Category: Christian

Exceedingly Magnificent

“David said, ‘My son Solomon is young and inexperienced, and the house that is to be built for the LORD shall be exceedingly magnificent, famous and glorious throughout all lands. Therefore, now I will make preparation for it.’ So, David made ample preparations before his death.” (1 Chron. 22:5).

We see in the text that the temple of the Lord was to be “exceedingly magnificent.” God did not plan to build some shack or throw up a few bricks and call it His house. David spent the last days of his life gathering the materials together for the magnificent temple the Lord wanted built. The finished product truly was “exceedingly magnificent.” As the queen of Sheba observed, “the half has never yet been told” (1 Kgs. 10:1-7). The kingdom and the temple and everything about Solomon’s rule over the nations was exceedingly magnificent. However, we sadly know it did not last long. Solomon became a compromiser and presumed he could allow idols in his house without having any effect on the nation. It was not long before exceeding magnificence gave way to magnificence. Then on down to good until it became a nation that was called by Jeremiah a “degenerate vine.” When Israel and the leaders of God’s people stopped expecting “exceedingly magnificent” service to God and even started to take away from the glory of the temple to pay off the nations roundabout (1 Kgs. 14:25-28:15:18.19: 2 Kgs. 16:8-17: 18:14-16: 21: 3-7: 25:13-16: 2 Chron. 24:7). Instead of a hallowed perfect place full of exceeding magnificence and glory as the house of the Lord, it became a trading tool and was desecrated by God’s own people, long before Nebuchadnezzar pretty well finished the job in 586 B.C. (2 Kgs. 25:1 3-16).

Under Zerubbabel, the people returned and rebuilt the temple, but it was never again as it had been (2 Chron. 3o:23: Ezra 1:1-4: and chapters 5, 6). How did such a beautiful place lose its exceeding magnificence? The people of God began to compromise with the nations round about and to settle for mediocre service to God. They became satisfied with polluted service (Mal. 1).

Does God Expect Our Best?

Can The Same Thing Happen To The Lord’s Church (Temple) Today?

The Lord’s church is likened to the temple today in 1 Cor. 3:16. God still expects His temple (spiritual Israel), to be exceedingly magnificent. One cannot help but be impressed with the emphasis God has always placed on service to Him and that which man offers to Him as worship and honor. God will not take even magnificent service; HE WANTS EXCEEDINGLY MAGNIFICENT SERVICE (Col. 3:23). He wants the very best we have and will not tolerate anything less. Paul told the Corinthians in 1 Cor. 15:58, “…be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord…” God does not expect more than we are able to do, but He does expect us to do everything we have the ability to do and to give our best to Him.

Paul talks of our physical bodies as being the temple of the Holy Spirit in 1 Cor. 6:19. God has given specific instructions on how we are to keep ourselves pure and holy. He expects us to do no less than obey His precepts exactly as He has given them (Eph. 5:11: Gal. 5:19-26).

Considering these two examples, let us ask ourselves if we think God will accept us selling out and compromising with the world in any way? If He wanted His physical temple kept “exceedingly magnificent” then would He accept less of us today in the church?

In the Old Testament we have seen what a lack of respect was shown by God’s own people when they sought to be like the nations round about. When they started compromising and trusting in other nations for their protection, instead of in God, they began to offer to the heathen, the treasures of the temple (that which God intended for service to Him).

We have an “exceedingly magnificent” plan of salvation. Let’s not try to downplay it or give folks the idea they can please God without obedience to this “magnificent” plan.

We have an “exceedingly magnificent” Savior. He is to be honored and glorified. Let us not accept any doctrine which would lower Him to the level of a mere man. He alone is worthy to be our Savior.

We have an “exceedingly magnificent” church. Matt. 16: 18 tells us the Lord would build His church. It belongs to Him. He has only one (Eph. 4:4; 1:22, 23). It has a duty and a charge (evangelize, edify, and practice limited benevolence). No one dare sell it out in its work or function. No one calling themselves a Christian can afford to do anything less than serve Him in His church and grow according to Heb. 5:12-14.

How could Israel, sink so low as to offer polluted sacrifice on the altar of God? How could Ahaz even imagine, much less follow through, on removing the bronze altar and setting up an altar to an idol in the temple itself?

Folks, it did not happen overnight! It was gradual, just as departure from the Lord is in our personal lives, and in the church. The church at Laodicea in Rev. 3 was confident they serve the Lord properly, but they did not! They were not “exceedingly magnificent” in service to Him. They were blind to their own error, just as many at Corinth and Galatia were. They had grown to accept any old service to God as good and lost their zest for excellence in service to God.

