God is Here!
2 Chronicles 7:12-18
What an incredible song that we desire will always be said of Maysville Baptist Church wherever it is that we meet! What an incredible fact that we most certainly take for granted - that the God of the universe is here amongst us. But I want you to understand that His presence is not automatic. Be it a new building or a group of people - it's not an automatic guarantee that God is going to be amongst us. What do I mean?
Let's go back to the Old Testament to a similar event that happened for Israel as their temple was completed - and might I add cost way more than this one and wasn't near as big! In chapter 6 Solomon has delivered a speech in response to the glory of the Lord that has settled over the temple like a cloud - but it was more than just a physical something to see. The priests were unable to minister because that cloud was the glory of the Lord and it filled the temple. So Solomon makes a few statements to the people and then he prays before Almighty God, and what a prayer it is. And the end of his prayer goes like this,
2 Chronicles 6:40-7:3
6:40 "Now, my God, I pray, let Your eyes be open and [let] Your ears [be] attentive to the prayer [made] in this place.
6:41 " Now therefore, Arise, O LORD God, to Your resting place, You and the ark of Your strength. Let Your priests, O LORD God, be clothed with salvation, And let Your saints rejoice in goodness.
6:42 "O LORD God, do not turn away the face of Your Anointed; Remember the mercies of Your servant David."
7:1 When Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the LORD filled the temple.
7:2 And the priests could not enter the house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD had filled the LORD's house.
7:3 When all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of the LORD on the temple, they bowed their faces to the ground on the pavement, and worshiped and praised the LORD, [saying:] "For [He is] good, For His mercy [endures] forever."
Again, I want you to understand that God's response is not an automatic event. It's not a gimme. I want you to see three major points. Because God is here this is,
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A holy place 6:40-7:3
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This was a place with an intended purpose vv 40-41. Solomon prays for the Lord to arise to His resting place, Him and the ark of His strength. But could this temple "house" the Lord? Even Solomon asked the same question, a rhetorical question, earlier in this prayer. He prayed, "Will God indeed dwell with men on the earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You. How much less this temple which I have built!" (v 18) What is truly meant here? We find the answer in verse 16 of chapter 7. The Lord said, "For now I have chosen and sanctified this house, that My Name may be there forever; and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually." Incredible what the Lord says! There was an intended purpose for that holy place known as the temple - the place for the name of the Lord. Why the name of the Lord? If you read through Solomon's prayer in chapter 6 you will see several traits of our Lord that confirm the fact that He is more than worthy of what Solomon did. You will see mention of God's: uniqueness (v. 14); lovingkindness (v. 14); transcendence (v. 18); immensity (infinity) (v. 18); omnipresence (v. 18); justice (v. 23); forgiveness (vv. 25, 27, etc.); omniscience (v. 30); grace (v. 33); and mercy (vv. 38, 39)."1
The Lord is more than worthy for such a place. But also notice,
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This was a place that witnessed immense power vv 1-2. What an amazing moment that must have been to be near that place as the people witnessed fire coming from heaven and consuming the sacrifice that was made to the Lord. And that fire coming from heaven was not the first time it happened. The very same thing happened when Moses and the children of Israel dedicated the tabernacle. The sacrifices were laid out on the altar and fire from heaven consumed them! And the response of the people was the same in both cases - they fell on their faces before the Lord and worshiped Him. Fire also came from heaven as David gave a sacrifice at the threshing floor of Arauna the Jebusite - the place where the temple would be in the future - where Solomon is now.
Is there something to understand about the fire? Absolutely. The fire "means that the judgment of God has fallen upon sin. God does not accept the temple because it is beautiful-and it is that. He does not accept it because of the lavish expenditure of wealth. The basis of His acceptance is the fact that it is pointing to Christ. It is His sacrifice that makes this acceptable to God."2
Not only was there a consuming fire that accepted the sacrifices made on that day, but God's glory marked that place. And when God's glory marks a place, it is no longer business as usual. You don't worship the same. You don't lead the same. You don't talk the same. You don't listen the same. Nothing is the same!
