Spiritual House Cleaning

“Then the priests went into the inner part of the house of the Lord to cleanse it, and brought out all the debris that they found in the temple of the Lord to the court of the house of the Lord. And the Levites took it out and carried it to the Brook Kidron.” 2 Chron. 29:16

For years the Israelites had forsaken God, but when Hezekiah came to the throne of Judah he wasted no time in cleaning up the temple and reinstating the temple services.  In the first month of the first year of his reign “he brought in the priests and the Levites, and gathered them in the East Square, and said to them: ‘Hear me, Levites! Now sanctify yourselves, sanctify the house of the Lord God of your fathers, and carry out the rubbish from the holy place.’” 2 Chron. 29:4, 5

It took them two weeks to clean out the temple and make it ready for service (2 Chron. 29:17).  Immediately temple services were instituted.  As you read the next chapter you will see that Hezekiah called all Israel and Judah together to keep the Passover – something they had not done in years.

On a personal note,  is there rubbish in our soul temples that need to be taken out and carried “to the Brook Kidron”?

You might bristle to think you might have rubbish in your soul temple.  Let’s see what kind of rubbish we can collect.  For starters Eph. 4:31 gives us a list, “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.”

“Humble yourselves before God, and make an earnest effort to empty the soul temple of all rubbish—all envyings, all jealousies, all suspicions, all faultfindings. ‘Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double-minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall lift you up (James 4:8-10).’”  5T 163

“Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” 1 Cor. 3:16, 17

“After we have done our part to cleanse the soul temple from the defilement of sin, Christ’s blood avails for us, as it did for ancient Israel.” Youth’s Instructor, July 18, 1901.

“No man can of himself cast out the evil throng that have taken possession of the heart. Only Christ can cleanse the soul temple. But He will not force an entrance. He comes not into the heart as to the temple of old; but He says, ‘Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him.’ Revelation 3:20. He will come, not for one day merely; for He says, ‘I will dwell in them, and walk in them; . . . and they shall be My people.’ ‘He will subdue our iniquities; and Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.’ 2 Corinthians 6:16; Micah 7:19. His presence will cleanse and sanctify the soul, so that it may be a holy temple unto the Lord, and ‘an habitation of God through the Spirit.’” Ephesians 2:21, 22.  Desire of Ages, p. 161

“The exhortation of the apostle is, ‘Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.’ It is by engaging in this work, and by exercising living faith in God, that we are to perfect Christian character. The work of cleansing the soul-temple and preparing for Christ’s appearing must be done while we are in this world of temptation. Just as Christ finds us in character when he comes, so we shall remain.”  Historical Sketches, p. 134

Dear Father, This morning I open the door of my heart in response to Your knock, asking You to come in and cleanse my soul temple from all defilement—rubbish.