(Strength And Beauty Are In His Temple)
By Pastor Chris Oyakhilome
TO THE BIBLE: “Honor and majesty surround him; strength and beauty are in his Temple.”
(Psalm 96:6 TLB)
LET’S TALK
David loved God and desired to build Him a magnificent temple. However, the Lord didn’t let him build the temple, because he (David) was a man of war; rather, it was his son, Solomon, whom God chose to eventually build the temple.
Nonetheless, God gave David the designs and instructions for the building, and David made elaborate plans and detailed arrangements for the building of the temple. He laid aside lots of gold and silver to be used in building “God’s house.” Why? The answer is what we read in our opening verse: “…strength and beauty are in His Temple” which we are today (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
1 Peter 1:25 says, “You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 5:30 says, “For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones.” The Church is His body and temple.
So, when Jesus said in Matthew 16:18, “I will build my church,” He was talking about the body of Christ—and that’s you and me and every one of your brothers and sisters in Christ all over the world. But how does He build His church when He’s gone to heaven?
The Bible says, “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:11-12). The word, “edifying” here is “building.” So, the purpose of the five-fold ministry gifts is to build the body of Christ.
He’s building His body through us. As we all commit to soul-winning, leading men and women to Christ in our respective spheres of contact, we’re building God’s powerful superstructure!
Moreover, as a member of that body, it doesn’t matter where you’ve been; you’re being built strong; your faith is growing, and you’re getting stronger by the day! Glory to God!
Go Deeper: Ephesians 2:19-22; Acts 20:32
Speak: Dear Father, thank you for making me an effective soul winner, building lives with your Word into a magnificent temple, where your glory, majesty and honour can be displayed for the world to see, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
Daily Bible Reading: ONE YEAR Hebrews 2, Jeremiah 1-2
TWO YEAR John 9:8-17, 1 Chronicles 2
Act: Go out today and talk to at least five people about the Lord Jesus. You can start your discussion with your salvation story.
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