Christians@Work: Episode 2

What lessons do we learn from the life of David?

A glance at the greatest of Kings

How would you describe King David,

Giant-slayer | Caveman | Nomadic | Playboy | King | Priest | Prophet | Musician | Shepherd | Dancer |

David was many things, but beyond all, I consider him the greatest king who never wanted to be King.

However, the kingship of David cannot be appreciated if you don't go back more than 300 years before his reign started. Israel had settled in the promised land (or so it seemed), and Joshua, who had led them, was no more. After Joshua, God raised leaders as judges for generations, but none of them could establish a kingdom. These men won battles but had no 'vision for a kingdom', and none was worthy of being a reference point for God to point at as a standard.

What did David achieve?

None of the Judges before David were worthy to champion the prophesy of Genesis 49:10,

The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his.

None could activate this prophecy and prepare a kingdom for our Jesus until David. And so when David became King, he did not just unite Israel; according to 1 Chronicles 25-29, David achieved the following

• Set up a year-round military divisional structure that served Israel.

• David attracted the best of soldiers; men who served Israel

• Established Israel as a nation, setting up Jerusalem as the epicentre of his kingdom and defeating all oppositions, including the Philistine invasion.

• Instituted tribal leaders as senators representing each constituency for administrative purposes.

• David started a music industry covering more than 200 musicians split into 24 groups

• Appointed royal stewards focused on asset management

• Made financial provisions for the temple, including the architectural drawings

So the kingship of David brought stability, structure and pillars that Israel could stand on for generations. In fact, God testified that,

So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart; and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands. Psalm 78:72

In episode 1 of this series, we stated that Christians at work should destroy strongholds. However, after destroying strongholds, the next step is to set foundational pillars, standards, and structures that future generations will reference; this is what David achieved. David's kingdom was a reference for all other kings after him, and the structure he built lasted for generations.

Just like David, let's look around our environment and communities and pray that God will use us to set foundational pillars, and establish standards that will last generations.

Selah!