Sermon 2 Samuel 5:1-5 His Reign Begins

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard

Sermon 2 Samuel 5:1-5 His Reign Begins

Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church

December 9, 2007

We are gathering together this morning for worship on the second Sunday of Advent. Advent is a time, when we prepare our hearts and minds to receive the coming Messiah on Christmas. As part of this preparation we have been looking at the Book of Samuel whose central theme is “the anointed one”, “the Messiah”, “the Christ”. As we prepare ourselves to receive coming Christ it is crucial that we understand what we are waiting for.

Last Sunday we watched as the old prophet Samuel made his way to Bethlehem with a ram’s horn filled with olive oil to make a sacrifice to the Lord, God of Israel, and to anoint one of Jesse’s sons as the new king. Jesse’s youngest son David, the shepherd of the sheep, was chosen by God to be the anointed one, the Messiah the Christ. On Wednesday evening we watched as the anointed one brought tens loves of bread to his brothers who were preparing for battle with the Philistines and then slew the giant that was facing the Israelites. Today we will watch as the elders of Israel gather together in Hebron to make the anointed one of God their king.

Will you pray with me? Father in heaven be with us this day as we read and study your word for us. Give me the gift of preaching so that the words I speak and the words the congregation hears may be your words for us today. We pray in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen.

2 Samuel 5:1 Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron, and said, "Look, we are your bone and flesh. ² For some time, while Saul was king over us, it was you who led out Israel and brought it in. The LORD said to you: It is you who shall be shepherd of my people Israel, you who shall be ruler over Israel." ³ So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron; and King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the LORD, and they anointed David king over Israel. ⁴ David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years. ⁵ At Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months; and at Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah thirty-three years.

King Saul had led Israel into battle with Philistines. A Philistine archer wounded the king and he had to be carried off the battlefield. As the battle was coming to end King Saul realized that Israel was about to be defeated. He did not want to be taken alive so he fell on his own sword. Three of his sons also died in the battle. After the battle a succession struggle between Saul’s son Ishbaal and his general Abner commenced leaving both dead. The elders of the twelve tribes of Israel met in Hebron to anoint a new king. This group included David as the leader of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin.

When the elders convened at Hebron, they asked David to be their king. The elders gave three reasons why David should be anointed king of all twelve tribes. Let’s look carefully at these three reasons for clues on what we should expect of the coming Messiah at Christmas.

The elders of Israel told David that he should be their king because he was their own flesh and blood. David was a descendant of Abraham and Sarah, their grandson Jacob and Leah and great grandson Judah and Tamar. Our expectation therefore is that the Messiah will be from the tribe of Judah. But David was not as ethnically pure as you might expect. His great grandmother was Ruth. Ruth was not a descendant of Sarah and Abraham; rather she descended from Lot, Abraham’s brother, and was part of the tribe of Moab. And Ruth was married to Boaz whose mother was from Jericho where she worked as a prostitute. So we see in David’s past a multiethnic background which influenced his actions as king.

Once David became the king he captured Jerusalem from the Jebusites. Scripture tells us that Jerusalem became the capital of his kingdom and Jebusites were included in David’s government. So the anointed one, rather than coming to destroy his enemies, came to include them in God’s kingdom. We also see this as David worked with Hiram, the King of Tyre. Tyre has a terrible reputation in the Book of Kings because that is where Jezebel came from and her religion of Baal. But for David and Book of Samuel Hiram King of Tyre is considered a friend who helped both David and Solomon in their building efforts.

What we see in all of this is that unlike the elders of Israel, the anointed one, the Messiah, the Christ, was inclusive. All peoples of the earth, regardless of nationality, were welcome in his kingdom. So we should expect that when the Messiah comes he will announce that the Kingdom of God is at hand and that all people from every nation and tribe is welcome into it fellowship. And we should expect that the church Messiah leaves behind will also welcome into its doors people of every tribe and nation. This is our great opportunity in Eagle Rock as people, from every tribe and nation, come here to begin new lives, and are welcomed at this church to learn English and share their gifts.

