Built Together

As brothers and sisters in Christ, we are built together.

“¹⁹So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, ²⁰built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, ²¹in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. ²²In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.” – Ephesians 2:19-22 (ESV)

We are not in this alone. We have brothers and sisters to travel with. Paul makes it clear in the above that we “are fellow citizens” and that we are “of the household of God”. WE are a “dwelling place for God” and the collective that we are is growing “into a holy temple in the Lord”.

I know that in the above paragraph I have restated a lot of what Paul writes. I did that on purpose as it is how it lands on me related to my study this morning. WE are in this together and it is important to remember that. I have mentioned before that I am an introverted person and being in solitude is just fine for me (I may not leave the house except on Sundays). But even saying that and being that way, I still go to church with my brothers and sisters in Christ to worship together, to be in the presence of “fellow citizens”, to be in the presence of God.

“²⁰For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” – Matthew 18:20 (ESV)

WE are meant to be together to commune with the LORD. He builds us up together to be bigger than life itself. I or you alone are good in our pursuit of Christ, but together we are a mighty force in the name of God. God gave us each gifts to use for His glory and those gifts, where they are good on their own, working in concert with another is even more powerful. Together God builds us up to be the unstoppable workers. We is certainly greater than me.

How are you traversing in this world? Are you working to build yourself up alone? What if you embraced that God builds US up together for our good and to accomplish all that He has planned?

Built up Through Prophecy and Tongues

This morning I admit was a learning moment for me. The verse and passage of my study is in 1 Corinthians on prophecy and tongues. Paul writes of the two and their meaning and impact to the individual and church.

“²³If, therefore, the whole church comes together and all speak in tongues, and outsiders or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are out of your minds?” – 1 Corinthians 14:23 (ESV)

I will say that I have always been leery of places of worship where there is speaking in tongues. Paul even addresses this in the above verse that when an outsider encounters this, they are likely thinking the same as I.

“²For one who speaks in a tongue speaks not to men but to God; for no one understands him, but he utters mysteries in the Spirit.” – 1 Corinthians 14:2 (ESV)

But, this does not mean that speaking in tongues is a bad thing. You can see that Paul addresses the speaking in tongues is for one to speak with God. What a wonderful thing that I and God have our own language to commune together. God speaks directly with me for my benefit. I even pray that God will reveal to me (with a knock on the head as I need it that way) His will in my life.

“²⁴But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, ²⁵the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you.” – 1 Corinthians 14:24-25 (ESV)

It is prophecy that is better than speaking in tongues. Not because the individual is not important, but because prophecy can be heard by all, believers and unbelievers. Prophecy is for all where speaking in tongues is for the one. It is our goal as followers of Christ to bring His Word to all and provide for them the opportunity to follow Him. When we prophesy, we are bringing the revelations God has provided to all the people and working to fulfill our role in this world.

Now, again, speaking in tongues is that personal revelation of God’s Word to the individual. We have to remember that God has provided our gifts and one of those may be the gift of interpretation. So, speaking in tongues can be beneficial to all when the interpreter is present, using his gift to share the revelation of the one with the church and all. But without the interpretation, the speaking in tongues is for the one and not the many.

“⁵Now I want you all to speak in tongues, but even more to prophesy. The one who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues, unless someone interprets, so that the church may be built up.” – 1 Corinthians 14:5 (ESV)

And now to the verse that led to my study of this passage and my learning. Paul makes it clear here that speaking in tongues and prophecy are both part of the building up. One, speaking in tongues, for the individual and the other, prophecy, for all. He would rather for prophecy than for speaking in tongues for the benefit of all “so that the church may be built up” and we can fulfill our work assigned by God.

What are your thoughts on prophecy and the speaking in tongues? Are you partial to one or the other? What if you were to keep the speaking in tongues to be between you and God and prophecy to be for all “so that the church may be built up”?

How You Build Matters

There is the story of the three little pigs that built their houses, one of straw, one of sticks, and one of bricks. The wolf came to blow them down and was not able to destroy the one built of bricks.

“¹²Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— ¹³each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.” – 1 Corinthians 3:12-13 (ESV)

Like the three little pigs, we have options when it comes to build the church of God. We can build with quality building materials and build to last, or with cheaper materials that are sure to be destroyed or degrade with time.

“⁹For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building. ¹⁰According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it.” – 1 Corinthians 3:9-10 (ESV)

Paul points out to the church at Corinth the need to “take care how” the church is built. Not of physical materials, but of sound doctrine, faith, and obedience. We are to build the church on the foundation of Jesus Christ, not on the words of man. We, the church are “God’s building” and the church is worthy of being built the right way, not with speed and cheap materials to get the structure up, but over time with care, hard work, planning, and with materials that are of substance.

