Cover to Cover

Reading: 2 Samuel 7:1-11:27

Focus: 2 Samuel 7:5-7

Have you ever been in the position where you live in a nice house, yet someone close and dear to you struggles to find a home? Wandering from place to place, never knowing when they can settle down. Ideally, one would think that family and friends would rally around those who struggle and help them find a place to call home, to open up their doors and provide a bed for those in need.

Well, David was certainly convicted of this matter. Here he was, the king of Israel, living in a palace, while the ark of God resided within a tent. David had decided that he would endeavour to build a house, a temple, for God. However, God had other plans and, through the prophet Nathan, reminded David that God was not like man that He should need a dwelling place. Since the beginning of time, God had always moved with His people, never having requested nor needed a place to settle.

The presence of God cannot be contained within a space or place. No temple, no church, no sacred place gains anything greater value by claiming it as God’s dwelling place. God is not man that He is bound by the four walls of a building, rather God is an omnipresent, infinite God. God’s presence is defined by the gathering of His people than it’s location, through the worship of His people, God is revealed. The question of where God lives, He lives among His people who worship Him and make Him known among the nations.

Next Reading: 2 Samuel 12:1-14:24