The Proclamation of Solomon (1 Kings 8:54-61)
1 Kings 8:54-61
It is not difficult to recognize what was important to Solomon,
Especially early in his life.
If Solomon learned nothing else from his father,
He learned that the presence of God was irreplaceable.
So when Solomon went to Gibeon, he sought God and found Him.
When Solomon started a project, it was for the purpose of the presence of God.
When Solomon finished the project, He prayed God’s continual presence.
This morning we continue to see how important
God’s presence was to Solomon.
Last week, as Solomon prayed, and told God
All that he hoped to receive from His glorious presence.
This morning, Solomon stops speaking to God and addresses the people.
(54-55) “When Solomon had finished praying this entire prayer and supplication to the LORD, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread toward heaven. And he stood and blessed all the assembly of Israel with a loud voice, saying:”
Before the crowd goes home, before the event is over,
Solomon wants the people to understand what he understands.
He wants the people to have a passion for God’s presence.
And so this morning, let’s get into this text and see
What Solomon would say to us about how to respond to God’s presence.
4 things:
#1 MAY GOD BE PRAISED
1 Kings 8:56
It is impossible to miss the first thing Solomon wants his people to do.
“Blessed be the LORD”
God has done an amazing thing for His people.
God has shown up in their midst.
Solomon wants to make sure they don’t fail to praise Him for it.
One of the worst crimes people commit against God
Is failing to praise Him with a heart of gratitude.
Well over 100 times the Bible reiterates
The importance of thankfulness to God.
Paul wrote:
1 Thessalonians 5:18 “in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
But we don’t always do such a thing.
Many times we resemble the lepers that Luke refers to.
Luke 17:12-19 “As He entered a village, ten leprous men who stood at a distance met Him; and they raised their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” When He saw them, He said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they were going, they were cleansed. Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine — where are they? “Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?” And He said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has made you well.”
Even Jesus sounds a little astonished
That there could be such an immediate lack of gratitude
On the part of someone who has just received so much.
And yet at times we show the same lack of gratitude.
We can be so consumed with getting everything we want,
That many times we fail to be grateful for all that we do have.
Solomon wanted to make sure that did not happen on this day in Israel.
Before the people did anything else,
He wanted to make sure that the people recognized
What God had done and praised Him for it.
“Blessed be the LORD”
WHY SPECIFICALLY?
“who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that He promised: not one word has failed of all His good promise, which He promised through Moses His servant.”
Solomon wants to make sure the people realize what has just occurred.
There was a promise fulfilled on that day
That was nearly 500 years in the making.
God had promised “rest to His people Israel”.
Moses was going to lead them out of bondage,
And into a land of promise, and give them rest from their enemies.
It was a promise of God.
BUT IT HAD BEEN A LONG TIME IN COMING.
FIRST THE PEOPLE WOULDN’T ENTER THE PROMISED LAND.
Psalms 95:10-11 “For forty years I loathed that generation, And said they are a people who err in their heart, And they do not know My ways. “Therefore I swore in My anger, Truly they shall not enter into My rest.”
NEXT JOSHUA LED THEM IN, BUT THEY WOULDN’T CONQUER EVERYONE
Joshua 17:13 “ It came about when the sons of Israel became strong, they put the Canaanites to forced labor, but they did not drive them out completely.”
THEN CAME THE PERIOD OF DISOBEDIENCE UNDER THE JUDGES.
Judges 2:11-12 “Then the sons of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals, and they forsook the LORD, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods from among the gods of the peoples who were around them, and bowed themselves down to them; thus they provoked the LORD to anger.”
THEN SAUL BECAME KING, BUT HIS FAITHULNESS WAIVERED, AND WAR CONTINUED.
DAVID FOLLOWED SAUL, BUT INHERITED A MESS. HE HAD MANY WARS TO FIGHT IN ORDER TO BRING PEACE TO ISRAEL.