As I type here I cannot help but refer to the buildings that are used for God’s Church. We put a lot of effort into the building of church buildings. The structures are of wonder to behold. Grand and ornate, a visual spectacle. And frankly lots of “money” goes into making them to be just so. Where we are following the lead of our Old Testament ancestors who built temples to be so grand and ornate, are they really “necessary”. Many a church started in a living room, or a schoolhouse (our church was planted and continues, 5 years later to meet in a school), or some other venue. We have to remember that God’s Church is the people and not the building itself.

As Paul noted, when the church is not built on the foundation that is Jesus Christ and should be built with sound doctrine, faith, and obedience through care, hard work, and planning it will be subject to and will be destroyed when it is put to the test. The story of the three little pigs shares this moral. Hard work, careful planning, and diligence pay off, while laziness and taking shortcuts lead to failure and danger. How you build the church of God matters, we should be using only the best materials.

What materials are you using to build God’s Church? Are you throwing things together to get a roof over your head? What if you were to take care and build on the foundation of Jesus Christ with sound doctrine, faith, and obedience through care, hard work, and planning?

Jesus Built His Church

“¹⁸And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” – Matthew 16:18 (ESV)

And there you have it, Jesus states that He will build His church. And that brings us to where we are today. Jesus built His church and nothing can destroy it (as noted in the third part of the verse).

Let’s look at the first part of the verse where Jesus is addressing Peter. Peter is the rock that the church is built on. Why is that so? Yes, the word Peter is similar to the word rock or stone in Greek. But I also think that there is more to it than just Peter being the rock. And for that look at a couple of verses prior to the above to speak to my thoughts.

“¹⁵He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ ¹⁶Simon Peter replied, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’” – Matthew 16:15-16 (ESV)

And there it is, Jesus asks the disciples who they say Jesus is. Before anyone else could answer, Peter speaks up to declare Jesus and Christ and the Son of God. Peter beat them all to the punch and stated what I believe the other disciples would have stated as well. I have written in the margin of my bible that the questions asked by Jesus is “the question we all have to ask”, and “can we state the same with conviction” as Peter so boldly declared.

This is where my thoughts come in. I believe that Jesus built His church as the people who have declared Him as Christ, LORD, and Son of God. When we accept the free gift of salvation we declare Jesus as our LORD and Savior. We boldly state, as Peter did, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God”.

“¹⁹I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” – Matthew 16:19 (ESV)

The you here is identifying us all. As noted in the commentary of my bible: “Peter is give the authority to admit entrance into the kingdom through preaching the gospel, an authority that is subsequently granted to all who are called to proclaim the gospel.” We are all called to proclaim the gospel as followers of Christ and therefor all have the authority Jesus mentions in verse 19 above. We are all the church on which Jesus builds. We are not some building that will eventually fall to the ground. We will stand throughout this world and will always prevail.

How do you think about the church? Are you stuck in the idea that it is a building where services are attended? What if the church is the people who follow Jesus and declare, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God”?

Leaders Not Personalities

Jesus warned of those who would come and lead away from Him.

“¹¹And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.” – Matthew 24:11 (ESV)

The above verse is found in the passage titled, “Signs of the End of the Age.” in my ESV Bible. And it could not be more true. We are being bombarded by falsities that lead us away from the truth that is Jesus Christ. We are following those things that make us “feel” good as opposed to bring us joy.

My reading this morning is in discussion of leadership in the church and is pointed to the lack of it. The questions ask what leadership needs are there and why are there not more leaders. I think it has to do with a couple of things that are also pointed out in the reading. First, there seems to be a movement toward personalities and not leaders, and second, there is a lack of teaching leadership.

Let me start with the first, personalities. Think about those that influence in the world today. They are those that generate feelings toward themselves and not toward the truth. We have those cult “leaders” that generate a following as they claim to be something they are not and promise things that they cannot deliver. These are the ones that expect individuality to be put aside as blind follower-ship takes over based on the words of the one. And then we have those that generate a massive following through promotion and full control over all. I think of those like Joel Osteen and Ed Young who pastor and without them, nothing happens in the church that they are not privy to or have a hand in. It is not leadership, but their personality and control that dominate.

Second we have the lack of leadership teaching. I see this in the corporate world and it is true in the church as well. In the corporate world people are promoted based on their education and/or their accomplishments and not on the ability to lead. The top performers are given bigger roles and they are not “taught” how to do the next role, they are just expected to replicate their own results to those below them. As noted in my reading, that is also happening in seminary. There is only teaching of God’s Word in depth and little teaching on how to lead a church or congregation. The students are left to learn that on their own and frankly are missing the mark.

How is this fixed? The church needs to find and develop leaders. There is a Teacher who developed leaders to take over when He was gone. He spent three years being the example of leadership and guiding students as to what being a leader in the gospel was all about. Jesus led the apostles and His disciples to make more disciples, using all that He had taught them.

“¹⁸And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’” – Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV)

Who are you following? Are you leaning toward following of personalities? What if you were to look for those that follow themselves the example of leadership given by Christ?