1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:07,800 You’re listening to a sermon from pastor Colin Smith of Open The Bible. 2 00:00:07,800 –> 00:00:14,580 To contact us, call us at 1-877-Open365 or visit our website OpenTheBible.org. 3 00:00:14,580 –> 00:00:17,760 Let’s get to the message. 4 00:00:17,760 –> 00:00:20,760 Here is Pastor Colin. 5 00:00:20,760 –> 00:00:26,200 Please open your Bibles at Ephesians and Chapter Two, we’re continuing our series, Sharing 6 00:00:26,200 –> 00:00:29,440 the Passion of Jesus Christ, The Passion of Christ. 7 00:00:29,480 –> 00:00:34,439 Of course, is for the Church, for which he died, the Church, which is, as we’ll see next 8 00:00:34,439 –> 00:00:36,139 week, his bride. 9 00:00:36,139 –> 00:00:40,139 We’ve been going through this series learning what the Church is and we began by discovering 10 00:00:40,139 –> 00:00:44,439 that on the lips of Jesus, the Church means just two things. 11 00:00:44,439 –> 00:00:48,619 Jesus used the word just on two occasions, once, to refer to all believers in every time 12 00:00:48,619 –> 00:00:51,340 and place, that’s one thing the church means. 13 00:00:51,340 –> 00:00:56,939 And second, to mean a local congregation of believers, exactly like we are here in this 14 00:00:56,939 –> 00:00:57,939 place today. 15 00:00:58,419 –> 00:01:02,700 Now, the word Church nowadays is used in all kinds of different ways but these are the 16 00:01:02,700 –> 00:01:08,099 only ways in which the word is used by our Lord Jesus, and his use of the word Church 17 00:01:08,099 –> 00:01:14,400 surely must be defining for all of us who are his followers and look to him as our teacher. 18 00:01:14,400 –> 00:01:19,739 Now, we began last week to look at some of the analogies of the Church that the Bible 19 00:01:19,739 –> 00:01:20,900 gives to us. 20 00:01:20,900 –> 00:01:27,080 We saw that many people in our consumerist culture today really have very self-centered 21 00:01:27,080 –> 00:01:33,519 views of the Church, so, it’s not unusual for us to think of the Church as like a gas 22 00:01:33,519 –> 00:01:41,820 station, fill me up, or a movie theater, entertain me, or a drug store, take away my pain, or 23 00:01:41,820 –> 00:01:47,419 even a big box retailer, give me the programs that I need for me and my family. 24 00:01:47,419 –> 00:01:52,620 Me is at the center of all these ways of thinking about the life of the Church and none of them 25 00:01:52,620 –> 00:01:54,339 are in the Bible. 26 00:01:54,339 –> 00:01:59,919 But God does give to us some wonderful pictures that show us what the Church is. 27 00:01:59,919 –> 00:02:05,839 Seeing that the Church is the Body of Christ, what that means is that He’s the Head and 28 00:02:05,839 –> 00:02:07,360 we’re the Body. 29 00:02:07,360 –> 00:02:13,360 And what that means is that as the Head, Jesus Christ has joined Himself to a Body that is 30 00:02:13,360 –> 00:02:16,419 called the Church. 31 00:02:16,419 –> 00:02:18,839 And here’s what that means for us. 32 00:02:18,960 –> 00:02:25,960 If Jesus Christ chooses to work through the Church as a Head works through the Body, then 33 00:02:25,960 –> 00:02:27,720 wouldn’t we want to do the same. 34 00:02:27,720 –> 00:02:32,960 Wouldn’t if Jesus joins Himself to this sometimes weak and feeble Body, would we not want to 35 00:02:32,960 –> 00:02:36,520 be those who do our work through the Body also? 36 00:02:36,520 –> 00:02:38,039 That is what we learned last week. 37 00:02:38,039 –> 00:02:43,020 I tell you, I have some big prayers for this series. 38 00:02:43,020 –> 00:02:47,919 Many in our congregation are younger, and you are thinking about how God is calling 39 00:02:48,139 –> 00:02:50,279 you and what He calls you to do. 40 00:02:50,279 –> 00:02:57,279 Some of you have gifts that could be strategically used in the work of the Church here and around 41 00:02:57,839 –> 00:03:00,199 the world. 42 00:03:00,199 –> 00:03:04,940 And I’m praying that as we get a better vision of what the Church is, that you may seriously 43 00:03:04,940 –> 00:03:10,320 think and pray about whether God will be calling you to devote yourself fully and directly 44 00:03:10,320 –> 00:03:12,720 to serving the Body of Christ? 45 00:03:13,419 –> 00:03:19,940 Some of you are in midlife and you are looking at how to readjust your focus, you’re in a 46 00:03:19,940 –> 00:03:22,279 position where you’re able to do that. 47 00:03:22,279 –> 00:03:27,880 And I am praying that there will be many folks in midlife who will get a fresh vision of 48 00:03:27,880 –> 00:03:32,399 the Body of Christ and say in the second half of their lives as God gives that to them, 49 00:03:32,399 –> 00:03:36,039 they say, I’m going to devote myself to the good of the Body of Christ. 50 00:03:36,039 –> 00:03:40,199 You catch a vision for that. 51 00:03:40,800 –> 00:03:46,460 Many in our congregation have significant influence within Christian organizations. 52 00:03:46,460 –> 00:03:53,500 You are doing marvelous work and you influence policy within Christian organizations. 53 00:03:53,500 –> 00:04:00,580 I’m praying that as a result of this series some of you will begin to say it is not enough 54 00:04:00,580 –> 00:04:07,020 for us to serve people by leading them to Christ and then discipling them as Christians. 55 00:04:07,020 –> 00:04:08,300 That’s not enough. 56 00:04:08,300 –> 00:04:15,899 In our organization we need an intentional strategy to help the people we serve to become 57 00:04:15,899 –> 00:04:19,459 connected with a local church. 58 00:04:19,459 –> 00:04:20,579 That’s of huge importance. 59 00:04:20,579 –> 00:04:26,700 And if we understand the doctrine of the church that will begin to shape vision. 60 00:04:26,700 –> 00:04:29,380 It will begin to shape policy. 61 00:04:29,380 –> 00:04:34,440 I’m pleading with us as a congregation through this month that we begin to engage with it 62 00:04:34,440 –> 00:04:40,079 in a fresh way and that we try to take seriously what the Lord Jesus Christ says to us, what 63 00:04:40,079 –> 00:04:43,079 the scriptures say to us about the church. 64 00:04:43,079 –> 00:04:44,359 So these are some big prayers. 65 00:04:44,359 –> 00:04:49,160 I hope that all of us as members of the church will come to the place of treasureing and 66 00:04:49,160 –> 00:04:54,359 valuing what it means to be part of a local congregation, that we will come to see that 67 00:04:54,359 –> 00:05:00,160 to be part of the church is the greatest privilege that God gives to me this side of heaven. 