Preparations for the House of Yahweh
Bible Text: I Kings 5 | Preacher: Alan Conner | Series: 1 Kings, 2006
Northwest Bible Church – Feb. 12, 2006 Worship Service – Alan Conner
1 Kings 5
Preparations for the “House of Yahweh”
Intro
Understanding the “house of Yahweh.”
God does not need a “house.”
1Kings 8:27 “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain Thee, how much less this house which I have built!
The temple was to accommodate God’s presence to the limitations and needs of His people.
The importance of its location.
2Chr. 3:1 Then Solomon began to build the house of the LORD in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the LORD had appeared to his father David, at the place that David had prepared, on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
a) Mt. Moriah – Gen. 22:2. God’s mercy on Abraham.
b) The threshing floor of Araunah (Ornan) – See: 2 Sam. 24:15-16,18; 1 Chron. 21:14-27; 22:1. So we see that this chosen place is a place of mercy in which God stayed the hand of the destroying angel and had mercy on Jerusalem.
The importance of its function.
It was to provide a place for forgiveness and salvation for the repentant sinner among Israel, and assure to him the grace of God. It brought God’s mercy to sinners.
The temple is a type (or OT picture) of
1) the physical body of Christ (Jn. 2:21)
2) the spiritual body of Christ, the church (1 Cor. 3:16; 6:19).
The preparations for the “house of Yahweh.”
Licence – building permit. This is given in God’s promise (vv. 3-5). The promise of God to his father David (v. 5), cf. 2 Sam. 7:12-13.
“Kingdom promises drive kingdom work” – Dale Davis
God’s promises not only give us the permission to build, but also encouragement to build when the progress slows down through discouragement.
Lumber – building materials (vv. 6-12).
This lumber would be used to line the walls, floor and ceiling of the interior of the temple, etc. with beautiful things carved upon it: gourds, open flowers, cherubim, palm trees
Hiram, a heathen, is a foreshadowing of or anticipation of God’s grace which will spread out into the Gentile world and that many from the Gentile stock will come and participate in building the New Covenant temple of God, the church of Jesus Christ.
Laborers – building force (vv. 13-16).
a) Gentile slaves (v. 15).
b) Israelites drafted (vv. 13-14).
What about this draft?
We all need to spend our time in Lebanon.
Large stones – The foundation stones (vv. 17-18).
1) “great stones” –
2) “costly stones” –
3) “cut stones” –
APPLICATION: we are now God’s temple and our foundation is:
1) Christ is the chief corner stone – Eph. 2:20
2) The apostles and the prophets are our foundation – Eph. 2:20
Make sure your foundation is well laid.
CONCLUSION