"Today you are you,
That is truer than true.
There is no one alive
Who is youer than you."
Dr. Seuss
Friday, May 19, 2017
Sunday, May 7, 2017
The Building of a Temple
I find life as a Christian to be an awesome privilege, an
amazing adventure, and an awful lot of hard work. It is not easy to maintain spiritual growth
as I contend with my brokenness, manage my responsibilities, and negotiate
relationships. And although I very much
appreciate the support and active help of the indwelling Holy Spirit, the fact
remains that I have work to do.
In his letter to the Philippians, the Apostle Paul has this
reminder for them: “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now,
not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own
salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works
in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” The mysterious synergy of the Holy Spirit and
my own will is an incredibly powerful concept, but it still leaves me wondering
what it is that the Holy Spirit does and what it is that I am supposed to
do.
It has recently occurred to me, though, that the question is
not what I do, but rather how I do it. Do I approach my Christian life as one of the
builders of the Tower of Babel or as one of the builders of King Solomon’s
Temple?
If we look at the story of the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11,
the people chose to build for themselves
a city with a tower that reached into heaven with the expressed purpose of making
a name for themselves. The entire operation was their plan, for
their purposes, and for their glory.
The building of the Temple by King Solomon was almost
certainly a project of much greater proportions. But it differed from the very beginning. Solomon initiated his project in response to
the LORD’s giving him rest on every side of his kingdom, for the expressed
purpose of building a house for the name of the LORD his God, and according to
God’s plan. While Solomon managed the
project—for seven years, the entire operation was according to God’s plan, for
His purposes, and for His glory.
I find that the comparison between the Tower of Babel and
the building of the Temple by King Solomon is compelling as I approach my own
Christian life. It allows me to
appreciate that God has made me to be intense, energetic, and focused even as
it reminds me to submit those gifts to His sovereign will and to use them for
His purposes and His glory.
It is easy to think that the building of my life pales in
comparison to the building of the Temple.
I do not have King Solomon’s resources!
It is impossible to imagine that my life will be any bit as glorious as
the Temple. But the Temple was not
eternal. It was destroyed, as was its
successor. My life—and yours—is
eternal. In fact, the Apostle Paul
taught the believers in Corinth that each of them was a temple of the Lord,
filled by the Holy Spirit, and holy to Him.
May we not take lightly the privilege and responsibility of
working out our salvation under the direction and power of the Holy Spirit, as
we become eternal holy temples to the glory of the Lord our God.
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