For a brief period, Israel was very close to Camelot. A king with a heart after God established its borders and took possession of its capital city, Jerusalem, to display perpetual praise and offerings to God most high.
As this king was dying and his son, Solomon, was assuming his role as the rightful king of Israel, a prayer was offered on his behalf. Psalm 72 captures this cry of the heart beautifully:
“May he come down like rain upon the mown grass,
Like showers that water the earth.
In his days may the righteous flourish,
And abundance of peace till the moon is no more.”
Psalm 72:6-7
Rain upon grass…showers watering the earth…the flourishing of the righteous…and peace everlasting.
Here in North Texas, we have endured drought and abnormally high temperatures. As a result, the AC has been working overtime, and the plants, trees, and grass have displayed displeasure with dropped leaves, wilted stems, and brown patches smattering the yard.
Even with watering from a well, our property has been bent to the realities of the lack of rain and sweltering temperatures.
As you have witnessed in your life, a drought–even with modern technology–wreaks havoc on the earth. To be in a drought is to be held in suspension. Outside of watering with a sprinkler–curbed with restrictions and finite resources–waiting and praying for rain with a heart of dependence on God’s provision is all we can do.
That’s where I have been—waiting and praying for rain.
This week, things changed. To my wonder, we received approximately one inch of ground saturating and plant reviving rain in two days. It was incredible. It was an answer to prayer.
The Psalmist above captures this heart of dependence and applies it to the ruler over Israel–God’s nation and God’s established rule for the earth.
But, there was a problem.
Neither Saul, David, nor Solomon brought the refreshing rain for the benefit and flourishing of God’s people.
Saul blatantly disobeyed God’s commands and died in a jealous rage. David disobeyed God’s commands and died in vindictive paranoia. Finally, Solomon broke God’s commands and allied himself through more marriages and concubines than seemed humanly possible. Moreover, he was the first king to set up altars to worship pagan deities in Israel.
All in all, the kings of Israel’s so-called Camelot did not bring the replenishment of rain but judgment and poor examples for future generations. The consequences were exile, judgment, and the great Jewish diaspora.
They failed–by their disobedience–to bring the rain upon the promised land, and their actions displayed the same need we all face today. In the same way, those kings failed, and so did (do) we. Our actions, thoughts, and words bear witness to this sad reality. Categorically, we do not bring rain to our so-called spheres of influence and positions of authority. Instead, we offer the same results the best in Israel offered: our selfish desires.
That’s why they (and we) are hopeless in and of ourselves. We need a King who is like the spring rain. We need a Savior who showers life upon the earth. We need a Friend who displays the flourishing of our heart’s desires. We need a Prince who brings peace everlasting.
We need Jesus Christ, the Messiah, to stand in our place, take the penalty of our sin, and offer us fellowship with the Father by His grace through faith.
How Does This Apply To Us Today?
“Come, let us return to the Lord.
For He has torn us, but He will heal us;
He has wounded us, but He will bandage us.
“He will revive us after two days;
He will raise us up on the third day,
That we may live before Him.
“So let us know, let us press on to know the Lord.
His going forth is as certain as the dawn;
And He will come to us like the rain,
Like the spring rain watering the earth.”
Hosea 6:1-3
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