Saturday after the Eighth Sunday after Trinity Sunday
Posted on August 17, 2019 by under
Scripture: 2 Chronicles 1:1-13 (NKJV)
1:1 Now Solomon the son of David was strengthened in his kingdom, and the Lord his God was with him and exalted him exceedingly.
2 And Solomon spoke to all Israel, to the captains of thousands and of hundreds, to the judges, and to every leader in all Israel, the heads of the fathers’ houses. 3 Then Solomon, and all the assembly with him, went to the high place that was at Gibeon; for the tabernacle of meeting with God was there, which Moses the servant of the Lord had made in the wilderness. 4 But David had brought up the ark of God from Kirjath Jearim to the place David had prepared for it, for he had pitched a tent for it at Jerusalem. 5 Now the bronze altar that Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, had made, he put before the tabernacle of the Lord; Solomon and the assembly sought Him there. 6 And Solomon went up there to the bronze altar before the Lord, which was at the tabernacle of meeting, and offered a thousand burnt offerings on it.
7 On that night God appeared to Solomon, and said to him, “Ask! What shall I give you?”
8 And Solomon said to God: “You have shown great mercy to David my father, and have made me king in his place. 9 Now, O Lord God, let Your promise to David my father be established, for You have made me king over a people like the dust of the earth in multitude. 10 Now give me wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people; for who can judge this great people of Yours?”
11 Then God said to Solomon: “Because this was in your heart, and you have not asked riches or wealth or honor or the life of your enemies, nor have you asked long life—but have asked wisdom and knowledge for yourself, that you may judge My people over whom I have made you king—12 wisdom and knowledge are granted to you; and I will give you riches and wealth and honor, such as none of the kings have had who were before you, nor shall any after you have the like.”
13 So Solomon came to Jerusalem from the high place that was at Gibeon, from before the tabernacle of meeting, and reigned over Israel.
Devotion
“On that night God appeared to Solomon, and said to him, ‘Ask! What shall I give you’?”
What a question! Can you imagine? God commanding you to ask, with the promise that whatever you asked for, He would give you? For what would you then ask? Long life? Good looks? Riches? Power?
Solomon asked for wisdom. What he asked for was not a self gratifying gift, but a gift with which he could serve others. So notice: First, if we would seek personal growth, faithfulness seeks to grow in ways that would enable us to serve others better. Second, whatever talents and skills we have are gifts of the Lord, not cause for boasting in ourselves. Sadly, Solomon eventually strayed far from the faithful wisdom with which God had blessed him.
St. Paul specifically calls Christ “the wisdom of God” (1 Cor. 1:24). May God fill us all with wisdom, with Christ, that we may be His instruments for serving others. And God grant us the humility never to take His gifts for granted, but rather praise Him for all His good gifts, including chiefly the salvation with which He has blessed us by grace through faith in Christ.
We pray: “Heavenly Father, as I would be faithfully serving You, continually fill me with the wisdom that is in Christ Jesus. Amen.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
