The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 1 Kings 6:11-14,
"The word of the Lord came to Solomon: 'As for this temple you are building, if you follow my decrees, observe my laws and keep all my commands and obey them, I will fulfill through you the promise I gave to David your father. And I will live among the Israelites and will not abandon my people Israel.' So Solomon built the temple and completed it."
The temple Solomon built was the locus of the presence of the Lord in Israel. Israel was God's chosen covenanted people due to their patriarch's [Abraham's] faith. God had promised Abraham a people and that he would provide a place for them, the "promised land". When he provided it, he promised David he would maintain his presence among the Israelites as long as they fulfilled their part of the covenant. This structure David's son, King Solomon, built was where the Lord's presence would be located.
In an interesting observation Paul made to his listeners at the Areopagus, he said, "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands." Acts 17:24. This helps us understand that our Creator exists beyond the dimensions of time and space and so does not reside in any temple, including the one Solomon built. However, it was at this very temple that the Lord maintained his presence among the Israelites. It was the place to go to worship, to offer sacrifices, to bring petitions before the Lord.
What an astonishing opportunity Israel had! Paul tells us the temple worship was one of the many wonderful blessings Israel had as God's chosen people. In Romans 9:4-5 we read, "Theirs [the people of Israel] is the adoption to sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen."
While the temple no longer exists, and there is no facility like it in all of creation, God now provides his presence in a different type of temple. "As you come to him [Jesus Christ], the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." 1 Peter 2:4-5.
"The word of the Lord came to Solomon: 'As for this temple you are building, if you follow my decrees, observe my laws and keep all my commands and obey them, I will fulfill through you the promise I gave to David your father. And I will live among the Israelites and will not abandon my people Israel.' So Solomon built the temple and completed it."
The temple Solomon built was the locus of the presence of the Lord in Israel. Israel was God's chosen covenanted people due to their patriarch's [Abraham's] faith. God had promised Abraham a people and that he would provide a place for them, the "promised land". When he provided it, he promised David he would maintain his presence among the Israelites as long as they fulfilled their part of the covenant. This structure David's son, King Solomon, built was where the Lord's presence would be located.
In an interesting observation Paul made to his listeners at the Areopagus, he said, "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands." Acts 17:24. This helps us understand that our Creator exists beyond the dimensions of time and space and so does not reside in any temple, including the one Solomon built. However, it was at this very temple that the Lord maintained his presence among the Israelites. It was the place to go to worship, to offer sacrifices, to bring petitions before the Lord.
What an astonishing opportunity Israel had! Paul tells us the temple worship was one of the many wonderful blessings Israel had as God's chosen people. In Romans 9:4-5 we read, "Theirs [the people of Israel] is the adoption to sonship; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen."
While the temple no longer exists, and there is no facility like it in all of creation, God now provides his presence in a different type of temple. "As you come to him [Jesus Christ], the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." 1 Peter 2:4-5.
Where Solomon built a temple for the Lord by human hands, the Lord has built himself a temple within the hearts of his people. This is where the Lord's presence is found in the world today.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
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