68 00:05:00,160 –> 00:05:02,519 It really is. 69 00:05:02,519 –> 00:05:09,079 And that may be fresh for some of us really to think in that kind of a way. 70 00:05:09,079 –> 00:05:14,100 Now today we come to the second image of the church in the book of Ephesians. 71 00:05:14,100 –> 00:05:20,239 It is especially important for people who have been disappointed with the church. 72 00:05:20,239 –> 00:05:23,980 You may be saying, well I hear all this about a local congregation, but I could tell you 73 00:05:23,980 –> 00:05:25,359 a story or two. 74 00:05:25,359 –> 00:05:27,440 Well, I’ve been a pastor for 30 years. 75 00:05:27,440 –> 00:05:31,200 I could tell you a story or two as well. 76 00:05:31,239 –> 00:05:36,859 And if you have ever been discouraged in the body of Christ. 77 00:05:36,859 –> 00:05:41,480 If you have ever been frustrated with the local church. 78 00:05:41,480 –> 00:05:47,959 If you have ever felt like giving up on church, and my guess is that probably most Christians 79 00:05:47,959 –> 00:05:53,019 have felt like that at some point in their lives, then this message today is for you. 80 00:05:53,019 –> 00:05:56,339 More than anything else what we are going to look at today, is what you desperately 81 00:05:56,339 –> 00:06:02,779 need to hear and grasp, and see so that you will be able to sustain a life of ministry 82 00:06:02,779 –> 00:06:08,019 within the body of Christ wherever he blesses you. 83 00:06:08,019 –> 00:06:12,859 The church is unlike anything else in the world, and so God uses multiple images to 84 00:06:12,859 –> 00:06:18,339 teach us about the church, where the body and as we saw last week that means that Christ 85 00:06:18,339 –> 00:06:23,019 chooses to do his work through the church. 86 00:06:23,019 –> 00:06:27,140 Today we’re going to look at the image of the building which speaks to us about Christ’s 87 00:06:27,140 –> 00:06:30,140 presence in the church. 88 00:06:30,140 –> 00:06:33,920 Three things and then some brief applications today. 89 00:06:33,920 –> 00:06:39,859 Here’s the first, the church is a building, that is the picture that is being used here, 90 00:06:39,859 –> 00:06:42,279 a building of people. 91 00:06:42,299 –> 00:06:46,459 Look at verse 22 please of Ephesians chapter two. 92 00:06:46,459 –> 00:06:57,540 You two, you are being built together, you’re being built, is a very important word that 93 00:06:57,540 –> 00:06:59,059 is being used here. 94 00:06:59,059 –> 00:07:05,500 When Jesus said, I will build my church, he was the one who used that word first, he was 95 00:07:05,500 –> 00:07:08,019 obviously talking about people. 96 00:07:08,579 –> 00:07:13,399 We’ve been seeing that the great purpose of God over all the centuries is to gather a 97 00:07:13,399 –> 00:07:19,799 people from every nation for himself, a people who he will call out to worship in local congregations 98 00:07:19,799 –> 00:07:25,660 and a people he will send out to serve from local congregations. 99 00:07:25,660 –> 00:07:31,359 And this image shows that the purpose of our Lord Jesus Christ is that he wants to build 100 00:07:31,359 –> 00:07:32,359 us together. 101 00:07:32,359 –> 00:07:36,899 And therefore there’s the words, you two are being built together. 102 00:07:36,899 –> 00:07:42,779 Peter takes up this theme, of course, Peter having been referred to as the stone or the 103 00:07:42,779 –> 00:07:50,880 rock and Peter says in his letter, chapter two, he says, you are living stones. 104 00:07:50,880 –> 00:07:57,739 So here’s the picture, that Christ is putting together a building and it is made of people 105 00:07:58,059 –> 00:08:04,420 and each of us is like a living stone in the building that Christ is putting together. 106 00:08:04,420 –> 00:08:09,820 Now it’s very important to understand that in New Testament times, Paul would’ve been 107 00:08:09,820 –> 00:08:15,920 thinking of building in a somewhat different way from the way we think about it today. 108 00:08:15,920 –> 00:08:21,140 We’re used to seeing building with brick and the thing about bricks is they’re all the 109 00:08:21,140 –> 00:08:24,700 same shape, they’re all the same size, and they’re all the same color. 110 00:08:24,700 –> 00:08:26,440 You notice that about bricks? 111 00:08:27,440 –> 00:08:31,260 But the apostle Paul is not thinking here about building with bricks, he’s talking here 112 00:08:31,260 –> 00:08:33,719 about building with stone. 113 00:08:33,719 –> 00:08:36,979 You are living stones, Peter says. 114 00:08:36,979 –> 00:08:42,380 Now stones, or rocks, come in all kinds of shapes and sizes and colors. 115 00:08:42,380 –> 00:08:45,200 They are hewn out of the quarry. 116 00:08:45,200 –> 00:08:50,520 When they come out they have all kinds of rough edges and the great skill of the master 117 00:08:51,359 –> 00:08:58,359 so to bring them together that each one of these unique stones, because no one is quite 118 00:08:59,119 –> 00:09:04,960 like any other, finds its special place within the building. 119 00:09:04,960 –> 00:09:11,719 One of the joys of traveling in Scotland is to drive past miles and miles of what we call 120 00:09:11,719 –> 00:09:12,919 dry stone dike. 121 00:09:12,919 –> 00:09:15,679 Now nobody here knows what dry stone dike is I’m sure. 122 00:09:15,859 –> 00:09:20,500 Let me translate that dry stone wall. 123 00:09:20,500 –> 00:09:24,280 A dry stone wall is simply a wall that is built without any mortar. 124 00:09:24,280 –> 00:09:29,340 You’ll see them all over Scotland and in some other places in Europe. 125 00:09:29,340 –> 00:09:30,479 Remarkable! 126 00:09:30,479 –> 00:09:31,500 I sometimes smile. 127 00:09:31,500 –> 00:09:35,159 So you can always tell an American tourist, because that’s the person who stops their 128 00:09:35,159 –> 00:09:39,919 car to take a photograph of one of the walls, because there are miles and miles and miles 129 00:09:39,919 –> 00:09:40,919 of these things. 130 00:09:40,919 –> 00:09:42,119 It is amazing. 131 00:09:42,119 –> 00:09:44,320 No mortar! 132 00:09:44,760 –> 00:09:48,900 Many of these walls have stood since the 17th century. 133 00:09:48,900 –> 00:09:56,640 They’re simply stones that with the skill of the master builder have been joined together. 