2 Chronicles 29:16-19 "And the priests went into the inner part of the house of the LORD, to cleanse it, and brought out all the uncleanness that they found in the temple of the LORD into the court of the house of the LORD. And the Levites took it, to carry it out abroad into the brook Kidron. (17) Now they began on the first day of the first month to sanctify, and on the eighth day of the month came they to the porch of the LORD: so they sanctified the house of the LORD in eight days; and in the sixteenth day of the first month they made an end. (18) Then they went in to Hezekiah the king, and said, We have cleansed all the house of the LORD, and the altar of burnt offering, with all the vessels thereof, and the shewbread table, with all the vessels thereof. (19) Moreover all the vessels, which king Ahaz in his reign did cast away in his transgression, have we prepared and sanctified, and, behold, they are before the altar of the LORD."
Recently, we saw Hezekiah went to the house of the Lord and opened up the
doors. I try to imagine the condition of the temple due to a lack of use. Any
building that is not regularly used soon becomes in a state of decay. No doubt,
everything was filled with dust and the air had to be stale. When true
worship takes place, there is light, there is energy, there is freshness, there
is the glory of God that transforms. Because of Ahaz, the temple had become
everything but those things.
Through no help from his father Ahaz, Hezekiah knew that only the priests and
Levites were allowed to conduct the business of the temple. Perhaps he
remembered his great grandfather Uzziah having leprosy as a result of his going
into the temple to burn incense. However it happened, Hezekiah knew to
establish God's way in restoring the temple. The priests began in the inner
part and swept the dust all the way out and into the brook Kidron where the
dark waters would carry the dust down into the valley of Hinnom. Isn't it a
wonderful thing to know that God has cast all our sins behind His back never to
be remembered again?
But if we are not careful, that clean house will become corrupt again. Not only
did they sweep the filth out, but they replaced that which was lacking in order
to conduct true worship. Jesus spoke a parable concerning this matter. If we
are diligent to cleanse ourselves from one bad habit, we must be diligent to
replace it with something worthwhile. Life will be even more miserable if we
are not careful to replace the bad with something good. They replaced all the
vessels that Ahaz had destroyed or given away and then they restored proper
worship in the house of the Lord. They brought animals to slay and consecrate
the temple. They sprinkled the blood upon the altar as a sacrifice of atonement
and for a sin offering unto the Lord. They were truly repentant of their sins
and seeking the blessing of fellowship with the Lord.
How is it with each of us this morning? Do we have a secret hidden room where
we have closed the door and kept all light out? May we be as the Psalmist:
"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
(24) And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the
way everlasting." (Psalm 139:23-24)