The book of Isaiah is a story of God’s faithful love toward those He calls His own. Despite repeated rebellion, God was not thwarted. The continual thread of Isaiah is one of God bringing hope, healing, and wholeness to a hurting world. The promised hope is glimpsed throughout Isaiah. “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns.’ The voice of your watchmen-they lift up their voice; together they sing for joy; for eye to eye they see the return of the LORD to Zion.” Isaiah 52:7,8 The truth found in Isaiah is that God restores. He restores the physically broken, the emotionally persecuted, and the hopelessly lost souls of the world.

The death of Jesus Christ is the hope that we live for today and what the people in Isaiah awaited for with a fervent expectancy. Today we are awaiting again in a fervent expectancy of the day when God will return again. Trust in the hope that is secured in the person of Jesus Christ. Rest in His all sufficient sacrifice as you await His return. Never forget that your hope is secured in Him.

The promise of Immanuel coming to Israel was a hope beyond comprehension but God tells the people what will happen in that day. In that day there will be abundance, the mighty will be brought low, and hope will be realized. Is that a promise you would look forward to? The audience of Isaiah were living in a weariness of life without hope for relief. The people of Israel had no idea when God’s deliverance would come. Did they remain faithful to God as they awaited the promise? Did the passing of time and weariness of life erode the hope that fulfillment of the promise would come to fruition?

We are living today in fulfillment of the promise given in Isaiah. The virgin has conceived. His name is Immanuel. Are you living in the hope that Immanuel brings? We are awaiting another promise. “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.” John 14:1-4 Jesus Christ died, was buried, and on the third day rose from the grave bringing salvation to all that call upon His name. We are awaiting the the promised moment when our faith in Jesus Christ will become sight and all doubt will fade away. Are you growing weary waiting for the fulfillment of God’s promise? Have you lost hope. Look at the faithfulness of God fulfilling His promise given in Isaiah. Our hope is secured in the unwavering faithfulness of God.

God turned the hearts of the persian kings favorably towards the people of Israel allowing a remnant to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. God worked through the rulers over Israel to remind them of His faithfulness. As the people of Israel rebuilt the temple they had a freedom from the persian kings to complete the work but the greater freedom was found in the reaffirmation of their devotion to God. God remained faithful to the people of Israel never forgetting them in the midst of their exile. Did God feel as a parent would when they have to allow their child go through a difficult moment in life to learn how to live?

The book of Ezra was written almost like the memoir of Ezra chronicling the first refugees who returned to Jerusalem. His leadership steamed from his devotion to God and his desire to know God more than anything else. Was the passion and devotion to God displayed by Ezra an important factor in the peoples desire to follow God again? Is your faith in God strong enough to make a stand for God and against the ways of the people around you? You will be forever changed and transformed as you cling to God with all of your heart, mind, soul and strength.

“When your days are fulfilled that you must go to be with your fathers, that I will set up one of your descendants after you, who will be of your sons; and I will established his kingdom. He shall build for me a house, and I will establish his throne forever. I will be his father and he shall be My son; and I will not take My lovingkindness away from him, as I took it from him who was before you. But I will settle him in My house and in my kingdom forever, and his throne shall be established forever.”  1 Chronicles 17:11-14  This promise God made to David foreshadows the coming of Jesus Christ the Son of God. David could not have fathomed what God had planned to redeem man from the bond of sin when he heard that one of his descendant would reign forever. “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house that you have brought me this far? This was a small thing in Your eyes, O God; but You have spoken of Your servant’s house for a great while to come, and have regarded me according to the standards of a man of high degree, O Lord God. What more can David still say to You concerning the honor bestowed on Your servant? For you know your servant. O Lord, for Your servant’s sake, and according to Your own heart, You have wrought all this greatness, to make known all these great things.” 1 Chronicles 17:16-19

Do you see the connection between God’s dwelling with Israel, His promise to David, and our hope for tomorrow. Jesus Christ came to dwell among the sinful men and women He needed nothing from. God’s nature didn’t change from how He chose to dwell among the Israelites and how Jesus Christ came to dwell on earth. Jesus Christ then died on the cross for the people he came to dwell with. Words are useless to describe the beauty found in the love that Jesus Christ expressed to us. I wonder just as David as to why God would choose us. In disbelief I cry out in speechless thankfulness because I was chosen as a cherished treasure by God almighty.

