1 Kings 8 (Part 1) Bible Study (Solomon Brings the Ark Into the Temple) | Pastor Daniel Batarseh

First Kings Chapter 8 Welcome to the dedication service of the

1 Kings 8 · chapter mention

temple. That is what chapter eight of

First Kings is all about. We have studied the building of

the temple. We've studied the details

surrounding the beautifying of the Temple, some of the

artifacts, and the articles within the Temple, but now we've

reached the climax of this thing called the Temple of Solomon,

and that is primarily the entrance and the arrival of the

Ark of the Covenant. Solomon decided to make an event

out of this one central piece to the House of Worship, and that

is the Ark. And it is no small deal for the

Ark to now find a permanent home in the house that Solomon built

for the Lord, like many chapters and 1st Kings.

Perhaps you already saw that this is a quite lengthy chapter.

There is no way that we're going to cover all of it in one

setting, but we will cover much and trust that as we glean

through it, we will be edified. And so let's come to this

chapter beginning in verse one and read a a few verses and then

take our time to dissect what it is that the Holy Spirit has

inscribed in first kings 8 verse one.

Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the

heads of the tribes, the leaders of the fathers houses of the

people of Israel, before King Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring

up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of

David which is Zion. And all the men of Israel

assembled to King Solomon at the feast in the month of Ethanim,

which is the 7th month. And all the elders of Israel

came, and the priests took up the ark, and they brought up the

ark of the Lord, the tent of meeting, and all the holy

vessels that were in the tent. The priests and the Levites

brought them up. And King Solomon and all the

congregation of Israel who had assembled before him were with

him before the ark, sacrificing so many sheep and oxen that they

could not be counted or numbered.

And the priest brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord to

its place in the inner sanctuary of the house, and the Most Holy

Place underneath the wings. Of the cherubim.

Father, this is your word. We are your people as we sang, O

Lord, we desire to exalt you as we come to the Word.

Would you be exalted in our thoughts?

Would you be exalted in our affections?

Would you be exalted in our obedience?

We ask that you would energize this meeting by the power of the

Holy Spirit and that it would be undeniable that you were in the

midst. Tonight we ask these things with

great reverence and hope, believing that you hear us even

now. We tremble at your word and we

rejoice. At the same time, in Jesus name

we pray. Amen.

Amen. The verse one tells us that

Solomon makes a big event out of the arrival of the Ark of the

Covenant, but more than just seeing the grandeur of it and

the celebration around it, we. Were given the precise timing of

it, you know by now how long it took to build the temple.

How long did it take? A total of how many years?

Seven years? Correct.

But look here with me and notice something.

We are told here that in verse two it was at the feast in the

month of Ethanim, which is the 7th month.

So you know and I know how long it took to build the temple.

But in the same scripture where we're told how long it took to

build the temple, we're also told when it was completed.

And if you do not remember when it was completed, just scroll

back a couple chapters in chapter 6 and look here with me.

In verse 38 you will see the precise date and the precise

months specifically where this all came to an end.

Concerning this construction of the temple and in the 11th year

in the month of Bull, which is the 8th month, the house was

finished in all its parts and according to all its

specifications he was seven years in building it.

So in the eighth month of the 11th year.

This is when the temple was completed.

What month of the year did the Ark of the Covenant arrive?

The 7th month. So how many months after the

Temple was completed did Solomon bring in the ark?

11 months. Now some would say no, it wasn't

11 months later. It was probably many years

later. And they take into consideration

that perhaps Solomon brought the Ark in after he completed his

own house, which means many years passed before this took

place, irrespective of the year. The Holy Spirit underscores and

sees it necessary for us to know which month out of the year

Solomon brought in the ark. Why do you think the 7th month

is important? OK, the number seven is

important in the Bible, that's true.

But what took place on the 7th month according to the Jewish

calendar there, the Feast of Tabernacles?

Was that the only feast in the seventh month?

OK, good, Let's do this. How many feasts were commanded

by the Lord for Israel to observe?

7. Another #7?

Correct. Four of them were in the spring.

Three of them were in the fall. Which ones were during the

spring? Passover #1.

Next? Unleavened bread?

True third. The feast of Firstfruits?

By the way? All these.

Feasts point to Jesus Christ. 4th Pentecost or the Feast of

Weeks. So you have Passover, Unleavened

Bread, the Feast of Firstfruits, the Feast of Weeks, Feast of

Pentecost. Then there's a period of break,

and then you come to the Fall Season.

And there are three feasts. Which are what?

First, the Feast of Trumpets. Second, the Day of Atonement,

Really good. Lastly, the Feast of Booths or

the Feast of Tabernacles if you really it's a fascinating study.

If you want to know more details about what these feasts mean, we

have a whole Bible study on the 7th feast.

Just look up the church YouTube account and look up the seven

Feasts of Israel and your mind will be blown away if you don't

understand the significance of those feasts.

It's a prophetic timetable really.

Now we don't know exactly what feast in the seventh month this

celebration coincides with until you come to the end of this

chapter. Then you receive the clue that

tells you which feast exactly. So look at chapter 8, verse 65.

So Solomon held the feast at that time and all Israel with

him A great assembly from Libo Hamath to the brook of Egypt

before the Lord our God. Seven days out of those 3 feasts

in the seventh month there was only one of those feasts that

were celebrated throughout a week time.

And that was the feast of Tabernacles.

Very good. The Feast of Tabernacles is a

fascinating feast. One of the reasons why it's

fascinating is because they were instructed once a year to build

booths, kind of like tents, more decorative, and they were to

live in these booths throughout the week.

