Kingdom Covenant

Order of Service

• Announcements
• Hymn — All Praise to God Who Reigns Above
• Call to Worship — Psalm 107
• Hymn — All Praise to God Who Reigns Above
• Prayer of Invocation
• Confession of Faith — Nicene Creed
• Scripture Reading — Acts 16:25–40
• Hymn — My Faith Has Found a Resting Place
• Pastoral Prayer
• Offering
• Prayer of Dedication
• Hymn — The Church's One Foundation
• Sermon
• Lord's Supper
• Hymn — Nothing but the Blood (vv. 1–2)
• Distribution of Bread
• Distribution of Cup
• Prayer of Thanksgiving
• Hymn — Nothing but the Blood (vv. 3–4)
• Benediction — 1 Thessalonians 5:23–24

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Sermon Title: Kingdom Covenant

Scripture: 2 Samuel 7:1–17

I. The Kingdom Covenant Consists of a Full House

A. David desires to build the Lord a house (temple) in Jerusalem

1. After bringing the Ark into Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6), David seeks to unify Yahweh's throne with his own throne in one capital city
2. He wants a permanent structure (temple) rather than a temporary tent (tabernacle) to signify the stability of God's rule alongside his own

B. God responds with a wordplay on "house" — He will build David a house (dynasty), not the other way around

1. The immediate/penultimate fulfillment: Solomon builds the temple (1 Kings 1), but Solomon's reign is not eternal and the temple is eventually destroyed
2. The ultimate fulfillment: David's greater Son, Jesus Christ, builds a house of living people — the church

C. The New Testament applies temple/house language to the church

1. 1 Corinthians 3:9 — "You are God's field, God's building"
2. 1 Corinthians 3:16–17 — "You are God's temple and God's Spirit dwells in you"
3. 1 Peter 2:5 — "Like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house"
4. Ephesians 2:19–20 — Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ as the cornerstone

D. God's chief concern is not brick and mortar but a people — those who trust in Christ are heirs of these Davidic Covenant promises

II. The Kingdom Covenant Is Fulfilled by Grace

A. God, not David, is the active agent throughout the passage

1. The repetition of divine action: "I brought up… I have moved… I took you… I have been with you… I have cut off your enemies… I will make your name great… I will appoint a place…" (2 Samuel 7:6–10)
2. Man does zero percent of the work in bringing in the Kingdom — God does it all

B. God's covenant is unlike ancient Near Eastern royal custom

1. Ancient Near Eastern kings would win victories, credit a god, and build a temple in return — a transactional relationship
2. The God of Israel condescends out of sheer love, not for his own benefit but for the welfare of his people

C. God's tabernacling with his people is an act of pure grace

1. The tent/tabernacle imagery: God identifies as a sojourner who wanders with his people
2. John 1:14 — "The Word became flesh and tabernacled among us"
3. Application: Whether feeling like a sojourner in a post-Christian culture or from the inner conflict of sin (Romans 7), Christ by his Spirit pitches his tent within the soul and goes with his people

D. The reward Christ gains from his gracious condescension is his people — his bride, his treasure, his possession

III. The Kingdom Covenant Is Realized in a Fulfilling Son

A. God declares a unique father-son relationship with David's offspring (2 Samuel 7:14)

1. This is the first time in redemptive history that God calls an individual the Son of God (corporate Israel was called God's son in Exodus 4, but never an individual)
2. "Son of God" thus becomes the royal title for the king who sits on David's throne

B. God outdoes David's ambition — rather than mere unity of place (a shared capital city), God promises unity through a father-son relationship

C. Penultimate fulfillment in Solomon

1. 1 Kings 1:48 — David blesses God for granting someone to sit on his throne
2. Solomon fulfills this in a foreshadowing/typological sense — he builds the temple and sits on David's throne

D. Ultimate fulfillment in Jesus Christ

1. Psalm 110:1 — "The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand" — Solomon was not David's Lord and never sat at God's right hand
2. Jesus rides triumphantly (on a donkey) and is established as King over heaven and earth
3. Hebrews 1 — After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high
4. Jesus is not merely on a type of God's throne but on the very throne of God — the exact imprint of the Father's nature, Son in essence

E. Believers share in the Son's royal sonship

1. In the Old Testament "son of God" was a royal title; New Covenant believers are now called sons of God — royal heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven
2. Christ's Spirit builds up the Father's house — people from every tribe, nation, and tongue — as Royal Sons adopted as heirs
3. The consummation: the Father will put every enemy under the feet of King Jesus, and his people will dwell with him forever