12/31 Sermon - The Temple of God

Old Testament: 1 Kings 8:6-13 – King Solomon dedicates the temple, a place where the glory of the LORD would be revealed as the peace of salvation was proclaimed.

Intro: The city is building a new building down the road. I drive by it every day. I get to see it slowly go up. Have you ever watched, day by day, as a building was built?

- Great Wall of China has been added to for 2,000 years. One of the great pyramids of Egypt took 10-20 years. St. Peter’s basilica took 120 years!

- The temple of Solomon took 7 years to build, with 34 tons of gold. They couldn’t even count the silver and bronze. Any building that takes 7 years and 34 tons of gold to build would be amazing. The temple was.

So King Solomon and Israel dedicated the temple. What did they do?

- They brought the ark of the covenant into the temple. The ark of the covenant was the most holy object in Old Testament Israel. It symbolized God’s presence with his people. The lid of the Ark was called the ‘mercy seat,’ where humankind found mercy before God.

- They brought the ark of the covenant to demonstrate this: God would now live in his temple, he could dwell among his people.

So they placed the ark in the Most Holy Place of God’s temple.

- That day, the people saw the tiniest fraction of God’s glory, the smallest little bit, as God’s glory filled the temple.

- Did you notice what the text said? “The priests could not perform their service because of the cloud.” If anyone stepped into the same room as God’s glory, they would die. Not because God was necessarily angry, but because he was holy, without sin. We humans are sinful. If we stand in the presence of God as we are now, we would die. On our own, we cannot stand before God.

- Solomon stood up and proclaimed, “I have indeed built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell forever.”

- Wow, that is impressive. A place for God to dwell forever? What happened? Solomon himself turned away from God. His descendants turned away from God. Eventually, God turned away from Israel.

- We sin. It doesn’t matter how good-intentioned we are, how many promises we make, or how dedicated we think we are. We sin. There is no way that a holy God could live and dwell with us.

Gospel: Luke 2:22-40 – God allows elderly Simeon and Anna to see their Savior with their own eyes. This fills them with peace

How long have you waited for something? A baby to be born, a package to arrive, a different job offer. In our gospel, we meet two people who have been waiting their whole life for the Savior: Simeon and Anna.

- It was revealed to Simon and Anna that the Savior would come, the Messiah, and they would see the Son of God.

- What would it be like? A display of glory, like at Solomon’s temple

In the first reading, the tiniest bit of God’s glory is revealed, and no one could enter God’s temple without dying.

- If Jesus had come this way, no one could have been in the same city as him. Simeon and Anna could not have seen him.

- Jesus, the glory of God, entered his temple. But how different it was this time No sacrifices, no celebrations, no trumpets. Just a small infant. Two small doves.

But Simeon and Anna saw this infant for who he was. This small baby was God made flesh, the Son of Man and the Son of God.

- When the temple was built, Solomon offered countless sacrifices. But this small child would be the final sacrifice, offered once and for all, to cover the sins of the people and make us right before God.

- A phrase that’s used 5 times in our reading is “according to the law of the Lord.” Everything Jesus did, from birth to death, was done to obey God’s law. Because of our sin, because of Israel’s sin, Solomon’s temple was destroyed. And any chance we have of standing before God is gone. But Jesus lived a perfect life, and he gives that holiness to us. We can stand before God, holy and perfect, through faith in our Savior, Jesus.

Simeon and Anna saw Jesus for who he was, despite his weakness and humility. Anna’s confession and Simeon’s song tell us us who Jesus was.

- Look at vs. 38. Anna tells us that this small baby was the Son of God, and he would redeem the world from sin and death and give salvation, forgiveness of sins, and life everlasting.

- Look at Simeon’s song. By the way, this is the song we sing at the end of worship a couple times every month! Look at how beautifully Simeon tells us about Jesus: My eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared before all people, a light for Gentiles, and the glory of Israel.

- Like Anna and Simeon, see Jesus for who he is. This Savior, Jesus, the glory of God, forgives your sins, gives you salvation, promises you eternal life, makes you right before God, and lives in your heart.

Epistle: Colossians 3:12-17 – As the peace of Christ rules our hearts, we are moved to live in peace.

This reading tells us what to do, now that we know and love and trust in Jesus our Savior, who takes away our sins. It gives us 4 unique pictures.

1. Cloth yourselves with good and proper clothing. I think this picture fits. In a sense, we act how we choose to act, just like putting on clothes in the morning. I can choose to wear bitterness, jealousy, or anger.

- Instead, cloth yourself with these.

- Compassion is showing concern and consideration for someone else’s misfortune or situation.

- Kindness is just simply love. We don’t wait for someone else to say or do something loving. In kindness, we do it first, always.

-  Humility. Humility isn’t belittling ourselves. Instead, it’s thinking of someone else’s needs ahead of my own.

- Gentleness. Guiding and helping other people, no matter how long we take, with just slight nudges.   

- Patience. Not going at my speed or forcing that on others. But waiting for God and waiting for others, gladly.

2. Follow Christ’s example, and forgive. Of course, our emphasis is always on what Christ does for us: saves us. But Christ is also a great example for us as well.

- It’s simple. It doesn’t matter how badly someone has hurt us, we forgive. This isn’t just good advice; it’s the foundation for any lasting friendship, marriage, or family. We live in forgiveness. Jesus forgives our sins, and so we forgive others.

3. Let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts. How is that possible?

- We know where we’re going. Our citizenship is in heaven. We are just travelers in this world. No matter how little we have, how much we hurt, what happens to us, Jesus promises to return and take us to paradise. With that promise, our hearts have peace.

4. Finally, let the Word of God dwell among you.

- I can promise you, with absolute certainty, when God’s Word lives in your life, when you worship and hear God’s word every Sunday, when you read God’s Word every day, God will bless your life. You will have joy, hope, peace, and strength