A Godly Legacy: Fearing God, Worshipping Him, Obeying Him

 

As we get ready to celebrate Father's Day, we may consider King David, who set a Godly example for his son Solomon to follow as a believer in God, as a wise man, and as a ruler over God’s people. Despite David’s sins, beginning with idleness, then snowballing into lust, adultery, and deception, and culminating with murder (2 Samuel 11), he was a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22), showing genuine repentance and asking God to cleanse him of his sins (Psalm 51:7-17). If God could forgive and use David so powerfully, there is hope for every one of us!

During his reign, David defended God’s chosen people against her enemies, honored God in his daily walk, and provided Solomon with what he needed to build God’s temple, including precious metals, building materials, and semiprecious stones. His example inspired similar gifts, offerings and service for God’s house from the chief of the fathers and princes of the tribes of Israel, the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and the rulers of the king's work (1 Chronicles 29:1-8).

Moved by the willingness of his people to serve God, David blessed, praised and thanked God for His greatness, abundant provision, and power. He recognized that he and his people were strangers, sojourners, and mortal before the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel (1 Chronicles 29:9-16). Even though the Israelites were God’s chosen people, they had to be saved through faith before God could call them His friends, for faith is the common theme underlying salvation through all periods of Biblical history (Hebrews 11:6).

Obedience is the outward sign of faith, which is why “trust and obey” go hand in hand (1 Samuel 15:22; John 14:15,21; 15:10). As I heard a missionary preach once, when Jesus tells you to do something, just do it! (John 2:5). David prayed that his people would always be willing to serve God, that they would prepare their hearts to receive Him, and that Solomon would have a perfect heart, to keep God’s commandments, testimonies, and statutes; to do all that God would have him do, and to build the palace (1 Chronicles 29:17-19).

Again following David’s lead, the people prayed to God, worshipped Him, and offered Him burnt offerings and drink offerings, in addition to the material sacrifices that they donated to build His house. They celebrated the transition in leadership from David to Solomon by joyfully feasting before the Lord, a second time making Solomon to be king, and anointing Solomon to the Lord to be the chief governor, and Zadok to be priest. As Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord as king, all the princes, the mighty men, and all David’s sons obeyed the new King Solomon (1 Chronicles 29:20-24).

David’s shortcomings prove that he is human and a sinner like all others (Romans 3:23) and that the Bible is true, rather than glossing over weaknesses of heroes of the faith (Hebrews 11). Despite David’s sins, he left a Godly legacy for Solomon, his nation, and for all of us to learn from by reading God’s Word. God rewarded David’s faithfulness by answering his prayers for Solomon.

The Lord magnified Solomon exceedingly in the sight of all Israel, and bestowed upon him such royal majesty as had not been on any king before him in Israel. Of the forty years that David had reigned over Israel, seven years (the number of perfection or completion) were in Hebron, and thirty and three years in Jerusalem. David’s reign, marked by longevity, riches, and honor, was recorded in the books of Samuel the seer (wise man or sage), Nathan the prophet, and Gad the seer (1 Chronicles 29:25-30).

Even if we are not rulers or in positions of power or leadership, may we be like David, good stewards over what the Lord has entrusted to us. Once we realize that we are sinners saved by God’s grace through our faith (Ephesians 2:8-9)  in the death, burial and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:1-4), He immediately blesses us with forgiveness of sins (1 John 1:9), eternal life (John 3:16), and abundant life (John 10:10). May we share Him with our families (Acts 11:14; 16:31) so that they too accept God’s freely given gift of salvation!

Our inheritance as children of God (1 John 3:1), joint-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17), and part of His bride (Revelation 21:2) includes opportunities to serve Him as His stewards (1 Corinthians 4:2), fellow-workers, and ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5:20). May we be an example of faithfulness, obedience, and honoring God to our children, families and those who come behind us. May we always remember to thank, praise and worship God for His abundant blessings to us, our family, and our nation!

© 2016 Laurie Collett

What Do You Treasure Most?

 

Photo from CNN

A few years ago at a flea market in the Midwest, a scrap metal collector going through tough times bought a decorative gold egg containing a watch. The purchase price was $14,000, way beyond his means, but he thought he could get at least twice that for the weight of gold in the item, and he leveraged all his remaining assets to buy it.

But he had overestimated the weight of the gold, and he realized that his profit after melting it down would only be about $500 – hardly enough to rescue him from his dire financial straits. In desperation, he Googled “egg” plus "Vacheron Constantin," the name inscribed on the watch, and was amazed to learn he might be holding a rare collectible.

He took it to an art dealer who immediately recognized the great value of the piece, not for its gold content, but for its design, craftsmanship and beauty. The dealer realized it could only have been the work of Peter Carl Faberge, jeweler to the last Czar of Russia, and that it matched the description of one of the eight missing Imperial eggs that was designed in 1887 for the Czarina. 

Although the Czar had commissioned 50 of these jeweled eggs throughout his reign, to be given as Easter gifts to his family, only 42 had been retrieved after the bloody revolution in which the Royal Family was assassinated.

The price paid by the art dealer to the scrap metal collector was undisclosed, but the last Faberge egg to be sold at auction (in 2007) fetched over $30 million, even though it was a non-Imperial egg and therefore less valuable than those commissioned by the Czar. So even though the scrap metal dealer sold all he had to purchase the egg, it was by far the best investment of his lifetime.

