Please turn in your Bibles to 2 Samuel. 2 Samuel and verses one to 17. We come to our third sermon in our series, Shadows of a Son. We've looked at son of a woman, son of Abraham, and this morning we come to son of David. And as we come to the reading and the preaching of God's word, let me pray for us. Father, in your light, we see light. And so we pray that you would come now and by your Holy Spirit, illuminate the reading and the preaching of your word so that we might see Jesus more clearly, love him more dearly, and follow him more nearly. And it's in his name that we pray. Amen. 2 Samuel chapter 7. Now, when the king lived in his house and the Lord had given him rest from all his surrounding enemies, the king said to Nathan the prophet, see now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells in a tent. And Nathan said to the king, go, do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you. But that same night, the word of the Lord came to Nathan, go and tell my servant David, thus says the Lord, would you build me a house to dwell in? I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent for my dwelling. In all places where I have moved with all the people of Israel, did I speak a word with any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, Why have you not built me a house of cedar? Now therefore, Thus you shall say to my servant David, thus says the Lord of hosts, I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel. And I have been with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth, And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they may dwell in their own place and be disturbed no more. And violent men shall afflict them no more as formerly from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover, the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house. When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men and with the stripes of the sons of men. But my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever." In accordance with all these words and in accordance with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David. The grass withers, the flowers fade, but the word of our God endures forever. Kingdoms come and kingdoms go. Empires rise and empires fall. It's a basic undeniable fact of history. Just think of any kingdom or empire, ancient or modern, and the fact is true. They come onto the stage of world history And then they leave the stage of world history. Kingdoms come and kingdoms go. Empires rise and empires fall. And that's because kings come and kings go. Emperors rise and emperors fall. Except for one kingdom and one king. The kingdom established with King David It all begins with David's plan to build God a house. Given that he's living in a house of cedar, and the ark of God still remains in a tent, literally a curtain, David is exercised to do something about it. So he hatches a plan to build God a house of cedar. It's a good plan, born out of good intentions, even... The prophet Nathan thinks so. But no sooner has David hatched the plan than God scratches the plan. He's never asked for such a house, but since David has brought up the topic of a house, God turns the conversation to be about a house for David. God plays on the double meaning of the word house. House can refer to a physical house, like the house David wanted to make for God, or it can refer to a family of successors with respect to a royal family, like a dynasty. And it's this second meaning that God uses in his response to David. David wanted to build God a physical house, but God says, I never asked for one. But since you brought up the topic of a house, I'm going to build you a house, a royal house, with a kingdom that will last forever. And it's that word forever that makes David's kingdom stand out as unique on the pages of history. For history teaches us one basic, undeniable, inescapable fact, and that is that kingdoms come and kingdoms go. Empires rise and empires fall because kings come and go and emperors come and go. but not this kingdom. This kingdom will entail a dynasty with an eternal throne that will last forever. Which brings us to the first of four things we see about this kingdom. Time will not outlast it. Time will not outlast it, verses 13 and 16. Verse 13, he shall build a house for my name and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. Verse 16, and your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever. One of the things, sorry, three times we are told that the kingdom will be forever. Some kingdoms and empires have lasted a long time. The kingdom of Ethiopia lasted just over 2,900 years when it came to an end in 1936. The Roman Empire lasted about 1,500 years. But none have outlasted time. In every case, time has outlasted them. But David's kingdom, time will not outlast it. Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever. Your throne will be established forever. God gives two simple reasons why time will not outlast this kingdom. Death will not stop it and sin will not disrupt it. Death will not stop it and sin will not disrupt it. Which brings us to the second and third thing we see about this kingdom. Time will not outlast it because death will not stop it. Verses 12 to 13. When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you who shall come from your body and I will establish his kingdom. One of the things that makes a kingdom unstable is whether there is an offspring to continue on the royal line once the monarch dies. In particular, a male offspring. At least that was the case in the ancient world. For David's kingdom to continue, he would need a male offspring. so that when he died, there would be a son from his own body, in his own bloodline, who would sit on his throne and continue the dynasty. Hence God's promise. When David dies and lies with his fathers, God will raise up an offspring after him. The language is the same as that of other covenant promises, to you and to your offspring after you. And so too is the language of an offspring from your own body. Those exact words are used in Genesis 15, when God promised Abraham an offspring as numerous as the stars, an offspring that would begin with a son from his own body. So what God is making with David here is a covenant cut from the same cloth as all God's previous covenants with Adam and Eve, with Noah, with Abraham, with Moses, with Israel. The promise to David is just another expansion, another extension of his one covenant of grace in its previous administrations with Adam and Noah and Abraham and Moses and Israel. All of which, to one extent or another, concerned the promise of an offspring. But what is new in this covenant with David is the revelation that his son will have a kingdom of his own that will last forever. And part of establishing that kingdom will involve him building a house of worship for God's name. Verse 13, he shall build a house for my name. It's another play on the word house. Now God is speaking about a temple of worship. In other words, worship will be at the center of this kingdom. Now if the throne of this temple building son of David is going to last forever, it must mean that the son of David is going to live forever. Death will not be able to stop the continuation of this kingdom. When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you. Death will not stop this kingdom, not David's death, and not this son of David's death. For if the kingdom is going to last forever, then his son must live forever. So time will not outlast this kingdom because death will not stop this kingdom. And time will not outlast it because sin will not disrupt it. Sin will not disrupt it. Like death, sin is always a threat to the future of any kingdom. Sin causes great messes for kingdoms and empires, no matter how powerful they are. History is littered with examples of sin disrupting and derailing kingdoms or empires. Sin by the monarch or emperor, sin by a family member or relative, sin by a court official, Sin has always disrupted and disreared kingdoms and empires. Just think of Saul's sin in not following God's orders to completely destroy the Amalekites. He disobeyed God and God tore the kingdom from him. Or think of David's sin with Bathsheba. While God forgave David, his kingdom never really recovered after that incident. Sin cost Saul his kingdom. Sin nearly cost David his kingdom. And it wouldn't be any different for his son, given that he would most likely be a sinner like his father David. So the future of God's kingdom, like that of any kingdom, comes with a degree of uncertainty, a degree of instability, especially if this son turns out to be a sinner like David. And yet God makes provision for even this. He graciously promises that sin will not disrupt David's kingdom. Verse 14, I will be to him a father and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men and with the stripes of the sons of men. Notice first who this son of David will be. He will be a son of God, another hint as to why this kingdom will last forever. But then we are given a reality check about this son of David with another when clause, like back in verse 12. In verse 12, there was the fact that David's death could threaten the kingdom. When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers. Now there's the fact that David's son's sin could threaten the kingdom. Verse 14, when he commits iniquity. But for God and His grace, the sin of David's son will not disrupt this kingdom. Verse 15, but my steadfast love will not depart from him. It's not that God will brush sin the sin of David's son under the carpet. God is too good and righteous to do that. In fact, when this son of David, God's son, commits iniquity, he will be disciplined by the rod of men and by the stripes of the sons of men. Public discipline is how God deals with sin among those who lead his people. And it will be no different for this son of David. But, And here's the big but, God will not remove his steadfast love from him. When Saul sinned, God removed his steadfast love from him and tore the kingdom from him. But when David's son sins, God will not remove his