134 00:09:56,640 –> 00:09:59,880 There’s a couple of other pictures I think of some dry stone walls there that you can 135 00:09:59,880 –> 00:10:02,799 run through as we’re thinking about this image. 136 00:10:02,799 –> 00:10:04,799 Here’s the important thing. 137 00:10:04,799 –> 00:10:09,280 You cannot make a dry stone wall with one size or shape of stone. 138 00:10:09,280 –> 00:10:11,320 It is impossible. 139 00:10:11,320 –> 00:10:16,440 The whole point of it is that the strength of the wall depends on the uniqueness of the 140 00:10:16,440 –> 00:10:21,640 placing and the shape of each of the individual stones. 141 00:10:21,640 –> 00:10:26,140 Now it’s something like that that the Apostle Paul is speaking of here. 142 00:10:26,140 –> 00:10:29,159 Each of us is a living stone, we are told. 143 00:10:29,159 –> 00:10:30,619 We are all different. 144 00:10:30,619 –> 00:10:37,719 We all have our own individuality and Christ uses this as He builds His church. 145 00:10:37,919 –> 00:10:43,500 Now if you were to come to this congregation and you were to say, you know I’m not so sure 146 00:10:43,500 –> 00:10:47,780 there are so many people who are like me here. 147 00:10:47,780 –> 00:10:53,679 Then I would respond to you by saying that is exactly why you are needed here. 148 00:10:53,679 –> 00:10:56,799 That is exactly why you are needed here. 149 00:10:56,799 –> 00:11:05,460 Because it takes all kinds of shapes and sizes and colors of living stones, to make the building 150 00:11:06,299 –> 00:11:11,599 is as the great master builder putting together. 151 00:11:11,599 –> 00:11:15,340 God created you as one of a kind. 152 00:11:15,340 –> 00:11:18,219 And he redeems what he created. 153 00:11:18,219 –> 00:11:23,979 And his great mercy, what he has placed in you by creation, he has now redeemed for the 154 00:11:23,979 –> 00:11:28,619 good of the church and for the ultimate glory of his son. 155 00:11:28,619 –> 00:11:34,320 So try to get this picture, it’s a wonderful picture, God is building together a great 156 00:11:34,460 –> 00:11:38,979 house, and he is doing it out of living stones. 157 00:11:38,979 –> 00:11:39,979 Very different. 158 00:11:39,979 –> 00:11:40,979 None of us the same. 159 00:11:40,979 –> 00:11:45,679 And yet each having a unique place in the extraordinary strength and endurance of this 160 00:11:45,679 –> 00:11:48,359 building that Christ is putting together. 161 00:11:48,359 –> 00:11:52,500 If you see others who you say, well, I’m not sure I’m like some of these other people, 162 00:11:52,500 –> 00:11:55,380 that is precisely why you’re needed here. 163 00:11:55,380 –> 00:11:57,419 Christians are not all the same. 164 00:11:57,419 –> 00:12:01,280 He redeems what he’s put in you already and he’ll use it for his glory. 165 00:12:01,619 –> 00:12:06,520 Second, the church is a work in progress. 166 00:12:06,520 –> 00:12:09,799 The church is a work in progress. 167 00:12:09,799 –> 00:12:12,200 Look at this in verse 21 and 22. 168 00:12:12,200 –> 00:12:13,919 Notice the tense. 169 00:12:13,919 –> 00:12:18,039 The whole building rises to become. 170 00:12:18,039 –> 00:12:19,320 That’s present tense. 171 00:12:19,320 –> 00:12:22,760 That’s something that’s happening now, continuing. 172 00:12:22,760 –> 00:12:23,940 Verse 22. 173 00:12:23,940 –> 00:12:29,119 You too, notice it, are being built together. 174 00:12:29,119 –> 00:12:30,380 You are being built. 175 00:12:30,460 –> 00:12:32,539 Not you have been built, but you are being built. 176 00:12:32,539 –> 00:12:34,400 Present tense. 177 00:12:34,400 –> 00:12:37,099 So what we are being taught here is of huge importance 178 00:12:37,099 –> 00:12:41,520 and especially for those who are prone to discouragement. 179 00:12:42,419 –> 00:12:45,179 The apostle is telling us here that the church 180 00:12:45,179 –> 00:12:47,500 is a work in progress and that God’s building 181 00:12:47,500 –> 00:12:49,679 is not yet complete. 182 00:12:52,239 –> 00:12:57,239 Nobody should be surprised if the local church 183 00:12:57,460 –> 00:13:00,919 looks and feels more like a building site 184 00:13:00,919 –> 00:13:03,000 than it feels like a showroom. 185 00:13:03,000 –> 00:13:07,039 That’s very important because we are in the process 186 00:13:07,039 –> 00:13:10,479 of being built, that is what we are being told here. 187 00:13:10,479 –> 00:13:11,400 Think about it. 188 00:13:11,400 –> 00:13:13,979 The church is made up of ordinary people 189 00:13:13,979 –> 00:13:17,679 who are in the process of being redeemed. 190 00:13:17,679 –> 00:13:21,719 We are all sinners in the process of being renewed. 191 00:13:21,719 –> 00:13:25,640 There isn’t one of us here today who is everything 192 00:13:25,679 –> 00:13:27,479 that he or she might be 193 00:13:28,559 –> 00:13:30,280 and none of us here who are everything 194 00:13:30,280 –> 00:13:31,859 that he or she will be. 195 00:13:33,359 –> 00:13:36,359 It is an extraordinary thing that often we can allow 196 00:13:36,359 –> 00:13:39,719 great latitude to ourselves with regards our failings 197 00:13:39,719 –> 00:13:43,919 and our foibles, and yet when it comes to the church 198 00:13:43,919 –> 00:13:45,880 which is simply a gathering of other people 199 00:13:45,880 –> 00:13:49,400 very much like ourselves, we are expecting something 200 00:13:49,400 –> 00:13:51,539 that we do not expect of ourselves at all. 201 00:13:52,260 –> 00:13:55,619 It was St Augustine, who I think was 202 00:13:55,619 –> 00:13:58,099 the first to use this description. 203 00:13:58,099 –> 00:14:01,400 He described the church as a hospital for sinners 204 00:14:01,400 –> 00:14:05,739 and he made the point it would be very strange 205 00:14:05,739 –> 00:14:08,020 if a person were to criticize hospitals 206 00:14:08,020 –> 00:14:10,059 because the patients are sick. 207 00:14:10,059 –> 00:14:12,099 I mean that would make no sense would it. 208 00:14:12,099 –> 00:14:13,619 I mean the whole point of the hospital 209 00:14:13,619 –> 00:14:15,440 is that people are there because they are sick 210 00:14:15,440 –> 00:14:17,599 and they are not yet recovered. 211 00:14:17,599 –> 00:14:20,580 Now, when you grasp this truth it will help you 212 00:14:20,599 –> 00:14:24,039 in this way, set your expectations 213 00:14:24,039 –> 00:14:28,000 of the local church wisely. 