We are ‘LIVING STONES’ being shaped for GOD’s TEMPLE!
April 8 Bible
Reading: 1 Kings Chapters 4-6
We are ‘LIVING STONES’ being shaped for GOD’s TEMPLE!
"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. 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." (1 Kings 6:1, 7)
Like his
father David, Solomon had an intense burden to erect a permanent dwelling place
for Jehovah God in the land of Canaan so that God could dwell among His people
(1 Kings 6:13). The building of this temple by Solomon was the culmination of a
long series of events that began with the deliverance out of Egypt (v.1). This
temple was called a house, for it was
the place where the holy God dwelt among His people!
Once Solomon
had established himself politically, he started constructing the temple by
laying the foundations in his fourth year of reign in 966 B.C., exactly 480
years after the exodus of his ancestors from Egypt. This temple was built
according to the plans that his father David had laid out before his death (see
1 Chr. 28:11–19).
However, the
beauty of this temple construction was that all its parts were prefabricated. All the lumber and stone
for the temple was finished at the quarry itself to the exact specifications so
that when brought to Jerusalem, the pieces could be fitted together without
iron tools (v. 7). The rock was precut at the quarry for its proper fit in the
temple building, so no tool was heard at the temple itself. This required a
high degree of skill in measuring, cutting, and fitting the immense stones in
place. Thus the temple was erected silently, just as the living temple of God is being built today!
God is
building His “holy temple” today, and
we are the living stones being shaped for God’s temple. Solomon built his
temple with gold, silver, and costly stones (1 Chron. 28:14–29:9) and these are
the same materials God wants in His church today (1 Cor. 3:10–17). God does not
dwell only in sanctuaries built by people, but
in the people themselves (8:27; Acts 7:48; 17:24; 1 Cor. 6:19–20).
Let us
understand that all the troubles we are facing today are part of the chiseling
and shaping process that God is applying in our lives so that we can fit
perfectly for God’s temple. God also prunes us so that we can bear more fruit for His Kingdom (John 15:2).
Let us submit ourselves in the hand of God, so that he can cut us, shape us and use us for His glory and as part of His eternal sanctuary!
