Build The Temple Part #1

Introduction

There is a God Slime.

There is a God since I never wore. There is a God from the story. Be seated, please. Please be prepared to sing number 330. Is our song of invitation number 330? Now I should be able to preach after that. Some excellent singing this morning. This is one of those rare occasions where the first day of a new year falls upon the first day of the week. And what a perfect time it is to begin a new year to sing the kinds of things we’ve sung together. I thought of that particularly when we sang We will glorify. What a great way to bring in the new year. And to do it with people that we care about and are so fortunate to have association with.

For a new leaf and planning new things for a new year, and so it’s a good time in keeping with that to talk about spiritual resolutions. But like I told Dan, really every Sunday here is about making resolves and about keeping them. And we sing that invitation song, I am resolved no more to linger. I love that invitation song. And so, yes, this Sunday is going to be about resolves. But every Sunday here is about that and about keeping those resolves before God. And you should make resolves about him. And so I want to talk to you this morning about what it truly means to belong to Jesus Christ. This is a two-part sermon. I realize some of you may not be back tonight, but I don’t do this very often, but there’s just more material in this lesson, and plus Todd took up an extra five minutes.

So there’s more material in this lesson than I could possibly do in one sermon anyway. So hopefully you can come back tonight at 5 o’clock to hear the conclusion of the matter. And it is based on the thoughts from Haggai. Not that I’m going to be spending time in Haggai this morning, but the song that we have sung written by Glenda Shales, and I’ve told you this story before, but indulge me, I’m going to tell you again. She got the idea for this song, listening to her dad, a good friend of mine, Glenn Barnhart, preach on Haggai chapter 1. It is time to build.

And it has to do, and she has taken the thought of building the temple of the Old Testament and rebuilding it after the Babylonian captivity. And we’ve studied all of this just recently. But she takes that to talk about the building that we’re supposed to do. And I want to talk about that for a few minutes with you this morning. Answer the question. What is the daily goal of the Christian? So I’m talking about something in the answer to this question that not only applies to this special day of New Year and resolves that people make, but something that should characterize all 366 days of this year. What should your life be about every day? We may not all word this the same way, but my answer to the question is this.

To more consistently imitate Christ and obey him in every respect. He is the King of kings and the Lord of Lords. We exist to glorify him as we have sung. He is the one who is exalted. Our God, he is alive. And so if we properly understand our relationship to him, this should be our goal. But what about our goal collectively as a local church? What is that goal? I would define it this way to carry out specific instruction given to the corporate body and express discipleship in an atmosphere of encouragement and support. And that is the nature of this group, the Decker Prairie Church. To carry out discipleship, to do so collectively in the specific ways that God has authorized us to act and operate together in an atmosphere of encouragement and support.

We need to continue that. And this atmosphere is so very important. We’ve all been in places, I’ve been in places where such an atmosphere does not exist. Where the prevailing mood is stagnant, going through the motions, negativism, murmuring and complaining. And so let us realize these goals. But do any of us accomplish these things perfectly? Or at all times in our lives? And so that suggests a need for all of us to grow. On the day of judgment, I’m going to stand before God individually to give an account for the how I have thought and how I have lived. But I will also give an account, and you will also give an account for what we have done collectively together. It is possible in a local church that some can be judged righteous in the end, while others could be lost.

As we see that there were a few in Sardis who had not soiled their garments. But every one of us will give an account for the nature of our participation in the group as well. What does God require of us as a church? And as individual members of this church. He does not require of us what he requires of everyone in every place. To whom much is given, much is required. Luke chapter 12 and verse 48. So what God has endowed us with, our capabilities, our abilities as individuals and a congregation, he’s going to measure us on the basis of what he has endowed us with. My question this morning is this.

Something deeper, something larger, something richer, something more productive that is possible for the Decker Prairie Church in God’s cause. Talking about growth. Which is better? Because you know this is not really just about numbers, is it? Suppose we are a congregation of 500 in number. But yet you only have a hundred and fifty who are really striving to be genuine and true disciples of the Lord. Would that be better to have a group like that? Or would it be better to be a group of 150 where all 150 members are genuinely striving to accomplish these things? And so as I talk about spiritual growth, I have three objectives in this lesson. The first objective is for us to have realistic expectations about growth. Number two, to be patient as that growth occurs.

1. Growth Occurs in God's Time

And number three, to be personally responsible. If all of us have a goal to be like Christ, I can’t do that for Ed, and he can’t do that for me. We have to decide if I’m going to live. You have to decide if you’re going to live in the imitation of Christ. You have to make that determination. But as all of us together make that determination, we experience even more growth as a church of his people. Patience. You know, we talk about the guy who says, I want patience and I want it right now. Sometimes it’s I want growth and I want it right now. But growth takes time. Progress occurs over time. Let me give you a couple of examples biblically of this. Saul of Tarsus, that dramatic moment when he sees the light on the road to Damascus, and he goes into the city, and Ananias, the prophet of God, instructs him, arise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

Hey, if you haven’t done that, what a great way to begin the new year. To imitate the example of Saul of Tarsus, to arise. Doesn’t matter how long we have to stay here today. We’d be glad to sing some more songs, too. Arise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord. What a great way to begin a new year. But what happened after that? Glorious moment of conversion for Saul of Tarsus. He went right into preaching. No, he didn’t. In Galatians chapter 1, three years. Three years passed. Before he goes up to Jerusalem, spends 14 days there, gets acquainted with Peter. Three years. What happened in those three years? It was a lot of personal reflection about where he had been.

