Temple Building
Materials: Building God's Temple
1 Cor 3:12
Now if any man builds upon the foundation with gold,
silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw,
Exod 35:30-33
Then Moses said, "See, the LORD has chosen Bezalel,
of the tribe of Judah, and he has filled him with the Spirit of God,
with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts-- to make
artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set
stones, to work in wood and to engage in all kinds of artistic
craftsmanship. So Bezalel, and every skilled person to whom the LORD has
given skill and ability to know how to carry out all the work of
constructing the sanctuary are to do the work just as the LORD has
commanded." (NIV)
Now we continue with the analogy in
Corinthians. We have been given two sets of three building materials. The
first three are gold, silver and precious stones and the second set given
to us are wood, hay and stubble. Even as Bezalel was “filled with the
Spirit, with skill and knowledge” - SO ARE YOU. That skill pertains to
building just as Bezalel’s skill was for building. You were anointed
with the tools on the inside of you and God gives your building materials
in this passage of 1 Corinthians. God also lets you know the results if
you choose the other three building materials – wood, hay, and stubble.
BOTH SETS OF MATERIALS WILL BUILD HOUSES BUT ONLY OF THESE HOUSES WILL GOD
INHABIT.
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Gold, silver and precious
stones are materials used in building Solomon's temple.
IKing 6:21-22
And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until he had
finished all the house: also the whole altar that was by the oracle he
overlaid with gold.
Gold
Temple Materials
Gold represents Deity and Divine Nature. You
are but a stone, but God ANOINTS YOU WITH HIS OWN NATURE! Stone is
overlaid with Gold in the temple to symbolize, you clothed with the nature
of Jesus.
2 Cor 5:1-4
For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle
were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands,
eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be
clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: If so be that being
clothed we shall not be found naked. For we that are in this tabernacle do
groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed
upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.
Using Gold as a temple building material is
teaching the Word with life, totally dependent on God and BEING the very
message you are preaching, this is what causes us to be “clothed upon”
with the “house from heaven”. We shall be clothed with the gold of
His Glory and we shall not be “found naked”. It is the word spoken
on God’s authority and not tainted by the soulish nature of man. Observe
what Paul says about the ministry that used gold as a building material.
2 Cor 2:17-3:2
For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God:
but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in
Christ. Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some
others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from
you? Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all
men:
This message that I am ministering to you
right now is of nothing, unless first I speak in Christ, and then you
receive it and become this message of Christ that I am teaching, to be
read of all man. I can preach for growth and produce a people that never
grow, but Paul's ministry produced a people that became the very message
of Christ that he preached. Many preach from “where they are”, that is
they preach from an immature place of struggle that God honors because He
is after the hearts of His people. However God has a more excellent way, a
way of obedience that preaches from “what you are”, that is from a
life completely dealt with by God in maturity that penetrates the hearts
of God’s people for eternal change. Paul did not need a piece of paper
that said “Paul is a man of God, an apostle”. Paul instead said that
the people who were saved, changed and bore fruit was the only
recommendation he needed. Paul’s ministry produced a people that laid
down their lives for Jesus Christ. This should be convicting for every
minister, I know it convicts me of how I must allow God’s grace to work
through me - to others, in labors abundantly.
2 Cor 3:3-6
Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle
of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of
the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.
And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward: Not that we are
sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our
sufficiency is of God; Who also hath made us able ministers of the new
testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth,
but the spirit giveth life.
If one ministers based on his ability to stir
the hearer or generate response from the crowd, then he has become
self-sufficient and taken thought of himself. How often one can witness
this very thing in the church. How often have you seen Paul's attitude?
Only God makes any of us ABLE ministers of the Spirit. The letter killeth!
