1 Kings 10 sermon, “Solomon and His Wealth”

From a sermon series on 1 Kings by See Huang Lim, a new missionary at IBF. Intro Today, we will read 1 Kings chapter 10. It is the last happy chapter in Solomon’s story before his decline as king of Israel. I would like to reflect on 3 topics from this chapter: (1) the source of wealth; (2) attitudes towards money; and finally, (3) what we can learn from the Queen of Sheba. [Read 1 Kings 10] Israel was doing very well economically. The details in this chapter are meant to impress the reader. 10 times, the word “gold” is mentioned. Imagine you’re a tourist visiting Solomon’s palace. Everything is

1 Kings 8, Part 2: “The Contrasting Qualities of God”

Last month, we looked at the contrasting qualities of God in 1 Kings chapter 8. We saw how God is mysterious and yet clear. He is the King of the world and yet loyal to his people. He is much greater than anything and yet wants to have a relationship with us. Chapter 8 was quite long, so we didn’t finish it. Today we will finish it by looking at a few more contrasting qualities of God. The first contrast is judgment and mercy, and I would like to focus on that. The second contrast is the big picture and the little details. So let’s read chapter 8, starting from

Team Evangelism

While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off. – Acts 13:2-3 From 22 March to 31 March 2017, we went on a field trip to visit a church in Detroit, Michigan, with support from the Japan Covenant Churches Evangelism Committee. It has been 7 years since Pastor Shunichi Miyamoto and his wife Masako began reaching out to Japanese people living in Detroit. They had a hard time initially and felt ill-prepared for the

1 Kings 7 sermon, “Solomon and the Temple, Part 2”

From a sermon series on 1 Kings by See Huang Lim, a new missionary at IBF. Last month, I talked about how King Solomon built the first temple for God. Today’s sermon continues reflecting on the temple, but this time, the topic is about achievement and dependence. Let’s ask if our achievements bring glory to God or only to ourselves. Let’s also reflect on whether we remember God in our daily life and depend on Him. Our main text today is 1 Kings 7. This chapter is full of details about the buildings Solomon constructed, including the temple. But I will only read a few verses, and you can read