Have you heard of the book The Prayer of Jabez by Bruce Wilkinson? I remember reading this book in 2001 when it was first released and I found it really amazing how this random prayer of this man Jabez was found in the middle of 1 Chronicles. I read the book multiple times and enjoyed it greatly as I found encouragement in the prayer Jabez prayed to God. Did I really understand the uniqueness of this mans prayer back in 2001 when I read the book? I honestly didn’t have a solid overall view of the story of the Bible up to and including 1 Chronicles. After I have read through the Old Testament and reflected on each chapter I am even more amazed by the prayer Jabez made. In context to the overall story of the Bible this man was unique in a time when many men were seeking their own desires with little regard for God. Why was his prayer included in 1 Chronicles? Why would the Israelites need to remember this mans story? Was the dependance upon God that Jabez displayed so uncommon within the post exilic Israelite community that he was singled out? It truly is amazing to see this prayer in the midst of all the genealogies of the people of Israel. Take time to read through this wonderful story contained within the Bible and you will be blessed in ways you will never expect.

In 1 King chapter 7 we are given greater detail about the home that Solomon built for himself and the furnishings that were created to fill the temple. When reading about detailed descriptions about a home made of cedar from Lebanon, bronze pillars ‘Boaz’ and ‘Jakin’, bronze basins, utensils, massive cherubim surrounding the ark, and many other assorted items made of bronze and gold you can start to wonder why should I care? Why are such things made?

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who spoke with His mouth to my father David and has fulfilled it with His hand, saying, ‘Since the day that I brought My people Israel from Egypt, I did not choose a city out of all the tribes of Israel in which to build a house that My name might be there, but I choose David to be over My people Israel.’ Now it was in the heart of my father David to build a house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. But the Lord said to my father David, ‘Because it was in your heart to build a house for My name, you did well that it was in your heart. Nevertheless you shall not build the house, but your son who will be born to you, he will build the house for My name.’ Now the Lord has fulfilled His word which He spoke; for I have risen in place of my father David and sit on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised, and have built the house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. There I have set a place for the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord, which He made with our fathers when He brought them from the land of Egypt.

1 Kings 8:15-21

The words spoken by Solomon continue in 1 Kings chapter 8 to praise God for His goodness and faithfulness to the people of Israel. The prayer of Solomon pleads for God to remember the people of Israel when they turn back to God after straying from following Him. In life when we are wavering in our faith in God we need to be to be assured that God’s faithfulness endures in the midst of our unfaithfulness. Solomon knew that God is far greater than he could comprehend but he earnestly prays that God is true to His nature as he remembers His people. Solomon reminds the people of Israel to walk before God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength because then they will be blessed. I have been amazed at how throughout the Bible the need for us to love God and love people is continually proclaimed.

So what is true worship? We are repeatedly exhorted to love God with all of our heart, with all of our mind, with all of our soul, and with all of our strength. As we cling to God our love for Him will pour out to those around us. This is true worship in it’s most simplistic form. This worship can be manifested in many different ways and I believe that Solomon’s building of the Temple is an extension of his love and worship of God. I pray that as you worship God you will remember that you are to love God with all of your heart, mind, soul, and strength because as you seek Him more you light will shine brighter to those around you.

When you tell people what they want to hear you can gain their approval and trust but what will their devotion cost you? Absalom slowly usurps David’s authority by presenting himself to the people of Israel as a great leader and counselor. Sounds benavelont to say,”Oh that one would appoint me judge in the land, then every man who has any suit of cause could come to me and I would five him  justice.” 2 Samuel 15:4, but he is only seeking to build himself up. If I were walking past Absalom as he was speaking it would be enticing to follow this man who made all these promises. Where was David while Absalom was scheming for forty years? What did David do while he was king? Did David claim authority over his family? Absalom recruits Ahithophel, one of David’s counselors, to help him establish his own kingdom. It is interesting that Joab, the man who helped bring Absalom back to Jerusalem, is not mentioned in 2 Samuel 15 and 16. What is Joab doing while Absalom was taking over Israel?

When David flees from Jerusalem to escape his son what was he thinking? David leaves behind 10 concubines to manage the house but everyone else leaves with him. David was presented the Ark as the priests left the city but David refuses to take the ark from Jerusalem because it was for God to choose who would rule over Israel. One man named Ittai was fleeing along with the household of David and he is marked by his devotion to David. This man had just arrived to Jerusalem the day before the escape and he was choosing to live or die at David’s side despite being given an excuse to run away by David. Was Ittai an encouragement to David in a time when he didn’t know who to trust? Another act of devotion to David was shown by his friend Hushai who stays behind in Jerusalem at David’s request to give spy on Absalom. Was it difficult for David to send a friend into danger? Would you honor a friend who asks you to risk your safety on their behalf? Could you request a friend to risk themselves for you?

