He indeed is good for His lovingkindness is everlasting (2 Chronicles 5:13).

There is a whole psalm devoted to this refrain. Here's just a portion of that psalm:

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
Give thanks to the God of gods,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
For His lovingkindness is everlasting (Psalm 136:1-3).

The entire psalm (26 verses) follows this pattern. 

The word translated "lovingkindness" is the significant Hebrew word hesed, which signifies God's faithfulness to keep His covenant promises. It has more to do with God's unswerving fidelity to His covenant than it does with any kind of affection He has for the people of Israel. In other words, this hesed does not apply to those outside the covenant. This "lovingkindness" is only for the covenant people of God. 

God's lovingkindness, His hesed, is declared to be "everlasting". Another version translates it as "endures forever". The sense of it is not simply a faithfulness that will last a really long time. It also carries the sense of enduring through any and every upheaval or adverse circumstance that might try to derail it. In other words, God's faithfulness to His covenant is entirely trustworthy. It is not hampered by human depravity or frailty, therefore, it is utterly dependable. 

In contrast to our utterly dependable God, I am reminded this morning of my own frailty, depravity, ignorance, and limitations. Who am I to claim any kind of wisdom, understanding, discernment, or insight over any other believer? I know that in myself, I am nothing, just food for worms. Whatever dignity I possess is foreign to me. My only boast is in God's mysterious choice of this servant for salvation, which He has revealed to me through His inviolable and holy Word. 

Yet, it is on this basis that I boldly stand against unbiblical teaching. On this basis I resist the influence of culture to skew godly priorities. On this basis I try patiently to serve and lead those God places in my care. 

I remember reading a book by Roland H. Bainton entitled Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther. Luther found himself standing against the prevailing political and religious establishment of his time. He was likely even estranged from friends and family. Yet, he took his stand on the Word of God and would not be moved. He is one of my heros for this. Here's an interesting article about Luther's famous declaration "Here I stand" ("What Luther Said").

Today, I see some prevailing winds that are not simply anti-Christian but also sub-biblical. Outside Christendom there are strong political, legal, academic and cultural forces that are trying to force Christians to embrace evils such as abortion, homosexuality and sexual promiscuity. Within Christendom there are strong ecclesiastical forces that elevate tradition, experience, tolerance and cooperation over biblical truth. In order to still claim to be "biblical," these people are allegorizing biblical truths and redefining biblical terms to fit their experience and new theology. 

Friends, the very covenant promises that we hold dear are grounded in the inspired and inerrant Word of God. If we compromise Scripture, these promises will also be compromised. And if God's promises are no longer sure, wherein can we hope? 

Therefore, let us lay aside our petty domestic squabbles and fight the real fight of faith. What is money, house, or cars? These are all passing away. What is training, testings and programs? These too will pass away. What are soccer lessons for kids, violin practice and superior academics? These will be done and gone soon enough. When will we see what matters and stop allowing ourselves to be so affected by these wordly concerns?! 

Instead, let us daily submit to God's holy Word. Let us focus our thoughts, our energy, and all our resources on putting God's priorities into practice. We were designed to bring Him glory! Let us carefully learn what He has written down for us to do in His Word. Then, let us begin to whittle away everything in our lives that pose a destraction or temptation to keep us from trusting, obeying, and delighting in Him above all else.

153600 men were conscripted to build the Temple of the Lord in Jerusalem.  Astronomical number of gold, bronze, silver, and wood were used as well for that purpose.  After the Temple was built and many sheep and cattle were sacrificed to the Lord, the glory of the Lord filled the Temple.  New Testament says that our body is the temple where God's Holy Spirit dwells. Then what did we do to make our body the temple of the Lord?  Nothing!  We did absolutely nothing for it!  It was free because Jesus paid on our behalf more than what it took for king Solomon to build the temple which ended up being completely destroyed later.  There's no room for our pride for who we are now.  God has chosen us, and we simply accepted it!

