As we come today to 1 Chronicles 28-29, we see how serious-hearted David was about building the temple. Here, we read about David’s plans and preparations for it and his solemn direction and momentous commission to his son Solomon to build it. “David summoned all the officials of Israel” (verse 1), … and he “charged them in the sight of all Israel and of the assembly of the LORD and in the hearing of God to be careful to follow all the commands of the LORD your God … that they might possess the land and pass it on forever” (verse 8). And to Solomon, he gave this charge: “to acknowledge the God of your father and serve Him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind” (verse 9). Referring to Deuteronomy 4:29, David told Solomon, “If you seek Him, He will be found by you, but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever” (verse 9; cf., Deuteronomy 4:29). “The LORD has chosen you to build a temple as a sanctuary, [so] be strong and do the work” (verse 10). Then, “David gave Solomon the plans, the instructions, the articles” and essentially, everything he needed to begin the construction. A second time, David reiterated to Solomon, “be strong and do the work” (verse 20). “Do not be afraid or discouraged; the LORD will not fail you or forsake you” (verse 20). In chapter 29, we see the provisions that David made for the temple construction. Leading by example, David gave his “personal treasures of gold and silver” and asked the people, “who is willing to consecrate himself today to the LORD?” (verses 3-5). The people followed David’s example and freely gave. Chapter 29 and the book close with David’s prayer of praise (verses 10-19); Solomon’s anointing (verses 21-25); and the death of David (verses 26-30).
Psalm 93 helps us understand something of the greatness of our God. Twice, it says that “He is robed in majesty” (verse 1). As Americans, we sometimes have difficulty with the lofty concept of majesty because it relates to something that we know little about – a king over his kingdom. God is supremely majestic, and regardless of our earthly citizenship, we must come to terms with what that means if we are to worship Him properly. One day in the future, “every knee will bow” before Him (c.f., Philippians 2:10-11). That being true, we would do well – in the here and now – to learn something about His majesty and submit to it willingly – before we come into the there and then, when, by choice, it will be too late to do so. We note the features associated with true majesty: “strength” (verse 1); “security by decree" (verses 1, 3, and 5); “an eternal throne” (verse 2); “exaltation and might” (i.e., unlimited power; verses 3 and 4); “unshakeable ordinances” (verses 1 and 5); and the “beauty of eternal holiness” (verse 5). No earthly king can lay claim to any of these attributes.
In 1 Corinthians 5, we come today to the second major problem within the Corinthian church – immorality. Clearly, Paul understood the concept of God’s majesty, for which reason he commanded the “proud” (verse 2) Corinthian church to deal properly with this problem and “expel” the immoral brother. Immorality is a blot on the majesty of a moral God. Paul says that the Corinthians “should have been filled with grief and should have put out of their fellowship the man who did this” (verse 2). In verses 6-8, Paul uses the metaphor of “leaven” to illustrate the problem of immorality in the church. Leaven, which represents “malice and wickedness” (verse 8), “works through the whole batch of dough” (verse 6), and it only takes “a little” (verse 6). A little immorality in the church corrupts the whole church – and that’s nothing to be proud about. Paul’s admonitions are tough – within the church, he says, “do not associate with immoral people … do not eat with them … expel them from among you” (verses 9-13). To avoid the spread of cancer, a surgeon works to remove it all Nothing less will do.
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