Pastor Tommy Bailey
1 & 2 Kings: The King of Redemption History
1 Kings 8
The Temple in 1 Kings 5-9
- Preparing for the Temple (ch. 5)
- Constructing the Temple (ch. 6)
- Furnishing the Temple (ch. 7)
- Dedicating the Temple (ch. 8-9)
“You’d think we wouldn’t need reminding that God is God and we are not. But sanity is a rare thing in a mad society. Worship is where a return to wisdom begins. ‘Come let us worship and bow down…’ (Psalm 95).”
– David Cassidy
7 Petitions of Solomon (1 Kings 8:30-53)
The pattern of Solomon’s petitions:
- States the need of God’s people
- Appeals to God’s character and promises
- Requests the provision of God
Petition 1 (v. 31-32)
- Who is he praying for?
- Individuals who sin against one another.
- What provision is he praying for?
- Justice
- Righteousness
Petition 2 (v. 33-34)
- Who is he praying for, and why?
- God’s people who have been defeated because of their sin.
- What provision is he praying for?
- Repentance
- Forgiveness
- Restoration
Petition 3 (v. 35-36)
- Who is he praying for, and why?
- God’s people who face drought because of their sin.
- What provision is he praying for?
- Repentance
- Forgiveness
- Guidance
- Restoration
Petition 4 (v. 37-40)
- Who is he praying for?
- God’s people who suffer famine, disease, natural disaster and attacks from their enemies.
- What provision is he praying for?
- The fear of the Lord
- Repentance
- Forgiveness
- Restoration
Petition 5 (v. 41-43)
- Who is he praying for?
- Other nations who turn to God.
- What provision is he praying for?
- That all the peoples of the earth would know God.
- That all the peoples of the earth would fear God.
“Love means doing all we can, at whatever cost to ourselves, to help people be enthralled with the glory of God. When they are, they are satisfied and God is glorified. Therefore, loving people and glorifying God are one.”
– John Piper
Petition 6 (v. 44-45)
- Who is he praying for?
- God’s people in battle against their enemies.
- What provision is he praying for?
- Guidance
- Protection
Petition 7 (v. 46-53)
- Who is he praying for, and why?
- God’s people who have been taken captive because of their sin.
- What provision is he praying for?
- Repentance
- Forgiveness
- Compassion from their captors
- Restoration
Discussion Questions
- Pastor Tommy said, the dedication of the Temple was a directional signpost for what is to come. How is this true?
- Do you prepare to worship or just show up? How can you prepare to arrive for worship with expectancy?
- How might we learn how to pray from Solomon’s 7 petitions? What are some specific ways you would like your prayer life to change?
- Have you ever allowed the Lord’s Prayer to guide your own prayers; slowly, line by line?
“We cannot hold together human vulnerability and God’s trustworthiness at the same time unless there is some certain sign that God loves us, that He isn’t an absentee landlord or, worse, a monster… it takes the whole story of redemptive history to shape our questions about God’s presence in the darkness.”
– Tish Harrison Warren, Prayer in the Night
“The day is coming when there shall be a congregation that shall never break up, and a Sabbath that shall never end, a song of praise that shall never cease, and an assembly that shall never be dispersed.”
– J.C. Ryle