1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,080 Do you have a copy of God's Word in your hand? 2 00:00:02,560 --> 00:00:04,320 Yes. Would you join me in First Kings 3 00:00:04,320 --> 00:00:07,040 chapter 5 as we come to this precious text? 4 00:00:08,080 --> 00:00:10,400 Perhaps a challenging text in terms of how to glean 5 00:00:10,520 --> 00:00:13,400 application, but we'll trust that the Holy Spirit will reward 6 00:00:13,400 --> 00:00:15,840 us for our diligence. So meet me in First Kings 7 00:00:15,840 --> 00:00:25,230 chapter 5, and it's so great to see so many of you. 8 00:00:25,230 --> 00:00:28,310 I know some can't make it, especially because of the event 9 00:00:28,310 --> 00:00:29,670 tomorrow. They have to rise early in the 10 00:00:29,670 --> 00:00:32,950 morning, But Bible study must go on, as you know. 11 00:00:33,480 --> 00:00:36,720 And so here we are in this wonderful chapter, and here's 12 00:00:36,720 --> 00:00:40,120 really a brief summary of where we're headed now into this book. 13 00:00:40,560 --> 00:00:44,480 Solomon now, after doing much, is prepared to make preparations 14 00:00:44,480 --> 00:00:46,960 for the building of the temple. We've now reached the pinnacle 15 00:00:47,320 --> 00:00:49,880 of his achievements, at least the beginnings, the genesis of 16 00:00:49,880 --> 00:00:53,840 this great project that has been divinely orchestrated and 17 00:00:53,840 --> 00:00:57,480 ordained by God himself. And as we come to this chapter, 18 00:00:57,480 --> 00:01:00,960 to our surprise, we don't see Solomon getting right into. 19 00:01:01,560 --> 00:01:03,920 The construction itself, we don't see him taking the 20 00:01:04,280 --> 00:01:07,480 resources that his father had consecrated before his death. 21 00:01:07,800 --> 00:01:12,560 We see something strange perhaps to our understanding of how this 22 00:01:12,560 --> 00:01:15,480 should happen. We see a gentile being 23 00:01:15,480 --> 00:01:19,360 introduced to us, at least reintroduced to us, and we will 24 00:01:19,360 --> 00:01:21,880 read the first few verses. And really what will summarize 25 00:01:21,880 --> 00:01:25,680 and what will make up this text? Is Solomon dealing with this man 26 00:01:26,520 --> 00:01:29,360 extending an invitation for him to participate in this 27 00:01:29,360 --> 00:01:31,840 assignment? And this man's response, That's 28 00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:34,800 really the format of it. And through that we will again 29 00:01:34,800 --> 00:01:38,680 glean some truths for our own walk with the Lord Jesus Christ. 30 00:01:38,680 --> 00:01:42,240 And so let's read here the first few verses of First Kings, 31 00:01:42,240 --> 00:01:48,520 chapter five we read now Hiram, king of Tyres, sent his servants 32 00:01:48,520 --> 00:01:53,200 to Solomon when he had heard that they had anointed him king 33 00:01:53,200 --> 00:01:57,360 in place of his father. For Hiram always loved David. 34 00:01:58,120 --> 00:02:02,720 And Solomon sent word to Hiram. You know that David my father 35 00:02:02,720 --> 00:02:05,480 could not build a house for the name of the Lord his God, 36 00:02:05,760 --> 00:02:08,680 because of the warfare with which his enemies surrounded 37 00:02:08,680 --> 00:02:12,320 him, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet. 38 00:02:13,040 --> 00:02:16,320 But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side. 39 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:19,040 There's neither adversary nor misfortune. 40 00:02:19,880 --> 00:02:23,480 And so I intend to build a house for the name of the Lord my God. 41 00:02:24,040 --> 00:02:27,680 As the Lord said to David, my father, your son, whom I will 42 00:02:27,680 --> 00:02:31,120 set on your throne, in your place shall build the house for 43 00:02:31,120 --> 00:02:34,520 my name. Now therefore command the Cedars 44 00:02:34,520 --> 00:02:38,560 of Lebanon be cut for me and My servants will join your 45 00:02:38,560 --> 00:02:42,160 servants, and I will pay you for your servants such wages as you 46 00:02:42,160 --> 00:02:44,320 set. For you know that there is no 47 00:02:44,320 --> 00:02:48,000 one among us who knows how to cut timber like the Cydonians. 48 00:02:48,880 --> 00:02:52,800 Father, we come with reverence and anticipation. 49 00:02:53,200 --> 00:02:56,080 We believe that what we just read is the word of the Lord. 50 00:02:56,440 --> 00:02:59,400 We believe that this word is your voice, and we believe that 51 00:02:59,400 --> 00:03:02,360 you will speak to us. But we do not presume that we 52 00:03:02,360 --> 00:03:05,560 will experience such a thing unless you help us by the power 53 00:03:05,560 --> 00:03:08,720 of the Holy Spirit. Lord, hover over us and do 54 00:03:08,720 --> 00:03:12,320 miracles in our hearts. We trust, Lord, that you will 55 00:03:12,320 --> 00:03:15,240 make much of Your name. As we study this text together. 56 00:03:15,560 --> 00:03:17,920 In Jesus name we pray. Amen. 57 00:03:18,320 --> 00:03:19,320 Amen. Amen. 58 00:03:19,320 --> 00:03:23,280 Indeed. The last time that this man 59 00:03:23,280 --> 00:03:28,400 Hiram has appeared in the scriptures was back in Second 60 00:03:28,400 --> 00:03:31,960 Samuel, chapter 5, verse 11, where we are told that Hiram 61 00:03:32,440 --> 00:03:36,320 came to the aid of David and supplied some materials for his 62 00:03:36,320 --> 00:03:38,600 own palace. And then Hiram disappears. 63 00:03:39,280 --> 00:03:44,120 And then he reappears again here in this text, this time to visit 64 00:03:44,240 --> 00:03:49,120 Solomon, the successor of David, and to express his support and 65 00:03:49,120 --> 00:03:53,200 express his allegiance to him. By sending representatives in 66 00:03:53,200 --> 00:03:56,040 his name. But what's so fascinating here 67 00:03:56,040 --> 00:03:59,520 is the motivation that Hiram the king of Tyre, which is tires in 68 00:03:59,520 --> 00:04:03,680 modern day Lebanon. The motivation, the the thing 69 00:04:03,680 --> 00:04:08,400 that stirred him to reach out to Solomon in this way, look again 70 00:04:08,400 --> 00:04:12,760 here at the end of verse two we read and Solomon, Excuse me, 71 00:04:12,760 --> 00:04:16,560 verse one. For Hiram always loved David. 72 00:04:17,399 --> 00:04:23,320 Hiram always loved David. And so this man had affinity. 73 00:04:23,320 --> 00:04:26,840 He had affection for David. And what I find so fascinating 74 00:04:26,840 --> 00:04:30,600 is that this is being told to us after David had transitioned 75 00:04:30,600 --> 00:04:35,960 into glory, after David had passed on and graduated into the 76 00:04:35,960 --> 00:04:40,640 presence of God, this man still had high honor for David. 77 00:04:40,880 --> 00:04:44,920 He is moving based on his history with David. 78 00:04:44,920 --> 00:04:49,280 A memory, really. And if you go to the parallel 79 00:04:49,280 --> 00:04:51,240 account, which you don't have to turn to in Second Chronicles 2, 80 00:04:51,240 --> 00:04:54,600 which is a fuller testimony of the same chapter, we're told 81 00:04:54,600 --> 00:05:00,200 that even Hiram called David his Lord not, you know, attributing 82 00:05:00,200 --> 00:05:02,600 to him divinity, but his his master. 83 00:05:02,600 --> 00:05:06,560 He's giving him respect, this title of being superior to him. 84 00:05:06,560 --> 00:05:10,720 So this man had a deep, deep love for this man that we are 85 00:05:10,720 --> 00:05:14,440 familiar with, David. And it translates even here that 86 00:05:14,440 --> 00:05:17,880 he comes to his son to express his love for him in the name of 87 00:05:17,880 --> 00:05:20,280 David. And as I looked at this and I 88 00:05:20,280 --> 00:05:22,800 thought to myself, isn't it isn't it wonderful to see 89 00:05:22,800 --> 00:05:25,920 someone have such a depth of devotion to another person? 90 00:05:26,040 --> 00:05:29,080 Though he can no longer interact with him, he can't engage with 91 00:05:29,080 --> 00:05:30,840 David. He can't see David any longer. 92 00:05:30,840 --> 00:05:34,840 But his his respect from outlived the life of the very 93 00:05:34,840 --> 00:05:38,560 man that he greatly appreciated. And as I looked at Hiram, I 94 00:05:38,560 --> 00:05:40,760 couldn't help but think about the words of Peter to the 95 00:05:40,760 --> 00:05:44,520 believers, when he reminded them of the quality of their love 96 00:05:44,520 --> 00:05:46,560 toward the Lord Jesus Christ. What did he say there in First 97 00:05:46,560 --> 00:05:48,280 Peter? 18 Though you do not see him, 98 00:05:48,280 --> 00:05:53,720 you love him, and though you do not now see him, you have this 99 00:05:53,720 --> 00:05:57,880 joy in you toward him that is inexpressible and filled with 100 00:05:57,880 --> 00:06:01,640 glory. Hiram love David. 101 00:06:02,600 --> 00:06:04,320 David. David died. 102 00:06:05,760 --> 00:06:08,320 And our king, yes, he died. But he didn't stay in the grave. 103 00:06:08,320 --> 00:06:10,840 He rose and he ascended into the heavens. 104 00:06:11,200 --> 00:06:13,840 And he promised, while being high priests and interceding for 105 00:06:13,840 --> 00:06:16,440 us, to walk with us and to lead us and to guide us. 106 00:06:17,600 --> 00:06:19,600 And then he will one day return to us. 107 00:06:21,200 --> 00:06:24,040 If David could love a man, or if hiring could love a man like 108 00:06:24,040 --> 00:06:30,360 David in such a way, how much more us with our king, our king, 109 00:06:30,360 --> 00:06:34,160 who we not only attribute our faith to in terms of a 110 00:06:34,160 --> 00:06:36,640 historical account of what he has done, but a king that we 111 00:06:36,640 --> 00:06:42,800 know lives today and is in our midst every day and goes before 112 00:06:42,800 --> 00:06:44,760 us and surrounds us every moment. 