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The Temple of God and the Materials Used – 3
If you have missed the first two reviews on The Temple Of God and The Materials Used, click on the links below to catch up:
The Temple Of God & The Materials Used 1
The Temple Of God & The Materials Used 2
We continue with our exhortation below.
Exodus 25:1-9
……Many a time, we bring physical things to the Lord, and we do not realize that if they are accepted of God, they will become divine. The children of Israel were asked of the Lord to bring “Onyx stones and stones to be set in the ephod, and in the breastplate’’.
They would have had to mine these stones, expended energy and effort and amazingly, once these stones were brought to the Lord, they became divine. They became stones by which truth was confirmed. They later constituted the “Urim & Thumim’ such that any “THUS SAITH THE LORD” needed to achieve a total lighting of all 12 stones, before it is accepted as truly from the Lord. These 12 stones symbolize the 12 tribes of Israel.
Isn’t it equally amazing today as well, that whatever we offer to the Lord and is accepted of him, becomes a divine thing? And whatever we offer or render that does not further the gospel of Christ on earth, in one way or the other, may well be a waste? This is because the one thing that remains forever is the word of God (Isaiah 40:8). The word of God is what makes anything divine.
The onyx stones and other stones and all the various materials they brought to build the magnificent sanctuary, was made divine only because of one thing – The Ark of Testimony! The Ark made the materials divine and once the ark is taken out of the whole mix, whatever materials, regardless of the costs, becomes nothing but just carnal materials. In the same vein, when the word of God is out of a church, when the Truth is out, what’s left is sports. When the word of God also leaves the heart of a man, he is no longer the tabernacle of God.
The utmost ridicule of the Jewish people was the seizing of the Ark of testimony by the Philistines. The utmost ridicule of a church is when the word of God no longer dwells there. Not the educational or financial status of the Pastor , nor the beauty of the building, but the presence of the Word of the Lord, which is today our ark of testimony. 1 Kings 8:9
There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.
The Ark itself was a wooden work done by just about any carpenter. But what made it such a uniquely divine entity were the two stones in it. The two Stones Moses received of the Lord. You may observe all forms of religious rites, what makes you holy or uniquely divine is the word of the Lord that dwells in your heart.
1 Kings 8:11
So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD. The glory of a church is the Word of God.
If truly we are the temple of God, then the glory of God should fill our lives.
What is the glory of God? The glory of God is the word of God. The glory of God in a family is the word of God in that family that brings joy. The word of the Lord should so dwell in our heart that it becomes the words that we speak. It forms the thoughts that we think… the praise that we sing. It becomes everything!
The Temple of God and the Materials Used – 2
Blessed be the God of all the earth who promised to feed us with meat in due season, despite the spiritual famine that will plague the world. (Amos 8:11).
In the last episode, we embarked on a topic: The Temple of God and the Materials Used We had looked at the various components of this Temple and their individual spiritual significance to the 21st century Christian.
This week, we opened discussions around the “Materials” Christ, the Son of David, is using to build his Spiritual Temple today.
Exodus 25:1-8 NIV
The Lord said to Moses,2 “Tell the Israelites to bring me an offering. You are to receive the offering for me from everyone whose heart prompts them to give.3 These are the offerings you are to receive from them: gold, silver and bronze;4 blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen; goat hair;5 ram skins dyed red and another type of durable leather[a]; acacia wood;6 olive oil for the light; spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense;7 and onyx stones and other gems to be mounted on the ephod and breast piece.8 “Then have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them.
Clearly, God has been in the habit of demanding from his Children from time immemorial. This is not because He lacks the power to speak what He needs into existence, but He wishes to bless the ones who brings to Him.
Painfully, even though God gave us all the physical things He sometimes demands of us, we often find it difficult to give them up to Him, when He demands them – An obvious result of lack of Faith in God.
To refresh our minds, we highlighted how the thought of glorifying God by building Him a temple never crossed Saul’s mind. He rather sought popularity (2 Samuel 7:1). And a heaven-conscious man should never seek to be popular. God may Himself popularize you as He did David, but do not seek it for yourself.
THE MATERIALS
The very materials God employs to build the universal Temple of Christ, which is the entire Body of Christ, is the same materials He is building individuals with.
2 Peter 1:5-7
The very foundation of the Temple is Faith.