The “letter” is building or ministering
with wood or anything other then total sufficiency of the Spirit that
giveth life. There are many that preach Christian activities and Christian
duty; the end result is often times the letter of Christian doctrine
instead of the Truth of Christian doctrine that sets free. For instance,
you can listen to a nice message about breaking habits and in your natural
strength you attempt to heed this word but what you found instead was
death. Even if you were successful in the breaking of that habit you still
experienced a bondage that separated you from a trusting relationship with
Jesus. The world can break habits, but Jesus sets the captives free that
we may experience intimacy with Him. It is so easy to turn an intending
good Christian activity into law that produces bondage. Be led of the
Spirit in all that you do and in all that you say and the result will be,
that which pleases God. I am NOT SAYING “you do not have to put away
sin”, I am saying … do not put it away apart from the grace that God
gives. What is God saying to you NOW? That is what He will give grace to
perform in you NOW!
The
2 Trees
You can preach the message of "how to be
born again" to the woman at the well and deliver the message of
"living water" to Nicodemus. Both were messages of Jesus, but
Jesus delivered the message at the ordained time based on relationship
with the father. He delivered the word of "living water" to the
woman at the well and "how to be born again" to Nicodemus.
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Jesus said that He spoke only as He heard the Father.
John 7:16-18
Jesus therefore answered them, and said, "My
teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me. "If any man is willing to
do His will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it is of God, or
{whether} I speak from Myself. "He who speaks from himself seeks his
own glory; but He who is seeking the glory of the One who sent Him, He is
true, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.
This is the ministry that gets its Word from
the tree of Life in the garden instead of the tree of the knowledge of
good and evil. The tree of Life does not boast of knowledge, which becomes
proud. The tree of Life type of ministry gets it knowledge through the
relationship of walking in the garden with God.
Gen 2:9
And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every
tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life
also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and
evil.
The body of Christ, the temple of God, will
always have two trees set before them. Life or death, spiritual or
natural, TWO HOUSES. Both will use scripture. When you choose the tree of
knowledge of good and evil you will then know scripture apart from God,
and when you teach your message, you will then separate your hearers from
God. It is making yourself god of the word. It is making yourself god of
the messages you teach. Maybe you say "But it is my favorite
subject" or "It is the message I always teach". But when
you teach from what you ate from the tree of Life you can agree with the
scripture: "take ye no thought how or what thing ye shall answer, or
what ye shall say: For the holy Ghost shall teach you in the same hour
what ye ought to say." What then are we saying through all of this?
We are simply speaking of a life that is Spirit led in all we do and say,
it is simply a relationship to God whereby we ask Him, we check with Him
FIRST. It is then that He will bid us to do His will. He will pick the
place, He will pick the message, and He will give ability to speak it. Our
part is to “seek His Glory”, the Glory of the One Who sent us.
This is another place where hearing God is
important. A walk in God’s garden is two-way communication. How do we
know what to teach if we are not listening? How do we know where to go if
we are deaf to what heaven is saying? Many Christians must learn God’s
voice. How do we hear? The sheep know the voice of the shepherd because
they spend time with him - in
prayer, in worship, in the scriptures –
day and night.
The second stumbling block will be the devil
coming to you and convincing you that “you can’t hear God” when in
reality you are already hearing God – you just don’t realize it. As
long as you are a sheep spending time with God, know this, He is speaking!
Do not let the devil convince you that “it was a coincidence”. Do not
let the devil convince you that “you just happen” to be in the right
place at the right time. The thought that brought you there was God. The
desire that brought you there was God. Learn to recognize those thoughts
that sound so much like us – ARE HIM. Learn to recognize those desires
in your heart are God speaking to you from His throne. Learn to recognize
those slight impressions are God’s way of leading and not pushing His
sheep.
Silver
Temple Materials
IKing 7:51
So was ended all the work that king Solomon made for the
house of the LORD. And Solomon brought in the things which David his
father had dedicated; even the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, did
he put among the treasures of the house of the LORD.
1 Cor 3:12
Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver,
precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
The Silver of the Temple is stored up and it
also overlaid the stones! Silver means redemption in the Bible. Silver
vessels were stored in the house of God to symbolize a tremendous building
material - A vessel of honor to be used of the Master to minister
redemption in this "ministry of reconciliation" entrusted to
them. Some will not receive it, even as Judas threw down 30 pieces of
silver in the temple and went and hanged himself. There will be Judases
that will rather suffer the judgment. Silver in IKings 10:27 is typified
as stones which are used for building. Silver is refined and purified,
speaking of how we should preach the unadulterated Word of God.