How do you know who to trust when life becomes filled with deception and lying? Where is hope found when sin swells into a frenzy around you making the intentions, motivations, and actions of people unclear? In 2 Samuel chapter 16 David finds Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth, bringing provisions and claiming that his master was rising against him with Absalom to reclaim the throne for Saul’s family. How does David know if the truth is being told? What would you do in this situation? Why does David extend trust so freely to Ziba? Does this trust exhibited by David surprise you? Despite all of David’s faults he consistently relinquishes control and command of his life to God. The question of whether Ziba is being truthful is a matter for God to deal with David could keep moving forward by faith. I surely desire the trust and faith that David had to follow God in unwavering devotion.

When you are faced with constant insults, accusations, and questions of character how do you react? Do you want to lash out against the people who are attacking you? As David and the people were fleeing from Jerusalem a man named Shimei, who was of the house of Saul, began cursing David and throwing rocks at him and his companions. The constant pestering by Shimei led to David’s men wanting to kill him but again David leaves the situation for God to judged because He was the one who was ordaining all that was happening. Shimei was left alive because David trusted God to give justice to those who needed it. The next time you are face to face with someone insulting you remember that it is God who is ultimately in control and choose to rest in His authority.

All that God spoke to David through Nathan is coming to pass within David’s house. Absalom is the evil that Nathan spoke of being raised up from his own family. Absalom enters Jerusalem and takes his fathers house and the wives of David that were left behind. Absalom takes all of the concubines for his own in front of all of Israel just as Nathan said would happen. Can you see the confidence that we can gain from looking at David’s dependance on God and to wait on His faithfulness to deliver. I am thankful for the hope that we have in Jesus Christ knowing that no matter what situation I find myself I can find rest and assurance in Him because He is faithful.

In 2 Samuel chapter 9 David remembered his close friendship with Jonathan, “Is there yet anyone left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” 2 Samuel 9:1  How far would you go to  fulfill a promise made to someone who was dead? Would you be faithful to the promise if it was for a close friend who had dies? I pray that God would bless me with a friend like David who would be committed to me even after my death. It would be easy to push the memory and promise into the back of your mind and just keep on living instead of taking action. David is determined to find out if there is any one who remains of Saul’s descendants, “Is there not anyone of the house of Saul to whom I may show the kindness of God?” 2 Samuel 9:3

When Mephibosheth is finally brought before David he is completely clueless as to why the king of Israel would even care about him. Mephibosheth’s self worth was summed up in his description of himself as a dead dog. How can someone in such a place of discouragement be helped? David had the power and authority to help Mephibosheth by restoring to him all of his grandfather’s land and David lifts him up to a place of honor at his dinner table. A man who was crippled and had no hope for a fruitful future was restored and given hope through the faithfulness of David.

The hope that was imparted to Mephibosheth was not based upon anything he could accomplish which was evident in the fact that he was still crippled in his feet after David had blessed him. His life was radically changed but he still had to endure the daily life but the prospects that David gave him would have given hope to endure through the difficult moments. This is the same place that we find ourselves in our sinfulness when we are living our lives in whatever way we choose without any true hope. In the moment that we place our hope and faith in Jesus Christ as our savior we are lifted up out of our helpless state just as Mephibosheth was by David. We are not removed from the troubles of life because we will still go through difficult moments but we will have secure hope in Jesus Christ to make it through the dark moments where our faith is all that carries us through.

In 2 Samuel 10 I was surprised that Joab was still in command of the army of Israel in the fight the against the Ammonites and Arameans after he killed Abner. When the Israelites fight the battles against the Ammonites and Arameans why do they have such amazing victories? It is amazing how having a king over Israel who clung to God and sought to do all that God wanted changed the outlook for Israel. When God was was the center of the Israelites existence they found God’s blessing upon them.

What is there to take away from the two chapters in 2 Samuel? We need to seek out our secure hope in Jesus Christ alone to make it through the difficult moments of life and we need to abide in that relationship to claim victory in life. How would you describe life when you don’t actively abide in a vibrant relationship with God? How would you describe a relationship with God where you are truly clinging to him? You have a choice today about the type of life that you want to live and I wholeheartedly pray that you seek out a living relationship with God that will help you as you sojourn on in this life.