And that's what we see next,
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This was a place with incredible praise v 3. Notice how the people responded, "they bowed their faces to the ground on the pavement, and worshiped and praised the Lord, saying: For He is good, For His mercy endures forever." As I said, when God shows up, it is never again business as usual. Your body is affected - even to bow on the ground and the face to the pavement. Your soul is affected and that is the origination of praise and worship. Your lips are affected - "For He is good and His mercy endures forever!" The spirit of the whole congregation was affected as well. They all responded like that! It wasn't just a few, but all of them. God was moving in an incredible and marked way and not one person went unaffected. And what we see in the following verses is that their giving was also affected. Solomon alone sacrificed 22,000 bulls and 120,000 sheep. Folks, that's a lot of T-bones and lamb chops! But there are some that may get a bit critical here. And here is how some have criticized what took place: (1) They say this offering and sacrifice was an extravagance; (2) they say it would have been physically impossible to offer that many sacrifices on the altar; and (3) they say there was no necessity for all this slaughter of animals. Let's deal with these one by one.
First, the physical impossibility: I don't think it was impossible at all. There were more than likely multiple altars as well as Solomon built a larger one because of the vast number of animals that were sacrificed. Think about the night the children of Israel prepared the Passover meal before they left the next day - thousands upon thousands of sheep were slaughtered that one night.
Second, the needless issue: It was not a needless waste for two reasons. The primary meaning of it is that it symbolizes the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. And it was Simon Peter who said that His blood was precious (1 Peter 1:18-19), "you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot." It points to Jesus and it's never needless when it does that. The second reason that it was not a "needless waste" was that the meat was used for food afterward. Although the "burnt offerings" were totally consumed by fire, other offerings, such as the peace offering, were eaten. This dedication of the temple was a time of great feasting and great celebrating."
Third, the extravagance issue: How can there be too much extravagance when it comes to worshiping the One that gave His perfect Son for imperfect man? What He did is what I would call extravagant! When we spend something for us, we may rarely use the word, extravagant. Why? We do it to satisfy us. But when something is done for the glory of God, there will always be people who will object. I don't know about you, but I'm on Solomon's side here. I think he did the right thing, because the sacrifices were pointing to the Lord Jesus Christ, and He shed His precious blood for me."4
Solomon made this prayer based upon the mercy that God had extended to David. You and I are to pray because Christ has made a mercy seat for us by His shed blood. He made peace for us by the blood of His cross, and God is prepared to extend mercy to us."
"Well preacher, you're telling me that this place is a holy place, that this is God's house today." And Jesus said that where two or more are gathered in His Name, He is here in our midst. That is an incredible privilege and blessing of our Lord to know that He is present with us. We've called the church "The Lord's house" for years, but I want you to understand that the New Testament says that every believer is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Listen to how Paul put it to the Corinthian church (1 Corinthians 6:19-20), "Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's."
I am not taking away from this event that we've read about here in these verses, but I want you to understand that an even greater event happened because of the Lord Jesus when he saved you. Paul says that He came in, Christ in us, the hope of glory! That's what is so absolutely amazing. And friend, I want you to understand that God has made you with an intended purpose - to glorify His Name. And you can witness the immense power of our Lord when He is in control of your life, and how important for our lives to be marked with incredible praise for our Lord. We also have,
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Holy Principles vv 12-18
7:12 Then the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said to him: "I have heard your prayer, and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice.
7:13 "When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people,
7:14 "if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
7:15 "Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to prayer [made] in this place.
7:16 "For now I have chosen and sanctified this house, that My name may be there forever; and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually.
7:17 "As for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, and do according to all that I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and My judgments,
7:18 "then I will establish the throne of your kingdom, as I covenanted with David your father, saying, 'You shall not fail [to have] a man as ruler in Israel.'
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Principles impact our beliefs v 17. In the midst of a challenge for Solomon to walk in the ways of his father, David, we find that the Lord tells him the way this will be accomplished is to do all that He has commanded, to keep His statutes and judgments. Commandments, statutes, and judgments. It begins there. They are the guidelines, the playbook, what determines right and wrong. And despite what society says or Hollywood attempts to cram down our throat, there is still an absolute right and an absolute wrong. If you go against God's Word and His ways, it will cost you. But you've got to understand that the principles found in God's Word are not just a list of don'ts. Many have the attitude and approach that God is the cosmic killjoy and that He desires for no one to have fun or be happy. That could not be further from the truth! He knows what it means to have real joy and real peace and real contentment and His desire is that everyone experience the real thing instead of the devil's counterfeit.
