The first thing that David did when crowned King of Israel was to worship God. He “sought out” the tabernacle and brought it to Jerusalem. It was his first priority to Give God his rightful place in the assembly of God’s people. Solomon’s first priority is also worship. He begins by “And Solomon and the assembly sought out (the bronze altar that was left in Gibeon). And Solomon went up there to the bronze altar before the Lord, which was at the tent of meeting, ?and offered a thousand burnt offerings on it.” It was a case of “like father, like son.”
I like the “sought out” phrase. The use of this phrase has been noted as being significant because it primarily refers to seeking God. We will later read about Solomon’s prayer in which he acknowledges his inadequacies to rule over such a great nation being such a young boy. He realizes the important thing of life. All the things that matter most in life are truly outside of our control. We must depend on God for them all.
Jesus teaches us that same lesson when he says, “Seek ye first, the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.” If God comes first in our lives, he’ll take care of all the rest.
The Daily bread wrote: In the late 19th century John Wanamaker opened a department store in Philadelphia. Within a few years that enterprise had become one of the most successful businesses in the country. But operating his store wasn’t Wanamaker’s only responsibility. He was also named Postmaster General of the United States, and he served as superintendent for what was then the largest Sunday school in the world at Bethany Presbyterian Church. When someone asked him how he could hold all those positions at once, he explained. “?Early in life I read, ‘?Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.?’ The Sunday school is my business, all the rest are the things.?”
One evidence of Wanamaker’s desire to keep the Lord’s work first in his life was a specially constructed soundproof room in his store. Every day he spent 30 minutes there praying and meditating upon God’s Word. He had his priorities straight!”
I hope I can learn to put first things first!
Chuck
“Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” James 5:16