The Glory, Wisdom, and Power of God Revealed-Dwelling Place Series 1.3

"When Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the LORD filled the temple (2 Chronicles 7:1)."

When I was 17, I remember visiting Washington DC for the first time. It is the capital city of the United States and the architecture there can be breathtaking. When I saw the Washington Monument, the Capitol Building, the Lincoln Memorial, I was amazed by their grandeur. However, as awesome as these buildings are, their physical beauty pales in comparison to that of our third dwelling place-the Temple of Solomon.

The Temple of Solomon was conceived by King David and built by King Solomon, about 1000 years before the time of Christ. During David’s reign, Israel had become the most powerful and prosperous nation on earth. David had wanted to build God a glorious house, but God told David that he should not build it; rather, his son Solomon should. So David spent the latter part of his life abundantly preparing for the temple. He collected vast quantities of gold, precious stone, cedar wood, and other properties to leave behind so Solomon could use them to build. Solomon followed his father’s example by also gathering precious resources for God.

In the fourth year of his reign Solomon started building the temple, and he finished it seven years later. When it was finished, the beauty of the temple made it the joy of the whole earth. Kings and dignitaries from the nations of the world would come to Jerusalem to see the glorious structure and would be awestruck. The temple was made of cedar wood, but completely overlaid with gold. Polished stones, prepared before they were brought to the construction site, adorned the temple. It was truly remarkable. What does all of this mean for us today?

The temple of Solomon is a picture of the glory, wisdom, and power that will be revealed in the last-day Church and the Millennium. In the last day revival, the Church will be the head and not the tail, a picture of wisdom that all in the world can see. Just as Solomon’s temple was filled with the glory and the fire of God, so the Church will be. There will be no lack for the Church, but the blessings of God will overflow.

There are also important lessons we can learn for our personal lives. As we said, the temple was made of cedar wood, overlaid with gold. Cedar wood speaks of our human nature, while gold speaks of the divine nature. If we are going to be a part of the last-day revival and then the millennium, we must let the nature of God dominate and cover our human nature. We must fully submit to his Lordship. Furthermore, the stones of the temple all had to be polished off-site; there was no drilling and shaping of the stones at the temple. We are called to be living stones, and God is showing us this; the time to be prepared is now. We cannot wait until the Millennium to allow God to shape us and make us conquerors; we must yield to His work in our lives today. Then we will be qualified for greater glory.

So let’s make our lives the glorious dwelling place in which God is looking to manifest in the last days. God wants to bring you to perfection, power, and glory; will you let Him? May we all answer “yes.”