SCRIPTURE: 2 Chronicles 3
OBSERVATION/APPLICATION:
Across the entrance of the Most Holy Place he hung a curtain made of fine linen, decorated with blue, purple, and scarlet thread and embroidered with figures of cherubim. [2 Chronicles 3:14]
Solomon and the workers are building the holy temple, and the Most Holy Place, a place that they will never be able to enter.
Only the high priest is allowed to enter the Most Holy Place, and that only one time each year.
This room, separated by the fine linen curtain, represented God’s throne room, where the Ark of the Covenant (or God’s mercy seat) was placed.
The curtain symbolized the separation between God and us that resulted when sin entered the world.
Our sin is a relational barrier between us and God; it prevents us from having a close relationship with Him.
Its like an unfaithful spouse wanting a healthy relationship with their marriage partner; its impossible so long as the barrier of the unfaithfulness remains between them.

By this time it was noon, and darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. The light from the sun was gone. And suddenly, the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn down the middle. Then Jesus shouted, “Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!” And with those words he breathed his last. [Luke 23:44-46]
Jesus faces the sin of unfaithfulness head on with us… for us.
He embraces the ugliness of our sin and shame and endures the consequences, making it possible for us to be reconciled to God.
Though He dies in the process, the barrier is removed, and God is free to welcome us home as His much-loved children; we still need to repent, but the burden of guilt is removed.
The curtain is torn; the old covenant (i.e. Jewish religion) is fulfilled, and the way to God is open to all, without need for further sacrifices or symbolic separations (temple, priesthood, altar).
We now have the freedom and the boldness to approach God directly, through Jesus, the ultimate and perfect High Priest, and His sacrifice is the only one we need to “bring”.
And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s house, let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water. [Hebrews 10:19-22]

Solomon worked hard to build this beautiful symbol; but his temple, though it served a purpose for the time, is no longer necessary.
Our hearts are the temple of God, and the challenge now is to keep it beautiful for Him.

PRAYER:

Lord, forgive me for allowing Your temple in my heart to neglected. May my heart be a most holy place for You.