steadfast love from him. Sin will not disrupt this kingdom. Time will not outlast it because death will not stop it and sin will not disrupt it. This is why the kingdom of David will last forever and be unique among the kingdoms and empires of the world. Time has outlasted every known kingdom and empire. They have been brought to an end by the death of the monarch or emperor in old age or in a war. Sin has derailed and disrupted kingdoms and empires. but not the kingdom of David's son. It will come onto the pages of world history, and it will remain. It will rise, and it will not fall. It will come, and it will not go. The throne of his kingdom will be established forever. The question then is just who is this son of David? Who is this temple building son of God whose house and kingdom will have no end? Well, Solomon is a good bet in the first instance. After David dies, Solomon is raised up after him to succeed him on the throne. He is a son from David's own body. He enjoys rest from all his enemies. Solomon never fights a war, hence his name, Prince of Peace. He builds the temple as a house of worship for God's name. And sadly, he does commit iniquity. He marries many foreign women and is led into idolatry. And as a result, God disciplines him. God disciplines Solomon with agitators. While he fights no wars, he has agitators. There's Hadad the Edomite and Rezon, son of Eliadad, who were marauders in Israel. And then there is Jeroboam, a servant of Solomon, who eventually splits the kingdom during the reign of Solomon's son, Rehoboam. God disciplines Solomon for his sin by making such men to be thorns in his side during his reign. Metaphorically speaking, they discipline him with the rod and with stripes. And yet, Unlike with Saul, God does not remove his steadfast love from Solomon. Because of his promise to David, God preserves the kingdom. Even when it splits into two, Israel in the north, Judah in the south, God does not remove his steadfast love from Solomon. And yet, he is not the son that God promised David, because Solomon's kingdom does not last forever. Solomon rose for a time, and then he fell. Solomon's kingdom came for a time, and then it crashed. So if Solomon isn't the longed-for promised son, Then who is he? Who is this son from David's line, the temple building son of God, whose house and kingdom and throne will last forever? Well, after the nation of Judah goes into exile, they return 70 years later. And in the post-exilic community, we see a few royal figures. There's one called Serubbabel. He lays the foundation stone for the second temple. Here is a son of David, from the bloodline of David, building a house for God's name. And yet, When it's finished, it's not as glorious as the first temple. And Zerubbabel doesn't even have a throne in Jerusalem to sit on. Yes, he's royalty, but in name only. So by the end of the Old Testament, We have still not found this temple building, Son of God, Son of David. By the end of the Old Testament, God's people are left waiting and wondering, who is the promised Son of David? We might say that the people of God in the Old Testament live in a perpetual advent. a perpetual time of waiting, waiting to see the fulfillment of God's promise to David. We might say it was always Advent and never Christmas in the Old Testament. a bit like in Narnia. Boys and girls, do you remember the chronicles of Narnia, the lion, the witch, and the wardrobe when Lucy explains to her siblings that because of the white witch's spell on the land, it's always winter here and never Christmas. My two children, Zach and Hannah, have officially declared this week that Advent is too long How many sleeps, Daddy? When's Christmas coming? It feels like it's always Advent and never Christmas for them. In Narnia, it was always winter and never Christmas because Aslan, the great lion, had not yet arrived. And boys and girls, for God's people in the Old Testament, it was always winter, always Advent and never Christmas because the promised son of David had not yet arrived. The great lion of Judah is his other title. But then, one winter night, While shepherds were watching their flocks, the sky lit up with the glory of God. And an angel appeared and said to them, fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a savior. who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you. You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. Do you hear that? A baby boy born in the city of David, born in the city of the King, who was promised a dynasty with an eternal kingdom. A baby boy with the title Christ the Lord. Christ means anointed one. It was a royal title, meaning king. And we know that this baby boy was royalty because soon after his birth, kings from the east came, the magi, the wise men. And boys and girls, you remember what the wise men brought to Jesus? presents, gold, frankincense, myrrh. Just like you receive presents at Christmas, Jesus received presents and they were presents fit for a king. The presents meant that Advent was over and Christmas was here. The long, long wait