June 10
1 Kings 7:1-51; Acts 7:30-50; Psalm 128:1-6; Proverbs 16:31-33
Tucked away in the depths of I Kings 7 is a mention of Huram, who created all the elaborate bronze work for God’s temple. Huram can serve as a profound reminder of the fact that God has “good works” that He “prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).
As I Kings 7:14 mentions, Huram’s mother was from the tribe of Naphtali, making him a Jew; and his father, from Tyre, was a “skilled craftsman in bronze”—making Huram the perfect person to outfit the Lord’s temple. After all, he was “filled with wisdom, with understanding, and with knowledge to do all kinds of bronze work.” This was not a mere coincidence. It did not “just so happen” that someone found this guy who was an amazingly talented bronze worker whose mom “just happened” to be Jewish. This was the working of our Lord, preparing the way ahead of time so that His temple, His perfect plans, would come to fruition.
Similarly, throughout our reading in Acts 6 and 7, we see how God prepared and chose Stephen for this moment, enabling him to give a perfect defense of Jesus to the Jews listening, going all the way back to Moses and Joshua, quoting Scripture precisely, for (as Acts 6:5 explains), God had filled Stephen with the Spirit and wisdom, knowing what He had called Stephen to do.
When we “walk in obedience to Him” (Psalm 128:1), doing those “good works” that He has “prepared in advance for us to do”, God promises that we “will eat the fruit of [our] labor”. For Huram, I imagine he was able to do so on earth, after the temple work was completed. For Stephen, this promise was for heaven. No matter what God has prepared for us, we can continue in confidence, knowing that His plans are indeed perfect, and His promises are true.
Dear Father, Thank You for preparing me for what You have for me to do. Please confirm that I am walking in obedience to You. I trust Your perfect plans. Amen.
Question: Reflecting on my life thus far, how has He perfectly prepared me for what I am doing right now?
Tucked away in the depths of I Kings 7 is a mention of Huram, who created all the elaborate bronze work for God’s temple. Huram can serve as a profound reminder of the fact that God has “good works” that He “prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).
As I Kings 7:14 mentions, Huram’s mother was from the tribe of Naphtali, making him a Jew; and his father, from Tyre, was a “skilled craftsman in bronze”—making Huram the perfect person to outfit the Lord’s temple. After all, he was “filled with wisdom, with understanding, and with knowledge to do all kinds of bronze work.” This was not a mere coincidence. It did not “just so happen” that someone found this guy who was an amazingly talented bronze worker whose mom “just happened” to be Jewish. This was the working of our Lord, preparing the way ahead of time so that His temple, His perfect plans, would come to fruition.
Similarly, throughout our reading in Acts 6 and 7, we see how God prepared and chose Stephen for this moment, enabling him to give a perfect defense of Jesus to the Jews listening, going all the way back to Moses and Joshua, quoting Scripture precisely, for (as Acts 6:5 explains), God had filled Stephen with the Spirit and wisdom, knowing what He had called Stephen to do.
When we “walk in obedience to Him” (Psalm 128:1), doing those “good works” that He has “prepared in advance for us to do”, God promises that we “will eat the fruit of [our] labor”. For Huram, I imagine he was able to do so on earth, after the temple work was completed. For Stephen, this promise was for heaven. No matter what God has prepared for us, we can continue in confidence, knowing that His plans are indeed perfect, and His promises are true.
Dear Father, Thank You for preparing me for what You have for me to do. Please confirm that I am walking in obedience to You. I trust Your perfect plans. Amen.
Question: Reflecting on my life thus far, how has He perfectly prepared me for what I am doing right now?
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