In this sermon, Pastor Chuck Smith discusses the importance of being aware of the presence of God in our lives. He emphasizes that if we were more conscious of Jesus' presence, we would be more careful about our actions. Pastor Chuck also highlights the breakdown of the family unit in society and the negative impact it has on marriages and children. He encourages listeners to apply biblical principles to their families in order to experience peace, joy, and love. The sermon concludes with a prayer of gratitude for Jesus' sacrifice and a request for God's guidance and protection over the lives of believers.

Oh, let the Son of God enfold you With His Spirit and His love Let Him fill your heart and satisfy your soul Oh, let Him have the things that hold you And His Spirit like a dove Will descend upon your life And make you whole Welcome to The Word for Today featuring the Bible teaching of Pastor Chuck Smith of Calvary Chapel, Costa Mesa, California. Pastor Chuck is currently leading us on a verse-by-verse venture through the entire Bible. And on today's edition of The Word for Today we'll be continuing our look at The Building of the Temple as we pick up in 2 Chronicles 4, verse 1. And now, with today's message, here is Pastor Chuck Smith. And so, the furnishings, the first thing that is mentioned is the altar of brass. The altar on which the sacrifices were burned. And this altar of brass was 35 feet long and 35 feet wide and 15 feet tall. The temple that was built by Solomon was much larger than the tabernacle built by Moses. About three times the size. And thus, the furnishings were much larger in the temple than they were in the tabernacle. The altar is much larger. Then he made also this molten sea of brass. This was the areas for the priest to bathe prior to their offering of the sacrifices. This molten sea was 10 cubits from brim to brim or a diameter of 10 cubits, which would be 15 feet and a circumference of 20 cubits, 30 feet. This molten sea of brass was 5 cubits high and around the rim there were these engraved oxen. And then they made these oxen of brass to set it on, 12 of them, and 3 of them facing in each direction. And this brass sea was set on the top of these oxen. The thickness of the brass was the hand's breadth, so about 4 inches or so thick. Big brass basin or bath or pool for them to bathe in, which would hold 3,000 baths of water, which is about 24,000 gallons in your pool. So big brass labor for the priest to bathe in prior to their making their offerings and going in before the Lord. And it describes the work around the top, brim like a cup with the flowers, lilies, and these engraved little oxen around the thing. He also made 10 smaller labors, put 5 on the right hand and 5 on the left. That was to wash the offerings. And such things as they offered, for the burnt offering they washed them, but the big sea of brass was for the priest to wash in. Instead of one candlestick, like in the tabernacle, he had 10 candlesticks of gold, according to their form, that is the form of the candelabra that was in the tabernacle. And 5 were on the left hand side and 5 on the right hand side. He also made 10 tables instead of the one table of showbread. He placed them in the temple, 5 on the right side, 5 on the left. And then he made 100 basins of gold. Furthermore, he made the court of the priest and then the great court. And the doors for the court, he overlaid them with brass. Then he set on the right side of the east and over against the south. And Hiram had made the pots and the shovels. The shovels were to remove the coals after the fire on the altar, the basins. And Hiram finished the work that he was to make for King Solomon for the house of God. To wit, the two pillars, the pummels and the chapiters, or the top sections of these big brass columns, and the wreaths and all, the 400 pomegranates and the whole ornamentation that was around these brass pillars. And Hiram had made also the basins, the lavers, the sea, and the 12 oxen under it. The pots and the shovels and the flesh hooks and all the instruments did Hiram make for King Solomon for the house of the Lord of bright brass. He made these in the plain of Jordan on the other side of the river, which means that then they had to transport them all, but evidently the clay down there was great for casting. And so they cast them in the clay ground that was between Sakoth and Zarathustra. And Solomon made all these vessels in great abundance out of brass so much that it could not be weighed. It was just, you know, defied the scales. Moreover, the candlesticks with their lamps that they should burn after the manor before the holy place were made of pure gold. The flowers of the lamps, the tongs, he made of gold, perfect gold. And then the snuffers and the basins and the spoons and the censers were of pure gold, and the entry of the house, the intercourse thereof, for the most holy place, the doors of the house of the temple, were of gold. So surely a very magnificent building, and as we pointed out, the cost was into the billions of dollars as far as the gold and the silver and the metals that were used. Thus all the work that Solomon made for the house of the Lord was finished, and he brought all of the things that David his father had dedicated, all of the silver, the gold, the instruments, he put among the treasures of the house of God. And so finishing the temple, now they bring in all of the rich treasure that David had gathered for it. Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers, the children of Israel, to Jerusalem in order that they might bring this Ark of the Covenant up out of the city of David, which was below the temple mount. So all of the great men of Israel were gathered for this event, and all of the elders came. The Levites took up the Ark, and they brought up the Ark and the tabernacle of the congregation and all of the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle. These did the priest and the Levites bring up. And also King Solomon and all the congregation of Israel that were assembled unto him before the Ark, they sacrificed sheep and oxen, which could not be counted or numbered for the multitude. So a glorious day, the day of the dedication, as they bring now the Ark of the Covenant, the final bit of furniture to be brought into the temple. Once it is there, then officially temple worship would be inaugurated. And so the sacrifice is uncounted. The priest brought in the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord unto his place, to the holy of holies, the oracle is of course the holy of holies of the house, and to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims that we studied earlier that Solomon had built in the holy place. These are not the cherubims that were on the top of the Ark of the Covenant itself. For the cherubims spread forth their wings over the place of the Ark, and the cherubims covered the Ark and the staves thereof above. And having placed then the Ark in its position, they pulled out these staves. They weren't to touch the Ark, they had rings of gold in the Ark, and they would put these staves or these sticks through these rings of gold, and then they would carry the Ark by lifting the sticks, and they would hold the sticks, and when they had set it down, they wouldn't touch it, but would set it down using the post, and then they'd draw out these sticks from these gold rings that were on the side of the Ark of the Covenant. So having set it in its place, they then pulled out these gold-covered sticks or staves, and they set them there in the Holy of Holies. Now, it is interesting in verse 10 that at this time there was nothing in the Ark except the two tables which Moses had put therein at Horeb when the Lord made a covenant with the children of Israel when they came out of Egypt. So the only objects within the Ark of the Covenant was the two tables of stone. When Moses originally set the Ark of the Covenant in the tabernacle, he had placed there, and the Ark of the Covenant is referenced really to the two tables of stone because therein is the covenant that God made with the children of Israel. He established, if you keep these laws, then I will be your God, you will be my people. So it was the covenant God made was on the two tables of stone. There were the Ten Commandments engraved by God. So thus, the Ten Commandments being in this little box, it was called the Ark of the Covenant. But when Moses first placed the Ark of the Covenant in the tabernacle, he also had placed in there a jar of manna, which was to remind them of God's provision for them in their time of need. And then he also had placed Aaron's rod. You remember when the fellow by the name of Korah, who was of the Levites, rebelled against Moses, got a group of fellows together and said that Moses has taken too much on himself. He's practicing nepotism. He set up his brother Aaron as the high priest. We have as much right to offer to God as does Aaron because we're Levites too. And Moses is just wrong in this. They came down to Moses complaining. And at that time, you remember, Moses said, all right, let's set out the rods of the priests before the Lord in the tabernacle. And in the morning when they came in, these rods or staffs upon which the fellows would use for walking in the wilderness, Aaron's rod had blossomed, budded, and had almonds on it. And so by that they took the indication that God had chosen Aaron as the one to offer the sacrifices. And thus the high priest was always to be a descendant of Aaron. And so that was in the Ark of the Covenant originally. Aaron's rod that had budded, the jar of manna, the two tables of stone upon which the law was written. Now at this point, only the two tables of stone are there. What happened to the rod, we don't know. What happened to the jar of manna, we don't know. It could be that the Philistines ripped it off when they had the Ark of the Covenant in the land of the Philistines. But there is no indication as to where the manna and the rod of Aaron's were at this point. There was only in it the two tables of stone. It is interesting to realize that probably someplace on the earth today, this Ark of the Covenant still exists, no doubt hidden by Jeremiah, and in it still the two tables of stone upon which God wrote the Ten Commandments. This would surely be one of the greatest archaeological discoveries in the history of man if someone could find that Ark of the Covenant. I'll tell you, I would pay a pretty penny to be able to view that. So it came to pass when the priests were come out of the holy place, for all the priests that were present were sanctified, and they did not then wait by course. All of the priests were participating in this dedication. The Levites, which were the singers, all of them, Asaph, Heman, and Abjadathan, with their sons and their brothers being arrayed in white linen, having cymbals and psalteries and harps, and the psalteries are stringed instruments, harps, they stood at the east end of the altar, and with them 120 priests as they were sounding their trumpets, so 120 priests sounding on the silver trumpets, Heman, Asaph, and Abjadathan and their group singing and using their instruments, the cymbals, no doubt for percussion, for the rhythm for their songs, the vials and the harps. It came to pass as the trumpeters and the singers were as one, the trumpeters were blasting, the people were singing, and it was such a blending, it was like just one glorious praise being lifted unto God. They were making the sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets, the cymbals, and the instruments of music and praised the Lord, saying, For he is good, for his mercy endureth forever, that then the house of the Lord was filled with a cloud, even the house of the Lord, so that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord. God's presence often in the Old Testament represented by a cloud. And in the dedication of the tabernacle in the wilderness made by Moses, when they dedicated that tabernacle, the cloud descended on the tabernacle, and they had that same experience where the priests could not stand to minister because of the glory of the presence of the Lord. Just a wipe out by the glory of God's