Passion For People
Your passions are revealed through what you build and will direct your path.
“Solomon gave orders to build a temple for the Name of the LORD and a royal palace for himself. Now I am about to build a temple for the Name of the LORD my God…for burning fragrant incense before him, for setting out the consecrated bread regularly, and for making burnt offerings every morning and evening…But who is able to build a temple for him, since the heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain him?…Praise be to the LORD…He has given King David a wise son, endowed with intelligence and discernment…Solomon took a census of all the foreigners…He assigned 70,000 of them to be carriers and 80,000 to be stonecutters in the hills, with 3,600 foremen over them to keep the people working.” 2 Chronicles 2:1-18
What are you most passionate about? What are your deepest desires? What drives you? What is the thing that most energizes you when you think about accomplishing it? For Solomon, it was building the temple and building a home for himself. What will it be for you? What will your legacy when you look back at what you built with the work of your hands or words of your mouth?
Solomon revealed why building a temple was so important to him. He said so that people could burn incense, set out bread, and make an offering. Do you read right past those practices? Do they seem important or ordinary? Solomon wanted the people to make memories. He wanted them to connect and draw close and learn to trust the Lord Almighty. The life of faith is experiential. The Bible is not just a collection of ancient words written to give us wisdom. It is power and experience.
Can you think of how certain smells bring you back to special places? That’s what burning incense does. Can you think about a special gift someone gave you? The daily bread was a reminder of manna from heaven. The gift God gave to sustain his people in the wilderness. Can you think of a sacrifice someone has made for you or that you have made that was meaningful? Relationship relationships deepen as sacrifices are made to the benefit of another. Look no further than the parent child relationship for a perfect example of this.
What we see in the text is that Solomon desired more than anything to help other people draw close to God. It was his passion. His zeal. Then Solomon used his influence and authority to put the plan into action. Your heart is the steering wheel for your life. It drives and directs. The passions that fill your heart reveal the roadmap of your life and will shape the legacy you leave.
“You, God, know my folly; my guilt is not hidden from you. For I endure scorn for your sake, and shame covers my face. I am a foreigner to my own family, a stranger to my own mother’s children; for zeal for your house consumes me, and the insults of those who insult you fall on me. When I weep and fast, I must endure scorn; I pray to you, LORD, in the time of your favor; in your great love, O God, answer me with your sure salvation. Do not let the floodwaters engulf me…Answer me, LORD, out of the goodness of your love; in your great mercy turn to me. Come near…I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving. This will please the LORD more than an ox…The poor will see and be glad— you who seek God, may your hearts live! The LORD hears the needy…for God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah. Then people will settle there and possess it…and those who love his name will dwell there”Psalms 69:5-36
The greater your dreams, the greater the obstacles you will have to overcome to accomplish all you can. David described his life as king as one full of enemies and with floodwaters engulfing him. Almost wonder if he was thought about throwing in the towel on the whole king thing and quit. Can you relate to how David felt? Ever feel overwhelmed and uncertain as to whether it makes sense to endure hardship to pursue holiness?
David felt alone. He said he felt like a foreigner in his own family. How do you respond when your passions are not as important to other people? David said it was his zeal that separated him from his family, yet Solomon his son is the one who carried the torch to build the temple. When David was not sure how to respond, he turned to God. He prayed. He trusted. Think of how his faithfulness while enduring difficulty helped shape the steadfast heart of Solomon to build the temple. Building a temple was far beyond what a person could do and yet the seeds of endurance were sown in his heart as he saw his father keep pursuing God through the drama. You just never know how your obedience will inspire others.
Notice how David goes through different stages of processing all the pressure. It said that he fasted, prayed, and put on sackcloth. All good practices, but most importantly he did not stay there. He kept going until he got to a place where he could praise God and give thanks. This is so important for each of us if we are going to be people who build lives that leave a legacy. We have to keep going and keep our focus on what matters to God.
David said that the praise of his mouth will inspire the poor. That might be an odd pairing if one does not understand that kingdom purposes always lift up others in need. David said God hears the needy and so did he. He did not get so focused on what he was going through that he missed what God wanted to do in and through him. Many people get off track because they’re so focused on what’s happening to them that they miss what God wants to do through them. What does God want do through you today as he shapes your passions for His purposes?
“Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but whoever hates correction is stupid. Good people obtain favor from the LORD, but he condemns those who devise wicked schemes. The plans of the righteous are just, but the advice of the wicked is deceitful. A person is praised according to their prudence, and one with a warped mind is despised. From the fruit of their lips people are filled with good things, and the work of their hands brings them reward. The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice. Fools show their annoyance at once, but the prudent overlook an insult…those who promote peace have joy. Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up. The righteous choose their friends carefully, but the way of the wicked leads them astray. In the way of righteousness there is life; along that path is immortality.”Proverbs 12:1-28
Solomon was very good at helping people see the difference between living wisely and living foolishly. The man who wanted to help people draw close to God by building a temple also wanted them to be aware of how doing whatever they pleased could lead to a life of pain. He calls that person the fool. Ironically, David had said that God knows all his folly because the truth is we all have a little fool in us. The more we can be aware of our blind spots and issues the more we can overcome them in Christ. Is there anything you are doing currently unwise? Not necessarily flagrantly foolish but not what is best in the eyes of the Lord? Why are you doing it?
