THE DAILY FOUNTAIN DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE OF THE CHURCH OF NIGERIA (ANGLICAN COMMUNION)
DATE: SATURDAY, 27TH MAY, 2023
TOPIC: THE POWER OF OVERWHELMING SACRIFICE
TEXT: 1 KINGS 8: 54-9: 9
8:54 And so it was, when Solomon had finished praying all this prayer and supplication to the LORD, that he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven.
55 Then he stood and blessed all the assembly of Israel with a loud voice, saying:
56 "Blessed [be] the LORD, who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that He promised. There has not failed one word of all His good promise, which He promised through His servant Moses.
57 "May the LORD our God be with us, as He was with our fathers. May He not leave us nor forsake us,
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 judgments, which He commanded our fathers.
59 "And may these words of mine, with which I have made supplication before the LORD, be near 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 may require,
60 "that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD [is] God; [there is] no other.
61 "Let your heart therefore be loyal to the LORD our God, to walk in His statutes and keep His commandments, as at this day."
62 Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices before the LORD.
63 And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered to the LORD, twenty-two thousand bulls and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the LORD.
64 On the same day the king consecrated the middle of the court that [was] in front of the house of the LORD; for there he offered burnt offerings, grain offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings, because the bronze altar that [was] before the LORD [was] too small to receive the burnt offerings, the grain offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings.
65 At that time Solomon held a feast, and all Israel with him, a great assembly from the entrance of Hamath to the Brook of Egypt, before the LORD our God, seven days and seven [more] days -- fourteen days.
66 On the eighth day he sent the people away; and they blessed the king, and went to their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the good that the LORD had done for His servant David, and for Israel His people.
9:1 And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished building the house of the LORD and the king's house, and all Solomon's desire which he wanted to do,
2 that the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as He had appeared to him at Gibeon.
3 And the LORD said to him: "I have heard your prayer and your supplication that you have made before Me; I have consecrated this house which you have built to put My name there forever, and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually.
4 "Now if you walk before Me as your father David walked, in integrity of heart and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded you, [and] if you keep My statutes and My judgments,
5 "then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, as I promised David your father, saying, 'You shall not fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.'
6 "[But] if you or your sons at all turn from following Me, and do not keep My commandments [and] My statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods and worship them,
7 "then I will cut off Israel from the land which I have given them; and this house which I have consecrated for My name I will cast out of My sight. Israel will be a proverb and a byword among all peoples.
8 "And [as for] this house, [which] is exalted, everyone who passes by it will be astonished and will hiss, and say, 'Why has the LORD done thus to this land and to this house?'
9 Then they will answer, ‘Because they forsook the Lord their God, who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, and worshiped them and served them; therefore the Lord has brought all this calamity on them,''
MESSAGE:
Israel experienced God’s glory in the temple dedication ceremony. Solomon first appealed to the Israelites to keep God’s commandments to obtain answered prayers (v.61). Solomon sacrificed twenty-two thousand bulls and twenty thousand sheep, numerous burnt, peace and grain offerings. He celebrated the festival for fourteen days. Israel happily ate, drank and blessed their king. The sacrificial offerings Solomon lavished attracted God to appear personally to him saying: “I have heard your prayers; I have hallowed this house” (1 Kings 9:3).
Men of immense sacrifices and unalloyed obedience always attract God’s attention. It is unfortunate that many people sacrifice hours and huge resources for games, fashion, socio-cultural activities, social media, etc., but get irritated and infuriated when it comes to sacrifices and obedience to God. I was in a church many years ago when a man brought two hundred naira to the altar table to thank God for helping him to buy a car and I really marvelled. The car cost millions of naira and the owner brought 200 naira for thanksgiving prayers. That money was not enough to pump air in the car tyres. This is the kind of misnomer that characterises the life of some Christians. Beloved, a life of obedience and sacrifice yields much dividends with God. Therefore, possess these qualities so that God can positively respond to your calls.
PRAYER:
Take my silver and gold, O Lord.
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