SEASONS OF THE KINGDOM Posted 9.13.07
1 KINGS
The book of 1 Kings is a continuation of the chronicle of the kings of Israel. Saul and David began the monarchy as recorded in 1 & 2 Samuel. The focus of these histories however is not the economy or political correctness of the day, but the record of God’s work among the kings of Israel and Judah, and the people’s response to God on a daily basis.
Our key verses for this study are “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.” I Kings 8:23
Notice the obvious emphasis on God’s leadership and love. Regard carefully His desire for wholehearted followers.
“He is the one.” I Kings 8:19b
We chose this verse as a reminder from the 1 & 2 Samuel studies: God has a call on every life. For some aspect of life on this earth, 1 Kings 8:19b applies to you. You are the one He has called.
To what has he called you? How are you responding?
Our title “Seasons of the Kingdom” prompts the study-long question:
“What season is it for you and the Lord?”
1 KINGS
Let’s play a word association game. For every word or phrase I list, you say the season it represents. (Seasons include: summer, fall, winter, spring, Easter, Christmas, various sports, even tax!)
Word Pictures: Sunglasses, Snow, Calculator, pitching, spiking, leaves turning, manger
Answers: summer, winter, tax, baseball, volleyball, fall, Christmas
We enjoy many seasons in our everyday world and identifying them is second-nature to us. As we study Seasons in the Kingdom, we will learn to identify spiritual seasons in our lives and hopefully gain an understanding of God’s ways in those seasons and His desires for each of us.
The seasons we will study are: Times of Building, Times of Battling, and Times of Boldness.
There are many more seasons of the Kingdom, but on these three we will focus. However, just as I am often involved in baseball season and girls’ soccer season at the same time, sometimes one area of our life is experiencing building while in another we battle.
What time is it for you and the Lord in the different areas of your life?