Tag: Devotional

  • We are God’s temple

    The way we treat one another matters

    Saturday afternoon, I was reading in the Acts of the Apostles when a question hit me.

    In those days Peter stood up among the brothers (the company of persons was in all about 120) and said, “Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus. Acts 1:15-16 ESV

    What is the significance of 120? That number rang a bell with me.

    When King Solomon opened the new temple, it was accompanied by great ceremony, including…

    And when the priests came out of the Holy Place (for all the priests who were present had consecrated themselves, without regard to their divisions, and all the Levitical singers, Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun, their sons and kinsmen, arrayed in fine linen, with cymbals, harps, and lyres, stood east of the altar with 120 priests who were trumpeters; and it was the duty of the trumpeters and singers to make themselves heard in unison in praise and thanksgiving to the Lord), and when the song was raised, with trumpets and cymbals and other musical instruments, in praise to the Lord, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever,” the house, the house of the Lord, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God.2 Chronicles 5:11-15 ESV

    Jesus is the temple, but as His body, we form part of it. We no longer need to go to a special building to offer our sacrifices.

    The New Testament reinforces that idea elsewhere.

    The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name. Revelation 3:12 ESV

    As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 2:4-5 ESV

    Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 1 Corinthians 3:16 ESV

    The fact that we belong to Jesus and, as His body, form part of God’s temple has profound implications for the way we treat other believers.

    Jesus said

    By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. John 13:35 ESV

    When we are harsh or unforgiving toward believers, we defame the very temple of Christ. When we choose not to love other believers, we choose to turn our back on part of the temple.

    Ouch!

    I confess that as I typed that out, I realized that I had some repenting to do.  I can be critical and unloving toward other believers. I don’t like some believers for a variety of reasons, and I had to ask the Lord for forgiveness.

    As we learn to live with one another, to extend grace, forgiveness and love, let’s remember why we do it and give Him the glory.

    Kevin

    SUMMARY

    Reading about the 120 in Acts 1 led me to see that, as His body, we believers form part of God’s temple. That gives us every reason to extend grace, forgiveness and love to one another.

    TAKEAWAY

    You no longer need a special building to offer your sacrifices; as part of Christ’s body, you form part of His temple.

    Other believers form part of the temple too, so the way you treat them matters; your love for one another is how all people will know you are His disciples.

    As you learn to extend grace, forgiveness and love to other believers, remember why you do it and give Him the glory.

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  • Ruth, Rahab and the faithfulness of God

    Yesterday’s aquafit class was independent, which means we had no instructor. Those mornings are a combination workout/social time. Everyone works out and stays moving, but the pace is much slower, and we visit more. 

    As I visited people around the pool, I was reminded of how diverse our class is, background-wise.  The group is about 60% Caucasian and 40% South Asian, East Asian, Middle Eastern and African. Some are Christians. Some are not. Even the Christian group is diverse in denominational affiliation, theology and the circumstances of when and how they became believers.

    As I pondered that fact, my mind wandered back to an account in the Old Testament. You’re all likely familiar with the story of Ruth, the Moabite woman who married into an Israelite family. It’s worth rereading; it’s only four chapters.

    Ruth’s father-in-law and husband die, and her mother-in-law Naomi, unable to care for her, tells her to go back to her own people. Instead, she chooses to stay, look after her mother-in-law, and worship the God of Israel. In a remarkable redemption story, a relative marries her, and she eventually becomes part of the lineage of Jesus.

    That whole story is astounding. We see her faithfulness and God’s faithfulness. A non-Jew in the line that produced Jesus reminds us of God’s faithfulness to all people.

    What you might not remember is that Boaz was in the line of Rahab the prostitute from Jericho. We find that tidbit in the genealogy of Jesus listed in Matthew’s gospel.

    …and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah… Matthew 1:5-6 ESV

    Jesus’ earthly family came from a line that included a woman who was a Moabite, a hated tribe of people of mixed heritage, Israelite and non-Israelite. The husband was a descendant of a non-Israelite prostitute.

    Both Boaz and Ruth were believers even though non-Israelite in heritage. The Lord calls people of all cultures, backgrounds and skin tones to come to Him. In that way, it’s a totally inclusive faith.

    God knows where you come from and what you have done and still wants to redeem you. His people sometimes forget that. Jonah gets angry at God for saving the people of Nineveh. Saul of Tarsus persecuted, killed and imprisoned Christians before becoming a believer, operating under the understanding that he was doing God’s work.  We know from stories or by experience that the people of the church can be as bigoted and unforgiving as non-believers at times.

    Don’t look at the people of the church; look to Jesus to see how inclusive we are to be. Any person in that pool could open their heart to Him. No one is beyond the redemptive power of the Lord.

    Praise His name.

    Kevin

     SUMMARY

    As I pondered how diverse my aquafit class is, my mind wandered back to Ruth, a Moabite woman in the family line of Jesus. Her story reminds me that no one is beyond the redemptive power of the Lord.

    TAKEAWAY

    God knows where you come from and what you have done, and He still wants to redeem you.

    Ruth the Moabite and Rahab of Jericho are both in the line of Jesus. The Lord calls people of all cultures, backgrounds and skin tones to come to Him, and that includes you.

    God’s people can be as bigoted and unforgiving as non-believers, like Jonah angry over Nineveh. Don’t look at them; look to Jesus to see how inclusive you are to be.

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