The Perfect Marriage 1 Kings 8v1-66

Kings 8, and that's page 344 of the Church Bible.

That's 1 Kings 8.

Then King Solomon summoned into his presence at Jerusalem the elders of Israel,

all the heads of the tribes and the chiefs of the Israelite families,

to bring up the Ark of the Lord's Covenant from Zion, the city of David.

All the Israelites came together to King Solomon at the time of the festival in the month of Eternim,

the seventh month.

When all the elders of Israel had arrived, the priests took up the Ark,

and they brought up the Ark of the Lord and the tent of meeting and all the sacred furnishings in it.

The priests and Levites carried them up,

and King Solomon and the entire assembly of Israel that had gathered about him

were before the Ark, sacrificing so many sheep and cattle that they could not be recorded or counted.

The priests then brought up the Ark of the Lord's Covenant to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple,

the most holy place, and put it beneath the wings of the cherubim.

The cherubim spread their wings over the place of the Ark and overshadowed the Ark and its carrying poles.

These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary,

but not from outside the holy place, and they are still there today.

There was nothing in the Ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Horeb,

where the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites after they came out of Egypt.

When the priests withdrew from the holy place, the cloud filled the temple of the Lord,

and the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud,

for the glory of the Lord had filled his temple.

Then Solomon said,

The Lord has said that you would dwell in a dark cloud.

I have indeed built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell forever.

Thank you, A.V.

Well, let's keep our Bibles open there and we'll pray.

Father, thank you for your word,

and we pray that you would bring great understanding and clarity where we do not understand.

We pray that your Holy Spirit would help us

to not only see and hear about your faithful love,

but that each one of us would experience your faithful love in our hearts today.

We pray this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Well, before we start, just a brief reminder.

Last time we were looking at Kings,

we were looking at chapters 5 to 7,

which was all about,

it was like walking into a construction site,

the building of the temple,

a place for God.

And, well, we continue on that theme.

As God comes to be with his people.

So, the title we've given it is The Perfect Marriage.

I hope it will all come clear as we go along.

Will you take her as your wife in marriage?

Will you love her,

comfort her,

honour and keep her,

in sickness and in health,

and be faithful to her as long as you both shall live?

I will.

Maybe you have spoken those words.

Marriage is a very special but yet solemn occasion.

Man and woman stand before the congregation

and make their vows and promises.

From this day forward,

as long as we both shall live,

and before God,

I give you my word.

Now, marriage is the primary way

in which the Bible describes

our relationship to God.

And chapter 8,

the whole of chapter 8,

verses 1 to 66,

is like a celebration

of God's marriage

to his people.

It's a reminder of God's

faithful love.

Look at verse 23.

Lord,

the God of Israel,

there is no God like you

in heaven above

or on earth below.

So what is it that distinguishes God

from anything else

or anyone else?

Here it is.

You who keep

your covenant of love

with your servants,

who continue wholeheartedly

in your way.

You have kept your promise

to your servant David,

my father.

With your mouth,

you have promised

and with your hand,

you have fulfilled it

as it is today.

God's covenant love,

his faithful love.

Now, for a marriage,

any marriage,

if it's to last,

demands that both parties

remain loyal

and faithful.

But what keeps

our marriage relationship

to God

is not our faithfulness,

but God who keeps

his covenant love

with us.

What will keep

our marriage relationship

to God intact

is not our faithfulness,

but God

who keeps

his covenant love.

because when God

promises to be faithful,

we can depend upon it.

There's four things

we're going to see

about this marriage.

First,

our marriage to God

is dependent

on God's covenant

faithfulness.

It's dependent

on God's covenant

faithfulness.

You may have

a little title

at the beginning

of chapter 8

in your Bible

which says

something like this,

the ark

brought to the temple.

Well, a better title,

and again,

the titles in our Bibles

like the chapter headings

are not inspired,

but a better title

would be

God moves in

with his people.

Look at verse 1.

Then King Solomon

summoned

into his presence

at Jerusalem

the elders of Israel,

all the heads

of the tribes

and the chiefs

of the Israelite families

to bring up

the ark

of the Lord's covenant

from Zion,

the city of David.

The first 13 verses

that were read to us

are all about

the ark.

Now, the ark

isn't to be confused

with Noah's ark.

They're not,

you know,

kind of carrying

this huge,

big wooden boat up.

