THAT ALL THE EARTH MAY KNOW
“That all the people of the earth may know that the LORD is God, and that there is none else.” I Kings 8:60
The work of building the magnificent temple in Solomon’s day was complete. The furniture was in place. The priests exited the holy place after placing the ark of the covenant in its proper position. At that moment, the “glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD” (I Kings 8:11). Solomon then prayed the lengthy prayer of dedication, and stood and blessed the people of Israel. As he was blessing them, he included in his words this great purpose that we have in our Scripture in I Kings 8:60, “That all the people of the earth may know that the LORD is God, and that there is none else.”
Why do we need God’s power and presence with us? Why is it so important that we obey God and walk in submission to Him? One answer to those questions is found in our text: that all the earth may know about our God. What a profound purpose! What a mission statement! What a reason for living and serving: THAT ALL THE EARTH MAY KNOW. This gives meaning to our existence.
How can we make our lives count? Life becomes very shallow when we interpret everything through the filter of “How will this help me?” God is certainly good to us, and He faithfully and daily loads us with benefits. But ultimately, it is not all about us. We are here to influence others. It matters how we live in this world. We tell others of our Savior because it is important THAT ALL THE EARTH MAY KNOW. We serve in our church and its ministries THAT ALL THE EARTH MAY KNOW. We are involved in outreach programs of our church in the community THAT ALL THE EARTH MAY KNOW. We give our money to God through the church and support the missions program of the church THAT ALL THE EARTH MAY KNOW. We pray for God’s work to go forward and His Word to prosper THAT ALL THE EARTH MAY KNOW. We teach and train our children to live for Christ THAT ALL THE EARTH MAY KNOW.
This verse reminds us of a very simple, and yet powerful reality. God wants all the earth to know. He cares about every person on the planet. Every creature needs to hear. Every kindred, nation, and tongue needs to know. We serve, labor, pray, and give THAT ALL THE EARTH MAY KNOW.