12 October 2015

Scriptures:

• Romans 5:12-21
• Ezekiel 34
• 1 Kings 7
• Psalm 72

Observations:

In the Romans passage, we see a comparison being drawn between Adam and Jesus in that where Adam, being a human with no sin, sinned and brought sinfulness upon all of mankind, bringing judgment and death, but Jesus, being fully man and fully God with no sin, did not sin, but instead, bore the punishment for man, bringing justification and life after death.

In Ezekiel, we see a prophecy against the rulers of Israel and Judah in which they are compared to shepherds, fattening and clothing themselves off of the best of their herds while neglecting the weak and injured and allowing the flock to stray as it will. As a result, the Lord put himself against the rulers and would gather his flock himself, establishing before them a shepherd from the line of David (Remember, David was a shepherd boy before being anointed) under whom they would flourish.

In 1 Kings, we see the description of the building of Solomon's palace. (Chapter 6 has the description of  the temple). I want to draw a quick comparison, though, between the two. Both are opulent and extravagant. As you read chapter 6, you cannot help but be awed by the sheer scale of its grandeur. Then you read chapter 7 and something feels just a little bit off. (Or at least I thought before reading it with a scrutinising eye)

• The temple was 60 cu. long, 20 cu. wide, and 30 cu. high.
• Solomon's palace was 100 cu. long, 50 cu. wide, and 30 cu. high

• The temple was paneled from floor to ceiling with carved cedar and the floor was of cypress
• The palace was of carved costly stone, lined with cedar

• The entire temple interior was overlaid with gold, including all the wooden carvings (cherubim, lilies, etc), doors and the floor. The Temple also had two pillars of cast bronze, with bronze details, a cast metal sea (think big artificial pond above ground) 10 cu. across and 5 cu. deep, which held 2000 baths of water, and a number of other bronze figures.
• The palace had a hall of pillars with a second story above it, three rows of windows along the rafters, and a cedar-finished hall of judgment.

• It took 7 years to build the temple
• It took 13 years to build the palace

Note: 1 cu. ~ 52 cm (comparison: a human is normally 3-4 cubits tall), 1 bath ~ 22 litres (I'm not 100% sure of this as I cannot get that volume for the sea with the measurements given. Mathematically, I'd estimate it at about 16.5-24.5 ml from this passage alone, if we assume 1 cu - 50 cm. Maybe Wikipedia had the units wrong and it's supposed to be 22 mil, which wouldn't make sense as a bath is supposed to be the largest liquid measure)

Yes, Solomon's palace was larger and took longer to build, but it had far less cost and expense. So, I would think my original perception, trying to capture the palace's splendour in comparison to the temple, was be misplaced. Solomon truly did give glory to God in his work at first.

In the psalm today, We see Solomon offering up a psalm, asking for the Lord's blessing.

Application:

Man, Solomon started off strong. He built a most excellent temple, constructed a pretty epic palace, and had the mindset that only through God could Israel be made great. It's such a pity he fell so hard, but more on that later.

I had a lot of fun doing some of the math here and yeah, the temple was pretty freaking spectacular. It's not for no reason that people came from neighbouring nations to gaze at the thing in awe. 

For me, it's kind of the same reason I enjoy going into old cathedrals. The architects then really wanted to show off, but notice how they showed off in building churches, not palaces. Their faith was such that they offered the very best they could in worship of God. As such, I would love to go on a cathedral tour of Europe and just marvel at the offerings of worship found in the buttresses and spires of some of these churches, ending in Barcelona at the Sagrada Familia (I really want to see that one).

Why don't we do that?

Why don't we offer the best of our work as an offering to God?

As a student, that means being diligent in my normal studies, but extra thorough in my study of God's word. In the future, as a doctor, that will obviously mean working in excellence, but how would that affect my time given directly to God? Would that be going and offering free, quality healthcare in an impoverished area? Would that mean setting up shop in a poor community or founding a hospital in such an area? I don't know, but I pray that I would be able to glorify God using my career in some such a way.

Prayer:

Lord, Thank you for this awesome time of worship, for the realisation of the importance of this time beforehand. Help me to honour and worship you by studying your word and help me to come to an understanding of how I might worship you in similar ways in the future.

Help me to grow and overcome my flaws, that I may give a good account of myself as a husband and do the same in my wife, that she would continue to grow in you, gaining in wisdom and Christlikeness as I seek to do the same.

Grant wisdom to my parents. Show them whether it is time to return or to stay.

Reveal yourself to my sister, confronting her current situation with your truth.

Be with those classmates and peers, past and present, who still do not know you and help me to come to a better understanding of you in the process, representing you as best as I can.

Amen