Seekers for Jesus: January- March 2020

By R.H. Boyd Publishing Corporation

Seekers for Jesus is a quarterly written especially for young people ages 12-14. In addition to introductory material and biblical exposition, each lesson contains a section to help students apply the lesson to life. Questions are interjected to gauge the student’s understanding of the presentation.

• Language: English
• Publisher: R.H. Boyd Publishing Corporation
• Release date: Dec 1, 2019
• ISBN: 9781681676258

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Lesson

1

01/05/20

Celebration!

Today’s Scripture

1 Kings 8:1–13

Background Scripture: 1 Kings 8:1–13; 2 Chronicles 5:1–14

CHECK OUT TODAY’S LESSON

NRSV

THEN Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leaders of the ancestral houses of the Israelites, before King Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.

2 All the people of Israel assembled to King Solomon at the festival in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month.

3 And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests carried the ark.

4 So they brought up the ark of the LORD, the tent of meeting, and all the holy vessels that were in the tent; the priests and the Levites brought them up.

5 King Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, who had assembled before him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing so many sheep and oxen that they could not be counted or numbered.

6 Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its place, in the inner sanctuary of the house, in the most holy place, underneath the wings of the cherubim.

7 For the cherubim spread out their wings over the place of the ark, so that the cherubim made a covering above the ark and its poles.

8 The poles were so long that the ends of the poles were seen from the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary; but they could not be seen from outside; they are there to this day.

9 There was nothing in the ark except the two tablets of stone that Moses had placed there at Horeb, where the LORD made a covenant with the Israelites, when they came out of the land of Egypt.

10 And when the priests came out of the holy place, a cloud filled the house of the LORD,

11 so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD.

12 Then Solomon said, "The LORD has said that he would dwell in thick darkness.

13 I have built you an exalted house, a place for you to dwell in forever."

Today’s Word

Have you ever felt God’s presence? Has His glory ever overwhelmed you so much that you were stuck in a daze, thinking of His goodness? In today’s lesson, we see the Israelites honor God by placing the Ark of the Covenant in a temple and also how they were overcome by the glory of the Lord. Think about how you can honor God while reading today’s lesson.

A Place for the Ark

In the books of 1 and 2 Samuel, we’re told about how David comes into kingship and replaces Saul. David was a good king—aside from a few human imperfections—and when he was dying, he placed Solomon, his son, in charge. In the opening chapters of 1 Kings, we see that Solomon prayed for wisdom, and desired to lead the nation on the righteous path of the Lord. Solomon was named the wisest man who ever lived on earth, and he was also the richest. Israel lived in peace under his reign because he followed God and obeyed His commands. David loved God as well and had wanted to build Him a temple while he was king. But God told David no; that honor would go to his son. Solomon was given permission to build God His temple, and in today’s verses, we see the dedication of it. The temple was finally completed after all this time; now the Israelites could officially welcome God into it and celebrate!

Solomon brought together all the heads of the tribes and the elders for this grand opening of the temple. This was a special occasion because Israel had been waiting for this moment for years, and all the prominent people in their society were to be witnesses. These elders would bring with them the Ark of the Covenant to place inside the temple, in the holy of holies. In David’s day, the Ark lived in a tent because there was no temple for it. The Ark of the Covenant represented God’s presence, so by placing the Ark inside the temple, Solomon was making a declaration that the Lord was among them. This was a huge honor for the Israelites. When the Ark arrived, Solomon ordered for abundant sacrifices to be made to God; so many, in fact, that they couldn’t be counted. This was how much Solomon wanted to praise the Lord and give thanks for completing the temple and allowing Him to live among them. This would be comparable to the Queen of England giving up all her palaces, treasures, fine clothing, fancy food, countless vehicles and horses—every fine thing she owned—and instead choosing to live in a humble house in the center of town, where all her subjects could approach her at any time. That would make the commoners of England feel pretty special, right? The Israelites were overwhelmed with their gratitude for the Lord coming to live with them. They couldn’t thank Him enough; hence, why they made all the