Welcomed

Today's Bible Reading: 1 KINGS 7:1-51, 2 CHRONICLES 3:15-4:22

1 Kings 7:13-14

And King Solomon sent and brought Hiram from Tyre. He was the son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in bronze. And he was full of wisdom, understanding, and skill for making any work in bronze. He came to King Solomon and did all his work.

When we read the Bible we can come across some strange scriptures. We find passages that we wonder why they have been included in the Cannon of scripture. They are often obscure statements that we can’t seem to understand God’s reasoning for  placing them in the Bible. Our reading for today presents one of these texts.

Solomon is preparing to build the temple. He had completed the construction of his palace and now focused his efforts on building “God’s House”. He intended to use only the finest material and employ the most skilled craftsmen to complete the temple. So He sought the best in materials and men to engage in this monumental task.

He found a man who “was full of wisdom, understanding, and skill for making any work in bronze.” Although He was not an Israelite, he was the best at what He did. His heritage had prepared him for the task. His father was “a worker in bronze” a gifted and skilled metal worker, who tutor his son in the “tools” of the trade. He was the obvious choice for the task.

There was one notable statement in the text. It is not often that the scripture gives us a detailed description of a person’s background who is employed to build something. But here we are told the ancestry and specifically the spiritual heritage of both of Hiram’s (Huram) parents. This is very intriguing and possesses the question, “Why?”

It was not typical to use non-Israelites to build a religious structure. The craftsmen who built the tabernacle were Israelites. God chose Bezalel from the tribe of Judah, and Oholiab from the tribe of Dan to be the chief craftsmen for that task (Ex 31:2-6). Here Hiram’s genealogy identifies him as a half-breed. “He was the son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre”. His mother was Israeli, but His father was not. We are not told of Hiram’s religious affinity, but it was assumed He was not an Israelite. So this was a seismic shift from previous practices. But again, “Why?”

It is possibly that this points to our God who welcomes all. He is the God of every tribe, tongue, and nation. He is accessible to all. All are welcome. Anyone regardless of their heritage can come to Him. Hiram is a picture of all of us who are not full blooded Jews. We are outcast, strangers, foreigners and aliens. We are seen by them as outside the “group”. But God did not choose a full-blooded Israelite to oversee the metal work. He did not pick a priest, a religious leader or any other Jew. He picked a half breed. He selected someone who was excluded from entering the temple to be included in erecting the temple (Acts 21:27-29). That’s just the way God is and that is what He does. He includes the excluded.

This is a beautiful picture of God’s inclusion of all people into His Kingdom. In the New Testament Paul and others went to great lengths to argue that those who were not born Jewish (aka Gentiles) could, through Jesus, come into a relationship with the God of the Jews. He states, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither salve nor free, there is no male or female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise” (Gal 3:28-29). In Christ we all can come into His presence. The prohibitive barriers that excluded us from entering the temple have been removed through the redeeming work of Christ. We have access. We are welcomed. It is not because of who we are, but because of what Jesus has done.

So you don’t have to be in “the group” to come in. The doors into God’s kingdom are open and accessible to all. Any and all who come to Him by faith in Jesus are accepted and given access. In this we can find great comfort, knowing that neither our background nor our bad behavior can exclude us from being in “God’s group”.

Today thank God that we all have access to Him. Praise Him that although you were not a descendant of Abraham, Jesus made a way for you to enter in. Thank Him that in Christ all the boundaries and barriers that excluded you form God’s kingdoms have been erased. Ask Him to help you live out this truth and tell others who feel excluded that they can enter in