214 00:14:28,000 –> 00:14:31,200 Think of it this way, it is hard enough 215 00:14:31,200 –> 00:14:34,820 for two sinners to make a good marriage. 216 00:14:36,020 –> 00:14:39,859 So how much harder is it for 200 sinners 217 00:14:39,859 –> 00:14:42,940 or 2000 sinners to make a good church? 218 00:14:44,780 –> 00:14:48,919 Set realistic expectations in the light of the fact 219 00:14:48,919 –> 00:14:51,919 that the work of building is in process 220 00:14:51,919 –> 00:14:55,320 and it is not complete, we gotta get rid 221 00:14:55,320 –> 00:15:00,059 of perfectionist illusions with regards to the church. 222 00:15:02,059 –> 00:15:05,359 When we see Him we will be like Him. 223 00:15:06,299 –> 00:15:11,299 But until then we are like a building under construction. 224 00:15:13,239 –> 00:15:15,979 A building site, not a showroom. 225 00:15:16,919 –> 00:15:19,080 So in any congregation of believers, 226 00:15:19,080 –> 00:15:21,919 you will find that there are things that are not yet done. 227 00:15:21,919 –> 00:15:23,599 There are things that are out of place, 228 00:15:23,599 –> 00:15:25,679 there are some things that need to be taken down. 229 00:15:25,679 –> 00:15:27,640 There are other things that need to be cleaned up. 230 00:15:27,640 –> 00:15:29,380 There are other things that are only roughed in 231 00:15:29,380 –> 00:15:31,080 and obviously need to be finished. 232 00:15:31,080 –> 00:15:34,559 It will always be like that until Jesus Christ comes. 233 00:15:34,559 –> 00:15:37,280 We are being built. 234 00:15:37,280 –> 00:15:39,919 Now it is easy you see for the critic and the cynic 235 00:15:39,919 –> 00:15:43,000 to come into local church and to kinda look at this 236 00:15:43,000 –> 00:15:44,719 and say well look at all this that’s not yet done 237 00:15:44,760 –> 00:15:46,280 look at all this that’s not yet complete 238 00:15:46,280 –> 00:15:47,880 and so forth and so on and to say 239 00:15:47,880 –> 00:15:51,359 how can Jesus Christ be present in this? 240 00:15:52,640 –> 00:15:55,200 And the answer to that is that Jesus Christ 241 00:15:55,200 –> 00:15:59,479 is present in this as the builder. 242 00:15:59,479 –> 00:16:01,760 Here’s the cheer line for the builders. 243 00:16:01,760 –> 00:16:03,280 There is always chaos 244 00:16:03,280 –> 00:16:05,679 when the builders are at work, isn’t that right? 245 00:16:06,960 –> 00:16:09,520 Christ is present as the builder. 246 00:16:11,239 –> 00:16:13,940 Suppose you’re doing a big remodeling job in your house, 247 00:16:13,960 –> 00:16:16,200 you hire a builder and you say 248 00:16:16,200 –> 00:16:18,340 let’s give him the key, let’s go away on vacation 249 00:16:18,340 –> 00:16:19,299 and let’s try and be away 250 00:16:19,299 –> 00:16:20,979 when the worst of it is going on. 251 00:16:21,880 –> 00:16:23,559 And so you give him the key, 252 00:16:23,559 –> 00:16:24,880 off you go for a week and you say 253 00:16:24,880 –> 00:16:27,059 well we’ll see where we are when we come back 254 00:16:27,059 –> 00:16:29,140 and you come back in a week 255 00:16:29,140 –> 00:16:30,539 and everything in your house 256 00:16:30,539 –> 00:16:34,000 is exactly as it was when you left it. 257 00:16:34,000 –> 00:16:35,039 What’s your conclusion? 258 00:16:35,039 –> 00:16:37,719 You’ll say the builder didn’t even show up. 259 00:16:37,719 –> 00:16:39,880 There’s no evidence that he’s even been here. 260 00:16:40,900 –> 00:16:42,159 Not been inside the door. 261 00:16:43,080 –> 00:16:44,219 But if you come back 262 00:16:44,219 –> 00:16:47,020 and there are drop cloths over all the carpets 263 00:16:47,020 –> 00:16:48,700 and there are ladders against the wall 264 00:16:48,700 –> 00:16:50,719 and there is half a wall that is taken down 265 00:16:50,719 –> 00:16:52,500 and there is dry wall dust everywhere 266 00:16:52,500 –> 00:16:54,059 and there’s a huge pile of junk 267 00:16:54,059 –> 00:16:55,200 that’s outside on the front 268 00:16:55,200 –> 00:16:57,000 of the pavement waiting to be picked up, 269 00:16:57,000 –> 00:16:59,299 you know that the builder is at work 270 00:17:00,280 –> 00:17:02,479 cause it’s chaos. 271 00:17:02,479 –> 00:17:04,619 Now, get that picture deep into your mind 272 00:17:04,619 –> 00:17:06,680 and it will help you to think in a new 273 00:17:06,680 –> 00:17:09,260 and a better way about the church 274 00:17:09,260 –> 00:17:11,719 of the Lord Jesus Christ. 275 00:17:11,819 –> 00:17:13,959 Christ is present as the builder 276 00:17:13,959 –> 00:17:15,439 and there is always chaos 277 00:17:15,439 –> 00:17:17,739 when the builder is at work. 278 00:17:19,339 –> 00:17:20,939 And the evidence of the presence 279 00:17:20,939 –> 00:17:22,079 of the Lord Jesus Christ 280 00:17:22,079 –> 00:17:23,979 in a local congregation of believers 281 00:17:23,979 –> 00:17:26,380 is not that everything is complete 282 00:17:28,079 –> 00:17:29,920 but that everything is in process. 283 00:17:31,079 –> 00:17:33,579 The fact that the church feels often more 284 00:17:33,579 –> 00:17:35,859 like a building site than a showroom 285 00:17:35,859 –> 00:17:38,660 is evidence of the presence of the builder. 286 00:17:38,660 –> 00:17:42,859 Think of this, you are being built. 287 00:17:44,800 –> 00:17:46,160 Now if you do not understand that, 288 00:17:46,160 –> 00:17:47,959 you’ll spend your whole life looking for perfectionism 289 00:17:47,959 –> 00:17:51,099 and you never find it, you’ll end up on your own. 290 00:17:51,099 –> 00:17:53,099 And that is not the will of God for you. 291 00:17:54,839 –> 00:17:57,540 So grasp the doctrine of the local church. 292 00:17:57,540 –> 00:17:59,459 It needs multiple images to take this in. 293 00:17:59,459 –> 00:18:02,079 It’s the body to which Christ works, 294 00:18:02,079 –> 00:18:04,579 He’s the head, is the building. 295 00:18:05,540 –> 00:18:09,859 It is always a work in process. 296 00:18:09,859 –> 00:18:14,859 Third, the church is a home in preparation. 297 00:18:16,420 –> 00:18:20,660 The church is a home in preparation. 298 00:18:20,660 –> 00:18:25,660 Notice verse 22, you two are being built together, 299 00:18:25,939 –> 00:18:28,339 okay now, what’s all this for? 300 00:18:28,339 –> 00:18:32,040 To become a dwelling place 301 00:18:32,040 –> 00:18:36,640 in which God lives by his spirit. 302 00:18:37,859 –> 00:18:39,619 Now this is beautiful. 