1 Chronicles 29

1 Chronicles 29:1

DAVID EXHORTS THE PEOPLEAs we come to chapter 29, we find that the emphasis shifts from the temple to the kingdom, although he had in mind to his dying day that the center of the kingdom would be the temple. This is David’s last message to his people. You will recall that when old Jacob was dying he called in his sons. When Moses reached the end of his life, he had a message for all twelve tribes. Now David has a message for his people as he comes to the end of his life. When David says that Solomon is young and tender, he means that he is a sissy and inexperienced. Old David is a veteran. Although he is a gracious, generous man, he can be hard-boiled. Solomon is a novice.

1 Chronicles 29:2

David says, “I have prepared with all my might for the house of my God.” Oh, to have the heart of David, and put God first in our lives! These are gifts of his own individual property.

1 Chronicles 29:5

David has set the example. There was no stinting or holding back in his giving. Then he put out the challenge to his people.

1 Chronicles 29:6

Now there is a response on the part of the people.

1 Chronicles 29:7

The people gave generously, and they gave with joy.

1 Chronicles 29:9

It was a great thrill to David to see his people give so willingly toward the enrichment of the temple. My friend, I used to see a motto that read: “Give till it hurts.” That motto may be all right for the world, but it is not God’s motto. If it hurts you to give, don’t give! God wants you to give when it brings joy to your heart and life. Give hilariously, Paul said. This is what the people are doing here, and it was a time of great rejoicing.

1 Chronicles 29:10

Notice that David called God the father of the nation Israel. In the Old Testament He was not called the father of individuals. In fact, David never called Him Father. God called David His servant. That is very interesting. The Mosaic Law never made a son of God. Only faith in Jesus Christ can make us sons of God.

1 Chronicles 29:11

DAVID PRAYSNow we have the great kingdom prayer of David. Do these words sound familiar to you? You will recall that when the disciples asked the Lord Jesus to teach them to pray, He gave them a model prayer. He took them right back here to David’s prayer. “Thy kingdom come” was in the heart of David. These are words of brevity and simplicity, and they gather up the aspiration and hopes of centuries. This is one of the greatest prayers in the Scriptures and certainly in the Old Testament. It is all-comprehensive, majestic and filled with adoration, praise and thanksgiving. It repudiates all human merit and declares human dependence upon God. It reveals self-humiliation, confession, and dedication of self. It admits that all belongs to God. David recognized that the kingdom is God’s. The Lord Jesus laid hold of this to teach His disciples. The Scriptural concept of the Kingdom is both an eternal kingdom and a temporal kingdom. It is a universal kingdom and a local kingdom. It is immediate, and it is mediated. Generally speaking, it is the reign of heaven over earth. When God created Adam, He gave him dominion. Now what does He mean by “the kingdom”? It is the rule of God over the earth. It is a prayer for the recovery of the earth, to bring it back under the rule of God. I hope you don’t think that God is ruling the earth today. If He were, we would not have heartbreak, tears, disappointments, nor wars. This is the kingdom we should pray for. It will only come through divine protocol, and the divine aspects will be adhered to. Man will not be able to build this kingdom here on this earth; only the Lord Jesus Christ can establish the Kingdom. “Thine is the kingdom.” It is my personal feeling that the so-called Lord’s Prayer is not for public praying. It is not just something to add to the ritual of a Sunday morning service. I believe it is good for private devotion. “Thine is the kingdom” ought to be the prayer of every believer. David was looking forward to the coming of the Kingdom here upon this earth. That will be a glorious day!

1 Chronicles 29:14

The very interesting thing is that you can’t give God anything because it belongs to Him in the first place. But He can bless you when you give, and He will bless you. The reason some of us are so poor and narrow-minded and little is because we are not generous with God. God can only bless us when we open our hearts to Him.

1 Chronicles 29:16

Oh, how we need to recognize this!

1 Chronicles 29:22

SOLOMON COMES TO THE THRONENow the people, having blessed God and having offered sacrifices to Him, make Solomon king. The kingdom was united behind Solomon, and he exercised royal authority before David’s death.

1 Chronicles 29:26

DAVID DIESThis is the record that God has given. He wants you to know how He feels about David. Maybe you don’t like David; God does. I am glad that the Lord loved David and dealt with him as He did, because David is so human. This encourages me. Vernon McGee is very human also, and I have found that God will deal with him just as graciously and just as severely as He dealt with David. The Lord is good. The Lord is wonderful! You and I cannot build Him a temple, but we can offer the temples of our bodies to Him. He doesn’t get very much when he gets me, but He does have me. Oh, what joy it is to be committed to Him!