More than that, this feast was held at the end of the harvest

season. And so there would be the in

gathering of produce and vegetation, all these things,

and they would dedicate these things to the Lord, and they

would recognize God for His faithfulness and provision, His

continual leadership and guidance in their lives.

But more than just recognizing him for that year, it would

ultimately be a time of commemoration of a specific

period in Israel's history, the time in which the people were

delivered from slavery out of Egypt into freedom through the

wilderness and through the wilderness.

They lived in what they lived in tents, they lived in booths.

And so as they would reflect on what God had done for them, they

would do so in a very practical and an exciting way by actually

living in booths at this particular time.

And this is how they would recognize God's goodness.

This is how they would recognize his.

Faithfulness to him. But why coincide this feast with

the Ark coming into Jerusalem, into the city of David?

Well, it's for no different reason than why we were told the

exact time when Solomon began the project a couple chapters

ago. The reason why the Holy Spirit,

the reason why we're told that Solomon said this is the feast

that we want to overlap with. This entrance of the Ark is

because the Ark is the ultimate fulfillment of the hope of these

people, the goal of the redemption and the preservation.

Not the Ark itself, but what the Ark symbolize God's throne and

His presence in close proximity to those that he delivered,

exalted, honored, and enjoyed. And so why did the Lord bring

them out of Egypt? Why did He preserve them through

the wilderness? Why did he bring him into the

Promised Land for this very moment that God and man can

dwell as closely as possible to one another?

And you heard from a couple Bible studies ago, the goal of

our redemption in Christ Jesus is no different that the Lord

would bring us to God. Peter tells us through the

blood. And so they're supposed to be

this overlap because they're supposed to recognize at the

same time, this is what God ultimately provides us, not just

the things that we enjoy, our protection, our livelihood, but

His presence, His person. And you know what's so

fascinating? During the millennial reign,

this very feast will be one of the feast.

Not every feast is going to be recognized when Jesus Christ

returns the rules on the earth. But this feast, the feast of tag

manacles, will be a global mandate.

All the nations must recognize the Feast of Boots and they must

come to Jerusalem as they did. This is a pilgrimage feast and

recognize and honor the Lord. So this feast is even pointing

to what's to come. That's why Peter got so excited

on the Mount of Transfiguration when he saw Jesus and his glory,

Moses and Elijah. What did he say?

Out of nowhere, let's build tents for you.

Was he? Was he just groggy and he didn't

know what he was saying? Some people say it, say say

that, and they teach it that way.

No, Peter understood the Old Testament.

When Christ comes in his glory, we will celebrate the Feast of

Tabernacles. Let's do it now.

Let's do it right now. We can build boots for you and

you and you. We could just stay right here.

And if you want the reference for that, that's in Zechariah

1416, where we were told that all the nations will gather and

come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Boots.

And if you. Didn't there was punishment?

There is punishment. So there's a prophetic hope in

this that the one that the Ark points to will one day enter and

arrive, establish his throne, the glory of God.

Not on a chest, not on a treasure piece, but in the

person of Jesus Christ. He will come and he will rule

and reign, and he will be in close proximity to his own, and

we will celebrate that truth. And.

We will realize that this is the goal of our redemption.

Christ himself, Christ himself. When you and I preach the

gospel, we're not just preaching for people to get to heaven.

We're preaching for people to get to Christ.

We're preaching for people to know Christ, love Christ.

Christ is heaven. You don't have Christ in heaven.

You don't have heaven. And so This is why this is

taking place. And now we come here again in

verse 3, let's be reminded what happens at all.

The elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark, and

they brought up the ark of the Lord, the tent of meeting, and

all the holy vessels that were in the tent, the priests and the

Levites brought them up. I see something of Solomon's

wisdom here, because his father had an opportunity to bring the

Ark into its rightful place at one time when it was returned

from the Philistines. Did David do it right the first

time? No, he blew it.

For some reason. He found the confidence to do

his own way, an easier way, the worldly way.

He saw the Philistines bring the ark on a cart and he thought,

well, that's pretty convenient, put it on a cart.

Why put it on the shoulders of our men?

Put it on a cart on a new cart and they paid a high price for

it. We pay a high price when we

imitate the world, when God's given us a blueprint for how he

should be honored and worshipped.

And so David made a mistake. He paid a high price.

Somebody died. He got afraid.

He says, I don't want to deal with this.

And then he finds the grace to do it again.

And he does it the right way by adhering to the biblical

mandate. And I see Solomon here doing it

right the first time. He didn't have to make the same

mistake as his father. Wisdom is not just glean by

learning from your own mistakes. Wisdom is glean when you observe

and study the mistakes of others and say I can avoid this

altogether. I thought about that.

I thought further. Isn't it sad that Solomon here

learned from the mistake of his father in this area but not in

another area pertaining to marriage and woman?

We can be very picky and choosy with sins in our lives.

There are people who are very passionate about certain

standards of righteousness and very very, very loose in other

standards. If you're going to stand up for

righteousness, stand for righteousness and everything.

If you're going to stand up for the word of God, don't get

passionate about one era. Get passionate for everything.

No matter what the word of God demands, submit to it and preach

it with equal passion and stand for it with equal conviction.

You know Jesus says whoever takes the least of these things

and teaches others to do life swap likewise.

Will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven.

When I read that in the in the summer of the Mount, I said,

Lord, I don't want to make light of anything of your word because

I don't want to come to your Kingdom at the end and say, you

know, because you treated these things lightly and you taught

others to do the same, you're going to be called leasing the

Kingdom, God forbid. God forbid.

What happens after Solomon is leading this procession with the

priests? They slaughter these animals

without number. They didn't even count them.

They now come to the goal. They come to the parking spot,

so to speak, of the Ark, and look at this in verse six.

