The House That Christ Built

Q: What does the Bible say about legacy and remembrance?

The Bible teaches that children's legacy is a gift from God, but true legacy is found in Christ and His works, not our own. According to Scripture, children are seen as a heritage from the Lord, indicating that they are a blessing and not simply a legacy for personal remembrance. David emphasized in Psalm 127 that children are a reward from God, contrasting today’s societal obsession with personal legacy. True remembrance lies not in what we or our children achieve for ourselves, but in how we reflect Christ’s accomplishments in our lives. Ultimately, our only lasting legacy is not our deeds, but our relationship with Christ, who redeems our shortcomings and gives us eternal significance.

Q: How do we know that salvation is by grace and not works?

Salvation is through grace alone in Christ, not our achievements, as emphasized throughout Scripture. Scripture consistently affirms the doctrine of salvation by grace, emphasizing that our righteousness is not based on our works but on what Christ has accomplished. The temptation to seek personal legacy often leads to questions about our adequacy and worthiness, which shifts our focus from Christ to ourselves. The gospel unequivocally states that our worthiness comes from Christ's righteousness alone. The writings of Paul, especially in Ephesians, reinforce that salvation is a gift from God, given to us not because of our deeds, but solely due to His mercy and grace.

Q: Why is the sovereignty of God important for Christians?

God's sovereignty assures us that His purposes are fulfilled, offering hope and security for believers. The sovereignty of God is foundational for the Christian faith, as it ensures that all events unfold according to His divine plan. This truth brings comfort and hope to believers, illustrating that nothing can thwart God's will. The story of David emphasizes God's unwavering purpose, as despite human failures and sin, God's promises were fulfilled through Christ. This theme recurs throughout scripture, reinforced by the understanding that all things work together for those who love Him. Thus, Christians can rest confidently in the knowledge that our salvation and sanctification are secure in His sovereign hands.

Turn with me again to 2 Samuel chapter 5. Look at four verses tonight beginning in verse 13. I titled this message the house that Christ built. The house that Christ built. In the verses before us tonight, many Bible scholars and a lot of the commentators that I read on these verses have tried to claim that David here was trying to build a legacy. We hear a lot about people and legacies today.

Look at verse 13, and David took him more concubines and wives out of Jerusalem after he was come from Hebron And there were yet sons and daughters born to David. David took multiple wives and concubines with the results of giving birth to many children. How many children David had is not known for sure, but he had at least 19 named children and many more unnamed in the scriptures. And it was a large and a royal household that continued to grow as he reigned as king. And children are often called a person's legacy. I've heard men say that over the years, my children are my legacy, but that's not how scripture works. refers to them at all. David said in Psalm 127 that children are a heritage of the Lord.

And the same verse claims that children are the fruit of the womb and they're a man's reward. And I, I agree with that. In other words, children are a gift from God. And no doubt that's true. But children are not what man produces to secure remembrance. But many in this world call children a legacy. And they say children are a continuation of themselves. They say that their name is carried forward. They consider their children to be a lasting impact through them.

And the word legacy is defined as just that, the long lasting impact that took place in the past of a person's life and continues on. And folks are just consumed with such nonsense. Legacy refers to a person leaving a long lasting impact on society. Legacy is being remembered for one's contribution that continues affecting others after they're gone. Legacy means what one leaves behind. Legacy means how one will be remembered.

But the truth of the matter is this, we're soon forgotten by this world. And the only true legacy that any of us have is sin. What are they gonna say about me when I'm gone? Hopefully they'll say, he's a great sinner, but he had a great savior. And that's the only legacy any of us have. We're soon forgotten, no lasting contribution do we make in and of ourselves.

And honestly, this is the kind of thinking and believing that leads to salvation by works. A person's desire for legacy can quietly shift the focus of receiving salvation into achieving salvation. It's so easy to switch from one to the other. What really matters is often shifted from Christ to self. And we see it all around us.

That's the reason that many of the churches in this town preach the A message of works, what we do for God. Oh, listen to what we're doing for God. We're doing this, we're doing that, and that's not the gospel at all. The gospel, as you very well know, is what God has done for us in Christ.

