Mt. Moriah and sacred places...




I've been slowly studying the book of Genesis lately and was struck by something that I have been pondering - namely sacred places.

In Genesis 22, Abraham is tested by God in a sort of odd and questionable way involving his special son Isaac. The testing involved a 3-day journey to the 'land of Moriah' and a burnt offering sacrifice of Isaac.

Of course, Abraham kept some details to himself as he gathered a few young men, provisions, a donkey, and Isaac...probably a good idea...

The story is well-known for sure, but, for me, I found the location very intriguing. We find in 2 Chronicles that this 'land of Moriah' was actually a high place or mountain. That passage speaks of Solomon building the first temple in Jerusalem on that very place.

Why is this place so special? Well, you'd need to go to another story that involves Solomon's father David. In 2 Samuel 24, we enter a tragic moment in David's life that happened due to his sin. The consequences of his sin meant death for many people in the nation and in his repentance, he obeyed the Lord's command through the prophet Gad to go and build an altar. Guess where that altar was to be? You guessed it - Mt. Moriah! It happened to be a threshing floor at the time and so David purchased it to build the altar. It was here that David uttered these words, "I will not offer to the Lord my God burnt sacrifices that cost me nothing!"

22 Araunah told David, “My lord the king may take whatever he wishes and offer it. Look! Here are oxen for burnt offerings, and threshing sledges and harnesses for wood. 23 I, the servant of my lord the king, give it all to the king!” Araunah also told the king, “May the Lord your God show you favor!” 24 But the king said to Araunah, “No, I insist on buying it from you! I will not offer to the Lord my God burnt sacrifices that cost me nothing.”

-New English Translation

Years later, Solomon's temple was built and then rebuilt and in the time of Jesus, it had been added to and enhanced by Herod of all people. It has remained a special and sacred place all these years later.

What sacred spaces and places exist for me? For us? 

Even though I know that what makes those spaces sacred is really the presence and closeness of God, making room for Him I find helpful - from a prayer closet or room to a mountain or a chapel. It is intentional and should indeed cost us something - sacrifice always does! 


Photo by K. Mitch Hodge on Unsplash

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Going along with the crowd?

Image
Over the last several years I've found some helpful writings from the early church writings of the first few centuries of Christianity. Here is a quote I found interesting today (from www.commonprayer.net): Cyprian of Carthage, a third-century North African bishop, wrote, “The world is going mad in mutual extermination, and murder, considered as a crime when committed individually, becomes a virtue when it is committed by large numbers. It is the multiplication of the frenzy that assures impunity to the assassins.” It made me think of the old idea of peer pressure and going with the flow of culture rather than standing out and even swimming against the downstream flow of secular modernity.  Maybe Cyprian was correct in seeing how evil can become standard if enough people in a society or culture accept it? I guess it seems like the idea of strength in numbers and fitting in, etc. Jesus spoke of this danger during His ministry - specifically in the message on the mount He gave in Mat
Read more
Image
I sometimes get a bit down with my physical self. I'll complain inwardly about my poor eyesight, bad hearing, and desire to consume things that are bad for me. Hmmm. That reminds me of an old Alan Jackson song called "Everything I Love"... Anyway, I digress... We are told in Scripture that our bodies are special temples where God dwells - His presence in and through us is powerful. It's crazy to think about. Listen to the Apostle Paul's words in 2 Corinthians 4:7ff (NT Wright's New Testament for Everyone translation): But we have this treasure in earthenware pots, so that the extraordinary quality of the power may belong to God, not to us. 8 We are under all kinds of pressure, but we are not crushed completely; we are at a loss, but not at our wits’ end; 9 we are persecuted, but not abandoned; we are cast down, but not destroyed. 10 We always carry the death of Jesus about in the body, so that the life of Jesus may be revealed in our body. AND... 16 For this
Read more
Image
In honor of the upcoming St. Patrick's Day, here's a post I originally wrote back in 2006 - thought I'd share it to kick off this new blog... I’ve always wondered why some in the Christian church are so enamored with Celtic stuff. I mean, the Celtic crosses, the artwork, the old stone church buildings, the ‘mystery’, what’s this all about anyway? I then read a short little book about Celtic Christianity called Listening for the heartbeat of God – A Celtic Christianity  by J. Philip Newell and I really connected with this whole Celtic thing for the first time.  I guess what really resonates with me is this idea that God is the heart of all creation, and, since He is, when you really dig deep in every human heart, despite human sin and evil, you will ultimately find the good placed there by God. This is counter to the notion which has its roots in the early Christian church father Augustine who taught that humanity is basically evil and unable to do anything good without God.
Read more