Then the priest brought the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord to

its place in the inner sanctuary of the house in the Most Holy

Place, underneath the weeks. The wings of the cherubim.

For the cherubim spread out their wings over the place of

the Ark, so that the cherubim overshadowed the Ark and its

poles. And it says here in the polls

were so long that the ends of the polls were seen from the

Holy Place before the inner sanctuary, but they could not be

seen from outside. We'll get to that in a moment.

So remember, though the temple served this same person purpose

as the Tabernacle, it looked very different.

It had the same compartments, the same sections, But when you

came into the Most Holy Place, you saw two towering cherubim

that stood on their feet. And if you read the measurement

of these cherubim, we've read it in back in a few chapters ago.

If you do the equivalency of the measurements today that we used

to the to the feet, it it would be 15 feet high each.

These are tall images, and their wingspan covered the length of

the Most Holy Place. You had their outer rings, outer

wings touching the walls, and then their inner wings kissing

each other. So these wings just cover the

whole span of the room. And then they placed the Ark of

the Covenant in the center, underneath the inner wings of

the cherubim. Why are the cherubim place in

the Most Holy Place? Why?

Why? Out of all the imagery, out of

all the creatures that you could have created, why did God ask

for the cherubim to be placed there?

Any idea? So one very strong case you can

make is that it makes a reference to the Garden of Eden,

that after men and women were expelled from paradise, God

called for the Chairman to guard the tree of life.

And So what you have here in a sense is a reference to the

Garden and how man is still through sin, kept from enjoying

the fullness of the presence of God.

Very good point. Yes, very good.

And so may. You didn't say this, but I'm

assuming you're going to say this, that this is a picture of

even the throne of God. Yes, because whenever you and I

get an honor to see a glimpse of the throne of God, the celestial

throne of God, in the scriptures it is often characterized by

these other worldly beings that surround the throne, whether

that be cherubim or whether that be seraphim, these amazing

creatures that are giving glory to God that would frighten us.

But in fact they are the ones who can't even stand in the

holiness of God without covering their faces.

At least the Seraphim. Any other ideas?

Yes, yes. So that's Seraphim, more

specifically the burning ones. But you see the cherubim in

Revelation, so they're there in Ezekiel as well.

So these creatures are there in the throne.

So I make the case, as much as you have the a strong case

concerning the garden, especially what was woven into

what the veil. The cherubim were woven onto the

veil, which is very much a strong picture of, hey look, the

presence of God is being guarded by these holy beings.

More than that is that the Holy Place is a reflection of the

throne of God, and like you said, God's presence surrounded

by these holy beings that worship him.

With that being said, can I ask this question at this point in

Solomon's temple? How many cherubim were in the

Most Holy Place? Was it one?

OK, so total how many more than that?

You had four total. You had one in each side.

And then you had two cherubim that were infused on what?

On the Ark of Covenant itself. And so let me show you the

reference of this, because this is quite amazing when you

consider the four cherubim and how they were positioned,

they're different. So go to Exodus with me and look

at the construction, the building of the Ark of the

Covenant in verse 18 of chapter 25.

Exodus chapter 25, verse 18. Here's the instruction given to

Exodus 25:18

Moses concerning the cherubim on the lid of the Ark of the

Covenant. What was the lid of the Ark of

the Covenant called? Very good the mercy seat.

Here is the instruction. And you shall make 2 cherubim of

gold of hammered work, shall you make them on the two ends of the

mercy seat? Make one cherub on the one end

and one cherub on the other end of one piece.

With the Mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two

ends. The cherubim shall spread out

their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings,

their faces one to another, toward the Mercy Seat shall the

faces of the cherubim be so on both ends of this chest piece,

called the Ark of the Covenant, you had one cherub facing the

other. Their wings are overshadowing

the Ark, and not only are they facing one another, but their

faces are downward. Looking at the mercy seat now,

the two cherub that Solomon built, they're much bigger.

They were not directly attached to the Ark of the Covenant, but

based on the description here, where were they facing?

They were facing outward. They were facing toward what?

You have the most Holy place, if we're looking at it from the

view of the cherub. They're looking toward the holy

place, are they not? If you want the reference for

this, the exact reference is Second Chronicles 313, where

we're told that they face the nave they faced outward.

So let me paint this picture. You have two bigger cherub that

were facing outward, and you had two smaller cherub that were

facing downward and looking toward the mercy.

Seat. And this is really an exciting

illustration. It's really a picture of

something that you and I kind of read in the New Testament.

In what sense? Well, Peter says something quite

fascinating concerning the gospel.

He says this mystery of the gospel of human salvation, the

mercy of God in this gospel is something that angels long.

To lick into. They longed to study this.

They longed to try to understand redemptive history and why this

holy God would redeem these rebels.

They longed to look into the mystery and the mercy of God.

And yet at the same time we're told by Paul in Ephesians

chapter three that the church is really something of a spectacle

and that through the Church the wisdom of God is made known to

these authorities and to these beings from where heavenly

places. So you have these otherworldly

beings that are also looking at this phenomenon called the

Church and how God not only saves these sinners, but he is

conforming them and he is working in them and through

them. And not to others, but even to a

world unknown to us, at least how we perceive it.

Humanly speaking world that we believe in, but a world that we

can't immediately interact with. They're looking in and they're

saying what is this thing called the Church?

Look at the wisdom of God in the church.

Look at the grace of God in the Church.

And these cherub. They were not looking at the

mercy see two of them were but these other two were looking out

into the holy place where the priests were ministering.

It's so fascinating to see how the old connects with the new.

