12/22/2010 9:20:22 AM
SPIRITUAL DIARY
My Worship Time Focus: Building the temple Pt-2
Bible Reading
& Meditation Reference: 1Kings 6:11-35
Message of the verses: A
divine message (verses 11-13): “11
¶ Now the word of the LORD came to
Solomon saying, 12 "Concerning this
house which you are building, if you will walk in My statutes and execute My
ordinances and keep all My commandments by walking in them, then I will carry
out My word with you which I spoke to David your father. 13 "I will dwell among the sons of Israel,
and will not forsake My people Israel.’”
In
this brief section the Lord, probably through a prophet, gives Solomon a
message, probably because he was becoming proud over the accomplishment of
building the temple, He gives Solomon a message as he reminded Him, as “He must
continually remind us, that He’s not impressed with our work if
our walk isn’t obedient to Him. What He
wants is an obedient heart (Ephesians 6:6) “not by way of eyeservice, as
men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.”
The inner structure (verses 14-35): “14
So Solomon built the house and finished it.
15 ¶ Then he built the walls of
the house on the inside with boards of cedar; from the floor of the house to
the ceiling he overlaid the walls on the inside with wood, and he overlaid the
floor of the house with boards of cypress. 16
He built twenty cubits on the rear part of the house with boards of
cedar from the floor to the ceiling; he built them for it on the inside as an
inner sanctuary, even as the most holy place. 17 The house, that is, the nave in front of the
inner sanctuary, was forty cubits long. 18
There was cedar on the house within, carved in the shape of gourds and
open flowers; all was cedar, there was no stone seen. 19 Then he prepared an inner sanctuary within
the house in order to place there the ark of the covenant of the LORD. 20 The inner sanctuary was twenty cubits in
length, twenty cubits in width, and twenty cubits in height, and he overlaid it
with pure gold. He also overlaid the altar with cedar. 21 So Solomon overlaid the inside of the house
with pure gold. And he drew chains of gold across the front of the inner
sanctuary, and he overlaid it with gold. 22
He overlaid the whole house with gold, until all the house was finished.
Also the whole altar which was by the inner sanctuary he overlaid with gold.
23 Also in the inner sanctuary he made
two cherubim of olive wood, each ten cubits high. 24 Five cubits was the one wing of the cherub
and five cubits the other wing of the cherub; from the end of one wing to the
end of the other wing were ten cubits. 25
The other cherub was ten cubits; both the cherubim were of the same
measure and the same form. 26 The height
of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was the other cherub. 27 He placed the cherubim in the midst of the
inner house, and the wings of the cherubim were spread out, so that the wing of
the one was touching the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub was
touching the other wall. So their wings were touching each other in the center
of the house. 28 He also overlaid the
cherubim with gold. 29 Then he carved all
the walls of the house round about with carved engravings of cherubim, palm trees,
and open flowers, inner and outer sanctuaries. 30 He overlaid the floor of the house with gold,
inner and outer sanctuaries. 31 For the
entrance of the inner sanctuary he made doors of olive wood, the lintel and
five-sided doorposts. 32 So he made two
doors of olive wood, and he carved on them carvings of cherubim, palm trees,
and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold; and he spread the gold on the
cherubim and on the palm trees. 33 So
also he made for the entrance of the nave four-sided doorposts of olive wood
34 and two doors of cypress wood; the
two leaves of the one door turned on pivots, and the two leaves of the other
door turned on pivots. 35 He carved on
it cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers; and he overlaid them with gold
evenly applied on the engraved work.”
The above
picture or illustration is of the temple that Solomon built for the Lord’s
glory. It is cut away so that the inside
of it can be seen.
As I was reading Dr. Wiersbe’s
commentary on this section it was interesting to note that this temple was
exactly twice the size of the tabernacle as was the holy of holies. Because of the height of the temple there
must have been an attic space above it for the holy of holies was a cube. It was made of wood overlaid with gold and
inside there were two cherubs with their wings touching each other and also
touching each of the walls. They were
made of olive wood and overlaid with gold.
The Ark of the Covenant was also there as according to Psalm 80:1 was
were God was “enthroned between the cherubim.”
It is interesting that one of the historical novels that I read a few
years back speaks of this ark of the covenant being made of both wood and
overlaid with gold was a picture of the Messiah, for Jesus Christ was totally
man and totally God, so the wood represented his humanism and the gold
represented his deity. The word for this
wood actually means carpenter and Jesus surely was a carpenter. I’m sure that if one dug they would find many
things in this temple that represented the Lord Jesus Christ as God did these
kind of things throughout the Scriptures.
Spiritual meaning for my life today: It was revealing to me that a prophet came to
Solomon to remind him of his responsibility and to continue to obey the Lord in
all of his life. God made this covenant
with David and it was passed on to Solomon as there was always a son of David
on the throne of Judah, and there still is today in person of David’s greatest
Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Dr. Wiersbe’s
commentary on the first section was convicting to me when he wrote that God is
not impressed with our work if our walk isn’t obedient to Him. I believe that Eph. 2:10 is a good reminder
of this to me where Paul writes, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ
Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in
them.” I believe that the works that the
Lord has for me to do were prepared for me to do in eternity past and therefore
I must do these works, and I must do them in the power of the Holy Spirit to
the glory of God.
My Steps of
Faith for Today:
1.
Continue to seek to do the works that God prepared
for me to do in the power of the Holy Spirit to the glory of God.
2.
Give myself to the Lord for worship and service
today.
3.
Continue to learn contentment.
4.
Trust the Lord to guide my path this day.
5.
Remember that I am in a battle and in great need of
the Spiritual armor.
12/22/2010 10:23:06 AM
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