“Will God Dwell on the Earth?”

Chapter 8

Last week, in our journey, we found ourselves at the hightlight of the Old Testament. Solomon builds a temple for the LORD. Of the entire life of King Solomon as 1 Kings records it for us - almost HALF of it is focused on this temple. This is the most important accomplishment of King Solomon’s life.

Seven years it takes to build; no expense spared … and, finally - at the end of chapter 7, the temple is built. Well … the building is built. 1 Kings 7:51

If we stop at the end of chapter 7, what we have is a fancy building - a monument to honour a far-off, distant God. But the story DOESN’T end with chapter 7. If the account of the building of the temple is like the creation of the world - FIRS comes the form and THEN comes the filling … Like the seas and dry land being created … then being filled with living creatures … well in this case, chapter 8 is the filling - this is where the life comes in.

Chapter 8 is the dedication of the temple. It is a worship service, unlike anything you’ve ever seen.

I want you to imagine the scene with me. 2 Chronicles 5 tells the same story but adds some details that we don’t have here … so I’m going to fill in our story with some of those details.

The first thing I want you to notice is the time of this service. 1 Kings 8:1-3,

This is the seventh month. Now, if you look back at chapter 6:38, you’ll see that the temple was finished in the EIGHTH month. This service is happening in the SEVENTH month.

That means ELEVEN months have gone by since the building was finished. Almost a year with this magnificent temple sitting - a beautiful, lifeless structure. Why so long?

Well, one thing for sure - the planning committee for the dedication ceremony would be happy having that much time to prepare for the festivities.

But also - more importantly - by holding off the dedication until now - the celebration coincides with one of Israel’s most important annual feasts. Every year, in teh 7th month, the people of Israel celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. Every year, since their 40 years in the wilderness - every year, during the Feast of Tabernacles (or Booths as it’s also called), the people move out of their regular homes, into temporary shelters for .... days.

It’s like a National Camping week … except this isn’t just self-imposed torment, where you’re painfully reminded by sleeping on the gound and burning dinner over a fire … you get to remember how good you really have it at home for the rest of the year.

THis is camping with a theologicial purpose. It’s an annual reminder of how faithful God was - not just to free his people from the brutal oppression of slavery in Egypt. He didn’t just dump the Israelites into the desert: “You’re free now - GOOD LUCK TO YOU!” No - He provided for His people, day after day, year after year, in the wilderness, when they had no place to call home, no stable source of food - let alone water, and there were enemies all around who wanted them gone.

Their wandering days were over - and God gave them a place to live. Now it’s time for God to have a home address, too. The tabernacle was fine for the wilderness. But these people have had a home here, in the Promised Land, for over 400 years. It’s God’s turn.

So let’s step into this feast - and let’s join ourselves to God’s people for this worship service beyond belief.

For a whole week, the entire population of Israel hsa been camped out at the top of Mount Zion -

As the celebration reaches its climax, King Solomon steps out of nowhere, it seems … regal in his royal splendor, the leaders of the nation, following close behind. The massive, heavy doors of the temple swing open and out from the gleaming gold sanctuary streams a crowd of priests.

They’ve consecrated themselves for this special day of worship, by washing in the great bronze sea that stands in the courtyard - they’ve put on their fine linen priestly uniforms

… and, as they flood out of the sanctuary, flanking the outer doors are the singers in the choir and the musicians, with harps, lyres symbals .... and 120 trumpets. This is the orchestra of the living God.

The signal is given and the music starts. The choir sings a refrain from Psalm 136, which was written by David: “The LORD is good, for His steadfast love endures forever.”

Sound echoes off the stones of the temple behind them, it echoes off the stones the make up the paved ground under foot and it echoes off the city walls … praise, thundering from every direction. Shakes you to your core.

Now, of all the furniture in the temple - there is one item that exeeds the importance of everything else, by far. It is the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD - and it represents the very presence of God.