Here's another point and one of the gospel accounts we're told

that when the woman came to the tomb and they and they looked

in, one of the accounts tells. Us that on the bed that Jesus

laid on, there was an Angel on one end and there was an Angel

on the other end. What do you think that is

supposed to point back to? Well, who's in the middle?

It would have been that precious, holy, sinless body of

the Lord Jesus Christ who is ultimately the mercy seat.

Isn't the Bible rich? Isn't the Bible fascinating

because it's authored by an amazing God and so they placed

the ark of the covenant here. And Speaking of pre serving they

would have seen something. This might be a shocking

statement. They would have seen something

of the most holy place. Now that sounds illegal because

it is illegal. But notice verse 8 with me of

first kings 8. And the poles were so long the

poles of the Ark of the Covenant, that the ends of the

poles were seen from the holy place.

Before the inner sanctuary, but they could not be seen from

outside. You want to talk about wrestling

with a verse? Because we're told throughout

the Old Testament, especially when the ark was introduced to

the people, that they had no right to freely look upon the

Ark of the covenant. Even when it was transported, it

was covered. It was a holy thing.

And yet here we're told that the poles, because the Ark also had

poles for the priests to put on their shoulders, those poles,

according to Exodus, were to never be removed.

They were to always remain intact with the Ark.

But here the Holy Spirit highlights that they were so

long that the ends of the poles were sticking out, and that they

could be seen. From the holy place, How do we

make sense of this? Trust me, many people have tried

to give many explanations, and the most satisfacting,

satisfactory explanation that I could agree with is that these

ends of the poles did not actually stick out where you can

see them clearly and get a glimpse of a piece of the art.

But they were being impressed upon the veil, and as they were

being impressed on the veil, there was almost two bulges

against the curtain. And so it was known that these

were the poles that were pressing against the screen, but

they weren't completely protruding out.

Why is this important for us to even know?

That's the question I always ask when it comes to an obscure

verse like this. Why is it important for me to

know that if that is the explanation of this verse, that

these poles were elevating the screen, so to speak, and if you

were serving there in the Holy place, you would see it.

You would see a dent, so to speak, into this thick curtain

called the veil? Well, it looks like Urghese has

a question or answer. Yes.

So in a practical sense, it would be a constant reminder

that the ark is here. It'd be a constant reminder to

the to the ministers that the presence of God is in the midst.

But this is not dogmatic, This is not definite, so to speak.

This is just working with what we have here.

I just began to think about what the Ark symbolized, what the

veil symbolized, and how we're being told that it was seen by

the priest. Right.

This is important for them to register what was happening.

The Ark represents very simply the presence of God and in God

dwelling in and through the ark, manifesting his glory through

the ark. This is God's longing the the

constant threat throughout the Bible, God's longing to dwell

with man. What is the veil symbolize?

Why is there even a veil to begin with?

Separate the presence of God from who, from man, from sinful

man. And again, if you even look at

what's woven on the veil, it's very clear.

In the Tabernacle, especially the cherubim are there, which is

supposed to be a constant reminder of the Garden of Eden,

that the cherubim were raised up to block man's entrance into the

presence of God. And so you have the Ark of the

Covenant, which symbolizes the presence of God.

You have the veil that speaks of the separation caused by sin,

and then you have the poles that are pressing against the veil.

And this is the thought that ran through my mind.

Disagree with me if you would like that.

If this ark represents God's presence, wanting to dwell with

man, this veil representing sin, here is God reaching out.

Here is God reaching out. You know what James tells us?

That this God yearns jealously for the spirits that he has made

in US. In a sense, even as redemptive

history is progressing, what you're what you're seeing in the

Most Holy Place is that God is longing to touch man, redeem

man, rescue man, being closer proximity to man.

And so you have the Tabernacle or the ark was very comfortable

in you have the Temple of Solomon where now the poles, the

extension of the ark are pressing against the veil.

And then you come to the New Testament where Jesus Christ

comes in the flesh and he tabernacles among men.

And then, after Jesus Christ ascends into heaven, he sends

his. Spirit.

And what does he do? He dwells in you and I.

How much closer can you get than that?

You are the temple of the Holy Spirit.

And so here we have a God who first love us, and we can love

him because he first love us. Here is a God that even in this

small picture showing his longing and yearning to be with

you and I, he doesn't need us, but He desires us.

This moved me when I saw this, and I wonder if it ran through

the mind of the priests as they were serving there.

There's the ark being pressed against the veil.

What does that say about God's heart?

And we read on. And what do we see?

Something else concerning the ark.

This is the concluding thought concerning the ark.

It's not so much about the ark itself, but the contents in the

ark. If you were troubled by verse 8,

at least puzzled get. Ready for verse nine?

There was nothing in the Ark. Except the two tablets of stone

that Moses put there at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant

with the people of Israel when they came out of the land of

Egypt. Why is that puzzling?

Because there are two other articles that were supposed to

be in the Ark. And if you want a summation of

this, it's actually in the New Testament.

What book do you think I'm about to quote?

Very good. You know your Bible as well.

Hebrews 9, verse three and four. I want you to see this with your

own eyes. Hebrews 9, three and four.

The author of Hebrews, who many believed to be Paul, masterfully

makes a case for the supremacy of Christ, and he speaks about

the very structure that we are referring to, though it's very

likely he's actually speaking about the Tabernacle more than

the temple. So what does he say here?

Says here in verse 4 having the golden altar of incense in the

ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold in which was

a golden. Urn holding the Manna and Aaron

staff that budded and the tablets of the covenant.

There it is. You have three things.

The golden urn of Manna that was ordered in Exodus.

You have Aaron's rod that budded that was ordered in #17 and then

you have the tablets which was ordered back in Exodus to be

placed in the Ark of the Covenant.