303 00:18:39,619 –> 00:18:41,739 It is telling us that the Lord Jesus Christ 304 00:18:41,739 –> 00:18:44,140 will not be the builder forever. 305 00:18:44,140 –> 00:18:46,140 One day, the building will be complete 306 00:18:47,020 –> 00:18:51,560 and, when it is, Christ will make it his home. 307 00:18:51,560 –> 00:18:56,060 In other words, Christ will be at home with his people 308 00:18:56,060 –> 00:19:00,920 when all his work in and among his people is complete. 309 00:19:00,939 –> 00:19:03,400 You are being built together 310 00:19:04,420 –> 00:19:09,420 to be a dwelling place in which God lives by his spirit. 311 00:19:11,760 –> 00:19:15,479 Wonderful because you know that the whole Bible story 312 00:19:15,479 –> 00:19:19,540 has this great theme of God looking for a home on Earth. 313 00:19:20,479 –> 00:19:23,520 Mount Sinai, God says to Moses, you make the tabernacle, 314 00:19:23,520 –> 00:19:25,079 now that’ll be a meeting place. 315 00:19:25,079 –> 00:19:27,380 I’ll come down there and meet with my people. 316 00:19:27,900 –> 00:19:31,219 And the Lord said something better. 317 00:19:31,219 –> 00:19:33,479 He said in Deuteronomy in chapter 12, 318 00:19:33,479 –> 00:19:35,339 when you get into the land of Canaan, 319 00:19:35,339 –> 00:19:38,479 there will be a place that the Lord God will choose 320 00:19:38,479 –> 00:19:42,979 and he will put his name there for his dwelling. 321 00:19:42,979 –> 00:19:45,500 You get into the promised land, he says, 322 00:19:45,500 –> 00:19:47,739 and there will be a place where I’ll put my name 323 00:19:47,739 –> 00:19:49,300 and it will be a place where I will come 324 00:19:49,300 –> 00:19:52,140 and I will live, a dwelling place. 325 00:19:52,140 –> 00:19:54,859 So the meeting place of the tabernacle 326 00:19:54,939 –> 00:19:57,939 is now going to be upgraded to a dwelling place 327 00:19:57,939 –> 00:20:00,459 in a location that God himself will decide. 328 00:20:00,459 –> 00:20:02,760 Well later, of course, David discerned 329 00:20:02,760 –> 00:20:06,439 that that location was the city of Jerusalem. 330 00:20:06,439 –> 00:20:08,099 And that is why Solomon built 331 00:20:08,099 –> 00:20:10,020 the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem. 332 00:20:10,020 –> 00:20:11,979 And when that marvelous temple was built, 333 00:20:11,979 –> 00:20:13,119 do you remember what happened? 334 00:20:13,119 –> 00:20:16,579 The glory of the Lord came down in the cloud 335 00:20:17,660 –> 00:20:22,060 and all the people could see the visible evidence 336 00:20:22,060 –> 00:20:24,260 of the presence of almighty God 337 00:20:24,280 –> 00:20:26,760 in this place, the dwelling place of God. 338 00:20:26,760 –> 00:20:30,699 Here’s a place on earth where God actually is. 339 00:20:32,060 –> 00:20:34,739 He is present everywhere, we know that, 340 00:20:34,739 –> 00:20:36,900 but in a way that is hidden. 341 00:20:37,859 –> 00:20:41,199 Here is a place in which his presence is made known 342 00:20:41,199 –> 00:20:44,599 and it is made manifest, glorious. 343 00:20:45,439 –> 00:20:48,280 A dwelling place of God on earth. 344 00:20:49,939 –> 00:20:53,079 Then you follow the story of the temple, amazing story. 345 00:20:54,760 –> 00:20:56,959 God’s people sinned against him in various ways. 346 00:20:56,959 –> 00:20:59,319 By the time of King Manasseh, the worship of God 347 00:20:59,319 –> 00:21:03,219 in the temple had been replaced with astrology. 348 00:21:03,219 –> 00:21:07,040 You can read about that in second Kings chapter 21. 349 00:21:08,280 –> 00:21:12,599 Astrological signs engraved on the walls 350 00:21:12,599 –> 00:21:16,000 of the temple of the holy God of Israel. 351 00:21:17,520 –> 00:21:20,119 And so you know what happens, the glory of the Lord departs. 352 00:21:20,119 –> 00:21:21,839 That’s in the prophecy of Ezekiel. 353 00:21:22,699 –> 00:21:25,079 The temple eventually is overrun, 354 00:21:25,079 –> 00:21:27,380 God’s people are moved out of the land altogether. 355 00:21:27,380 –> 00:21:28,619 They become exiles. 356 00:21:28,619 –> 00:21:30,400 For 70 years they’re out there, 357 00:21:30,400 –> 00:21:32,520 then God brings them back in the time of Ezra 358 00:21:32,520 –> 00:21:35,000 and Nehemiah and they rebuild the temple, 359 00:21:35,000 –> 00:21:36,280 but they haven’t got the resources 360 00:21:36,280 –> 00:21:38,119 to build a great temple like Solomon’s, 361 00:21:38,119 –> 00:21:39,560 so it’s just a little temple. 362 00:21:40,560 –> 00:21:43,500 And a fascinating reference, the younger folks 363 00:21:43,500 –> 00:21:45,920 are all cheering about this marvelous temple going up. 364 00:21:45,920 –> 00:21:47,439 The older folks who could remember 365 00:21:47,439 –> 00:21:49,959 the one that was there before were weeping. 366 00:21:49,959 –> 00:21:51,359 Is this all we can do now? 367 00:21:52,280 –> 00:21:55,239 And when they dedicated it, no cloud of glory 368 00:21:55,239 –> 00:21:56,680 came and filled that temple. 369 00:21:58,140 –> 00:21:59,619 They had the word of the prophets 370 00:21:59,619 –> 00:22:02,219 and they were looking for what God would do 371 00:22:02,219 –> 00:22:04,140 to create a dwelling place. 372 00:22:05,880 –> 00:22:08,020 And so the prophets at the end of the Old Testament 373 00:22:08,020 –> 00:22:09,979 like Malachi are speaking like this. 374 00:22:09,979 –> 00:22:11,880 They’re saying, they’re looking for the day 375 00:22:11,880 –> 00:22:15,060 when God will suddenly come to his temple. 376 00:22:16,739 –> 00:22:17,979 And then one day he did. 377 00:22:18,900 –> 00:22:22,040 Remember how Jesus walks into the temple 378 00:22:22,040 –> 00:22:24,380 and you remember what he found? 379 00:22:24,380 –> 00:22:28,219 How the leadership of the temple had lost 380 00:22:28,219 –> 00:22:30,920 their vision of ministry to the nations. 381 00:22:32,619 –> 00:22:34,300 No longer a house of prayer. 382 00:22:35,660 –> 00:22:39,420 And Jesus drives out the traders and then later he says, 383 00:22:39,420 –> 00:22:42,540 I tell you on this temple not one stone 384 00:22:42,540 –> 00:22:44,900 will be left on top of another. 385 00:22:45,020 –> 00:22:47,500 And in the year A.D. 70, in come the Romans, 386 00:22:47,500 –> 00:22:50,880 destroy the temple what Jesus says comes true 387 00:22:50,880 –> 00:22:52,839 and it’s never been rebuilt. 