1 Kings 8:41-43, "Also concerning the foreigner who is not of Thy people Israel, when he comes from a far country for Thy name's sake (for they will hear of Thy great name and Thy mighty hand, and of Thine outstretched arm); when he comes and prays toward this house, hear Thou in heaven Thy dwelling place, and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to Thee, in order that all the peoples of the earth may know Thy name, to fear Thee, as do Thy people Israel, and that they may know that this house which I have built is called by Thy name. 
	This morning we see the call of God that is set upon all those who belong to Him. This chapter is filled with all the praise and the adoration and the manifested worship and sacrifices that man is capable of offering to the Lord God Almighty. These aspects of worship and adoration are the frame to that which is at the heart of the essential being of those who belong to Jehovah. 
Solomon encapsulates that which we have considered in our recent study of discipleship. It is the fact that all are to see the love of God through the witness and the heart of compassion that would evidence Who God is and what He has done in the redemption of humanity unto Himself. That is our call and that is our mission as the members of the Beth Ab of God, Himself. He has given all the treasury of Heaven in Jesus Christ for the sake of the redemption of His created humankind. 
	In the very midst of the tremendous prayer of Solomon at the dedication of the Temple of God, there is that statement, this morning’s passage, which brings forth the full measure of what is at stake in the lives of those who belong to Yahweh. It is for the witness of the testimony of Jehovah in the entire world that this temple was so important to the nation of Israel and to the Lord. With the representation of the dwelling place of God in the midst of His people, they would as well become His representation within all His creation. The nations would see the magnificence and the majesty and the honor and the love of God through His Chosen people and would be drawn to worship and adore Him as well.
	This is recounted the second time for us in the prayer of Solomon in 2 Chron 6:32+33. This was such an important truth that The Holy Spirit made it manifestly evident twice in His Word.
2 Chron 6:32+33, "Also concerning the foreigner who is not from Thy people Israel, when he comes from a far country for Thy great name's sake and Thy mighty hand and Thine outstretched arm, when they come and pray toward this house, then hear Thou from heaven, from Thy dwelling place, and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to Thee, in order that all the peoples of the earth may know Thy name, and fear Thee, as do Thy people Israel, and that they may know that this house which I have built is called by Thy name. 
	…in order that all the peoples of the earth may know Thy name, and fear Thee, as do Thy people Israel… 
One of the most beloved books of the Bible details this result as we have so previously considered. Please turn back to the Book of Ruth. This young Moabitess was brought into the family of Elimelech and Naomi through the marriage to one of their sons. She had left her own family in order to become part of this beth ab of the people of God from Israel. 
Accordingly, after the death of her husband, her father-in-law, and her brother-in-law, she was left with two choices. She could try to reenter the community that she had forsaken by joining herself to this family of Hebrews, or she could go with her mother-in-law, back to Bethlehem. This would be an absolute turning her back on the community of her birth and clinging to the woman who represented the God of Israel, the Lord God Almighty, Jehovah. 
We will read the great passage, Ruth 1:16+17. This declaration has stood the test of time in terms of commitment and dedication to the one who represented the witness of Yahweh in that Moabite heart.
 Ruth 1:16+17, But Ruth said, "Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may the Lord do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me." 
	There had apparently been a witness of God through this family that touched the heart of Ruth to such an extent that she was willing to leave her natural family, her community, her country and become a foreigner in a foreign land to be with this beloved mother-in-law. There was that acknowledgement that the God of Naomi was the God that Ruth desired to serve and honor above all else.
	We see the result of this heart after Jehovah being met by God in verses 11+12 of the 2nd Chapter with the wisdom and insight of Boaz, who would become Ruth’s redeemer. This is a tremendous picture of what the nation, as a whole, was to present to the world. There was to be that heart which would seek out and bring in the widow, the orphan, the stranger, the lost, the hurting, the starving, the hopeless, the marginalized within and without the social structure of the nation of God.
Ruth 2:11+12, And Boaz answered and said to her, "All that you have done for your mother-in-law after the death of your husband has been fully reported to me, and how you left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and came to a people that you did not previously know. May the Lord reward your work, and your wages be full from the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to seek refuge." 
	Coming back to 1 Kings, in a few chapters, we will read about the queen of Sheba as she came to see exactly how wise Solomon was in regard to his position as the king of Israel. There was word that was spreading abroad as to how there was a nation which was blessed above all others with a prosperity that did not spring from natural resources or trade or conquest. This was a nation in whom the people were prospering through means that were beyond the skill and the aptitude of mere human endeavor. There was something more than what was customary and usual in the growth of this kingdom called Israel. The monarchs of those foreign lands desired to know more.
	Please open to 1 Kings 10:1-9, as we will read ahead for a moment to that which will be coming in the near months. This is a detailing of what is to be so prominent before us in our witness and our walk as the people of the Lord God Most High.