Persecutor. And where he is now called to be as a disciple of Jesus Christ. It was a time of building and growth. What about the story of Moses? Just thinking about this little application in this lesson makes me want to preach this sermon I have called Sitting by the Well at Midian. Haven’t preached that here. He needs to be revamped. I’m going to revamp it and preach it. But I love this story. I love Acts’ account of the story because we’re told something that’s not told us in the book of Exodus. Remember when he went out and slayed the Egyptian? That got him in big trouble with the Egyptians. And then the next day, two Israelites were fighting, and they said, Who makes you a ruler over us?

Acts, when Stephen preaches this sermon in Acts 7, says, Moses supposed that Israel thought that God was granting deliverance through him. See, Moses, God has great intentions for his people who are now slaves in Egypt. I’m going to be their deliverer, and he’s supposed everybody’s going to jump on board. And they didn’t. He was 40 years old when that happened. You know the burning bush story, right? You know how old Moses was when God comes and speaks to Moses from the burning bush. He’s 80. 40 years. Moses was ready when he was 40. God wasn’t ready for Moses until he was 80. Oh, but that’s just the beginning of that sermon. I’m going to come back to that. And then there’s David. Man, look at what God’s given me.

Look at this kingdom. It’s flourishing. It’s awesome. I have a palace to live in. It’s incredible. God needs a house. He needs a permanent structure. Yeah, let’s do it. Nathan the prophet, he’s on board. This is great. Let’s go do it. And then God comes to Nathan and tells David, nope. Not going to do it. Now, I preached recently, and I love that when God says, don’t worry right now about building me a house. I’m going to build you one. That’s great. But your son Solomon’s going to do it. You’re not going to do it. God wasn’t ready. And I use those illustrations to show that God has his time. So we might talk today about building the temple in God’s way and time. We could have sung the song.

I didn’t ask Todd to leave it. He already had a plan. In his time. Growth occurs in God’s time. I want to talk to you for a few moments this morning and then more this evening about building the temple. You have a temple to build. And about personal rededication to the Lord. And I want us to read these passages together. And I want us to appreciate something about these four texts. And if I don’t accomplish anything else in this lesson this morning, for the next five minutes or so, I want you to bear down. I want you to buckle down and look at these passages with me, and I’m going to draw a conclusion about this, and I want you to get this.

2. You Are a Temple of God

Read with me. 1 Corinthians 3 16. Like I said in our Bible class, some of you weren’t in here about the statement, all things belong to you and you belong to God, and how special that is when you consider he’s writing to the Corinthians who are very troubled. Same context. This is a few verses earlier from that statement. In 1 Corinthians 3, 21 and following, we’re going to read verse 16. Problems in the church at Corinth. They’ve got some growing to do. They’ve got some temple work to do. Now have faith. Now have courage. God will bring glory. Alright. Verse 16. Do you not know? That’s a rhetorical question. But sometimes we just don’t get it in our struggles. Do you not know? Look at this.

That you are a temple of God. And that the Spirit of God dwells in you. If any man destroys the temple of God, how special is this temple? Anyone destroys the temple of God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy. And that is what you are.

David wants to build a house for God. He wants to build this glorious temple. God says, not you. You’ve been a man of war, man of bloodshed, but your son is going to build this special place of worship for God. And it’s going to be magnificent. It’s going to be pristine and beautiful and overlaid with gold. It is going to be built just so. It is the place of God’s presence among his people. It is a special place. There’s going to be attention to detail. This is going to be meticulous. It’s going to take a long time. This is going to be one of the ancient wonders of the world. The temple of Solomon. And that imagery is what we’re being called upon to look at when he says, now what are you, New Testament Christians?

A church of Jesus Christ. What are you? Individually as members of it. You are the temple of God.

Flip over to chapter 6. He’s warning about immoral conduct. In verse 13. He says, Let me tell you something about your physical body. Created by God. It is not for immorality.

It is for the Lord. Your bodies are members of Christ. Don’t you know that? He keeps asking, don’t you know that? You’re not acting. He’s telling the Corinthians, you’re not acting consistently with your calling. Don’t you know that you are members of Christ? You’re associated with the Messiah, the anointed one of the Old Testament. You’re members of Christ. Shall I then take away the members of Christ and make them members of a harlot? May it never be.