Do we have a contradiction here because we're told in First

Kings 8-9 that there was nothing except for the tablets of stone?

No one, because it could be that the author, if he was just

speaking about the Tabernacle and others, would even make the

case that it was only the tablets of stone that were

committed to be in the Ark and the golden Urn of Manna and

Aaron's rod were to be placed around the Ark.

Where do they get that notion from?

Well, if you look at the instructions about the Golden

Urn and Aaron's rod, there's very specific language and the

language was this place it before the Ark of the Covenant.

And so they would make the case on top of that.

Well, if you look at the author's point here.

He adds another thing. In the Most holy place that's

technically not supposed to be there.

What is it? Look at verse 4 again.

What's out of place? What's not supposed to be be

there? Somebody whispered it.

Don't be shy. Huh.

Huh. The first thing having the

golden altar of incense and the Ark of the Hold on, There's no

end in the in the Most Holy Place, the only thing in the

Most Holy. Place is the Ark of the

Covenant. The one piece of furniture

before you would enter into the Most Holy Place was the altar of

incense. That was the closest thing to

the veil that would lead into the Most Holy Place, which is a

practical picture of what that the closest place you can be in

terms of knowing the presence of God is prayer.

The altar of incense symbolizes prayer and that was the closest

thing to the presence of God symbolizing the Ark of the

Covenant. You want to be close to the

Lord? Get a prayer life.

You want to know his presence, get a prayer life.

But more than that, it's a picture of the intercessory

ministry of Jesus. It's amazing.

So this altar of incense, why? Well, why?

Where did you go? What?

Why is the golden altar of incense in the Most Holy Place?

And here's the argument. Well, in doesn't necessarily

mean in if it's true that the golden altar is not in the Most

Holy Place. And you can also say that the

Golden Urn and the the budded staff is not in the Ark of the

Covenant. Regardless, we can still ask the

question based on 1st Kings 8-9 what happened to the Golden Urn

of Manna and to Aaron's staff? Because it's being explicitly

stated there was nothing in the Ark as though the the Holy

Spirit wants us to know nothing else was in this.

The only thing that's important to know that was in the Ark is

the law. No explanation.

You'd be hard pressed to find an answer to why, but what many

would say if you don't hold to this view that it's not

necessarily and maybe before or around.

That there was something significant that happened in the

history of the Ark of the Covenant that could possibly

explain what happened to these other articles.

I'm thinking something obviously in between Moses time with the

Tabernacle and Solomon's time with the Temple.

Was there any significant episode that could explain the

missing Golden Urn and Aaron Staff?

The Ark was captured By who? The Philistines.

First Samuel 4-5 and six? Because what people would say to

this is, well, clearly they were.

Removed somehow, some way they were removed.

Well, how were they removed? Ah.

Maybe during that 7th month period when it was stolen from

the people of Israel, the Philistines found liberty to say

oh look what's in here. And so it could be that they

either removed or took, for whatever reason, the Golden Urn

of Mana and Aaron's. But it's staff.

And if that is true, if that is the explanation, I find it

absolutely hilarious that they left the.

Law in there, like what is this Looks like commands.

Keep it in there, give it back to them.

We don't want that. And if that is true, then what a

wonderful lesson of how the enemy works.

You know how God wants you to see Him in a relational way, and

even through the commandments that you would see it as a

delight because you love the person behind the commands.

You know how? Satan would like you to view God

through the law and the law alone.

Do's and don'ts. Do's and don'ts, do's and

don'ts. You know, so many people believe

Christian is just about do's and don'ts, Do's and don'ts.

Can I do this? Can I not do this?

Can I go there? Can I not go there?

Yes, commands are important, but the law here the.

Tablets do not symbolize the commands of God as a response of

our love toward Him. This is speaking about the

condemnation of the law, the condemnation of the law, And if

you purely view the God of this book through the lens of the

law, you're doomed. You're doomed.

You're hopeless. That's the point of the law.

To make you feel hopeless, To show you that you cannot satisfy

this righteous demand. So if the enemies of Israel did

remove these two other things, which is significant?

The rod symbolizes resurrection. I won't get into the other

details. Here's the law.

That's the only thing that's left.

You're saying? Well, yeah, but the law is

important. It is important.

But for what purpose? Be careful how you relate to the

law, even the law in the Ark of the Covenant.

Notice where it was placed. Are you with me?

Notice where it was placed. The law on the tablets of stone

were in the ark. Correct.

Yes. God's holiness, Yes.

The code of his righteousness, Yes, His standards for us to

relate to him. But also yes, impossible to

keep, impossible to observe. So it's in the Ark as a memorial

of His Holiness. But what is on top of the Law?

The mercy seat. The Mercy seat Shields the law.

The Mercy of God covers the demands of the Law.

And what was in between that mercy?

What was in between those cherubim?

Once a year, the blood blood was sprinkled on the mercy seat, and

it was the Mercy that was hovering over the Law.

You can't keep this law. You need mercy.

That's the message of the ark of the covenant and Jesus the

greater ark of the covenant. And So what happens?

Let's read verse. 10 And when the priest came out of the Holy

place, a cloud filled the House of the Lord, so that the priest

could not stand to minister because of the cloud.

For the glory of the Lord filled the House of the Lord.

So once the Ark was placed, people stepped back and a

manifestation of the glory of God began to reveal itself.

And this is not the first time that a cloud filled the House of

the Lord. In Exodus 40, we're told that at

the completion of the Tabernacle and the placement of all the

ordered pieces. A cloud also came and filled the

House of the Lord. Why did the cloud come in the

Tabernacle? Why did the cloud come in the

temple? As a sign of divine approval of

what just took place. And the people would have

witnessed and recognized. God is pleased with this work.

