HIDDEN GLORY

"Thy wife shall be fruitful as a vine, in the heart of thy home, the children round thy table sturdy as olive-branches"
Psalm 128:3 KNOX

In 1 Kings 16 it tells us about how Solomon built the temple for God. In verse 16 it says, "And he built 20 cubits on the sides of the house . . . for the most holy place." What does this mean? Was he adding an extra little room on the side of the house? Oh no. This was the most important part of the whole temple. This was The Holy of Holies, also called The Most Holy Place, The Inner Sanctuary, or The Most Set-Apart Place.

Where was He going to build this shrine for the presence of God to dwell? Let's read it in some other translations to help us understand.

"He partitioned off an inner sanctuary--The Most Holy Place--at the far end of the Temple" (NLT).

"He built the interior as an inner sanctuary, the most holy place" (HCSB).

The phrase "on the sides" is the Hebrew word, yrekah and literally means "the rear, the recesses, the most inner part." The dwelling place for God was not to be out in the open for everyone to behold. It was in the hidden part.

What a glorious place Solomon made for God. This inner sanctuary was a cube, 30 feet high, wide and long. And everything was pure gold--walls, floor, ceiling, the ark of the covenant, and even gold chains hanging in the entrance. And the cherubim over the ark were also covered in pure gold. They were amazing--15 feet tall and their wings stretched 15 feet to one wall and 15 feet to the other. Everywhere you looked it was gold. Absolutely dazzling! And if that wasn't enough, the glory of God dwelt in this place.

However, now we come to an amazing revelation. The phrase "the sides of the house" is used in another Scripture that relates to you as a wife and mother. Psalm 128:3 says, "They wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table." How remarkable that the Bible uses the same word for God's holy inner sanctuary as He does for the inner sanctuary of our home. Let's look at some other translations:

"Your wife will be as a fruitful vine, in the innermost parts of your house" (NASB).

"Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the very heart of your house" (NKJV).

Are we delegated to the innermost part of the home because our role is insignificant? Oh no. It is the opposite. The inner sanctuary was for the glory of God, not on the periphery. The inner sanctuary of our home is also our glory. It is our sphere of fruitfulness. It is where we yield our greatest power. It is where we fulfill our highest destiny of raising godly children for His glory.

When we forsake the heart of our home, we say goodbye to fruitfulness. Most mothers who choose a career will end up limiting their family. We leave behind our glory. In Hosea 9:11 God calls conception, pregnancy, and birth the "glory" of the nation. We give our authority of motherhood over to the devil whose plan is to get mothers out of the home so he can influence their children in his ways.

We see the same understanding when a baby is conceived. Jesus, the Son of the God of Glory was conceived in the hidden place of the womb. This divine miracle happened in "the secret place" which is the term God uses for the womb (Psalm 139:15). The angel Gabriel told her that the Holy Ghost would come upon her and "thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS" (Luke 1:31). Although this conception was hidden, Jesus came forth to be revealed to the world as Savior and Deliverer. Read also Matthew 1:20 and Luke 2:21.

It is similar with every conception. It doesn't take place in the open for everyone to see. God's handiwork (for only God gives conception). It takes place in the recesses of the home and in the womb, the hidden part of the woman. But, this miracle doesn't stay hidden. Children, born in the image of God, will one day come forth from the home to be bearer of God's image in the earth, influence many people, and generations to come.                   

From the recesses comes forth great miracles and "sharpened and polished arrows" to change the world.

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

www.aboverubies.or

PRAYER:

"I thank you for showing me, Father, that the heart of my home is the place of my glory. Help me to glory in it. Help me to make it a glorious place. And please help me to bring your glory into the nation as I raise sons and daughters for you. Amen."

AFFIRMATION:

The heart of the home is my sphere of fruitfulness, glory, and power.