Wednesday October 23
Center of Divine and Communal Activity
Read 1 Kings 8:31–53.
8:31 If any man trespass against his neighbour, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath come before thine altar in this house:
8:32 Then hear thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head; and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness.
8:33 When thy people Israel be smitten down before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee, and shall turn again to thee, and confess thy name, and pray, and make supplication unto thee in this house:
8:34 Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which thou gavest unto their fathers.
8:35 When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee; if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou afflictest them:
8:36 Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, that thou teach them the good way wherein they should walk, and give rain upon thy land, which thou hast given to thy people for an inheritance.
8:37 If there be in the land famine, if there be pestilence, blasting, mildew, locust, [or] if there be caterpillar; if their enemy besiege them in the land of their cities; whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness [there be];
8:38 What prayer and supplication soever be [made] by any man, [or] by all thy people Israel, which shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house:
8:39 Then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, [even] thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men;)
8:40 That they may fear thee all the days that they live in the land which thou gavest unto our fathers.
8:41 Moreover concerning a stranger, that [is] not of thy people Israel, but cometh out of a far country for thy name's sake;
8:42 (For they shall hear of thy great name, and of thy strong hand, and of thy stretched out arm;) when he shall come and pray toward this house;
8:43 Hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for: that all people 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 builded, is called by thy name.
8:44 If thy people go out to battle against their enemy, whithersoever thou shalt send them, and shall pray unto the LORD toward the city which thou hast chosen, and [toward] the house that I have built for thy name:
8:45 Then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause.
8:46 If they sin against thee, (for [there is] no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captives unto the land of the enemy, far or near;
8:47 [Yet] if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captives, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wickedness;
8:48 And [so] return unto thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the land of their enemies, which led them away captive, and pray unto thee toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy name:
8:49 Then hear thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven thy dwelling place, and maintain their cause,
8:50 And forgive thy people that have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against thee, and give them compassion before them who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them:
8:51 For they [be] thy people, and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron:
8:52 That thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of thy servant, and unto the supplication of thy people Israel, to hearken unto them in all that they call for unto thee.
8:53 For thou didst separate them from among all the people of the earth, [to be] thine inheritance, as thou spakest by the hand of Moses thy servant, when thou broughtest our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord GOD.
What more does this text teach us about the function of the sanctuary?
At the dedication ceremony of the newly built temple, King Solomon offered seven cases of specific prayers that could be offered at the temple. The seven functions exemplify the extensive role of the temple in the lives of the Israelites. The temple was a place for seeking forgiveness (vs. 30); for oath swearing (vss. 31, 32); for supplication when defeated (vss. 33, 34); for petition when faced with drought (vss. 35, 36) or other disasters (vss. 37-40). It was also a place for the alien to pray (vss. 41-43), as well as a place to petition for victory (vss. 44, 45).
That the temple was intended to be a “a house of prayer for all people.” (Isa. 56:7) becomes evident from the fact that Solomon envisioned the individual Israelite, the foreigner, and the entire people as petitioners.
The sanctuary was the ideological center of basically all activity in Israel. Religion was not part of the believer’s life, not even a major one; it was life. What does this tell us about the role that our faith should play in our own lives, as well?
There is a danger presented here. The temple was indeed a major part of the thinking in the minds of the Israelites. But, look at what Israel was. It put to death the Son of God. How could that happen when the temple was the central feature of their society? Because it was the focus instead of Christ. The "shadow" was made the reality and religion became a cold round of ceremonies rather than the worship of our loving God. Their leaders misinterpreted the Scriptures and perverted the meaning of the sanctuary and its services. It became so bad that the Jews actually thought there was merit in making sacrifice. They worshiped the temple rather than the maker of the temple. It was a tradition to esteem the temple more than God and to support the temple at the expense of their their parents. Jesus said "Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition. For Moses said, Honor thy father and thy mother; and, Whoso curseth father or mother, let him die the death: but ye say, If a man shall say to his father or mother, It is Corban, that is to say, a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; he shall be free. And ye suffer him no more to do aught for his father or his mother." They set aside the fifth commandment as of no consequence, but were very exact in carrying out the traditions of the elders. They taught the people that the devotion of their property to the temple was a duty more sacred than even the support of their parents; and that, however great the necessity, it was sacrilege to impart to father or mother any part of what had been thus consecrated. An undutiful child had only to pronounce the word "Corban" over his property, thus devoting it to God, and he could retain it for his own use during his lifetime, and after his death it was to be appropriated to the temple service. Thus he was at liberty, both in life and in death, to dishonor and defraud his parents, under cover of a pretended devotion to God.
How is it with us? Do we turn religion into a cultural exercise? Do we follow a round of ceremonies instead of giving the whole heart to Jesus? Are we as a people in the same Laodicean condition as was Israel? Are we as actors in a play? How can we tell? What did Jesus say to Nicodemus, a proud Laodicean? "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.....Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again." John 3:3,5,6,7.
Are we born of His Spirit? If so, every one of the fruits of His Spirit will be seen in the life, not one will be missing. We can know if we are born again because we love the brethren. "We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death." 1 John 3:14. The message is very clear, is it not? It is either or, life or death, not a part of both. Listen to the rest of the message in context. "Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him. Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother. For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another." 1 John 3:4-11. Are we worshiping God or religion? Is it a tradition with you, or do you love God supremely and keep His commandments?
When the people wanted to receive advice or judgment, or if they repented of their sins, they went to the sanctuary. The sanctuary was also the hub of life during the desert years of Israel. When God desired to communicate to His people, He did so from the sanctuary (Exod. 25:22). Therefore it is appropriately called the “tabernacle of the congregation” (for example, Lev. 1:1).
Think about your prayer life. How deep, how rich, how faith-affirming and life changing is it? Perhaps the first question you need to ask yourself is: how much time do I spend in prayer?
Very good question. How much time do we spend in prayer, real prayer? Does our prayer life lead to a change in life? And if that change has taken place, is it maintained? Do we "die daily" to self? Or is church a tradition as the temple was to the Jews? They lost sight of the meaning of the sanctuary and its services. They did not know the lamb was only a shadow, a type, a symbol of their Savior who would would come to dwell among them that He might reveal the character of God. Instead of loving Him, they spit upon Him and crucified their Messiah. How is it with us? Do we crucify our lord afresh? If so, hear the Word of God as spoken by His servant Solomon. "Forgive thy people that have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against thee." This is our prayer. God will bring revival and reformation to His people.