2 Samuel 7:13

Verse of the Day Devotion 2 Samuel 7:13 

“He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.” – 2 Samuel 7:13 

Up to Christmas day, I will be looking at the different prophesies which foresee the coming of the promised Messiah, Jesus the Christ.  He came here in order to offer the means of salvation for all.  An important idea to remember is that God knows everything and forgets nothing.  “Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,” Isaiah 46:9-10.

This verse is part of a covenant God made with David.  The prophet Nathan was given a divine revelation from the Lord for David and his house.  God starts with a question. “Are you the one who should build Me a house to dwell in?” 2 Samuel 7:5. He continues by saying He has never dwelt in a house from the time He brought Israel out of Egypt to that current day, but have dwelt in a tent, a tabernacle.  Then He adds that He has never commanded any of the tribes to build a house for Him., “For I have not dwelt in a house since the day I brought up the sons of Israel from Egypt, even to this day; but I have been moving about in a tent, even in a tabernacle. Wherever I have gone with all the sons of Israel, did I speak a word with one of the tribes of Israel, which I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?” 2 Samuel 7:6-7.

God then proposes to build David a permanent home. He starts by reminding David, through Nathan, what He had done for Him.  “Thus says the LORD of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be ruler over My people Israel.  And I have been with you wherever you have gone and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make you a great name, like the names of the great men who are on the earth. I will also appoint a place for My people Israel and will plant them, that they may live in their own place and not be disturbed again, nor will the wicked afflict them any more as formerly, even from the day that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel; and I will give you rest from all your enemies.” 2 Samuel 7: 8-11a. 

Then God, again through Nathan says. “The LORD also declares to you that the LORD will make a house for you.” 2 Samuel 7:11b.  This idea is a two-fold prophecy.  First, it speaks of Solomon, his direct descendent who would be the builder of the temple in Jerusalem.  However, this also speaks of Christ, and we see this through the words of the Apostle Peter in the book of Acts.  “Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Being therefore a prophet and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. is Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, “‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool. Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Acts 2:29-36.   

And Christ did build the house as mentioned in our focus verse, which again is “He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.”  2 Samuel 7:13.  And what is this house?  We are. “Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, who was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful in all God’s house. For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses—as much more glory as the builder of a house has more honor than the house itself. (For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.) Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later, but Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son. And we are his house, if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.” Hebrews 3:1-6.

In closing, what God, through Nathan, is communicating to David is that there will be one who will come into this world with the purpose of building a house for the Lord, which He did not call His people to build in the days of King David. However, it will be an offspring of His people who would build that house of the Lord, that being the Church.  Jesus, the Messiah, would come and make that happen.  And as Peter stated to the Jews, “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Acts 3:36.  And this message is for all people, Jesus Christ came into this world, by way of David, and ultimately Mary, to bring His people together to be the house of the Lord and also to declare Himself to be the King who would rule an everlasting kingdom which never ends.  And it is in us that the Holy Spirit abides, in His Church: His house.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.

Romans 3:31

Verse of the Day Devotion:  Romans 3:31  

“Do we then nullify the Law through faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we establish the Law.” – Romans 3:31

Paul here in Romans three is telling the Christians in Rome, which many were former Jews, that salvation comes not from the Law but by faith.  “But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:21-23.  God showed His grace by providing a means of salvation apart from man’s works, for no man is perfect, but all have sinned.  This salvation is not restricted to only some, but to all who believe, either Jew or non-Jew.  And because it was the Jews who believed in the strict adherence to the Law, the Jews would push this adherence as a necessity. 

However, salvation does not come through works, but through faith.  Paul addresses this is the following verses using boasting as an example.  “Where then is boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law.” Romans 3:27-28.  There is to be no boasting because man has done nothing to bring about his cleanliness.  Adherence to the Law does not make us righteous, for then only Jews who are perfect in keeping the Law would be the only ones saved.  And he counters this idea in the next two verses.  “Or is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles also?  Yes, of Gentiles also, since indeed God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith is one.” Romans 3:29-30.  He provides salvation for all mankind, not just the Jews through the following of the Law.

Now, we get to the crux of this section in our focus verse.  “Do we then nullify the Law through faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we establish the Law.” Romans 3:31.  First, the Law is not nullified for those who do not accept Christ for they will be judged according to the Law, for they have rejected the one who would pay for their sins.  And because all have sinned, the Law cannot save us because it cannot do away with sin, it can simply show us our sin.  “What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, You shall not covet.” Romans 7:7.  We cannot be saved by the law, but we can see where we are in sin by the law, and therefore repent and ask forgiveness.  Further on in Romans we read, “Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Romans 13:8-9.  Love fulfills the Law because if we truly love someone, we will never do them wrong.  And this includes Christ, and ultimately God.  Jesus put it this way, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” John 14:15.  Showing love to another is the fulfillment of the Law.  “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law? And he said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”  Matthew 22:36:40. 

By truly accepting the love God showed to us through Christ by accepting the work He did on the cross and devoting ourselves totally to Him, we show our love for God.  Through our love for Him, we choose to do all He commands of us; not in order to save us, but to show our love for Him.  Therefore, the Law was not nullified or done away with, it is fulfilled when we truly show our love for God and our fellow man.  Just as Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” John 14:15.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.