113 00:06:45,400 --> 00:06:48,600 How much more should our love for the son of David outshine 114 00:06:48,600 --> 00:06:51,480 the love that Hiram shows for David himself? 115 00:06:53,080 --> 00:06:57,160 I'm impressed by this man, but I'm also challenged that you and 116 00:06:57,160 --> 00:06:59,480 I have a king who is greater than David, and he deserves a 117 00:06:59,480 --> 00:07:02,680 greater love than this. And so he comes. 118 00:07:02,680 --> 00:07:07,800 And as he comes, Solomon realizes that he clearly is a 119 00:07:07,800 --> 00:07:11,520 friendly foreigner. He's someone who has an open 120 00:07:11,520 --> 00:07:13,720 heart. And so he takes advantage of 121 00:07:13,720 --> 00:07:16,920 this moment to extend an opportunity, a request, a royal 122 00:07:16,920 --> 00:07:20,840 request to Hiram. And he asks him to join him to 123 00:07:20,840 --> 00:07:24,840 partner with him in this amazing project known as the Temple of 124 00:07:24,840 --> 00:07:27,400 God, this House of worship for the true and living God. 125 00:07:28,520 --> 00:07:31,840 And it's in this message that we want to take our time to examine 126 00:07:32,160 --> 00:07:36,040 some things that again, we can attribute to ourselves, or at 127 00:07:36,040 --> 00:07:40,640 least to some extent. Notice the first words of verse 128 00:07:40,640 --> 00:07:42,400 three. What are the 1st 2 words? 129 00:07:43,360 --> 00:07:48,320 You know he's speaking to Hiram. He says, you know that David, my 130 00:07:48,320 --> 00:07:50,360 father could not build a house for the name of the Lord has 131 00:07:50,360 --> 00:07:53,560 got. How did Hiram know that he's all 132 00:07:53,560 --> 00:07:57,280 the way in Lebanon. He's a distant friend. 133 00:07:58,440 --> 00:08:01,640 One logical conclusion, right? At some point David shared his 134 00:08:01,640 --> 00:08:06,600 heart with Hiram. At some point, some juncture, he 135 00:08:06,600 --> 00:08:10,080 opened up to Hiram and he says, you know, Hiram, so appreciate 136 00:08:10,080 --> 00:08:13,320 you helping us build my house. But down deep inside, more than 137 00:08:13,320 --> 00:08:15,280 anything, I want to build a house for God. 138 00:08:16,640 --> 00:08:18,160 I want to build a house for the Lord. 139 00:08:18,920 --> 00:08:20,440 And with that he must have explained. 140 00:08:20,440 --> 00:08:22,840 But I've been prohibited by the same God that I longed to honor 141 00:08:22,840 --> 00:08:26,080 and his perfect wisdom. He did not allow me to directly 142 00:08:26,120 --> 00:08:29,560 build a house for him. I I just wonder what that looked 143 00:08:29,560 --> 00:08:31,880 like. At what point David opened up 144 00:08:31,880 --> 00:08:35,000 about these things. The reason why that's so 145 00:08:35,000 --> 00:08:37,039 significant is because Hiram. Is he a Jew? 146 00:08:37,880 --> 00:08:39,559 Is he? No, he's Lebanese. 147 00:08:39,559 --> 00:08:42,200 He's a gentile. He's a gentile. 148 00:08:42,200 --> 00:08:48,160 I thought to myself, what stimulated David to open up? 149 00:08:48,520 --> 00:08:51,560 His heart, to share this personal thing that he had with 150 00:08:51,560 --> 00:08:56,080 God, with this man who had no direct relationship with the God 151 00:08:56,560 --> 00:08:58,320 of Israel or the people of Israel. 152 00:09:00,400 --> 00:09:03,120 And I thought and I meditated. And then I remembered some of 153 00:09:03,120 --> 00:09:05,880 the Psalms where David makes these statements, these 154 00:09:05,880 --> 00:09:08,320 declarations, these exhortations. 155 00:09:08,920 --> 00:09:11,320 And I think in those Psalms you get an understanding of his 156 00:09:11,320 --> 00:09:14,320 heart and maybe what he wrote in those psalms is why he did what 157 00:09:14,320 --> 00:09:16,280 he did with Hiram. Let me give you a couple 158 00:09:16,280 --> 00:09:19,400 examples. So in Psalm 96 verse 3, David 159 00:09:19,400 --> 00:09:22,000 makes this amazing statement that you are probably familiar 160 00:09:22,000 --> 00:09:25,040 with declare his glory among the nations. 161 00:09:26,040 --> 00:09:28,680 Declare his glory among the nations, and he doesn't finish 162 00:09:28,680 --> 00:09:30,840 there. And he says his marvelous works 163 00:09:30,840 --> 00:09:37,120 among all the peoples plural. The author of Psalm 119 is 164 00:09:37,120 --> 00:09:39,920 unknown, but many are comfortable to give that Psalm 165 00:09:39,920 --> 00:09:41,800 over to David in terms of authorship. 166 00:09:41,800 --> 00:09:44,960 And if it is David, listen to what he says in Psalm 119 verse 167 00:09:44,960 --> 00:09:49,080 46. I will also speak of your 168 00:09:49,080 --> 00:09:55,240 testimonies before who? Kings before kings. 169 00:09:57,200 --> 00:10:01,680 So this man, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, also in 170 00:10:01,680 --> 00:10:05,440 connection to his desires, worked about by the Holy Spirit. 171 00:10:06,160 --> 00:10:08,760 Doesn't want to just contain the testimony of the goodness of 172 00:10:08,760 --> 00:10:12,200 God, his marvelous works to the people who are familiar with it, 173 00:10:12,200 --> 00:10:15,200 he says Go beyond that. Go beyond the borders. 174 00:10:16,000 --> 00:10:17,800 If there's a way, let the nation's here. 175 00:10:17,800 --> 00:10:19,480 If there's a way, let the peoples here. 176 00:10:19,480 --> 00:10:21,480 If there's a way, let kings here. 177 00:10:22,520 --> 00:10:27,200 And I like to think that David testifying about this to to 178 00:10:27,200 --> 00:10:30,680 Hiram is David proving that he was more than a worshipper and a 179 00:10:30,680 --> 00:10:32,360 psalmist. He was an evangelist. 180 00:10:34,760 --> 00:10:38,880 He was an evangelist. His worship was not just in 181 00:10:38,880 --> 00:10:41,040 creating songs. His worship overflowed and 182 00:10:41,040 --> 00:10:44,080 telling people who might not be familiar with these amazing 183 00:10:44,080 --> 00:10:46,640 truths about how amazing they really are. 184 00:10:48,280 --> 00:10:53,320 That excites me about David. He came to higher up at some 185 00:10:53,320 --> 00:10:54,880 point, he says. I want to just tell you about 186 00:10:54,880 --> 00:10:56,760 what I had in mind for God, and I want to tell you something 187 00:10:56,760 --> 00:10:59,720 about the wisdom of God. And we do not know for certain 188 00:10:59,720 --> 00:11:02,360 if Hiram ever became a believer. There's some evidence that you 189 00:11:02,360 --> 00:11:05,640 can make a case for, especially in Second Chronicles, and you 190 00:11:05,640 --> 00:11:09,720 read here that he actually says that the Lord is the maker of 191 00:11:09,720 --> 00:11:13,080 heaven and earth. I don't think that's enough 192 00:11:13,080 --> 00:11:15,440 evidence in chapter 2, verse 12 of Second Chronicles. 193 00:11:15,440 --> 00:11:19,400 But one thing is for certain, this man loved David. 194 00:11:20,080 --> 00:11:25,240 Even though David unashamedly testified about his God, he 195 00:11:25,240 --> 00:11:28,080 still loved him. I mean, it's very likely that 196 00:11:28,080 --> 00:11:32,120 Hiram was a worshipper of many false gods, and yet still there 197 00:11:32,120 --> 00:11:36,680 is this sense of great respect and appreciation for David in 198 00:11:36,680 --> 00:11:39,840 light of the fact that he proclaimed the true God without 199 00:11:39,840 --> 00:11:41,920 fear. Listen, if people are going to 200 00:11:41,920 --> 00:11:44,520 love you, if people are going to love me, let it be because of 201 00:11:44,520 --> 00:11:46,160 the fragrance of worship that's on us. 202 00:11:47,720 --> 00:11:49,760 Let it be because of our walk with the Lord. 203 00:11:49,760 --> 00:11:52,480 Let it be because we are unashamed about the gospel of 204 00:11:52,480 --> 00:11:56,960 Jesus Christ, not because for fear or anxiety, we conceal our 205 00:11:56,960 --> 00:12:00,760 testimony with the attempt to win the allegiance of people who 206 00:12:00,760 --> 00:12:07,000 don't know our God, Hiram. Loved David and David did not 207 00:12:07,000 --> 00:12:11,880 conceal his love for God and made an impression on this man, 208 00:12:11,880 --> 00:12:16,480 no doubt. And so we see Hiram come now and 209 00:12:16,480 --> 00:12:18,960 he's already aware of the situation. 210 00:12:19,640 --> 00:12:22,120 And as Solomon explains in verse 3. 211 00:12:22,760 --> 00:12:29,160 Not only how he knew, but he also explains and reintroduces 212 00:12:29,160 --> 00:12:31,560 why Solomon was the one that had to build the temple. 213 00:12:31,560 --> 00:12:34,160 Reading anniversary, you know that David, my father, could not 214 00:12:34,160 --> 00:12:38,080 build a house for the name of the Lord his God, because of the 215 00:12:38,080 --> 00:12:41,320 warfare with which his enemies surrounded him until the Lord 216 00:12:41,320 --> 00:12:42,960 put them under the soles of his feet. 217 00:12:43,440 --> 00:12:44,920 David, throughout his life you know this. 218 00:12:44,920 --> 00:12:48,800 Throughout his reign was preoccupied with warfare, his 219 00:12:48,800 --> 00:12:53,920 time, his energy, his planning. Was to defend, was to fight 220 00:12:53,920 --> 00:12:55,560 back, was to resist. And because of that 221 00:12:55,560 --> 00:12:58,640 preoccupation, at least in part, was the reason why he could not 222 00:12:58,640 --> 00:13:01,200 give himself over to this. Yes, God prohibited him because 223 00:13:01,200 --> 00:13:03,720 he was a man of war. But Solomon explains that he was 224 00:13:03,720 --> 00:13:06,800 also very busy with a different mission. 