	1 Kings 10:1-9, Now when the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to test him with difficult questions.  So she came to Jerusalem with a very large retinue, with camels carrying spices and very much gold and precious stones. When she came to Solomon, she spoke with him about all that was in her heart. And Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was hidden from the king which he did not explain to her. When the queen of Sheba perceived all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, the food of his table, the seating of his servants, the attendance of his waiters and their attire, his cupbearers, and his stairway by which he went up to the house of the Lord, there was no more spirit in her. Then she said to the king, "It was a true report which I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. Nevertheless I did not believe the reports, until I came and my eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. You exceed in wisdom and prosperity the report which I heard. How blessed are your men, how blessed are these your servants who stand before you continually and hear your wisdom. Blessed be the Lord your God who delighted in you to set you on the throne of Israel; because the Lord loved Israel forever, therefore He made you king, to do justice and righteousness." 
	She saw how The Lord God of Israel was so blessing the nation with the wise ordination of Solomon and the decisions that were flowing forth from God through this monarch on the throne. There was something extraordinary about the entire witness of this nation of Jehovah that made an immense impression upon those who were outside the nation of Israel. 
There proceeded forth from her mouth the blessing upon Jehovah and upon His loving care of this, His people, through the bestowment of the wise ruler over them. All of this was to the testimony of the glory of God as spoken by this queen, who had to see for herself what the difference was within this country under the dominion of the God of Israel.
	This testimony unto the praise and adoration of Yahweh is carried forward in scripture as expressed in 1 Chron 16:28-34. Here, King David had assembled the priests as the ark of the Lord was brought into the city of Jerusalem. There was tremendous rejoicing expressed at that point unto The Lord as was heralded at the dedication of the Temple later in Israel’s history, as we read this morning. The key, however, is what the chorus was that the Levites and the priests sang unto Jehovah with all their beings.
	1 Chron 16:28-34, Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples, Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name; Bring an offering, and come before Him; Worship the Lord in holy array. Tremble before Him, all the earth; Indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved. Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; And let them say among the nations, "The Lord reigns." Let the sea roar, and all it contains; Let the field exult, and all that is in it. Then the trees of the forest will sing for joy before the Lord; For He is coming to judge the earth. O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; For His lovingkindness is everlasting. 
	Notice in this song of praise and adoration the fact that all the nations among the earth are to join into this chorus of the ascription of glory unto Jehovah. All are to declare that “The Lord reigns” which indicates a bowing down to the God of Heaven, the Creator and the Redeemer of mankind. 
All creation will ascribe to Him the greatness and the adoration and the honor and the glory with utmost fealty and utter obedience to His Sovereignty. This was to come forth as the nations would marvel at the working power of Jehovah in evidence in the nation of His choosing over all the others of the world. 
This choice was in order that through this spiritually governed people, the rest of the world would see and be brought into the very family of God. This would not be through military conquest, or economic superiority, or social or governmental decrees. It would be by the fact of seeing that there is truly only One Lord God Almighty as He is displayed more and more perfectly through the witness of His people, His Beth Ab!
	This then comes to the conclusion that was voiced by the Prophet Isaiah in Isa 56:1-8. Please open to this passage as we will use it as our conclusion for this morning. In it, The Lord expounds upon the principle of trust and obedience unto Him that will draw in those who are watching so intently as the people of God live their lives in witness of Who He is and all that He has done, is doing, and continues to accomplish, day in and day out!
	Isa 56:1-8, Thus says the Lord, "Preserve justice, and do righteousness, For My salvation is about to come And My righteousness to be revealed. "How blessed is the man who does this, And the son of man who takes hold of it; Who keeps from profaning the sabbath, And keeps his hand from doing any evil." Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say, "The Lord will surely separate me from His people." Neither let the eunuch say, "Behold, I am a dry tree." For thus says the Lord, To the eunuchs who keep My sabbaths, And choose what pleases Me, And hold fast My covenant, To them I will give in My house and within My walls a memorial, And a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name which will not be cut off. "Also the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, To minister to Him, and to love the name of the Lord, To be His servants, every one who keeps from profaning the sabbath, And holds fast My covenant; Even those I will bring to My holy mountain, And make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be acceptable on My altar; For My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples." The Lord God, who gathers the dispersed of Israel, declares, "Yet others I will gather to them, to those already gathered." 
	Thus the great plan of God for the inclusion of all the nations and of all those peoples who would turn to Him and seek Him and honor Him is fully stated within the given Word of God. There was nothing exclusionary about this great redemptive plan of the nation of Israel! They were not to make themselves the end all of what God was bringing forth. They were to be the witness through whom all would see and know about the redemption of God for the sake of His glory and honor in the totality of His creation! 
	We will look at this in greater measure, the next time that we are together in this passage, Lord willing. So be it.
	"Also concerning the foreigner who is not of Thy people Israel, when he comes from a far country for Thy name's sake (for they will hear of Thy great name and Thy mighty hand, and of Thine outstretched arm); when he comes and prays toward this house, hear Thou in heaven Thy dwelling place, and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to Thee, in order that all the peoples of the earth may know Thy name, to fear Thee, as do Thy people Israel, and that they may know that this house which I have built is called by Thy name. Amen.

This morning’s benediction is Ps 72:18+19. Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, Who alone works wonders. And blessed be His glorious name forever; And may the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen, and Amen.