Recently I have become fascinated with the story of King David. He’s one of the most famous people in the Bible and considered Israel’s greatest king. But besides having heard the “David and Goliath” story from Sunday School, I never actually took the time to learn much more about him.

 

In this 3-week series, #TheKingDavidStory, I’m going to walk you through the story of King David’s life. His ups and his downs. And we’ll discover why (after everything he’s done) he’s still considered a man after God’s own heart.

 

Here’s what you can expect from this series:

1. The Secret Behind King David’s Fame – (King David’s Accomplishments)
2. How to Understand God’s Heart – (King David’s Mistakes)
3. How to Live in Blessing after Disappointing God – (King David’s Punishment + Grace)

 

1^st and 2^nd Samuel and 1^st Kings are the books of the Bible that recount the story of King David. So, those are the books of the Bible we’ll be discussing. 🙂 Are you ready? I’m pretty excited, let’s dive in!

 

The Story of King David

(The Secret Behind King David’s Fame)

 

Recap: What Did David Do? – The Accomplishments

King David was a pretty impressive dude.  I mean, let’s just go through all of the major accomplishments he did during his lifetime.

 

1. Anointed by Samuel to be the next King of Israel

• King David reigned over Israel for nearly 40 years. He started from small beginnings as a lowly shepherd boy, and was anointed by the prophet Samuel to replace Saul as King of Israel.

2. Defeated Goliath

• Before he was king, he defied all odds and defeated the Philistinian giant, Goliath. He also unfortunately spent most of his time running for his life from the jealous King Saul.

3. Established Jerusalem as the Capital

As King of Israel, David was loved by the people, and was a strong military leader for the nation. During his reign, he unified Israel and established Jerusalem as the capital of his kingdom. 

4. Moved the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem

He also moved the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, affirming Jerusalem as the capital and religious center.

5. He was a Talented Musician

• King David was also a talented musician. He played the harp and wrote many of the Psalms.

 

 

6. He Loved God

But most importantly, he had a deep love for God. One of the more humorous verses (regarding King David) is where he is overjoyed and dancing (questionably naked!) before the Lord, in celebration and thanksgiving!

 

Sigh…what a guy. 🙂

 

 

The Secret Behind King David’s Fame

You might be wondering, so exactly why was King David so blessed? Was he just one of those fortunate people that God (just so happened) to choose? Did God shine his light on David, and BAM, now he’s king and his life’s amazing? 

 

Well, not quite. Although it’s easy to think that way. 

 

The biggest takeaway as to why David was selected to be king comes from Acts 13:22 (one of my favorites!);

 

 

Wooooooow. God is pleased with David because he will do everything God tells him to do. *cue exploding fireworks*

 

So, THAT’S what set David apart from everyone else? That’s the reason why he was chosen and anointed the next King of Israel?

 

What’s interesting is the first king of Israel, King Saul, also had blessing and favor on his life. But (like many before and after him) he became arrogant. He stopped listening to God. And he stopped obeying the word of God.

 

Here is a verse regarding this from 1 Samuel 13:13 (the Prophet Samuel is speaking):

 

 

This verse is so sad to me. I’m like, “Jeez Saul, you blew it!”. You had it all. Saul had God’s favor, and he was even anointed King of Israel. But then, it was all taken away. The reason? Because Saul didn’t keep the command the Lord God gave him.

 

God removed Saul from power, and anointed David the next King of Israel. God was searching for a man who was willing to follow and obey everything that was asked of him. And because of David’s obedience to God, he was favored by his people. He had military success, and was extremely blessed. Basically, he had it all. 

 

2 Chronicles 16:9 says;

 

 

God is actually looking for people who’s hearts belong to him. This wasn’t just applicable for then. God is still looking for people who are willing to do everything he tells them to do.

 

I’ve seen this in my own life. For New Years I asked God for a word for the year. I prayed over it, and I felt God put the word obey on my heart. That year was a year full of testing and stretching my faith. God wanted to know if I would obey him. 

 

I’ve found it starts small. God wants to know if you will obey him, even in the small, everyday things. In the past year, God has asked me to do all sorts of things. Here’s a few:

 

• I have felt God asking me to give money to someone who had tried to take advantage of me
• To trust in his provision when it seemed hopeless
• Or simply to not short my hours at work when everyone else has gone home and “no one would know”

 

 

Have you felt God’s nudge to do something in obedience? It can be hard and uncomfortable, but I think it’s safe to say that a life of obedience to God is better than a life of disobedience.

 

Does this sound hard and stressful? Well, take heart! I fell short that year in obeying everything God asked me to do. But God doesn’t expect us to be perfect. He just wants to know where are heart lies. He wants to know that he is a priority in your life.

 

Like us, not everything in King David’s life was perfect. He was human, and therefore made mistakes. Keep reading! Next week we’ll continue to the#TheKingDavidStory series with How to Understand God’s Heart – King David’s Mistakes. Until then! Xx

 

 

 

Read More

• How to Understand God’s Heart – (King David’s Mistakes)
• How to Live in Blessing after Disappointing God – (King David’s Punishment + Grace)

 

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Are you familiar with the story of King David? Have you felt God asking you to obey him?