The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, and majestic in his radiant splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Isaiah 66:1-2a,
"This is what the Lord says:
'Heaven is my throne,
and the earth is my footstool.
Where is the house you will build for me?
Where will my resting place be?
Has not my hand made all these things,
and so they came into being?'
declares the Lord."
Stephen quoted this passage from the last chapter of Isaiah. We read it in his testimony before the Sanhedrin just prior to being martyred by them, Acts 7:44-53.
The point of this passage is that God actually resides outside of the dimensions of time and space and so anything built by human hands, the tabernacle and both the first and second temples that God had them build were symbols of his presence among the Israelites. In the case of the Jewish leaders that stoned Stephen, the first Christian martyr, the symbol was cherished beyond the reality it stood for.
I am reminded that God still has desired to have his presence represented within creation through a temple. Here are some interesting passages that come to mind:
"Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in your midst? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy that person; for God's temple is sacred, and you together are that temple." 1 Corinthians 3:16-17.
"Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies." 1 Corinthians 6:19-20.
"What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God." 2 Corinthians 6:16a.
"Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God's people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit." Ephesians 2:19-22.
"As you come to him, 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.
'Heaven is my throne,
and the earth is my footstool.
Where is the house you will build for me?
Where will my resting place be?
Has not my hand made all these things,
and so they came into being?'
declares the Lord."
Stephen quoted this passage from the last chapter of Isaiah. We read it in his testimony before the Sanhedrin just prior to being martyred by them, Acts 7:44-53.
The point of this passage is that God actually resides outside of the dimensions of time and space and so anything built by human hands, the tabernacle and both the first and second temples that God had them build were symbols of his presence among the Israelites. In the case of the Jewish leaders that stoned Stephen, the first Christian martyr, the symbol was cherished beyond the reality it stood for.
I am reminded that God still has desired to have his presence represented within creation through a temple. Here are some interesting passages that come to mind:
"Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in your midst? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy that person; for God's temple is sacred, and you together are that temple." 1 Corinthians 3:16-17.
"Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies." 1 Corinthians 6:19-20.
"What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God." 2 Corinthians 6:16a.
"Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God's people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit." Ephesians 2:19-22.
"As you come to him, 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.
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!
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