But it isn’t at the temple yet. It is in Jerusalem and Solomon means to get it here.

You may have heard of this ark - there are searchers right now, with a tv show, digging through Oak Island, Nova Scotia right, even as we speak - who think this very ark may be buried underground there - the greatest treasure in the world. Spoiler alert - I can guarantee you that it’s not there.

So what is this ark? It’s called the Ark of the covenant because of what’s inside it. Verse 9 tells us the contents: “There was nothing in the ark except the 2 tablets of stone that Moses put there at Horeb, where the LORD made a covenant with the people of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.”

When the Israelites came out of Egypt, God gave instructions to Moses to make this ____ box, overlaid with gold. And for 40 years, whenever the nation moved and wherever they campted … the ark of the covenant went with them and they would put it into the holiest place of the tablernacle - which was a tent - the portable dwelling place of God.

When they entered the Promised Land - the ark led the way and moved from place to place inside the land - making various places its home-base.

That is, until David conquered the city of Jerusalem, made it his capitol city. And, of course, David, the lover of God, wanted the ark here, close to him - as its permanent home.

So he organizes a huge procession to bring the ark up to Jerusalem. You’ve heard the story of what happened. The worship was magnificent, people were celebrating, the ark was moving closer and closer to its new home, pulled by oxen and resting on a cart.

But then, the oxen stumbled, a man named Uzzah sees the ark starting to tip - there’s no way he is going to let the symbol of God’s holy presence hit the dirt, so he reaches out his hand to steady it - and, at the very SECOND he touches the ark

… God strikes Uzzah dead. It’s a devastating, terrifying lesson - that God is holy. The ark should never have been on an oxcart in the first place - God gave specific instruction, not just on how to make the ark, but even on how to move it - by poles, inserted through rings on its side. And God is declaring to David and all Israel:

“I am holy. You are not. And my name is less profaned by hitting the dirt that has never sinned against me … than it is by being touched by an unauthorized hand of a man who was born a rebel against me.|

Oh, God’s presence is a severe mercy.

David is so terrified that he gives up the procession and it’s years before he finally does bring the ark to Jerusalem.

So on this day - the ark of the Covenant is in Jerusalem, but not on this temple mount. It’s lower down the mountain, in the older part of town, the City of David … and it’s staying in a tent that David pitched for it.

Now, it’s time to bring the ark all the way up the mountain - to its permanent residence.

1 Kings 8:4-5

“Do you have the poles for the ark?” “Yep”. “No oxcart?” Nope.”

“Good … let’s go”.

And as they go .... “sacrificng so many sheep and oxen that they could not be counter or numbered?” See the smoke billowing and the smell of animals barbecuing … bring them together and your senses are overpowered.

Solomon may be doing the same thing David did when he finally did bring the ark up to Jerusalem .... every six steps the priests carried the ark - they would stop, put it down - and the king would offer another sacrifice. Solomon made more sacrifices than anyone could count.

This isn’t just an over-the-top gesture of worship. This is recognition of reality. When we stop trying to prop ourselves up - and persuade everyone else how ‘good’ we are - ‘warriors for justice’ - deep down inside, we all know that we aren’t right. I’m NOT good. I know that. And so do you. And in order fo unholy people to stand in the presence of a holy God - somebody has to take care of the sin problem. It’s not enough to just say, “I’m broken”. Atonement must be made for my sin. As Hebrews 9:22 puts it, “Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness os sins.”

The animals are substitutes for the people. And if you think, “This is too high a price to pay - these countless animals put to death!” .... friend if you think this is too much, then you don’t understand the state of your heart or the infinite holiness of God. OUR GOD IS A CONSUMING FIRE.

Standing in the crowd with the other people - you see the ark carried past you - you soak in the sight because this is likely the first and it will certainly be the LAST time in your lifetime that yo u will EVER see this ark.

The priests carry it through the temple doors and through the dim light of the sanctuary - candles lit - twinkling like stars in the heavens … as the ark makes its way through golden temple .... all the way through the curtain and into the ‘Holy of Holies.’ There, underneath the outstretched wings of the Cherubim, where the wing of one touches the wing of the other .... under the shadow of the wings - there the ark takes its place.

This is a copy of the throne room of heaven and the idea here isn’t that, somehow, this is GOd’s throne - in this box - in this temple. No, the idea is that the ark of the covenant is God’s footstool - the God who reigns in heaven - He has chosen to rest HIS FEET … HERE.

But at this point - it’s still just a box in a building. Solomon’s brought it here. Nobody was struck dead along the way. That’s all good. BUt how do you know that God is satisfied? How do you know that God really plans to move in?

Take a look at 1 Kings 8:10-11

This is the most dramatic moment in whole life of Solomon - The whole worship service has been amazing - 120 trumpets blaring, a choir of hundreds singing, thousands of people celebrating the glory of the house of God - earth shaking.

But this moment - when God descends in unapproachable glory. He descends in a cloud - not smoke, but cloud. The cloud fills the house so thick … that the priests come running back out of the temple - they can’t stand to minister - they are overwhelmed. God has moved in!

I want you to notice something about the fact that God’s presence comes in a cloud.

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When I think of thick cloud - I’m reminded of a car I once had - well, actually, it wasn’t thick cloud - it was thick smoke. And it wasn’t because anything miraculous or spiritual was happening .... it was because the car was a beater and it was burning oil and had a leak in the exhaust system. So every time I started it up and drove - smoke came pouring out from underneath and surrounded the whole vehicle.

When I went somewhere - my friends would recognize I was arriving. “Keith’s here”. “How do you know it’s Keith?” “Look at the smoke.”

“What does his car look like?” “I don’t know - can’t see it through the smoke.”

The smoke revealed my identity and it concealed at the same time. In the temple - the cloud does a similar thing - but in a positive powerful way. The cloud IS GOD’S GLORY.

But it also shows that there’s a certain hiddenness about Him. You can’t see what He looks like - He’s infinite, He’s Spirit. And that sets the God of the Bible apart from so many of the gods of our world today and the gods of the pagan nations in the ancient world.

The worshipers of the pagan gods would make images of them and put that image in their temples. Do you want to know what Dagon, god of the Philistines looks like? Look at his statue - He’s got fish scales and fins instead of legs.

God can’t be captured in an image. Do you want to know what God is like? The cloud conceals Him.

“So does that mean I can’t know Him?” NO - you absolutely can know God accurately. Look back at v. 9: “There was nothing in the ark except the 2 tablets of stone that Moses put there at Horeb, wehre the LORD made a covenant with the people of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.”

The ark is mentioned eight times in vv. 1-9. It is the center of the worship service … and the only thing in that ark - are the 10 commandments: God’s Word, written by the very finger of God. Do you see what this means?

It means God isn’t like a picture - a work of art: “When I look at His image … I think he’s fish-like.”

“When I look at His picture … I think he’s very human-like.” “I think He is gentle and sweet and wouldn’t hurt a flea.” “Well, I think He’s a fighter who doesn’t put up with anything and loves to strike people dead.” Can you see how rudder-less we would be if we couldn’t KNOW God as He really is?

The Good news is - there is no subjectivity when it comes to the God of heaven - because He has made Himself known .... BY HIS WORD.

It’s no accident that the driving force of literacy in the world has been Christianity - because we are people of the book. We know God thorugh WORDS - WORDS that He gave us. He doesn’t show himself fully to us - - - hence the cloud.

But He does show Himself to us - accurately.

Mystery and clarity - joined mysteriously together. And thats’ why we live by faith and not by sight.

That’s why, in 2021, when you look at the world and scratch your head, wondering, “How could God possibly have anything GOOD come out of this mess of a world we’re living in? It just makes no sense - I can’t SEE it.”

