Rev. Joan Pell Sierra Pines United Methodist Church Sermon: 09/02/2018 Series: David: A Mirror for the World Scripture: 1 Kings 2:1-12.

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Rev. Joan Pell Sierra Pines United Methodist Church Sermon: 09/02/208 Series: David: A Mirror for the World Scripture: Kings 2:-2 Music & Legacy Today we are going to conclude our sermon series on

But as we have seen over the last few weeks David has made his share of mistakes too. Last week we talked about two of King David s sons: Amnon and Absalom.

1 Rev. Joan Pell Sierra Pines United Methodist Church Sermon: 09/02/208 Series: David: A Mirror for the World Scripture: Kings 2:-2 Music & Legacy Today we are going to conclude our sermon series on King David. David is remembered as a man after God s own heart, he listens to God s instructions and consults God as he makes decisions. But as we have seen over the last few weeks David has made his share of mistakes too. Last week we talked about two of King David s sons: Amnon and Absalom. Amnon forcibly lay with his step-sister Tamar and David did not punish him. Absalom was furious about the way his sister was treated and kills Amnon and then initiates a rebellion to overthrow King David and gain the throne. Absalom fails and is killed in the process. But the people have had the seeds of mistrust sown by Absalom and their confidence in David is shaken. The old tensions between Israel and Judah are stirred up and another rebellion is quickly stopped. Then there is a three-year famine, and another war with the Philistines. Then David takes a census to count how many people he is ruling over; this upsets God who sends a plague. As David pleads for the people s lives, God tells him to build an altar and make a sacrifice at a particular spot. David did so; the plague stopped; and that is the site where Solomon will build the Temple. Eventually, David slows down in his old age and becomes frail. David has promised the throne to Solomon, his son from Bathsheba. But his oldest son surviving Adonijah wants to be the next King. David s commander Joab, who has served him faithfully for many years, aligns himself with Adonijah. Adonijah comes riding into the city on a chariot and starts to make preparations for a big party. Meanwhile Bathsheba and the prophet Nathan realize what is happening and go to warn David. David immediately gives instructions for Solomon to be anointed and for the trumpet to be blown to announce it. Adonijah and his guests at their party hear the trumpet and the city in joyful uproar and are told what has happened. Adonijah s guests flee and Adonijah fears Solomon will harm him, Solomon however gives his half-brother another chance saying, If he proves to be a worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the ground; but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die. So Adonijah s attempt to gain the throne was short-lived and Solomon is to be King. David on his deathbed summons Solomon. So, let s now listen to today s scripture as we hear King David s final words of blessing and advice for Solomon.

2 < Kings 2:-2> When David s time to die drew near, he charged his son Solomon, saying: 2 I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, be courageous, 3 and keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his ordinances, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, so that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn. Then the Lord will establish his word that he spoke concerning me: If your heirs take heed to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail you a successor on the throne of Israel. 5 Moreover you know also what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me, how he dealt with the two commanders of the armies of Israel, Abner son of Ner, and Amasa son of Jether, whom he murdered, retaliating in time of peace for blood that had been shed in war, and putting the blood of war on the belt around his waist, and on the sandals on his feet. 6 Act therefore according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to Sheol in peace. 7 Deal loyally, however, with the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those who eat at your table; for with such loyalty they met me when I fled from your brother Absalom. 8 There is also with you Shimei son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim, who cursed me with a terrible curse on the day when I went to Mahanaim; but when he came down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by the Lord, I will not put you to death with the sword. 9 Therefore do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man; you will know what you ought to do to him, and you must bring his gray head down with blood to Sheol. 0 Then David slept with his ancestors, and was buried in the city of David. The time that David reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 2 So Solomon sat on the throne of his father David; and his kingdom was firmly established. David s advice to Solomon was to obey God and keep the laws and be faithful. But then he goes on to give Solomon some very specific ways to deal with people who might give him problems. Perhaps his deathbed hit list! Or the pragmatic advice of a dying king to his successor. He knew there were enemies and wanted to make sure Solomon knew. Three pieces of advice were:. David s commander Joab assisted Abanijah, so he tells Solomon to not spare him 2. David had promised God that he would not take revenge on Shimei from the house of Saul but Solomon is not bound by that promise, so David tells Solomon to deal with him. 2

3 3. David asks Solomon to spare Barzillai the Gileadite, because he had helped David. Then David dies, and we are told that he reigned for 0 years. The first 7 just over Judah and the remaining 33 over Israel and Judah. That was a long time! He was a complex man; he got a lot wrong, yet he got much right. and he was viewed as an honorable, competent and credible political leader or he would have been overthrown long before 0 years was up. From his early days with a militia of farm boys and six hundred resistance fighters David forged a phenomenally successful national army and he made a nation out of disparate and sometimes warring tribes. He transformed the north and south into a united country, and his government withstood rebellion. He chose wisely in setting Jerusalem up as the new capital. David elevated the Israelite s religion into the state religion by installing the ark in Jerusalem. David s administration was well organized and functioned effectively for a young nation. David was an exceptional military leader. His army was the best equipped and trained of the day. Economically David brought wealth into an impoverished area. 2 After someone dies, first the people and the journalists of the day, and then the historians, decide how they will be remembered, what their legacy will be. David s influence continues as a vital part of Jewish and Christian thought to the present time. With the passing centuries, David s personal failures were forgotten, although his sin with Bathsheba was remembered. Increasingly the virtues of David were celebrated. He was remembered as the king who was faithful to God. He was remembered as the ruler for whom God had a special love. David s relationship with God was thought to be one that had often saved the Hebrews from great danger. Centuries later, Jesus was to be identified as the son of David. Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem was greeted as a signal of the return of the kingdom of David. So David became the pattern of the Messiah and for years after his death the Hebrew people were looking forward to his return or the rule of his descendants. 3 Each of us is creating a legacy that we will leave behind. Mark Rutland, David the Great: Deconstructing the Man After God s Own Heart (Lake Mary, Florida: Charisma Books, 208), Frank Johnson, and 2 Samuel in Genesis to Revelation. Teacher Book. Volume. Revised. (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 997), Charles R. Britt, and 2 Kings, and 2 Chronicles in Genesis to Revelation. Teacher Book. Volume. Revised. (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 997),

We have seen the media this week reactions to the death of Senator John McCain, Vietnam veteran and former prisoner of war, six-term senator and two-time presidential candidate.