Discipleship starts with discipline. It starts with saying no to the flesh and saying yes to the spirit. It is the daily practice of choosing wisdom over foolishness. Pleasing God over pleasing oneself. Solomon said people are praised for their prudence. When was the last time you gave thanks for prudence? Calling someone a prude in middle school or high school was slander. But in the kingdom, prudence leads to peace and fulfillment of kingdom purposes. Where would you benefit from being a little more prude?
Solomon really steps into our business in this passage. We can love Jesus, but not always love like Jesus. Solomon said fools show their annoyance at once. How often are you annoyed? How quickly are you annoyed? Solomon said this reveals what is in your heart. He said those who overlook offense and promote peace have joy. So the question is, what do you want? Do you want joy as you journey? Are you willing to let others have the last word and trust God with outcomes? Solomon is getting to the heart of one of the issues that can keep us from accomplishing all that we desire. Offense can get us off track as fast as anything. Do you have any offense in your heart? Are you willing to let go?
“Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. He did evil in the eyes of the LORD…So in the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his whole army. They encamped outside the city and built siege works all around it…He set fire to the temple of the LORD, the royal palace and all the houses of Jerusalem. Every important building he burned down…But Nebuzaradan left behind the rest of the poorest people of the land to work the vineyards and fields…Awel-Marduk became king of Babylon, on the twenty-fifth day of the twelfth month, he released Jehoiachin king of Judah and freed him from prison. He spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat of honor higher than those of the other kings who were with him in Babylon. So Jehoiachin put aside his prison clothes and for the rest of his life ate regularly at the king’s table.” Jeremiah 52:4-33
Jeremiah tells the tale of two kings. Zedekiah and Jehoiachin. Both are lead into captivity and lose their authority, but one of them is set free. One of them sheds their prison clothes, and dines at the Kings table the rest of his days. One of them received kind words that cheered his heart like Solomon described in Proverbs.
So what was the difference between the two of them? Same job titles and same opportunity for impact, but very different results. A little context can help capture how it can help us draw closer in our walks with Christ. Jehoiachin surrendered to Babylon. His reign lasted only three months before he was carried into exile. Zedekiah did almost exactly the opposite. Jeremiah repeatedly warned him that God’s judgment was coming through Babylon and that his path to life was to surrender. The wise person listens and finds love waiting for them, the other does not. Neither road was easy but one ended with blessing.
The truth is we are told the same. If we are to follow Jesus, the path to life, the righteous path, begins with surrender. It begins with humility. You may want to do great things, but the first thing to consider is surrendering full control of your heart to Jesus. He alone is worthy and knows which way will lead you to becoming who he made you to be and accomplishing all that you can with what you have been given. Have you surrendered control or do you have to have things your way?
“a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. Coming over to us, he took Paul’s belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, “The Holy Spirit says, ‘In this way the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles.’ ” Then Paul answered, “I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus….When he would not be dissuaded, we gave up and said, “The Lord’s will be done.” Paul greeted them and reported in detail what God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. When they heard this, they praised God…thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the law. The next day Paul took the men and purified himself…Then he went to the temple…Jews from the province of Asia saw Paul at the temple. They stirred up the whole crowd and seized him…they dragged him from the temple…As the soldiers were about to take Paul into the barracks, he asked the commander, “May I say something to you?…I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city. Please let me speak to the people.” Acts 21:8-39
Paul’s actions showed what he was passionate about and what mattered most to him. The man who had murdered Christians but had been redeemed by grace wanted to share the good news of Jesus Christ. His previous passion of persecuting people he thought were wrong went by the wayside. Encountering Jesus changes everything for him.
Paul was surrounded by people who were zealous for the law, but Paul was zealous for Jesus. He had been warned that suffering was waiting for him, yet he kept moving forward. Even when the crowd seized him, he was beaten, and imprisoned; Paul’s first thought was not how he could escape but whether he could share. He just wanted another opportunity to tell someone about Jesus. His circumstances could change, his freedom could be taken away, and his plans could be interrupted, but his purpose remained the same. The Lord’s will be done.
Look at how all the passages connect. Solomon built because his heart desired to help people draw near to God. David endured the floodwaters because zeal for God’s house consumed him. Proverbs teaches us to guard that passion with wisdom, patience, peace, and discipline so that offense does not knock us off course. Jeremiah shows us that the road to life begins with surrender. Paul shows us what can happen when a surrendered heart becomes a focused heart. What fills your heart eventually directs your feet. What you are passionate about shapes what you build, what you endure, what you overlook, what you surrender, and ultimately where your life goes.
So give Jesus your heart. Not just your Sunday, your Bible reading, or the parts of your life you are comfortable handing over. Give Him your dreams, your ambitions, your disappointments, your gifts, your energy, and your future. You do not have to figure out where all of it will lead. He already knows you, He knows what He put inside of you, and He knows the path ahead. Surrender to Him and then keep moving. Build what He asks you to build. Love the people He puts in front of you. Let go of the offenses that would distract you. Keep going when the floodwaters rise. And wherever He takes you, may the passion of your life increasingly become the simple prayer that carried Paul forward: The Lord’s will be done.