Ps 12:6
The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver
tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
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The three Hebrews TRUSTED
in purity - in the fire that was heated seven times hotter.
Silver as temple building material is the
purity of the gospel without spot or blemish. The character of a man that
does not habitually live in love will taint the gospel of our Lord. A
man’s opinion of what a scripture means or what he was always taught
will mar the gospel of Jesus. Purity is found broken before the Lord with
a soul that has been dealt with by God. It is a man who can come to the
Laver found in the temple and seeing his reflection will discern what
manner of man he is. Then by the water of the word, he will apply it to
those areas that are unlike Jesus and thereby makes himself a true priest,
who can come boldly to the throne of grace to minister unto the Lord and
then unto His people.
Many times when we come to God we are soiled.
What is it that soils us? Maybe an activity that does not please God –
an activity that He does not put His stamp of approval on. Many times we
feel soiled because the words we spoke forth were not spoken in Christ.
Walking in the Light habitually should be our hope so that we may avoid
this soiled condition when we approach God in His Holiness.
2 Cor 7:1
Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us
cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting
holiness in the fear of God.
We must become a holy people. Holiness and
maturity go hand and hand, one does not happen without the other. As this
verse says, we must “perfect holiness in the fear of God”. Not much
fear of God, not much holiness will come forth. In 1983, we had a guest
speaker at our church named Joy Dawson. She walked in the fear of God as I
had never seen demonstrated. She told of a story where she had made a
remark to someone and she had unknowingly “slighted the truth”
somewhat. By all Christian ethics it would have been so slight as to have
never noticed, but for Joy Dawson who walked in the fear of God it brought
her to her knees. She wept for what would be a slight error in our
walk, yet for one who has matured in God’s holiness it brought great
eruption. She grieved even as the Spirit in her grieved, for our words
must become as true as Him Who is Truth. This is the spiritual reaction of
one who walks in the fear of God, to not offend the Holy Spirit of God. In
many of our cases we should not be weeping, we should be wailing for our
sins that have grieved God. As David said in Psalm 51 – “Against you,
you only Lord have I sinned”. We will build with silver even as we FEAR
GOD.
Hag 2:7-9
And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all
nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD
of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD
of hosts. The glory of this latter house shall be greater then of the
former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this place will I give peace,
saith the LORD of hosts.
Precious
Stone Materials
2 Chr 3:6
And he garnished the house with precious stones for
beauty
Isa 54:11-12
"O afflicted one, storm-tossed, and not comforted,
behold, I will set your stones in antimony, and your foundations I will
lay in sapphires. "Moreover, I will make your battlements of rubies,
and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones. (NAS)
1 Cor 3:12
Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious
stones, wood, hay, stubble;
The last temple building material given in 1
Corinthians is precious stones. Ministering with Gold is ministering the
Word with the nature of Christ. Ministering with silver is ministering the
Word in purity and unadulterated. Ministering with precious stones is
ministering the Word as the complete reflection of Lord Jesus Christ.
Ps 27:4
One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek
after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to
behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple.
The purpose of precious stones was for one
thing - BEAUTY. That makes us ministers of beauty. Not of our own beauty
as the enemy was; Ezek 28:12 – “perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in
Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering.” The
enemy was perfect in HIS OWN beauty, we are bearers of the Lord's perfect
beauty. Bezalel was also skilled in artistry. God does not just build a
plain structure but He is not finished until the gems are embedded in the
temple, the carvings are in the pillars, and the engravings of cherubim
are in the wall. PRECIOUS STONE MINISTRY IS THE LAST
PERFECTING MINISTRY ON EARTH. It puts the finishing touches on each life
in preparation to meet her Bridegroom and Lover. It is God’s artistry
for the last generation of believers. Silver brought purity to the
precious stones to make her radiant to the world. She is a temple built
and now she is unveiled for the world to see as never before. READ ISAIAH
54…
The
Laver Reflection
2 Cor 3:18-4:1
But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a
mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same
image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. Therefore,
since we have this ministry, as we received mercy, we do not lose heart,
To bear the image of Christ you must be
transformed. When the priests came into the Outer Court, before they
entered into the Holy Place they stopped at the Laver. The Laver was a
piece of furniture in the tabernacle; it was a brass basin filled with
water and had a polished mirror at the bottom. It was used so the priests
could see their soil and to wash before entrance. This clearly represents
Jesus - The Word of God. Ephesians 5:26 – “That he might sanctify and
cleanse it with the washing of water by the word”.