I want to tell you again dear friend that you have a system of beliefs, but is it based on the principles of God's Word? Your worldview, that which you filter every thought, decision and attitude - is it a biblical worldview? Maysville Baptist Church, on what do we base our beliefs? Is it the whims of our culture in order that we not offend anyone? Is it so watered down that we have grossly compromised God's Word? Absolutely not. Listen to this admonition of the Lord to the children of Israel, which shows us just how important and powerful the right foundation for our lives is (Deuteronomy 7:12-14), "Then it shall come to pass, because you listen to these judgments, and keep and do them, that the LORD your God will keep with you the covenant and the mercy which He swore to your fathers. And He will love you and bless you and multiply you; He will also bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your land, your grain and your new wine and your oil, the increase of your cattle and the offspring of your flock, in the land of which He swore to your fathers to give you. You shall be blessed above all peoples; there shall not be a male or female barren among you or among your livestock." That's just one example of the Lord's admonition to have His Word as a basis of thoughts and action.
It hasn't changed from that time till now. His Word is just as powerful and just as effective. His principles and judgments found all through Scripture are still what is absolutely right and absolutely true. And because of that, I want you to understand our beliefs:
1. About God. God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe. He has eternally existed in three personalities: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, each with distinct personal attributes and without division of nature, essence or being. These three are co-equal and are one God.
2. About Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He is co-equal with the Father. Jesus lived a sinless human life and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all people by dying on a cross. He arose from the dead after three days to demonstrate His power over sin and death. He ascended to Heaven's glory and will return again someday to earth to reign as King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.
3. About the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the Son of God. He is present in the world to make men aware of their need for Jesus Christ. He also lives in every Christian from the moment of salvation. He provides the Christian with power for living, understanding of spiritual truth, and guidance in doing what is right. He gives every believer a spiritual gift when they are saved. As Christians, we seek to live under His control daily.
4. About the Bible The Bible is the inspired, inerrant, infallible and authoritative Word of God. It was written by human authors, under the supernatural guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is the supreme source of truth for Christian beliefs and living.
5. About Human Beings. People are made in the spiritual image of God, to be like Him in character. People are the supreme object of God's creation. Although every person has tremendous potential for good, all of us are marred by an attitude of disobedience toward God called "sin". This attitude separates people from God and causes many problems in life.
6. About salvation. Salvation is God's gracious and free gift to us but we must accept it through faith. We can never make up for our sin by self-improvement or good works. Only by trusting in Jesus Christ as God's offer of forgiveness can anyone be saved from sin's penalty. When we turn from our self-ruled life and turn to Jesus in faith we are saved. Eternal life begins the moment one receives Jesus Christ into his life by faith.
7. About eternal security. Because God gives us eternal life through Jesus Christ, the true believer is secure in that salvation for eternity. If you have been genuinely saved, you cannot "lose" it. Salvation is maintained by the grace and power of God, not by the self-effort of the Christian. It is the grace and keeping power of God that gives us this security.
8. About eternity. People were created to exist forever. We will either exist eternally separated from God by sin, or eternally with God through forgiveness and salvation. The lost will be eternally separated from God in a real and eternal place called Hell. The saved will be eternally with God in a real and eternal place called Heaven.
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Beliefs impact our behavior vv 14, 17-18. Because of that system of absolute right and wrong, we know what to do when we do wrong - confess it! That's what verse 14 is all about. We are instructed in God's Word to humble ourselves, pray, turn from our wicked ways.
But we are also told to do right. Note what the Lord tells Solomon - "if you keep my commandments and My judgments, then I will…." What you believe you will do. Everything else is just religious talk. Friend, it's one thing for you to get all excited about our core values, but if you're not doing them; if you're not setting your life by those values; then you're just playing games. Belief impacts behavior, and,
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Our behavior impacts God's behavior v 14, 18. The Lord says in verse 14 as a result of a repentant spirit, "I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin and heal their land." He told Solomon in verse 18, "then I will establish the throne of your kingdom, as I covenanted with David your father…." Scripture is filled with incredible promises from God - and most, if not all, of them are conditional. For example, 1 John 1:9 says that God is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness IF we confess our sins. If you want to live with unconfessed sin in your life, God won't forgive. Do you long for rest? Great. The Bible says that the Lord will give us rest IF we come to Him. God will give wisdom fully and abundantly IF we ask Him in faith. We want God to direct our paths, and He will IF we trust in Him with all of our heart and do not lean on our own understanding. God has given us holy principles for living and we experience His incredible presence ONLY when we live according to His principles. But we also see that we are to be,
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A Holy People
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God reminded the people of His holiness as well their need to be holy by the sacrifices that were made. We see where the Lord sent fire from heaven and consumed the sacrifices made by Solomon. Why the sacrifices? And what were the sacrifices? The New Testament makes this point that without the shedding of blood there is no remission. The high priest would never enter into the holy of holies without blood. Why? Without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins. But you've got to understand that the blood sacrifices could never take away the sin, but they were a picture of the one sacrifice that would be able to take away the sin forever - the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ.