After God tells David that he will not be the one to build a temple what were David thoughts? Did he feel confused, fearful, or sad? No matter what David felt it I don’t think it would have lasted very long because God tells of how he will bless David and his descendants. It is both interesting and amazing that there is no qualification that David needs to meet for this blessing to happen. God in His sovereignty was going to bless David. How often do we tell people that we will do something for them if they do another thing first? I am thankful that my faith in Jesus Christ has nothing to do with who I am or my abilitys but my salvation is based wholly upon who God is and what He choose to do. In 2 Samuel 12-16 who is God talking about? Is the scripture foreshadowing Solomon or is God giving David a glimpse into the future when Jesus Christ will deliver mankind?

I love David’s reaction to God’s promised blessing because it is exactly how I would react. If there were something promised to happen in my future I would want some kind of reassurance that it would truly happen. As David prayed to God he knew that it was by God alone that he and Israel were where they were in that moment. It is amazing to see the tender heart of David before God who already knows all the feelings that are going through David’s mind. David finds assurance for his future in who he knows God to be knowing that God always speaks the truth and what He says will never fail to happen.

Your life needs an anchor point where you can place all of your hope and trust. The only place that you can truly anchor your life is in Jesus Christ. God desires us to love Him more than anything in this world and He doesn’t need what we can build for Him, do for Him, or say about Him. Place your faith in the unchangeable truth that Jesus Christ died on the cross for you and in that sacrifice you can have hope for for your future.

David had nothing with him as he fled so he needed provisions and he seeks help from Ahimelech in Nob. David doesn’t tell why he is away from Saul but he expresses the urgency of his need for help to Ahimelech. The renown of David had grown throughout Israel because God had faithfully helped David as he fought for Israel. There was no reason to make Ahimelech worry as to what David was doing in Nob so food and the sword of Goliath were provided to help David on his journey. While David was talking to Ahimelech another man Doeg the Edomite, a servant of Saul, was also present waiting to offer a sacrifice to the Lord and he overheard the talk.

As David continued to flee from Saul people who were downcast, discontented, and oppressed were drawn to him because God was bringing men to David that would serve him and that he could command. There were almost 400 men that joined David but I wonder how many other people came to David along with the men. When people are counted in the Bible it always talks of the men who could go to war but that doesn’t include the children and families of these men. David’s father, mother, and brothers were also drawn to seek out David as he fled Saul. There would easily be over 800 people who were now with David. I imagine that the people coming to join David were a great encouragement to him in a time when he felt alone and feared for his life.

When Saul heard from Doeg the Edomite that David had sought out Ahimelech in Nob for assistance he sent for all the priest from Nob to come before him. Ahimelech had no idea that Saul was seeking to kill David so he had nothing to fear of Saul. Saul accuses Ahimelech and his household of siding with David to usurp the throne to which they didn’t know anything of the dispute but Saul still seeks to kill all of the priests of the Lord and the people of Nob but his guards wouldn’t lift a hand against the priests of the Lord. You would think that the unwillingness of the men serving Saul to kill the priests would clue him into the fact his actions were wrong but Saul just turns to Doeg the Edomite to put the priests and everyone living in Nob to death.

What was the oppression of Saul’s rule like for the people of Israel? Did the Israelites finally regret asking God for a king to rule over them? When Samuel anointed Saul as king over Israel he told all the people that as long as they remained faithful to God that their king would remain faithful and follow God as well. Is Saul’s disobedience a reflection of the spiritual state of Israel? Were the people drawn to David the ones who saw the wickedness of Saul?

How did David feel when he heard the news of Saul killing the priests? In 1 Samuel 22:22 David says to Abiathar, the sole survivor of Ahimelech’s family, “I knew on that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul. I have brought about the death of every person in your father’s household.” Looking at David’s actions it is easy to wonder if his going to seek help from Nob had caused all of the calamity for Ahimelech’s whole family but we must not count out the truth that Saul and Doeg are wholly accountable for their actions in killing the priests of the Lord. In the end God ordained and allowed the events to happen for His own purpose and glory. I cannot fully understand God’s actions but I trust that He is sovereign in all He does and there is never a need for God to explain His purpose.

When we are faced with situations that seem to spiral out of control as David did we need to remember that God is the one who is truly in control of all that happens around us. We need to live life with a bold confidence that as we seek to love God and love the people around us that God will work everything to bring glory to Himself. This will not mean that as we follow God through life we will not doubt our direction in life or our actions but we need to always turn back to trust the fact we life for a sovereign God who is always working in our midst to fulfill his promises.