6-26-19 Today in the Word

DAVID CHOSE THE RIGHT TREASURE
Wednesday, June 26, 2019 | 1 Chronicles 29:1–14

In the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Donovan chose the wrong Grail cup. When given the same choice, Indiana Jones chose rightly. On the table were gold, bejeweled, and richly designed cups. But Indy chose a simple wooden vessel, "the cup of a carpenter," and he passed the test!
King David, too, possessed the spiritual discernment to choose the right treasure. He could have been eaten up by disappointment at God’s rejection of his request to build a temple. Instead, he made preparations for his son Solomon to do so (v. 1). At a public assembly, he had a decision to make: How much to give toward the project? He’d already allocated significant resources from the royal treasury (v. 2), and he could have chosen to do nothing. Instead, motivated by “devotion to the temple of my God,” he also gave significantly out of his own personal treasures (vv. 3–5).
David gave publicly, not for the praise of others but to set a good example (vv. 6–9). He personally gave 110 tons of gold and 260 tons of silver. He inspired the national leaders, and they also gave generously—190 tons of gold and 380 tons of silver, in addition to large quantities of bronze, iron, and precious jewels. There was no coercion involved. The giving was done “freely and wholeheartedly” as an act of consecration to the Lord (vv. 5, 9). The people rejoiced over the godly generosity of their leaders!
David was much more wealthy and powerful than the rich young man in yesterday’s reading, but all his possessions didn’t own him. He knew: “Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand” (v. 14). He didn’t trust in riches. Instead, his greatest treasure was his relationship with God!
APPLY THE WORD
David’s prayer of praise in verses 10–14 would make a good meditation for your time with the Lord today. Though you’re probably not going to be putting tons of gold in the offering plate, the principles are the same. We give to the Lord in cheerful gratitude as stewards of resources that are in fact His (2 Cor. 9:7).

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

9-16-23 Santa Staleness

Santa Staleness :: By Edwin Tan Published on: December 24, 2022 by RR10 Category:General Articles My one and only trip to Israel had more than a profound effect on my present-day psyche. It might have been three decades ago, but there is more than a lingering aftertaste. It happened smack in the last fortnight of the year. Surprisingly absent were the familiar sights and sounds of the Christmas most people are accustomed to. Hardly any Christmas decorations in downtown Tel Aviv, if not any of the shopping thoroughfares across the Holy Land. Hanukah was a breath of fresh air – not anything resembling a Christmas carol most people grew up with did surface. The Christmas Eve service in a small Protestant church not far away from Jerusalem’s Old City was awesome; songs that truly celebrated the virgin birth of our Lord, which though seemingly unheard of, were a welcome inspiration to many a soul. There was even one sung in Arabic! So it began, my overt disdain for the secular Christmas t...
Read more

9-25-23 The Farm Chronicles: One Christmas

The Farm Chronicles: One Christmas :: By Bill Wilson Published on: December 24, 2022 by RR10 Category:Bill Wilson, General Articles There are a lot of terrible things going on right now in the world. But we are at the time of the year when we, as Christians, celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. We can choose to be impacted by the world around us in its dimly lit arena, or we can choose to let our light so shine. I choose the latter. I want to tell you a little about the Christmas that I had growing up on our family farm in Ohio. I was blessed to be born into a horse and cattle farm that has been in our family for some 200 years. And Christmas, especially Christmas Eve, was a wonderful time for our family. December 24 was my Dad’s birthday. And my Dad was well-loved by his neighbors and friends, so we had a lot going on Christmas Eve. I remember one special Christmas Eve. I must have been about four years old. The night was falling, and the wind and snow were whipping across the barny...
Read more

9-15-23 Miracles 2

Miracles 2 :: By Jim Towers Published on: December 21, 2022 by RR10 Category:General Articles This story is a continuation of the exciting things God continues doing in my life. I was supposed to have died a while back, and sometimes I feel as though I may do so soon. But since I’m ready to meet my maker, I have no fear of death. In fact, my evangelistic zeal has only increased, especially as I see the fast approaching of the “Tribulation period” mentioned in the book of Revelation. Insofar as my acting career is concerned, I just finished filming a soliloquy featuring Melchior, one of the three Magi who followed the star to Christ lying in the manger, and am preparing to portray a Jewish Priest on stage. Like I said, God is working overtime in my life, and I will be appearing on stage singing Broadway show tunes sometime in March, so I have a lot of rehearsing to do. In the meantime, I will be signing Christmas carols acapella at a park here in Naples. Since it is a spontaneous th...
Read more