388 00:22:55,500 –> 00:22:58,099 So where’s the meeting place with God? 389 00:23:00,500 –> 00:23:02,400 Well Jesus said something else, do you remember? 390 00:23:02,400 –> 00:23:05,040 He said, destroy this temple 391 00:23:06,099 –> 00:23:08,380 and I will raise it up in three days. 392 00:23:08,380 –> 00:23:10,660 He wasn’t referring to the building. 393 00:23:10,660 –> 00:23:12,900 He was referring to himself, to his own flesh. 394 00:23:12,900 –> 00:23:14,819 You see the huge significance of that? 395 00:23:15,339 –> 00:23:16,780 But the Lord Jesus Christ is saying, 396 00:23:16,780 –> 00:23:18,780 you’ve thought that there was just one location 397 00:23:18,780 –> 00:23:20,439 on the earth in which you could have a true meeting 398 00:23:20,439 –> 00:23:22,739 with God, I’m telling you, I am the place 399 00:23:22,739 –> 00:23:24,219 where you meet with God. 400 00:23:24,219 –> 00:23:26,619 No one comes to the father except by me. 401 00:23:26,619 –> 00:23:28,380 You meet with the father through me 402 00:23:28,380 –> 00:23:33,380 because in Jesus all the fullness of God dwells bodily. 403 00:23:34,260 –> 00:23:38,959 That’s Colossians in chapter two and verse nine. 404 00:23:39,300 –> 00:23:44,300 And then Jesus went on to say something extraordinary. 405 00:23:46,239 –> 00:23:49,760 John 14, he says this, if anyone loves me, 406 00:23:50,979 –> 00:23:52,319 he will obey my teaching 407 00:23:54,040 –> 00:23:57,479 and my Father and I will come to him 408 00:23:58,520 –> 00:24:01,239 and make our home with him. 409 00:24:01,239 –> 00:24:02,579 Did you hear that? 410 00:24:02,579 –> 00:24:07,579 Make our home with him. 411 00:24:09,119 –> 00:24:11,920 If you come to love and trust the Lord Jesus Christ, 412 00:24:11,920 –> 00:24:13,839 here’s the New Testament promise 413 00:24:15,140 –> 00:24:17,819 that the Father and the Son, 414 00:24:17,819 –> 00:24:20,619 through the agency of the Spirit, 415 00:24:20,619 –> 00:24:25,400 will truly come to make home in you, 416 00:24:25,400 –> 00:24:27,040 which is why later in the New Testament 417 00:24:27,040 –> 00:24:28,780 you find the apostle Paul saying, 418 00:24:28,780 –> 00:24:31,640 do you not realize that your own body 419 00:24:31,640 –> 00:24:34,500 is a temple of the Holy Spirit? 420 00:24:34,500 –> 00:24:35,319 That’s what you are. 421 00:24:35,319 –> 00:24:38,520 If you’re in Christ, this really is true of you. 422 00:24:38,560 –> 00:24:41,959 That’s why Paul says I’ve been crucified with Christ 423 00:24:41,959 –> 00:24:43,680 and I no longer live. 424 00:24:43,680 –> 00:24:45,239 But here’s the amazing thing. 425 00:24:45,239 –> 00:24:49,900 Christ lives in me. 426 00:24:51,319 –> 00:24:53,859 What was true of the Old Testament temple 427 00:24:53,859 –> 00:24:57,699 has become a living reality in me. 428 00:24:59,160 –> 00:25:00,119 Staggering. 429 00:25:01,760 –> 00:25:04,800 So now the church is a gathering of believers 430 00:25:04,800 –> 00:25:06,760 called out by God for worship 431 00:25:06,760 –> 00:25:08,920 and sent out by God to serve 432 00:25:08,920 –> 00:25:11,180 when believers gather, Christ is present. 433 00:25:11,180 –> 00:25:12,920 Why, because you if you’re in Christ 434 00:25:12,920 –> 00:25:14,800 bring the presence of Christ with you 435 00:25:14,800 –> 00:25:17,319 and you take the presence of Christ with you. 436 00:25:17,319 –> 00:25:19,500 Of course when two or three are gathered together 437 00:25:19,500 –> 00:25:21,780 in the name of Jesus, there he is in the midst. 438 00:25:21,780 –> 00:25:24,040 He has to be because if they are in Christ, 439 00:25:24,040 –> 00:25:26,439 each of the two or three bring the presence of Christ 440 00:25:26,439 –> 00:25:27,819 when they gather together. 441 00:25:29,239 –> 00:25:30,560 So what we’re learning here 442 00:25:30,560 –> 00:25:34,420 is that Christ makes his home on Earth with his people. 443 00:25:35,359 –> 00:25:36,939 That everything that was pointed to 444 00:25:36,939 –> 00:25:38,520 with regards to the temple 445 00:25:39,459 –> 00:25:43,400 is actually fulfilled in believers 446 00:25:43,400 –> 00:25:44,880 who are being built together 447 00:25:44,880 –> 00:25:47,540 into a holy temple we are told here, 448 00:25:47,540 –> 00:25:51,420 a dwelling place in which God lives by his holy spirit. 449 00:25:51,420 –> 00:25:52,939 Here’s the amazing truth, 450 00:25:52,939 –> 00:25:55,060 Christ makes his home with us on Earth 451 00:25:56,459 –> 00:26:01,359 until he brings us to make our home with him in Heaven. 452 00:26:02,439 –> 00:26:03,979 Amazing truth of the building. 453 00:26:05,400 –> 00:26:07,819 The church is a building of people, 454 00:26:07,819 –> 00:26:09,260 it’s a work in progress, 455 00:26:10,160 –> 00:26:13,500 and it is a home in preparation. 456 00:26:15,780 –> 00:26:17,040 Now, here’s the last thing here 457 00:26:17,040 –> 00:26:18,380 by way of application. 458 00:26:18,380 –> 00:26:20,339 How are we to use this truth? 459 00:26:20,339 –> 00:26:21,859 What use is all this? 460 00:26:21,859 –> 00:26:24,140 What difference will it make to you this week? 461 00:26:26,579 –> 00:26:28,819 Let me suggest a couple of things. 462 00:26:29,319 –> 00:26:34,319 Use this truth to help you grow in patience. 463 00:26:36,560 –> 00:26:37,939 I don’t know if you’ve ever thought about this, 464 00:26:37,939 –> 00:26:41,260 but God uses two imperfect environments 465 00:26:41,260 –> 00:26:45,260 to shape in believers the likeness of Jesus Christ, 466 00:26:45,260 –> 00:26:47,560 two environments, they’re both very imperfect. 467 00:26:48,959 –> 00:26:51,060 The two places that Christ will work most obviously 468 00:26:51,060 –> 00:26:53,339 to shape you in his likeness as a believer 469 00:26:53,339 –> 00:26:55,640 are number one, the family, 470 00:26:55,640 –> 00:26:56,739 and number two, the church. 471 00:26:56,739 –> 00:26:58,800 They’re both very imperfect environments. 472 00:26:59,719 –> 00:27:00,560 The family and the church, why? 473 00:27:00,560 –> 00:27:02,800 Because these are the places where as a believer 474 00:27:02,800 –> 00:27:05,300 you rub up against others. 