And as we discussed this past Sunday, salvation by works always leads to questions like, did I do good enough? and will I be remembered as a good person? Probably not. Did I build something that lasts? I doubt it seriously. Such thinking measures life by output not by grace and it redefines righteousness as visible accomplishment. Let me tell you if my righteousness depends on what you see in me it ain't Ain't much a legacy. In most cases, that kind of thinking leads to look at what I've done for the Lord. Boy, I tell you what, ain't I something?

Instead of trusting in Christ's righteousness, mankind starts valuing their own success and their own achievements. And the Lord through Solomon said, there is no remembrance of former things. It won't be long that you'll be forgotten. Ecclesiastes chapter 2 verse 16 Solomon wrote, for there's no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool. Doesn't matter if you were a wise man and well-known or if you were just a bubbling idiot walking the streets with an aimless whatever, you won't be remembered.

The The world's obsession with leaving a legacy very often springs from really a deep awareness of the fact that life is short and death is certain. Oh, we got to do something to be remembered. People want to believe that their lives matter. So they seek some way to outlive themselves. You know what I mean by that? Something to be remembered by after they're gone. They establish some way people will remember them. And that's often through achievements, wealth, influence, fame, business, self-made monuments.

There were moments in David's life that suggest he had a concern for personal legacy. This is not one of them here. If we're honest, all of us have. In 2 Samuel 7, verse 2, we'll see that David wanted to build God a house. Remember that? We've talked about that before. On the surface, it seemed good and spiritual, but God didn't allow David to build him a house because he told him why.

He said, you're a man of war that has shed much blood. You see, the temple that Solomon wound up building was meant to picture peace. The temple was to be a place of rest and settled worship. And David's reign, though it was ordained by God, was marked by warfare and judgment and conquest and bloodshed, and God not gonna have it. And I found this interesting. Did you know that the name Solomon means peace, peaceful? It means man of peace, a peace bringer.

That's who builds God's temple. And that's the Lord Jesus, that's a picture of Christ. He's the peacemaker between us and God. And you know, the point I'm trying to make is that there's always a subtle danger in wanting to do something great for God in a way that it secures one's legacy or remembrance and exalts the man.

You see, when a child of God is following Christ, the focus is never ever look at what I have done or look at what I've built. It's what David says later on. He says, Who am I, O Lord? Who am I? And what is my house? What is man that Thou art mindful of him? You ever think about that? What have I done that God would be mindful of me and that God would show mercy and grace to me?

Absolutely nothing. Just the opposite. I've done nothing but bring condemnation and judgment and divine justice upon myself. God brought David to the place where he said these things about himself. Who am I, O Lord? Who am I? David in the end sees himself as unworthy. You know, you remember on his deathbed what he said?

He said that he talked about that everlasting covenant. that God had made with Him. Not that He had made with God, but that God had made an everlasting covenant with Him. He talked about what God had done for Him, not what He had done for God. In 2 Samuel 24, David took a census. Remember that? He numbered Israel. And it was tied to his pride and his confidence and his strength as king. And it was David glorying in what he had himself built. And you remember what God did? God sent a plague and wiped out 70,000 men.

This is serious stuff. God gets all the glory. All of it. We don't get any. We don't get any. To those concerned with leaving a legacy, Solomon said, God has set the world in their heart. That's the issue, that's the problem. God has set the world in their heart. And that's the nature of all fallen men and women. At the Tower of Babel, people said, let us make us a name. Let us make us a name. That's what people are doing today, trying to make a name for themselves.

King Nebuchadnezzar II, remember him? He gloried in great Babylon that he had built. Look what I built. What happened to him? God made him a beast in the field. The rich fool, remember in the New Testament? The Lord talked about him in the parable. He focused on building bigger barns. Oh, I'm going to tear down these barns and build bigger. And this was all to secure his future. And the Lord said, don't you know that tonight your soul will be required of you. The gospel presents a different perspective. These verses before tonight is talking about the house that Christ built. I'm interested in the house that Christ built. That's the house I want to reside in. That's the house in which I want to live. The believer's goal is not to make a great name for themselves, but to strive that the name of the Lord Jesus Christ be glorified. My legacy means nothing. I have no legacy. The question is not, will people remember me? They won't. They won't. The question is, was Christ honored? Was Christ glorified? Was He seen as a just God and a Savior? Was He seen as the one who gave Himself in the room instead of chosen sinners?