225 00:13:08,320 --> 00:13:10,760 And it's in this that we have another insight, I think a 226 00:13:10,760 --> 00:13:13,560 golden insight concerning the Church of Jesus Christ. 227 00:13:14,400 --> 00:13:17,000 Because now Solomon goes on to say Data was a man of war. 228 00:13:17,000 --> 00:13:19,160 My my father was very busy doing that. 229 00:13:19,280 --> 00:13:22,440 But now me because of God's goodness, because of God's 230 00:13:22,440 --> 00:13:24,400 provision of peace, we can build. 231 00:13:24,400 --> 00:13:26,520 Look what he says here in verse 4. 232 00:13:26,680 --> 00:13:29,920 But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side. 233 00:13:30,160 --> 00:13:33,320 So he tributes even this rest to God and rightfully so. 234 00:13:33,320 --> 00:13:35,520 Well, what's the insight for you and I? 235 00:13:35,520 --> 00:13:38,520 Here's the insight right? Because Solomon saying it's it's 236 00:13:38,520 --> 00:13:40,640 a time of peace. So let's build, Hiram. 237 00:13:40,640 --> 00:13:44,240 Let's build. And you and I also as Christians 238 00:13:44,560 --> 00:13:47,160 have to understand that in society and culture, with 239 00:13:47,160 --> 00:13:50,720 politics and government, when there are times of peace, we 240 00:13:50,720 --> 00:13:52,920 have to take advantage of those times. 241 00:13:54,040 --> 00:13:56,400 We have to take advantage of those times of rest that have 242 00:13:56,400 --> 00:13:58,520 been sovereignly permitted by God. 243 00:13:58,520 --> 00:14:03,400 When persecution has been restricted, has been pushed 244 00:14:03,400 --> 00:14:06,680 back, and we enjoy more freedom than the world has known, Our 245 00:14:06,680 --> 00:14:08,680 dear brother Mark, Pastor Mark preached on persecution this 246 00:14:08,680 --> 00:14:10,960 past Sunday. What we're experiencing in 247 00:14:10,960 --> 00:14:14,000 America is not common. It's an anomaly. 248 00:14:15,440 --> 00:14:21,200 Hiding to have church is common. Hiding your Bible when you come 249 00:14:21,200 --> 00:14:23,600 from your car to a building is common. 250 00:14:26,520 --> 00:14:29,560 Times of peace, even in Solomon's day was uncommon. 251 00:14:30,160 --> 00:14:32,760 And it's a special window of time that the Lord has ordained. 252 00:14:32,880 --> 00:14:36,000 For what purpose? For what purpose? 253 00:14:36,480 --> 00:14:41,000 For His Kingdom to be built. For his Kingdom to advance with 254 00:14:41,000 --> 00:14:42,960 an acceleration that is unusual as well. 255 00:14:44,640 --> 00:14:49,200 And so, in times of peace, you and I cannot afford to get dizzy 256 00:14:49,240 --> 00:14:53,920 by extensive leisure. You and I cannot afford to get 257 00:14:53,920 --> 00:14:57,280 lost in our own priorities and our own ambitions. 258 00:14:58,080 --> 00:15:01,320 You and I, like Solomon, have to understand when God gives us 259 00:15:01,320 --> 00:15:04,160 peace all around, when the people of God know or rest, that 260 00:15:04,160 --> 00:15:07,440 doesn't make sense. It's time to be strategic. 261 00:15:08,040 --> 00:15:11,960 You know, when the whole COVID thing broke out, part of me, and 262 00:15:11,960 --> 00:15:14,000 I'd like to think it was a righteous indignation, was like 263 00:15:14,960 --> 00:15:19,920 it happened so quick, just it was just a surprise. 264 00:15:19,920 --> 00:15:22,600 We're all surprised everything got flooded on the media. 265 00:15:22,600 --> 00:15:25,680 We're all told to bunker and hide in for two weeks until we 266 00:15:25,680 --> 00:15:27,280 flatten the curb in two weeks became two years. 267 00:15:27,280 --> 00:15:31,040 As you know, I just thought to myself, ministries were shut 268 00:15:31,040 --> 00:15:34,200 down, missionaries couldn't travel, people have to come back 269 00:15:34,200 --> 00:15:36,600 home. The world shut down overnight. 270 00:15:39,800 --> 00:15:42,760 And on many occasions I remember asking the Lord if this world is 271 00:15:42,760 --> 00:15:48,400 to return to somewhat of a normal state again, please help 272 00:15:48,400 --> 00:15:52,000 us take advantage of this time. Please let us not waste an 273 00:15:52,000 --> 00:15:56,400 opportunity again. In fact, you and I are commanded 274 00:15:56,400 --> 00:16:01,320 by the Holy Spirit in our prayers as a church to ask God 275 00:16:01,320 --> 00:16:04,000 for times of peace. Let me prove that to you. 276 00:16:04,000 --> 00:16:04,760 Do you have your bibles? Yes. 277 00:16:04,760 --> 00:16:06,720 First Timothy chapter two look at the 1st 2 verses. 278 00:16:07,120 --> 00:16:09,240 First Timothy chapter two, look at the 1st 2 verses. 279 00:16:09,240 --> 00:16:11,680 You know the verse, the first verse because it's an 280 00:16:11,680 --> 00:16:13,240 instruction for the church to pray. 281 00:16:18,000 --> 00:16:19,240 Look what Paul says in verse one. 282 00:16:19,240 --> 00:16:22,960 And first Timothy chapter two first of all. 283 00:16:22,960 --> 00:16:27,720 Then I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and 284 00:16:27,720 --> 00:16:30,800 Thanksgivings be made for all people. 285 00:16:31,160 --> 00:16:34,200 Now he qualifies. A group of people that we should 286 00:16:34,200 --> 00:16:39,400 focus much of our prayers for verse 2 for kings and all who 287 00:16:39,400 --> 00:16:42,080 are in high positions. Why Paul? 288 00:16:42,080 --> 00:16:47,200 Why pray for those in high positions that we may lead a 289 00:16:47,240 --> 00:16:53,920 peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way? 290 00:16:55,800 --> 00:16:59,120 Can I translate that into modern English? 291 00:17:00,600 --> 00:17:05,440 Pray and ask God to do a work in those who make decisions in 292 00:17:05,440 --> 00:17:08,119 society and civilization and your culture. 293 00:17:09,040 --> 00:17:13,160 And ask God that the government would leave you alone as a 294 00:17:13,160 --> 00:17:18,560 church. That's the translation that they 295 00:17:18,560 --> 00:17:22,640 would have put up hindrances, threats, obstructions. 296 00:17:23,280 --> 00:17:26,680 Challenges that you would be as free as possible? 297 00:17:26,680 --> 00:17:30,400 To do what? To live a godly life, dignified 298 00:17:30,400 --> 00:17:32,400 in every way. In other words, ask that there 299 00:17:32,400 --> 00:17:36,920 might be favor so that you can be more effective in your gospel 300 00:17:36,920 --> 00:17:40,600 work. That's what we're asking God for 301 00:17:40,600 --> 00:17:43,160 when we pray for our officials. And yes, in the next words, he 302 00:17:43,160 --> 00:17:45,200 asked that we pray for their salvation, right? 303 00:17:45,200 --> 00:17:47,200 Because God desires the salvation of all men, including 304 00:17:47,200 --> 00:17:50,400 those in high positions. But even in asking for their 305 00:17:50,400 --> 00:17:52,640 salvation, whether they are saved or not, we we should be 306 00:17:52,640 --> 00:17:57,040 aiming saying Lord, give us a time of peace, give us a window 307 00:17:57,200 --> 00:18:01,560 of opportunity where we can have a a greater freedom in making 308 00:18:01,560 --> 00:18:05,720 your name known. We don't want inconvenience, we 309 00:18:05,720 --> 00:18:09,320 don't want more difficulty. So Lord, give us that grace. 310 00:18:10,960 --> 00:18:14,880 So again, in times of peace, as much as it's chaotic out there, 311 00:18:15,080 --> 00:18:16,960 we are still in that time of peace in the West. 312 00:18:17,560 --> 00:18:20,520 So listen, we can't afford to be lacking enthusiasm. 313 00:18:20,960 --> 00:18:26,240 You can't. And Solomon here is fully aware 314 00:18:26,240 --> 00:18:28,040 of that. He understands this is a time to 315 00:18:28,040 --> 00:18:32,520 build, this is a time to get to work, this is a time to get 316 00:18:32,520 --> 00:18:36,320 busy. And I'm afraid that often the 317 00:18:36,320 --> 00:18:38,920 opposite is true. Where there is so much freedom, 318 00:18:38,920 --> 00:18:41,280 we don't know what to do with it, and so we get distracted 319 00:18:41,280 --> 00:18:45,560 with so many other things. Often what it takes is 320 00:18:45,560 --> 00:18:47,680 persecution, when everything is stripped from you, where you 321 00:18:47,680 --> 00:18:52,680 realize what matters most. It doesn't have to come to that. 322 00:18:53,560 --> 00:18:55,440 It doesn't. We just need the mind of Christ. 323 00:18:55,440 --> 00:18:58,560 We need the wisdom of God to interpret what's happening in 324 00:18:58,560 --> 00:19:01,640 our day and to realize that in times of peace or persecution we 325 00:19:01,640 --> 00:19:04,080 do the work of Him who's called us. 326 00:19:05,240 --> 00:19:08,200 But it's much more difficult to do it in times of peace, isn't 327 00:19:08,200 --> 00:19:11,480 it? May not be so of us. 328 00:19:13,120 --> 00:19:15,200 Now look here verse. Four, he says. 329 00:19:15,200 --> 00:19:17,280 But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side. 330 00:19:17,280 --> 00:19:19,400 There is neither adversary nor misfortune. 331 00:19:19,760 --> 00:19:23,440 And look at this in verse 5. And so I intend to build a house 332 00:19:23,440 --> 00:19:28,200 for the name of the Lord my God. I intend to build a house for 333 00:19:28,200 --> 00:19:30,880 the name of the Lord my God. I love how he's being honest. 334 00:19:30,880 --> 00:19:32,800 He's like at this point I intend to do so. 335 00:19:34,080 --> 00:19:36,640 Intending to do something is not the same as actually doing it. 336 00:19:37,600 --> 00:19:40,200 Actually, I need 3 volunteers. It's a very simple task. 337 00:19:40,200 --> 00:19:42,960 I need one person. To open to one passage each. 338 00:19:42,960 --> 00:19:45,280 OK who wants to volunteer? You got to be able to read with 339 00:19:45,280 --> 00:19:47,240 authority, though. OK, my brother, please open the 340 00:19:47,240 --> 00:19:50,080 Second Chronicles 21. Who's the next person? 