David’s Works

Visionary Leadership (1)

Now David said, “Solomon my son is young and inexperienced, and the house to be built for the LORD must be exceedingly magnificent, famous and glorious throughout all countries. I will now make preparation for it.” So David made abundant preparations before his death. 1 Chronicles 22.5

Astonishing success
By any measure, the last years of David’s reign over Israel were astonishingly busy and fruitful. It is unlikely any king or leader of any enterprise has accomplished so much in so short a time as David did during that sundown season of his life.

Unlike so many of the kings who would follow him, David went out with a bang, not a whimper.

It is instructive to thumb through the catalog of everything David accomplished before handing the kingdom over to Solomon. Let’s take a whirlwind look.

Ordering the people
It takes fully 8 chapters of 1 Chronicles to detail the work David accomplished at the end of his reign. One aspect that stands out prominently is his skill in getting people organized and ready to serve the wellbeing of the nation. 

David organized the Levites into divisions of laborers to carry out the everyday needs of serving the temple (1 Chron. 23). He also assigned the priests, musicians, and gatekeepers to their particular roles, and made sure they had the resources they would need to carry out their tasks (chapters 22-26).

In the civil arena, he re-organized the military to secure the gains made under his leadership, and he established heads of tribes throughout the land to ensure that justice and order would be observed in each community (chapter 27).

By putting all these people in place, assigning their duties, and providing the resources they needed, David ordered the rule of the kingdom before handing it over to Solomon, and he ensured that the leaders, as he had established, them would be loyal to the new king.

Temple preparations
All this activity was motivated by David’s determination to build a temple for the Lord. The Lord had given David the plans for the temple, and he had written them down so that he could pass along the vision in tact to Solomon (1 Chron. 28.11-19). The temple was to be conspicuous for its beauty, magnificence, and glory, like no temple the world had ever seen.

And David didn’t content himself merely with drawing up the plans. He also motivated and led the people to give generously, even lavishly, of their personal wealth to make the temple what David envisioned. As David explained, he rallied the people to give “one hundred thousand talents of gold and one million talents of silver, and bronze and iron beyond measure, for it is so abundant. I have prepared timber and stone also, and you may add to them” (1 Chron. 22.14, 15). 

Further, David rallied all the leaders he had appointed to follow his example of giving from his personal treasure in preparing for the temple, and we can be sure that those leaders, in turn, motivated the people they served to follow suit (1 Chron. 29.6-9). Indeed, we are told—reminding us of the building of the tabernacle under Moses—that “the people rejoiced, for they had offered willingly, because with a loyal heart they had offered willingly to the LORD…” (1 Chron. 29.9).

David also enlisted workers of every trade from all over the land to join together in the effort to raise this glorious house of worship for the Lord.

By all accounts, David’s last works present an amazing catalog of leadership skills, fruitful endeavor, and nation-building.

So, how was David able to accomplish this? How could he, who had not always known the support of his nation, create such unity, generosity, structure, and energy for his project and legacy?

He did it by looking to the Lord and through visionary leadership. And, as we shall see in this part of our study on the Church, David, believing God’s promise for His people, cast the vision and enlisted the people for a large, common project that would redound to the glory of God and undergird their most essential needs. Churches thrive as people take up the work of ministry God has appointed for them; and He can use visionary leadership to stir their hearts and offer themselves willing to Him.

David was a visionary leader, and we want to learn what we can from him about building the Lord’s temple—His Church—in our own day.

For reflection or discussion
1. What should be the primary works any local church should seek to accomplish?

2. What would you describe as the most important works your church is doing at this time?

3. What is the vision of your local church? That is, what do you aspire to achieve as a congregation? Would you say this is a vision befitting the God you serve? Why or why not?

Next steps–Preparation: What is your role in helping your church to realize Jesus’ vision? Spend time in prayer, asking the Lord how you can be more effective in serving Him.

T. M. Moore

If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment to give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).

This week: Our Read Moore podcast continues an extensive look at the Kingdom of God from our book, The Kingdom Turn. In our Crosfigell teaching letter, we are looking at the state of pastors and churches during the period of the Celtic Revival, using contemporary witnesses. And in our Scriptorium column we are studying the sermon on the mount. Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you. 

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.