“After this, Shlomo brought in the gifts which David his father had dedicated — the silver, the gold and the utensils — and put them in the treasuries of the house of Adonai.” – 1 Kings 7:51
Let’s start things off with an interesting quiz question.
The last verse of this chapter tells us that Solomon took the many expensive items his father, David, had gathered for use in constructing the Temple and stored them in the Temple treasury.
Why?
That’s the quiz question.
David had gone through great efforts to draw up the plans for the Temple.
He gathered timber from Lebanon.
He even had the implements for the Temple designed and manufactured.
Yet, instead of immediately putting those items into service, Solomon placed them in the Temple treasury.
Again, why?
One possible explanation lies in something the Lord communicated to David through the prophet Nathan.
“But the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘You have shed much blood and have fought many wars. You shall not build a house for My name because you have shed so much blood on the earth in My sight.'”— 1 Chronicles 22:8
Now I know some folks are gonna argue that God’s command to David only prohibited him from building the Temple…not from preparing for it.
Fair enough.
The text never explicitly says David sinned by gathering materials for the Temple.
In fact, Chronicles presents his preparations in a positive light.
But this still gives me pause for reflection.
David was forbidden from building the Temple.
Yet he devoted enormous time, wealth, and energy to preparing for it.
Scripture never says that was wrong.
Even so, his story raises a question I can’t ignore.
When God makes His will clear…
Am I more interested in honoring His heart?
Or in figuring out how close I can get to the edge without technically crossing the line?
Ya feel me?
How often do we look for loopholes when it comes to the Lord’s commands?
God says, “Do not eat pork.”
We say…
“Well, this curry only contains pork broth or pork extract, so it doesn’t count.”
God says, “Do not bear false witness.”
We say…
“I didn’t lie.
I just left out the part that would have changed the whole story.”
God says, “Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.”
We say…
“I’m working all day, but technically I’m answering emails for only five minutes at a time, so I’m still keeping the Sabbath.”
Look, the Lord ain’t fooled by technicalities.
You may be able to justify your choices to yourself.
But you can’t out-argue the One who sees straight into your heart.
The bottom line is that our behavior…
Even if not technically disobedience…
Can get dangerously close.
Ya feel me?
Done.
CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT
“For the word of God is alive and active.
Sharper than any double-edged sword,
it penetrates even to dividing soul
and spirit, joints and marrow;
it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight.
Everything is uncovered and laid bare
before the eyes of him to
whom we must give account.”
– Hebrews 4:12-13
“You hypocrites!
Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.’”
– Matthew 15:7-9
“If anyone builds on this foundation using
gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw,
their work will be shown for what it is,
because the Day will bring it to light.
It will be revealed with fire,
and the fire will test the
quality of each person’s work.
If what has been built survives,
the builder will receive a reward.
If it is burned up,
the builder will suffer loss
but yet will be saved
—even though only as one
escaping through the flames.”
– 1 Corinthians 3:12-15
Whereas humans create so much “gray” area when it comes to what is right or wrong, God is binomial- it is either right, or it is wrong.
There is no such thing as “almost pregnant”, and there is no such thing as “almost obedient”.
But we are almost obedient, even when we try to be 100% obedient, because we are weak, self-absorbed, and sinful by nature.
Christianity calls it Original Sin and Judaism calls it the Yetzer Hara (evil inclination), but no matter what you call it, we are born with it, and God knows that.
The greatest gift he gives us is also our greatest weakness- Free Will.
It allows us to be self-determining so we can choose to accept Yeshua as our Messiah and obey God to be with him forever, and on the other hand it allows us to reject him and suffer the consequences of that in the Acharit HaYamim (End Days).
If God expected us to be 100% obedient, there would be no need for him to have sent Messiah Yeshua; therefore, I believe it is safe to say he knows we can’t be what we should be>
Now from that I conclude it means he is not looking to what we do AS MUCH AS why we do it, which brings us all the way back to your point, Rich- are we doing to be “correct” (which is what Legalism is) or are we doing what our heart desires in order to please God?
The answer to that question is not just life-changing, but has eternal consequences.
Your last point hits the nail on the head brother:
“Are we doing to be “correct” (which is what Legalism is) or are we doing what our heart desires in order to please God?”
That really gets to the heart of the matter.
I like to think I seek to obey God because of my love for the Lord.
But as you said, because of the YETSER HARAH, I often fall short.