Scripture
O Lord God of Israel,there is no God like you in heaven above or earth below- you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue whole-heartedly in your way.
Observation
What an awesome day it must have been! The Temple is dedicated and the shekinah glory, the cloud of the Presence of God comes and fills the Temple. The Presence is so strong that the priests are unable to fulfil their duties.
Solomon acknowledges that God is too big to fit in a temple made by human hands. He asks God to honour the Temple, the place of His presence, so that when people pray in it or even with their hearts inclined towards it, that God will hear and answer their prayers.
When there is conflict, military threat, famine or drought, Solomon asks that God hears their prayers. Even the prayers of foreigners and outsiders are to be heard by God.
Application
This prayer of Solomon reminds us that God's Presence is not restricted to one place. We might think of a church or other “sacred place” as being special, but God cannot be contained in the whole earth much less to one place .
Paul tells us that we are the Temple of the Holy Spirit. Wherever a disciple of Jesus goes, there the Holy Spirit goes also.
It's good to set apart particular times and places as holy to the Lord, but I need to remember that every minute of my life, every place I step is also holy to the Lord
Prayer
Holy Spirit, I am your Temple. Help me to remember that I am a sacred vessel set apart for your use. Help me to live up to that high calling. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment