Daily Devotional for Sunday, December 17

David’s Prayer

“O Lord, there is none like thee, neither is there any God beside thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears,” 1 Chronicles 17:20.

You can find a parallel passage to this one in 2 Samuel 7:17-29. Both of these passages emphasize King David’s desire to praise God. David recognized God’s greatness. David also understood that even though he wanted to build a permanent house for the ark of the covenant, God’s plan called for David’s son (King Solomon) to build the Temple. However, David would be eternally blessed through his lineage. Jesus, the promised Messiah, would one day rightfully sit forevermore on David’s throne. Jesus is directly descended from King David (Matthew 1:1-16; Luke 3:23-38) just as God promised. Isaiah prophesied of the birth of Jesus in Isaiah 9:6. Notice what Isaiah said about Jesus in verse 7 of the same chapter. “Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this” (Isaiah 9:7). Praise God for this promise!

God’s Word is full of promises for His children. Many require us to seek out and submit to His will. We may have good ideas or good intentions, but we need to understand that God’s way is always the best way. If we focus on ourselves or what we want, we put ourselves in front of God. The Scriptures are plain that anything that comes before God is an idol. That includes us. We complicate things when we do not trust in the leadership of God, but instead trust in ourselves. Solomon reminds us that serving God is really quite simple. “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13).

JUST A THOUGHT: “In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths,” Proverbs 3:6. It really is that easy.

Chris Floyd