Christian Foundations

1 Kings 8

Solomon leads the people into a grand dedication ceremony for the new temple.


INSIGHT

The phenomenal blessings that God pours out on Israel have a purpose beyond merely blessing them. In fact, God wants other nations to see His favor on Israel and desire to know Him because of what they witness in the lives of His people.

This truth is reflected when Solomon prays that "the Lord our God be with us . . . [so] that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God; there is no other" (vv. 57, 60). David understands this principle also when he writes in Psalm 67:7: "God shall bless us, and all the ends of the earth shall fear Him." And today God wants to bless us spiritually that others may see Christ in us and be drawn to Him.


PRAYER

· Praise the Lord who blesses us that we might draw others to Him because of His mark in our lives:

"You are worthy, O Lord,

To receive glory and honor and power;

For You created all things,

And by Your will they exist and were created" (Revelation 4:11).

I will praise the Lord according to His righteousness,

And will sing praise to the name of the

Lord Most High (Psalm 7:17).

· Pause for personal praise and thanksgiving. Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin and its effects:

Of the Rock who begot you, you are unmindful,

And have forgotten the God who fathered you (Deuteronomy 32:18).

· Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind. Now pray this affirmation to the Lord:

Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is (1 John 3:2).

· As you make your requests known to the Lord, include:

· greater commitment to the Lord,

· the work of specific Christian ministries,

· whatever else is on your heart.

· Offer this closing prayer to the Lord:

Let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us,

And establish the work of our hands for us; Yes, establish the work of our hands

(Psalm 90:17).

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