The two become one flesh. But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with him. The temple was a place for God to dwell. You join yourself to the Lord, you’re his temple, you’re the place of his dwelling. What kind of place does that need to be? Holy and pure, flee immorality. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body. Or do you not know? But your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own, for you have been bought with the price. Therefore, glorify God in your body. 2 Corinthians 6. Flip over there, the same concept in his second epistle to them when he says, Look, don’t be bound together with unbelievers.

3. Cleanse Ourselves From All Defilement

What agreement has the temple of God with idols? He says, I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean. The unclean wasn’t allowed in the temple. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will welcome you. I will be a father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters. Therefore, you can’t stop at verse 18, by the way. Don’t ever stop at verse 18. Therefore, verse 1 of chapter 7, having these promises below. Let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit. Perfecting holiness in the fear of God. When I talk about building the temple and growth, I have to think of this verse right here.

4. Growing Into a Holy Temple in the Lord

Because we are the temple of God, we must maintain our purity. And we must cleanse ourselves from all defilement, every kind of defilement. Abstain from every form of evil, Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5 and verse 22. Because, folks, you are the temple of God. A realization of that spurs us on to purify ourselves and perfect holiness. One final passage in Ephesians chapter 2. In Ephesians chapter 2, verses 19 through 22. Well, we used to not be God’s temple. We were strangers. We were out there. We were exiled, foreigners, aliens. But not now. We have come a long way then. We are citizens now. Citizenship. Fellow citizens with the saints. God’s house, built by the foundation of the apostles and prophets. Christ Jesus, the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together and growing, and growing is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.

I wanted to take the time to look at all four of these passages because I wanted you to see how important this business of being the temple is in Paul’s writings. And what does that suggest about how we should go about living our lives? Habitation of God in the Spirit. When we take this foundation brought to us by the Holy Spirit, the apostles and prophets, Jesus himself being the chief cornerstone, when we take this message and allow ourselves to be filled with it, and why not? We’re the temple of God. We’re to be filled by Him. Filled with the Spirit. While this message changes us and molds us and shapes our very lives, we become this glorious, growing habitation. This habitation of God in the Spirit.

So let me tell you one thing about growth, and we’ll be done this morning. What that means is, if we’ve got some growing to do, and Paul says in Philippians chapter 3, even the great apostle Paul, much time is passed in his conversion that we referenced a few moments ago. He says, I have not yet apprehended, but this one thing that I do, forgetting what lies behind and pressing forward. I have not yet attained to the resurrection of the dead, he says. What all of that says is Paul says, I’m not done growing. As a place of God’s dwelling, I’ve got more work to do to become more like Jesus. We must never fall here. The temple of God must never get comfortable with where we are.

And may I suggest if I summarize what the New Testament is teaching us about our role as God’s temple, that there are four significant areas where we need to be dissatisfied with where we are and pressing forward.

5. Stay Focused on Jesus Christ

I have more to say about all these tonight as we begin the second lesson. But I want to go ahead and introduce point two as I conclude this morning. And that is this. As the temple of God, as we build the temple, we have to stay focused on Jesus Christ. We look to him. Hebrews chapter 12 and verse 2. We can call ourselves Christians because we are dedicated to him. We sanctify Christ as Lord in our hearts. 1 Peter chapter 3 and verse 15. Because of what he did for us. To be this growing temple to the Lord. We must stay focused on him. What changed Saul on the road to Damascus? Who did he see? He saw the risen Lord. Let me tell you what that indicated to the erring Saul of Tarsus.

Jesus was that Messiah of the Old Testament. Oh, he knew all about those passages about the Messiah. But like modern-day Jews who reject Jesus as the Messiah, he was in that same boat. But he came to his senses. Jesus is the reigning king and the reigning Lord. And that changed everything for Saul of Tarsus, and it needs to change everything for you and for me. To be this growing and holy temple, this habitation of God and the Spirit. Remember, what is that all about? Paul said in Ephesians chapter 2. Jesus is the chief cornerstone. It’s all about him and revolves around him. And to be his temple, we need to stay focused on Jesus Christ. Have you properly regarded him? Do you realize that without him you, one who has sinned against the Lord, you are lost and undone.

Conclusion

You can’t be this that you can’t maintain this special relationship with him until the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses you from all sin. And so you must be immersed into Christ to have your sins forgiven so that you might rise to walk in newness of life as this glorious temple that he wants us to be. I want you to appreciate today this special calling of being God’s temple. And the high and noble behavior that it calls us to. And that each of us would walk worthy of the vocation wherewith we have been called. Ephesians chapter 4 and verse 1. Have you responded to the risen Christ? Well, our calendar may have changed, but I’ll tell you one thing that hadn’t changed. Jesus is still sitting on his throne.

He’s still the King of kings and the Lord of Lords, and this world exists, whether the Mayans were right or not, about 2012. I know that this world exists to this day, so that more folks will respond to the saving message about Jesus Christ. He who believes and is baptized shall be saved. Those were the words of Jesus in Mark sixteen and verse sixteen. That’s the message that we preach. It was the message the disciples were instructed to preach.