Nougat 11

Do we believe that our foreparents’ choices have affected our lives today? This question is important, because it also invites us to think about our actions, and their impact on future generations. As we ponder these two ideas consider Today’s Holy Nougat

1 Kings 8:57 CEVDCI

[57] The Lord our God was with our ancestors to help them, and I pray that he will be with us and never abandon us.

Faith of our Fathers and Mothers

Following his father’s dream of a permanent house for the Lord, King Solomon oversaw the construction of the Temple. God designed the Temple and its builders adhered to very specific measurements and patterns. Those assigned to the construction and furnishing were assigned and dedicated by God for their tasks. The Temple was constructed over seven years.

When the construction finally ended, Solomon dedicated the temple to God. During the dedication, Solomon prayed for God’s blessing on the Temple as God’s dwelling place. In that regard, it housed the Ark of the Covenant, a symbol of God’s eternal presence. The Temple was therefore not just about the present and the future, it reminded the Israelites of God’s presence with their ancestors in the past. More specifically, he remembered God’s presence with the Children of Israel in their journey out of Egypt.

Point to Ponder

How do monuments in our countries help us remember God’s provision and presence in the past?

Application

Solomon’s prayer didn’t stop at what God did with and for the Children of Israel. He implored God to remember the present and future generations based on the covenants made with the patriarchs. He reminded God of God’s protection during the Exodus, and asked God to do the same for them. For Solomon, the covenants that were ratified between God and the patriarchs were equally important to Solomon’s kingdom, which was politically secure. He also proposed that God’s favour and presence be as constant in the kingdom as it was with the Children of Israel in the wilderness.

Siblings, we know that the Children of Israel were not perfect. They didn’t always honour their promises to God. They broke the Ten Commandments on occasion (legally and spiritually), and they would break them again in Solomon’s time. [He actually got involved in idolatry, worshipping the gods of his many wives.] Despite their record, one thing remained sure – YHWH was still their God.

Solomon did not expect the nation to be sinless. He asked God’s favour to be present with them as God was with the foreparents. That was the desire he communicated to the people then. That is my prayer for us now.

Our forepatents were not perfect. Hopefully, they were believers. For those who believed, God’s protection and provision were evident – whether enslaved, enslaver, indentured, bonded, or totally free. In fact, God’s presence and protection were evident even among non-believers. It’s up to us then to determine whether their spirituality influences us now.

Today and every day, Y’shua seeks to build a temple in our hearts. We have to decide whether it is built to God’s specifications. And the Ark, which once symbolised God’s presence is now replaced by God’s Spirit, who dwells within us. Like Solomon, we can pray that just as God heard our ancestors” prayers, God will hear us when we pray in the name of Y’shua, our High Priest. We can anticipate God’s provision and protection because of Y’shua’s sacrifice for us and our foreparents. It’s a generational blessing.

Self-Check

As potential foreparents, what spiritual legacy do we wish to leave for the generations to come?

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May all we seek be found in Christ