ESOCS Devotional 6 May 2024 – Do Not Defile God’s Temple
MEMORY VERSE: “If you obey all my laws and commands, I will do for you what I promised your father David. I will live among my people Israel in this Temple that you are building; and I will never abandon them.” 1 Kings 6:12-13 GNB
TEXT: 1 KINGS 6:1-14
And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the Lord. 2 Now the house which King Solomon built for the Lord, its length was sixty cubits, its width twenty, and its height thirty cubits. 3 The vestibule in front of the sanctuary of the house was twenty cubits long across the width of the house, and the width of the vestibule extended ten cubits from the front of the house. 4 And he made for the house windows with beveled frames.
5 Against the wall of the temple he built chambers all around, against the walls of the temple, all around the sanctuary and the inner sanctuary. Thus he made side chambers all around it. 6 The lowest chamber was five cubits wide, the middle was six cubits wide, and the third was seven cubits wide; for he made narrow ledges around the outside of the temple, so that the support beams would not be fastened into the walls of the temple. 7 And the temple, when it was being built, was built with stone finished at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built. 8 The doorway for the middle story was on the right side of the temple. They went up by stairs to the middle story, and from the middle to the third.
9 So he built the temple and finished it, and he paneled the temple with beams and boards of cedar. 10 And he built side chambers against the entire temple, each five cubits high; they were attached to the temple with cedar beams.
11 Then the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying: 12 “Concerning this temple which you are building, if you walk in My statutes, execute My judgments, keep all My commandments, and walk in them, then I will perform My word with you, which I spoke to your father David. 13 And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake My people Israel.”
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In the Old Testament, ancient Israel had to build physical structures tagged the “tabernacle or temple” for God to dwell in. Hence in the 480th year, post-exile, King Solomon began to build a house for the Lord. It is noteworthy here that the plan to build the temple was the idea of David and Solomon – not God’s. However, God lent His support to the idea, and went ahead to cause His presence to dwell in the Tabernacle built by men’s hands.
Of significance here is God’s exhortation to Solomon and Israel concerning the building. For God to continually dwell among them through the physical temple, they must, of necessity keep His commandments and walk in them (vv. 11-13). This became necessary, as the only condition that will make Him perform His word to David concerning Israel.
However, in the New Testament, the physical temple has gone out of relevance in our relationship and communion with God. Hence, Saint Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:16 admonishes that the believer is the temple of God, in which the Holy Spirit dwells. In 1 Corinthians 3:17, the apostle went ahead to caution that whoever defiled or destroys the temple of God (body) shall not be spared by God. Most emphatically, he warns that men should come to the realization that their human body is not theirs, but the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit (v 19). He concludes by stating that the believer’s body had been bought at a very high price with the precious Blood of Christ Jesus. It must then be kept holy for Him, as the bona fide owner.
Saint Paul’s admonition here is in conformity with God’s exhortation in verses 11-13 of our text. For God’s Spirit to be continually present in the temple, they must keep His commands. In the same vein, for the continual indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the believer, emphasis is on holy and righteous living. In Habakkuk 1:13, we understand that God’s eyes are too holy to look at evil, and cannot withstand wrong doings. Hence in Leviticus 11:45, and 1 Peter 1:16, we have this admonition from the Lord God Himself: “You must be holy because I am holy” GNB.. It is therefore necessary that whoever wants to be with the Lord on the last day must ensure he lives right.
- In Kingdom business, emphasis is not on how much, but how committed. Do you agree?
- Lord Jesus, give me the grace to honour you with my life.
Further Reading: Exodus 24:1-18; John 21:1-14; 2 Peter 1:12- 21
ESOCS Devotional 6 May 2024