When you hear the Word of God, you must look
into the mirror of it to see yourself and not look to see someone else.
Many of us listen to the word and think, "Brother so and so needs to
hear it" or "my wife needs to obey this word". No, you are
to listen for you and to judge yourself, to see your own blemishes. The
brass of the Laver means judgment and the word will judge your deeds and
intents of your heart and show them for what they are. The water in the
Laver gives you the ability to wash up after seeing the defilement. When
God reveals an iniquity that resides in your heart, He will accompany it
with grace – God’s ability to overcome the iniquity. It would be
frustrating if God revealed your sin and did not give grace to overcome
it, so have faith in God’s grace when you see that sin that is ever
before you. The washing of the Laver is “acting on that grace” to do
the word of God and not merely to hear the word of God. When you come
to the end of your ability - that is when you have arrived at the
beginning of God’s ability. The only thing that separates the two is
your decision to surrender to God’s grace and by faith – walk.
Maturity would happen so much quicker if
somehow you could get the church to look into the Laver. Why can't I just
see myself as I am? It all has to do with how hard our heart is; how
stubborn our will is - before God. One can be very pliable towards man and
that same one will be the most stubborn before God. Many times it will
take a major crisis in our lives before we give in – like Job had. God
is after our heart and those that refuse to give it will not SEE. It may
be in just a part of your life or in totality – your whole life. You can
memorize every verse and doctrine and hear many sermons and yet you will
still never see.
On the DAY OF THE LORD we shall then see Him
as He is and then be completely joined together with Him. But until that
day, we are to PROGRESS towards the finishing line in all humility of
heart. It is the pure in heart that shall SEE God. All those parts that do
not look like Jesus will be transformed into His exact image as you daily
see Him and obey Him. Your doctrine will possess the mind of Christ and
your actions will be a candle with the bushel removed. Not hid anymore,
but shining into the world. You are not being transformed to be a trophy,
but rather fruit that can be eaten of man. Jesus related our natural man
and its way of thinking to a bushel and the shell of a seed. One
represents the life in us and the other represents the light in us.
Our natural mind and its deeds must be broken
so that the life in us can produce fruit, and the bushel must be removed
so that there are no obstructions to get light to this world of darkness
that we live. This is done by judgment, that Peter says starts at the
house of God. Therefore let us hold true to 1 Corinthians 11:31 “if we
would judge ourselves, we would not be judged.” This is a life of being
broken before the Lord, and taking up your cross and imitating Him.
2 Cor 4:2-7
dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling
the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth
commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. But if
our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of
this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the
light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should
shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord;
and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who commanded the
light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the
light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency (the
surpassing value) of the power may be of God, and not of us.
When you handle the Word, you are handling a
person. The activity we refer to as reading the word and praying to obtain
Christian growth is often looked at as prayer is communion with God and
reading the word gives us knowledge of Him. Listen, when you read the Word
you need to meet Him just as much as you would in prayer and even more so.
When you pray you must listen to hear God, and when you read the word you
must listen to hear God. When you read or study the word you must meet God
and be transformed, then when you present the word to others you are
presenting a person that you met and not someone's opinion or their
revelation. When you behold Christ in His Word, you will shine with the
radiance of His beauty and truly be a temple builder in Christ, because
outside of Christ, none of us build the true temple. Jesus is the temple
builder and ultimately the temple at the end of the book of Revelation. We
are to get in Christ.
We are God’s precious stones as we allow the
inward condition of Holiness and Power to be manifested even as it is
revealed from the “FACE OF JESUS”. We are teaching a “precious
stones” type of ministry when others see that the surpassing greatness
and value of that glory is from God and NOT FROM YOU. Immaturity
always desires you to get the attention, maturity always desires God to
get all the attention.
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