Whatever happens we cannot break… . We must sacrifice, work, prepare, and fight for the future.”
–Zane Grey (The Desert of Wheat)
“We will use these stones to build a memorial. In the future your children will ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’”
–Joshua 4:6 (NLT)
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“Now ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?”
–1 Corinthians 3:16
I could write a dissertation on this scripture, as there is so much stated and implied. I believe it is one of those scriptures that is put aside and perhaps used for convenience rather than for the truth it contains. However, I came across one good reason we should be practicing and realizing this scripture in my devotional reading a couple of days ago. This is something I’ve tried to practice and exhort others, because truly, if we are Christians we are the temple of God. It is taken from Rick Renner’s book, Sparkling Gems From the Greek, Vol II.
He and his wife had just started a church in Moscow, the year was 2000. God moved in the church and they were finding they were continually having to find a larger building, plus the fact they needed an office for the business ends of things. Finally they secure an office “directly in the center of downtown Moscow–a two-minute walk from the Bolshoi Theatre and a short seven-minute walk from Red Square.”
“Because of the building’s prime location, I knew that many high-ranking visitors would come to this office to meet with our ministry. Therefore, our space needed to be decorated professionally and beautifully to make a first-class impression of the Gospel on every person who entered that office.” He and his wife then began to work hard on furniture, wallpaper, carpet, the things that would adorn the new office.
“The reception area was the first room in our office to be wallpapered. This was the most important part of our office because it was where people’s first impressions of our ministry would be made. Many people in this region of the world have historically ridiculed people of faith, so it was essential to us that our guests associate excellence with the name of Jesus Christ as they entered our reception area.”
They had chosen a member of the congregation to hang the wallpaper. She said she was a master of the craft and would even do it for free as a donation to the church. Renner had to attend a meeting in another part of Moscow and he felt confident the work was in good hands. When he returned, “I was shocked! She had hung a lot of paper and done it very quickly, but none of the patterns from strip to strip matched each other.” He was stunned and told her the patterns didn’t match. He made her start over again. This attempt she did match the patterns but put them on crooked. He explained that this room was very important and the paper could be crooked. The woman said, “But if you look at it like this, it doesn’t look crooked.” She had tilted her head sideways. Pastor Renner tore it down again.
“When I saw people staring in disbelief at what I was doing, I turned and explained to them, ‘This room is designed for guests. Nothing less than our best is acceptable. I want every person who enters this room to sense that we care about them and have prepared a place for them that is special and shows them respect.”
What kind of “home” do we have prepared now that the “Spirit of holiness” now resides inside you? Are you happy that He is there? Do you show respect and honor to Him that shows that you are honored that He is there? Far too many “Christians” like the world, look at the world, act like the world, and talk like the world. Hmmm, perhaps they are of the world. Old things have passed away, all things are made new.