341 00:19:50,080 --> 00:19:52,560 Somebody lifted their hand. Second Chronicles 3. 342 00:19:52,560 --> 00:19:55,080 One and sister open up the Second Chronicles 51. 343 00:19:55,080 --> 00:19:58,640 So Second Chronicles 2. One, Second Chronicles 3 one, 344 00:19:58,640 --> 00:20:00,560 And then Second Chronicles 51 again. 345 00:20:00,560 --> 00:20:03,800 This is a parallel account of what's happening here at this 346 00:20:03,800 --> 00:20:07,360 portion of First Kings, and you can turn there if you'd like to 347 00:20:07,360 --> 00:20:11,000 highlight these points because Solomon sequence. 348 00:20:12,360 --> 00:20:17,400 Of how he moves about in building the temple is presented 349 00:20:17,400 --> 00:20:19,680 beautifully in Second Chronicles and those chapters that I 350 00:20:19,680 --> 00:20:21,560 mentioned. And it really provides us a 351 00:20:21,560 --> 00:20:23,680 model of how we should approach ministry for ourselves. 352 00:20:23,880 --> 00:20:27,480 And it also provides warning that in certain phases of how we 353 00:20:27,480 --> 00:20:30,280 go about ministry, some get stuck at these stages. 354 00:20:31,080 --> 00:20:32,560 So let's read Second Chronicles 21. 355 00:20:32,560 --> 00:20:35,240 Let's read the first verse and pay attention to the words. 356 00:20:41,880 --> 00:20:44,600 So again, kind of like what we read here in verse 5, Solomon 357 00:20:44,600 --> 00:20:49,480 determined to build a house for the Lord. 358 00:20:49,600 --> 00:20:52,480 Now let's stop there. So there are many believers who 359 00:20:52,480 --> 00:20:55,000 determine or purpose to do things for God, right? 360 00:20:56,080 --> 00:20:59,960 They have ambition. Those ambitions sometimes are 361 00:20:59,960 --> 00:21:02,400 even expressed to others with great interest. 362 00:21:03,240 --> 00:21:04,680 I really want to serve the Lord in this way. 363 00:21:04,680 --> 00:21:06,160 I really want to honor him in this way. 364 00:21:06,160 --> 00:21:07,480 I really believe I should start this. 365 00:21:07,480 --> 00:21:10,720 I really believe that God has called me or gifted me in this 366 00:21:10,720 --> 00:21:14,560 way, but unfortunately, many people just stay in the place of 367 00:21:14,560 --> 00:21:19,200 determining They know that they are supposed to be plugged into 368 00:21:19,200 --> 00:21:20,880 a local church. They know that they're supposed 369 00:21:20,880 --> 00:21:23,760 to be active with what God has put in their heart, but they 370 00:21:23,760 --> 00:21:27,080 never get to it. It just stays in the realm of 371 00:21:27,080 --> 00:21:30,760 wishful thinking. And they tend to be satisfied 372 00:21:30,760 --> 00:21:33,640 with the fact that in their hearts they have these desires, 373 00:21:33,640 --> 00:21:36,600 though those desires are never materialized. 374 00:21:38,880 --> 00:21:41,320 Solomon doesn't do that. Solomon goes to the next next 375 00:21:41,320 --> 00:21:42,600 step. And what's that brother in 376 00:21:42,600 --> 00:21:43,720 second Chronicles 3? One. 377 00:21:43,720 --> 00:21:50,560 Yes, your second Chronicles 51. Your second Also three One. 378 00:21:50,560 --> 00:21:52,000 Go ahead, you're. You're in Chapter 5. 379 00:21:52,000 --> 00:21:55,080 Go ahead, brother. Then Solomon began to build a 380 00:21:55,160 --> 00:21:58,760 House of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord 381 00:21:58,960 --> 00:22:01,800 had appeared to David, his father, at the place that David 382 00:22:01,880 --> 00:22:06,240 had appointed on the thrusting floor of one in the West side. 383 00:22:06,840 --> 00:22:08,080 What's the next thing that he did? 384 00:22:08,680 --> 00:22:10,560 The first thing that he did is he determined what's the next 385 00:22:10,560 --> 00:22:13,360 thing that he did? He began to build. 386 00:22:14,360 --> 00:22:15,720 So he didn't. He didn't stay in the place of 387 00:22:15,720 --> 00:22:17,640 just determining. Now he started something. 388 00:22:17,640 --> 00:22:21,160 He laid a foundation. So that ambition now finally 389 00:22:21,160 --> 00:22:25,560 manifested into a real action. And so he starts, He puts his 390 00:22:25,560 --> 00:22:27,840 hand to the plow and he begins to till the soil. 391 00:22:28,120 --> 00:22:30,480 And that's what some believers do as well. 392 00:22:31,000 --> 00:22:33,400 So they go from just knowing what they're supposed to do or 393 00:22:33,400 --> 00:22:34,920 believing something they're supposed to do, and they 394 00:22:34,920 --> 00:22:37,840 actually start doing that. And we praise God for that. 395 00:22:38,280 --> 00:22:43,000 But unfortunately, some people start something, and what they 396 00:22:43,000 --> 00:22:46,600 don't finish, they don't fulfill their ministry, They don't 397 00:22:46,600 --> 00:22:51,280 complete it. And that's the case of many, for 398 00:22:51,280 --> 00:22:53,680 whatever reason. Now, one justifiable reason is 399 00:22:53,680 --> 00:22:55,400 that the Lord has called you to elsewhere, and that was a season 400 00:22:55,400 --> 00:22:58,360 of training. But that's not often the case 401 00:22:58,360 --> 00:23:01,320 with how people go from determining to beginning 402 00:23:01,320 --> 00:23:03,640 something. It's often for unjustifiable 403 00:23:03,640 --> 00:23:05,000 reasons. They lose interest. 404 00:23:05,560 --> 00:23:07,640 They don't think that it offers the fruit of the reward that 405 00:23:07,640 --> 00:23:11,040 they anticipated. At a certain point, they are 406 00:23:11,040 --> 00:23:14,520 invited or another opportunity opens up, and so they kind of 407 00:23:14,520 --> 00:23:17,960 jump from one thing to the next. Here's the thing, many people 408 00:23:17,960 --> 00:23:21,000 rob themselves of great blessing and rob others of blessings 409 00:23:21,720 --> 00:23:25,960 because of a lack of this one characteristic, Loyalty. 410 00:23:27,640 --> 00:23:30,440 Loyalty. More and more is loyalty 411 00:23:30,440 --> 00:23:34,920 becoming a rarity? Many profess to have a love, but 412 00:23:34,920 --> 00:23:41,040 a faithful man who can find It's easy for people to express their 413 00:23:41,040 --> 00:23:45,120 appreciation, the devotion, their love, but to live it out 414 00:23:45,120 --> 00:23:46,920 and to prove it with action as a rarity. 415 00:23:46,920 --> 00:23:48,160 It was a rarity in the book of Proverbs. 416 00:23:48,160 --> 00:23:52,680 It's a rarity even today. Unfortunately, you rob yourself 417 00:23:52,680 --> 00:23:57,920 of much when you miss out on the discipline and the honor and the 418 00:23:57,920 --> 00:24:02,680 call of loyalty, hopping from thing to thing to thing, 419 00:24:02,840 --> 00:24:04,760 friendship to friendship to friendship, church to church to 420 00:24:04,760 --> 00:24:06,320 church, ministry to mission and ministry. 421 00:24:06,400 --> 00:24:09,320 And you don't stay long enough to see the fruit of the thing. 422 00:24:12,160 --> 00:24:15,040 And I, even growing up in the church, I I I've been to 423 00:24:15,040 --> 00:24:17,520 different churches in different seasons. 424 00:24:17,520 --> 00:24:21,080 And I remember one particular church, I think in five years 425 00:24:21,080 --> 00:24:25,040 they had four different pastors just jumping from ministry. 426 00:24:25,120 --> 00:24:27,240 Oh, better pay over here. It's warmer in that place. 427 00:24:27,240 --> 00:24:29,280 And look, if God's called you, God's called you. 428 00:24:29,280 --> 00:24:32,040 But if your reasons are in the flesh, you're hurting your own 429 00:24:32,040 --> 00:24:34,040 Ministry, and you're hurting other people can be blessed by 430 00:24:34,040 --> 00:24:39,200 your Ministry. So much more can be said about 431 00:24:39,200 --> 00:24:41,120 that. So you have some who determine 432 00:24:41,200 --> 00:24:43,920 you have some who begin. But what does Solomon do in 433 00:24:43,920 --> 00:24:51,980 Second Chronicles 5/1? Was finished. 434 00:24:54,460 --> 00:25:00,740 So it went from a plan to beginning to completing. 435 00:25:00,740 --> 00:25:03,660 That should be what you and I emulate in our own lives in 436 00:25:03,660 --> 00:25:06,880 ministry. That you stay the course that 437 00:25:07,560 --> 00:25:10,000 whatever God's called you to do, in whatever context he's called 438 00:25:10,000 --> 00:25:13,360 you to do it in. That you do it until he calls 439 00:25:13,360 --> 00:25:17,680 you home. That you spend yourself, as Paul 440 00:25:17,680 --> 00:25:20,480 said, that you I poured myself out as a drink offering, like 441 00:25:20,480 --> 00:25:24,280 every drop of who I am has been spilled over to the cause of 442 00:25:24,280 --> 00:25:26,280 Christ. Do that. 443 00:25:26,560 --> 00:25:30,400 Be that I ask God for the grace to complete what he's called you 444 00:25:30,400 --> 00:25:34,240 to. We have enough wreckage and half 445 00:25:34,240 --> 00:25:39,360 built ideas and ministries, and May God be honored with 446 00:25:39,360 --> 00:25:43,400 longevity and loyalty. So this man completes and then 447 00:25:43,400 --> 00:25:49,840 he goes on and verse 6 and he says now therefore command that 448 00:25:49,840 --> 00:25:52,880 Cedars of Lebanon be cut for me and my servants will join your 449 00:25:52,880 --> 00:25:56,200 servants, and I will pay you for your servants such wages as you 450 00:25:56,200 --> 00:25:57,800 said. For you know that there is no 451 00:25:57,800 --> 00:26:01,640 one among us who knows how to cut timber like the Cydonians. 452 00:26:03,720 --> 00:26:05,600 Some would criticize Solomon. For what? 453 00:26:06,920 --> 00:26:10,320 I just think Why would some criticize Solomon for reaching 454 00:26:10,320 --> 00:26:15,160 out to Hiram? Yeah, you said it right. 