It reminded me of Jesus’ parables about the kingdom of heaven, which is like treasure found and hidden in a field so that the man burying the treasure could buy the field (and the treasure!) by first selling all that he had. Jesus then told of the merchant who looked for expensive pearls, and when he had found one pearl of great price, sold all that he had to buy it (Matthew 13:44-46).

If we are not willing to sacrifice all that was once dear to us, how can we invest our life in serving Him? Only then can we experience the priceless rewards He longs to give His children (Matthew 7:11; Luke 11:13). If we were to own the whole world, it would mean nothing if we were to lose our soul to eternal punishment in hell (Matthew 16:25-26; Mark 8:35-37).

The tale of the Faberge egg got me thinking about how we measure value. At a flea market, very few bargain hunters, even the most shrewd, would dream of spending $14,000 on any purchase, no matter what the potential value. Why would the flea market vendor sell the egg so “cheaply,” without even researching the price of the gold alone? What if the scrap metal dealer had failed to realize what an invaluable treasure he held in his grasp?

And what if the Czarina could tell us of what that egg represented to her – a symbol of her family’s power, lavish lifestyle and opulent wealth? A token of her husband’s deep and passionate love for her? Did the beautiful watch within the golden egg mean that the Czar wanted to give her the gift of time, wishing their happiness would last forever? Or, as it was an Easter gift, did it remind her of the most precious gift of all: Our Savior’s death, burial and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-4), so that all who trust in Him would have eternal life in Heaven (John 3:16), where time can no longer be measured?

Much of the decoration of this art object suggests its religious significance. It is fashioned of gold, fit for the King (Matthew 2:11), and contains a timepiece, which is appropriate to the One Who controls time (Daniel 2:21; Acts 1:7). It is adorned with three sapphires and three golden garlands, which could represent the Trinity. A diamond is the opening mechanism revealing the watch, reminding me of the sapphire and diamond on the high priest’s ephod (Exodus 28:18; 39:11).and the jewel-like brilliance of Christ seated on the throne of glory (Revelation 4:3). The Faberge egg sits upright on an elaborate gold stand supported by lion paw feet, which might be a reference to Jesus Christ as the Lion of the tribe of Judah (Revelation 5:5).

On the night that I heard this news I dreamed, ironically, that I really needed to sleep, because of important and taxing commitments I had the next day. But in the dream, I kept waking up because of a CD player. The first time I was sure I had shut it off before going to bed, until I was surprised by Charles Stanley’s voice preaching. This was no time for a sermon, I thought with irritation, because sleep was now my first priority.

In the dream, I flipped the power switch to “Off” and once more drifted into restless sleep, when I again heard God’s Word as delivered by one of my favorite preachers. But in my annoyance at being awakened once more, my thoughts toward him and his message were not exactly charitable. This time I yanked the power cord from the wall and resumed my tossing and turning.

But to no avail. I again “awoke” (still dreaming!) to the sound of Scripture, this time not read by Charles Stanley but in tones so rich and pure they sounded like crystal resonating. Fascinated, I followed the sound to a golden egg, which appeared to contain not only a timepiece but a musical movement playing Bible verses. I tenderly cupped the egg in my hands and pressed it to my chest, letting the Word resonate through my very being.

No longer dreaming, I arose feeling blessed and inspired. But then I shuddered to think how many times I had shut out my Lord’s voice because of concerns that seemed more pressing, unaware that I was quenching and grieving the Spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:19; Ephesians 4:30). Sleep is valuable and necessary (Psalm 127:2), but how much more precious if He would speak to me! (1 Samuel 3:1-10)

What an awesome blessing when He awakens me with songs or visions in the night (Job 35:10; 4:13; Psalm 42:8; 77:6; Genesis 46:2; Daniel 7:13), perhaps laying a burden on my heart to pray for someone’s specific need, or giving me the long awaited solution to a problem, or even a new direction to follow

How often do we put God’s voice on “pause,” or “off,” valuing the empty chatter of the world more than His Word that is our daily bread and guiding light? (Matthew 6:11; Luke 11:3; Psalm 119:105) Even worse, what if we place more worth on our independence than on our relationship with Him? If we attempt to disconnect from our ultimate Power source, we will be as useless as branches yanked away from the True Vine (John 15:1-8).

What do we value most? Do we worship the idol of wealth accumulation (Luke 12:15-21), only to have it stolen or corrupted (Matthew 6:19-20), or to find that we have no time left (James 4:14; Job 14:1) to enjoy our hoard? Do we pour all our energy into making a living rather than seeking new life?

We should not worry about our physical needs (Psalm 37:25), for He is the ultimate Provider (Matthew 7:11; Luke 11:13; James 1:17). All we have to do is seek Him first, and we will give us His Kingdom and all that we need (Luke 12:22-32), granting us the desires of our heart as they align with His perfect will (Psalm 37:4).

Luke 12:34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Praise God that at the moment of salvation, His Holy Spirit enters our heart (2 Corinthians 1:22;5:5; Ephesians 1:14), which is the most precious gift imaginable. If we allow Him, He will write His mercy and truth on the tablet of our heart. His wisdom far outshines gold, silver and jewels, adding longevity, riches and honor to our life (Proverbs 3:13-16).

He makes us a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17), transforming us from scrap metal fit for the junk heap to His finely crafted workmanship, destined for His ultimate purpose (Ephesians 2:10). No longer need we fear time running out on our earthly days, for He has conquered death (1 Corinthians 15:26,55-57) and given us eternity with Him!

May we always hide His Word in our heart that we might not sin against Him! (Psalm 119:11) May we treasure Him above all else!

© 2014 Laurie Collett

Reposted from the archives