In chapter 7 of Second Samuel, David desired to build a house of worship for the Lord so that he could finally move the Ark of the Covenant from the tent of meeting to its ultimate resting place in a new temple in Jerusalem.  God answered that prayer by assuring King David that He would build an enduring house through the line of his descendants.   David was speaking of a physical building.  God was promising a family line from the tribe of Judah all the way to David’s hometown of Bethlehem.  Jesus would come from this very line of the tribe of Judah. 

God would allow David to make a trip to Home Depot for all of the supplies but David’s successor on the throne would be his son Solomon.  He would be the one God would use to build the temple in Jerusalem. The record of the building of the temple in Jerusalem is found in 1 Kings 5-9 and 2 Chronicles 3-7.  Both of these passages describe in detail the celebration events after the temple was completed.  Solomon’s prayer of dedication is the highlight.

Our lesson today emphasizes some of our thoughts during the celebration of the birth of our own United States of America.  We had a great and memorable beginning as a nation but just like the nation of Israel, we have drifted from our original moorings.  During the reign of Solomon, the nation of Israel was united.  By the time Solomon’s son Rehoboam ascended to the throne in Jerusalem, the nation was divided into the Northern Kingdom with its capitol in Samaria and the Southern Kingdom continuing to maintain its capitol in Jerusalem.  Things would go from wonderful to bad to worse.  

There are certainly some things we can benefit from and be forewarned by as we study this passage of scripture.  God is the “installer” of world leaders.  In Daniel 2:20 and following, this young man declared this in his prayer acknowledging the authority of God in governments:  “It is He who changes the times and the epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings.”  In spite of our disobedience or in response to our obedience, God places leaders.  His plan will go forward, even when we don’t follow His leading. 

God had told David and Solomon the same thing He had told the people when they were being led by Moses in the wilderness in Deuteronomy 27 and 28.  Disobedience removes the favor of the Lord and brings curses upon those who He called to be His own people.  Obedience conversely brings blessings.  They would declare to both Moses as well as to Joshua Moses’ successor that they would fully obey.  MO and JOSH both declared that they indeed would NOT be able to do that.  God used even the disobedience of His people to forward His providential plan that leads to culmination in eternity future. 

When Solomon finished praying, fire “fell down from” heaven and consumed their sacrifices on the new altar.  The glory of the Lord literally filled the temple.  This reminds us of Acts 2 when the Holy Spirit descended on the early believers after the ascension of Jesus in Acts 2.  God ALWAYS comes through with His promises.  He is the Promise Maker and the Promise Keeper in all cases. 

The people responded to the fire and the glory by bowing themselves to the ground in complete honor and worship and by lifting praises to the Lord.  The word “praise” is “yada” which comes from the word “yad” which means hand.  The name for the tribe of Judah also comes from this root word.  The very tribe that would yield the birth of our Savior is the tribe of praise!  On temple dedication day, the people raised their hands to “throw” or “lift up” praise toward the Lord of the Holy House. 

In scripture, God is the object of the word praise in most every case.  He alone is worthy of it!  Woe be to the nation that chooses to forget to remember that truth.  We worship the Lord of the house, not the house just as we are to worship the Creator, not the creation. 

After the dedication day, perhaps in that same night, God appeared to Solomon and confirmed that He had heard the prayers and accepted the sacrifices.  He also reminded Solomon that the people He had chosen should be the first ones to humble themselves in the midst of struggles and crises of life.  God knew that they would be strayers and not stayers.  Jerusalem is still the place where God has chosen to place His Name.  This city of Zion will be part of so many events in the end of the age.  God himself will rule from that location for 1000 years. 

Those of us who have chosen to follow Jesus and walk in the plan of God need to take heed to these commands.  They were not FOR us, they were FOR Israel.  However, God gave us the scriptures then to us for our growth, our discipline, our edification, our study, our direction.  As we see how God moved among His people throughout the Old Testament and how Jesus came to fulfill ALL of scripture and prophecy, we can learn from everything God did to deal with His own people.  We are of Abraham by our our faith, not by ancestry.  Good news!  God does not change.  Obedience and follow-ship are still His expectations for us. 

Solomon would marry many foreign wives to form military alliances.  Each one of these wives brought their own pagan worship forms and practices with them to Jerusalem.  Sadly, these turned the heart of Solomon away from the Lord.  The kingdom split after the death of Solomon. Israel would be defeated by Assyria.  Soon afterward, Judah would be defeated by Babylon. 

America.  Please pay attention.  Scriptures cover every major government building in the national capitol in Washington D.C.  Leaders walk around with empty hearts and full political agendas.  Church, fall down in worship, rise up in praise, watch what the Lord will accomplish.  Or……not.