The second reason why the elders of Israel wanted David to be their king was that he had been a great general under King Saul. And this was certainly true. David had in fact become so successful as a general the people began singing “David has killed his ten thousands, Saul has killed his thousands.” You can imagine how jealous that made King Saul. He was so jealous he conspired to have David murdered who was saved just in the nick of time by Saul’s son Jonathan. David escaped but there was no place in Israel to hide, so David went to the Philistines and lived with them.

Now you might expect that while living with the Philistines David would lead an army against his former country and become its king by force. But David, the Messiah, the Christ, the anointed one did not come leading an army. David was absent from the battle between the Philistines and the Israelites because he was busy dealing the Amalikites who had raided his own village. This gives us the expectation that when the Messiah comes he will not come leading a mighty army but leading a movement of peaceful change. As Christians we may be called like David to engage in battle to save our nation, but the kingdom of God will not come about violently. God’s kingdom will be brought to us by the Prince of Peace.

The third reason the elders of Israel wanted David to be king was because they believed that God had called David to be their soverign. You will remember that Samuel certainly thought that God was calling David to be king when David was anointed in Bethlehem. But this anointing was only known by Samuel, David and David’s family. If anyone found out then the lives of all the participants would be in jeopardy. We don’t know if anyone else found out, but it is quite possible that David himself told of the anointing to the elders after the death of Saul. So the elders may have known of Samuel’s anointing but it is more likely they just recognized God’s call in David.

As Christians we believe that God is calling each of us to some form of ministry. I have been called to the Ministry of the Word and Sacrament. How do I know that God is calling me to this ministry? I know that God has called me because I have an inner experience of that call. I knew when I was still in Washington that God had called me to teach and preach God’s word. I felt compelled to study and teach the Scripture at my church even when this left less time for my business. I felt that teaching the Bible was something I had to do. I did not really have a choice. This was a very strong call. But this inner call has to be confirmed by others to be sure that it is really from God. I knew internally that God wanted me to be a pastor. What was needed was for a congregation to confirm that call. This is where you came it. When you called me to be your pastor you where confirming my experience that God was calling me to this role. And once you confirmed my call the presbytery in Washington DC was confident that the call I experienced truly came from God. This, I believe, is what happened with David. He knew through his anointing by Samuel and the blessing he had received from God that God was calling him as King of Israel, but it was not until the elders of Israel confirmed this call that everyone knew God was truly calling David as king.

With God’s call confirmed David became the greatest king Israel ever had. He picked the nation up from defeat and made it the most powerful nation in region. He made his capital in Jerusalem and brought the Arc of the Covenant, the most important symbol of God’s presence with his people into the city. This gives us the expectation that the Messiah will come into Jerusalem and God will be present. These expectations will be met when God himself is taken to Jerusalem by Mary and Joseph just twelve days after the birth of the Messiah.

With the presence of God in Jerusalem David’s kingdom began to grow and prosper. This gives us the expectation that whenever God is present in a church that church too will grow and prosper. There is no doubt that God is present here in this church. So watch out as God does amazing things right here in Eagle Rock. I believe that with God’s presence here God will bring new people to this church and its future is very bright indeed.

What all of this shows, is God’s great faithfulness for his people, Israel. God had promised Abraham to make of his descendants a great nation, and in David, that promise was fulfilled. But God’s promise to Abraham went beyond what David had accomplished. God told Abraham that in him all the families of the Earth would be blessed. This means that in David only part of God’s covenant with Abraham was fulfilled. We are still waiting for the coming of the Messiah, the Christ, the anointed one. And that is what Christmas is all about. The Messiah is coming who will cause all of the families an Earth to be blessed.

Lord Jesus, we can hardly wait for you to come. Like little children waiting for Santa Claus we are waiting for you. Help us to relax during this frantic season of Christmas so that we can hear the voices of angels in heaven singing “Glory to God in Highest”, Amen.