This week we turn to a final glimpse of Jerusalem’s
importance in the history of divine salvation as we look at Solomon’s prayer in
I Kings 8. Many have called this prayer the most powerful and poignant prayer
in the entire Old Testament. Indeed, in many respects it is a model prayer for
any wise disciple of Christ.
Remember who Solomon is. In the preface of Brennan Manning’s
classic work, Abba’s Child, he says
of his own life, “There have been times when the felt presence of God was more
real to me than the chair I am sitting on…when the Word ricocheted like….lightning
in every corner of my soul…there have been other times when I identified with
the words of Mae West, ‘I used to be Snow White – but I drifted’; when the Word
was as stale as old ice cream and bland as tame sausage…when I preferred cheap
slivers of glass to the pearl of great price.”
Solomon’s life is a mixed bag. He had two names – Solomon
and Jedidiah. One means, “peace” and the other, “beloved of the Lord.” Both names
describe an amazing story of divine grace when you consider who his parents
were. He was the second son of David and Bathsheba! The Lord passed over eight
other living sons of David to bring him to the throne. Indeed, his parentage
stands as a testimony of divine grace.
Although the presentations of Solomon’s life contained in I
Kings and Chronicles are slightly different, both portray him as a wise king;
though his wisdom is not always used for honorable ends (I Kings 2:13-46).
Indeed, by the end of his forty-year reign his life had degenerated into a mass
of self-indulgence. But that is not the whole story. For the most part Solomon
was committed to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Someone has said, “In many ways Solomon was an ideal king
ruling over his kingdom, but ideal and reality were always in tension, and
eventually the reality was much less than ideal. He was most of all, a king
blessed by God, this blessing continuing even in the midst of sin (I Kings
11:9-13, 31-39). God’s choice was thus in the end seen to be more important
than human choices, even if mortals can never presume on grace to evade the
law’s demands. The hopeful end of Solomon’s story carries with it the
implication that there could also be hope at the end of Israel’s story…”
All of this is prelude to what we will be digging into this
Sunday in a message entitled, “A Wise Prayer.” The text is I Kings 8:12-30, but
the prayer extends well past verse 30. It has been called a wise prayer that
emphasizes all the proper elements of prayer; however, this Sunday I want to
focus on the significance of the place of this prayer in the life of ancient
Israel, and your life as part of the reconstituted Israel. There is much to see
and meditate upon.
In preparation for Sunday you may wish to consider the
following:
1. How was Solomon chosen to be king? (See I Kings 1)
2. How important are David’s words to Solomon in I Kings 2:1-4?
3. What is the significance of having Solomon anointed king at Gibeon?
(See I Kings 1:33)
4. What is the significance of Solomon’s dream at Gibeon? (See
I Kings 3:5-14)
5. How long does it take Solomon to build the Temple at
Jerusalem?
6. What is Solomon’s prayer position before the Lord in I Kings
8:22?
7. What is the significance of his words in verses 23-24?
8. What is the heart of his plea in verses 27 & 28?
9. Is the covenant he refers to in verse 25 conditional or
unconditional?
10. What is the significance of that divine promise?
See you Sunday as we gather at the table.