BUT NOW, NEARLY 500 YEARS LATER,
ISRAEL WAS FINALLY IN HER LAND,
THE BORDER WAS SECURE, THE ENEMIES WERE CONQUERED,
AND GOD HAD MOVED IN TO THE TEMPLE.
When you recognize all the stubbornness of Israel,
You realize that Israel did not deserve to rest securely in the land.
Yet, God made a promise, and despite their obstinance,
On this day God fulfilled His word.
Solomon wants them to praise God for it.
And are we ever reminded of an important truth.
We all must realize that the only reason we are where we are
Is because of the mercy and faithfulness of God.
James 1:17 “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.”
Sometimes we live under a delusion that we have earned where we are, but nothing could be further from the truth.
We are where we are because God is faithful merciful toward us,
Even when we don’t deserve it.
And so do not forget to take time to praise God.
May God be Praised
#2 MAY GOD BE PRESENT
1 Kings 8:57-58
As Solomon begins this point,
It almost sounds like he is just making another request of God.
And in part he is.
(57) “May the LORD our God be with us, as He was with our fathers; may He not leave us or forsake us,”
Now understanding Israel’s history makes this request a gigantic one.
No doubt Solomon was impressed that God
Would continually dwell with his ancestors.
And we remember that stiff-necked people don’t we?
You can read the 78th Psalm and get a run down
On the continual disobedience of Israel.
But in the middle, we see God’s faithfulness.
Psalms 78:34-39 “When He killed them, then they sought Him, And returned and searched diligently for God; And they remembered that God was their rock, And the Most High God their Redeemer. But they deceived Him with their mouth And lied to Him with their tongue. For their heart was not steadfast toward Him, Nor were they faithful in His covenant. But He, being compassionate, forgave their iniquity and did not destroy them; And often He restrained His anger And did not arouse all His wrath. Thus He remembered that they were but flesh, A wind that passes and does not return.”
God didn’t remain with Israel because they deserved it.
God remained because He was merciful and faithful.
Solomon prays for that same mercy and faithfulness for his day.
“May the LORD our God be with us, as He was with our fathers; may He not leave us or forsake us,”
In short He wants God to stick around.
But as I said, this passage is not addressed to God,
This passage is addressed to the people.
He wants them to realize that they need God to stick around,
Then he tells them why they should want God to always be present.
(58) “that He may incline our hearts to Himself, to walk in all His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His ordinances, which He commanded our fathers.”
DO YOU SEE WHY SOLOMON TOLD THE PEOPLE THEY NEEDED GOD TO STAY NEAR?
To help them with the large task of obedience.
And this is a huge concept.
We wake up so many days out of the year
And feel like we are in such control of things.
• We think our security is achieved because of our hard work…
• We think our comforts have been earned…
• We assume that how we live is up to us…
• And that we deserve the credit for the good things we do…
BUT THAT IS NOT TRUE
If God were not present in your life, you would have no good to speak of.
Must we all remember what we were without God in our lives?
Romans 3:10-18 “as it is written, “THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE; THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS, THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD; ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVE BECOME USELESS; THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD, THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE.” “THEIR THROAT IS AN OPEN GRAVE, WITH THEIR TONGUES THEY KEEP DECEIVING,” “THE POISON OF ASPS IS UNDER THEIR LIPS”; “WHOSE MOUTH IS FULL OF CURSING AND BITTERNESS”; “THEIR FEET ARE SWIFT TO SHED BLOOD, DESTRUCTION AND MISERY ARE IN THEIR PATHS, AND THE PATH OF PEACE THEY HAVE NOT KNOWN.” “THERE IS NO FEAR OF GOD BEFORE THEIR EYES.”
Without God in our lives we are hopelessly wicked
Without any ability to do good at all.
Solomon wanted the people to know
That if God wasn’t in their midst, they couldn’t even be obedient.
(58) “that He may incline our hearts to Himself, to walk in all His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His ordinances, which He commanded our fathers.”
