Hallelujah for our wonderful Christ, the real David; Christ is the greater David, the reality of king David, the King who really brings in the kingdom of God!
This week in our crystallization study of the books of 1 and 2 Samuel we come to a wonderful crystal entitled, David Typifying Christ, the Real David – the King of the Coming Kingdom of God.
It is amazing to see in how many ways David is a type of Christ, both in his success and in his sufferings.
Christ is the real David; Christ is the real King of the kingdom of God, He brings in the kingdom of God, and His kingdom is the real kingdom which will fill the whole earth.
David was the king, and he was a type showing that Jesus Christ is the real King. David’s kingdom, David’s throne, ultimately becomes Christ’s kingdom and Christ’s throne in fulfillment.
May the Lord open our eyes and remove any veils from us so that we may see that the reality of all the positive things and persons in the Bible is Christ and that in particular, David typifies Christ, and Christ is the real David, the greater David, even the reality of David.
And may we give the Lord some of our time and energy to spend in His word so that we may prayerfully consider how David typifies Christ, and what is the significance of Christ being the real David.
This is a huge biblical subject, for it touches not only the type of David and his actions and achievements, how they typify Christ with His achievements, but also the turning of the age from the age of the judges and priests to the age of the kingdom, which thing also Christ dies.
Just as David changed the age from the age of judges and the priests to the age of the king with the kingdom, so Christ came to change the age from the age of the law to the age of grace; this is even a greater dispensational change.
Even more, there is another greatest dispensational change coming, before the new heaven and new earth with the New Jerusalem for eternity: the age of grace will be ended and the age of the kingdom will come.
Christ with His overcomers will be the ones who will end this age and bring in the greatest dispensational change in the history of the universe.
There is a new age coming, the age of the millennium of the one thousand years of the reign of Christ; we are touching the dispensational change in God’s full economy.
And since David had something to do with it, for sure Christ has everything to do with it.
May the Lord enlighten us and increase our appreciation for Christ, the real David, the reality of David, and Christ is the greater David, so that we may be joined to Him in His move and work and, together, we would end this age and bring in the age of the kingdom.
David Typifies Christ, the Real David; David is the most Thorough Type of Christ in the Old Testament
The Bible speaks about one Person, Jesus Christ; in the Old Testament we see types, figures, and pictures of Christ, and in the New Testament we see Christ, the reality of all the types, figures, and pictures in the Old Testament.
The most thorough type of Christ revealed in the Old Testament is David, covering the longest period of time; David typifies Christ, who is the real David (1 Sam. 21:1-6; 2 Sam. 23:1-7; Matt. 12:1-4).
Matt. 12:3 shows that David typifies Christ; Christ is the real David. The Old Testament is filled with types of Christ; Christ is so all-inclusive and untraceably rich that it takes many, many types to reveal and illustrate just who He is and even what He is.
But of all the types, David is the most thorough type of Christ revealed in the Old Testament, and it also covers the longest period of time.
From the time when David was anointed by Samuel, as a fifteen-year-old boy, all the way to David’s reign on the throne – it is a long period of time, in which David typifies Christ.
There are so many aspects of David’s story and kingship that typify Christ, including the sufferings he went through, the persecution he suffered from his own people, being rejected, fighting the warfare, possessing the good land, and establishing the kingdom, and many others.
David was the warrior-king who fought the enemies to conquer them so that he would possess the land more fully and establish the kingdom of Israel.
He ascended to the throne, but he was also the one who paid the full price to buy the land to build God’s house.
He was the one who prepared all the materials for the building of God’s house, and he prepared the blueprint, the plan of God’s building.
David was also the one who set up many things with the priests, their services, etc. This is all a type of Christ, who did all these things in reality.
Christ is the real David, the real King, the One who has been anointed by God.
When He was born, the magi came looking for the King; they had the inspiration and came to find the King of the Jews, the King of Israel, for the baby in the manger was the King of the Jews.
Yet, this King in His earthly life and ministry suffered; He was the King and the Savior, but He suffered so much, being rejected by His people, persecuted by the authorities, and in the end, He was even crucified and killed.
Of course, it doesn’t stop here; if we study the Gospels to see the life of Jesus the King, we will realize that the gospel of Matthew refers to the King-Savior, the One who is the King of the kingdom of the heavens.
He is not just a king over one kingdom, the kingdom of the Jewish people, as David was, but the King of the kingdom of the heavens.
And in all He did and experienced, He fought the warfare; He suffered and died, and eventually entered into resurrection.
Though He was put to death by the earthly authorities, Christ fought the warfare and won the victory: He conquered Satan, put him to shame, destroyed God’s enemy and, as the warring King, He resurrected from the dead!
In His resurrection, He prepared the materials for God’s building, which is us, the believers in Christ, for the building up of the church.
And He is the One who has the pattern of the building, and He builds up the church as the temple of God. He even said, I will build My church (Matt. 16:18).
He is the church-building King and the material-preparing King.
Then He ascended to the throne, to the right hand of God; now He is sitting on the throne until the enemies become His footstool.
It has been two thousand years, but Jesus is on the throne at the right hand of God as the real David, the greater David, waiting for Satan to be fully defeated so that He can bring His kingdom to this earth.
And in Revelation, we see that the kingdom of the world will become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ. Hallelujah!
He will come as the conquering King and will obtain the kingdom for Himself on earth!
