Jonah
1 Kings 8
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- Written by: Chris Appleby
The Dedication of the Temple audio (6MB with Cantonese translation)
We were living in Canberra in 1988 when the new Parliament house was opened. What an occasion that was! The Queen was there to open the building. People came to Canberra from all over Australia. There was a huge march and rally by Christians from all over the country who came to march around Parliament House and pray for the government of our country. The highlight for Di and me was when our daughter Katherine walked out from the crowd to give the Queen a rose that some friends who were staying with us had given her and the Queen actually stopped and talked to her.
Well, today we’re thinking about another great occasion: the dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem; as Bill pointed out last week, not a particularly large building; nothing by comparison with our Parliament house, but the thing is, its significance derived not from its size but from what it represented. The Temple was the sign that God was dwelling in the midst of his people. Up until then the presence of God had been represented by the Ark of the Covenant which had been housed in a tent. But now Solomon had built this permanent structure as a focus of the nation’s worship of the living God.
1 Kings 6
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- Written by: Bill Stewart
Solomon Builds The Temple audio (4MB)
You could be forgiven for thinking that a report of the Building Committee has been substituted for today’s reading by mistake. To most of our ears today's reading from 1 Kings sounds like a technical report; dull and boring for everyone except the people who do that sort of thing for a living. And it's probably the last thing in the Bible you want to hear a sermon about – except perhaps the genealogies: "Abraham was the father of Isaac" and so on. If you are like me, in this area a picture speaks a thousand words, so hear are a few I pictures I prepared earlier. Well actually biblical archaeologists had them prepared but I'll show them to you anyway. The site of Solomon's temple had been successively destroyed and rebuilt so we have no archaeological remains. But based upon the description in the Bible and comparisons with the remains of other temples from the ancient Middle East we can say that it looked something like this (slides not included, see under “Temple” in a Bible dictionary).
1 Kings 3
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- Written by: Bill Stewart
Wisdom for Solomon audio (4MB)
It could almost be an episode of CSI or Law and Order or Bones or some other TV crime drama, couldn’t it? Today's reading has drama; it has suspense; it has a "goodie" and a "baddie" and a cop, or in this case a king, who needs to find out which is which; and of course it has a cute baby and a gruesome plot that includes possibility that cute baby might get cut in half! It is such a dramatic scene it is easy to focus on the maternity dispute between the two women and Solomon's "wise" judgment between them. But that incident is really only an illustration of what God is really saying here. It is easy to overlook the fact that something even more extraordinary happens in the first few verses of the passage. Of course, I'm talking about v. 5: "… the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, 'Ask what I should give you'." "What I (God) should give you (Solomon)"? All Solomon's birthdays and Christmas had come at once hadn't they! This wasn't just some genie who had popped out of a bottle to give Solomon a never-ending packet of Tim-Tams. This was God, the creator of the universe, asking Solomon what he wanted to be given. I have to think: What would I have asked for? What would you have asked for? Be honest! Who wants to be a millionaire?
1 Kings 2
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- Written by: Chris Appleby
Solomon For King audio (4MB)
You probably heard this week that the Rudd government are delaying the introduction of Carbon trading as a result of the Global Financial Crisis. This is quite an about-face for a government that prided itself on its environmental policy, but of course it was forced on them by external circumstances, wasn’t it? In fact isn’t that always the reason given for a shift of policy that moves from the ideal to the practical? That’s just the nature of politics. Well today we see a similar example of the reality of politics, what a German philosopher of the 19th century called Realpolitik.
David is on his deathbed. He’s lived a long life. He’s seen various ups and downs. And because he’s been king in difficult times he’s had to make various decisions that he wasn’t particularly happy about, but that were necessary to maintain his rule. He’s also made some friends and some enemies. Many of his enemies have been defeated, but there are one or two who for one reason or another are still around. In a couple of cases he’s even had to make a truce with them to ensure peace.
But now as he nears the end of his life he wants to tie up all of these loose ends. The first loose end appears in chapter 1 where the question of the succession arises. Adonijah, one of his older sons decides to jump the gun. He thinks the succession is his by right but he doesn’t want to wait around for David to die and then have to argue his case. So he enlists the help of Abiathar the priest and Joab, the leader of David’s army, to set himself on the throne before any of the other contenders catch on. These two think he’s a good choice. He’s good looking, popular and obviously a good tactician. He makes all the right PR moves. He gets himself chariots and horsemen and an entourage of fifty runners, a rent-a-crowd, to go before him as he goes to make a sacrifice to God in preparation for his coronation. And he invites all his brothers except Solomon to celebrate with him.
Isaiah 9:2-7
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- Written by: Chris Appleby
Light in The Darkness - Christmas 2008 audio
"The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness-- on them light has shined." Not many of us today have any real concept of darkness. We probably think of it as dark right now, but in fact we live in a world where even in the dead of night light is everywhere. So much so that we tend to take light for granted. You get up in the middle of the night and your bedside clock is glowing, the streetlights are shining in the window, your neighbours have their lights on. You can see where you're going quite clearly. But it wasn't always the case. I remember when I was growing up, which wasn't that long ago, can I say, we regularly had blackouts: usually during electrical storms. So there was always a supply of candles and matches nearby and a hurricane lamp in the garage to light so you could see again, because when you have a blackout in the middle of a storm it really does get dark. Most of you are old enough to remember those days I think. If you are, do you also remember what a relief it was when the candle was first lit. That tiny light made such a difference didn't it? And when the power came back on it was even better.
Well that's the feeling God is trying to convey, only more so, as Isaiah presents this prophecy of a salvation that will reach to all people. He says God is planning a salvation that will reach to the farthest ends of the earth, a great light to shine on people who live in deep darkness.
