Home Depot's ad line addressed to people like me who aspire to do our own home repairs says, "You can do it, we can help!" It's a great line, but I am not sure how accurate it really is. That guy who works in the plumbing department isn't going to come and help me install a new faucet in my bathroom. He doesn't really even have the time to discuss the process with me while we stand in the store. There is another building project in my life that requires even more of me than maintaining my home. I am building a temple of the Lord, a place for the display of His Glory before the world. No, I am not presently engaged in building a new church! It is my life of which I speak. In the Scripture God says, "For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. . . . Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple." (1 Corinthians 3:11-14, 16-17, NIV) Awesome, isn't it? Our lives are God's home. He thoroughly inspects and expects quality. He desires that my life be one that is built using qualities like love, forgiveness, generosity, faith, and humility. We do not come by those naturally or easily, do we?
A Believer who was hurt and angry at his family talked with me. His words were bitter, venomous really. After allowing him to vent for a while, I gently asked, "Wouldn't the Lord want you to forgive them?" Before I could go any further, he cut me off. "That's not going to happen. They don't deserve my forgiveness." As they came out of his mouth, he saw the content of his own heart and went on to say, "Pastor, you don't understand. It's just too hard to do what God wants in this situation." I can identify with his dilemma and I am sure that in one way or another, you can, too. What God wants us to do sometimes is really hard! But He does not require the impossible of us, for He says that we can do it and He will help!
Matthew records an address in which Jesus outlines the kind of life that His followers will lead. We call it the Sermon on the Mount. Many read chapters 5, 6, and 7 and conclude that He must be talking about another time after Jesus returns to earth to reveal His kingdom. Others conclude that He is speaking of an unattainable life, an ideal unreachable this side of heaven. In fact, He is describing the life of disciple - right here, right now, where God's Presence is on display. He says things like this: "But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!" (Matthew 5:20, NLT) The Pharisees were scrupulous about observing God's law, and yet Jesus says that His followers must be even better. He goes on to say that while the law holds a person accountable for murder, He will hold us accountable for having contempt for another person! The law forbids adultery, but He forbids lustful fantasy! The law requires reciprocity, 'an eye for an eye,' but He desires that if "somebody asks for your coat, take off your shirt and give it to him as well!" These are the qualities of the person who aspires to building a temple where the Spirit of God is made visible in the world.
If it sounds hard, it should. Jesus urges those who want to follow Him to add up the cost, to understand before they begin that following Him is an all or nothing proposition. (Luke 14.28) But, we do not do it by sheer determination, with gritted teeth, or with behavior modification techniques. We are building the temple, first by allowing the Lord to lay a solid foundation for us in Christ. He restores our relationship with God, giving us the gift of grace and a restored relationship to God, our Father. Then, He promises that the Holy Spirit will 'not just be with you, but He will be IN you." He is our immediate Source of wisdom and strength.
So, Believer, set your sights on being a temple worthy of God, full of His beauty, living in a way that makes His glory known in the world. Remember - You can do it; He will help!
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Starting this Sunday, I will be exploring Christian discipleship as Jesus taught about it in the Sermon on the Mount.
I invite you to gather with the Body at 9 AM for Bible Training Classes in small groups, followed by Worship at 10:15.
Messages can also be accessed at the Assembly's website - http://www.washingtonag.com/ at the Sermon Library link.
Generally text and audio are posted by Weds. each week.
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