A man of substance

The life of David is a real rags-to-riches story: a shepherd boy becomes king. And a very successful king, too. He defeated his enemies, founded a dynasty, and left great wealth to his heirs. Surely, if anyone ever fit the world’s definition of “a man of substance,” it’s David.

But he relied on God rather than the might of his armies or the riches of his treasury. And as we’ll see, while his son succeeded him on the throne, David’s spiritual legacy is far greater. The Bible Lesson titled “Substance” shows some of David’s understanding of what is valuable, lasting, and reliable—what is truly substantial—and how that understanding continues to bring blessing and healing today.

David’s words in a psalm lay the foundation for the entire Lesson. The fact that “the goodness of God endureth continually” (Psalm 52:1 , Golden Text) is seen throughout the Lesson. This gave David absolute confidence in God rather than in material might. As he wrote, “The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped” (Psalm 28:7 , citation 5).

And the second section shows David putting these ideas into practice. Early in his career, his home city had been attacked and the women and children living there were kidnapped. While David’s men were blaming him for what happened, and though he must have felt pressure to go after the kidnappers, he prayed first. Only when he had received God’s assurance that he would “surely overtake them, and without fail recover all” did he lead a successful rescue (I Samuel, chap. 30, cit. 6).

Naturally, David was grateful for God’s infinite goodness, and in another psalm he encouraged others to be as well. “O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever” (I Chronicles 16:34 , cit. 14). He knew that God’s goodness and mercy—God’s love—endure forever.

And this is David’s true legacy. Jesus, referred to as a son of David (see Matthew 20:30 , cit. 12), built on the same foundation of absolute trust in the spiritual rather than matter. With his Spirit-based sense of life and substance, Jesus demonstrated divine possibilities, feeding an unexpected crowd (see Responsive Reading, John 6:5, 8–13 ) and healing many people (see Matthew 14:14 , cit. 8).

As David and Jesus both showed, these blessings flow from reliance on God alone—not from any personal power of their own. Today we can all partake of that rich legacy and continue building on it. God’s mercy and goodness are consistent and reliable, available to us to vanquish terrorism, hunger, and disease, just as David and Jesus did. Like them, we are active people of true substance, relying on God, trusting in His care, experiencing and sharing the blessings of His everlasting love. As another son of David (see Ecclesiastes 1:1 ) put it, “I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it” (Ecclesiastes 3:14 , cit. 21).