455 00:26:15,160 --> 00:26:17,800 He's a Gentile. Why are you involving A Gentile 456 00:26:17,800 --> 00:26:24,840 with this Jewish project, right? Why are you asking for resources 457 00:26:24,840 --> 00:26:27,600 and supplies beyond the Promised Land? 458 00:26:31,000 --> 00:26:33,640 But if somebody carefully reads the Old Testament, they would 459 00:26:33,640 --> 00:26:35,840 understand something about the Promised Land. 460 00:26:37,080 --> 00:26:38,720 Do this on your own if you'd like. 461 00:26:38,720 --> 00:26:41,600 When you go to Joshua 13, you read that when Joshua and the 462 00:26:41,600 --> 00:26:44,440 generation with him went into the promised Land and performed 463 00:26:44,440 --> 00:26:47,800 some successful campaigns taking over some of the promised Land, 464 00:26:47,800 --> 00:26:49,720 they didn't complete it. And the Lord said in verse one 465 00:26:49,720 --> 00:26:51,840 of chapter 13, there's still much land to take over. 466 00:26:51,840 --> 00:26:55,440 And when you go to verse six, you read something interesting 467 00:26:55,520 --> 00:26:58,640 part of the Promised Land. I know this is controversial 468 00:26:58,640 --> 00:27:02,760 today. Is all of Lebanon? 469 00:27:04,920 --> 00:27:09,760 Yeah, all of Lebanon. And they were called to drive 470 00:27:09,760 --> 00:27:12,000 out all the Sidonians. The same Sidonians that he is 471 00:27:12,000 --> 00:27:16,800 referring to here, let me say this way, there's a lot of 472 00:27:16,800 --> 00:27:19,240 controversy about the Promised Land today, right? 473 00:27:19,480 --> 00:27:22,680 If you actually study the Old Testament, the the boundaries of 474 00:27:22,680 --> 00:27:25,360 the Promised Land are much larger than what people believe. 475 00:27:26,040 --> 00:27:31,400 Much larger. So I just throw that out there. 476 00:27:31,760 --> 00:27:34,400 I'm just throwing that out there to for what point? 477 00:27:34,760 --> 00:27:38,360 For the point of this, Because we shouldn't condemn Solomon 478 00:27:38,360 --> 00:27:41,160 here because in essence, he's really asking for something that 479 00:27:41,160 --> 00:27:46,360 belongs to him and his people. And so this man is not acting 480 00:27:46,360 --> 00:27:49,280 out of faith. He's acting in lineman with his 481 00:27:49,280 --> 00:27:51,200 faith. And at the same time, he is 482 00:27:51,200 --> 00:27:54,360 respecting Hiram as a king and he's respecting his people for 483 00:27:54,360 --> 00:28:01,120 who they are separate. Autonomous, But he is not 484 00:28:01,120 --> 00:28:03,560 performing something illegal by reaching out to them. 485 00:28:03,560 --> 00:28:06,840 And in fact, this is a picture of a future temple that would be 486 00:28:06,840 --> 00:28:10,200 built, right? A future temple, the Church of 487 00:28:10,200 --> 00:28:13,760 God, The Church of God, that would be built not through the 488 00:28:13,760 --> 00:28:16,760 resources of Jew and Gentile, but comprised of Jew and 489 00:28:16,760 --> 00:28:19,840 Gentile. Ephesians 2 We're told in 22 490 00:28:19,840 --> 00:28:22,920 that we are being built together as a dwelling place for God. 491 00:28:22,920 --> 00:28:25,200 By the Spirit. You and I are those precious 492 00:28:25,200 --> 00:28:28,120 stones that are being cut and prepared to make a house for 493 00:28:28,120 --> 00:28:29,800 God. Right here, right now, in this 494 00:28:29,800 --> 00:28:31,320 very room. I'm looking at precious faces. 495 00:28:31,320 --> 00:28:33,080 Precious Saints. Awake faces. 496 00:28:33,080 --> 00:28:36,920 Praise God. This is the temple right here. 497 00:28:38,560 --> 00:28:40,000 This is it. It's not this. 498 00:28:40,120 --> 00:28:41,240 It's not this. It's not this. 499 00:28:41,240 --> 00:28:44,760 It's not this. It's this coming together. 500 00:28:44,960 --> 00:28:47,840 Different backgrounds, different shades of skin and color and 501 00:28:47,840 --> 00:28:55,520 length and accents and cultures and food and all those wonderful 502 00:28:55,520 --> 00:28:58,080 things. Coming together by the grace of 503 00:28:58,080 --> 00:29:00,840 God through the blood of Jesus Christ, making a house for God. 504 00:29:01,400 --> 00:29:04,520 And so here we even have a nudge of a house to come, Jew and 505 00:29:04,520 --> 00:29:07,760 Gentile coming together to glorify God and His presence, 506 00:29:07,920 --> 00:29:12,200 hosting it in partnership with the truth of the Son of God. 507 00:29:13,480 --> 00:29:16,080 Let's see here what happens next verse 7. 508 00:29:16,320 --> 00:29:18,440 Now we get the response of Hiram. 509 00:29:18,960 --> 00:29:22,480 As soon as Hiram heard the words of Solomon, he rejoiced greatly 510 00:29:22,480 --> 00:29:26,160 and said, blessed be the Lord this day who has given to David 511 00:29:26,160 --> 00:29:28,400 a wise son to be over this great people. 512 00:29:28,840 --> 00:29:31,720 And Hiram sent to Solomon saying, I've heard the message 513 00:29:31,720 --> 00:29:35,200 that you have sent to me. I am ready to do all you desire 514 00:29:35,720 --> 00:29:37,680 in the matter of cedar and Cypress timber. 515 00:29:38,920 --> 00:29:41,840 My servants shall bring it down to the sea from Lebanon, and I 516 00:29:41,840 --> 00:29:45,560 will make it into rafts to go by sea to the place you direct, and 517 00:29:45,560 --> 00:29:48,600 I will have them broken up there, and you shall receive it, 518 00:29:48,800 --> 00:29:52,320 and you shall meet my wishes by providing food for my household. 519 00:29:52,920 --> 00:29:56,000 Again, it's not conclusive whether or not Hiram believed in 520 00:29:56,000 --> 00:29:57,800 the true and living God eventually, or for he did at 521 00:29:57,800 --> 00:30:00,040 this point. What is certain, though, is that 522 00:30:00,040 --> 00:30:04,040 his response to the invitation of Solomon is a wonderful model 523 00:30:04,040 --> 00:30:07,400 for believers in connection to how they should respond to the 524 00:30:07,400 --> 00:30:10,520 invitation of the call of God for their lives and the 525 00:30:10,520 --> 00:30:12,480 respective ministries that you received. 526 00:30:12,680 --> 00:30:14,640 Let me remind you of the simple truth. 527 00:30:14,680 --> 00:30:16,800 But God help us. We need to be reminded often of 528 00:30:16,800 --> 00:30:21,000 simple truths. When Jesus Christ shed his blood 529 00:30:21,000 --> 00:30:23,720 for you and forgave you, when you responded in repentance and 530 00:30:23,720 --> 00:30:25,400 faith, you didn't just get heaven. 531 00:30:25,400 --> 00:30:29,840 You got a gift. You received a supernatural gift 532 00:30:29,840 --> 00:30:34,520 from God in order to equip the church, build the church, edify 533 00:30:34,520 --> 00:30:37,840 the church, and glorify God in and through that gift. 534 00:30:40,360 --> 00:30:44,880 And each of us in this place have been invited to some degree 535 00:30:44,880 --> 00:30:48,080 to participate in the expansion of the glory of God. 536 00:30:48,520 --> 00:30:49,920 Right. And this is what this man 537 00:30:49,920 --> 00:30:52,240 understands. I am ready to do all you desire 538 00:30:52,240 --> 00:30:55,200 in the matter of cedar and Cypress timber. 539 00:30:55,320 --> 00:30:58,400 I know the lane that I'm supposed to stay in, provide you 540 00:30:58,400 --> 00:31:01,280 wood. And I'll do it with all my 541 00:31:01,280 --> 00:31:03,600 desire. And I will do it with all my 542 00:31:03,600 --> 00:31:05,800 strength, all my joy, all excellence. 543 00:31:06,360 --> 00:31:08,240 But let's look at this year before he even says that. 544 00:31:08,240 --> 00:31:10,680 Notice his response in verse seven when he received the 545 00:31:10,680 --> 00:31:12,320 message. What did he do at verse seven? 546 00:31:12,320 --> 00:31:16,080 What stands out to you? It's 2 words. 547 00:31:16,640 --> 00:31:21,040 Or three. He rejoiced greatly. 548 00:31:22,600 --> 00:31:25,440 So when the message came to him says, hey, are you willing to 549 00:31:25,440 --> 00:31:28,280 work with me on this? He exploded with excitement. 550 00:31:29,960 --> 00:31:33,800 Are you telling me that I get to be part of this awesome thing? 551 00:31:35,400 --> 00:31:41,360 And from that great joy we're told in verse eight, I am ready 552 00:31:41,360 --> 00:31:47,200 to do all you desire. This is going to save some 553 00:31:47,200 --> 00:31:49,400 people. Not salvation. 554 00:31:49,800 --> 00:31:53,280 Maybe even salvation. I'm talking salvation saving. 555 00:31:53,280 --> 00:31:55,680 I'm talking about sanctifying, saving. 556 00:31:57,440 --> 00:32:01,040 Notice here, before he confessed I am ready to do all you desire, 557 00:32:01,160 --> 00:32:03,560 he expressed this. Amazing. 558 00:32:03,600 --> 00:32:05,600 Explosive. True. 559 00:32:05,760 --> 00:32:12,200 Genuine joy. The joy resulted in this high 560 00:32:12,200 --> 00:32:17,000 commitment and great sacrifice. And doing whatever he could do 561 00:32:17,000 --> 00:32:21,680 in order to please God. And why is that? 562 00:32:21,680 --> 00:32:24,480 Important because I'm convinced that the reason why any believer 563 00:32:24,480 --> 00:32:28,440 has a low commitment and whatever God's called them to do 564 00:32:29,040 --> 00:32:34,160 is because they have a low joy. And the reason why they have 565 00:32:34,160 --> 00:32:39,200 little joy is because, unlike Hiram, they can't perceive, for 566 00:32:39,200 --> 00:32:43,360 whatever reason, the awesome privilege it is to be invited in 567 00:32:43,360 --> 00:32:47,160 serving God in any way that makes sense. 