June 11
1 Kings 8:1-66 | PS 129:1-8 | Prov 17:1 | Acts 7:51-8:13
So many of our prayers are horizontal or earthly. They so often deal with issues of our earthly existence: our health, our finances, our relationships with one another. These are not bad prayers, but perhaps we should consider what percentage of prayers concern these earthly matters and what percentage concern vertical matters: our relationship with God, the reality of our sins in light of our holy God, our hearts crying out for forgiveness, our hearts praising in thanksgiving as we try to realize the chasm between God's perfection and our inadequate imperfection. Perhaps, our prayer life often runs amiss as stated in James 4:3. If we pray for earthly things we can be led astray as we read the contrast between Philip and Simon the sorcerer in Acts 8:6-11, "Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did. Many evil spirits were cast out, screaming as they left their victims. And many who had been paralyzed or lame were healed. So there was great joy in that city. A man named Simon had been a sorcerer there for many years, amazing the people of Samaria and claiming to be someone great. Everyone, from the least to the greatest, often spoke of him as “the Great One—the Power of God.” They listened closely to him because for a long time he had astounded them with his magic." If we seek only the things of the earth, not necessarily bad things, our hearts can be deceived in our desire for answers for our earthly issues.
Now we look at Solomon as he has the ark brought into the Temple in 1 Kings 8. Notice his request in 8:28-30, "Nevertheless, listen to my prayer and my plea, O Lord my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is making to you today. May you watch over this Temple night and day, this place where you have said, ‘My name will be there.’ May you always hear the prayers I make toward this place. May you hear the humble and earnest requests from me and your people Israel when we pray toward this place. Yes, hear us from heaven where you live, and when you hear, forgive." We read again in 8:33-34, "If your people Israel are defeated by their enemies because they have sinned against you, and if they turn to you and acknowledge your name and pray to you here in this Temple, then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and return them to this land you gave their ancestors." Over and over again King Solomon has his eyes cast vertically and acknowledges that it is all about establishing and preserving this relationship with God, as he acknowledges God's perfection and their sinful nature.
We must understand that it is perfectly okay to pray for the physical healing and other things that transpire on this earth, but if the individual that we are praying about is indeed healed and never enters into a relationship with Jesus Christ, then that individual may extend his or her earthly years only to spend eternity in hell. We need to see ourselves and others for the desperate sinners that we all are. We need to see God for the perfect One that He is. We need to see just how undeserving that we truly are of the salvation that we have been offered through the death and resurrection of our only living hope, the Lord Jesus, who Himself stated: "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me." (John 14:6). Our lives all have a finite span, perhaps even one hundred years, while eternity is forever and can not be counted. With that in mind, may we reevaluate our prayer life and come before the Father and seek Him, desperately, in matters of sin, forgiveness, salvation, revival, and may we truly pray for His will to be done, not our own.
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: