"If the Lord builds the house..."

In June of 2013 news broadcasts across the country featured a little boy named Grayson Clamp doing something he had never done before. The three-year-old was born without the auditory nerves that carry sound to the brain.

Attempts to restore his hearing with a cochlear implant were unsuccessful, so doctors at the University of North Carolina tried an experimental procedure to implant an auditory nerve directly into Grayson’s brain.

This procedure proved successful, and millions of people enjoyed seeing the look of wonder and joy on the little boy’s face when he heard his father’s voice for the first time.

Today with the technology available communication is instant—but even then it is a delight to hear from a friend or family member who is far away. Just as we respond to those familiar voices with pleasure, God delights in hearing from His children.

Why do we pray? Certainly it is not to inform God of what we need. He already knows everything about our situation, and, far better than we could devise, He knows the answer that will be best for us.

Today we continue our study in the life of King Solomon. This morning we look at his building and dedicating the the temple. We find that it was meant to be...

A HOUSE OF PRAYER

Prayer is meant in part to remind us of how dependent on God we truly are. But prayer is not just for our benefit. God enjoys hearing us pray! When we come to Him in faith and make our petitions before His throne of grace, His heart rejoices. He likes hearing our voices. Let us never go long without going to Him in prayer.

Solomon’s temple stood as one of the most beautiful structures in history. And it was a reminder that prayer is one of the most critical activities in which we could participate.

God gave His people a call to prayer in 2 Chronicles at the dedication of the newly constructed temple.

2 Chronicles 7:14 (ESV) states:

14 if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

The dedication of this house was the culmination of the long process and years of anticipation, beginning with King David, who deeply desired to build the temple. But why didn’t David build the temple? God is a God of order. 1 Kings 5:3

“You know that David my father could not build a house for the name of the Lord his God because of the warfare with which his enemies surrounded him, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet.”

The Lord has designated some for this job; and some for that job. All according to gifts and availability. Building the temple would be no small task. He does the same thing with spiritual gifts and the church. Some have this gift and another has that gift.

For five hundred years, the ark was housed in the tabernacle, a mobile structure. Now, it would have a resident house that would also be a permanent symbol of God’s presence with His people.

God commissioned Solomon to build the temple. 1 Kings 5:5 “5 And so I intend to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord said to David my father, ‘Your son, whom I will set on your throne in your place, shall build the house for my name.’”

Arnold and Beyer state: “The prosperity and peace of Solomon’s kingdom made possible the construction of the temple of the Lord, the royal palace, and the temple furnishings.” (Arnold and Beyer, 203).

Solomon employed Israel’s allies to help in the process. The temple would be built with stone and cedar trees from Lebanon. 1 Kings 5:15 tells us that over 70,000 transporters were used and 80,000 hewers of stone. There were 3,400 deputies who functioned as foreman. Much bigger than Meninger and Sons!

This would be the dwelling place of God. 1 Kings 6:13 “And I will dwell among the children of Israel and will not forsake my people Israel.”

It took seven years to build. It was started in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign. He is still in his 20’s at this time.

It was dedicated as a house of prayer. Prayer at times of famine, drought and war. At the dedication, there would be innumerable sacrifices offered. 1 Kings 8:63 “Solomon offered as peace offerings to the Lord 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep. So the king and all the people of Israel dedicated the house of the Lord.”

THE SITE OF THE SOLOMON’S TEMPLE WAS SIGNIFICANT.

The site of the temple was none other than Mt. Zion, also known as Mt. Moriah, where Abraham offered up his son Isaac as a sacrifice. This is where the Holy of Holies is located, the inner portion of the temple that was considered sacred by God and His people.

What makes for more controversy is that it is also the place of the Dome of the Rock, where it is thought that Muhammed ascended into heaven, the prophet of Islam. Interesting what is written inside the Mosque, a denial that Jesus was and is the Son of God. Sura 19:33-35 states:

“That is Jesus son of Mary—the Word of truth about which they doubt. 35. It is not for God to have a child—glory be to Him. To have anything done, He says to it, “Be,” and it becomes.”

As glorious as Solomon’s temple was, God would make it a heap of ruins, should Israel turn their back on God. 1 Kings 9:8-9 tells us:

1 Kings 9:8–9 ESV

8 And this house will become a heap of ruins. Everyone passing by it will be astonished and will hiss, and they will say, ‘Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house?’ 9 Then they will say, ‘Because they abandoned the Lord their God who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt and laid hold on other gods and worshiped them and served them. Therefore the Lord has brought all this disaster on them.’ ”

Unfortunately, the prophecy of destruction came true in 586 B.C., when the Babylonians would level the temple and the people would be hauled off into exile.

That’s why 2 Chronicles 7:14 is so critical to the life of Israel.

2 Chronicles 7:14 ESV

14 if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

2 Chronicles 7:14 tells us that the temple was a house of prayer. And its historical significance is a testimony to our spiritual lives. Charles Ryrie states:

“This well-known verse states God’s requirements for blessing: humility, prayer, devotion and repentance.” (Ryrie Study Bible, 651).

After the leveling of Solomon’s temple and the return of the God’s people back to their homeland, Ezra and Nehemiah were tasked with rebuilding the walls and the temple.

Then, upon Herod’s coronation, he set out to build the temple back to its original glory.

His piece of architecture took 46 years in building. It was a revision of Solomon’s in some ways. It was finished in 62-64 A.D. Emil Schurer states:

Its beauty was proverbial. ‘He who has not seen Herod’s building has never seen anything beautiful,’ was a common proverb of the day.” (Schurer, 141)

But don’t be mistaken. The culture he spread was essentially Greek and pagan. (Schurer, 143).

This was at this temple that Zecharias, the father of John the Baptist, had his vision in Luke 1:11-13, that his elderly wife Elizabeth would give birth to the last of the long line of prophets preceding the Messiah, the one we know as John the Baptist.

It was there that Mary and Joseph brought the infant Jesus to be dedicated. They were greeted by Simeon and Anna. Luke 2:27-30

Luke 2:27–30 ESV

27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, 28 he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, 29 “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; 30 for my eyes have seen your salvation

It was at this temple that Jesus, in his twelfth year, astonished the religious leaders with his questions and understanding. Luke 2:46-50

Luke 2:46–50 (ESV)

46 After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47 And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. 48 And when his parents saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.” 49 And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” 50 And they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them.

Did you notice what Jesus called the temple? “My Father’s house.”

It was here that Jesus cleansed the temple twice, making it a house of prayer, reversing man’s desire to make it a den of thieves, quoting Isaiah 56.

Jesus often taught at the temple, as we see in John 8:20 and John 10:22ff.

It was here that the disciples witnessed the widow giving her mite, all that she had, who’s offering was the most costly, according to the Lord in Mark 12:43:

Mark 12:43 (ESV)

“Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

But as beautiful as Herod’s temple was, it was destroyed as well. The Romans leveled it in 70 A.D. and lined the road leading into Jerusalem with crucifixions, reminding all survivors that their power and cruelty were unmatched.

What does the temple have to do with me in 2023?

So what does the building and dedication of the temple have to do with you in 2023? For one thing, is that because of the gospel of Jesus, your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.

Whereas Solomon’s temple was a symbol of God dwelling with His people, now, the Christian’s body is the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. We must be careful not to defile the temple with unhealthy practices and unhealthy additives, speaking of behavior rather than food, here.

Ralph Martin states:

“The body is made holy by the Holy Spirit who indwells believers as the Presence of God fill the Jerusalem temple (1 Kings 8:11); it is therefore to be treated with respect and dignity, never defiled or abused, since it - like the church (1 Corinthians 3:16-17) is the Spirit’s shrine (6:9). (Martin, Word Biblical Themes, 120).

Paul taught in his first letter to the church at Corinth:

1 Corinthians 3:16–17 ESV

16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

And later, we are to be living sacrifices for the Lord. Romans 12:1

Romans 12:1 ESV

1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

The sacred is still among us.

Your body is a gift from God.

Prayer is a gift from God.

Worship is a sacred responsibility given to you by God.

Do not take any of these lightly.

Be reminded of who to seek.

Roger Babson, an American historian, was visiting the president of Argentina about one hundred years ago when the president said to him: “You are a student of history, Will you please tell me why it is that South America, with her unlimited resources, and having been settled earlier than North America, has nevertheless made much slower progress in civilization and material prosperity?”

Mr. Babson threw the question back upon the president by saying, “Mr. President, you evidently have studied this question yourself, and I would be interested to know your answer to it.

The President replied that he thought the explanation lay in the fact that South America was settled by Spaniards who came seeking gold while North America was settled by the Pilgrim Fathers who came seeking God.