1 Chronicles 22:1

1 Chronicles 22:1 says, Then David said, This is the house of the Lord God, and this is the altar of the burnt offering for Israel.  David declared the threshing floor that had been owned by a Jebusite as the place the temple would be built.  Matthew Henry says this was an presage to the gospel going into all the world and not just to the people of Israel.  This was also the spot that God had chosen, and if we are to build church buildings today, they must be built where God chooses for them to be built.  The temple was to be built to support the altar that was already there.  Israel had altars, places to sacrifice to and worship God, long before having a temple.  If we are building churches without God's guidance, then we are not going to be successful spiritually, no matter how large the church may grow.  Verse two adds, And David commanded to gather together the strangers that were in the land of Israel; and he set masons to hew wrought stones to build the house of God.  David ordered the strangers in Israel to be gathered and set masons to hew the stones for the temple.  David had wanted to build God a house, but he had been told by God that he couldn't.  Instead of getting upset, he started gathering the things that would be needed to build the temple, because God had said that it would be built.  If God tells us we are not going to be allowed to do something that needs to be done for His kingdom and tells us that it is going to be done one day, we can never just quit working toward making things ready.  Matthew Henry said that David was old by this time and knew that his successor, who was Solomon, would be young when he started to rule and gathering things for the temple might not be his priority, so David was making things easier for him.  As we get older as followers of Christ, we don't need to just quit serving, but need to do everything we can to make the spreading of the gospel and the worship of God as easy as possible for the next generation, who may not have our wisdom to begin with.  Verse three continues, And David prepared iron in abundance for the nails for the doors of the gates, and for the joinings; and brass in abundance without weight;  David had gathered the stones and stone masons, and now he gathered other things necessary for building and making the temple ornate.  Verse four says, Also cedar trees in abundance: for the Zidonians and they of Tyre brought much cedar wood to David.  David also amassed the cedars from Lebanon that would be used in building the temple.  We may concentrate on making a beautiful house of worship, but if we are going to do so, we need all those things that may not be considered beautiful to support the building.  We may admire the facade, but we should also be thankful for all unseen things that hold the building together.  We cannot put all our resources into supporting the facade and ignore the foundation and supporting structure, and everything we do should be to glorify God and not just to show off our greatness as a congregation.  Verse five adds, And David said, Solomon my son is young and tender, and the house that is to be builded for the Lord must be exceeding magnifical, of fame and of glory throughout all countries: I will therefore now make preparation for it. So David prepared abundantly before his death.  As stated earlier, David knew that Solomon, his successor was young and might not be up to the task of gathering everything needed to build the temple, which David said must be exceedingly magnificent, so he prepared abundantly for building it before he died.  As Christians, our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit, and Jesus Christ is the foundation and will supply us with all we need to serve and glorify Him.