“I have surely built thee an house to
dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in forever.” -1 Kings 8:13
A place for habitation is the natural pursuit of mankind. We as people look to homes and dwellings for security,
warmth, and completeness. We need them
to protect ourselves, our kids, and the things we procure in this life. In the beginning, heaven is/was the
habitation of God. Then God made earth
for the habitation of man. Then Jesus,
in his astounding and extraordinary grace, offered up himself, so that man
could be the habitation of God. The
creator, dwelling in the creation.
Why? He loves us that much.
Solomon
was the next king after David. David was
a man after God’s own heart and he determined that he was going to build God a
house to dwell in. This was a show of
love, humility, and adoration for God.
However, God said David was not to be the one who built it; it would be
his son Solomon. Solomon committed an
extraordinary amount of his nation's resources and built the temple, or house
of God, in seven years. The finish
product was every bit as extraordinary as the devotion that was put into
it. The house and vessels were overlaid
with gold. The wood was cut and shipped
from the forest of Lebanon. The entire
house in building, not a tool was lifted against the material; everything was
cut to perfection. There was never a
house, before or since, that was like this house. The wisest man on earth, ruling the richest
kingdom on earth, devoted all his time and effort for seven years to build this
house for God. As magnificent as it was,
it was only temporary. For what Solomon
did not know was that God had another dwelling place in mind, another
habitation for himself, and Jesus, the carpenter's Son, was to go to work centuries
later. Many years past, the temple that
Solomon built fell from its initial glory, and the Jewish people fell with
it. Then Jesus came. When Jesus came onto this earth, he possessed
within himself the materials, tools, and abilities to create the future
habitation of God. In Solomon’s day the
people had to visit the temple for sacrifice; they have to look to the temple
for forgiveness and pardon. The physical
temple was the epicenter for salvation.
This was the old law, the old way; Jesus was to bring us the New Covenant. He paved the way, so that sinful man could be
righteous, and a Holy God could dwell within us (thereby making us holy and
free from sin). Jesus sanctified himself
so that we also might be sanctified. This was his passion, his work, and when he
fulfilled all, he pronounced “It is
finished.” The book of Revelation
tells us: “Behold, the tabernacle of God
is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God
himself shall be with them, and be their God.” Jesus had a mighty job to do, and a mighty
work to do, but he performed it. The Son
of God, brought God, to you and to me.
No longer do we have to worship at Jerusalem, no longer do we have to
protect the temple. The tabernacle of
God is with men; God can come into your heart and live within!
Jesus built for God (and himself) an house to dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in forever. He built a dwelling place for God that all
the world's riches never could, he built a dwelling place with his own body and
his own blood. Jesus Christ brought
sanctification to man. He brought a way
out of sin. You can be “made free from sin and become servants to
God, and have your fruit unto holiness.”
If you meet to condition, the creator can dwell within, today. Jesus Christ and God can dwell within you
through the power of the Holy Ghost. He
can dwell within us and we in Him. This
is the redemption story, this is the song of salvation; like the old folks used
to say in my church, we have a heaven to
go to heaven in.