presence. So now, in the dedication of the temple, the similar kind of an experience as God's presence filled the temple. They just could not stand to minister there by the reason of this power and presence of God, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord. It's an awesome and it's a beautiful scene. They're lifting their voices in praise and thanksgiving unto God. The praising of the Lord simultaneously with the instruments, with the singers, with the trumpets, until there was just that unison, that blending, that oneness of heart, worship, and the subsequent presence of God and glory of God filling the place. Jesus said, where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst. I think that one of our problems today is our spiritual dullness and our failure to discern the presence of God. I think that that is a weakness on us in a spiritual sense. I think that if we were more conscious of the presence of Jesus, we would be more careful about the things that we do. And thus, I need to have a keener consciousness of the presence of the Lord. And I pray that God will help me in this realm to come to a keener consciousness that the Lord is with me. Paul the Apostle, talking to the Grecian philosophers on Mars Hill, said, as I was going through the streets there in Athens down below and from Mars Hill, you look down on the Agora, the downtown area of ancient Greece. And at one end, the marvelous temples. The other end, another temple. And of course, above you, the temple of Athena and these temples that were built to the various gods. And Paul said, as I was walking through your streets, I came to the realization that you're a very religious people. For I've seen your altars and your temples. And I did observe one altar and on it was the inscription to the unknown God. You see, the Greeks had deified everything they could think of. They had deified their emotions. They had deified the planets. They had deified just about everything you can think of. They made a god out of it. And just in case they might have missed one, they didn't want him to be offended. So some fellow built an altar and he said, this is to the unknown God. In case you're there and we don't know you, this is for you. And so Paul said, I perceive you're very religious. And I saw this one altar down there that had been inscribed to the unknown God. This is the God I would like to talk to you about. Because this is the God who made the heavens and the earth. And we are his offspring. And in him, we live and we move and we have our being. We're surrounded by him. We live in him. We move in him. We have our being. He is our source of life itself. Paul was consciousness of the presence, the all-prevailing presence of God. And so also need we be conscious of the all-prevailing presence of God. We'll return with more of our verse-by-verse study through the book of 2 Chronicles in our next lesson as we continue with Solomon's Prayer of Dedication. And we do hope you'll make plans to join us. But right now, I'd like to remind you that if you missed any part of today's message or perhaps you'd like to order a copy for that special friend or loved one, you can do so by simply contacting one of our customer service representatives. And they'd be more than happy to assist you with the ordering details. Simply call 1-800-272-WORD. And phone orders can be taken Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific Time. Once again, our toll-free number is 1-800-272-9673. And for your added convenience, you can order online anytime when you go to the wordfortoday.org. And while you're there, be sure to browse through the additional resources that include Bible studies, commentaries, CDs, DVDs, and so much more. Once again, that's The Word for Today. Online at thewordfortoday.org. And for those of you who still prefer to write, you can use our mailing address, which is The Word for Today, P.O. Box 8000, Costa Mesa, California, 92628. And be sure to include the call letters of this station with your correspondence. And now, on behalf of The Word for Today, we'd like to thank all of you who share in supporting this ministry with your prayers and financial support. And be sure to join us again next time as Pastor Chuck Smith continues his verse-by-verse study through the book of 2 Chronicles. That's right here, on the next edition of The Word for Today. And now, once again, here's Pastor Chuck Smith with today's closing prayer. Father, we thank You that our approach to You is now possible through Jesus Christ, who through the shedding of His blood, the giving of His life, made the propitiation for our sins and opened the door for us who were once aliens and foreigners and strangers to be brought nigh, that we might sit in fellowship with You, that we might be able to approach boldly the throne of grace. Lord, we're so thankful that Jesus paid the price for our redemption, making possible all of the beauty and the glory of sitting with You in the intimate fellowship. Bless now, Lord, we pray, the lives of Your people. Watch over them, Lord. Strengthen them. Guide them, Lord, by Your Spirit. Keep them in Your love. In Jesus' name, amen. Amen. Undoubtedly, one of the most glaring signs that our society is in trouble is the breakdown of the family unit. Marriages just aren't making it today, and kids are suffering as they watch the breakup of their homes. Those marriages still holding together are often plagued by conflict and turmoil, making the home a battleground instead of a refuge. That's why the word for today would like to present Pastor Chuck Smith's Marriage and Family MP3, where Pastor Chuck discusses basic biblical principles to keep a family's love alive. Each member of the family has a different set of needs and responsibilities. And when you know and apply God's principles, everyone in the family can experience real peace, real joy, and an agape love. To order your copy of the Marriage and Family MP3 by Chuck Smith, call the word for today at 800-272-WORD or visit us online at thewordfortoday.org This program has been sponsored by The Word for Today in Costa Mesa, California.