The Place Where The Name Dwells: Part Four

So, why are the Tabernacle and the Temple relevant to believers today? I'm glad you asked. The reason that the Tabernacle and the Temple are so important, is because they give us specific insight in to the God's temple today. Wait, did they knock down the Dome of the Rock, and rebuild a the Temple, and I missed it? Not exactly, look at what Paul says in I Corinthians 3:16. The NIV put it this way, "Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?" The believer is the temple of God, and He has made His home there. You see, the same place where, as I Chronicles 13:6 puts it, the Name is called is now in the heart of the child of God, through the person of the Holy Spirit.

Pay attention to this, when you go through the book of Acts, and you see the phrase "filled with the Holy Spirit," whether one or many, it is just like when God's glory filled the Tabernacle and the Temple. You, dear Christian, are the place where God chose for His name to dwell! The glory of the Temple dwells in you, when you are yielded to Him; so that there may be a temple of God on every street corner. Why do you think the angels rejoice over one who comes to Christ? It is, that there is one more temple that may be filled with God's glory.

That is why, when you carry the name of Christ, it is of the utmost importance that you carry His name well. It is a simple two step process: go to the Book and put in practice what the Book says. There is no room for living like a pagan; and there is no reason to call yourself Christian if you live with no regard for God's will. I will make you this promise, though, if you meet with God on His terms, He will change your life and you won't ever want to go back to the way things used to be. It all starts by yielding your life to His.

God bless you all.

The Place Where The Name Dwells: Part Three

The oxen stumbled and upset the cart, Uzza reached out to keep the Ark from falling, none the less, God struck him dead. David in anger named the place Perez-uzza, literally breakthrough against Uzza. Well intentioned though he was, you have a sinful man touching the place where God is enthroned. Think about it, when God's glory filled the Tabernacle, Moses couldn't even go in; and when the priest came out of the Holy Place of the Temple, the cloud - God's glory, filled the house and ran the priests out of it. You see, sinful hands grabbed what Moses only touched under God's direction.

David was angry, and in the very next verse, he was afraid. Why? He full of zeal and completely off base on the method of his service. But, his heart was in the right place, you might say. No! It was not. Not until he was humbled by God; he then took to the Scriptures and learned how to please God. I think, as I am writing this, about all of those times that I had a heart full of zeal and a head full of nonsense. Hurt, embarrassed and just plain old fashioned shamed; but what was the end result, the same as for David, I had to learn by study of the Scriptures how to please God. That is exactly what is meant by II Timothy 2:15 when Paul tells him if he studies, he won't ever need to be ashamed.

Look, when your two-year old first scribbles a circle with one or two dots and a "u", you're overjoyed; but, when he's old enough for school and daddy's "portrait" is still a cyclops, you get concerned about the child's development. It is only in Christendom that a person comes year after year and no one is bothered by a complete lack of development. The fifty year old, who has been a member of the church for years, and can't even make it through a church service without losing his temper; and yet, everyone clears the way for him, instead of someone meeting him face to face and telling him to stop acting like a three year old. But, that's why we pay the pastor. Bologna! It is your job good Christian!

More tomorrow, loved ones.

Additional Scriptures: I Kings 8, Exodus 40 and I Chronicle 13

The Place Where The Name Dwells: Part Two

The pandering that began in the late 70's, to get someone to belay their beer drinking and lawn mowing to the afternoon, so that they might come to church and marvel at their avant-garde pastor, who is more than happy for them to come to church dressed like a slob; has only a legacy of irreverence: so much so, that it has modern day pastors asking the lost what they would like to see in a church service. Since when, have the lost ever been called to counsel the servants of God on anything?! It is that same mind set that has left this latest generation wandering in ignorance about the things of God (not that I fault this latest generation.) Look, when you throw a call to personal holiness out of Christianity: all that is left is people who act like pagans and call themselves Christian.

You may think that I have gone overboard, but what I am describing is outward signs that indicate what is taking place on the inside. Let me prove my point. When a boy likes a girl; all of the sudden he cares, from out of nowhere, what he smells like, whether or not he is wearing his good jeans or if his hair looks right. Why? Because he is going to be around this girl, and he cares what she thinks of him. He wants to present himself as someone she might like to spend time around, and what he thinks is a covert message, is actually his desire to make that as easy of a decision for her as possible. So, from sweaty smelly boy to prince charming, my point: what is happening on the inside, is effecting what is happening on the outside.

I hope that you understand, that this is about the condition of the heart. There is the letter of the law, and there is the spirit of the law. All of Israel was celebrating and worshipping God with all their might, when God struck Uzza dead for touching the Ark of the Covenant. It isn't that they weren't trying to please God, by bringing the Ark to Jerusalem; but it is, that they did not first go to His Word and read and find out how to please him. They were worshipping in ignorance of what God had already commanded, and if they would have from the beginning searched the Scriptures and followed them, this tragedy would not have happened.

More tomorrow, loved ones.

The Place Where The Name Dwells

If you go all the way back to Deuteronomy 12:11, you will find that God would chose a place among the tribes of Israel for His name to dwell. If you go further back to Exodus 25:22, you will find that the place that God would meet with His people would be above the Mercy Seat from between the two cherubims. If you go even further back to when He called to Moses from the burning bush, and Moses asked, Whom shall I say sent me? The answer was the I AM sent you. Now, what all this it tending to, is the fact that there is great importance and reverence attached to the name of God; so much so that the scribes used to take a ritual bath before writing His name.