568 00:32:47,400 --> 00:32:52,400 It's a poor outlook on what it is that Almighty God has 569 00:32:52,440 --> 00:32:56,640 beckoned you to. And when you have a blurry 570 00:32:56,640 --> 00:33:00,960 understanding of the awesome privilege of serving the Lord 571 00:33:00,960 --> 00:33:05,600 Jesus Christ, then you're not going to have much joy. 572 00:33:05,840 --> 00:33:08,440 And if you don't have much joy, you're not going to have high 573 00:33:08,440 --> 00:33:10,440 commitment. You see how simple that equation 574 00:33:10,440 --> 00:33:16,440 is? Why is it you can't get people? 575 00:33:16,840 --> 00:33:19,920 Why is it that you can't get yourself to do something 576 00:33:19,960 --> 00:33:23,280 continually, consistently, effectively? 577 00:33:24,720 --> 00:33:27,120 I believe one of the main reasons is because your heart is 578 00:33:27,120 --> 00:33:31,360 void of gladness. It's as simple as that. 579 00:33:31,400 --> 00:33:35,600 It's no mystery. It's deeper than that. 580 00:33:36,360 --> 00:33:39,040 And let me say something even perhaps more shocking. 581 00:33:41,720 --> 00:33:44,280 The reason why I can diagnose that is because that's how God 582 00:33:44,280 --> 00:33:48,240 diagnosed at least one of the main reasons for the spiraling 583 00:33:48,240 --> 00:33:49,840 apostasy of the nation of Israel. 584 00:33:49,840 --> 00:33:55,720 Listen, this is what I meant. This might save some. 585 00:33:56,200 --> 00:34:00,800 It might save some. Yeah, God diagnosis the nation 586 00:34:00,800 --> 00:34:05,720 of Israel for their apostasy by putting his finger on this very 587 00:34:05,720 --> 00:34:11,679 truth that I'm trying to convey. They lacked joy in serving God. 588 00:34:12,239 --> 00:34:13,880 Now let me prove it. So you don't think I'm just 589 00:34:14,159 --> 00:34:17,440 pulling this out of thin air. Deuteronomy chapter 28, verse 590 00:34:17,440 --> 00:34:22,199 47, where God gives the rewards for obedience and the curses for 591 00:34:22,199 --> 00:34:25,840 disobedience to the nation. And notice what he says to this 592 00:34:25,840 --> 00:34:30,159 people in terms of the reason why they would disobey 593 00:34:33,320 --> 00:34:39,719 Deuteronomy 28, verse 47. I remember stumbling upon this 594 00:34:39,719 --> 00:34:44,360 verse studying Deuteronomy and it changed my life and I hope it 595 00:34:44,360 --> 00:34:46,480 changes yours as well. Look what the Lord says to the 596 00:34:46,480 --> 00:34:47,679 people. Look at this. 597 00:34:48,080 --> 00:34:49,679 Hey, if you haven't paid attention up to this point, pay 598 00:34:49,679 --> 00:34:54,560 attention now because you did not serve the Lord your God. 599 00:34:54,880 --> 00:34:57,240 Now he could have stopped there because you didn't serve the 600 00:34:57,240 --> 00:34:59,560 Lord your God. And then he gives his warnings 601 00:34:59,560 --> 00:35:00,960 and he gives the consequences of that. 602 00:35:00,960 --> 00:35:04,240 But he doesn't say that because you did not serve the Lord your 603 00:35:04,240 --> 00:35:11,440 God with joyfulness and gladness of heart, because of the 604 00:35:11,440 --> 00:35:14,720 abundance of all things. And he goes on to explain what 605 00:35:14,720 --> 00:35:17,360 they were headed to because of that lack, not just of 606 00:35:17,360 --> 00:35:20,720 obedience, joyful obedience. You know what George Mueller 607 00:35:20,720 --> 00:35:23,600 said? George Mueller said that it is 608 00:35:23,600 --> 00:35:27,440 my ambition to attend to this every single day as my top 609 00:35:27,440 --> 00:35:33,800 priority, and it is to be happy in God, my priority every single 610 00:35:33,800 --> 00:35:36,640 day, Mueller said. It's not to get preoccupied with 611 00:35:36,640 --> 00:35:38,960 how to serve God, what kind of thing I need to do next. 612 00:35:39,160 --> 00:35:46,600 My priority numero Uno is to ensure that my soul is happy in 613 00:35:46,600 --> 00:35:48,800 God. Why did George Miller have that 614 00:35:48,800 --> 00:35:50,560 revelation? Because he understood that true 615 00:35:50,560 --> 00:35:55,240 ministry flows from that place. Longevity, effectiveness. 616 00:35:55,240 --> 00:35:59,640 Again, fruitfulness comes from the heart that serves the Lord 617 00:35:59,640 --> 00:36:04,000 with a revelation of joy and gladness. 618 00:36:05,080 --> 00:36:07,560 Now, if you're waiting for that to be spontaneous, if you're 619 00:36:07,560 --> 00:36:12,080 waiting for that joy to be spontaneous or to just erupt out 620 00:36:12,080 --> 00:36:16,200 of nowhere, you're in for some disappointment. 621 00:36:17,680 --> 00:36:22,440 This joy is not even determined by whether or not things are 622 00:36:22,440 --> 00:36:25,520 going for you that week, and that's why you have a little bit 623 00:36:25,520 --> 00:36:28,840 extra skip to your step when you want to serve the Lord that 624 00:36:28,840 --> 00:36:29,720 week. No, no, no. 625 00:36:30,040 --> 00:36:34,160 That joy has to be nourished. It has to be fed. 626 00:36:34,320 --> 00:36:37,320 It's a discipline to see that joy grow. 627 00:36:38,040 --> 00:36:39,960 And how does that joy grow? I mean, there's many ways, But 628 00:36:39,960 --> 00:36:43,080 just realizing again what Hiram realized. 629 00:36:44,040 --> 00:36:50,680 Who is it that I'm serving here? What reward awaits me in my 630 00:36:50,680 --> 00:36:53,640 contribution in light of the New Covenant? 631 00:36:53,720 --> 00:36:58,400 The eternal impact that I can possibly make with my brothers 632 00:36:58,400 --> 00:37:01,880 and sisters is I I just serve in this area and they serve in that 633 00:37:01,880 --> 00:37:07,120 area and and together we become this machine that bulldozers 634 00:37:07,120 --> 00:37:09,520 over the Kingdom of darkness and makes room for God's light to 635 00:37:09,520 --> 00:37:13,640 shine brighter. That's how you feel your joy 636 00:37:14,880 --> 00:37:20,160 when you come to the truth of your position, of your calling, 637 00:37:20,760 --> 00:37:23,720 of the empowerment that belongs to you, of the promises of God 638 00:37:23,720 --> 00:37:26,240 for those who walk in obedience and say this is really what I've 639 00:37:26,240 --> 00:37:30,800 been invited to. And then you begin to feel a 640 00:37:30,800 --> 00:37:33,440 pulse, and then you begin to feel fire in your blood. 641 00:37:34,040 --> 00:37:36,120 And something deeper than feeling is something deeper than 642 00:37:36,120 --> 00:37:39,040 just emotion. It's a conviction that steers. 643 00:37:39,040 --> 00:37:45,600 You get happy and God make that your priority every single day. 644 00:37:45,600 --> 00:37:49,000 Feed that every single moment and everything else will just be 645 00:37:49,000 --> 00:37:52,640 the natural consequence. All ministry, all the things 646 00:37:52,640 --> 00:37:55,000 that you feel like you need to do, even the difficult things 647 00:37:55,840 --> 00:37:58,680 will be done. This is what this man had. 648 00:37:58,720 --> 00:38:01,680 He had joy and led to him saying, I'm ready to do all that 649 00:38:01,680 --> 00:38:05,720 you desire. So he says I'll do my part. 650 00:38:06,640 --> 00:38:08,760 Look at verse 10. So Hiram supplied Solomon with 651 00:38:08,760 --> 00:38:10,840 all the timber of cedar and Cypress that he desired, while 652 00:38:10,840 --> 00:38:14,160 Solomon gave Hiram 20,000 cores of wheat as food for his 653 00:38:14,160 --> 00:38:16,200 household at 20,000 cores of beaten oil. 654 00:38:17,400 --> 00:38:19,600 Solomon gave this to Hiram year by year. 655 00:38:19,600 --> 00:38:22,600 And the Lord gave Solomon wisdom as he promised him. 656 00:38:22,760 --> 00:38:25,720 And there was peace between Hiram and Solomon and the two of 657 00:38:25,720 --> 00:38:30,680 them made a treaty. Yes, if we want peace, we need 658 00:38:30,680 --> 00:38:31,720 wisdom. In many ways. 659 00:38:33,960 --> 00:38:37,760 We need wisdom in many ways. Verse 13. 660 00:38:37,760 --> 00:38:39,200 Now we're going to end it here in a few minutes. 661 00:38:39,200 --> 00:38:40,680 It's going to be a shorter Bible study than. 662 00:38:40,680 --> 00:38:45,920 Usual King Solomon drafted forced labor out of all Israel. 663 00:38:46,040 --> 00:38:48,480 Now I I'm reading this for a reason, so so be patient and 664 00:38:48,480 --> 00:38:51,920 read this with me. And the draft numbered 30,000 665 00:38:51,920 --> 00:38:57,360 men and he sent them to Lebanon. 10,000 a month in shifts. 666 00:38:57,920 --> 00:39:00,680 There would be a month in Lebanon and two months at home. 667 00:39:01,920 --> 00:39:04,000 Arunayaram was in charge of the draft. 668 00:39:04,000 --> 00:39:10,160 Solomon also had 70,000 burden bearers and 80,000 stone cutters 669 00:39:10,160 --> 00:39:13,400 in the Hill Country. And besides Solomon's 3300 chief 670 00:39:13,400 --> 00:39:16,600 officers who are over the work, who had charged the people who 671 00:39:16,600 --> 00:39:20,160 carried on the work at the King's command, they quarried 672 00:39:20,160 --> 00:39:22,960 out great costly stones in order to lay the foundation of the 673 00:39:22,960 --> 00:39:26,360 house with dress stones. So Solomon's builders and 674 00:39:26,360 --> 00:39:29,760 hiram's builders and the men of Gebel did the cutting and 675 00:39:29,760 --> 00:39:32,520 prepared the timber and the stone to build the house. 676 00:39:33,960 --> 00:39:35,600 And it's usually text like this where. 677 00:39:35,600 --> 00:39:37,920 We're just going to read on quickly and barely remember any 678 00:39:37,920 --> 00:39:40,280 details and say, OK, I read First Kings Chapter 5 today. 