In fact, in those Old Testament sacrifices we see Jesus.
In the burnt offering, we see Christ as the One that atones for our sin.
In the grain offering, we see Christ as the One that was consecrated wholly to the Father's plan.
In the peace offering, we see Christ as the One that brought peace between God and man.
In the sin offering, it was Christ that was our propitiation - the One that died in our place.
In the trespass offering, we see the picture of Christ paying the price for our redemption.
All of those sacrifices were only pictures of what Christ would do on the cross.
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We are made holy ONLY by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. There is no other way that you and I can be forgiven of sin apart from Christ. Hebrews 9:12 says that it was Christ, "with His own blood [who] entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption." If you're trying to get to heaven your way you'll hit an eternal dead end. If you're attempting to justify yourself by your standards - you'll never make it heaven or know what true forgiveness really is. It is the Lord's sacrifice alone that makes us holy.
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And because of the Lord's sacrifice, then we as believers in Jesus are to be a living sacrifice. Paul wrote (Romans 12:1-2), "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God."
There is coming a day very soon where our Lord is coming, riding on the clouds, shining like the sun, at the trumpet call. Will you meet Him in the air, or will you be left behind? God is here. What's the big deal about that? Because He's my King! (That's My King, by S.M. Lockeridge)
The Bible says my King is a seven-way king....He's the King of the Jews; that's a racial king....He's the King of Israel; that's a national King....He's the King of Righteousness....He's the King of the Ages.....He's the King of Heaven....He's the King of Glory....He's the King of kings, and He's the Lord of lords. That's my King. Well....I wonder, do you know Him?.... David said, "The Heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows His handiwork. My King is a sovereign King. No means of measure can define His limitless love. No far seeing telescope can bring into visibility the coastline of His shoreless supply. No barrier can hinder Him from pouring out His blessings. He's enduringly strong....He's entirely sincere....He's eternally steadfast....He's immortally graceful....He's imperially powerful....He's impartially merciful....... Do you know Him?
He's the greatest phenomenon that ever crossed the horizon of this world. He's God's Son....He's a sinner's Saviour....He's the centerpiece of civilization....He stands in the solitude of Himself....He's august....He's unique....He's unparalleled....He's unprecedented....He's the loftiest idea in literature....He's the highest personality in philosophy....He's the supreme problem in higher criticism....He's the fundamental doctrine of true theology....He's the cardinal necessity for spiritual religion....He's the miracle of the age.... He's the superlative of everything good that you choose to call Him....He's the only one qualified to be an all sufficient Saviour...... I wonder if you know Him today.
He supplies strength for the weak....He's available for the tempted and the tried....He sympathizes and He saves....He strengthens and sustains....He guards and He guides....He heals the sick....He cleanses lepers....He forgives sinners....He discharges debtors....He delivers captives....He defends the feeble....He blesses the young....He serves the unfortunate....He regards the aged....He rewards the diligent....and He beautifies the meek....... I wonder if you know Him.
Well, my King....is the King....He's the key to knowledge....He's the wellspring to wisdom....He's the doorway of deliverance....He's the pathway of peace....He's the roadway of righteousness ....He's the highway of holiness....He's the gateway of glory....... Do you know Him?
Well....His office is manifold....His promise is sure....His light is matchless....His goodness is limitless....His mercy is everlasting....His love never changes....His word is enough....His grace is sufficient....His reign is righteous....and His yoke is easy, and his burden is light. I wish I could describe Him to you, but He's indescribable....He's incomprehensible....He's
invincible....He's irresistible.
Well, you can't get Him out of your mind....You can't get Him off of your hand....You can't out live Him, and you can't live without Him....The Pharisees couldn't stand Him, but they found out they couldn't stop Him....Pilate couldn't find any fault in Him....The witnesses couldn't get their testimonies to agree....Herod couldn't kill Him....Death couldn't handle Him, and the grave couldn't hold Him. Yea!!!, that's my King, that's my King.
Father..."Thine is the Kingdom....and the Power....and the Glory....Forever".... and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever. How long is that? And ever...and ever... and when you get through with all the forevers, then.... AMEN!....AMEN!