A Temple, A Prayer, and A Response

A Temple, A Prayer, and A Response 1 Kings 8:1-9:9 September 5, 2021 The Big Idea: The Lord told Solomon to build a “permanent” Temple where His Glory would be known on earth. But, God’s ultimate plan for people knowing Him and worshiping Him was never about a place but about a Person. Everything about the Temple pointed forward to Jesus. 1 Kings 8:27–30, 54-61 (ESV) 8 27 “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the WHAT KIND OF GOD DO WE COME TO WORSHIP? 1. He is vast beyond comprehension, yet makes Himself accessible. [8:27] 2. He sees us and hears our prayers. [8:28-30] 3. He is a God who forgives sin. [8:30] 4. He is a Promise-Keeping God [8:56] 5. He is Faithful even when we are not. [8:57] 6. He is a Heart-Changer. [8:58] 7. He is the Ultimate Missionary. [8:59-60] “But will God indeed dwell on the earth?” 1 Kings 8:27 1. The Message of the Bible Has Always Been About a Person, Not a Place. highest heaven cannot contain you; how much less this house that I have built! 28 Yet have regard to the prayer of your servant and to his plea, O LORD my God, listening to the cry and to the prayer that your servant prays before you this day, 29 that your eyes may be open night and day toward this house, the place of which you have said, ‘My name shall be there,’ that you may listen to the prayer that your servant offers toward this place. 30 And listen to the plea of your servant and of your people Israel, when they pray toward this place. And listen in heaven your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive. Now as Solomon finished offering all this prayer and plea to the LORD, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, where he had knelt with hands outstretched toward heaven. 55 And he stood and blessed all the assembly of Israel with a loud voice, saying, 56 “Blessed be the LORD who has given rest to his people Israel, according to all that he promised. Not one word has failed of all his good promise, which he spoke by Moses his servant. 57 The LORD our God be with us, as he was with our fathers. May he not leave us or forsake us, 58 that he may incline our hearts to him, to walk in all his ways and to keep his commandments, his statutes, and his rules, which he commanded our fathers. 59 Let these words of mine, with which I have pleaded before the LORD, be near to the LORD our God day and night, and may he maintain the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel, as each day requires, 60 that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD is God; there is no other. 61 Let your heart therefore be wholly true to the LORD our God, walking in his statutes and keeping his commandments, as at this day.” 2. Spiritual Practices (acts of worship) Don’t Exist for Themselves. Their Focus and Reason is The Lord. [Colossians 2:17 – don’t confuse ‘shadows’ with the ‘substance’ of Jesus.] 3. The Temple Solomon Built (Like the Tabernacle before it) Was a Special Place Where God in His Glory Chose to Meet His People. But the Temple was never the final plan, only a preview of what He would do. 54 4. The Ultimate Plan of God Was Never a Place, But a Person. § § § § § “ John 1:1-1-4, 14 John 4:20-24 1 Corinthians 3:16 Ephesians 2:18-22 Revelation 21:1-5 Let your heart therefore be wholly true to the LORD our God, walking in his statutes and keeping his commandments, as at this day.” 2 Kings 8:61