At the conclusion of David’s life he gave a final charge to Solomon, his heir apparent. David had amassed a wealth of material for the future Temple. David said, “Now I have prepared with all my might for the house of my God the gold for things to be made of gold, and the silver for things of silver, and the brass for things of brass, the iron for things of iron, and wood for things of wood; onyx stones, and stones to be set, glistering stones, and of divers colours, and all manner of precious stones, and marble stones in abundance” (1 Chr. 29:2). All of these materials had been collected from conquered nations (2 Sam. 8:7-11).
Notice what David said next, “Moreover, because I have set my affection to the house of the my God, I have of mine own proper good, of gold and silver, which I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house” (1 Chr. 29:3). David gave more out of his own abundance than he did from the materials he had obtained from the conquered nations. Why would David give more? The answer: “because I have set my affection to the house of my God.” Israel’s treasury wasn’t going to out give David. David’s chief joy was the house of the Lord.
Jesus said, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Mt. 6:19-21). David’s treasure was the Lord and the Lord’s house, not in his gold and silver. The heart of David was consumed with Jehovah.
The word “affection” in the Hebrew means to “take pleasure in.” Do you take pleasure or delight in the things of the Lord? Asaph wrote, “Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee” (Ps. 73:25). Asaph declared there was nothing else on earth that he desired more than God. In a world full of material possessions, and modern conveniences, can we say the same? Beloved, let us set our affections upon the Lord.