1 Kings 8:66 - After the festival was over, Solomon sent the people home. They blessed the king and went to their homes joyful and glad because the Lord had been good to His servant David and to His people Israel.
After the Temple was finished, Solomon dedicated it to the Lord with sacrifices that were too many to count, and the people celebrated the Festival of Shelters in what sounds like it was a raucous celebration of the Lord.
Don't you love happy endings? I sure do. Being such a big movie fan, I've watched so many in my life. And I always prefer ones with happy endings. I had an old roommate that was the "root for the bad guys" type. I used to tell him why do you bother? You know they aren't going to win.
Before you start thinking I'm going to get all sappy and sentimental here, I actually do have a point (usually anyway). While I was reading this chapter in 1 Kings today, I thought to myself as I came to the end of it, "This could have been the end of it right here." This would have been the perfect place to end the Bible. The people were happy, worshiping God, Solomon was king and the wisest man ever to live because he sought the Lord the right way, the Temple was built and dedicated and God and His presence filled the Temple (verse 11). I'm sure it would have been ideal for God to have that as the ending of His story, instead of sacrificing His Son for all of us.
The problem with humans is, they have a tendency to ruin the happy ending. Ever watch a movie with someone that knows what's going to happen when you don't and they tell you? Oh man I hate that. When people get comfortable, they tend to stray. The Israelites eventually walked away from God. I don't think it was some intentional thing. I think they got comfortable and figured, "He won't mind if I do this or that. We just celebrated Him and His new Temple, so He's good." Well God doesn't work that way. He's a jealous God (Exodus 20:5) who demands and deserves our praise and worship.
Fortunately for us, the Bible and God's story didn't end on that happy note at the end of 1 Kings. Instead of consulting me in the editorial process, which shows one of the many ways that God is smarter than me, or just giving up on humanity and abandoning us to our own stupidity (amazing love), God had other plans. He never had a plan B, because Jesus was plan A all along. He knew that the good times wouldn't last after the dedication of the Temple. He knew the Israelites would fall away from Him by their own actions, which is why there are 28 more books in the Old Testament alone telling us of how God tried to bring them back to Him before He sent Jesus.
One of my favorite prophets, Jeremiah, tells us that God knows the plans He has for us and that they always have been (and always will be) for good. For a bright future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11). That hope is found in Jesus. When we walk away or operate outside the will of God and disaster hits us, that wasn't God's plan for us. But when we turn ourselves over to Him and submit ourselves to His will, He takes those bad things and turns them into good things. The Senior Pastor at my church told us that the Hebrew word for plans in this passage literally translates into weave. God is weaving those bad things that we did into better things for our lives when we submit to Him. The Apostle Paul (as opposed to the Beatle Paul), tells us that God causes everything to work for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them (Romans 8:28).
When we answer that call and submit to Him, He shows us the great and mighty things He has for us (Jeremiah 33:3). They don't all come together at once (where's the fun in that?). But they do come together. But we have to be operating inside of God's will. We have to submit ourselves to Him so that He can operate. If we have to have surgery, we have to submit ourselves to the doctor and get on the table to be operated on. We can't just do it via e-mail or text message. We don't get the good news after surgery over the phone. And we don't get the Good News of God operating on us when we aren't seeking His will and spending intimate time with Him in prayer and study. The real happy ending in the Bible isn't in 1 Kings, it's in Revelation 22.
Dear Father, thank You for the ultimate happy ending in the Bible that promises of Your coming and Your rescue of Your people. Thank You for not giving up on me, and the rest of humanity, when we gave You so many reasons and opportunities to do so. We are blessed beyond words at the love You have shown us from the beginning of time. I pray that I will remember to seek Your will above my own, and when I fail, I pray that I will ask for Your forgiveness so that Your light will continue to shine on and through me. I pray for those that don't believe in the happy ending that You have promised. My prayer is that Your Holy Spirit will show them that You have far greater things than the enemy could ever promise, and rooting for the bad guy is pointless. I hope and pray they will realize all of this and turn their hearts and lives over to You. In Jesus' name, Amen!
God Bless!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment