1 Chronicles 28:9-21 And you, Solomon my son, know you the God of your father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind… No better advice could have been given to the young sovereign of Israel. No better advice can to-day be given to the young sovereigns who fill our churches and Sunday-schools. So far as Solomon followed this advice he was prosperous beyond any that went before him; as soon as he forgot this advice the terrible warning with which the verse ends was fulfilled, and the disappointed misanthrope in the Book of Ecclesiastes tells us of the sorrows of a man whom God has forsaken. As God chose Solomon, so does He choose every young man and woman for some special work, which they alone can best accomplish. There are four things to be noticed in this charge. I. KNOW THOU GOD. 1. Through the Bible. 2. Providence. 3. Through the communings of our own heart. II. Know thou thy FATHER'S God. Every generation need not begin at the beginning, as though the fathers knew nothing about God. There is much foolish talk about thinking these great truths concerning God and religion through for ourselves. That our fathers served God is a reason why we should not discard Him. III. SERVE HIM WITH A PERFECT HEART. IV. SERVE HIM WITH A WILLING MIND. It is said that when the Princess Victoria was called to the kingdom, the messengers, who were the highest dignitaries of State, arrived at her palace from the death-bed of the king very early in the morning. They had great difficulty in arousing any one; but at length the princess's maid appeared, who said that her mistress was in such a sweet sleep that it was a pity to disturb her. "Tell her," said the Archbishop of Canterbury, "that we have come on business of importance to the queen, and even her slumbers must give way to that." Very soon the princess appeared, and was invested with royal robes and prerogatives. To every young person comes the messenger of God telling them of their Father's good pleasure that they should inherit the kingdom. No one can afford to neglect the summons. (F. E. Clark.) Parallel Verses KJV: And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever. |
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