When a Christian only comes occasionally to worship IS THIS EXCEEDINGLY MAGNIFICENT service? When one sings half-heartedly, let’s his mind wander during prayer and the Lord’s Supper, gives with little or no thought or purpose, and listens or sleeps through the lesson with no intention of it changing his life, can we call this “exceedingly magnificent.” What is the difference in that type of service and worship to God and what was done in Malachi 1?

When Christians, (whose bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit, 1 Cor. 6:19), socially drink, dress immodestly, hardly pray or study, refuse to be hospitable, murmur, backbite, complain, curse, gamble and use tobacco or other drugs, can we call this “exceedingly magnificent?” To ask the question is to answer it.

We as Christians must realize God is a jealous God and will accept and indeed demands, of those who use His name that they do things exactly as He says. There are no other options.

We do not have the right to tamper with the law and change it to fit our needs or passions. We cannot change the Word to accommodate someone who will not submit to His will.

We live in a world where people grow satisfied with the “status quo.” Average is good enough for some. We know that a business satisfied with average, will soon go out of business! We know that salespeople who are satisfied with doing the minimum, will always be floaters and unstable. Employers are always on the search for people who have pride in what they do and give attention to detail. These types of folks are getting harder and harder to find. The Lord’s church should be full of them. but sadly, many Christians have become satisfied with lazy service to God. Rest assured, God notices how we serve and will not accept anything from us but that which is “exceedingly magnificent.”

The Hope Of Heaven

The question has often been asked as to why the early church grew so rapidly. The answer, I believe, is quite simple. The Christian religion is a religion of hope. Hope was something many of that day did not have. Hope is more than wishful thinking. It is defined as “desire with expectation of obtaining what is desired”. You may desire something, whatever it may be, but realize the chances of ever having this desire come true is not realistic. The desire may be there, but you cannot hope for them. Expectation alone is also not hope. Most of us expect sickness to come from time to time, or expect to pay taxes, etc. We expect these things in life, however there is no desire for them, therefore we do not hope for them. Where there is desire and expectation there is hope, and such hope is necessary for us to live the Christian life successfully.

What the Christian hope is not:

It is not the “hope” that we are going to Heaven. Have you ever been asked, “Are you going to Heaven?” and your reply is “I hope so”. We can know if we are going to Heaven or not, no hoping about it. In 1 John 5:13 we read, “I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” If one knows he has eternal life he knows he is a Christian and thus going to Heaven.

What the Christian hope is:

It IS the promise of Heaven with all the good things that are there. We ought to desire it, and we ought to expect it. If we don’t, we have no hope. Many Christians just desire Heaven but don’t expect it. If you don’t expect it, you are not diligent or don’t believe the promises of God. The basis of our hope is that we are children of God. The reason for our being children of God is God’s love. 1 John. 3:1 reads, “See what great love the Father has given us that we should be called God’s children”. We became God’s children by being born again. John. 3:3 says, “Jesus replied, Truly I tell you, unless someone is born again; he cannot see the kingdom of God”. No one except a child of God can have this hope of Heaven. Those with whom we come in contact in our everyday lives that cannot call themselves children of God are without hope. The Apostle Paul tells us, “At that time you were without Christ, excluded from the citizenship of Israel, and foreigners to the covenants of promise, without hope and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12). We know from scripture that Heaven is a prepared place because Jesus said, “In my Father’s house are many rooms, if not, I would have told you. I am going away to prepare a place for you. If I go away and prepare a place for you, I will come again and take you to myself so that where I am you may be also.” Heaven is prepared only for those who summit to Christ and become children of God.

Purity is a must

We know that as a Christian, we must keep ourselves pure and the hope of Heaven purifies our hearts. 1 John. 3:3 reads, “And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.” The stronger our hope, the purer in heart and life we will be. Likewise, the purer in heart and life the stronger our hope will be. Purity in the life of every Christian is necessary before we can have hope of “appearing with Christ in glory”. The hope of Heaven should cause us as Christians to rejoice. Matt. 5:12 tells us, “Be glad and rejoice, because your reward is great in Heaven.” The Christians hope is based upon the promises of Christ, and he has promised us Heaven if we obey him. Our hope depends upon the strength of our desire, and how badly we want to go to Heaven. It is also based on the strength of our expectation, and our faith in God who has promised us a place in Heaven if we have lived the kind of life we should. The Christians hope is worth more than the entire world, do you have it

“Self-Examination”

There are times when we all must go to the doctor for a physical examination. The doctor looks us over, checks our reflexes and various other things. We do this so that we may maintain good health.

