A Man After God’s Own Heart
#10 - "WHAT”S YOUR MOTIVE?"
2 Samuel 7
by Rev. John R. Hannem,
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People do all sorts of things for all sorts of reasons. At the end of an orchestra concert, one of the ushers was standing there applauding very loudly. Another usher walked over to him and asked, "Did you like the concert that much?" "No”, he said “but start clapping. If they do one more encore, we get paid for overtime." ... I suspect that sometimes we all have mixed motives when it come to doing the things we do. Maybe you helped a neighbor rake some leaves because you just wanted to be a good friend and because you want him to let you borrow his snowblower again this winter. No one's motives are always pure. Yet motivation, why we do something, does matter. As someone said, "There is no greater treason than to do the right thing for the wrong reason."
That is even true in the church. Folk like you who are here on Sundays are often encouraged to serve God. We hear things like, "Please be willing to serve the Lord by helping with childrens ministry or by singing in the choir." Certainly it is important to be willing to invest our time and energy in these types of activities. But our motive for doing these things is equally important. "Why do we want to serve God?" is a very important question. Today, as we continue our series on the life of David, we will see that he learned a very important lesson about serving God. We are in 2 Samuel, Chapter 7. Let's pray that we would learn more about how we can be motivated to serve the Lord in a way that pleases Him.
Chapter 7 of 2 Samuel is about a plan and a promise. As we come to this chapter, we find
God very quickly straightens things out. That night the Lord says to Nathan, 7:5 "Go and tell my servant David, 'This is what the Lord says: Are you the one to build me a house to dwell in?'" The Lord goes on to explain that He has never had a temple and He has never asked for one. "David, if I needed a house, I would command you to build me one." Then the Lord shifts the whole focus. Essentially He says, "Nathan, remind David that our relationship is not about what he is going to do for Me, but about what I do for him. I have made him king of
Even in a country which chooses its leaders through elections, such as ours, officials attempt to choose their successor. Premiers and Prime Ministers and Presidents try to groom and prepare a particular individual to succeed then in power. Throughout history many kings and queens were often far more concerned about who would follow them on the throne than they were about ruling their kingdom. I think of Henry VIII; six different wives, just to get a baby boy who could follow him as king. Here God promises that David will have a son who will become king. The Lord says, ,13 "When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever." Even when David's son forgets God, God will remain faithful. He promises 7:15a "But my love will never be taken away from him,..." God is speaking of Solomon. And as we read on in the Old Testament, we see these promises come true. God sums up everything in "Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever." This is a promise that the Messiah Himself, the Eternal King, will be a descendant of David. And, of course, Jesus the Messiah, the King of kings and Lord of lords, is indeed part of David's family tree. The genealogies in the New Testament, Matthew 1 and Luke 3, both record that. This is how God is going to build a house for David. David's plan falls through because God has a better plan.
I want to point out three important lessons for David and for us in this text. First, we can only really serve God after we experience His grace. We often try to reverse the order. Imitating John F. Kennedy we say, "Ask not what God can do for you, but what you can do for God." Far too often we try to earn God's favor. There are people who very zealously serve in some churches because they think that somehow that will make up for mistakes and sins which are in their past. But the primary focus of the Bible is not what we can do for God, but what He has chosen to do for us. It is about experiencing His grace. What happens to David in this chapter is very similar to Peter's experience in John 13. Jesus was washing the feet of His disciples and Peter gets embarrassed. He said, "You should not be washing my feet, Jesus, I should be washing yours." Jesus says, "No, Peter, tonight I'm going to wash your feet." Peter then responds, "Well, if that's the case, then don't just wash my feet, but my hands and head too." I think that on the inside, Peter and David both struggled with pride. It looks a lot like humility, but it really is pride. Peter says, "I can't let Jesus wash my feet." And David says, "I can't let God live in a tent." God says, "Yes you can. Sit back and watch what I am going to do for you."
A few years ago, John Piper wrote an article entitled, Pastor: Tell your people not to serve God. That was a strange title, but he made an interesting and important point. Often, in an effort to motivate people in their congregations to get involved in Christian ministry, pastors say some things which simply are not correct. "God needs you to teach Bible Study this fall," or "God needs you to give money so that missionaries can spread the gospel in other parts of the world." Wrong! Like Uncle Sam, God wants you, but He doesn't need you. Listen to what the apostle Paul says in Acts ,25 "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he (God) is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else." Jesus tells us that if human beings don't testify of His glory, the rocks would cry out. Oh, I know this may seem like a picky point, but it is important. To say that God needs us to serve Him puts ourselves up a few notches and takes God down a few notches. Yes, God desires that we love Him, obey Him and serve Him, but He doesn't need us. It is He Who has made us, we have not made Him. As A. W. Tozer said, "Even if every human being on the planet were an atheist, God would still be God." He would still be great, glorious, gracious and good.
