As I’ve read through the bible along with the One Year Bible this year, I’ll be honest and say some of the Old Testament makes my eyes cross. This one begat this one, etc, etc….so and so reigned this many years and did evil in the sight of the Lord.
You would think those kings would have learned.
Recently reading through 2 Chronicles though I am discovering truths I had never considered.
David begins preparations for the temple and appoints his son Solomon to succeed him. As Solomon begins construction of the temple I was struck by how detailed the plans were. The details of each piece, every decoration, required a skilled craftsman. Expense was not spared. Silver, gold, bronze, the finest woods and jewels were sought.
“The house which I am about to build will be great, for greater is our God than all the gods. (2 Chronicles 2:5 NASB)
If God took such detail and care to build a temple where His chosen people could worship Him imagine the care and detail He takes to build and grow each of us.
We no longer have to go to a temple to serve or worship God. When Christ became the final sacrifice the veil dividing the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple was torn. We no longer need a priest. Christ builds his temple in our hearts once we accept Him. This is a hard concept for some to grasp I imagine. I am not a fan of church jargon, but I’m unsure how else to describe it.
If Christ came so we would become His temples then it is almost too much to fathom how much He cares about our lives.
If He was that concerned with the details of building a temple He knew would eventually be destroyed imagine the details in each of our lives He is concerned about.
Yet how often I forget this. I forget that God is in the details. When I’m folding the laundry or cooking dinner or picking up yet another random sock. Life can seem insignificant when days are filled with mundane.
The psalmist asks what are we humans that God would be mindful of us. How often do we forget to still our minds, our lives even, to ask this?
In Matthew Jesus reminds us to “Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”
Each task in building the old testament tabernacle and temple cared for with such precision. Every detail of creation given to us. How can He not be concerned with us who He created, knowing us before we were formed?
Still there will be those that ask if He is so concerned about the details in our lives why is their suffering and hurt and disease?
I struggle with those same questions. I don’t have an answer except we aren’t promised life free from pain and hurt. Accepting that answer is not easy. I wonder how many follow Christ assuming life will be easier. Yet I know if we allow He will use those experiences to teach us, to grow our hearts.
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. (James 1:2, 3 NASB)
Consider the tabernacle of Moses’s time and the temple Solomon built, though. The great details and extravagance that went into each. We are worth more to Him than any of those were. Meditating on that can you even imagine the details He wants to build in your life?
Do you ever struggle like I do in knowing deep down that you are loved so greatly by God?