“He is good; his love endures forever.”

But who can really build him a worthy home? Not even the highest heavens can contain him! So who am I to consider building a Temple for him, except as a place to burn sacrifices to him? (2 Chronicles 2:6 NLT)

Solomon recognized that the Temple had no spiritual significance in itself because God was so much greater than the Temple. The Temple only served a function, "as a place to burn sacrifices to him [the LORD]." God could make the Temple significant or not as He pleased. Later, when Ezekiel described the desecration of the Temple through idolatry and God's glory departing from it, the Temple then became meaningless.

In the same way, the church too has no spiritual significance in itself because God is so much greater than the church. It is merely an assembly of believers, who gather to worship the Lord together. However, if the church loses sight of God's Word, the call to holiness, and the mission to make disciples, then it too becomes meaningless. 

Friends, I wish all of us would stop thinking about "going to church" but rather "being the church," for the Bible clearly says that we ourselves both individually and corporately are God's Temple and God's Spirit dwells in us (1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 3:16-17). Therefore, rather than seeing the priority of knowing God's Word as the responsibility of pastors in Sunday Sermons or Wednesday Bible Studies, we should see this as our personal responsibility. Rather than seeing holiness as something to simply give a nod to on Sundays and church events, we should be striving to clear out every action, word and deed in our lives, families and businesses that do not bring honor and glory to Christ. Rather than seeing the mandate to make disciples as just the role of missionaries and "professional" ministers, we should recognize that this is the responsibility of every Christian, both to baptize and teach new believers.

When we have a congregation of over three hundred believers in our local church and celebrate only a handful of conversions each year, it may be evidence that we have a seriously sickly church. We may comfort ourselves in thinking that we are a "giving" church, but the mandate is not to give but to go, it is not about tithes but making disciples. We give minor attention to what God says is of chief importance and major attention to things God does not even address at all. In the New Testament, there is no command for weekly Sunday service, or tithing, or special events, or even fund-raisers (except for the poor) and revivals. But there is a command to diligently study the Word. There is a command to pray diligently. There is a command to go and make disciples. There is a command to holy living and for members to both encourage and admonish each other in this. There is a command to visit the sick, prisoners, and foreigners. And these things we are to do not just weekly but daily as a normative part of our Christian lives; however, it appears that we are still not persuaded to trust and obey God. The very fact that we have so many people willing to pay hundreds of dollars to go for weeks to a revival event every year indicates that we must still be a sickly church. Why do you continually need revival? Unless you are dead. Or unless you are revived only for a moment and then need to be revived again. Doesn't this mean that you are sickly? My dear friends, since you are sensible people, consider what I'm saying and judge rightly. 

The splendor of the temple is recorded in detail here in today's reading. Countless amount of gold, silver, bronze and gem stones were used to decorate the temple to represent His holiness. After all was done and completed, God's glorious cloud filled the temple when the whole congregation of Israel was brought together to celebrate its dedication service. I think about what it means when the apostle paul said in 1 Corinthian 3:16, "Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?" What their hands made for the Glory of God was utterly destroyed when Nebchadnezzar invaded and again by Romans whereas what the Lord Jesus built in three days is now indestructible. Its beauty cannot be compared with anything in this world because God himself resides in it which is our body. The Israelites consecrated the temple, its furnishings, articles, themselves before the Lord Almighty with thousands of sacrificial lambs and bulls, which were only temporary. Jesus, our good Shepherd, died and has risen once and for all! Let us praise Him because "He is good and His love endures forever."

The details about the temple demonstrates the care Israel gave to acts of worship.  The temple kept the people focused on God then maybe they wouldn't be so quick to turn to other God's.  Being committed to our own church and Bible Studies help us stay focused on God.  Like the Israelites it is easy to get caught up in other things  like jobs, problems, etc., and get away from church attendance, Bible Study and prayer.  That is what has happened to me lately.  This reading really woke me up!