Friday after the Twentieth Sunday after Trinity Sunday
Posted on October 22, 2021 by under
Scripture: 1 Kings 9:1-9 (NKJV)
9:1 And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished building the house of the Lord and the king’s house, and all Solomon’s desire which he wanted to do, 2 that the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time, as He had appeared to him at Gibeon. 3 And the Lord said to him: “I have heard your prayer and your supplication that you have made before Me; I have consecrated this house which you have built to put My name there forever, and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually. 4 Now if you walk before Me as your father David walked, in integrity of heart and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and My judgments, 5 then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, as I promised David your father, saying, ‘You shall not fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.’ 6 But if you or your sons at all turn from following Me, and do not keep My commandments and My statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods and worship them, 7 then I will cut off Israel from the land which I have given them; and this house which I have consecrated for My name I will cast out of My sight. Israel will be a proverb and a byword among all peoples. 8 And as for this house, which is exalted, everyone who passes by it will be astonished and will hiss, and say, ‘Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house?’ 9 Then they will answer, ‘Because they forsook the Lord their God, who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, and worshiped them and served them; therefore the Lord has brought all this calamity on them.’”
Devotion
God gave Solomon the gracious promise that there would be a “man on the throne of Israel,” and that man would be Jesus Christ, the Son of God. But He also warned Solomon, and all who would come after, that faithlessness and rebellion would bring tragic results. The kingdom and house that was built would be destroyed, and it would be an example to others.
Christ continued to teach and warn the people of Israel, but Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed. Other kingdoms and houses have risen up in the name of God throughout history, but they have fallen because they were not faithful and obedient to the righteous commands of His Word.
A life of faith is not just about making sure you get to heaven when you die. And it is not just about leaving a legacy or having people remember you as a good person. As our Lord said to Solomon, we are to teach our sons (and daughters) to be faithful, so that we may all serve the true Kingdom of Heaven. We are to be a blessing to those who follow after, and help them avoid the bad results that come from sin, rebellion, and unrighteousness. Our Savior exemplified this love. He knew He was faithful, and He knew He would be at the right hand of the Father, but still He labored and even wept over the fate of those who ignored His Words. May He continue that loving, gracious work through our lives, not for our glory, but for the glory of His kingdom.
Prayer: Grant, we beseech Thee, Merciful Lord, to Thy faithful people pardon and peace, that they may be cleansed from all their sins, and serve Thee with a quiet mind; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
