Prayer: Father, the Temple becomes a unifying house of worship to You. Solomon dedicates the opulent Temple to You and holds no great amount of sacrifice from You. Israel as a nation is they are on a spiritual high, “joyful and glad of heart over all the goodness” that You have shown to Your “servant David” and to Your people, “Israel.” You are God. Amen.
Reading: 1 Kings 8 key: vs. 5-6 “Now King Solomon—and all the congregation of Israel who were assembled to him—were with him before the ark sacrificing so many sheep and oxen that they could not be numbered or counted. The kohanim brought the ark of the covenant of Adonai to its place, into the inner Sanctuary of the House, to the Holy of Holies, under the wings of the cheruvim.” TLV
Attention: The closest event that I ever witnessed and attended, which gathered followers of Adonai, was the Billy Graham Crusade on May 14, 1976, in Seattle, Washington. This event attracted more visitors to the domed stadium, drawing a crowd of 74,000 people. Christians from all over the northwest rallied around Reverend Graham as he preached a message of salvation.
All Israel rallied around Solomon as he dedicated the temple which he was allowed to build from his father David’s vision. Solomon prayed over the temple, the people, and led them in a sacrificing of animals, innumerable “sheep and oxen.” The two-week festival was beyond anything which Israel had ever seen. All of Israel went to their tents, “joyful and glad of heart.”
Imagine the greatest conference or camp meeting and multiply your experience a hundred-fold. As a nation, they were praising Adonai. Solomon’s final words to the people of Israel, “May all the peoples of the earth know that Adonai, He is God, there is no other! Let your heart, therefore, be wholly devoted to Adonai Eloheinu, to walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments, as it is today (vs. 60-61).”
There are other mountaintop events which the scriptures mention. However, life is not lived on the mountain tops, but in the valleys. May we not seek to stay on the mountain top experiences of life but stay “devoted” to Adonai Eloheinu (The Lord our God), “to walk in His statutes and keep His commandments.”
May all who come behind us, our children and their children, find us faithful.
Action: I choose today to be faithful to Adonai Eloheinu, “to walk in His statutes and keep His commandments.”
Yield: I choose to submit to the laws of God found in His word.
Engage: I choose to engage with the Holy Spirit in being faithful to God.
Relationship: I choose to live in intimacy with God by being obedient.
Prayer: Father, celebration is great, and You are worthy to be celebrated well. May we be reminded that You seek the heart of an obedient life rather than sacrifice. Amen.
Memory Verse: 1 Samuel 15: 22-23a “Samuel said: “Does Adonai delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of Adonai? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, to pay heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination and stubbornness is like iniquity and idolatry.” TLV
Music Video: Steve Green—Find Us Faithful https://youtu.be/eERKnxzNzwg?si=E2YLHOLgiT1PUJDR
Remember, “Abide in Yeshua, today!”