Crystallization-Study of 1 and 2 Samuel
Message Six
Spiritual Principles, Life Lessons, and Holy Warnings
Seen in the History of David
OPENING WORD OF THE PROPHESYING MEETING
Reading the verses in each day.
Reading the main points in the outlines.
Pray-reading the verses:
2 Sam. 7:5、11 Go and say to My servant David,…Is it you who will build Me a house for Me to dwell in?…Jehovah declares to you that Jehovah will make you a house.
1 Cor. 10:11 Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our admonition, unto whom the ends of the ages have come.
Word of Appetizer
The account of God’s punishing judgment on David, what is the warning to us today?
God is not only loving and merciful, but He is also just and fearsome…. God forgave David, but He also disciplined and chastised David according to His governmental righteousness. After all the enemies of Israel were subdued and David was exalted as the king of Israel, David committed great sins while he was in a peaceful situation—adultery and murder; this indicates that whenever we are at ease in a peaceful situation, it is easy for us to be seduced to indulge our flesh; in the matter of the indulgence of the lust of the flesh David was loose, and he sacrificed his high attainment in his spiritual pursuit of God; this should be a warning to all of us.
Spiritual Burden
All our work and service in the church must be initiated by God and must be according to His desire; the act of David’s stopping to carry out his desire to build the temple is a great matter; we must learn deep within that God wants only our cooperation; He does not need us to do anything for Him; we must stop all our opinions, decisions, and ideas; we need to let Him speak, let Him come in, and let Him command.
Concluding Word of the Prophesying Meeting
The Revelation of the Truth
In the history of David (1 Sam. 16:1—2 Sam. 24:25), we need to see God’s sovereignty and David’s learning the lessons of the cross.
David cared for God’s habitation on earth, the habitation of the Ark of God.
The account of God’s punishing judgment on David is written as a warning to us today (1 Cor. 10:11); God is not only loving and merciful, but He is also just and fearsome; God forgave David, but He also disciplined and chastised David according to His governmental righteousness.
The Experience of Life
The all-inclusive Christ as our dwelling place, our all-inclusive good land, and everything we need for our enjoyment will vomit us out of Himself if we are not proper in relation to Him.
The strength for us to bear the cross is the power of Christ’s resurrection…. The Christ who is within us is the One who…has come into us to live in us and to bear the cross within us. The goal of the discipline of the Holy Spirit is for us to be a broken man; God puts us in a place of total inability and helplessness so that He can have the free way to work Himself with all His unsearchable riches into us.
Practice and Application
We need to see God’s sovereignty and David’s learning the lessons of the cross; we need to realize that because we are pursuing Christ today, every aspect of our environment is absolutely under God’s sovereign hand —denying the self and submitting to God’s authority.
We must learn deep within that God wants only our cooperation; He does not need us to do anything for Him; we must stop all our opinions, decisions, and ideas; we need to let Him speak, let Him come in, and let Him command.
PROPHESYING TOPICS—TWELVE TOPICS PER WEEK
Day 1
T1 David’s experience as a shepherd had trained him to trust in the Lord (1 Sam. 17:37a, 45-47)
(Please illustrate that why David had the assurance that Jehovah would deliver him from the hand of Goliath)
T2 What happened to David was altogether under God’s sovereignty (Psa. 31:15a; Rom. 8:28)
(Please illustrate that every aspect of our environment is absolutely under God’s sovereign hand with experiences.)
Day 2
T1 David was tested in his relationship with Saul (1 Sam. 18:7; Gal. 5:17)
(Please illustrate that under God’s sovereignty, Saul and David became a test to each other)
T2 Through all of Saul’s persecution, David did not fight (Rom. 12:19; Gal. 5:24)
(Please illustrate that through all of Saul’s persecution, the only thing David did was flee.)
Day 3
T1 Submission to authority is not submission to a person. It is submission to the anointing upon the person (1 Sam. 24:4-6)
(Please illustrate that David was one who knew God’s authority from his heart.)
T2 The strength for us to bear the cross is the power of Christ’s resurrection (Phil. 1:19; 3:10)
(Please illustrate that as David was taking the lessons of the cross, he enjoyed God’s provision.)
Day 4
T1 David fulfilled his ministry and co-worked with God for the completion of the building of the temple (2 Sam. 7:2; 1 Kings 7:51)
(Please illustrate that how David cared for God’s habitation on earth.)
T2 Whoever cannot stop working for the sake of God cannot work for the sake of God (2 Sam. 7:5)
(Please illustrate that all our work and service in the church must be initiated by God.)
Day 5
T1 God is not only loving and merciful, but He is also just and fearsome (2 Sam. 12:10, 13-14)
(Please illustrate that how God disciplined and chastised David according to His governmental righteousness.)
T2 David’s sin was the issue of his indulging the lust of the eyes and the lust of the flesh (2 Sam. 11:2b-3)
(Please illustrate that it is easy for us to be seduced to indulge our flesh.)
Day 6
T1 After David’s failure many evils took place in his family (2 Sam. 13, 15-19)
(Please illustrate that God’s chastisement and His governmental dealing with those who love Him may even affect their children.)
T2 To be generous in forgiving others (1 Pet. 3:9)
(Please illustrate that when others are in trouble, it is the time for us to help them, not the time for us to criticize them.)