I am becoming one of the few who remembers the time when almost everything was closed on Sundays, and I am also part of the last generation to have a set of Sunday clothes. I remember as a boy that there was in practice, the wearing of one's Sunday best. I also remember the time when, in the face of waning attendance, pastors began making the concession of "we would rather have you here in cutoffs and a t-shirt than not at all." Suddenly, the guy who goes to work in a shirt and tie, shows up on Sunday in sandals and a t-shirt. But that's legalism! you say; as opposed to what? That's right, hedonism. Look, if you are waiting for me to sell you a God who is happy with whatever you decide He gets in one hour on a Sunday: it ain't going to happen!

Get this straight, if you do not learn reverence for God, you will remain a stunted and baby Christian, or truthfully nothing like Christ at all. Ask yourself on a given Sunday, "Am I going to meet with the Almighty, or am I just going to see my friends and do some singing?" Jesus told the woman at the well, that God was seeking those who worship Him in spirit and in truth. So please tell me, how is it that we can worship God in spirit and truth, and remain completely unchanged in our whole manner of conversation? How is it that we prepare to worship, and neglect to chose clothes, set aside offerings or even gas up our cars to drive to church?

Alas, time has escaped me. More tomorrow loved ones.

What it means to be called a Christian

I've been thinking a lot about the term "Christian." I once read an article that said, "if you can fog a mirror, you can be a contractor." I don't mean to cast aspersions at contractors, but that seems to be today's requirement for calling oneself a Christian. The fact is, there has been a tremendous cheapening of what it means to be called a Christian. Indeed, I think that the root of the problem stems from calling ourselves Christians. The disciples were called Christians at Antioch from outside their ranks. It is sad to say that the cause of Christ would be helped if some would stop telling people they are Christians; because, in every way, their lives deny it.

Let me lay out my position, for the sake of clarity. First off, being saved and being baptized does not automatically make you a Christian; it makes you a convert to Christianity. That is a good thing, such a good thing that the angels rejoice over it! But let me make this clear, you can be saved and baptized, and still not be a Christian. I have seen over and over again good Christians, whose children were pagans. They came forward and they were baptized, they said all the right things; but as soon as they were out of mommy and daddy's sight, their whole personality changed, and they could care less about God. Underpinning all of this, is that fact that we all eventually answer for our self, and no matter what our mouths say: our actions tell the tale.

If your life is not lived any different from a pagan, odds are really good that you are a pagan. But I'm so and so's kid: who cares, you don't get a pass based on pedigree, accomplishments or church membership. The question at hand is, do you follow Christ? You see, that is why they called the disciples in Antioch Christians; because, they were know for behaving like Christ. In fact, I don't think that it is a bad idea, to put our actions to the test and see if anyone calls us Christian. You are not going to succeed as a Christian, without attending to the things of Christ. Is He at the heart of what makes you tick?

You may call yourself Christian, but it is your actions that determine whether or not what you say is true. Some of this may be borne out of frustration; but honestly, it would be helpful to me as a minister, if people would just line up with the team that they are playing for. That may sound awful, but it is honest. I want a revival in this country, and I am, frankly, sick of trying to encourage people to try what it is they profess to believe. Here is the cold hard fact of the matter: if people went to the Book, and the Book changed people, we would see a revival in this country. Bless you all.

The Importance of Writing Letters

You probably know that in my last post, I stated the need to go to India (if not you can read about it in my last post, A new direction). I recently received an email from Brother Sankya, and he told me that is not a good time to visit, because of riots and turmoil in Hyderabad; and as a foreigner in India, he didn't think it would be safe for me. I still very much want to go, and I am also praying that the Lord will open up the opportunity: and I hope that you will pray with me. Now with all of that being said, I will move on to today's post.

We have all experienced that some days are just particularly hard, and many times in ways that aren't easily defined. Today started this way. On my better days, I get up read the Bible and pray, before I do anything else; and on days when I leave the house not having done so, I'm in for a rough ride. I could feel the pressure mounting as I made my way across town to cross things off of my to-do list. In short, I left the house without my armor on, and I was steadily paying for it. But, it all changed for me when I checked the mail.

If you have known me for a long time, you know that my strength is not sending cards and letters, in fact, it is a particular weakness. It certainly isn't, that I don't often think of loved ones far and near. It has been a failing on my part, to do something simple that people the world over have done for centuries: namely to write a letter, put it in an envelope, put a stamp on it and drop it in the box. There is a value in that simple task, that I am learning. You see, I am trying to mend my ways.

In a short time today, I was almost paralyzed by the troubles in my life; until I went to the mailbox. I found five letters in my box, and that is when my day changed. Those letters from fellow Christians refreshed my heart. I couldn't wait to read them all, and in no time my problems had greatly diminished in size. Now as to the importance of writing letters; I received those letters, because a week or two earlier I had sent letters. My point in all of this, is that we all need to encourage one another. So, if you need encouragement, take out a pen and a piece of paper, and encourage someone else.