He will dwell here. He does say yes, and he does

accept this offering. But notice the language here.

In verse 10 and verse 11, a cloud filled the House of the

Lord. And then you read on and it says

the same thing. The glory of the Lord.

Filled the House of the Lord. I told you.

That's the same language used in Exodus chapter 40 as well.

Exodus 40 · chapter mention

It filled the Tabernacle. Do you think God's desire is any

less for the House of God today? Who am I speaking about this

church building? I'm speaking about you and I.

In the same way that the Lord filled the Tabernacle, in the

same way that the Lord filled the temple.

In the same way the Lord wants to fill you and I not partially,

completely, not in sections of your life, in saturation of your

entire life. Paul, commanded by the Spirit in

Ephesians 518, to be filled with the Holy Spirit, filled,

bubbling over, saturated, covered in the fragrance of the

person and will and character of Jesus Christ.

And that is something you and I should long for that every part

of who we are would be. Permeated by him?

Permeated by him? How ridiculous would it be if

the glory of the Lord filled just a couple of the rooms in

the house? What's this?

No, everything was blanketed over.

And the will of God in the person.

The Holy Spirit is no different for you and I.

He wants every corner of your life to be touched by him, to

reflect Him. To carry his glory.

To carry his glory. How does that look?

Does that look like you try really hard to look righteous

and stoic? That's not the glory of God.

It's not. It's not you being legalistic

and you looking like you're sour and you think that being holy

means that you're not an enjoyable person.

God forbid. That's just when you allow the

Holy Spirit, as you surrender every part of your life, to take

control of that and to guide you and lead you and to convict you

and to conform you and to give you the wisdom to know how to

respond to every situation, circumstance, scenario, person,

the way Jesus would. That's what the glory of God

looks like. And so yearn for that to be

filled with the Holy Spirit. By the way, that's not a

suggestion. It's a command.

Hey, if you feel like it'd be filled with the holy.

Spirit, Huh. Is that how Paul spoke about the

Holy Spirit? No.

Be filled? And the verb tense?

There's continually filled, continually filled, continually

filled. So now the glory of God shows up

to the degree that it was so thick in the House of God that

the the priest couldn't even continue to minister.

They had to excuse themselves. And this was a sight for all to

see. And Solomon saw this.

And as Solomon is witnessing the glory of God now perfuming this

house, because what's the House of God without the glory of God?

What's the temple without the presence of God?

It's just a hollow museum. There are many religious

facilities today that prize and praise of their artifacts and

their art and all these different things and materials.

And the money they spent and they're bankrupt of the presence

of God because it's not for the glory of God and it doesn't host

the truth of God. So Solomon now for the rest of

this chapter is really going to respond to this.

He's going to respond to what's taking place here in the first

thing he does is he says something to the Lord and then

he's going to say something to the people.

And that's what we're going to cover the next few verses here

and then we will end. Let's read here in verse 12

then, Solomon said. The Lord has said that he would

dwell in thick darkness. I have indeed built you an

exalted house, a place for you to dwell in forever.

Where does God dwell? According to Solomon, In what

thick darkness is that your imagination when it comes to the

manifestation of the glory of God?

Do you see a thick darkness or an unapproachable light?

According to First Timothy 616 First John, we're told that God.

Is. Light God is light.

First Timothy six. He dwells in unapproachable

light. Solomon thick darkness, Which

one is it? How can you have?

God is light. He dwells in unapproachable

light, but He also dwells in thick darkness.

Again, this is reminiscent of what happened on Mount Sinai.

When the Lord came, He also came to reveal himself in his glory

and a thick dark cloud, Thunder clapping, trumpet sounds.

It was absolutely terrifying. And here's God coming again in

thick darkness. Contradiction.

No. A declaration of the mercy of

God. How so?

Well, if he does dwell in unapproachable light, if his

unfiltered presence is consuming, so beautiful.

I mean, if you have the glory of God causing them not to be able

to minister, what would it look like if you removed every veil?

He would absolutely overwhelm you.

Dare I say, kill you? Lord, show us your glory.

Be careful, because when even the closest followers and

greatest servants of God were exposed to the glory of God,

they couldn't stand under their own feet.

You talk about Daniel, who is called the beloved of the Lord,

And when he had some glimpse of the glory, the messengers of

God, he fainted. So thick darkness, I say the

mercy of God. Why?

Because if that is, what happens to those who see just a

percentage of his power. What would it be like if it came

in its complete form? And so, God, I believe in thick

darkness cloaks himself. He provides this canopy, this

pavilion. This way of.

Shielding the brilliance of His Holiness so that he could make

himself known without making his subjects turn into fine powder.

And so this thick darkness is really a screen so that the Lord

can come and meet with his people.

And you know what? He does that in the New

Covenant? The person of Jesus Christ.

He doesn't come in thick darkness.

He comes in flesh and he walks among us, and he eats with us

and he touches us. Oh yeah, you come in the glory.

Oh, if God really wants to reveal himself, let him reveal

himself. And be careful, one he does

reveal himself too. He knows his nature better than

yours, and in his mercy he comes in the flesh for many reasons,

for many reasons. One of them is because He's

merciful and the glory of God shines through the sun.

So he dwells in thick darkness. And then he says, I have indeed

built you an exalted house, a place for you to dwell in

forever. Now look at this.

Then the king, verse 14, turned around and blessed He blessed

all the assembly of Israel, while all the assembly of Israel

stood. So as he's witnessing this, He's

glory of the Lord dwells in thick darkness.