475 00:27:07,300 –> 00:27:11,599 And he will use the experience of that 476 00:27:11,599 –> 00:27:16,599 to rub the rough edges that are around you 477 00:27:16,880 –> 00:27:21,880 as a living stone off so that you in his mercy 478 00:27:21,920 –> 00:27:24,439 may take your full place in this glorious 479 00:27:25,660 –> 00:27:27,260 and holy and wonderful building 480 00:27:27,599 –> 00:27:30,599 home of Almighty God forever. 481 00:27:30,599 –> 00:27:32,400 Think about yourself as a living stone. 482 00:27:32,400 –> 00:27:33,959 You’re hacked out of the quarry. 483 00:27:33,959 –> 00:27:36,040 And what does the builder do next? 484 00:27:36,040 –> 00:27:38,400 He throws you in a barrel along with some other stones. 485 00:27:38,400 –> 00:27:39,640 That you immediately feel, hey, 486 00:27:39,640 –> 00:27:42,719 this is rough, there are edges all around me. 487 00:27:42,719 –> 00:27:44,400 Then what does he do? 488 00:27:44,400 –> 00:27:46,239 He takes a chisel and he takes a hammer 489 00:27:46,239 –> 00:27:48,800 and he starts chipping away around the edges 490 00:27:49,680 –> 00:27:51,479 and he’s shaping you. 491 00:27:51,479 –> 00:27:53,300 And none of that is comfortable. 492 00:27:54,280 –> 00:27:58,359 God does that in his church. 493 00:27:59,540 –> 00:28:00,380 Here’s what happens. 494 00:28:00,380 –> 00:28:01,819 You ask to grow in patience 495 00:28:01,819 –> 00:28:02,920 and what does God do? 496 00:28:04,140 –> 00:28:08,160 He brings someone utterly exasperating into your life. 497 00:28:08,160 –> 00:28:09,459 That ever happened to you? 498 00:28:10,359 –> 00:28:11,739 You need to grow in courage. 499 00:28:11,739 –> 00:28:14,439 You say, Lord, I need to grow in courage 500 00:28:14,439 –> 00:28:17,520 and God brings someone who’s quite intimidating to you 501 00:28:17,520 –> 00:28:19,300 into your life 502 00:28:20,479 –> 00:28:23,239 One writer says that Christians need the church 503 00:28:23,239 –> 00:28:26,560 for its problems as well as its blessings. 504 00:28:26,560 –> 00:28:28,000 That’s true. 505 00:28:28,000 –> 00:28:30,219 Because part of what God is doing 506 00:28:30,219 –> 00:28:32,359 in the imperfection of his church 507 00:28:32,359 –> 00:28:36,079 is the rubbing of our rough edges. 508 00:28:36,079 –> 00:28:40,239 One writer describes other believers as God’s abrasives. 509 00:28:41,479 –> 00:28:42,760 I like that. 510 00:28:42,760 –> 00:28:43,579 That’s helpful. 511 00:28:43,579 –> 00:28:45,199 That helps me. 512 00:28:45,199 –> 00:28:47,160 How in the world are the rough edges 513 00:28:47,160 –> 00:28:49,160 ever going to come off you 514 00:28:49,439 –> 00:28:53,099 if you never come up against God’s abrasives? 515 00:28:54,920 –> 00:28:57,280 That’s why loner Christians 516 00:28:57,280 –> 00:29:00,280 end up with all the rough edges still on. 517 00:29:00,280 –> 00:29:04,359 They never get close enough to the means that God would use 518 00:29:04,359 –> 00:29:06,319 to really shape them 519 00:29:06,319 –> 00:29:10,479 to be all that they can be in Christ’s glorious building. 520 00:29:10,479 –> 00:29:12,400 The church is the crucible 521 00:29:12,400 –> 00:29:17,280 in which we learn patience and endurance and forgiveness. 522 00:29:17,280 –> 00:29:19,599 And we need the church with its problems 523 00:29:19,599 –> 00:29:20,800 as well as its blessings. 524 00:29:20,800 –> 00:29:22,479 You need the church with its problems 525 00:29:22,479 –> 00:29:23,760 as well as its blessings. 526 00:29:24,680 –> 00:29:26,719 You never grow otherwise. 527 00:29:26,719 –> 00:29:29,359 This is the place where it happens. 528 00:29:29,359 –> 00:29:32,040 The family and the church. 529 00:29:32,959 –> 00:29:34,199 You’ve all heard this line, 530 00:29:34,199 –> 00:29:37,400 you know, if you find a perfect church, 531 00:29:37,400 –> 00:29:38,959 don’t go there because, 532 00:29:38,959 –> 00:29:41,560 you can finish it, you’ll spoil it, right? 533 00:29:41,560 –> 00:29:43,880 Well, I’ve got a new version of that. 534 00:29:43,880 –> 00:29:46,359 If you ever find a perfect church, 535 00:29:46,400 –> 00:29:50,560 don’t go there because it won’t do you any good. 536 00:29:51,880 –> 00:29:53,640 There’s no abrasives. 537 00:29:53,640 –> 00:29:54,719 The perfect church. 538 00:29:55,800 –> 00:29:57,880 There will be none in heaven, 539 00:29:57,880 –> 00:30:00,560 but we need them here on Earth. 540 00:30:01,760 –> 00:30:03,479 It is through the trials in our lives 541 00:30:03,479 –> 00:30:05,239 that Christ sanctifies us. 542 00:30:06,119 –> 00:30:08,839 And he does that primarily in the family 543 00:30:08,839 –> 00:30:10,079 and in the church. 544 00:30:11,640 –> 00:30:13,280 I told you before the lovely story 545 00:30:13,280 –> 00:30:15,959 that Joseph Ton, the Romanian Christian pastor 546 00:30:16,000 –> 00:30:18,040 told to Karn and I in our home, 547 00:30:18,040 –> 00:30:20,040 this man was imprisoned for his faith, 548 00:30:20,920 –> 00:30:23,119 and one evening, he was with us for some time, 549 00:30:23,119 –> 00:30:26,959 I got to ask him the question I wanted to ask, 550 00:30:26,959 –> 00:30:29,839 Joseph tell me about being a pastor in prison. 551 00:30:31,439 –> 00:30:32,880 This dear and godly man told us 552 00:30:32,880 –> 00:30:34,280 all kinds of stories that night, 553 00:30:34,280 –> 00:30:36,040 and one of the stories that he told us 554 00:30:36,040 –> 00:30:40,000 was about one of the guards. 555 00:30:40,000 –> 00:30:42,599 Joseph had made it his 556 00:30:43,599 –> 00:30:46,339 ask the guards about their children 557 00:30:46,339 –> 00:30:51,339 so that he could pray for them as well as for the guards, 558 00:30:51,339 –> 00:30:52,920 which of course was mind-blowing 559 00:30:52,920 –> 00:30:54,859 to these guys who are very harsh men. 560 00:30:56,160 –> 00:30:58,199 And one day, one of the guards said to Joseph, 561 00:30:58,199 –> 00:30:59,400 why is it that you are different 562 00:30:59,400 –> 00:31:00,479 from these other prisoners? 563 00:31:00,479 –> 00:31:01,939 These guys all hate us, 564 00:31:03,520 –> 00:31:06,439 and you are praying for me 565 00:31:06,439 –> 00:31:07,439 and for my children. 566 00:31:09,060 –> 00:31:10,719 And Joseph said this one line to him, 567 00:31:10,719 –> 00:31:15,719 he said, well, to me, you are God’s stone-cutter. 568 00:31:19,959 –> 00:31:24,420 To me, you are God’s stone-cutter. 