679 00:39:41,320 --> 00:39:43,120 No, no, no, no, no, don't do that. 680 00:39:45,480 --> 00:39:49,040 I looked at that set of verses and I and I thought to myself, 681 00:39:49,040 --> 00:39:51,840 why would the Holy Spirit include such great detail of the 682 00:39:52,240 --> 00:39:55,920 operations of the beginnings, of the preparation of the building 683 00:39:55,920 --> 00:39:58,280 of the temple? And here's what came to mind, 684 00:39:58,280 --> 00:40:02,000 maybe came to yours. We're supposed to feel and be 685 00:40:02,000 --> 00:40:07,560 impressed by the magnitude of it, by the intricacies of it. 686 00:40:09,160 --> 00:40:11,400 By the mechanics of it, it's supposed to make us this is 687 00:40:11,400 --> 00:40:16,520 huge, this is costly, this is demanding. 688 00:40:19,200 --> 00:40:20,960 And here's the thought also that came to mind. 689 00:40:21,440 --> 00:40:23,160 You know how Solomon felt about it. 690 00:40:23,400 --> 00:40:25,280 We know how, Hiram. Felt about it. 691 00:40:25,560 --> 00:40:28,320 But in reading all these different numbers of peoples who 692 00:40:28,320 --> 00:40:31,560 were commanded to do this, here's my question for you. 693 00:40:32,040 --> 00:40:33,640 How do you think the people felt about it? 694 00:40:36,360 --> 00:40:38,000 Let's let's do a vote here, yeah? 695 00:40:38,360 --> 00:40:40,520 Who thinks that the people were happy about this? 696 00:40:41,400 --> 00:40:43,080 The thousands of thousands of people? 697 00:40:43,080 --> 00:40:46,000 Were they happy? OK, Who thinks that they weren't 698 00:40:46,000 --> 00:40:49,280 happy? OK, prove it. 699 00:40:49,720 --> 00:40:52,000 Make your case for those who think that they were happy. 700 00:40:52,000 --> 00:40:57,040 You thought I was just going to let you vote and not explain why 701 00:40:57,040 --> 00:40:59,760 you made your answer. Why were they happy? 702 00:41:01,480 --> 00:41:03,640 OK. Building an awesome temple for 703 00:41:03,640 --> 00:41:05,960 God. And you might even look back to 704 00:41:05,960 --> 00:41:08,120 the people who contributed to the Tabernacle in the 705 00:41:08,120 --> 00:41:10,040 wilderness. I mean, they were giving so much 706 00:41:10,040 --> 00:41:12,360 that Moses said stop. Can you imagine an offering like 707 00:41:12,360 --> 00:41:15,240 that? Imagine an offering like that on 708 00:41:15,240 --> 00:41:17,200 a Sunday. Hey, stop that. 709 00:41:17,200 --> 00:41:19,120 We have way too much here. We don't need any more any more 710 00:41:19,120 --> 00:41:20,720 contributions. That's what it was like. 711 00:41:20,960 --> 00:41:23,200 So maybe, like, OK, history is repeating itself. 712 00:41:24,360 --> 00:41:26,200 Now make a case for why they were not happy. 713 00:41:26,520 --> 00:41:36,280 Yes, after Solomon died and Rehoboam took over the throne. 714 00:41:36,480 --> 00:41:39,920 Look at first Kings 12 with me and you will get the true 715 00:41:39,920 --> 00:41:45,240 response of this people. Look at verse three of first 716 00:41:45,240 --> 00:41:52,400 Kings 12 And they sent and called him and Jeroboam and all 717 00:41:52,400 --> 00:41:55,760 the assembly of Israel came and said to Rehoboam. 718 00:41:56,120 --> 00:42:01,760 Your father made our yoke heavy. Now, therefore, lighten the hard 719 00:42:01,760 --> 00:42:07,880 service of your father and this heavy yolk on us, and we will 720 00:42:07,880 --> 00:42:10,480 serve you. So there's your answer. 721 00:42:11,000 --> 00:42:14,400 They weren't happy. I mean, they were traumatized. 722 00:42:15,280 --> 00:42:19,160 They were bitter all the way to the point where we're. 723 00:42:19,160 --> 00:42:21,520 Became king, they said OK, this is our chance to get some 724 00:42:21,520 --> 00:42:23,240 relief. Hey, rebel home. 725 00:42:23,240 --> 00:42:25,320 Listen, your dad was really tough on us. 726 00:42:25,800 --> 00:42:29,280 We promise to be good to you if you just lighten up this load. 727 00:42:29,960 --> 00:42:31,680 And we know what happens. We're going to study it in a few 728 00:42:31,680 --> 00:42:36,280 months, I think. But let's think deeper here. 729 00:42:36,680 --> 00:42:39,640 Let's think, in light of our past studies, what's going on 730 00:42:39,640 --> 00:42:44,840 here? The fact that they were 731 00:42:44,840 --> 00:42:47,640 commanded to serve in this way and the fact that they cried out 732 00:42:47,640 --> 00:42:55,880 with complaints. Think back at First Samuel. 733 00:42:58,200 --> 00:43:02,720 When the people wanted a king. Oh, I heard light bulbs go off. 734 00:43:02,720 --> 00:43:08,200 Didn't, right? The people demanded Samuel for a 735 00:43:08,200 --> 00:43:10,040 king. And what did Samuel do? 736 00:43:10,160 --> 00:43:13,720 Like a good prophet, He warned them. 737 00:43:14,520 --> 00:43:16,240 He warned them. You want a king? 738 00:43:16,240 --> 00:43:18,360 You don't want God to be your king anymore. 739 00:43:18,840 --> 00:43:20,560 Here's what you're signing up for. 740 00:43:20,840 --> 00:43:24,160 Do you guys remember? Some of you Remember some of 741 00:43:24,160 --> 00:43:25,360 you, maybe not. So let's remember. 742 00:43:25,360 --> 00:43:27,720 Together. Go to First Samuel Chapter 8. 743 00:43:29,040 --> 00:43:32,080 Now as I'm reading First Samuel chapter 8, I'm going to read a a 744 00:43:32,080 --> 00:43:33,640 fairly large portion of scripture. 745 00:43:33,640 --> 00:43:45,370 I want you to look for a word that is repeated First Samuel 8, 746 00:43:45,370 --> 00:43:48,770 verse 10. Let me read verse 10 down to 747 00:43:48,770 --> 00:43:50,890 verse 18. And again, here's your homework. 748 00:43:50,890 --> 00:43:54,690 In this moment, pay attention to something that is emphasized. 749 00:43:55,490 --> 00:43:58,490 So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who were 750 00:43:58,490 --> 00:44:03,560 asking for a king From him He said, these will be the ways of 751 00:44:03,560 --> 00:44:05,000 the king who will reign over you. 752 00:44:05,640 --> 00:44:08,760 He will take your sons, and appoint them to his Chariots, 753 00:44:08,960 --> 00:44:11,160 and to be his horsemen, and to run before his Chariots. 754 00:44:11,600 --> 00:44:13,800 And he will point for himself, commanders of thousands and 755 00:44:13,800 --> 00:44:17,080 commanders of 50s and some, to plow his ground and to reap his 756 00:44:17,080 --> 00:44:19,680 harvest, and to make his implements of war and the 757 00:44:19,680 --> 00:44:22,360 equipment of his Chariots. He will take your daughters to 758 00:44:22,360 --> 00:44:24,960 be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 759 00:44:25,040 --> 00:44:27,960 He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive 760 00:44:27,960 --> 00:44:29,520 orchards, and give them to his servants. 761 00:44:29,680 --> 00:44:32,800 He will take the 10th of your grain and of your vineyards, and 762 00:44:32,800 --> 00:44:34,560 give it to his officers and to his servants. 763 00:44:34,720 --> 00:44:37,440 He will take your male servants and female servants, and the 764 00:44:37,440 --> 00:44:40,360 best of your young men and your donkeys have put them to his 765 00:44:40,360 --> 00:44:42,040 work. He will take the 10th of your 766 00:44:42,040 --> 00:44:44,040 flocks, and you shall be his slaves. 767 00:44:44,200 --> 00:44:47,520 And then that day you will cry out because of your king, whom 768 00:44:47,520 --> 00:44:50,040 you have chosen for yourselves with the Lord will not answer 769 00:44:50,040 --> 00:44:53,600 you in that day. What word stands out? 770 00:44:55,680 --> 00:45:02,960 Take, take, take, take, take. And Samuel is an effective 771 00:45:02,960 --> 00:45:05,080 minister and preacher. He knows exactly what he's 772 00:45:05,080 --> 00:45:07,280 doing. By repeating that word, you know 773 00:45:07,280 --> 00:45:09,280 why that's important? It's an important lesson for all 774 00:45:09,280 --> 00:45:11,800 of us and how we view sin and righteousness, obedience and 775 00:45:11,800 --> 00:45:14,320 disobedience. The people in wanting a human 776 00:45:14,320 --> 00:45:16,600 king were in essence, rejecting God as their king. 777 00:45:16,800 --> 00:45:19,760 And they thought that in having a human king they would gain. 778 00:45:22,880 --> 00:45:26,080 We'll be like the world and he'll fight our battles and he's 779 00:45:26,080 --> 00:45:28,800 tangible, he's observable, he's there, He's not tucked in some 780 00:45:28,800 --> 00:45:32,200 box behind a curtain. We want a human king, and we 781 00:45:32,200 --> 00:45:34,160 will win so much by having a king. 782 00:45:34,320 --> 00:45:36,120 And here's Samuel now coming with his sermon. 783 00:45:36,120 --> 00:45:38,040 He says in. Fact, it's the opposite. 784 00:45:38,240 --> 00:45:42,560 He will take from you by having a human king and rejecting the 785 00:45:42,560 --> 00:45:44,440 will and purpose of God at this time. 786 00:45:44,440 --> 00:45:48,520 You're going to lose. You're going to lose. 787 00:45:49,360 --> 00:45:53,080 And that is always the case when we trust in human wisdom. 788 00:45:54,000 --> 00:45:58,920 And betray the truth of God's word in any particular realm or 789 00:45:59,080 --> 00:46:03,200 lane. You always lose when you walk 790 00:46:03,200 --> 00:46:05,440 away. You always lose when you think 791 00:46:05,440 --> 00:46:08,000 that it's gain to do it your way. 792 00:46:08,360 --> 00:46:12,160 Always, always, never forget it. You'll always have something 793 00:46:12,160 --> 00:46:14,120 taken from you. You'll lose your peace. 794 00:46:14,120 --> 00:46:16,000 You lose your joy. You'll lose your testimony. 