Death beds produce weighty final words. You don’t waste them when time is running out. You don’t bother with the things that don’t matter. Even in crime movies, the person dying utters the name of the perpetrator or a dying family member emits their last chance at an “I love you” or an “I’m sorry.” You say the things that need to be said. You say what matters most.
So what did King David, who reigned over God’s people, say to his young and inexperienced son? What were his final instructions for becoming a king? In 1 Chronicles 22:12, He first tells him to keep God’s law, and then he will prosper, which is always the prerequisite. But then he gives instructions in v.16. “Arise therefore, and be doing, and the Lord be with thee.” In other words, Get Busy! But busy doing what?
What did David prepare so fervently for so that no time would be wasted? For this one thing, he left nothing undone so that what mattered most would be taken care of. What was so important? To build the Lord’s house! Not how to grow your kingdom or how to defeat your enemy. No. Instead, he gave him the key to a successful reign. Do what God says and build his house. That is what a God-king teaches his kids, and we should do the same.
Don’t waste time building your kingdom where moth and rust corrupt. Build Gods! David layed up ahead of time, all the money, the furniture, all the building materials, and all the labor. He prepared and planned and gave lengthy instructions for one thing. He then told Solomon to get busy doing it. Get up and build God’s house.
Folks, like David, time is short. Don’t waste another minute or your substance on your own kingdoms that will someday vanish away. There is one Kingdom that will never pass away. There is one Kingdom that is eternal and where the work will never be wasted or lost. Seize your final moments before Christ returns. He is coming for a glorious church. So “Arise therefore, and be doing, and the Lord be with thee!”
Jaime Luce
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