The ark

is a wooden box

overlaid with gold

which symbolised

God's presence

with his people.

And now that the temple

has been built,

chapters 5 to 7,

the ark

is being brought

to the temple.

God is moving in.

Verse 6.

The priest

then brought

the ark

of the Lord's covenant

to its place

in the inner sanctuary

of the temple,

the most holy place,

and put it beneath

the wings

of the cherubim.

Cherubim were angels,

again,

a symbol

of God's presence.

Now, before

Kirsty and I

got married,

we lived in

separate homes.

But when we got married,

after we had made

our vows

and our commitments

to one another,

we moved in

to the same house.

Our marriage

brought us together

in a lifelong union.

And here God

comes to

move in

to live

with his people.

Verse 10.

When the priest

withdrew

from the holy place,

the cloud

filled the temple

of the Lord

and the priest

couldn't perform

their service

because of the cloud

for the glory

of the Lord

filled his temple.

You may remember

from other accounts

in the Old Testament

when God appears,

very often

it's in a cloud.

God's presence

has come

to the temple.

Verse 12.

Then Solomon said,

the Lord said

that he would dwell

in a dark cloud.

I have indeed

built a magnificent

temple for you,

a place

for you

to dwell

forever.

forever.

So God

moves in

with his people.

The marriage

relationship.

But what makes

this marriage

possible

is God's

faithfulness.

Have a look back up

at verse 9.

There was

nothing

in the ark,

there was

nothing

inside

this

wooden box

except

the two

stone

tablets

that Moses

had placed

in it

at Horeb

where the

Lord had

made a

covenant

with the

Israelites

when they

came out

of Egypt.

Now the

stone

tablets

you remember

were written

or what

was written

on them

were the

ten commandments

and they

were placed

inside

the wooden

box.

The commandments

were

God's

covenant

with his

people.

It's like

a marriage

contract.

Exodus 20

tells us

what was

written.

It starts

out by

saying

I am

the Lord

your God

who brought

you out

of Egypt.

Here I am.

I am the

God who

loves you.

The faithful

God who

does not

forget his

promises.

I rescued

you.

I am

faithful to

you.

And then we

read down

through the

commandments.

The first

one,

you shall

have no

other gods

but me.

You shall

not make

for yourself

an image

or idol

to replace

me.

I am

your God.

You are

my people.

These

are the

covenant

promises,

the contract

that binds

the marriage

relationship

together.

Now

history tells

us that

God's

people,

Israel,

had done

everything

possible to

break their

vows.

They had

replaced God

with other

lovers.

And yet

despite

their failure,

in chapter

8 we see

God moving

in with

his people.

Not because

they are

faithful,

but because

of God's

faithful love.

Look at how

Solomon responds,

verse 15.

Then he said,

Praise be to

the Lord,

the God of

Israel,

who with

his own

hand has

fulfilled what

he promised

with his own

mouth to

my father

David.

You see,

the ark

was not

just a

symbol of

God's

presence with

his people,

it is a

written

reminder of

God's

covenant

faithfulness.

God is

saying to

them,

you may

break your

vows,

but I

will never

ever break

my promise

to you.

So

first,

our

marriage to

God is

dependent

on God's

covenant

faithfulness.

It was

then,

and it

is

today.

Second,

our marriage

to God

is sustained

by God's

mercy.

Now,

God's

promise to

move in

with his

people sounds

exciting,

and it

was,

but it

was no

small thing

for God

to come

and dwell

and live

with his

people.

Look at

verse 29,

moving on

through the

chapter.

Solomon

says,

may your

eyes,

he's talking

to God,

may your

eyes be

open towards

this temple

night and

day,

this place

of which

you said,

my name

shall be

there,

so that

you will

hear the

prayer your

servant

prays towards

this place.

Now,

you probably

were in your

house outside,

you've probably

got a number

somewhere on

your wall,

or maybe

you have a

name that

identifies your

house,

it tells us

who lives

there.

Well,

it's as if

God has

written his

name,

Yahweh,

on the

front door

of the

temple.

My name

shall be

there.

God is

making it

abundantly

clear.

I live

here,

I dwell

with these

people.

Now,

that might

seem grand

and great,

but it's

also a big

problem.

You see,

the covenant

promises went

something like

this.

The marriage

contract was

like this.

