ESOCS Devotional 21 November 2024 – Generational Covenant Provoking Decision
MEMORY VERSE: “And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established forever before thee: the throne shall be established forever.” 2 Samuel 7:16 KJV
TEXT: 2 SAMUEL 7:1-29
Now it came to pass when the king was dwelling in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies all around, 2 that the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells inside tent curtains.”
3 Then Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you.”
4 But it happened that night that the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying, 5 “Go and tell My servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Would you build a house for Me to dwell in? 6 For I have not dwelt in a house since the time that I brought the children of Israel up from Egypt, even to this day, but have moved about in a tent and in a tabernacle. 7 Wherever I have moved about with all the children of Israel, have I ever spoken a word to anyone from the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?’ ” ’ 8 Now therefore, thus shall you say to My servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: “I took you from the sheepfold, from following the sheep, to be ruler over My people, over Israel. 9 And I have been with you wherever you have gone, and have cut off all your enemies from before you, and have made you a great name, like the name of the great men who are on the earth. 10 Moreover I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own and move no more; nor shall the sons of wickedness oppress them anymore, as previously, 11 since the time that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel, and have caused you to rest from all your enemies. Also the Lord tells you that He will make you a house.
12 “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men. 15 But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever.” ’ ”
17 According to all these words and according to all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.
18 Then King David went in and sat before the Lord; and he said: “Who am I, O Lord God? And what is my house, that You have brought me this far? 19 And yet this was a small thing in Your sight, O Lord God; and You have also spoken of Your servant’s house for a great while to come. Is this the manner of man, O Lord God? 20 Now what more can David say to You? For You, Lord God, know Your servant. 21 For Your word’s sake, and according to Your own heart, You have done all these great things, to make Your servant know them. 22 Therefore You are great, O Lord God. For there is none like You, nor is there any God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears. 23 And who is like Your people, like Israel, the one nation on the earth whom God went to redeem for Himself as a people, to make for Himself a name—and to do for Yourself great and awesome deeds for Your land—before Your people whom You redeemed for Yourself from Egypt, the nations, and their gods? 24 For You have made Your people Israel Your very own people forever; and You, Lord, have become their God.
25 “Now, O Lord God, the word which You have spoken concerning Your servant and concerning his house, establish it forever and do as You have said. 26 So let Your name be magnified forever, saying, ‘The Lord of hosts is the God over Israel.’ And let the house of Your servant David be established before You. 27 For You, O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, have revealed this to Your servant, saying, ‘I will build you a house.’ Therefore Your servant has found it in his heart to pray this prayer to You.
28 “And now, O Lord God, You are God, and Your words are true, and You have promised this goodness to Your servant. 29 Now therefore, let it please You to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue before You forever; for You, O Lord God, have spoken it, and with Your blessing let the house of Your servant be blessed forever.”
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Decision determines destinies. Many great destinies took their flight on the wings of decisions that were taken at one point or the other. More so, under God, decisions have the capacity to provoke generational covenant establishment.
King David, after returning the Ark to the Tabernacle, made a little comparison of his personal place of abode and the dwelling place of the Ark. In his heart, it was crystal clear that the disparity was extremely high; hence, he decided to build a befitting edifice for the Lord where the Ark could rest. This had never been done before; even God had not requested it from anyone at any time. The Ark had always been in the tent or tabernacle.
This singular decision of King David, communicated to Nathan the Prophet, opened the heavens over King David that same night for a generational covenant. God spoke to Nathan that the proposed house will be built by the son of King David and that his throne will be established forever. He said, “He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men: but my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee” (2 Sam 7:13-15).
One man made a decision and God covenanted with a generation. Beloved, the question is, what decision are you taking and what impact and benefit is it for your children and generations yet unborn? If God has to act on the decision you have taken or about to take, will His reaction be to bless you and your generation or to release curses on all that concern you?
We live in a world where people take wrong decisions without any consideration for whatever the effect will be on them and their children. There are many persons in great bondage and damaged destinies because their parents took one funny decision at one point or the other.
We must come to the point where we are generationally-minded in every decision we take in life. To decide wrongly, could result in mortgaging the destiny of your generation.
- Let your heart always be centred on God.
- Be generational-minded in all your decisions.
- Make a decision to serve God faithfully today.
- Father, we thank you for the covenant with our David. We ask that you grant us the grace to always be Kingdom-minded and generational-minded in our decisions, in Jesus name. Amen
Further Reading: Proverbs 26:1-12; Matthew 11:20-end
ESOCS Devotional 21 November 2024
