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1. For the Sake of a Servant, God Will Take Care of your Kids
As we get older, perhaps our greatest conviction is that we want our kids to do well. We still want to win the world, but we particularly want our own kids to make it. It's so traumatic to lose our children. We desperately want them to do great.
1 Kings 11:9-13
9 The LORD became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.
10 Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the LORD'S command.
11 So the LORD said to Solomon, "Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates.
12 Nevertheless, for the sake of David your father, I will not do it during your lifetime. I will tear it out of the hand of your son.
13 Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen."
Solomon had messed up, and God was angry with him. God was prepared to bring down judgment on him, but didn't because of his dad. If we really serve God with all our hearts, we can store up blessings for our children.
We have in our minds that we all stand on our own, and that's true. Here we see, though, that because of David's awesome relationship his children were blessed. This is encouraging. It is motivating us to be close with God.
We go through hard times, and we know our children will as well. We need to remember God will treat them special because of our life.
2. For the Sake of a Servant, God Will Take Care of your Ministry
2 Kings 8:16-19
16 In the fifth year of Joram son of Ahab king of Israel, when Jehoshaphat was king of Judah, Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat began his reign as king of Judah.
17 He was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years.
18 He walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab had done, for he married a daughter of Ahab. He did evil in the eyes of the LORD.
19 Nevertheless, for the sake of his servant David, the LORD was not willing to destroy Judah. He had promised to maintain a lamp for David and his descendants forever.
This was a wicked king, and he deserved punishment. For the sake of God's servant David, God took care of his people in Judah. Most of the church leaders today will be gone in 50 years. They'll just be a memory. God will still bless the church, though, because of their hearts. He'll even take special care of the ministry you are in because your a servant of God.
Judah was messed up, but God kept them alive because of his servant David. We can influence God's decisions way in the future by our lives today.
3. For the Sake of a Servant, God will Take Care of your City
Let's look at a situation 270 years after the life of David--like 300 years from now! It's incredible to think that our hearts can influence God 300 years in the future.
2 Kings 19:32-36
32 "Therefore this is what the LORD says concerning the king of Assyria: "He will not enter this city or shoot an arrow here. He will not come before it with shield or build a siege ramp against it.
33 By the way that he came he will return; he will not enter this city, declares the LORD.
34 I will defend this city and save it, for my sake and for the sake of David my servant."
35 That night the angel of the LORD went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning--there were all the dead bodies!
36 So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew. He returned to Nineveh and stayed there.
God even spared a whole city 300 years later because of the faith of David. It's inspiring to think that God may spare our city because of our faith today. God honors and respects the heart of a servant devoted to him.
As disciples, we need a renewed commitment to win the whole world. Let us remember, though, that our hearts can influence God's heart in the future. He'll look on our children with favor, our ministries and even our cities.
There are dividends paid for our righteousness way beyond the scope of our own years. It's great to serve an awesome God.
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