And then there have been so many from both political parties who have talked about his honor, courage, integrity, duty, his time as a POW, his time serving in politics and his willingness to reach

When I lead a funeral, usually it is the positive stories of the person that we tell, although I do try to balance it here and there with a human story that shows a fuller story.

A parent s story is different from a sibling is different from a child is different from a co-worker is different from a client is different from a neighbor is different from a friend.

Perhaps, it is compassion, fun-loving, hard worker, generosity Along with a dose of pride and impatience. We are all complex human beings. We all struggle to get things right in our lives.

4 We have seen the media this week reactions to the death of Senator John McCain, Vietnam veteran and former prisoner of war, six-term senator and two-time presidential candidate. What portrait of his life should they tell or paint? He too was a complex man. There are those this week who have pointed out his failures including moments of misogyny and racism. And then there have been so many from both political parties who have talked about his honor, courage, integrity, duty, his time as a POW, his time serving in politics and his willingness to reach out over the aisle and reach compromise. When I lead a funeral, usually it is the positive stories of the person that we tell, although I do try to balance it here and there with a human story that shows a fuller story. While any funeral is sad, one of the things that I really enjoy about funerals, is hearing stories from different perspectives. A parent s story is different from a sibling is different from a child is different from a co-worker is different from a client is different from a neighbor is different from a friend. Each can tell of a different facet of that person s life, and yet the person s attributes usually shine through even as it is expressed differently. Perhaps, it is compassion, fun-loving, hard worker, generosity Along with a dose of pride and impatience. We are all complex human beings. We all struggle to get things right in our lives. I want to believe that we are all trying our best, and that while we get things wrong sometimes, we are generally heading on a positive trajectory. I know that I would like to be remembered for the good things that I have done and not for the moments of my greatest failures. How about you? John Wesley s historic questions asked of UM pastors at their ordination includes the question, Are you going on to perfection. It usually causes quite a chuckle. But it is a serious question. No, we will not make perfection in this life, but if we are not continually striving to be more Christ-like, then we are going the other way, away from perfection. While that might happen occasionally, my prayer is that I am becoming more and more like Christ. God saw something in David s heart that he never gave up on. The trajectory of David s whole life was upward. David trusted God. David always believed in God. David never gave up on God. David believed that God would never give up on him. We ask God, What did you see in David? And God says, I saw inside him. I saw his heart was after my heart. David forgot it sometimes, but God never did. David s story is one of redemption. He makes mistakes, and God forgives him again and again, and although there are consequences God redeems David and brings wholeness. David Rutland, 28.

5 is a mirror for us, for the world. He shows us that is possible to be deeply flawed and yet to also be a man after God s own heart. Besides knowing David as a King, we also know him as a poet and musician. David wrote many of the psalms that we have in our Bible. Out of the 50 psalms, it is thought that David wrote about half of them. We have looked at some of them over the past few weeks. What a legacy those psalms have been to us. Words to comfort us. Words to uplift us. Words of confession and lament. Words of joy and praise. Words that express David s deep faithfulness and trust in God. Timeless words that still echo deep in our hearts. Our Christian worship is filled with phrases from the Psalms associated with David. Most hymnals and wordship books contain dozens of psalms from David in the rituals, and many of these psalms are the basis for some of our most popular hymns. Try looking at the scripture index pages in our UMH. David was a talented man. What a great legacy those psalms are. God s light shines into the darkness. Each of us, in all our messy humanness and limited faithfulness contribute something, and the reflections ripple down the ages. For each one of you here, and the way you impact my life and each other s lives as children of God, I give thanks. And so, we say goodbye to David, as we leave him entrusted into God s care, just like all who have gone before us. That is, after all, what the word good-bye means: God be with you. Thanks be to God, Amen. Let us pray God of faithfulness and love, we give thanks for the lives of the saints who have gone before us, and especially today for the life of King David. We give thanks for the richness of the psalms that wrote and for the ways that they uplift and enrich our worship today. We know that David was a long way from being a perfect man, yet he has a left us a legacy to contemplate. Help us to consult you in all our decisions, to be ever more faithful in our lives, as we grow towards perfection. Mend our hearts and sanctify our lives so that we too may leave a cherished legacy for our loved ones. In Jesus name, we pray. Amen. Resources Genesis to Revelation. Teacher Book Volume. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 997 (revised). New Interpreter s Bible. Vol 3. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 999. Rutland, Mark. David the Great: Deconstructing the Man After God s Own Heart. Lake Mary, Florida, Charisma Books,

A Two Part Sermon about Wisdom and Humility preached by Carol Penner at Lendrum Mennonite Brethren Church, Edmonton, Alberta June 26, 2016

A Two Part Sermon about Wisdom and Humility preached by Carol Penner at Lendrum Mennonite Brethren Church, Edmonton, Alberta June 26, 2016 Part I: A Lesson About Humility from David 2 Samuel 16:5-14, 2