In fact, Most of God's faithful servants left no earthly legacy. Their names may be forgotten by history, but they're known by God. No self-made legacy, only the faithfulness that God Himself gives to us and preserves in us. My only hope of remaining faithful to God is that I'm kept by the power of God. If God doesn't keep me, I'll be gone tomorrow.

God made Abraham the father of many nations. God did that. Abraham was an idol maker. God said, get out of this land and stop doing what you're doing and go where I tell you to go. And God made him the father of many nations. God used Moses to deliver Israel and establish them as a covenant people. God did that. Moses was on the backside of the desert, tending sheep. And God said, go and tell Pharaoh to let my people go.

Moses would have been content doing what he was doing if God hadn't intervened. I think about Esther and her courage that wound up saving Israel from extermination. A picture as a meek woman who stood up for what was right and God used her to deliver Israel. God called Paul to preach the gospel in the calling of the Gentiles. And the list just goes on and on. Scripture declares over and over again, the Lord brought to pass. The Lord brought to pass. The Lord did this. The Lord did that. Well, what did we do? Sin. Rebel. Disobey. Is that not so with you? It sure is me.

The gospel seen by God's faithfulness to his covenant. God promised David a kingdom and a throne. And this growing royal family demonstrates that God was establishing David's house just as he said he would. The ultimate fulfillment was not in David's many sons. It was in the one son, that would come through His bloodline, that being the Lord Jesus Christ.

The greatest legacy, now listen, if you're concerned about a legacy, this will help you. The greatest legacy any saved sinner could have is that they knew, that they believed, and that they trusted fully in the Lord Jesus Christ to put their sin away. Put on my tombstone if I even have one. Doesn't much matter, really. Just put on there, he was a great sinner, but he had a great Savior.

That's the only legacy any of us have worth talking about. That's the legacy of eternal life. That's the legacy that we shall never die. The legacy being the house that Christ built. And the believer's hope. is that Christ's name lives on after they die.

Don't talk about me, talk about my Savior. And God will see to it that it's done. We're given no reason to think that David is here seeking to secure a legacy, even though that's what many of the folks that I read on this passage said. But these verses do reveal David's true legacy. And that is Christ. That's Christ. David's greatest memory was not the killing of the giant Goliath.

It was not the building of God's kingdom, Jerusalem, Israel. It was the king who would come through him. Oh, we hear about David the giant killer and the one that did all these great things, but the greatest thing that came from David was the Lord Jesus Christ, and He didn't have anything to do with it. He didn't have anything to do with defeating the giant or any of the other stuff.

God did it for him. God made David king, didn't He? God delivered David from Saul. God kept him from destroying his own reputation while he was going out to fight against Israel with the Philistines. And God intervened. God gave him favor with all Israel. God gave David the city of Jerusalem. We just looked at that. God sent a Gentile king to build him a palace. God does everything For David, and God does everything for us that He requires of us. Everything that God made David. Everything that David became, God made him. And it's the same with us. What do you have you didn't receive? And if you received it, what did you do to glory in it? Take pride in it. Instead, and that's the amazing thing, and we see it over and over again in scripture.

Instead of just simple obedience to the covenant pattern for kings given out of Deuteronomy 17, which warned against having multiple wives, David did it anyway. And David expands his kingdom, now think about this, in disobedience against the commandment of God. God said, Don't take many wives and concubines."

And that's exactly what he did. And all he did was later produce pain and division and moral collapse in his own house. You know, there's always a consequence for sin. There's always a consequence for disobedience. This is the beginning of a very long and dark shadow over David's reign as king. He had sons that tried to kill him and take his throne. Always a consequence of disobedience. And this again shows us the failure of even the best of men.

Even the best human king. David was a great king. God made him so. He was a man after God's own heart. But he didn't do anything. To be that, God simply showed him favor. He's God's chosen servant, but he's still a great sinner. And aren't the words of Paul, I think about them often, so, so comforting when he said that Christ came into the world to save sinners. I qualify. That's one thing I qualify. He didn't come in to save the righteous, did He? Oh, put my hand down quick on that one. He came to save sinners. And then Paul added this, of whom I am chief. My, my, Christ came to save the worst. The chief of sinners.

Aren't you glad He added that? Sin is still present in the best of men, and I say it all the time, and it's true, and God's Word never hides it. The best of men are men at best. The best of women are women at best. One thing we're good at, and that's sin. That's one thing we're good at. That's one thing that we excel in.