So, before we are ready to serve God, the first step for any of us is that we experience God's grace. Most importantly that means we must receive Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior.
You may be thinking, "OK, pastor, I've already done that; I'm ready to serve." Well, maybe and maybe not. We still need to check our motives. Our motive for serving ought to be a love which causes us to delight in pleasing Him. Even as a Christian, we might attempt to earn God's favor by serving in some way. Maybe we even try to barter. OK, God, I will work with the youth group this fall, but You make sure I get the pay raise that I want next month. That is not a good motivation.
The second lesson that David learned is that God is the One Who will determine how we should serve. David wanted to serve God by building a temple. God said, "No. Solomon is going to build the temple." The reason is given in 1 Chronicles 28:3 "But God said to me, (David) 'You are not to build a house for my Name, because you are a warrior and have shed blood.'" Some have suggested that because David was a warrior, he was not good enough to build the temple. I don't think that is the case. In many ways, David is closer to the Lord than Solomon. The victories that David won in battle were an indication that God was still working to establish David's kingdom. The temple, like God's kingdom, will be built in God's time and in God's way. And David has to learn to serve the way that God wants him to serve.
When our boys were younger they both played on hockey teams and I was responsible to get them where they need to be for games and practices. I got to know a lot of the others children on their teams and I got to know the parents and coaches as well and it was a lot of fun. But sometimes it got a little confusing. Sometimes it seemed that everyone wanted to be in charge... parents would tell the coach, you need to play my son more, he’s a good player, better than so and so, so you should play him more. When the score is tied or it’s a close game we want to see only the best players out there ... and it would filter down to the players. You’d hear them say to each other, "Let me have the puck”" or, "Throw me a pass out there, I’m wide open” or, "I don't want to have to play defense." Now, the kids are not bad because I hear the pro hockey players saying the same things sometimes
But a problem occurs, however, when we start saying those types of things in church. "I want to serve this way; I don't want to do that; I want to do the jobs I like to do." God says, "No. I'm going to call the plays. I will let you know if you should shoot, or pass, sit on the bench, or carry the water. I'll let you know if you are supposed to sing in the choir, teach a Bible Study, work in the kitchen, or preach the sermon. You will have to listen closely, but I will let you know."
Friends, the church is the body of Christ. God has given each one of us gifts and abilities. He desires that we play a part in the work of His kingdom and in the ministry of this church. But there is a problem when we refuse to serve God in the way He has called us to serve.
In the Summer of 1998 Merri Sue & I came home from
You know what? I am glad that God calls the plays. I am grateful that He asked us to serve in such a marvelous place. Oh, there are bigger churches, more prestigious churches, churches which pay their pastor more money. But I don't want to go there. This is where God has called me to serve and there is no better place to be than where God wants us to be.
The third lesson which follows from this is that serving God is about His glory, not ours. Though he would not have wanted to admit it, David's motives for wanting to build the temple had a lot to do with his own prestige. For centuries, people would probably call that building "David's
Chuck Colson says it should not surprise us if God sometimes calls us to serve in ways which we don't feel make the best use of our talents and gifts. He notes that many outstanding Christians saw very little fruit from their work during their lifetime. For example, Hudson Taylor, the missionary to
Friends, whether we are preaching a sermon, teaching a Bible class, singing a solo, giving money to a missionary, or painting the church hallway, our goal should never be that others will be impressed with who we are and what we do, but rather that they will see the glory of Christ more clearly. We need to be willing to serve in the way God has called us to serve because that is where we will be able to honor Him in the best way. That is a lesson David needed to learn and a lesson we all have to learn.
Friends, the assignment I suggest for this week is not to serve God, not to go out and try to do something for Him. Instead, I encourage you to praise God for His amazing grace. That is what David did when he found out that God had rejected his plan, but had given a gracious promise. 2 Samuel 7:27-29 "O Lord Almighty, God of
The promise that God is going to build the house of David, that God is going to bless David's descendants, is far more important than the fact that David will not be building the temple. Knowing that God would continue to show His grace in a marvelous way was a reason to worship. And when we are praising God, when we are saturated with joyful gratitude, that is fertile soil from which true service for the Lord will grow. So, friends, spend time reflecting on His grace and goodness in your life. Think about how in Jesus Christ we have found forgiveness, hope and life. If that doesn't bring us joy, I'm not sure what can. Then let the joy build in your life and become the well from which true service to God will flow.
#399 – Higher Ground