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Credit where credit is due
Jeff Weinkauf1 Kings 8
14 While the whole assembly of Israel was standing there, the king turned around and blessed them. 15 Then he said:
“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who with his own hand has fulfilled what he promised with his own mouth to my father David.
This verse caught my attention this morning. It's a passing statement right at the beginning of Solomon's dedication of the temple in Jerusalem.
Why this is notable to me is that it gives all the credit for the completion of the temple to to The Lord.
Why is that so important? Isn't it obvious that God had provided for this great work to be done? Sure, but it also involved hundreds of thousands of human workers and overseers. People who "owned" a part of that project. Solomon chose to remind and redirect the assembly to God's role BEFORE they began pumping themselves up. You see as human beings in search of significance we will often inflate our own importance.
"Yeah I was head mason and it's because of me the foundation stones of this building are sound. I'm the reason this building stands". "I'm the one who adorned the walls with gold, it wouldn't have been so magnificent and God honoring with out me". "We'll I led the team that cast the bronze alter, with out the alter no one could offer sacrifice for sin. We'd all be doomed".
And so it goes. All of us could consider our parts in kingdom work as crucial and pivotal. What's important is to remember that it is by the hand of The Lord that the promises are kept and the work is accomplished. We certainly do play a part with our god given skills and our willing heart. But make no mistake, as Solomon later writes in Psalm 127:1 "unless The Lord builds the house the builders labor in vain."
So I think Solomon layers that statement into 1 Kings 8 to remind the folks, great job AND don't forget who gets the credit for this.
The applications for me are many fold. I'm not in any way indispensable. While my skills might be a blessing, they are first and foremost God given. No real credit belongs to the clay pot. The Lord deserves the honor, because it is The Lord who builds this house. I'm reminded of a friend who worked and did all the right strategic things to grow his church. For many years he did those things with no significant results. Until one day the place started to grow and he was reminded that no matter how clever he was, it's The Lord who builds the house. Otherwise we labor in vain.
Lord may I never forget that even when the accomplishments are grand, “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who with his own hand has fulfilled what he promised with his own mouth..." Amen
