Hallelujah! In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, I speak.

“And it shall be, when you hear a sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall go out to battle, for God has gone out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.” So David did as God commanded him, and they drove back the army of the Philistines from Gibeon as far as Gezer.”
(1 Chronicles 14:15-16)

This passage is also recorded in 2 Samuel 5. This is about the history of David becoming king in the early times. After David became king, he often thought about the matters of God. In 1 Chronicles 13, it records that David wanted to move the Ark of the Covenant into the Kirjath Jearim. This was also recorded in 2 Samuel 6. Both 1 Chronicles 13 and 2 Samuel 6 record the same incident, but each chapter records the chronology of the incident differently. In 2 Samuel, it records that after David triumphed over the Philistines, he moved the ark of the covenant into the City of David.

But in 1 Chronicles 13, the order is reversed. It seems there is an intention behind this. In 1 Chronicles, the author wanted to stress that it was God’s will for David to become king; it was indeed according to God’s will that David became king. After David became king and his kingdom became stable, the first thing he wanted to do was to move the ark of the covenant into the city. But Uzza put his hand on the ark and was killed by the Lord. As such, a joyous occasion became a sorrowful occasion and the ark was not moved into the City of David. David was exceedingly sorrowful, and he was afraid of God. He felt that his attitude before God was not correct. But at the same time, David saw that God blessed the family of Obed-Edom who took the ark into his house. That was what David was hoping to receive from God when he received the ark of the covenant into the city, which was the grace and blessing of God. However, at the end of the day, he did not finish moving the ark of the covenant into his house. Then in 1 Chronicles 14, it records how God helped David to triumph over the Philistines twice. This is telling us that if we come to draw near to God with the wrong intentions, the consequences would not be what we wish for. But if one is willing to change and understand what the problem is, then God will continue to guide that person and give His blessings. From the events that David defeated the Philistines, this is to show that God is with David and his kingdom.

In 1 Chronicles 14, it records that Hiram king of Tyre sent David many materials to build him a house. It does not say what David had done for the king of Tyre but that the king of Tyre wanted to send many gifts to David.

“So David knew that the Lord had established him as king over Israel, for his kingdom was highly exalted for the sake of His people Israel.”
(1 Chronicles 14:2)

David knew that the reason his kingdom was prosperous was because of God and because God wanted to bless the people. This tells us that as long as we are willing to draw near to God and serve Him, God will bless us and show His favor unto us before God and men. As long as we are willing to submit and keep His commandments.

“My son, do not forget my law,
But let your heart keep my commands;
For length of days and long life
And peace they will add to you.
Let not mercy and truth forsake you;
Bind them around your neck,
Write them on the tablet of your heart,
And so find favor and high esteem
In the sight of God and man.”
(Proverbs 3:1-4)

Here it tells us that God has given His people laws and commands to keep. This is so that we can receive peace, to manifest the mercy of God, and so that we can be as truthful as Him. If we continue to have mercy and truth around us, then we will find favor and high esteem in the sight of God and man. This promise was fulfilled in David. Truly, David was willing to draw near to God. He really cared about the house of God. However, in the process, he neglected the commands of God. He overlooked the commands of God and was not careful in observing every single command of God. Therefore, God used His hand to chastise David so that he would understand. We then see that in 1 Chronicles 14, the king of Tyre took the initiative to ally himself with David. If we take the initiative to accept the chastisement of God, His hands of grace will come upon us.

“My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord,
Nor detest His correction;
For whom the Lord loves He corrects,
Just as a father the son in whom he delights.”
(Proverbs 3:11-12)

Here it tells us that God will chastise and correct His son so that he will become righteous. This is out of God’s love.

Let us go to 1 Chronicles 14.

God’s blessing was also upon David in the way that David had many children who also established their own families. The main point starts in 1 Chronicles 14:8. It tells us about how God guided the people of Israel to defeat the Philistines.

“Now when the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David. And David heard of it and went out against them. Then the Philistines went and made a raid on the Valley of Rephaim.”
(1 Chronicles 14:8-9)

The Philistines took the initiative to attack Israel after they heard that David had become king. Earlier, David had gone to the land of the Philistines and was subjugated beneath the king. But now that David had become king of Israel, God blessed him and Israel had become prosperous. But the Philistines did not want to see Israel prosperous because they were against God. Those who are against God do not wish to see the prosperity of God’s kingdom. At this time, David had just become the king of Israel. Therefore, the Philistines wanted to attack Israel first. David was courageous to face the enemy. This was one of his duties as king, to lead his people to defeat their enemies.

Today, in our life of faith, we often face many battles. Whether as individuals or as the church—we both face many spiritual battles. When we determine to grow in our faith, we often face a lot of challenges; suddenly our lives have great turbulence and troubles come. This will hinder us from growing in our faith. This is the same with the whole church when we try to move forward in holy work. When we set our minds to do holy work, the devil would often take the opportunity to hinder us. We are battling with the powers of darkness to fight for the souls of people. Satan is unwilling to see the kingdom of God prosper. But King David was a courageous warrior who faced the enemy. He was always ready. And hence when the enemies attacked, David was ready to fight back.

Why do we encourage everyone to be alert in our faith and draw near to God? Because when anything comes in our lives or when challenges come to the church, we need to see that this might be the work of Satan, our enemy.

“lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.”
(2 Corinthians 2:11)

The Bible here reminds us that sometimes Satan takes advantage of us. We must discern in such situations and know how to overcome it. This verse here tells us that we do actually know Satan’s schemes. When Satan wants to damage the house of God, the easiest way is to sow division so that the church loses a united spirit and members lose their faith in God, such that they lose hope in the kingdom of God. So we do indeed know the schemes of Satan. The Bible reminds us that we must be victorious over it through being watchful. This is something we can learn from David—he was always ready to face his enemies when they attacked. There were many Philistines. How did he face them?

“And David inquired of God, saying, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will You deliver them into my hand?”
The Lord said to him, “Go up, for I will deliver them into your hand.””
1 Chronicles 14:10

Here, David first inquired of God to ask if he should go up against the Philistines. We know that David was an experienced warrior since his childhood, from the time in his youth that he fought against Goliath and he was escaping from his life from Saul. Now, he was the anointed king. Now that the Philistines came to attack them, he acted as if he was a new soldier with no experience. Yet David knew that God was his Protector and Rock. In the Book of Psalms, he often described God as his Rock of salvation, his Banner. Therefore, he understood that when he fought against his enemies, it was by God’s strength.

“We will rejoice in your salvation,
And in the name of our God we will set up our banners!
May the Lord fulfill all your petitions.
Now I know that the Lord saves His anointed;
He will answer him from His holy heaven
With the saving strength of His right hand.”
(Psalm 20:5-6)

David really understood that God would save his anointed and listen to him from His holy heaven. Therefore, he wanted to call upon the Lord.

Every single member should have the concept of making a few close friends in church so we can encourage one another to hold on to our faith.

We are familiar with the story of Lot and the ending of his story - he committed incest with his 2 daughters. If we only read Lot’s story from Genesis, we’d be inclined to think he’s not a good man; that he wasn’t a righteous man. But in the New Testament, Peter tells us he was actually a righteous man.

Some people believe old and dilapidated houses are haunted. We’ve heard ghost stories in army, some people have seen their dead relatives at home. What does the Bible tell us about demons and their dwelling place?