Worshipping the Lord

The throne is handed on to Solomon by David. This is seen as part of the ongoing purpose of God: “Praise the Lord God of Israel who has let me see the heir to my throne” (1 Kings 1:48). The kingship was given to Solomon by “the Lord” (1 Kings 2:15) - “The Lord set me on my father David’s throne ... As He promised” (1 Kings 2:24). When we read the history of the kings of Israel, it is important that we do not lose sight of this spiritual dimension. This is more than the story of men. It’s the story of God’s dealings with His people. Solomon was a wise man. His wisdom came from God: “He possessed wisdom from God”, “God gave Solomon wisdom” (1 Kings 3:28; 1 Kings 4:29). The work done by the king required wisdom. The gift of wisdom is to be received with praise to God: “May the Lord be praised today: He has given David a wise son to rule this great nation” (1 Kings 5:7). God gave wisdom for spiritual leadership - building the Lord’s Temple (1 Kings 6:1,37-38). God gives wi...

“When Solomon had finished all these prayers and supplications to the Lord, he rose from before the altar of the Lord, where he had been kneeling with his hands spread out toward heaven. He stood and blessed the whole assembly of Israel in a loud voice, saying, Praise be to the Lord, who has given rest to his people Israel just as He promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises He gave through His servant Moses.” (1 Kings 8:54-56). Prayer leads to blessing. When we receive the Lord’s blessing, we are to pass it on to others. We do not pray to the Lord so that we can say, “The Lord has blessed me” – and leave it at that. We must move on from there. We are to share His blessing. We are to bring His blessing to others. His blessing inspires our praise. We think of all that He has done for us, and we say, “Praise be to the Lord.” He is our God. He has not failed us – and He will not fail us. He will fulfil His promises of blessing. May His blessing give us the...

"King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth. The whole world sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart. Year after year, everyone who came brought a gift – articles of silver and gold, robes, weapons and spices, and horses and mules." (1 Kings 10:23-25). " Praise be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord’s eternal love for Israel, he has made you king to maintain justice and righteousness." (1 Kings 10:9). We read about King Solomon. We read about His great riches. We read about  his great wisdom. We learn that he had been greatly blessed by God. What are  we to say about Solomon? We could focus on the spiritual side - "the wisdom God had put in his heart", "the Lord your God ... has delighted in you." We should also note the temptation that comes to those who have great riches. Things...

"My servant David" (1 Kings 11:34,38) David became a king. He remained a servant. He points us forward to Jesus - "the Servant King" (Graham Kendrick). " ... Jerusalem, the city where I chose to place My Name" (1 Kings 11:36).  Jerusalem is called the Holy City. It's not so much Jerusalem that's holy. It's the Name of the Lord that's holy - and He has placed His holy Name in Jerusalem. In Jerusalem, Jesus died for us and rose again for us. Again, it's not Jerusalem that's holy. It's our Saviour who's holy. Jerusalem's a special place because Jesus is special. There's no one like Him. He's our Lord. He's our Saviour.

"You, Lord, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light" (Psalm 18:28). Without You, Lord, we're stumbling around in the dark. With You, we're walking in the light - the light of Your love, the light of Your truth, the light of Your holiness. "As for God, His way is perfect" (Psalm 18:30). The Lord knows what He has planned for each one of us. There are no surprises for Him. The Lord doesn’t leave us to travel on our own. He’s with us every step of the way. When we wonder about what’s happening in our lives, He is there, teaching us to say from the heart, “As for God, His way is perfect” (Psalm 18:30; 2 Samuel 22:31). He’s leading us to His Son, Jesus. He’s showing us our suffering Saviour. He’s showing us our risen Lord. He’s showing us that there is a way of peace, joy and love. It’s the way of Jesus. It’s the way of trusting Him. Keep your eyes on Jesus. He will lead you in His way. God’s blessing will surround you each day...

1 Kings 8:14-53 What, Lord, is most important to us – the person who leads us in worship, the place where we worship, or the God whom we worship? We know what our answer should be – but, often, our lives tell a very different story. Help us, when we worship, to learn that nothing and no-one can ever be more important than You. May our lives start catching up with the lessons that we learn when we are reading Your Word.

“Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth below—You who keep Your covenant of love with Your servants who continue wholeheartedly in Your way. You have kept Your promise to Your servant David my father; with Your mouth You have promised and with Your hand You have fulfilled it—as it is today” (1 Kings 8:23-24). There is no God like the Lord. What’s so special about Him? It’s His love. It’s His faithfulness. He loves us with a faithful love. His love is great. His faithfulness is great. Where else could we find such love? Where else could we find such faithfulness? – Nowehere else! It’s only the Lord who loves us with a perfect love. It’s only the Lord who will remain completely faithful, when others let down and leave us feeling discouraged. There is no God like the Lord. There is no love like His love. There is no faithfulness like His faithfulness.  In love, He gives us His precious promises. In love, He fulfils His precious pr...

1 Corinthians 4:1-21 As ‘servants of Christ’, we must concern ourselves with one thing - being ‘found faithful’. This is not a matter of pleasing people - ‘it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you...' Pleasing God - this is the most important thing (1-4). Serving Christ is not easy. There are always those who are quick to pass judgment on the Lord’s servants. What does God say about this? - ‘Do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes’ (9-13,5). Being ‘found faithful’ is not just a matter of ‘saying the right words’. We must be the right people. This is what Paul means when he says, ‘The kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power’ (20). ‘You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses’ ( Acts 1:8 ; Romans 12:11 ).

Paul preached the Gospel, ‘not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power’ (1 Corinthians 1:17; 1 Corinthians 2:4). He preached 'Christ crucified' with a determination ‘to know nothing except Jesus Christ crucified’(1 Corinthians 1:23; 1 Corinthians 2:2). This is the message of our salvation - ‘Christ crucified... Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God’ (1:1 Corinthians 23-24). All the glory belongs to God. We have no right to steal away any of the glory for ourselves: ‘Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord’ (1 Corinthians 1:26-31). Our faith is ‘not based on human wisdom but on God’s power’ (2:5). ‘Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His wonderful face and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace’ ( Mission Praise , 712). Christ is our full salvation. ‘Let us rejoice and be glad ’ in Him ’ (1 Corinthians 1:30; Psalm 118:24).

"What You have done will be praised from one generation to the next" (Psalm 145:4). These words, from Psalm 145, are calling on us to give an answer to a most important question: What will we pass on to the next generation? Will we pass on something of permanent value? Will we pass on something that stands the test of time, something of lasting value, something that will last "not for the years of time alone, but for eternity"? "Jesus, my Lord, will love me for ever ... not for the years of time alone, but for eternity." "Jesus, my Lord, will love me forever " - This is the great message that we pass on to the next generation. The love of Jesus - There is nothing better than this. His love is the greatest love of all. In his great chapter on love - 1 Corinthians 13, Paul ends with these great words: "These three things remain forever - faith, hope and love. the greatest of these is love" (1 Corinthians 13:13). What are we...

2 Chronicles 31:11-32:33 You call us, Lord, to seek You - and You also call us to serve You (2 Chronicles 31:20-21). Where does our seeking and serving come from? It comes from Your salvation. We read the words, "The Lord saved Hezekiah" ( 2 Chronicles 32::22) - and we think of our salvation. We rejoice in Your precious promise - "All the ends of the earth, turn to Me and be saved" (Isaiah 45:22). We rejoice in our gracious Saviour - Jesus Christ, "the Saviour of the world" (John 4:42).

Psalm 93:2,4-5  God is eternal (v. 2). God is mighty (v. 4). God is holy (v.5).