Oh but we, as Christians - we walk by faith, not by sight .... we don’t live by the sight of God .... we live by the SPEECH of God. So when I look with my eyes and see hopelessness on every side .... I can be content with God’s hiddenness … because I have God’s Word - I know His Will. I follow Him and trust His promises that He will build His church. That He, Who began a good work in me .... WILL carry it on to completion.

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Stop and think about his scene - all of the pomp and circumstance. Look at the maginificent temple - rising in grandeur about you. Look at the perfectly shaped stones, silently put, one on top of the other. Look at intricate carvings of plants and trees and flowers. Look at the gleaming gold covering every interior surface: 45 THOUSAND pounds of gold.

And the aroma of thousands of sacrifices rising in the smoke and filling your nostrils.

What a sight. Does it seem a little .... extravagant to you? A little ‘over the top’? I mean, we want to give our best to God, of course we do, but is all this gold really necessary? I mean think of all the good it could do if given to charity. And that MANY sacrifices?

Some of us, of a more practical, frugal bent who don’t need a lobster dinner when frozen fish will do … we may be tempted to see all of this over the top worship at the temple as too much. Remember this: This temple was God’s plan. He doesn’t think it’s too much. And He gives His seal of approval to what goes on in the dedication … the cloud of His glorious presence descending - the cloud filling the temple so that the priests have to leave - the God of the universe, who cannot be contained by the entire UNIVERSE He created .... He set up this temple as His home address on this earth.

God approves of the extravagance here. It was His plan … and that’s stunning.

But do you know what makes it all the more stunning to me? What I can’t get over is that God knows everything. You get that - one of the attributes of God’s character is that He’s omniscient - He knows the end from the beginning - not trapped by time - because He stands above time. He created it.

And that matters - because it means that even as this magnificent temple dedication is going - and the smoke of the sacrifices rise before Him .... He knows that 400 years from now - this building and complex are going to be smoking again. But on that day in 586 - it will be the smoke of destruction as the Babylonians attack and crush Jerusalem and leave this glorious temple in ruins.

God also knows that hundreds of years after that destruction - Herod the Great will build another temple on this spot … even more stunning than this one. That temple is going to be destroyed in AD 70, when the Romans crush the city of Jerusalem and leave not one stone of the temple piled on another.

These very people worshiping Him on this dedication day in Solomon’s Jerusalem … they are going to fail. Their descendants are going to fail more and more grievously until God spits them out of the land in discipline. AND YET … Here He is, STILL giving honor to this temple of stone and setting up His residence in it.

Think about that for a minute. And the reason it hits so powerfull is this: “IF God gives such honor to a temple built with stone and cedar and bronze and gold .... knowing that it’s only going to stand for a few short centuries … HOW MUCH MORE do you think He gives honor to the new Temple - - Jesus Christ and His Church … and the residence He takes up in every Christian believer.

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John begins his Gospel in the New Testament with this very wonder: John 1:1-5; 14-18. “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God

On the Mountain of Transfiguration - Jesus is on the mountainside and a cloud envelops Him as God’s voice speaks from heaven: “This is My Son, whom I love. Listen to Him.” He’s the new Temple. Do you see?

And 1 Corinthians 3 tells us that we, who belong to Him - we share in His glory. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 - “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you .... God’s temple is holy and you are that temple.”

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Christian - you are the Temple of God .... built not with stuff you can find on this earth … but we were BOUGHT at the cost of His own Son’s blood. He was the one final sacrifice that all of the animals were pointing toward.

Do yo u see what that means about the extravance of God’s love for you?! The illimitable, infinite, All-Powerful God of the universe LOVES YOU THAT MUCH. And He has made promises to you.

So don’t fear, Christian. Don’t panic. Breathe deeply. Put your eyes on Jesus Christ .... and trust. He’s not going to leave you floundering.