Going up to the Temple of the heavenly Jerusalem

 In 2 Samuel: 7:4, God tells David not to build Him a Temple, saying: “Would you build me a house to dwell in? ... and I will establish his kingdom. ... establish the throne of his kingdom forever.”

Jesus, a descendant of the royal throne of David and whose Kingdom is eternal, returns to the glory of His Father today and is seated at the right hand of God. The eternal Kingdom promised David is fulfilled. The doors to that Kingdom were opened for each one of us by Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. We are heirs of that Kingdom by God’s choice. It is freely given. Will we accept it and what is asked of us as faithful followers of Christ?

 

Jesus as the everlasting King, the ruler of the Kingdom of God, is prophesized in 2 Chronicles 36: 22 by Cyrus king of Persia: “In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia—to fulfill the word of Yahweh through Jeremiah—Yahweh roused the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia to issue a proclamation and to have it publically displayed throughout his kingdom: ‘Cyrus king of Persia says this, ‘Yahweh, the God of Heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and has appointed me to build him a Temple in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever there is among you of all his people, may his God be with him! Let him go up.’” Jesus goes up to that eternal Kingdom today, from which He came to earth when He was conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of Mary, the Mother of God.

 

Jesus’ promise to prepare a place for us is also the promise to make us into a Temple for God. We are being built into that dwelling place every single day. Those of us who believe in Jesus, repent and are converted into Christ will take our places in heaven on the day that Jesus returns to take us where He is.

 

What an awesome, loving, kind, compassionate, merciful God!