The LORD said, ‘Go to my servant
David. Tell him, “The LORD says this to you. You are not the right person to build a house for me to live in" (1 Chronicles 17:4, Easy English Version).
God has preferences. And whereas man could become helpless to the point that he would have no choice than to settle for whatever is available, the almighty God is never without choices. No one is indispensable to Him, and there is nothing that you have that God cannot do without. At a point, He literally did away with the whole world, wiping it clean by a flood of water, sparing only a single man with his family of seven. And like someone said, God didn't apologize. At another time, He told Moses that He was going to destroy the entire Hebrew race and raise a new nation for Himself through Moses. Moses knew God and understood that this was not a mere joke or an empty threat. It cost him forty days without food to partially appease God. Therefore, treating God as if He has no choice but to accept whatever we offer Him or do for Him is to demonstrate gross lack of knowledge. In fact, it is to belittle Him as God.
David had a good, godly and commendable desire to build a house for God. He observed that while he lived in a beautiful house of cedarwood, the Ark of God abode under a mere tent. Observe his deep love and passion for God and His house. Consider the eagerness of his mind to show forth his love for God. But God sent a message to him, saying, "You are not the right person to build a house for me to live in". In effect, God was saying, "David my servant, while I appreciate your love and concern, I have my preferred candidate for this job, and you are not just the one". Remember that David had a fantastic relationship with God, to the point that the Almighty labelled him a man after His own heart. David was His treasured servant by the hand of whom He won many victories for Israel. Yet, God in His own wisdom decided that the man who had been valiant in the Lord's battles should not be the one to build His temple. So then, when His choice servant is not fit for a particular assignment, what becomes of the fellows that God has not classified as "my servant"?
Today's pastors and General Overseers must especially give attention to this message. If the man with a right heart coupled with a passionate desire is not the right person to build for God, how then do we think that men with perverse mind and without the slightest desire for God would be accepted of Him? It is hightime today's church world recovered herself from the erroneous assumption that the God who made everyone could be boxed into a corner in which He would have no choice than to accept men He did not call who we throw up through carnal selection and election to shepherd His flock and lead His people. It makes no sense to think that the One who made everything cannot do without something or someone. If He made you, surely He can do without you. Simple common sense should confirm this to us because even humans dispense with what they have made from time to time. Friends, God has choices; He has preferences. He made that clear in the house of Mr. Jesse Obed when He sent Samuel there to anoint a king for Him. May God give us leaders in the Body of Christ who would hear Him like Samuel did.
It is the same error of the mind that makes some folks in the church to become swollen-headed, acting as if God cannot do without them, either because of their giftings or the resources they control. They have conveniently forgotten that God owns all gifts and resources, and that He could at any time raise others with greater endowments. It is the same evil spirit that is responsible for all the miserable and beggarly offerings given in our churches. God told them during the days of Malachi that He is a great King, and that people should be mindful of this when bringing offerings to Him (Malachi 1:12-14). God has preferences, and if you care to ask Him, He would let you know who or what He wants, including the kind of offering He wants you to give Him. Let's stop treating Him as though He has no choice than to accept anything or anyone we foist on Him. He is not helpless, and therefore not bound to whatever we present to Him. Remember that we don't set standards for Him, He sets for us. Stop insulting divinity with the vilest from the stable of humanity.
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