:32:45.240 Amen.