God said to

them,

if you

obey me,

then I

will bless

you.

If you

keep your

promises to

me,

then I

will live

with you.

But if you

disobey me,

if you

walk away

from me,

then I

will curse

you.

If you

fail to

keep your

promises,

then you

will be

removed

from me.

We

can't

live

together.

And

Solomon

knew that.

He knew

that he

and his

people

had a

sin

problem.

So he

begins

to pray,

verse 31.

When

anyone

wrongs

their

neighbour,

so if

anybody

does

something

wrong

towards

their

neighbour,

verse 32,

then hear

from

heaven

and

act,

verse 33,

when

your

people

Israel

have

been

defeated

by an

enemy

because

they

have

sinned

against

you,

verse 34,

then hear

from heaven

and forgive

the sin

of your

people,

verse 35,

when the

heavens are

shut up

and there

is no

rain,

sin,

because

your

people

have

sinned

against

you,

verse 36,

then hear

from heaven

and forgive

the sin

of your

servants,

your

people

Israel.

Not

if we

sin,

but when

we sin.

Solomon's

honesty

only reveals

the depth

of the

problem.

God

moving in

with his

people was

filled

with tension.

To have

the presence

of God

amongst

them

was

both

glorious

and

fearful.

All at

the same

time,

it was a

joyful

experience,

but it

was also

terrifying.

They knew

that if

they broke

their

promises,

it would

mean they

would face

God's

judgment.

God

would banish

his people.

They could

no longer

enjoy his

presence.

You see,

if they

were to

enjoy the

intimacy

of God,

if they

were to

experience

God's

faithful

love,

it would

require the

mercy of

God.

And here

we see

the beauty

of God's

mercy.

Look at

verse 46.

Just jump

on a little

bit.

Verse 46.

Again,

Solomon is

still talking

to God.

when they

sin against

you.

For there

is no one

who does

not sin.

And you

become angry

with them

and give

them over

to their

enemies,

who take

them captive

to their

own lands

far away

or near.

Well,

we know

the story,

don't we?

That's

tragically

what happened.

The story,

the whole

story of

1 Kings

is a

slow

decline

of

increasing

unfaithfulness.

And God

did what

he promised.

300 years

after Solomon

came the

Babylonians.

They came

in,

marched

in,

destroyed

the temple,

destroyed

the ark.

God's

presence

gone

and God's

people

carried off

into exile.

The marriage

relationship

in tatters.

You see,

if they were

to enjoy

God's

intimacy,

mercy,

it would

require

God's

mercy.

So Solomon

continues to

pray,

verse 47,

and if

they have

a change

of heart

in the

land

where they

are held

captive

and repent

and plead

with you

in the

land of

their

captors

and say,

we have

sinned,

we have

done wrong,

we have

acted

wickedly,

and if

they turn

back to you

with all

their heart

and soul

in their

land of

their enemies

who took

them captive

and pray

to you

towards the

land you

gave their

ancestors,

towards the

city you

have chosen

and the

temple I

have built

for your

name,

then from

heaven,

your dwelling

place,

hear their

prayer and

their plea

and uphold

their cause.

Now it's

interesting to

note that

the first

people to

have read

the book

of first

kings,

would have

been those

very first

people who

had been

carried off

into exile.

So you

can imagine

the marriage

relationship is

in tatters,

the temple

has been

destroyed,

the ark

is gone,

the very

symbols of

God's

presence,

and here

they are

in a

different

place,

and they

remember,

they

remember,

if they

are to

enjoy

God's

intimacy,

it requires

God's

mercy.

And so

they cry

out,

verse 50,

and God

forgive your

people who

have sinned

against you,

forgive all

the offences

they have

committed against

you,

forgive us.

You see,

under the

old covenant,

God's people

could never

fully and

enjoy the

blessings of

God.

Their

failure,

their broken

promises,

their wandering

lustful hearts

meant they

were constantly

removed from

God's

presence.

Yes,

God was

merciful,

yes,

he would

take them

back,

yes,

God was

so forgiving

he would

dwell with

them,

but their

sin meant

it never

lasted and

it was

never

enjoyed.

It was a

relationship

whereby they

were kind

of in,

out,

in,

out.

They never

enjoyed God's

love.

And that's

why God

had promised

a new

covenant.

Look at

this from

Hebrews 8.

For if

there had

been nothing

wrong with

that first

covenant,

no place

would have

been sought

for another.