I have indeed built you a house, an exalted house that you may

dwell in forever. And he's just overwhelmed by

this. And then he turns around toward

the people who are standing there witnessing the same thing,

and he begins to bless him. What a wonderful pattern.

What a wonderful pattern for us to consider for our own lives,

That when you and I behold the glory of God, when we are

visited by manifestations of his faithfulness, even his beauty in

the word in life, you know what should that do to us?

It should cause us to do many things.

Worship him, adore him, yes, but also turn around and bless

others. The closer you are to the Lord,

the more the Lord shows you should make you of a greater

blessing to other people. I know a lot of people who have

a lot of biblical knowledge, but the way they treat people shows

that I don't know if you really got what you got.

The more you know, the more you see it will make an impression

on you that will have you turning around and looking at

others and blessing them. And he blesses them by speaking

to them about the truth of God. Look at verse 15.

And he said, blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who

with his hand has fulfilled what he has promised with his mouth.

To David, my father saying, since the day that I brought my

people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the

tribes of Israel in which to build a house that my name might

be there, but I chose David to be over my people Israel.

Now it was in the. Heart of David, my Father, To

build a house for the name of the Lord, the God of Israel.

But the Lord said to David my father, whereas it was in your

heart to build a house for my name, you did well in that it

was in your heart. Do you sense the preciousness of

that commentary? He's telling the people, you

know, hey, look, my father originally had this desire to

build what you see, and it was in his heart.

And although it was in his heart, the Lord recognized that.

And he prays that. And he goes on to explain how he

didn't fulfill that through David, but through myself.

You know what's so precious about this?

The Lord knows the desires of our hearts.

That's what's so beautiful about this verse.

The Lord sees, recognizes, and if it's the right desire, even

praises the desires of our hearts.

Think about that. Think about how weighty that is.

Yet this thing, this chamber that entertains so many things,

that meditates and dreams and hopes, God sees it all, and he

saw it in David. And he prays that you did well.

You know what He didn't say? He didn't say you did well, and

that you built me a house. He says you did well, that it

was in your heart. The simple desire alone blessed

God. The wish alone pleased God, and

it was something that he was willing to command.

You know, you might have desires to serve God in a particular

way, and you never saw it realized.

Do you realize that God is pleased with the desire alone?

Perhaps you feel limited. Perhaps you're struggling with

God's Providence, maybe even with God's gifting in your life,

and you'd understand. I have this desire, Lord, why

aren't you allowing me to walk in these desires?

They're for you. And that's wonderful.

We're about to find out how God does lead us in a moment.

But be at rest with this truth, that the Lord sees that desire,

and though it may never be realized the way you had hoped,

for the desire alone blesses him.

That moved my heart. That moved my heart.

But here's the other lesson. Look at verse 19.

And nevertheless you shall not build the house, but your son

who shall be born to you, shall build the house for my name.

So the desire was there. It was strong.

You read the Psalms? It actually says that he did not

sleep until he built the house for the Lord.

David could even sleep at night. Talk about desire.

This man could not even put his eyes to rest because he could

not fathom that he lived in a house and God lived in a tent.

I must in my lifetime do something, contribute to the

honor and glory of God. He couldn't sleep.

And yet, as strong as those feelings were, as strong as that

passion were, Passion was. The Lord says you're not going

to build it. Here's the truth in that.

Here's the lesson. Feelings, no matter how strong

they are, do not determine the legitimacy of it being realized.

No matter how strong your passion is, no matter how strong

your desire is, it's not always an indication that's the will of

God. Oh, this is so important, man,

because our emotions can dictate so much.

I really want to do this, even if it's for the Lord.

But it doesn't mean it's from God.

He can use desires to nudge you in a direction.

He can use and even deposit things in you to lead you in a

certain place, in a certain course of action.

But not always. David is an example of that.

He had this passion, passion. He had this longing, and yet it

was not in alignment with God's will.

Too many people live by their emotions.

Too many people live by what they feel.

Too many people interpret what they feel to be God's will

again. This is a call for wisdom.

At the same time, again like in First Timothy three, he who

desires the office of an overseer desires a noble thing.

God can speak through your desires, but if you always think

that everything you feel and long for is the will of God,

you're in trouble. So what do I do?

Will you take those desires, those plans, those dreams, those

hopes? And you laid them at the feet of

Lord saying, Lord, I desire this to you.

Is this what you want? Is this you saying this is what

you want me to do? If not, then Lord, make me

sensitive enough to you to know that this is not from you.

It's simple as that. You do your part and surrender

to him in humility and he'll do his part.

He's a big God. He knows how to lead your life.

He knows how to clear the air. He knows how to subdue you and

keeping you from making foolish mistakes even in the name of

your feelings. Just surrender it to him, no

matter how strong those feelings are.

Learn to bring him to the Lord and let him clarify if this is

from him or not. Do you want further proof of

this? OK, fine.

Let me give you a New Testament. Unless you beat me over the head

and say, oh, you're Old Testament.

OK, a New Testament. Was there a man who desire to do

something very noble, very righteous, very holy, and the

Lord said no on many examples. Let me give you one of the

clearest ones. Go to Acts 16.

Here's Paul. And what does Paul want to do?

He wants to preach the gospel. He wants to.

Fulfill the Great Commission verse six of Acts 16.

In Acts 16, verse six we read and they went through the region

of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy

Spirit to speak the Word in Asia.

Is it speaking the Word a good thing?

Amen, isn't it? Preaching to the lost a

wonderful thing, Amen. Isn't spreading the gospel to

the nations the will of Christ one of his final commands before

he sent it to Amen and yet? Here's Paul strategizing a

brilliant man and realizing, OK, where do we need to go next?

