Good Thursday to you my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
Today is THANKSGIVING Day!!! Is today one of your favorite days of the entire year, as it is mine? Friends, family, great food, but most of all GRATITUDE is the order of THIS special day, right? Once again, in God’s perfect timing and our “Grand Narrative” journey, we’ve arrived at one of the greatest Thanksgiving moments in Biblical history, the day of dedication of the great Temple of God in Jerusalem! This momentous event is recorded for us in 1 Kings 8 & 2 Chronicles 5-7.
Yesterday we watched as mountains of carefully prepared construction materials were brought to Jerusalem for the miraculous construction of the Temple… in SILENCE! (1 Kings 6:7) Thousands of skilled workmen spent 7 years building this remarkable Temple Mount and the great Temple of God. (1 Kings 6:37,38) When this magnificent Temple was finally completed, King Solomon’s first act was to lead a celebration procession, bringing the sacred Ark of the LORD’s Covenant FROM the place his father King David had positioned it, under a special tent in the City of David, (1 Chronicles 15) perhaps 25 years before, TO the Most Holy Place in the new Temple! (1 Kings 8:1-9; 2 Chronicles 5:1-13)
The parade must have been amazing with everyone in Jerusalem watching in awe as that golden Ark, carried by the Levites, as instructed by Moses so many years before, was carefully brought up into the Temple area, and finally into the Most Holy Place of the Temple, between the two huge olive wood Cherubim with their wings outstretched over it! (2 Chron. 5:4-9) The record says: “There was nothing inside the Ark except the two tablets of stone that Moses had placed in it at Mount Sinai, where the LORD made a covenant with the Israelites after He led them out of Egypt. The priests then withdrew from the Holy Place of the Temple.” (2 Chron. 5:10,11)
We’ve all witnessed extravagant parades and carefully choreographed royal events, but I doubt anything we’ve ever seen compared with this spectacular moment in Jerusalem. Musicians and choirs praised God with great thanksgiving. (2 Chron. 5:12,13) Their sounds filled all of Jerusalem and wafted out over the Mount of Olives. While Scripture doesn’t tell us, I assume thousands of Israelites stood, filling the entire hillside of the Mount of Olives, from the top ridge all the way down to the Garden of Gethsemane. Why? They would have had a spectacular overlook watching all these festivities. Because the main entrance to the Temple itself was on the east side of the Temple, these people, watching from the Mount of Olives, would have been able to watch the Levites carry the Ark directly through the front door of the Temple, into the Holy Place! Can you put yourself there in the crowd and imagine both what you SEE and HEAR in this great Thanksgiving celebration?
And then, right before the eyes of everyone in Jerusalem and those on the Mount of Olive hillside, something spectacular happened which stunned them all! The cloud of God’s Presence descended upon and enveloped the Temple! (2 Chron. 5:13,14) Eyewitnesses reported it like this: “Then the temple of the LORD was filled with the cloud, and the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the Glory of the LORD filled the Temple of God.“ Pause. Freeze this moment in time. Let your spiritual imagination overflow your capacity to understand God’s Majesty, His Power, His Holiness. Twice before Moses had recorded that this same phenomenon happened at the Tabernacle in the desert. (Exodus 40:34,35; Numbers 16:42)
With the cloud still radiating with the Glory of God, King Solomon approached the Temple and knelt before the great Altar. And there he made his great Thanksgiving proclamation about the purpose of this great Temple and then Solomon prayed his historic, profound, Prayer of Dedication over this great Temple of God. I urge you to read both carefully, word for word, as recorded in 1 Kings 8:14-61 & 2 Chronicles 6:1-42. Please don’t rush through them. Let these words penetrate your soul and then pour out from you all day today, Thanksgiving Day!
How very appropriate for us to immerse ourselves in this Temple dedication experience on this Thanksgiving Day! I hope your reading profoundly affects your heart; fills you with gratitude and awe for God; and awakens in you a great sense of God’s Presence with you and His blessings upon you, wherever you are in the world today!
Tomorrow, in the shadow of Thanksgiving, and on the day many people prioritize shopping for special deals, we’ll look closely at God’s response to Solomon’s Temple dedication, and we’ll be greatly encouraged by God’s promises! For today… oh I pray for a great Thanksgiving Day for you and all who will be with you. May Jesus Christ be glorified and honored in our celebrations today, and to help us, of course there are additional reflection notes at the “Grand Narrative” link below, and a wonderful Thanksgiving worship song at the bottom of this page. I hope you have a blessed day my friends.
Oh God, we thank YOU for the privilege of immersing ourselves in Your Word today on this Thanksgiving Day. I ask for Your blessing on my friends all over the world, in Jesus Name, Amen.
Today’s Scripture: 1 Kings 8 & 2 Chronicles 5-7.
Choose below to read or listen.
1 Kings 8
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2 Chronicles 5-7
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2 Chronicles 6
2 Chronicles 7
Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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