But God

found fault

with the

people and

said,

the days

are coming,

declares the

Lord,

when I

will make

a new

covenant.

For I

will forgive

their wickedness

and will

remember their

sins no

more.

By calling

this covenant

new,

he has made

the first

one

obsolete.

need.

So God

had to

bring about

a new

covenant,

a new

contract,

because they

couldn't keep

their promises.

If they were

to enjoy God's

intimacy,

it needed

something new,

something better.

You see,

the ark of the

old covenant

has now been

replaced.

Look,

we can see it

here before us

this morning,

with the

table of

the new

covenant.

You see,

every time we

eat of this

bread and

drink of

this juice,

we are

reminded of

God's

presence with

us.

But not

just his

presence,

God's

faithful,

committed

and loyal

love.

How?

Well,

because the

bread and

the juice

speak of

Christ's

death for

us.

Jesus,

the God-man

who came

to stand

in for us,

to represent

us fully

and completely

before God,

and as

Christ came,

he took

the blame

for all

of my

unfaithfulness,

all my

wandering,

lustful

wanderings

from God,

all of my

sin.

He takes

the blame.

But not

only that,

but Christ

lives the

perfect life

for me,

and fulfills

and keeps

the vows

of obedience

that I

could never

keep.

He does

it all

for me

and for

you so

that I

can enjoy

God's

presence

forever.

And this

new covenant

is so

great that

even when

I sin,

not if

I sin,

but when

I sin,

God will

never

remove

himself

from me

and I

will never

be removed

from him.

Why?

Because

Christ has

taken my

unfaithfulness

and he

has kept

the vows

of obedience

for me.

Here

we have

a marriage

that is

dependent

not on

my faithfulness

or your

faithfulness

or your

ability

or the

strength

of your

love,

but on

God's

absolute

loyal

and enduring

faithful

love to

you and

to me.

You see,

if we are

to enjoy

God's

intimacy,

it requires

God's

mercy.

And the

table reminds

us to look

again to

Christ on

the cross

where

mercy

continues

to flow

with arms

outstretched

so the

flood of

mercy comes

to God's

people.

So second,

our marriage

to God

is sustained

by God's

mercy.

Third,

our marriage

to God

is nourished

by prayerful

dependence.

Turn over

to,

where are

we,

verse 56.

Our

marriage

to God

is nourished

by prayerful

dependence.

Solomon knew

that if

their

relationship

to God

was to

be enjoyed,

if it

was to

go on

in the

right way,

well then

it depended

on prayer.

And here

we have

like a

marriage

prayer,

and I

want to

commend

this to

you as

a prayer

that we

can pray

ourselves

in our

marriage

relationship

with God.

I'm just

going to

read it

just very

quickly and

just make

some comments

as we

go along.

There's

really five

parts to

this prayer

that we

can pray

in our

marriage

relationship

to God.

First,

praise him

for his

faithfulness.

Look at

verse 56.

Praise be

to the

Lord who

has given

rest to

his people

Israel,

just as

he promised.

Not one

word has

failed of

all the

good promises

he has

given to

us.

How true

is that?

Not one

word has

failed.

God is

faithful and

loyal.

Praise him

for it.

Verse 57.

A desire

and a

longing to

experience

God's

presence.

Verse 57.

May the

Lord our

God be

with us

as he

was with

our

ancestors.

May he

never

leave us

nor forsake

us.

In Christ

he is

never

going to

leave us

and so

we pray

that we

may experience

that more

and more.

Third,

there's a

longing for

deep change

in our

own lives.

Verse 58.

May he

turn our

hearts to

him to

walk in

obedience to

him and

keep the

commands,

the decrees

and laws

that he

gave our

ancestors.

That longing

that God

would change

our hearts

in such a

way that

we love

to obey

him.

Fourth,

we pray

for provision

in our

relationship

with him.

Verse 59.

And may

these words

of mine

which I

have prayed

before the

Lord be

near to

the Lord

our God

day and

night,

that he

may uphold

the cause

of his

servants

and the

cause of

his people

according

to each

day's

needs.

We can

pray to

our

faithful

God

who will

provide

all that

we need

in our

relationship

with him.

And we

pray all

these things

for his

glory.

Verse 60.

So that

all the

peoples of

the earth

may know

that the

Lord is

God and

that there

is no

other.

