Are you a faithful follower?
No, I’m not talking about social media.
Although who and what we follow on social media can reveal what matters to us most.
But the question I’m asking is deeper than surface interests such as being an animal lover or decluttering expert.
(I’m the first, not the second, although I’m working on that.)
Seriously, I’m asking, are you a faithful follower of God?
And I’m asking whether how we live out this faithfulness matters to God.
Join me in studying 1 Kings 9:1-9 to consider an answer to these questions.
Does How We Live Matter to God? | 1 Kings 9:1-9 | The Passage and Study Questions
9 As soon as Solomon had finished building the house of the Lord and the king’s house and all that Solomon desired to build, 2 the Lord appeared to Solomon a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. [1]
What happened when the Lord first appeared to Solomon at Gibeon in 1 Kings 3:5-15?
Now, the second time the Lord appeared to Solomon, what happened?
Why is it important that the Lord appeared to Solomon?
3 And the Lord said to him, “I have heard your prayer and your plea, which you have made before me. I have consecrated this house that you have built, by putting my name there forever. My eyes and my heart will be there for all time.[2]
Summarize Solomon’s prayer in 1 Kings 8:22-30.
How does the Lord affirm Solomon’s prayer?
What does this verse reveal about the Lord?
4 And as for you, if you will walk before me, as David your father walked, with integrity of heart and uprightness, doing according to all that I have commanded you, and keeping my statutes and my rules, 5 then I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised David your father, saying, ‘You shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’ [3]
What is Solomon instructed to do?
List the benefits God promises Solomon if he remains obedient.
6 But if you turn aside from following me, you or your children, and do not keep my commandments and my statutes that I have set before you, but go and serve other gods and worship them, 7 then I will cut off Israel from the land that I have given them, and the house that I have consecrated for my name I will cast out of my sight, and Israel will become a proverb and a byword among all peoples.[4]
What will happen if Solomon or his offspring fail to obey, serve, and worship God?
Explain the value of being forewarned about these consequences.
8 And this house will become a heap of ruins. Everyone passing by it will be astonished and will hiss, and they will say, ‘Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house?’ 9 Then they will say, ‘Because they abandoned the Lord their God who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt and laid hold on other gods and worshiped them and served them. Therefore the Lord has brought all this disaster on them.’ ”[5]
Describe the reaction from non-Israelites the Lord predicts if Solomon and his offspring abandon the Lord.
Why does this matter to the Lord? To Solomon? To Solomon’s offspring? To everyone else?
Does How We Live Matter to God? | 1 Kings 9:1-9 | Application Questions
What is required to enjoy fellowship with God? (Use 1 Corinthians 6:16-7:1 and 1 John 1:5-10 along with our passage today)
Reflect on what hinders you from maintaining your relationship with God.
What can you do differently in the week to come to foster a richer connection with God?
Does How We Live Matter to God? | 1 Kings 9:1-9 | A Personal Journey
Back in my undergraduate study days, I had two people ask me questions about why I claimed to be a follower of Jesus.
One was my late husband, whom I was dating at the time.
The other was my roommate.
It bothered me that even though I was raised in the church; I found it difficult to answer their questions.
But then, like many young college students, I had stopped attending worship unless I had a job as a musician to play for a church.
Looking back, I don’t think my faith had truly become mine yet. Rather, it was more of an expectation of what I was raised to be.
Thus, I had developed no personal spiritual disciplines such as reading and studying scripture, daily prayer, or other spiritual disciplines.
I had dabbled in this but was not consistently faithful.
Being convinced that going to the source is always the best way to get the most accurate information, I started reading the Bible through in one year so that I could understand why I claimed to be a follower of Jesus.
That was back in 1989.
This daily commitment, maintained ever since, is what has deepened my faith and trust in God.
Spending time in scripture sustains and strengthens me to face each day of my life. So much so that I can’t imagine attempting to live without it.
I know of no better way to learn what it means to live with integrity of heart, uprightness and obedience to the Lord’s commands so that others will come to know the Lord as well.
The Bible never sugarcoats what it means to be a Jesus follower.
There are hard days.
Not everything always goes well for believers.
But how we respond when things aren’t going well reveals what matters most to us.
Barely a year ago, as I was walking through the shock of my husband’s death, many people would comment on how amazed they were by my strength.
My reply then is the same today.
It wasn’t my strength they were seeing. It was the Lord’s.
The only way I could have responded to this tragedy with even an ounce of any kind of strength is because I sought the Lord first.
Not second or third, or as an afterthought.
First.
And the reason that was possible is that I had developed a consistent relationship with him through my daily scripture reading over many years.
I’m not saying everyone should read the Bible through in a year.
But I encourage everyone to be intentionally engaged with the Lord daily.
Yes, daily.
Maybe what works best for you is reading one verse or chapter a day rather than several.
What matters is not the amount of scripture you read, but that you make spending time with the Lord a daily priority.
What are you putting first in your life?
Why is that first?
How different might your life be if you were consistently spending time with the Lord each day?
22 The Lord redeems the life of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned. [6]
Warmly,
Barbara Lynn
[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), 1 Ki 9:1–2.
[2] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), 1 Ki 9:3.
[3] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), 1 Ki 9:4–5.
[4] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), 1 Ki 9:6–7.
[5] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), 1 Ki 9:8–9.
[6] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Ps 34:22.