in the Old Testament for the promised son of David was over. The temple building son of God had arrived. And it arrived in a baby boy born in Bethlehem to a poor couple called Mary and Joseph, who called their baby Jesus. And as he grew up and lived into his adult life, it became obvious that Jesus was the long-promised son of David. At his birth, he was given the name Emmanuel. which means God with us. He was like the temple where God dwelt with his people. And in his ministry, he spoke of himself as being the temple. Destroy this temple, and I will raise it in three days. At his baptism, God spoke from heaven and affirmed Jesus as his beloved son with whom he was well pleased. Jesus was the son of God. A week before his death, he rode into Jerusalem on a donkey and crowds of people lined the streets. And you remember what they sung? Hosanna to the son of David. And on the cross, as he died, they put a sign above his head, this is the King of the Jews. And then after his death, he rose from the grave and ascended into the heavenly temple to sit at his father's right hand forever. Your throne will be established forever. And through his ministry, he began building a house for God's name. The apostle Peter calls Jesus the cornerstone of God's temple and believers as living stones being built up together with Jesus to form the temple of God in which his name is praised. Jesus is the temple building son of God, son of David, whose kingdom will last forever. But there's only one problem. If Jesus is the promised son of 2 Samuel 7, how do we relate verse 14 and 15 to him? When he commits iniquity. When, not if. The words easily relate to Solomon. since he did commit iniquity, but how can they relate to Jesus since he never committed iniquity? Well, boys and girls, do you remember last week I asked what a shadow is? A shadow is created when an object stands in the light. The object standing in the light creates a dark outline, a general sketch of the shape of the object. But a shadow is always a bit dark and blurry, isn't it? I have a shadow here in the pulpit right now, and it's a bit blurry. It's not making me look as good looking as I think I am. It's a bit dark, it's a wee bit blurry, and that's what shadows are. And it's a bit like the shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. They give the general outline of Jesus, but they're a bit dark and blurry precisely because they are shadows. The exact outline of Jesus can only be seen in the New Testament. And I think verses 14 and 15 is a bit like that. They give a general outline, but the sharper details are only seen in the New Testament when Jesus stands in the light. And what we see in the light of the New Testament is that Jesus is completely free of sin. He does not commit iniquity, unlike Solomon and the other kings in David's line. And yet, At the same time, we see that he takes the place of sinners as their substitute and therefore looks like a sinner. He looks like he committed iniquity. This is most clearly seen when Jesus takes the place of Barabbas at his death. At the festival of Passover each year, there was a tradition that the Roman governor would pardon a guilty person who the Jews asked to be released, a bit like presidential pardons, which have been in the news recently. Well, the Jews pleaded with Pontius Pilate that a man named Barabbas, which is Aramaic for son of the father, that a man called Barabbas, a man guilty of murder and insurrection, would be released instead of Jesus. Pilate conceded to their request, and so Barabbas was set free, while Jesus was sent off to die by crucifixion. The innocent died in the place of the guilty. And yet, think about it that day. As passerbys were walking past the cross, what did Jesus look like? A sinner. He looked like he'd committed some wrong, just like the two thieves on either side of him. In his trial and crucifixion, Jesus received the discipline of the rod of men and the stripes of the sons of men, physically and metaphorically, as if he had committed iniquity, even though he never committed any iniquity. The apostle Paul explains it like this. He who knew no sin. became sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him." That's how Jesus fulfills verses 14 and 15. And this is why sin cannot nor will not disrupt his kingdom. Because Jesus died to pay the penalty for sin. He died to overcome the power of sin. So sin cannot nor will not disrupt his kingdom. And neither can death. Death cannot nor will not disrupt his kingdom because Jesus rose from the dead never to die again. Which is why his kingdom will be forever. It's what we've affirmed this morning in the Nicene Creed. Did you notice the line? Whose kingdom shall have no end. Time will not outlast Christ's kingdom because death will not stop it and sin will not disrupt it. Because in his death and resurrection, Jesus overcame both. And so his kingdom will have no end. Which brings us to the fourth point about this kingdom. We cannot avoid it. We cannot avoid it. If Jesus is the promised son of David, then his kingdom is