Even our obedience is dependent upon the presence of God.
Jeremiah 31:33-34 “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. “They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”
Jeremiah 32:38-40 “They shall be My people, and I will be their God; and I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me always, for their own good and for the good of their children after them. “I will make an everlasting covenant with them that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; and I will put the fear of Me in their hearts so that they will not turn away from Me.”
Ezekiel 36:26-27 “Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. “I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.”
That is why obedience has always been a fruit of salvation,
And never a means of salvation.
You cannot obey to get yourself saved,
But once you are truly saved,
God has given you the ability to obey, and you should.
This is in essence what Solomon wants.
He tells the people that God’s presence
Is absolutely essential to their ability to obey.
May God be Praised May God be Present
#3 MAY GOD BE PERSUADED
1 Kings 8:59-60
Solomon again reiterates the points of his prayer.
(59) “And may these words of mine, which I have made supplication before the LORD, be near to the LORD our God day and night, that He may maintain the cause of His servant and the cause of His people Israel, as each day requires,”
Remember the thrust of his prayer?
1 Kings 8:28-30 “Yet have regard to the prayer of Your servant and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to listen to the cry and to the prayer which Your servant prays before You today; that Your eyes may be open toward this house night and day, toward the place of which You have said, ‘My name shall be there,’ to listen to the prayer which Your servant shall pray toward this place. “Listen to the supplication of Your servant and of Your people Israel, when they pray toward this place; hear in heaven Your dwelling place; hear and forgive.”
Solomon wanted God to listen to their prayers
So that His presence could bring about the appointed blessings of:
Justice, Redemption, Provision, Deliverance, Glory, Victory, and Mercy
And now Solomon is preaching to the people, and says,
May we all pray that God answers that prayer.
WHY?
(60) “so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD is God; there is no one else.”
Solomon is giving them a very important reminder.
We want God present, we need God present.
BUT REMEMBER THIS.
GOD’S PRESENCE AND THE GLORY OF IT,
IS NOT ABOUT YOU, IT IS ALL ABOUT HIM.
Last week we learned that the presence of God means glory.
The presence of God is in fact the only thing
That we have to offer to a lost and dying world.
But in saying that we must remember
We are not using God’s presence to attract people to us,
We are proclaiming God’s presence to glorify Him.
Sometimes if we are not careful
We can slip into this crazy notion that church is about us.
• WE’VE ALL SEEN PREACHERS that lost sight of the true calling and used their pulpits as a means to advance their own careers…
• WE’VE ALL SEEN SINGERS who used the churches stage as a springboard into the world’s music halls…
• WE’VE ALL SEEN CHURCH MEMBERS who use the church as a chance to get a little power and make some executive decisions, when they otherwise don’t get to decide anything in the world…
And sometimes if we aren’t careful we forget
That God does not place His presence in our lives
To use it as a marketing tool to further our own agendas.
GOD’S PRESENCE IS FOR GOD’S GLORY
This temple was not some worldly sightseeing attraction
That would generate extra tourist revenue in Israel.
This temple was about the presence of God,
And the presence of God was about God being glorified.
May God be persuaded to answer our prayers,
But don’t try to persuade Him for the wrong reasons.
May God be Praised May God be Present May God be Persuaded
#4 MAY YOU BE PERSISTENT
1 Kings 8:61
And finally we get to the punch of Solomon’s sermon.
For the first time, he actually charges the people to do something.
• Because God’s presence is an undeserved blessing…
• Because God’s presence is necessary for our obedience…
• Because God’s presence is how He glorifies Himself…
Then let us do whatever it takes to keep the presence of God in our midst.
HOW DO YOU DO THAT?
HOW DO YOU KEEP GOD’S PRESENCE?
I know that seems like a strange question,
Since God has promised to never leave us,
But that does not mean we don’t seek the presence of God.
