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1CHRONICLES
CHAPTER 29

1 Furthermore David the king said unto all the congregation, Solomon my son, whom alone God hath chosen, is yet young and tender, and the work is great: for the palace is not for man, but for the LORD God. 2 Now I have prepared with all my might for the house of my God the gold for things to be made of gold, and the silver for things of silver, and the brass for things of brass, the iron for things of iron, and wood for things of wood; onyx stones, and stones to be set, glistering stones, and of divers colours, and all manner of precious stones, and marble stones in abundance. 3 Moreover, because I have set my affection to the house of my God, I have of mine own proper good, of gold and silver, which I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house, 4 Even three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the houses withal: 5 The gold for things of gold, and the silver for things of silver, and for all manner of work to be made by the hands of artificers. And who then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto the LORD?

David said that all his work was not for man, but for God. This "palace," as he called it, was the temple, which would be built. It would later be referred to as Solomon's Temple, even though David had done all the preparation.
It matters not who gets the acclaim, as long as God gets the GLORY!
David also stated that he had made offerings for all the work of the building.
A good leader in the church who expects others to give, must be sure to give of himself.

6 Then the chief of the fathers and princes of the tribes of Israel, and the captains of thousands and of hundreds, with the rulers of the king's work, offered willingly, 7 And gave for the service of the house of God of gold five thousand talents and ten thousand drams, and of silver ten thousand talents, and of brass eighteen thousand talents, and one hundred thousand talents of iron. 8 And they with whom precious stones were found gave them to the treasure of the house of the LORD, by the hand of Jehiel the Gershonite. 9 Then the people rejoiced, for that they offered willingly, because with perfect heart they offered willingly to the LORD: and David the king also rejoiced with great joy.

Seeing the example that David had set, the leadres and all the people were quite willing to give.
What would our churches and our missions be like today if our people were willing to GIVE?

10 Wherefore David blessed the LORD before all the congregation: and David said, Blessed be thou, LORD God of Israel our father, for ever and ever. 11 Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all. 12 Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all. 13 Now therefore, our God, we thank thee, and praise thy glorious name. 14 But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee. 15 For we are strangers before thee, and sojourners, as were all our fathers: our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is none abiding. 16 O LORD our God, all this store that we have prepared to build thee an house for thine holy name cometh of thine hand, and is all thine own. 17 I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things: and now have I seen with joy thy people, which are present here, to offer willingly unto thee. 18 O LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people, and prepare their heart unto thee: 19 And give unto Solomon my son a perfect heart, to keep thy commandments, thy testimonies, and thy statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the palace, for the which I have made provision.

This is a benediction type prayer. David announces and pronounces during his prayer.
It is also a prayer of "blessing." David praises God because of His grace which has accomplished all that has been done.
It is God Who has all power and is "Head above all" (verse 11).
It is God Who gives money and strength to all men (verse 12).
We should THANK God for all we have and are (verse 13).
We are unworthy of God's grace which has been provided for us. And when we give to Him, we're actually giving back what is His in the first place (verses 14-15).
The churches we build today are not for God's inhabitance, but for the glory of His name. They are to PRAISE Him. He has promised His Presence EVERWHERE we seek Him.
A church cannont contain God, even though God certainly is in the midst of the church (verse 16).
God looks deep into our hearts (or spirits) and determines the intent of what we are doing. Can we say with David that our desire for God's church is "perfect" desire? (verse 17)
David prays that God will remind the people constantly of this instance of consecration (verse 18).
Then David prays that Solomon will receive from God a heart of wisdom to lead and guide the people as well as build the temple (verse 19).
Are we praying for those who come after us to have wisdom to build God's church?

20 And David said to all the congregation, Now bless the LORD your God. And all the congregation blessed the LORD God of their fathers, and bowed down their heads, and worshipped the LORD, and the king. 21 And they sacrificed sacrifices unto the LORD, and offered burnt offerings unto the LORD, on the morrow after that day, even a thousand bullocks, a thousand rams, and a thousand lambs, with their drink offerings, and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel: 22 And did eat and drink before the LORD on that day with great gladness. And they made Solomon the son of David king the second time, and anointed him unto the LORD to be the chief governor, and Zadok to be priest. 23 Then Solomon sat on the throne of the LORD as king instead of David his father, and prospered; and all Israel obeyed him.

After his prayer, David called for worship. The people bowed their heads and worshipped, and they brought sacrifices and offerings to God. (Bringing our tithes and time is part of worship.)
Then they had a great feast celebrating what God had accomplished. This feast was a celebration honoring God - not just another "fellowship" supper.
Solomon was anointed king (for the second time) and the Bible says that even though David was alive, Solomon became the "chief ruler," and all the people obeyed him.

24 And all the princes, and the mighty men, and all the sons likewise of king David, submitted themselves unto Solomon the king. 25 And the LORD magnified Solomon exceedingly in the sight of all Israel, and bestowed upon him such royal majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel.

All the elders, captains, and other rulers submitted themselves willingly to Solomon's leadership.
Perhaps verse 25 is a reference to the prayer of Solomon for wisdom in 1Kings 3. Solomon earnestly begged God for wisdom, and God promised more wisdom to him than any man on earth would ever receive.
There was never a wiser man than Solomon; neither shall there ever be (1Kings 3:12).

26 Thus David the son of Jesse reigned over all Israel. 27 And the time that he reigned over Israel was forty years; seven years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty and three years reigned he in Jerusalem. 28 And he died in a good old age, full of days, riches, and honour: and Solomon his son reigned in his stead. 29 Now the acts of David the king, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of Samuel the seer, and in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the book of Gad the seer, 30 With all his reign and his might, and the times that went over him, and over Israel, and over all the kingdoms of the countries.

This is a brief summation of David's reign over Israel. Verse 30 begins with the word "Thus." In other words, "THIS is the way that David reigned over Israel.." The reference is to the previously outlined discussion of all that David had done since his beginning up until the time of his death.
In the same manner in which he determined how to alot the courses for the priests, Levites, administration, and army; and in the same manner in which he determined to build the temple by God's Word through Solomon; in THIS MANNER he reigned - with justice, equity, fairness and most of all, with a heart that sought after God's will.
David was a warrior - but lived a full life and died in bed, not in battle. God preserved him wherever he went (1Chronicles 18:6).
David wa a poor shepherd but God made him a rich king.
David was a sinner. There are many accountes of his sins in this book. But the end of this book declares that this man David reigned with God foremost in his heart.
His desire was to please God with his work to which he was called. He failed many times. But David is remembered in the book of the Lord for being a man who ruled and reigned with fairness and justice as he sought God.
May it be that we, as he, will seek God with an intimate heart; follow God with diligence; and be remembered for being fair, just, and being intimate with God all our lives.

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