Yet in spite of David, his kingship by the will and purpose of God points forward to the true King, the Lord Jesus Christ. And God keeps His promises despite of human failure. Listen, God doing you good doesn't have anything to do with you. It has to do with what Christ has done for you. It has to do with your union with Christ. Now I'm not saying go out and live like hell, I'm not saying that. I'm just saying that in spite of you, God's promises are brought to pass.

God was preserving His royal line through which Christ would come in spite of David. David's growing house points to Christ's everlasting house. The imperfect king points to the perfect king. And these many sons of David point to the one son of David who saves. And the more we study 1 and 2 Samuel, the more I see that that's what this book's about. Pointing to Christ, the King that's to come. And the One that came. And the One that did what God sent Him to do.

Where David in disobedience takes multiple wives, Christ came in complete obedience. And he's faithful, and he's married to one wife, the church of the living God. And he's faithful to her. He's always out to do her good. At every turn. You know, grace does not stop because the servant is disobedient and inconsistent. Aren't you glad? Why, we'd have no blessings of God if that weren't the case.

Verse 14, let me try to get through these names. And these be the names of those that were born unto David, unto him in Jerusalem. Shemua, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon. Ibhar also, and Elishua, and Nephag, and Japhia, and Elishema, and Eliad, excuse me, and Eliphileth. I'm glad my name's David.

I'd hate to try to write them things, much less say them. Now, here's the thing. The growth of David's house, even though it was accomplished in disobedience to God's command, was still evidence that God's covenant purpose was advancing. I mean, I don't know how else to say it, or I can't say it any plainer, that God blesses us in spite of us. Men make plans and fail. Kings rise and fall. Nations come and go. But God's purpose never falters.

Every child born into David's house was just another reminder that God was preparing the way for the promised King. There's one coming. That's what God was saying. He's coming through this king, and every one of these sons that were born was just another declaration that that was so.

And among the names listed in these verses, one is particularly significant. Solomon. I don't know that I even ever heard of these other boys that were mentioned here, but right there in almost the middle of it, he says he talks about Solomon, the peace giver. Through Solomon, the royal line would continue. Listen, generation after generation would come and go. Many kings are going to sit on David's throne. Some good, many of them wicked. But God's promise continued. Continued on and on and on.

Hundreds of years later, an angel appeared and said, and said, born into you in the city of David today is Christ our Lord. He's the son of David. He'd be called the Son of David. And these list of names find their fulfillment in the Lord Jesus. David's kingdom was earthly. Christ's kingdom is eternal. David conquered enemies with a sword. Christ conquered sin by the cross. David occupied a throne in Jerusalem. The Lord Jesus occupies the throne of heaven. Which king do you want? Which king would you have? David was a sinner needing redemption. Christ Himself is the Redeemer.

Everything in David's house was pointing to Christ, pointing to Christ. One coming, there's one coming, there's one coming. God had promised it from Genesis, the fall in the garden, Genesis 3. There's one coming. Christ builds a greater house. So let me again remind you what we've seen many times.

David's household grew through physical descendants, but Christ builds his household through spiritual birth. The Lord Jesus came not merely to establish a kingdom in Israel. That's why many of his followers followed him no more. Christ builds his household through a spiritual birth. He came together a people from every tribe, tongue, and nation. Every believer is part of Christ's household. That's our legacy.

According to the writer of Hebrews, the Lord Jesus is not ashamed to call us his brethren. Now you think about that. He said this, and again, I'll put my trust in Him, speaking of His heavenly Father. He said, and again, behold, I and the children which God hath given me. He's standing in our place when He said that.

Such is our union, friends, with Christ that He fully enters into our humanity without sin. And perfectly trusts the Father on the believer's behalf. He's identifying here with His people. As rotten as they are. And this is amazing. Then He speaks as if those He came to die for partook in the work that they could never do. He wrote, Behold I and the children you gave Me.

It's as though we did these things ourselves. And all we did was sin. We did the sin and God did the saving. Christ did the dying. He shed His blood. Truly, He took our sin and gave us His perfect righteousness. It's the only way you can explain this. Our salvation is secure by our union with Him. The obedient son died for the disobedient.

