10/02/2008
1 Kings 8:3 - 5 (HCSB) 3All the elders of Israel came, and the priests picked up the ark. 4The priests and the Levites brought the ark of the LORD, the tent of meeting, and the holy utensils that were in the tent. 5King Solomon and the entire congregation of Israel, who had gathered around him and were with him in front of the ark, were sacrificing sheep and cattle that could not be counted or numbered, because there were so many.
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Solomon has now completed the Temple of the Lord. The structure is magnificent, cut stone, cedar paneling and gold overlay. It is an imposing specimen of architecture that could be seen from great distances to anyone approaching the city of Jerusalem. It sat on the peak of a mountain surrounded by valleys.
But to this point, the Ark of the Covenant has been in the Tabernacle – the tent-like structure that Moses built during the exodus from Egypt. 480 years have passed and now, finally, Israel is at peace, Solomon is King, and the Temple is complete. The priests are carrying the Ark to its new home; the Holy of Holies inside the Temple.
As I read this passage, I couldn’t help but wonder about all the animals sacrificed. It says so many were sacrificed that they could not be counted. “Why?” I ask myself.
Well, the answer is there as well: because of the holiness of God.
Our sin has brought with it a death sentence. We will die for our sins. Yet, God, in his great mercy, has allowed us to live on through the blood of sacrifices. That is, when God sees the blood of the sacrificed animals – those who are completely innocent killed on our behalf – He looks away from our sin, deferring our judgment.
When we read this passage, it seems to us to be a gruesome scene with so many slaughtered animals. But that is because we have been so far removed from the sacrificial process that we forget what was required.
Jesus came as the ultimate, complete, and final sacrifice for our sins. Because of Him, we no longer have to present sacrifices at the Temple (or Tabernacle). We will of course die some day, but because of our faith in Jesus, God has promised to raise us from the dead in new bodies free from defect and disease.
When we read passages like the one above and ask ourselves “why?” May we always remember what God required and what God paid for us so that we could live in Him.
Jeff Justus
Cleff Publishing
www.cleffpublishing.com
©2008 Cleff Publishing, all rights reserved.
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