The Daily Word: Friday, July 16th, 2021
1 Chronicles 22:1-23:32
Romans 3:9-31
Psalm 12:1-8
Proverbs 19:13-14
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Commentary from Pastor Michael White:
Now David said, “Solomon my son is young and inexperienced, and the house to be built for the Lord must be exceedingly magnificent, famous and glorious throughout all countries. I will now make preparation for it.” So David made abundant preparations before his death. – 1 Chron. 22:5
Good leaders don’t think in terms of their lifetime; they think in terms of generations. King David’s life was coming to a close. He was not concerned about his own personal comfort level, or how much wealth he had amassed during his time as king. He was only concerned with the next generation. Solomon, his son, was “young and inexperienced”; and here was an “exceedingly magnificent” house for the Lord that had to be built (v 5)! So David made “abundant preparations before his death.”
Contrast this with King Hezekiah (as well as many other subsequent kings of Israel). The Lord pronounced judgment on Judah:
Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord: ‘Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says the Lord. ‘And they shall take away some of your sons who will descend from you, whom you will beget; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’ ” – 2 Kings 20:16-18
But Hezekiah didn’t care! Here was his response to the Lord: “The word of the LORD which you have spoken is good! …Will there not be peace and truth at least in my days?” (v 19). Hezekiah did not care how the word of the Lord affected future generations; he only cared if God’s word affected Hezekiah.
Your life is about so much more than you! Your life is about generations to come. Are you living your life in such a way that your children will be able to serve God better than you ever could? Are you setting up your inheritance in such a way that the next generation can afford to worship God in ways you never did?!
Think generationally. The future depends on it.
Prayer:
Father, help me to think generationally! I want to leave a better world for my children’s children. I will lay down my life if it means they will have fewer obstacles to worshipping You well!
© Michael D. White, 2021. All rights reserved.