Tag Church

Time to Build the Church

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What’s more important, your house or God’s?

Haggai was a prophet during the time shortly after the end of the Babylonian exile.  His main focus was encouraging the people to complete the rebuilding of the Temple, which had been destroyed at the beginning of the exile, in 586 B.C.  After returning to Israel, the people had become lazy and complacent about God’s house, the Temple, saying “the time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the LORD,”[1] and made excuses not to rebuild it.  But Haggai challenged them, in true prophetic fashion, asking “Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins?”[2]  The problem was that the people took great care of their own houses with fancy paneling, yet weren’t concerned that the Temple was still a ruin.  “The time has not yet come,” they said.

Photo by Levi Meir Clancy on Unsplash

Haggai told the people: “Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I may be glorified, says the LORD.”[3]  This would involve a lot of hard work, God knows what it takes to build His Temple, and He also knows that it needs to be done and should be a priority.

Today, the equivalent of the Temple is the body of believers known as the church.  1 Peter 2:5 says, “you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”  God’s goal for the church is to perfect it in Jesus’ likeness, therefore no matter what condition the church is in here, it always needs to be built up.  We may be tempted to say “the time has not yet come” because we won’t be perfected until eternity, but He says ““Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I may be glorified, says the LORD.”

Building the church (God’s house) may feel as difficult as climbing hills, gathering and transporting wood from forests to build a literal, physical Temple.  It’s not easy and we shouldn’t expect it to be.  But God will build His church and He wants our help.

When writing of our diverse spiritual gifts, Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 14:12 – “So with yourselves, since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to excel in building up the church.” Has the time come to build His church?  Yes, it has.

“Strive to excel.”

[1] Haggai 1:2
[2] Haggai 1:4
[3] Haggai 1:8

Strengthen What Remains

Todd R 2 Comments

Does your church seem alive and vigorous in its faith?  Be thankful if it does because there are many churches that are struggling.  There are many churches that appear to be faithful, but their faith might only be skin-deep.

In Revelation chapters 2 and 3, John is given messages from Jesus to bring to seven churches in different cities: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.  One of these – Sardis – fit the description above of a church where faith was only an appearance.  Jesus’ words to Sardis begins in Revelation 3:1-2:

“And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.  ‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God.”

The church in Sardis looked good – it had “the reputation of being alive,” but in the sight of God who sees the internal and true reality, the church was “dead.”  Many churches today are like Sardis: they appear Christian but haven’t really embraced Christ.

However, there is still hope, because in verse 2 it says the work is not complete, and verse 4 says there remain some truly faithful in Sardis: “Yet you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy.”  Many people are in situations like this today: spiritually alive but in “dead” churches.

What message is given to those faithful few?  “Wake up, and strengthen what remains.” 

There are two parts to this instruction, the first being don’t give up.  Stay alert!  Some might be tempted to give up; to either to stop trying, or to leave and find another church.  Finding another church might be a good option in some cases, but for those who choose to stay, giving up on the church is not an option according to this message.  “Wake up.”

The second part is to “strengthen what remains.”  There is work to be done in any church, even where little genuine faith remains.  Hebrews 10:24-25 advises us: “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”

Therefore, if you feel your church is dead, remain faithful and “strengthen what remains.”  Don’t give up but encourage others to “love and good works.”  By word and by example.  But if your church is spiritually alive, also remain faithful and strengthen what you have.

“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” – Revelation 3:6

The Apostle Peter, Son of Gomer?

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Peter is one of the most fascinating characters in the New Testament.  His struggles and flaws are written for all to see, but so is the patience and love Jesus had for him.  In Peter’s two letters, we get to see examples of his growth and maturity.  One of Peter’s struggles was how Jews who had become Christian should treat Gentiles.  In Galatians 2:11-21 is a story of Paul rebuking Peter for his hypocrisy toward Gentiles, and in Acts 10 and 11 is a story of Peter receiving a vision from heaven telling him not to treat Gentiles as unclean, because God can make anyone clean.

Peter ponders whether the key is for letting people in or keeping them out.

In 1 Peter 2:9-10, he shares this lesson with his readers:

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” (emphasis mine)

The bolded words clearly call back to the story of the Old Testament prophet Hosea, who God told to marry a prostitute named Gomer to teach a lesson about idolatry.  Hosea’s children by Gomer are named in Hosea 1:6-9 –

“She conceived again and bore a daughter. And the LORD said to him, ‘Call her name No Mercy, for I will no more have mercy on the house of Israel, to forgive them at all.  But I will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the LORD their God. I will not save them by bow or by sword or by war or by horses or by horsemen.’ When she had weaned No Mercy, she conceived and bore a son.  And the LORD said, ‘Call his name Not My People, for you are not my people, and I am not your God.’” (emphasis mine)

As Peter grew in Christ, he learned the same lesson Hosea learned: that all of God’s people are like Gomer and her children: once estranged from God in spiritual prostitution and adultery, but now a beloved people, betrothed to one faithful God.  Jesus, our Holy High Priest, made the necessary sacrifice for the salvation of anyone and everyone who will come to Him.  Those He saves join His “royal priesthood”, proclaiming His excellent work to all people who have not received mercy, but who His blood covers.

