Prestige or Obedience

Oh the grandeur of the Temple Solomon was having built! Cedar timbers from Lebanon. Stones hewn in a quarry away from the actual site so iron tools would not defile the Temple site. Gold plated everything. Cherubim seventeen feet high and wide (all plated in gold).

Who was Solomon trying to impress? God was not interested in the show. He was not impressed. In the middle of the account of the features of the Temple, God interrupts Solomon’s seeking after the best and grandest possible construction materials and the most expert craftsmen. He tries to remind Solomon of his responsibilities as the king of Israel.

¹¹ Then this word of Adonai came to Shlomo (Solomon): ¹² “Concerning this house which you are building: if you will live according to my regulations, follow my rulings and observe all my mitzvot [commands] and live by them, then I will establish with you my promise that I made to David your father — ¹³ I will live in it among the people of Isra’el, and I will not abandon my people Isra’el” (1 Kings 6:11-13, CJB).

Unfortunately Solomon did not get the message God intended and continued to focus all his attention, energy, and power on building something grand. For what purpose? God was content to have the tent tabernacle as He had from the time of Moses on Mt. Sinai. As a matter of fact, God told David exactly this in 2 Samuel 7:1-7. See what God told David in verses 6 and 7 say,

⁶ Since the day I brought the people of Isra’el out of Egypt until today, I never lived in a house; rather, I traveled in a tent and a tabernacle. ⁷ Everywhere I traveled with all the people of Isra’el, did I ever speak a word to any of the tribes of Isra’el, whom I ordered to shepherd my people Isra’el, asking, “Why haven’t you built me a cedar-wood house?”’

God had not asked for a majestic place to reside. In reality, just as now, God didn’t actually dwell in the Temple anyway. His place is in heaven and He is anywhere He wants to be (and that’s everywhere, all the time).

God’s interruption in Solomon’s building project was God’s attempt to get Solomon back on track with what God does require: to live according to His commands and regulations.

God is asking the same from us. He’s not looking to see who has the biggest or best decked out church (or synagogue). He’s not looking to see who gets the most followers on their social media pages. He’s not impressed by our fame or wealth. He’s not interested in how many people go to a specific church. He’s not joyful over big giving checks. He doesn’t care how many mission trips we volunteered for. He’s not even counting the number of times we appear in church each week or each month. He’s not concerned with any of the things we think are proofs of how holy we are. All those things are folly.

God desires us to be obeying His Word. He desires (and has modeled and commanded) humility. He’s not going to reward us for our deeds as a bargaining chip for heaven. He only cares about the conditions of our hearts based on salvation in Christ and how we love our brothers and sisters (1 John 3:14).

It’s time for me to examine my motives and my humility. Am I relying on God or on my own works to be acceptable to God? What about you?