As we consider Christ as the real David and how David typifies Christ in what he is and does, wow, our heart leaps for joy, for such a wonderful One, is in us and we can enjoy and experience Him! We can just praise our King Jesus!
We praise the Lord Jesus, the real David, the King of the kingdom of the heavens, and the One who lives in us to defeat the enemy in us and bring in the kingdom of God in us! Hallelujah!
Praise You, Lord Jesus! We praise You, King Jesus Christ! You are the real David, even the greater David, the One who brings in the kingdom of God not only in our heart but also on the whole earth! Praise You for Your incarnation and human living. Praise You for being willing to suffer and be persecuted. Praise You for Your death and resurrection! Hallelujah, Jesus Christ defeated Satan, the enemy, and He destroyed the devil! Praise the Lord, in His resurrection He gained us, the believers in Christ, to be the materials for God’s building! Hallelujah, Jesus Christ is the One who builds up the church, and the church is the temple of God and the kingdom of God! We praise You, King Jesus! Praise the King, the real David, Jesus Christ!
Seeing that Christ is the Greater David, the One who brings in God’s Kingdom
In Matt. 12:3-4 the Lord indicates that He is the real David; David had followers, and Christ as the real David also had disciples as His followers.
All of this implies that David and his followers were a type, a prefigure of Christ and His disciples.
This portion recalls when David was fleeing from Saul, being rejected, and he and his companions arrived at the place where was the house of Jehovah, and he asked the priests for some food.
The priests told them that they have no food except the bread of the Presence, which is reserved only for the priests to eat; no one was allowed to eat that bread except the priests.
However, the priests gave this bread to David, indicating that David was the king, greater than the priests.
When the Lord Jesus and His disciples were walking through a field on the Sabbath, and His disciples were hungry so they ate some of the grains in the field, when the Pharisees asked the Lord why do they work on the Sabbath, the Lord told them the story of David, and He indicated that He is the real David, even the greater David.
Even more, this portion implies a dispensational change from the priesthood to the kingship.
Before this time, before Samuel, it was the priesthood that was ordained by God and arranged by Him to be the ones who judge the people of Israel.
They had the administrative rule over the children of Israel.
But now with David, there was a dispensational change from the priesthood to the kingship, with the help of Samuel.
The coming of David changed the dispensation from the age of the priests to the age of the kings, in which the kings were above the priests.
By the coming of Christ, similarly, the dispensation was changed, this time from the age of the law to the age of grace, in which Christ is above all.
Before Christ, the law ruled over the people of God; when He came, He replaced the law and He is above the law.
Whatever Christ says is right, and whatever He does is right.
If Christ breaks the Sabbath, that is right; just as David was right in eating the holy bread of the Presence, for he is the king. Christ is above all.
Today we live under His kingship and we can be His companions; as His disciples, we are His mighty men, following Him as our King.
In Matthew 1:6 David is called “the king” because it was through him that the kingdom with the kingship was brought in; he was the landmark of two ages, the conclusion of one age and the beginning of another age.
In the genealogy of Christ, only David is called, the king; it is a very special description given to David. He was not just David but David the king, just as Samuel was the prophet.
David is the king because it was through him that the kingdom with the kingship was brought into Israel; he was the landmark of two ages, and he brought in the age of the kingship with a king.
Hallelujah, Jesus Christ is the real David, even the greater David, and David is a type of Christ as the real King!
David was a man after God’s heart, and Christ, even more, is a man after God’s heart; the Father testified concerning Christ, this is My Beloved Son, hear Him!
Hallelujah for our wonderful Christ as the real David, the greater David, the King who brings in the kingdom of God!
Lord Jesus, we praise You as the reality of David, the King of the kingdom of God! Hallelujah, Christ came to fulfil the law and terminate it, and He brought in the kingdom of God! Praise You, Lord Jesus, for being above all. Hallelujah, Christ went through death and resurrection, and in His ascension, He was enthroned by God to be the King, the Lord, and the Head over all! Hallelujah, Christ is the King who brings in the kingdom of God, and today He is in us to rule and reign in us and through us! We praise You, Lord Jesus, our King and Lord! We enthrone You in our being. We follow You as Your companions until You fully bring in the kingdom of God! Hallelujah, soon the kingdom of the world will be the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever!
References and Hymns on this Topic
- Sources of inspiration: the Word of God, my enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by brother Minoru Chen, and portions from, The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 67 (by Witness Lee), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization Study of 1 and 2 Samuel (2021 winter training), week 7, entitled, David Typifying Christ, the Real David – the King of the Coming Kingdom of God.
- Hymns on this topic:
– Lord, Thou art God’s anointed, / Thou art of kings the King! / Here in full adoration / Our song to Thee we bring! / Thy kingdom is forever, / Established is Thy throne! / Thy reign with love and justice / In glory stands alone! (Hymns #147)
– Thou art the King as David was, / And God’s desire dost seek; / The battle fought, the foe subdued, / God’s heart Thou dost bespeak. / Thou art empowered on the throne, / Not with a human rod, / But with authority divine / To reign for us and God. (Hymns #193)
– Sing we the King who is coming to reign, / Glory to Jesus, the Lamb that was slain; / Righteousness, peace then His empire shall bring, / Joy to the nations when Jesus is King. (Hymns #151)