You know, even believers, so many times we act as though I'm not going to have this man rule over me. We're going to do it my way. I did it my way. I did it my way. That never works out. The obedient son did for the disobedient what they can never do for themselves. And this is the gospel of divine substitution. It's not a hard doctrine. It's very simple. The message of Christ and Him crucified.

Every redeemed sinner is a child of the King. Every elect sinner is purchased by His blood. Every chosen child of God has a place in His family. And unlike David's house, Christ's house can never be corrupted by sin. Unlike David's kingdom, Christ's throne can never be overthrown or vacated. The kingdom of Christ is everlasting.

Did you hear that? That's the kingdom we're a part of. It's everlasting. It's unending. The family of Christ is secure. No man can pluck me from His hand. He's the King of kings. The salvation of Christ is complete. And in these verses, we see names, but God, by His grace, shows us something more. We see His unwavering faithfulness. He is not ours. We see His covenant promise. Not our promises to Him. Well, Lord, if You bless me, I promise to do better. I'll do this, I'll do that. And we never do.

We see His eternal King. We see His beloved Son. And David's house was growing because God was preparing the world for the coming of Christ. Generation after generation after generation, God preserved the royal line until the promised King arrived. He came. And when Christ came, he accomplished what David never could. He lived a perfect life. He fulfilled a perfect law. He perfectly bore the sins of His people. He cried, it is finished, and that's exactly what He did. He rose again. He reigns forever.

Our hope is not in David's house. It's in David's Lord. This is the house that Christ built. Not in the king who sinned, but in the king who saves. Not in the disobedient king who did things his way, but in the king of kings who was perfectly obedient unto his father. Not in a genealogy, but in the one to whom the genealogy points. You know, you can read The line of the Lord Jesus Christ in the beginning of the Gospels, and it traces all the way back to Adam on both sides.

God did that. That's the house that God built. That's the house that Christ built. He is God. And the message of this text is the message of the Gospel. God kept His promise. Christ has come. Redemption has been accomplished. The King reigns forever. God's purpose still moves forward today. Do you know that? Do you know that God's purpose is being done right now?

Through the preaching of the Gospel, through the calling of His elect, through the building of His church, through God's providential rule over all things, through the exaltation of Christ? Today, God's purpose moves forward through the expansion of Christ's house.

Every single sinner brought to Christ, every saint preserved by grace, every gospel message that's preached, whether here or some other place. Every providential event in history is moving toward God's appointed end. It's right on time, and it's unfolding just as He purposed it. Ephesians 110 says that in the dispensation of the fullness of times, he might gather together in one all things in Christ.

The same God who faithfully advanced His purpose through David's generation is faithfully advancing His purpose in ours. God's will is being done. There's nothing anyone can do to thwart it. Nothing anybody can do to change it. It's all happening according to His divine purpose. Nothing can stop it. Nothing can delay it. Nothing can frustrate it. Because God's purpose rests not on the will of man, but on the sovereign will of God. Why do we talk about the sovereignty of God? Because only a sovereign God can save us from our sin. This is the house that Christ built.

And He's the chief cornerstone. You know, we talk about a cornerstone I'm sure Jeff and Clayton probably know more about that, Eddie, than a lot of us do. But a cornerstone was the most important stone in the building's foundation. It was the first stone that was set in place.

That's Christ. It was the reference point of the entire structure. That too is Christ. The cornerstone assured alignment that every wall had to measure off of it. If the cornerstone was off, the whole structure would be crooked and unstable. That's Christ, isn't it? He's the chief cornerstone. The stone that the builders refused has become the headstone of the corner.

And then David said this, this is the Lord's doing. Whose doing is it? It's the Lord's doing. And then the psalmist said, and it's marvelous in our eyes. And it is, isn't it? To the believers, the most marvelous, amazing, wonderful message there could ever be. That Christ, the perfect Son of God, came and did for me, the disobedient, worthless sinner, what I could not do. I'd say that's good news. I'd say that's good news.

The House That Christ Built

What does the Bible say about legacy and remembrance?

How do we know that salvation is by grace and not works?

Why is the sovereignty of God important for Christians?

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About David Eddmenson

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The House That Christ Built

What does the Bible say about legacy and remembrance?

How do we know that salvation is by grace and not works?

Why is the sovereignty of God important for Christians?

Sermon Transcript

About David Eddmenson

Comments

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