He Forgives

 DEVOTION

1^ST KINGS

HE FORGIVES

1 Kings 8:22-30

22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven 23 and said:

"O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below — you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way. 24 You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it — as it is today. 25 "Now LORD, God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises you made to him when you said, 'You shall never fail to have a man to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your sons are careful in all they do to walk before me as you have done.' 26 And now, O God of Israel, let your word that you promised your servant David my father come true. 27 "But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built! 28 Yet give attention to your servant's prayer and his plea for mercy, O LORD my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is praying in your presence this day. 29 May your eyes be open toward this temple night and day, this place of which you said, 'My Name shall be there,' so that you will hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place. 30 Hear the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.

NIV

Once again, we are reminded that the Lord promised and that He kept and will always keep His promise. Now, Solomon adds another dimension to his prayer as he spreads out his hands toward heaven. First, to know there is no God like the God in heaven or on the earth. We know this to be true for who else could have done what the Lord God Almighty has done. Still, we are reminded of the words, “Oh Sovereign, who am I that you have taken me this far?” He is the Lord who keeps His covenant of love with His servants who continue wholeheartedly in His way. Does that mean His servants never fail, never sin, if they are wholehearted, continuing in His way? We do not know of any person who has lived, is living, or will ever live, who has, is, and will not fail and sin. We all have sinned and fallen short of His glory, yet He keeps His covenant of love with us, as we are His servants, and it is our desire to follow Him and His ways with all our hearts. Solomon prayed that the LORD would have His eyes open toward the temple night and day, the place where the LORD said, “My Name shall be there.” The temple has changed from the one made of stone, cedar, gold, and bronze, to the temple God formed with his own hands, us. We are the temple of the Holy Spirit, and His eyes are toward His temple night and day. We are never out of the sight of the Lord. He is not just watching us, but He is watching over us, keeping us within His covenant of love. Of course, the greatest love He showed us is Jesus. Solomon also made it abundantly clear that when we pray, the Lord hears our supplications and in His dwelling place, heaven, and also within our spirits, when He hears, He forgives. Interestingly, there are times when we fail, we also fail to forgive ourselves and carry either shame or guilt, which then interferes with our relationship with the Lord. This broken or damaged relationship is only on our end, or when we confess our sin, He hears, and He forgives. His relationship with us is never broken on His end, for He is the one who established His covenant of love, and He always keeps His promise. Let us never allow sin to disturb our side of this relationship and always, with our whole heart, seek His face, speak our words of confession, and bring our supplications before Him. He will always hear and always forgive.