What a

great prayer.

I just

simply commend

that to

you.

Work through

that prayer

yourself this

week as a

way to

pray our

relationship

to God.

So that's

how we pray.

Why do we

pray?

Well Solomon

knew we need

to pray.

Not to

earn favour

from God

but because

without God

we have

nothing and

are nothing.

You see

through our

prayer we

are admitting

our complete

and utter

weakness.

It is a

dependency

upon God.

One summer

when I was

young our

neighbours

were away

on holiday

and they

asked me

if I would

water their

garden for

them.

They were

away for

two weeks.

Well I

completely

forgot to

do any

watering at

all until

the day

before they

were due

home.

And of

course panic

the garden

was wilting

everything was

dying so I

turned on the

hose early in

the morning and

what did I do?

I forgot to

turn it off.

So the place

was flooded.

I mean the

water was kind

of coming up

to the side

of the window.

It was really

really bad.

Well the

flowers soaked

it up and

they began to

flourish and

they said you

did an awful

lot of watering

when you were

away.

Well the

point is very

simple.

Prayer is

like that.

When we

pray or if

we forget to

pray it's

like having

the tap

turned off.

But when

we pray it's

like the tap

being turned

on.

All that we

need from

God is given

to us so

that the

marriage

relationship can

be nourished

so that it

can flourish

into everything

that it is

meant to

be.

So don't

look at

prayer as

something to

do to

earn God's

favour and

if I pray

ten times a

day God is

going to

bless me.

No through

prayer we are

depending so

we can

nourish.

We can

turn on the

taps and

let our

lives be

flooded with

all that we

need to

nourish our

relationship

with him.

then lastly

our marriage

to God

is enjoyed

through joyful

worship.

Every wedding

that I've been

to and I'm

sure it's the

same with you

when all the

vows and

promises have

been made

there's a

feast,

there's a

party,

everyone

celebrates the

marriage union

and that's

what Solomon

and all the

people do

when God

moves in

as the

marriage as

it like

begins

they throw

a party.

Look at

verse 63.

Solomon

offered a

sacrifice of

fellowship

offerings to

the Lord.

22,000

cattle.

Wow!

And 120,000

sheep and

goats.

So the

king and

all the

Israelites

dedicated the

temple of

the Lord.

talk about

a meat

feast.

No veggie

burgers here.

What a

party!

And look at

all the

people!

Verse 65.

So Solomon

observed the

festival at

the time and

all Israel

with him.

A vast

assembly of

people from

Lebo,

Hamas,

way up into

the north,

to the

wadi of

Egypt,

right down

in the

south.

There were

people from

all over

the kingdom

coming together

for this

great

celebration.

middle of

verse 65,

they celebrated

it before

the Lord

our God

for seven

days,

and that

wasn't

enough.

So for

seven more

days,

14 days

of all,

of eating

and drinking

and feasting,

what a

joyful

celebration.

And look

at the

response of

the people.

Verse 66,

on the

following day

he sent

the people

away,

they blessed

the king,

and they

went home

joyful and

glad in

heart for

all the

good things

the Lord

had done

for his

servant David

and his

people Israel.

Now let me

ask us this,

how much

more can

we be

joyful and

glad in

heart for

all the

good things

the Lord

has done

for us?

How much

more can

we celebrate?

God has

been faithful

to his

promise.

He has

sent his

son who

died our

death and

who keeps

the vows

for us so

that we can

enjoy his

presence without

fear.

We can call

him father.

We can run

to him as

children and

know his

embrace and

he will never

turn us away

no matter

our sin.

And we

can rest.

There is no

more work to

be done

because Christ

has completed

and finished

it all.

We are to

celebrate

and to

enjoy our

relationship

with God.

Here is a

God whose

mercy covers

all our

sin and

who keeps

his covenant

of love.

And in a

moment we

are going to

celebrate.

We are going

to have a

feast.

A feast

that is a

forte.

feast.

An appetizer

of the

ultimate feast

to come.

Of that

wedding feast

when we

will be

with the

Lord Jesus

and we

will reign

with him

forever and

ever and

ever.

God's

covenant

faithful love.

Do you

know it?

Have you

experienced

it?

Can you

rest and

enjoy in

all that

he has done

for us?

Let's

pray.

Fro här

theme

who

have

here

to join

them.

patience

you