"Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God; arise therefore, and build ye the sanctuary of the Lord God, to bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and the holy vessels of God, into the house that is to be built to the name of the Lord." 1 Chronicles 22:19
Whenever God leads or calls us to any work for Him, He will ALWAYS equip us for the work. Whenever God has a great work to be done, He will raise up His instruments and He will qualify them for performing His will.
He called Moses to lead Israel out of the bondage of Egypt. He appointed Joseph to make the preparations for the seven years of drought in Egypt. He transformed Paul when He was ready to gather to Himself a people from the Gentile nations. Whatever the job, God has HIS man at the right place, at the right time, to accomplish His will.
It is beyond our comprehension how that God, through David, made preparation for the building of the Temple. Even the place where the Temple was built is significant. It was on Mt. Moriah where Abraham, under the direction of God, brought Isaac to offer him as a sacrifice to God, hundreds of years before.
The Temple was to be like no other structure in the world in magnificence, splendor, and glory. The gold and silver David had gathered from his own wealth and from other subjects would be valued today in millions upon millions. The stones they used were immense. David specified the choice wood to be used. The expense today would literally be impossible.
One of the most remarkable features in the building of this magnificent Temple was that all the wood and stones were prepared at quite a distance from the building site, brought to the site, and they fit perfectly. So perfect was the stone cutters' skill, during the seven years it took to build the Temple, that when they assembled the materials into the building, they didn't have to use an axe or a hammer. So the whole structure was completed without the noise of iron tools (1 Kings 6:7).
When David was old, he made Solomon king over Israel and gathered together the Levites, who numbered 38,000 men ages 30 and older. Now think about this and let your mind wonder at the magnificence of this Temple. "David said, 24,000 are to supervise the work of the Temple of the Lord and 6,000 are to be officials and judges. 4,000 are to be gatekeepers and 4,000 are to praise the Lord with the musical instruments that I have provided for that purpose!" Can you imagine the sheer magnitude of such a magnificent Temple?
Then David gives this huge gathering of men the whole foundation for all their work and objectives. "Now devote your heart and soul to seeking your God." After everything is put into place for the building, David turns to Solomon and says, "Solomon, my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind."
This charge was made before princes and all the other great men that were gathered for this holy occasion. Notice that David did not say, "Know the God of Israel," but "Know the God of thy father." He wanted Solomon to see the character of God in all His dealings with him, in mercy, grace, love, forgiveness, and longsuffering. He wanted him to know God in an intimate and loving way. Seek Him as a friend, as your portion, and your eternal great reward. Let Him be your God forever!
May David's challenge to Solomon be OUR challenge as we complete every process in this "temple" of His making!
