“I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit” (Isa 57:15).
At the heart of Solomon’s prayer were two main ideas: the imminence and preeminence of God. These are expressed in the two “locations,” so to speak, of God: “may You hear the supplications of Your servant and of Your people Israel, when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven Your dwelling place, and when You hear, forgive” (2 Chron 6:21). Of course God is in heaven, over all, blessed forever. Yet it was also true that He had taken up residence in the temple, and so could be considered near. No matter how far people wandered, if only they would pray “toward this place,” the Lord would hear and forgive. Those who have traveled to Israel may have seen a minyan of Jewish men praying at the front of the plane en route to Israel, but at the rear of the plane on the way back. Why? They’re getting as close as they can to THAT PLACE. Isn’t this the force of the story Jesus told about two sons? One had wandered far from his father’s God. But in the far country, after wasted living, his heart, like a compass needle, turned toward the father’s house. His sin was both against heaven and in the father’s sight (Lk 15:21). And although the other brother was closer in geography,“he was angry and would not go in” (v 28). This is the greatest distance in the universe—between an unrepentant heart and a holy God. But what happened? In real life, the Father sent His Son out from heaven to seek us where we were, and provide at Calvary the way back home, giving certain promise of an eternal abiding place in the Father’s house. To all prodigal hearts we may say, “God intended that they would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us” (Acts 17:27, BSB).