In 1 Corinthians 11:28 Paul wrote, “But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup.” While this is a warning about how we should be careful about our attitude as we partake of the Lord’s Supper, the idea of examining ourselves should be something we all do on a regular basis as it is about more than simply the Lord’s Supper. If we do not take the time to examine ourselves and correct the things that are wrong, then we will begin to crumble as Christians.

Self-examination, a continuing act

In 2 Corinthians 13:5, Paul expanded on the idea of self-examination. He said, “Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you–unless indeed you fail the test?” We should do self-examination daily. But this can be more difficult than it sounds because of what we may be afraid of finding. We may try to put it off afraid of what things are brought to the surface. However, the time we use to examine ourselves is very important, because it gives us the opportunity to realize our errors and then correct them. When the time comes upon us that we realize we are in sin is a time when a Christian will either “sink or swim.” If we choose to repent of our sin and come back to Christ with a heart of repentance, we will remain in Christ. If we refuse to correct the sin in our lives, we will lose our relationship with Christ.

This is how the growth of a Christian is accomplished. It is not accomplished by parading around with our noses in the air as if we are without sin. There are those who, when their sin is found out, quickly seek to justify themselves and brush off the wrongdoing. But God does not simply “brush off” the sin, regardless of how small we may think it is.

We are told to “test ourselves” as to whether we are in the faith. When many hear these words, they are stricken with fear. It is a terrifying thought to come to the realization that we may be in the wrong. However, what many fail to realize is that this is the whole purpose of self-examination. If our faults are never brought to light, they will not be corrected. When we realize our faults, we can REPENT of them and be back in a right relationship with the Lord.

Lack of self-examination

Sadly, there are those who act as if they would rather live in torments, than to admit they have sinned or to feel embarrassed of their sin. That is why Paul told the Corinthians, “For this reason, many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep (1 Corinthians 11:30). When we do not examine ourselves daily, we become weak or sick Christians. Verses 31 and 32, tell us that we read that if “we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged.” “We are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned WITH the world (emphasis added J.C.)”. When we examine ourselves, it is so that we may judge ourselves that when we realize our sins, we may repent of them. No longer will we be “condemned with the world.”

As difficult as it may sound, self-examination is something all Christians should actively be engaged in. It is not so we may feel bad about ourselves or feel afraid to sit down and ask ourselves, “Am I living as a Christian?” We are to examine ourselves, so we may not be condemned as those in the world will be condemned. We judge our own actions, so we may not be judged.

Let us not be as the world, brushing off sin and searing our conscience with a hot iron. Instead, let us examine ourselves daily to whether we are “in the faith.” Self-examinations can save the soul.

The Beatitudes

Speaker

In chapters 5-7 of gospel of Matthew we find what we call, “The Sermon on the Mount.” This was perhaps the first such sermon. Jesus had been teaching before this, but this seems to take on a different form from His previous talks. At the very front of the sermon, we find “The Beatitudes” as we often refer to this section. The word “beatitudes” simply means supreme blessedness. As the Sermon on the Mount commenced in Matthew 5:3, Jesus spoke of these great blessings:

3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
5 Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
10 Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.

Jesus did not speak these words for the purpose of making an already religious society feel better about themselves. Rather, He sought to solicit their attention to characteristics that made the Kingdom of Heaven different from their customary lifestyles. His mission, besides redeeming sinful man, was to usher in a new rule. He sought to teach man about the Kingdom of God and how one could enter it. The beatitudes serve as the foundation for a highly focused spiritual life. They are unique in a way that makes them relatively easy to remember yet powerful in its impact.

If one would be a child of God, the beatitudes call on them to mold themselves in an image not recognized by the world (1 John 2:15). That is, they are to be completely different from the norms and societal values taught by men and governments. One does not have to think too hard as to how these values differ from those that would have been around the people of Jesus’ day. Nor or they traits found in most of society today. Forgiving someone a debt is a rarity in our society today. Purity of heart is certainly a far cry from what is on television, cell-phones and computers today. Perhaps all these things are more accessible today than it was 2,000 years ago, but it doesn’t change the fact that men seek to put an emphasis on satisfying the flesh rather than the spirit.

Jesus commended the multitudes to begin by being humble. As such, we must recognize we are sinners, and we must mourn over the sins we so often commit. We are to deal gently with our neighbors all while starving for the food which profits our souls: God’s word! Even when it can be difficult, we are to show mercy to one another just as our Lord has shown us His great mercy. We ought to be pure and holy as He is holy (1 Peter 1:15-16) and free from blemish. Even when we persecuted and ridiculed, we are to make peace with men (Rom 12:18).

I admit, these are not the easiest things to practice but they are worth it. They may not find favor with men, but they are most favorable with God. If these things are yours then you will indeed be a supremely blessed individual. May these values stand out in our lives as disciples of our Lord.