Amazingly, the base as represented on the Pyramid, is the widest portion. This base represents the inauguration of the church on the Day of Pentecost, when from just one sermon of faith, 3,000 souls were added to the church. At this time, the door of salvation was wide enough and the fear of God still governed the hearts of men.
Towards the end of the Pyramid however, we see that it narrows out, and that speaks to our Age today. Remember, God builds the church with each of these materials in each age, including the age we live today (More on this in later episodes). The narrow end of the Pyramid shows the door is almost closed. Consequently, people no longer hunger or thirst for the Truth!
A good illustration; during the late 70’s in Nigeria, if one stood by the road singing and clapping to invite people to come hear the Truth, gradually, people would gather to actually listen. Today however, you are tagged an extremist if you try to do that and you will well be ignored. This just reflects how much the fear of God is gone out from the land. It shows we are at the narrow end of the Pyramid; the peak is not as wide as the base anymore.
How does this Affect Me as An Individual?
For a moment, lets crystallize this to the individual Christian.
2 Peter 1 :5
And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; 6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; 7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
Can you sincerely do a critical self-appraisal?
Friends, if you are where you were 5 years ago in your spiritual growth, it may be that you are not being built as a Temple unto the Lord. A stark hallmark of one who’s been built is: The Lord will add to you from time to time. And shockingly, if one is not being built, could this signify that one is not a temple of God? And if one is not a Temple of God, truth unfeigned is, one may well be the Temple of the Devil.
Presumably, you have believed that there is only One God, you have baptized in the acceptable name of Jesus Christ and many more faith based truth you have duly observed…
All these are FAITH…. And forms the foundation of the building. You then need to add one virtue per time as God continues to form you into His dwelling place.
James 2:18 – 26 “Your Faith is dead without Works.”
The Temple of God and the Materials Used – 1
Background
This week, we began the first part of a series titled; The Temple of God and The Materials Used. The supporting Bible verses were:
1 Peter 2:3-10
2 Chronicles 3:1-2
In the old testament, David initiated the process of building God’s house. Little wonder God referred to him as; “a man after my own heart”, despite his many errors. David’s errors were quite troubling that if one would judge as a man, they were more significant than those of rejected Saul. But, doesn’t the Bible say, “by God all actions are weighed?” (1 Samuel 2:3). While men may look only at the action, God definitely considers the motive behind an action before the action itself. Based on this, David’s heart was found True and Sincere. Speaking of Saul, God tested him three times before rejecting him and be sure of this that God will test everyone. You should wonder how many times God may have tested you and whether you passed or failed the test.
True to God’s witness of him, David one day thought; “How could I live in a ‘cedar edifice’ when God’s house is Tent”?
Take a pause to compare your way of thinking with David’s, a man who never placed his comfort ahead of pleasing God.
God however did not approve of him to build the house, he gave the honour to his son – Solomon
The Two Buildings – Old & New Testament, How Do They Compare?
David, before his death, prepared all the materials needed to build the house. The materials used, we see, are clearly of the best standard, so that it was said to be a “great house in all the earth”. Consider the quality of materials used that God deemed them good enough to descend mightily on the day of its consecration. The physical materials used in the building of this temple were only a symbol, and they set a pattern for the Spiritual Temple God would later build in this end of time.
A quick look at the allegory:
1. The natural son of David, Solomon, built the physical Temple. Today, the spiritual Son of David – Jesus Christ- is building the Temple of God. Every member of the body of Christ, not Church members, but those who are born into the body by the Holy Spirit are individually a part of this temple of God. 1 Corinthians 3:16 (KJV): “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?”
2. Notice also that the stones used in building the temple were “Pre-cast” and each stone fitted into its place based on its intended use. They were not cast at the site of construction, so all that was done was arrange them based on fitting. (1 Kings 6:7). Doesn’t this speak to “predestination’’? How God before time had designed each of his children, to fit in their place before the foundation of the world. “In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto a holy temple in the Lord…’’ (Ephesians 2:21)
3. One other feature of the Old Testament Temple is the Altar. A place of pure Holiness, where only the Priests who had been cleansed and sanctified held exclusive entry rights. Today, this symbolizes our heart! If we truly are converted in accordance with Acts 2:38, our heart becomes the Altar of the Lord that should always be clean & ready for service. Are we not called to be a Priest unto the Lord? “…holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.’’ (1 Peter 2:5b) Also, instead of the “Dead stones’’ used in the Physical Temple of Solomon, Jesus uses “Lively Stones” today in building His Temple. “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, and holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.’’ (1 Peter 2:5).