569 00:31:26,119 –> 00:31:28,640 Now friend, who are the stone-cutters in your life? 570 00:31:30,619 –> 00:31:33,060 Who is God using in this painful process 571 00:31:33,060 –> 00:31:35,479 of chipping off those rough edges 572 00:31:35,479 –> 00:31:37,880 so that you become all that you can be 573 00:31:37,880 –> 00:31:39,760 in the everlasting purpose 574 00:31:39,780 –> 00:31:41,479 of God. 575 00:31:41,479 –> 00:31:43,819 He does that painful work in the family 576 00:31:45,160 –> 00:31:48,280 and he does that work in the church 577 00:31:48,280 –> 00:31:49,760 and it’s for his everlasting glory. 578 00:31:49,760 –> 00:31:53,079 So use this to learn patience 579 00:31:53,079 –> 00:31:56,119 and not to become someone who’s too easily discouraged 580 00:31:56,119 –> 00:31:57,599 whenever there’s a difficulty. 581 00:31:57,599 –> 00:31:59,239 You’ll never endure in ministry 582 00:31:59,239 –> 00:32:03,400 unless you get this clear and grasp it. 583 00:32:03,400 –> 00:32:04,619 Try to grasp it today. 584 00:32:04,619 –> 00:32:07,979 Use this secondly to defend against sin. 585 00:32:07,979 –> 00:32:09,540 The whole building rises to become 586 00:32:09,540 –> 00:32:11,780 a holy temple in the Lord. 587 00:32:11,780 –> 00:32:13,540 The whole point of a building, of course, 588 00:32:13,540 –> 00:32:14,900 is that it is visible 589 00:32:14,900 –> 00:32:18,060 and the church is the visible home of the invisible God. 590 00:32:18,060 –> 00:32:20,260 We bear his name, we have his presence 591 00:32:20,260 –> 00:32:22,219 and you’re going to go out into the world. 592 00:32:22,219 –> 00:32:24,380 We gather for worship, we’re sent out to serve. 593 00:32:24,380 –> 00:32:26,219 You’re gonna go out into the world this week 594 00:32:26,219 –> 00:32:27,959 and you bear the name of Christ. 595 00:32:27,959 –> 00:32:29,939 You are a member of the body of Christ. 596 00:32:29,939 –> 00:32:31,819 You are part of the building of Christ 597 00:32:31,819 –> 00:32:33,420 and you are going to be tempted. 598 00:32:34,420 –> 00:32:35,900 You’re gonna be tempted to do something 599 00:32:35,900 –> 00:32:36,939 you know you shouldn’t do. 600 00:32:36,979 –> 00:32:38,739 You’re going to be tempted to say something 601 00:32:38,739 –> 00:32:40,699 you know you shouldn’t say. 602 00:32:40,699 –> 00:32:42,520 You’re going to find that there’s an impulse 603 00:32:42,520 –> 00:32:44,900 that comes to you to cultivate a sour spirit 604 00:32:44,900 –> 00:32:48,479 and all the rest of it and to defend against that, 605 00:32:48,479 –> 00:32:52,060 I want to encourage you to say to yourself this, 606 00:32:52,060 –> 00:32:52,979 how can I do this? 607 00:32:54,380 –> 00:32:59,380 How can I say this when I am a living stone 608 00:33:01,020 –> 00:33:05,459 in the holy temple of almighty God? 609 00:33:07,300 –> 00:33:10,260 We’ll help you to defend against sin, 610 00:33:11,400 –> 00:33:12,540 and here’s the very last thing, 611 00:33:12,540 –> 00:33:16,300 use this to increase your joy, 612 00:33:16,300 –> 00:33:18,619 use it to increase your joy. 613 00:33:18,619 –> 00:33:21,619 We say well, building site. 614 00:33:22,459 –> 00:33:24,560 Sure I’m in love with a building site. 615 00:33:26,280 –> 00:33:27,819 Well, this place was a building site, 616 00:33:27,819 –> 00:33:29,859 it’s pretty good now isn’t it? 617 00:33:29,859 –> 00:33:31,900 What a joy when the building is complete 618 00:33:32,900 –> 00:33:34,459 and to use that analogy, 619 00:33:34,459 –> 00:33:37,180 you see there is coming a day 620 00:33:37,180 –> 00:33:40,199 when all of the work of Jesus Christ will be complete 621 00:33:41,920 –> 00:33:46,920 and for you to be part of what Christ brings together 622 00:33:47,300 –> 00:33:50,520 for the everlasting glory of God 623 00:33:50,520 –> 00:33:54,079 will be an inexpressively glorious joy, 624 00:33:55,020 –> 00:33:58,859 and then expressively glorious joy will be wonderful 625 00:33:59,800 –> 00:34:01,140 and that day is coming. 626 00:34:02,420 –> 00:34:06,660 Temple in which God dwells 627 00:34:06,660 –> 00:34:10,060 by his holy spirit 628 00:34:10,979 –> 00:34:12,699 and that’s why right at the end of the Bible, 629 00:34:12,699 –> 00:34:14,260 you find the Apostle John 630 00:34:14,260 –> 00:34:17,060 seeing all of the redeemed company of God’s people, 631 00:34:17,060 –> 00:34:19,739 the whole church brought together 632 00:34:19,739 –> 00:34:22,300 in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ 633 00:34:22,300 –> 00:34:26,360 and then he hears a voice from the throne that says, 634 00:34:26,439 –> 00:34:31,320 now, the dwelling of God is with men, 635 00:34:32,959 –> 00:34:36,800 Now, we’re in the presence of God 636 00:34:36,800 –> 00:34:38,479 with great joy forevermore 637 00:34:38,479 –> 00:34:39,939 and I promise you this, 638 00:34:41,080 –> 00:34:44,439 that you will be more at home in the presence of Christ 639 00:34:44,439 –> 00:34:47,879 as a believer fully redeemed in heaven, 640 00:34:47,879 –> 00:34:49,320 you’ll be more at home there 641 00:34:49,320 –> 00:34:53,040 than at any time and any place you have ever been 642 00:34:53,040 –> 00:34:54,679 in your entire life in this world, 643 00:34:54,679 –> 00:34:57,679 you will be more an home with Christ 644 00:34:57,679 –> 00:34:59,760 and He will be at home with you, 645 00:34:59,760 –> 00:35:02,540 nothing about us will grieve Him on that day 646 00:35:04,459 –> 00:35:06,159 because His word will be complete. 647 00:35:07,479 –> 00:35:09,560 You see why I say I want to encourage you 648 00:35:09,560 –> 00:35:13,320 to see that to be part of this that Christ is doing, 649 00:35:13,320 –> 00:35:18,100 the church is the greatest privilege of our lives 650 00:35:19,620 –> 00:35:21,060 this side of heaven. 651 00:35:21,060 –> 00:35:22,520 Let’s pray together. 652 00:35:22,520 –> 00:35:24,280 Father, please open our eyes 653 00:35:24,300 –> 00:35:28,399 to truth and to live in the light of it 654 00:35:28,399 –> 00:35:31,560 and to shape our lives around it. 655 00:35:31,560 –> 00:35:34,659 To that end, work by your spirit 656 00:35:34,659 –> 00:35:38,060 through Jesus Christ in whose name we pray, Amen. 657 00:35:41,879 –> 00:35:43,699 You’ve been listening to a sermon 658 00:35:44,699 –> 00:35:45,540 with Pastor Colin Smith of Open the Bible. 659 00:35:45,540 –> 00:35:50,080 To contact us, call us at 1-877-OPEN-365 660 00:35:50,080 –> 00:35:53,280 or visit our website OPENTHEBIBLE.ORG.