The Prayers of Foreigners

 1 Kings 8; 2 Chronicles 5; Psalms. 99; Romans 3

“’As for the foreigner who does not belong to your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your name – for they will hear of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched arm – when he comes and prays toward this temple, then hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your own people Israel…’”

1 Kings 8:41-43

Solomon’s prayer of dedication for the temple included a plea that God would listen to the prayers of foreigners who were seeking God’s favor. The court of the Gentiles at the temple was set aside for these pilgrims and God-seekers. Acts 8 gives us the story of the Ethiopian royal court official who came to the temple in Jerusalem to pray and learn about the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The Ethiopian left Israel, baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit, so that his body became a temple of God’s presence.

Are nations able to see God and find faith in him through the Spirit-filled temples of our lives and our collective witness as the Church?

The salvation of all nations has always been on God’s heart.

“Lord, may all nations hear of your name and find salvation, for your glory.”