Pastor Dele Olubi
[biblegateway passage=”Psalm 44:1-26″ display=”Psalm 44:1-26″], [biblegateway passage=”2 Chronicles 1:5-7″ display=”2 Chronicles 1:5-7″]
Many have been caused to believe that God appeared to Solomon because of the burnt offerings he made.
[biblegateway passage=”1 Chronicles 29:19-21″ display=”1 Chronicles 29:19-21″], [biblegateway passage=”2 Chronicles 35:7″ display=”2 Chronicles 35:7″]
The above text shows us that it was actually because his father David had prayed for him, that God appeared to him and asked what he wanted. We can also see from the text in 2 Chronicles that Solomon didn’t offer the largest number of sacrifices in the history of all the kings of Israel. So it is obvious that that wasn’t what attracted God, although that in itself might have activated something. These are models of principles in the kingdom of God we must pay attention to.
When Solomon laments in Ecclesiastes, we should realize that nothing this world has to offer can ever bring satisfaction. When a man who has experimented with and amassed a lot of things tells you it all amounts to vanity, we should pay attention. You must learn to tame the desires of your heart.
Solomon was a wise man – even before God blessed him with wisdom. We see proof of this in 2 Chronicles 1.
[biblegateway passage=”2 Chronicles 1:8″ display=”2 Chronicles 1:8″]
David passed down a lot of things to his son, Solomon, both good and bad. Wisdom to recognize and recount all God had done for him was one of the good things.
There is something about our fathers we have got to learn. God doesn’t just start new (or “fresh”) things. Understand that God is running a program and it is progressing. You can’t separate what God is doing now from what He has done before.
We must respect and honour our fathers – both natural and spiritual. You cannot abuse or insult someone and be a part of his blessing. Many of the fathers in the faith you look at today have been walking with God for as many as 40 years. Go and read books about the men God has used on the earth. We need to learn about what God has begun. Solomon rode on the back of his father. God asked, “What do you want?” and he began to leverage on the covenant (of his father).
It is also important that we honour the memory of those who have walked with God before leaving the earth. When you dishonour what God has done, you dishonour Him. The Bible tells us that the works of the Lord abideth forever.