1 Kings 8:57-63 May he turn our hearts to him, to walk in all his ways and to keep the commands, decrees and regulations he gave our fathers. And may these words of mine, which I have prayed before the LORD, be near to the LORD our God day and night, that he may uphold the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel according to each day’s need, so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD is God and that there is no other. But your hearts must be fully committed to the LORD our God, to live by his decrees and obey his commands, as at this time.” Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices before the LORD. Solomon offered a sacrifice of fellowship offerings to the LORD: twenty-two thousand cattle and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep and goats. So the king and all the Israelites dedicated the temple of the LORD.
In this passage, Solomon is dedicating the temple that had just been completed and is so very fired up for what God has allowed them to do. It was a glorious time and the people celebrated, but there is a sense of awe and respect toward God as Solomon prays before the people. He asks that they could be near the Lord day and night- depending on God for daily needs. He wanted all the peoples of earth to know the Lord his God (the heart of world evangelism was alive in this man)! He makes a very radical statement in his prayer in the hearing of all the people, “But your hearts must be fully committed to the Lord our God, to live by his decrees and obey his commands, as at this time”. Some may have heard this and scoffed at the “arrogance” of Solomon and even said he was harsh to “demand” this level of commitment. Some may have muttered how divisive this was- to EXPECT all the people to obey…Others possibly gave lip service to God’s leader and yet did not obey. Still others, with the heart of God’s remnant, loved the prayer and were so inspired! How would you and I have responded? Truly, we are called to give all of our heart, mind, soul and strength to the Lord- but how was your week- or last month- or even more revealing…last year? Being fully committed is a decision and absolutely an expectation of gratitude God demands of us. What have you decided for 2008?
This week the leadership group of our congregation has gone over in detail our plans for 2008 and put together a calendar for our meetings and special events as well as our goals for the church. Included are such things as House Church Sunday’s, weddings, Congregational Devotionals and other meetings of the body along with financial, spiritual and growth goals. In most American “Christian type” churches, commitment to these meetings and goals is purely optional and up to the feeling of the moment of individuals in that group. There is very rarely a call to be fully committed to the body or God for fear that someone would be offended or that the minister could be fired for not preaching the “popular” belief of the majority of the congregation, an unspiritual board of directors, or the older members who think they are mature yet live far from the life of a sold out disciple. Thus the majority takes over and there is no longer a true leadership (toward God) but a mass hysteria of “what is the least commitment I can give and still be saved?” Has that been your heart? God forbid! Rather, let us imitate the faith of Solomon and be fully committed following through on our goals and living out our devotion to God’s people and his kingdom.
On the other hand, some congregations in attempt to counter that trend go too far in trying to control the members to get that elusive “commitment”. Many in these groups do not feel loved, but bullied into commitment. Often there is a loss of inspiration and a lot of perspiration without heart. Sadly, I have lived through that and have even done that to others. As we build this new movement, we must learn from the mistakes of the past, be extremely humble with one another, hold fast to the scriptures, be creative and yet be uncompromising in our call to the commitment of Jesus. We cannot bully with harshness or “put people in their place” and yet we are commanded to “teach them to obey” Matthew 28:20. This will only be done as godly leaders live a life of love and a life worthy of imitation and thus are able to inspire obedience and expect a sold out commitment (fully committed) as God does in the Old Testament and New.
Interestingly, we see the result of a “fully committed” heart lived out in Solomon’s response noted in verses 62-63: “The king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices before the Lord…twenty-two thousand cattle and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep and goats”. Phoenix church, as we look forward to our planned events (calendar) and goals (dreams & visions), let us imitate the heart of Solomon as he inspired a nation to give their hearts first to God. Then he led the way in giving sacrificially with an incredible display of gratitude. Our goals are “faith stretching” and only attainable as we depend on God. As we get strength from God to “build the temple” in Phoenix- let’s be fully committed to doing whatever it takes to see them to completion! What a heart Solomon had! Some might have thought it “irresponsible” to give sooooo much- but not God. These sacrifices were from a pure heart and intense gratefulness. He was pleased. We too, must give generously this year of our time, hearts, talents and finances. No one knows how much you will give or an exact hour amount or dollar amount- but with prayer, advice, humility and direction from the word, each of us can give faithfully- not under compulsion, but generously!
Often in our attempt to please people, we forget why we live the way we do. We are following in the footsteps of men of great faith like Solomon, David, Moses and yes, Jesus. Our goals and dreams for this year and even the calendar are not designed to please men but to please God and bring glory to him. They are designed to bring direction, unity and structure to our lives and stretch our faith. Prayerfully, these “tools” are gone after with faith rather than guilt and love rather than pressure. Later, we find Asa leading in reliance on man rather than God. 2 Chronicles 16:7-9 At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him: “Because you relied on the king of Aram and not on the LORD your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand. Were not the Cushites and Libyans a mighty army with great numbers of chariots and horsemen? Yet when you relied on the LORD, he delivered them into your hand. For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. The man God is seeking to strengthen is the man who is fully committed to him (given over in trust). God is looking for men like this who will carry out His dreams. When men depend on themselves or other men over God, it is a ludicrous thing with pathetic results. Rely on the Lord and be delivered, rely on men and be destroyed. He is looking for you- are you fully committed?
He stoops down to make us great,
Matt Sullivan