795 00:46:18,120 --> 00:46:22,520 You lose your ministry. You always have something taken 796 00:46:22,520 --> 00:46:25,560 from you. When you choose to not trust God 797 00:46:25,560 --> 00:46:28,840 in an area of your life where you deliberately say this is 798 00:46:28,840 --> 00:46:30,680 what God says, I don't believe it. 799 00:46:31,240 --> 00:46:33,760 I want to trust in this. And what Samuel says to this 800 00:46:33,760 --> 00:46:37,160 generation, he says to all of us, you'll have something taken 801 00:46:37,160 --> 00:46:39,920 from you, and often it's more than you anticipated. 802 00:46:39,920 --> 00:46:43,200 And that's what they're experiencing. 803 00:46:43,200 --> 00:46:46,840 This, this is, this warning is manifested through Solomon. 804 00:46:48,000 --> 00:46:50,880 He put a burden on the people and then when they cry out and 805 00:46:50,880 --> 00:46:53,200 protest. I wonder if any of them thought 806 00:46:53,200 --> 00:46:55,400 of what Samuel had said many, many years ago. 807 00:46:55,400 --> 00:47:01,800 And what's so sad about Samuel? Warning here is the sadness that 808 00:47:01,800 --> 00:47:04,160 many preachers know that they can warn ahead of time. 809 00:47:04,160 --> 00:47:08,080 If you do this, if you go in that direction, you will lose. 810 00:47:08,080 --> 00:47:10,520 It will hurt you and people still do it. 811 00:47:10,520 --> 00:47:12,400 Look at verse 19. But the people refuse to obey 812 00:47:12,400 --> 00:47:14,080 the voice of Samuel and they said no. 813 00:47:14,280 --> 00:47:17,080 But there shall be a king over us that we will also be like the 814 00:47:17,080 --> 00:47:19,760 all the nations, so that our king may judge us and go out 815 00:47:19,760 --> 00:47:26,200 before us and fight our battles. So you read first Kings and 2nd 816 00:47:26,200 --> 00:47:28,480 Kings, and that's what you realize except for a few. 817 00:47:28,880 --> 00:47:33,160 But in the generality that was the case, there was unnecessary 818 00:47:33,160 --> 00:47:36,200 burdens placed on the general population because they chose 819 00:47:36,200 --> 00:47:38,560 to. Have a human king instead of an 820 00:47:38,560 --> 00:47:44,640 invisible one. And so again they asked Rehoboam 821 00:47:44,640 --> 00:47:50,200 Lighten our yoke be easier on us, and Rehoboam refuses. 822 00:47:50,200 --> 00:47:52,760 And here is. The main point of first kings, 823 00:47:52,760 --> 00:47:57,200 Second kings. What is it that every king, even 824 00:47:57,200 --> 00:48:00,160 the greatest kings of Israel failed? 825 00:48:02,960 --> 00:48:05,640 And then you have that impression as you read first 826 00:48:05,640 --> 00:48:07,240 kings, second kings, as as told you before. 827 00:48:07,240 --> 00:48:09,200 I remember when I first got saved, we're flying back from a 828 00:48:09,200 --> 00:48:11,760 conference and my friend and his devotions was reading First 829 00:48:11,760 --> 00:48:13,920 kings, Second kings. And I looked over to my right in 830 00:48:13,920 --> 00:48:15,560 the late flight, and I heard sniffles. 831 00:48:16,080 --> 00:48:17,880 And I looked. And I asked what's wrong and he 832 00:48:17,880 --> 00:48:20,160 says I'm reading first kings and 2nd kings and I just can't 833 00:48:20,160 --> 00:48:25,280 believe how ridiculous the people of Israel are. 834 00:48:27,600 --> 00:48:31,520 I I just can't believe the incompetence of these rulers to 835 00:48:31,520 --> 00:48:34,720 get it right and to provide what these people desperately needed. 836 00:48:36,840 --> 00:48:41,720 And then you come to Matthew, you go to Matthew 11/28/29 and 837 00:48:41,720 --> 00:48:47,120 you see a different king. They said, would you, would you 838 00:48:47,120 --> 00:48:49,400 lighten our yoke, would you make this easier on us? 839 00:48:49,400 --> 00:48:52,520 And Samuel warned, Hey listen to kings that you're choosing 840 00:48:52,520 --> 00:48:54,840 they're going to take from you. And then Jesus comes on the 841 00:48:54,840 --> 00:49:00,280 scene and he says come to me all you are weary and heavy laden, 842 00:49:00,560 --> 00:49:07,400 and I will take. I would give, I'll give you 843 00:49:07,400 --> 00:49:11,440 rest. That's our king. 844 00:49:11,920 --> 00:49:15,840 I would give you rest. There's a king coming who would 845 00:49:15,840 --> 00:49:17,360 not take. Take, take, take. 846 00:49:18,320 --> 00:49:20,720 Oh, yes, there's a call for you and I to surrender and to 847 00:49:20,720 --> 00:49:22,040 repent. But for what? 848 00:49:22,760 --> 00:49:27,280 To receive abundant life. To lay down as we saying lesser 849 00:49:27,280 --> 00:49:30,760 things so that we can have true life and eternal life. 850 00:49:30,760 --> 00:49:34,680 Ultimately, that is our king. He's ready to. 851 00:49:34,680 --> 00:49:40,880 Give what kind of king is like this so we do not serve a rare 852 00:49:40,880 --> 00:49:44,320 bone where we come to me. Say you're a hard taskmaster. 853 00:49:45,240 --> 00:49:47,600 You tell us to make bricks, but you don't give us straw. 854 00:49:47,640 --> 00:49:50,400 He's not like Pharaoh. He's a king. 855 00:49:50,400 --> 00:49:54,040 Who says come to me, you're heavy laden, you're broken, 856 00:49:55,000 --> 00:49:57,280 you're distressed, you're in turmoil. 857 00:49:57,280 --> 00:50:02,760 Let me lighten that burden. Let me give you something that 858 00:50:02,760 --> 00:50:10,080 is overwhelmingly joyful, blissful, fulfilling and 859 00:50:10,080 --> 00:50:13,280 satisfying. That's the king that we serve. 860 00:50:14,800 --> 00:50:16,600 It is not a burden to serve the Lord. 861 00:50:18,800 --> 00:50:22,680 It is a joyful thing. And if Hiram can rejoice and 862 00:50:22,680 --> 00:50:27,240 being invited to serve Solomon, how much more him who is greater 863 00:50:27,240 --> 00:50:31,520 than Solomon, I don't know. This is the thing with 864 00:50:31,520 --> 00:50:34,560 preaching, man. You try to communicate things 865 00:50:34,560 --> 00:50:38,400 and in the moment you are fully aware of your incapability of 866 00:50:38,400 --> 00:50:41,560 trying to convey something that is in essence. 867 00:50:42,520 --> 00:50:46,480 Impossible to fully explain the plight of the preacher, right? 868 00:50:46,480 --> 00:50:49,960 And so this is where we have to trust the Holy Spirit. 869 00:50:50,120 --> 00:50:52,800 I my, my. Goal and prayer. 870 00:50:52,800 --> 00:50:56,480 Preparing this was Lord, let us all just be refreshed and 871 00:50:56,480 --> 00:51:02,720 reminded that it is an absolute honor to serve you and Lord. 872 00:51:02,720 --> 00:51:05,040 If if we had intention to do something and we've never done 873 00:51:05,040 --> 00:51:07,040 it, may we begin it. And if we're beginning to begin 874 00:51:07,040 --> 00:51:10,720 it, may we see it to fruition and completion by your wonderful 875 00:51:10,720 --> 00:51:14,200 mercy and grace and power. My prayer is that your heart 876 00:51:14,200 --> 00:51:21,680 would be touched again to say what he said here to Solomon. 877 00:51:22,360 --> 00:51:24,800 I will give you all that you desire. 878 00:51:25,280 --> 00:51:48,920 Let's pray. Lord, we are moved to see how 879 00:51:48,920 --> 00:51:52,720 you spoke in First Kings 5, and we believe that there is so much 880 00:51:52,720 --> 00:51:55,760 more even in that chapter for us to discover. 881 00:51:55,760 --> 00:52:05,360 But for tonight we pause and we say thank you for the portion 882 00:52:05,360 --> 00:52:10,520 that you have provided. Lord, you know the people in 883 00:52:10,520 --> 00:52:15,280 here who might be serving you, but not with joy or gladness of 884 00:52:15,280 --> 00:52:19,880 heart. They've lost sight of the 885 00:52:19,880 --> 00:52:25,240 absolute privilege and honor it is to serve you in any capacity. 886 00:52:26,480 --> 00:52:30,160 Renew our vision and help us see, Lord, that there is no 887 00:52:30,160 --> 00:52:33,560 alternative to serving you. There's nothing better to do on 888 00:52:33,560 --> 00:52:35,440 a Friday night than to worship you. 889 00:52:36,440 --> 00:52:39,560 There's nothing better to do with our weekends than to serve 890 00:52:39,560 --> 00:52:40,920 you. There's nothing. 891 00:52:41,240 --> 00:52:44,520 Help us believe that when we feel like the happiness in our 892 00:52:44,520 --> 00:52:47,640 soul is being drained by lies and temptation or 893 00:52:47,640 --> 00:52:51,200 discouragement, rescue us from such a place because we know 894 00:52:51,200 --> 00:52:54,240 that it begins. The downfall begins when we lose 895 00:52:54,240 --> 00:52:57,320 that joy and gladness of heart, never mind serving Lord. 896 00:52:57,400 --> 00:53:02,600 Rescue us from being an autopilot mode in ministry and 897 00:53:02,600 --> 00:53:04,880 bring us to the place again, where we know the energy of the 898 00:53:04,880 --> 00:53:09,760 Holy Spirit and we know the animation of the gift of God. 899 00:53:09,760 --> 00:53:15,280 Given to those who believe and that the same kind of power that 900 00:53:15,280 --> 00:53:17,320 Paul knew. We would know that even in our 901 00:53:17,320 --> 00:53:20,000 weakness we would be excited about it because we will know a 902 00:53:20,000 --> 00:53:24,120 perfection of your grace. So look tonight we just simply 903 00:53:24,120 --> 00:53:27,120 ask that as we sing and close and even prepare to serve you 904 00:53:27,200 --> 00:53:33,280 tomorrow That you would do what no preacher can do, no 905 00:53:33,280 --> 00:53:37,200 communicator, no song, no counseling can ultimately do. 906 00:53:37,640 --> 00:53:41,880 That you would deposit in US. The necessary graces so that we 907 00:53:41,880 --> 00:53:47,640 can be where you want us to be. And Lord, we say thank you again 908 00:53:47,640 --> 00:53:52,480 as a church, that we can be in a place among people who surely 909 00:53:52,480 --> 00:53:55,640 love you. Lord, receive this honor and 910 00:53:55,640 --> 00:53:58,120 adoration as we sing in Jesus name. 911 00:53:58,480 --> 00:53:58,880 Amen.