The most important aid to understanding ourselves and our lives is to know who God is. John Calvin put it this way: “Again, it is certain that man never achieves a clear knowledge of himself unless he has first looked upon God’s face, and then descends from contemplating him to scrutinize himself.” This is true because we cannot rightly understand our place in the world until we see God as He is – the sovereign, gracious Promisor of grace to His children. Even someone as mighty as King David needed to be reminded of this fact. After God had given David and Israel rest from all their enemies, David purposed in his heart to bless God by building Him a “house” so He would not have to “dwell in a tent.” While David can be commended for wanting to honor God, He seemed to have forgotten that blessing only runs one way: from God to man, never the reverse. And so, the Lord tells David “not yet” and instead promises that He will build David a “house,” an eternal kingdom that will never end. That promise (as all God’s promises) has its fulfillment in the Lord Jesus Christ, and we are the beneficiaries of it. It is good to look to and trust our “Covenant Making God” (2 Samuel 7:1-17).

I. Context of the Covenant
A. God Given Peace
B. Thinking About God

II. God of the Covenant
A. Ever Present
B. Ever Gracious

III. Promise of the Covenant
A. Unstoppable
B. Fulfilled in Christ