And he goes to this region and having been forbidden from the

Holy Spirit. No.

OK and so look at verse 7. And when they had come up to

Meijia, they attempted to go into Bethenia, but the Spirit of

Jesus did not allow them. No talk about patience.

Traveling wasn't easy back then, by the way.

You can't call an Uber. You can't take a flight?

No. Very difficult.

So they go here? No.

How did the Lord make it known? It's debated, but it was clear

enough for them to say the Lord doesn't want us here next door.

No. Why?

Because it wasn't the time for this region to receive the

gospel. And there was a more pressing

matter that needed to be attended to.

There was a call from Macedonia. So here's another example of a

good thing, a noble thing, a passionate pursuit.

Being redirected by God, who is all knowing.

And so this is a call for us to be prayerful, to be sensitive,

to be seeking counsel, and to walk in the Spirit and ask the

Lord to work with our feelings and to sober us if those

feelings are not in alignment with His desires for our lives.

Additionally, may I add that noticing in both David and

Paul's examples, the Lord guides us not just through open doors,

but closed doors. We're very simplistic in the way

we view and even counsel people's leadership or God's

leadership in people's lives. God can lead you through

hindrance. Often times when we feel

resistance, when we feel obstacles, we call a preming,

OK, Satan is hindering us here. Let's pray.

What if it's God? What if it's God doing a very

wonderful job, keeping you from making a very foolish mistake in

terms of timing, in terms of your resources, in terms of you

getting in trouble if you go in that direction at this time?

So how do we deal with this? Because Paul says to the

Thessalonians that he tried to go through them, but Satan

hindered him. The place of prayer, the place

of being with spirit filled believers.

The place of seeking counsel from spirit filled people.

That's where you're and I are the safest.

And so be encouraged. With this, you might have a

strong desire, and that desire will not be realized.

Maybe not realized at all, maybe not realized at this time.

God is no less leading you there than He is.

If He gave you what you desired, you might be thinking, the way

God is going to answer is going to open this door.

God can slam the door shut in your face, and it's just as an

act of mercy. As though he had opened the door

for you to walk through. Open your mind.

Expand the breath of your understanding how God leads and

shepherds his sheep. And realize that his Nos are

just as good as his yeses. And you?

Know what's so fascinating? If I was Paul, at least we have

no indication that Paul felt this way.

But if I was Paul, I'd be very puzzled.

I'd be puzzled by this. OK, go here.

Nope. Go here.

Nope. It's like what's going on?

And the leadership of God can be puzzling in our lives, but it's

never void of purpose. He's never forgetful.

He with all the millions of children that he has in the

world, he's never overwhelmed. I get overwhelmed when I have so

many emails to answer that week. I get Frank, oh, I got to do

this. It just messes up with my

routine. But God is not like me.

He's not like you. Thank God for that.

He's not overwhelmed. He doesn't break out in the

sweat when all these needs come to him.

At the same time effortless. You know, he's writing a million

stories right now, and it's just nothing to him.

You know, he's providentially putting pieces in the lives of

every single one of his children.

And he's enjoying it. This is the God you and I serve,

so be careful. Bring that passion to the feet

of Jesus. Say, Lord, is this your will?

And be careful when you see circumstances that don't seem to

fit with your timeline or your script.

Realize that God is a better story writer than you are.

Let's come back and finish first.

1 Kings 8:20

Kings 8 verse 20 Now the Lord has fulfilled his promise that

he made, For I have risen in the place of David my father, and

sit on the throne of Israel as the Lord promised.

And I have built the house for the name of the Lord, the God of

Israel. And there I have provided a

place for the ark in which is the covenant of the Lord that He

made with our fathers when he brought them out of the land of

Egypt. And for the rest of this chapter

Solomon is going to pray a very, very long prayer, with several

requests in the subject of our study.

Next week will be what these requests mean for us, and some

wonderful lessons about what we should do in prayer.

Let's pray. It is indeed our delight, Lord,

to be sanctified by the truth. Your word is truth.

Thank. You, for manifesting your glory

through this chapter. Thank you for teaching and

instructing us about who you are.

Lord, may we be a people with a greater zeal and curiosity to

look into the things of the mystery of the Gospel and to

realize that the Church is no small thing but a trophy case of

your grace. May not the angels and the

creatures of another world outdo us in the pursuit of knowing

your truth more and understanding your character and

how you relate to us? Lord, every person here has a

different background. Every person here is enduring or

enjoying a season that's different than the other.

But, Lord, may we be reminded by the simple truth that you are in

control and that your will takes priority over our desires, and

that, Lord, your leadership is greater than how we could

conjure up a plan for our own lives.

Lord, thank you that there's a day coming where the Greater Ark

of the Covenant will make his way to Jerusalem, and we will

rule and reign with him and we will know His presence forever.

And you will fashion us with bodies unlike the priest who

could not be in the same presence of that glory.

We will be able to register, receive, enjoy and drink every

drop of your brilliance and holiness for ages unending Glory

be to the Father. Glory be to the Son, Glory be to

the Holy Spirit. In Jesus name we pray.

Amen. Amen.

Hey, if you were touched by this Bible study and you feel that it

is necessary for you to not stand but to just be in a place

of quiet prayer and to talk to the Lord, you do that.

You're not forced to stand. But if you want to stand in

honor of the Lord and sing to him, you can stand.

At this moment. All I ask is that you respond to

the Bible study in one way or another.

That could be by singing or that can be by saying, Lord, thank

you. You spoke to my heart or Lord

throughout the whole Bible study.

My heart was dry. I don't want to leave here Dry

touch my heart. You just commune with the God

that you just heard about, and he will honor that.

Whenever you're ready, please.