About this Series
Can God Use Flawed Human Beings? Yes he can. Just read 2 Samuel. King David is no knight in shining armour and Israel is no Garden of Eden. The pages of 2 Samuel are full of murder, intrigue, jealousy, death, revenge, war, insurrection, hubris and pain. David is only Israel's second king and he is bedeviled by enemies within, enemies beyond and his own very mixed motives. How can God's kingdom be established in such a dangerous situation when not only the people but even the king is so flawed? How can God use such unlikely people to achieve his purposes? Welcome to "David and Kingdom of God" our preaching series in 2 Samuel. This will be a great series to see not only how God's big plan of redemption unfolds with the choice of David and Jerusalem but also how he continues to work through flawed human beings even today.
2 Samuel Resources For anyone preparing Bible studies or interested in understanding 2 Samuel better I recommend either of the following two paperback commentaries:
- Dale Ralph Davis - 2 Samuel: Out of Every Adversity 287 pp; written by a great preacher and scholar; study guide at back ; good solid exposition of every chapter.
- Andrew Reid - 1 and 2 Samuel: Hope for the Helpless 267 pp; great exposition and theological reflections; good on structure; covers both 1 & 2 Sam and so of necessity has to be succinct. Andrew is a former lecturer at Ridley Melbourne and is the senior minister nearby of Holy Trinity, Doncaster.
Mike McNamara | 2 Samuel 6
5 Reasons for reading the Old Testament
1. it teaches us many things about God and humans
2. it shows us what sin is and how much God hates it
3. it gives many examples of wise and godly people
4. it challenges us personally to grow into the people God made us to be
5. it prepares us for the coming of Christ as prophet, priest, king, messiah and saviour
At St Alfred's we read from and preach on the Old Testament regularly. At the moment we are in the book of 2 Samuel which is primarily about King David. David has many strengths but like any human he has his weaknesses. At a human level he is a model of all humans who struggle to be obedient to God – getting things right some of the time and getting them very wrong at others. He is also a forerunner of Christ who will prove to be the true king, the only one worthy of our complete allegiance, unlike any human leader.