Paul told the Ephesians:
Ephesians 5:18 “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit,”
BUT I THOUGHT WE ALREADY HAD THE SPIRIT?
The question is not how much of the Spirit you have,
But how much of you the Spirit has.
How much of you are you willing to let Him have.
David Allen said, “You are as close to Jesus as you want to be.”
The issue with God’s presence is not how close He will come to us,
But How close we will get to Him.
Even though God has promised not to leave,
Seeking the presence of God is still necessary in our lives.
God never left the church at Ephesus, but they had left their first love.
HOW DO I SECURE THE PRESENCE OF GOD IN MY LIFE?
How can I make sure to always be close to Him?
And Solomon gives the answer.
“Let your heart be wholly devoted to the LORD our God, to walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments, as at this day.”
HOW DO YOU SECURE THE PRESENCE OF GOD?
Be “wholly devoted to the LORD”
In the deepest part of your heart, you must be committed to Him.
You have to love Him more than anything else…
You have to want Him more than anything else…
In your heart you have to be “wholly devoted to the LORD”
WELL I WANT TO BE, BUT HOW DO I KNOW IF I AM?
Solomon shows you what it looks like to be “wholly devoted”.
“to walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments, as at this day.”
A WHOLLY DEVOTED HEART
REVEALS ITSELF IN A TOTALLY OBEDIENT LIFE.
AND OF COURSE WE KNOW THIS.
We are all familiar with the blunder of King Saul.
Samuel was late, and Saul broke the rules to offer the sacrifice for him.
When Samuel showed up he said:
1 Samuel 15:22-23 “Samuel said, “Has the LORD as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. “For rebellion is as the sin of divination, And insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He has also rejected you from being king.”
And if the Israelites were to keep God’s presence,
They needed to remember that.
THE TRAGEDY IS THAT ISRAEL WOULD FAIL TO LEARN THIS.
Before long, they forgot that what God wanted was a relationship,
And they took God’s presence for granted.
In fact, in just a few years, they got their theology all wrong.
Instead of being devoted to God, they assumed
That the presence of the temple secured the presence of God.
They thought God would never leave because they had the temple.
(Like building a building is enough to make God stay)
And that is why Jeremiah would call them back.
Jeremiah 7:1-11 “The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, “Stand in the gate of the LORD’S house and proclaim there this word and say, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, all you of Judah, who enter by these gates to worship the LORD!'” Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you dwell in this place. “Do not trust in deceptive words, saying, ‘ This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD.’ “For if you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly practice justice between a man and his neighbor, if you do not oppress the alien, the orphan, or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place, nor walk after other gods to your own ruin, then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers forever and ever. “Behold, you are trusting in deceptive words to no avail. “Will you steal, murder, and commit adultery and swear falsely, and offer sacrifices to Baal and walk after other gods that you have not known, then come and stand before Me in this house, which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’ — that you may do all these abominations? “Has this house, which is called by My name, become a den of robbers in your sight? Behold, I, even I, have seen it,” declares the LORD.”
They would come to miss the point that Solomon was preaching.
They knew God’s presence was beneficial,
But they completely lost sight of what secures it.
Temples trimmed in gold have never secured the presence of God,
Nor do buildings built of brick.
If you want God’s presence to be real in your life,
Then you personally must be “wholly devoted to the LORD”
GOD SHOWS UP WHEN HE IS REALLY WANTED
THIS MORNING, THE QUESTION IS SIMPLE.
HOW BAD DO YOU WANT GOD’S PRESENCE IN YOUR LIFE?
• Bad enough to lay aside the world?
• Bad enough to deny yourself?
• Bad enough to take up your cross and follow Jesus?
• Bad enough to alter your agenda?
• Bad enough to stop the busyness of life?
• Bad enough to spend time in His word?
• Bad enough to spend time on your knees?
God’s presence is necessary in life.
HOW BAD DO YOU WANT HIM?
Jeremiah 29:13 “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”