the eternal kingdom that holds sway across the whole world. In Psalm 2, God makes more promises to David and his son, one of which is that he will receive the nations as his inheritance, the ends of the earth as his possession. So this is an eternal kingdom that extends from pole to pole, from shore to shore, which means that it is unavoidable, inescapable. Now, maybe you're sitting there thinking, okay, Johnny, all well and good, but have you forgotten what country you're in? This is a republic, not a kingdom. Well, no, I haven't forgotten. You remind me every 4th of July. But the kingdom of Jesus is not another political or religious realm that sits alongside other political and religious realms and kingdoms and empires and republics. In His resurrection and ascension, Jesus became King of all kings and Lord of all lords. His kingdom is above and over all other kingdoms and empires and yes, republics. And therefore, it's unavoidable. This is wonderfully illustrated when Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was coronated in Westminster Abbey in London in 1953. That day, as she entered the church in her royal robes, she walked toward her throne. And then she walked past her throne and knelt down at a stone altar for a moment of private prayer. It was a private prayer, but it was a public statement because engraved on that stone altar were these words, the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and Christ. There was the queen of the British Empire, aligning herself with the kingdom of Jesus Christ because she knew it is unavoidable. And she gladly bowed the knee before her king. The question we all need to ask ourselves is, have we aligned ourselves with this king? Because his kingdom is unavoidable. You cannot escape it. I saw recently that Ellen DeGeneres and her partner, Portia de Rosi, have left the United States and relocated to the United Kingdom to avoid Donald Trump's presidency. If you don't like Trump, you can move country. If you don't like Jesus, moving country is not gonna help you. Because he is the king of the whole wide world. Which means there's no refuge from him. There's only refuge in him. So why not come and bow the knee like Queen Elizabeth did? Because one day we're all going to bow the knee. when Jesus returns. Some of us will do it gladly, some of us will do it begrudgingly, but we are all going to bow the knee before the King of all kings and Lord of all lords. Now maybe you're thinking, okay, but last time people on these shores had to submit to a king, it was oppressive. And we went to war against that king because he was oppressive. And Jesus' kingdom would be oppressive too if he was that kind of a king. But he's not. The Bible describes him as a king of love. Just read some of the gospels. He comes to break oppression. not bring oppression. He comes to set the captive free, not make captives. He comes to heal the sick and raise the dead. He comes to hold his lambs gently in his hands. as Caitlin and Susanna sung so beautifully to us. He comes to give rest for weary souls. He comes to satisfy the spiritual thirsty and hungry. He comes to forgive the sinful, bless the miserable, comfort the sorrowful. Jesus' kingdom is not an oppressive kingdom. It is a kingdom of love and peace and comfort because he is the king of love who oppresses no one and saves and satisfies anyone who will come to him and bow the knee. If you do, He will do you no harm. Christians have done people harm. Churches have done people harm. Christ has never done anyone any harm. He will only do you good. I love the story of Polycarp, one of the earliest Christian martyrs. He was an early church father in the late 1st century. He was discipled by the apostle John, who wrote the book of Revelation. During persecution by the Romans, Polycarp was captured and sentenced to death. As he was standing ready to be burnt at the stake, the Roman governor offered to release him if he would deny Christ and heal Caesar as his king. Polycarp replied, "'For eighty and six years I have been his servant, and he has done me no wrong. How then can I blaspheme my king and savior?' Do you hear that? A man who was about to be burned at the stake for Christ said he would not renounce Christ because Christ his King had done him no harm. And that's what Christ still offers for all who will bow the knee and acknowledge His kingdom. He offers them health and happiness, health and happiness in soul after His first coming, and health and happiness in body at His second coming. And so, we bow the knee today and say, come, Lord Jesus, come. Let us pray. Father, we pray this morning that you would expand our minds and horizon in understanding the great and glorious kingdom of your son. And we pray that as stones in his temple, being built up with him, we pray that we would indeed worship your name. We pray, Father, that this Advent and Christmas season you would help us all again to bow the knee and acknowledge the King of all kings and Lord of all lords, Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray, amen.