4. There is a divine order to keep our altar as ’clean and ready for service’ as possible so that our Priestly duties can be performed on it anytime. You should not defile it with evil thoughts or any fleshly works. ‘‘What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore, glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.’’ (1 Corinthians 6:19). We have this daily mandate of the Chief Corner Stone, the builder himself- Christ, to keep the Temple clean. Remember that the altar sanctifies the temple. Our heart defiles or sanctifies our Temple as well. (Matt. 15:19).
5. The Day of Dedication of the Old testament temple is also an allegory of the Day a Christian is baptized, if he truly gives his heart in surrender on this day and not just observes a rite and if he is baptized unto Jesus Christ, who is the New Master Temple. The temple of Solomon as said earlier was the greatest house on earth at the time; similarly, every Christian who harbors the Holy Spirit, is God’s palace, regardless of their elitist, financial or educational status.
What Makes The Foundation of The Temple?
“…and are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;’’ (Ephesians 2:21).
The foundation here speaks to the “doctrines’’. The Apostolic Doctrine is the foundation upon which the Temple of God is built today. Anyone who is not built upon these foundational doctrines should not consider themselves a part of God’s building. “For there is no other foundation that can be laid save that that is laid’’ (1Corinthians 3:11)
The Baptism in mere titles of Father, Son and Holy Ghost, for example, is “another foundation’’. People today, read Matt 28:19 and Acts 2:38 and are confounded. They are not revelated enough to reconcile both. They stumble on that stone placed in Zion. Friends, there are many “other” foundations that do not constitute the Apostolic foundation which will be examined in the course of this expose. To benefit, you must first drop your Theology and open your heart to revelation.
1 Peter 2:6-8
“To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.7 Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner,8 And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.’’
Finally, God deems you a precious stone, even more precious than the fine Gold employed in the building of Solomon’s Temple, if you are built upon the foundation of the Apostles and your heart is indeed an Altar for ready sacrifice.
In subsequent episodes, we will delve more deeply into the various materials Jesus uses today in building His temple. This will help you know if truly you are God’s Building or you only claim to be.
God Bless!
For questions and more insights on this topic, please drop a comment.
Humility: Practice or Grace?
A question please ….
Humility… is it practice or grace? Do we need to constantly practice it or God will release grace for it….? I think both assumptions are true. But I can tell you biblically that they don’t happen at the same time. One happens before the other follows in order.
Brethren, the more stripped of pride we are, it is to this degree that God’s grace can be released upon us for “greater works”. I had a conversation recently that placed this on my heart and thought to share.
Prior to your fleshly transformation by the seven thunders, you may never walk to a level where you have no speck of pride in you. You will have to constantly subdue your flesh to the Lord to keep you humble. What we fail to realize is, the Christian walk is not an easy walk. If you seek ease, please go and take another walk, you won’t find ease for the flesh in your Christian walk. Trust me!
There are opportunities for humility or Tests for humility that God throws at us sometimes: One of such is:
Public Rebuke or even Ridicule: How do you respond to a public rebuke that we sometimes tag as ridicule? I have an example to show you. The man whom the Bible called the spiritual father of our Saviour- David, was once ridiculed by a lame man during one of his many trials. The man was practically casting stones at David and cursing him. Read 2 Samuel 16:5-13. David did not display carnality as one of his guards who wanted to take off the head of this man. But he thought as a Godly person should; “Could God have instructed this guy to talk to me in this manner to either test my humility or even achieve more humility in me?” Friends this is how to think as someone with the Holy Spirit. You can measure your spiritual level through how you respond to certain situations.
I was brought up amidst many public rebuke, so I may be accustomed to it already. My father is one that mete many such public rebuke to us so it may not mean ridicule for me. It’s easier today for me to take such as an avenue for humility and not public ridicule as some may assume it .
To conclude, remember the bible never says “I will humble you” rather he says “Humble Yourself’’ Its self-actualized through deliberate efforts. Also, he never said “I will give you grace to be humble ‘’ No! rather he says “He gives more grace to the humble….” So, it’s you who will subdue your flesh first before God will release more grace of ease on you. Don’t be deceived.
Brethren we should seek daily opportunities to kill the flesh. This is what I tell my wife too. If it’s sauce for the goose, I believe it is sauce for the gander.
God bless you.