King James Daily Bible Study Devotional
Message Title: Prayer And Supplication
Date: Wednesday April 11, 2012
Today's Chapters: 1 Kings 8-9

Hello My Friend,

Of all the religions out there, the one thing they all have in common is prayer, prayer means a solemn request for help or expression of thanks addressed to God, a deity, or an object of worship. There is only One God, One deity, and One object of worship, and that is the Almighty God Himself. And to the faithful Christian, prayer is powerful for God is that power. Probably the most famous Bible verse about praying is, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:” -Matthew 7:7. So, we ask, we seek, we knock, but do we get? “From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.” - James 4:1-3.

In order for God to hear our prayers we need His presence, King Solomon is credited for having built the first Temple of God or church for God. It was a beautiful building, gold and precious jewels in the midst of it, even the door hinges were pure gold, I imagine it was pretty breathtaking. Now, with that said, just as any other church, without the presence of God, it's just a beautiful building. It was time for God to enter the building, Solomon gathered all the important people together to retrieve the Ark of God to place in the Temple. “Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion..There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt. And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD, So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD.” - 1 Kings 8:1,9-11.

Thousands of people walked with the king, priests, and Levites, worshiping, singing, and praising God, as soon as the priests walk away from the Ark God's Spirit moves in the building, it is so powerful and bright that no one could stand. What an amazing sight! Today, God's glory does not dwell in a building, but within the body of a save soul, is still as powerful and bright as it was back then. God's glory, His Spirit, shines off of all who personally know Jesus Christ as their Savior and allow His Spirit to move in and dwell in them. Allowing Christ to live in and through us shows God that we love Him. “So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.” - Romans 8:8-10.

As the people stood in the courtyard and worshiped the Lord, Solomon stood on a platform and prayed the longest recorded prayer in the Bible. “If they sin against thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captives unto the land of the enemy, far or near; Yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captives, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wickedness; And so return unto thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the land of their enemies, which led them away captive, and pray unto thee toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy name: Then hear thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven thy dwelling place, and maintain their cause, And forgive thy people that have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against thee, and give them compassion before them who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them:” - 1 Kings 8:46-50.

See the words of the wise Solomon, “For there us no man that sinneth not.” We are all sinners and come short of the glory of God. Perhaps we are not receiving the things we are asking for is because there is sin in our lives. Along with prayer needs to be supplication, meaning we are to ask God, humbly and earnestly, when we add supplication to our prayer, forgiveness of sins is applied also. With prayer and supplication God really pays attention. “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” - James 4:1-3,7-10.

Solomon knew well that there was only one God, that God looked upon the heart, and that God's presence was not just contained in that small building, but is still every where the believer is. Later that night God responded to Solomon prayer, in another dream. “And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually. And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments: Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel. But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them: Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people:” - 1 Kings 9:3-7.

God assures Solomon he and his family will live a successful, prosperous life as long as he followed Him with all his heart, just as his father David did. God also came with a warning, turn away and you will suffer. A byword is a person cited as a notorious and outstanding example, in other words a bad name. People make a bad name for themselves when they get caught up in wicked behavior, even Christian's. Prayer is a wonderful privilege given to us by God, through our faith in our Lord, Jesus Christ, but all our prayers and supplications are worthless unless we give ourselves to God wholeheartedly. “Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus...Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.” - Philippians 4:5-7,9.

Today's Psalm: 69:32 - “The humble shall see this, and be glad: and your heart shall live that seek God.”

Today's Proverb: 28:9 - “He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination.”

Today's Prayer: God, I know that if I ask anything believing that I will receive it, but I also know that before You give me the things I ask for I need to make sure I am not asking amiss or hindering myself from receiving them. Lord, You know my heart, and as I humble myself before You, search my heart, know my thoughts, see if there be any wickedness or hindrances in me. Help me to never cease from offering prayer and supplication to You, for when I call You, humbly believing, You will listen and answer my prayers when I give all my heart to You. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Enjoy the rest of your day/night.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

Are You 100% Sure That You Are Going To Heaven? You Can Be. Visit: God's Price
Missed A Devotional? Visit: The King James Bible Study Blog
Subscribe To This Devotional Through Google Groups: King James Bible Study
Visit The Official Site Of: I'm Following Jesus
Like Us On Facebook: I'm Following Jesus