    The glory of the Lord filled Solomon’s completed temple when the Ark of the Covenant was brought into it. In that way, God proved to His people that He as very real and very present in the temple. That presence is the precursor to God’s promise to be with us always, even in our modern time.
    We marvel at such a story, but how is it really that different that God’s promise to inhabit us with His spirit through baptism or fill us with His grace through communion. Certainly, there is no smoke and fire, but His presence is just as real, a presence we come to know through faith.
    The lesson here is that God is with us. He was with the Israelites then, and He continues to be among us now, and by His presence we receive the assurance of our place as children in His kingdom. That fact is one of the great blessings of faith, and an assurance we can cling to.
DLH