“Judge not, that you be not judged.  For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.” – Matthew 7:1-2

Let God Speak to Your Inner Wilderness

Todd R 2 Comments

John the Baptist announced the coming of Jesus, baptized Him, and led the way for His ministry to begin.  This John was identified with “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight’”[1] prophesied in Isaiah 40:3-5, which says:

“A voice cries: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD;
            make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
Every valley shall be lifted up,
            and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level,
            and the rough places a plain.
And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
            and all flesh shall see it together,
            for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.’”

Is Isaiah talking about a massive, miraculous geological event, creating an easier route for Jesus to take to His kingdom?  Perhaps in the future something like this will happen, but I think Isaiah is saying that God’s power over nature is a symbol of His power to reform and perfect us into the character of His Son Jesus.

Before Jesus comes into our lives, we are a spiritual wilderness full of uneven ground and rough places.  The path of our salvation begins in this wilderness, an unorganized chaos of thoughts and desires.  We are like “children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.”  However, the power of the LORD enters our low valleys – our guilty secrets, shame and depression – which will be raised up.  It progresses through our mountains and hills – areas of pride, self-sufficiency, and our desire for power – which will be made low.  God, with the same power that created the universe, removes all obstacles to the coming of His kingdom to us, and to the world.  He has given us His word, His Spirit, and fellow believers to strengthen us, “until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.”  (Ephesians 4:13-14)

John the Baptist called his followers to confession and repentance.  In announcing the coming of the kingdom of God, John anticipated a time when our internal and external wildernesses will become a paradise.  Until then, we each have different hills and valleys, different uneven and rough areas.  Until then, the world remains full of false doctrine, cunning, craftiness and deceit.

Today, pray that the powerful voice of our LORD will reach into your wilderness and remove obstacles on the path to His kingdom.  Pray that His word and His Spirit will reveal His glory.  Pray that all believers will answer the call of “the voice of one crying in the wilderness” to build up His church.

Amen.

[1] Isaiah 40:3, quoted in Matthew 4:3.

Eavesdropping for Kindness and Encouragement

Todd R 1 Comment

One of my favorite quotes on kindness is pretty simple: “Be kind.  You never know what someone’s going through.”  In their 1984 book Encouragement: The Key to Caring, Dr. Larry Crabb and Dr. Dan Allender write about how much of our interaction with others happens between layers we put on to hide our true selves, rather than between the deepest parts of our selves.  We intentionally don’t let others know what we’re going through.  Although the above quote probably wasn’t common when the book was written in 1984, the authors definitely had the idea in mind when they wrote about how we might imagine eavesdropping on the thoughts of others as we arrive at church on Sunday morning.  Such imagining might help us realize how much people encouragement and kindness everyone really needs.  They wrote that we might hear thoughts like these:

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

“Oh, no! There’s Fred pulling up in his car. If he sees me, he’ll ask me for that committee report I haven’t done yet. I’d better move inside quickly and get seated.”
“I wish my husband weren’t away on that business trip. It’s really uncomfortable coming to church without him. Well, I’ll just sit in the back and leave as soon as the service is over.”
“I sure hope the preaching is better than it’s been the last few weeks.”
“This should be a really good day. No work that needs to be done. I like our church and the football game is on TV at 3 this afternoon.  That gives me time to take the family out to dinner and still be home for the kickoff. I really like being a Christian.”
“I wonder if I should keep coming to this church. I really haven’t made any friends and the sermons don’t do much for me. Well I’ll keep praying about it and see how it goes today”
“Look at that happy young family. It really hurts when I realize my kids are grown, gone, unsaved, and mixed-up. Boy, I wish I could have a few years back. Well I can’t start crying now. Cmon, smile-here comes Nancy to say hello.”
“People think of me as a pretty spiritually together person. I’ll make a point to interact graciously and to respond in a biblical way to whatever happens.”[1]

While we can’t (and shouldn’t) eavesdrop on thoughts, imagining it reminds us that we really don’t know what’s going on behind other people’s layers, and they don’t usually know what’s behind ours.

Therefore, “Be kind.  You never know what someone’s going through.”

[1] Crabb, Larry and Dan Allender.  Encouragement: The Key to Caring (1984).  P. 95-96.