Honoring God
Dedicating the Temple of God
Live in the light of God (Isaiah 2:5)
Solomon's Dedication Prayer
Isaiah 56:3-8 New International Version
3 Let no foreigner who is bound to the Lord say,
“The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.”
And let no eunuch complain,
“I am only a dry tree.”
4 For this is what the Lord says:
“To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,
who choose what pleases me
and hold fast to my covenant—
5 to them I will give within my temple and its walls
a memorial and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
that will endure forever.
6 And foreigners who bind themselves to the Lord
to minister to him,
to love the name of the Lord,
and to be his servants,
all who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it
and who hold fast to my covenant—
7 these I will bring to my holy mountain
and give them joy in my house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and sacrifices
will be accepted on my altar;
for my house will be called
a house of prayer for all nations.”
8 The Sovereign Lord declares—
he who gathers the exiles of Israel:
“I will gather still others to them
besides those already gathered.”
For Reflection
Eunuchs (impotent disposable slaves) and foreigners (outsiders - not born into the prevailing Jewish culture) are lumped together having equal status in the eyes of God. Isiah declares that God will bless all peoples, thus wiping away all social/religious privilege. All who love God, keep the Sabbath, and hold fast to God's covenant will be gathered to the Holy Mountian (a reference to the Mosiac Covenant) and to the Temple ( the center of Jewish life). All are called to God's house of Prayer and acceptable in God's sight.
Pray
Pray and consider Isiah's shocking and revolutionary idea that while still the chosen, Jews have no exclusive relationship to God. In prayerful contemplation, consider how your Christian religious preferences limit your ability to practice humility and to accept others as children of God.
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