He stood on the platform, and
then he knelt in front of the entire community of Israel and lifted his hands
toward heaven. He prayed, “O Lord, God of Israel, there
is no God like you in all of heaven and earth. You keep your covenant and show unfailing love
to all who walk before you in wholehearted devotion.
2 Chronicles
6:13-17 (NLT)
On the day of dedication of
"Solomon's Temple," the king erected a brazen platform in the outer
court. All the people gathered, as the
king ascended the platform, in full view of the altar. The altar would be the site of many
offerings, many sacrifices.
However, before the first sacrifice,
the first exchange of money for doves or lambs, the king offered himself on the
brazen platform. This is much like the
Macedonian Christians whom, Paul said; their
first action was to give themselves to the Lord….[1]
When Solomon placed himself at God’s
disposal here’s what happened:
When
Solomon finished praying, fire flashed down from heaven and burned up the burnt
offerings and sacrifices, and the glorious presence of the Lord filled the Temple.
The priests could not enter the
Temple of the Lord because the glorious presence of the Lord filled it. When all the people of Israel saw the fire coming down
and the glorious presence of the Lord filling the Temple, they fell face down on the ground
and worshiped and praised the Lord,
saying,
“He is good! His
faithful love endures forever!”
Then the king and all the people offered sacrifices to
the Lord. 2
Chronicles 7:1-4
Solomon’s actions – giving himself
first – was acceptable to God. This
should be a pattern for our lives as well.
When we
give, pray, lead, share our faith, conduct business, change a diaper, do
homework, drive to the mall – whatever we do we should do it as unto God.[2]
·
When
it comes to giving, put yourself in the offering plate first!
·
When
it comes to business, determine He will be the Senior Partner.
·
When
it comes to anything remember Solomon's Temple; it was immersed in
consecrating prayer and surrendered to the Lord's will before a single
sacrifice was placed upon the altar!
For You, Today…
What have you got on your schedule today?
What should you do first?
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