Repairing the House of the Lord - Hope Lutheran Church

In 2 Kings 22 and 2 Chronicles 34 it is detailed for us that the last good king of Josiah began a religious reformation of Judah. It wasn’t until the eighteenth year of his reign that he was finally able to turn his attention to the necessary renovations in the temple. It has fallen into a great state of disrepair and so the Levites are tasked to take the money that had been given for the upkeep and begin the work. We have been out of the Sanctuary itself since the end of June, it’s only been three months. It’s hard to imagine waiting for the sanctuary and all the temple mount to be fixed for over 18 years! Remember that it was like this way for decades before! And what was worse, was that Josiah first had to remove the altars to the false gods of Baal and Asherah that his ancestors had put in there!

[*The Sanctuary has been a BIG job, it has been hard because the scissors lift only has so much room between all the rafters and thus it will be the last to be painted this week.* We will also receive new lights that will be able to be dimmed for evening services.]

What took him so long to realize that this was a problem? While work was being done, the High Priest Hilkiah, found the Book of the Law (the Pentateuch). Now I want you to think on this for a moment. They lost the books of the Bible that governed their worship. LOST IT!?!? How do you lose such an important book? How do you not know the exact details of what Yahweh had taught them? So yes, Josiah did not even know what his responsibilities were because the Word of God was lost.

Yet Hilkiah knew immediately what it was, and he gave it to Shaphan, the King’s secretary and he read it to good King Josiah, and the King tore his robes when he heard it and said, ““Go, inquire of the Lord for me and for those who are left in Israel and in Judah, concerning the words of the book that has been found. For great is the wrath of the Lord that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the Lord, to do according to all that is written in this book.” (1 Chronicles 34:21)

[Here you can see how the men have been on stilts. They walk on these all throughout the day. You can see bare floor to the left and the old blue carpet still to the right. All flooring will be replaced with carpet tiles in the nave and the chancel with a hard tile. A number of the members have been hard at work picking things out.]

The Word was clear, the Jews were in deep trouble because they had not done anything that had been commanded of them. Josiah immediately beseeches the prophet Huldah who reveals a Word of the Lord to him. “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Tell the man who sent you to me, ²⁴Thus says the Lord, Behold, I will bring disaster upon this place and upon its inhabitants, all the curses that are written in the book that was read before the king of Judah. ²⁵Because they have forsaken me and have made offerings to other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands, therefore my wrath will be poured out on this place and will not be quenched. ²⁶But to the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the Lord, thus shall you say to him, Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Regarding the words that you have heard, ²⁷because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before God when you heard his words against this place and its inhabitants, and you have humbled yourself before me and have torn your clothes and wept before me, I also have heard you, declares the Lord. ²⁸Behold, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace, and your eyes shall not see all the disaster that I will bring upon this place and its inhabitants.’” (1 Chronicles 34 23-28)

[Here you can see the new paint job that the narthex has received along with updated lights. It is noticeably brighter in the narthex already without them being properly hung! The floor has been ordered and we have new hardwood trim that will also be installed. The craftsmanship has definitely been beholden of the Lord!]

I’ve got great news! Even before our renovation began, the Word of the Lord was not been lost. Scripture is easily accessible. We have such a clear Word and even better we have a clear explanation of it, that we could never be confused. Therefore, we should hear its stern warning and daily repent. You and I are guilty. The Word of the Lord is clear as John tells the crowds, “His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” (Matthew 3:12) Thanks be to God that Jesus has paid the price and searches for all his sheep, which includes you!

The warning of God should be heard even more clearly because now that Jesus has come. There is no guess work for you, he promises that he will come again to judge the living and the dead. You do not know when your last day will be. It could be today or decades from now.

[It is hard to see, but everything outside of the Sanctuary is painted. You can see there is plenty still to do be done, but there is great anticipation of being ahead of schedule and could possibly be back to normal by October! I have enjoyed getting to know the mudding and painting crew from Metro who have been very diligent in their work.]

The fast devastation upon a building like we saw at Hope is not even a shadow of the things to come. We do not know what tomorrow will bring nor do we need to know as Jesus says “Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:34)

So what does today bring us? Today brings us the call to repentance and dear Christian, you are called to repent for great is your sin and that’s a good thing! Today, you are called to know what is God pleasing and what is not. Today you are called to focus upon your vocation—not others—yours. Unless you are in a position of authority in which you are called to judge others (police officer, teacher, pastor, etc.), you simply need to focus on you. This is the great thing about the table of duties in the small catechism. You are given clear direction for what you, dear Christian, are called to do.

Finally, our church renovations remind us of one more thing. We are called to hear the Word of the Lord. Put aside your false gods of possessions, family, sports, and nature and submit to your Lord’s generosity of forgiveness. Additionally, you are reminded, do not provoke the Lord with the work of your hands. Do not misuse the name of the Lord by saying thus says the Lord, where the Word does not say it; let alone provoke him by rejecting his gifts. If you have been away from the Church, now is the perfect time to return and receive his gifts of Word and Sacrament.

In fact, there is never a bad time to return for we do not need to worry about tomorrow, rather, let us focus on today. Though you may have been lost and wandering, the Truth has been here the whole time. Do you want to engage in learning more about the faith? Again, no time like the present. Here at Hope Lutheran Church we welcome all to hear this Word, so that the Holy Spirit may work on them, too, and that they hear this Word, believe, and join the Church in a life of repentance.

*[We moved some of the pews down to the fellowship hall and put up a temporary wall as a great back drop behind altar.]*

We are getting close to being able to come together in our newly renovated Sanctuary. In the meantime, I hope you will join us as we continue to gather in our place of worship on Sundays at 10:45am. Starting this Sunday, August 15, join us for Sunday School at 9:45am as well. This extra time is the wonderful opportunity to come together in fellowship and studying this Word together that has not been missing and never will be.