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Something Magnificent 

Do you want to be part of something famous?

Don Ruhl • Savage Street, Grants Pass, Oregon • June 2, In the year of our Lord, 2013

 

Prelude: 

  1. Stay in Revelation 21 and 
    1. see the magnificent, famous, and glorious picture of the Lamb’s wife
    2. as John compares her to a heavenly city’s beauty.
      1. Verses 14–21 focus primarily upon the walls of the city
      2. with the names of the apostles written on twelve foundations, and
        1. verse 18 shows the walls made of jasper, and
        2. the city inside made of glasslike gold.
          1. Verses 19 and 20 show precious stones adorning the foundations.
          2. John saw, according to verse 21,
            1. twelve gates, three on each side, and
            2. each gate was made of one pearl.
              1. Then John gave us a peek inside the walls, and
              2. we a street paved with transparent gold!
  2. Am I wild and crazy because I want to be part of that? 
    1. Would you like to join me?
    2. Let me show you that we must have
      1. a heart like David’s for the temple that he wanted to build.
      2. First, let me show you that the church is the temple of God.

Persuasion: 

  1. The Temple and The Church

    16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are (1Co 3.16, 17).

    4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ (1Pe 2.4, 5).

    19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit (Eph 2.19–22).

  2. The Heart of David for the Temple of God

    1 “My son Solomon, whom alone God has chosen, is young and inexperienced; and the work is great, because the temple is not for man but for the Lord God. 2 “Now for the house of my God I have prepared with all my might… 3 Moreover, because I have set my affection on the house of my God, I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house, my own special treasure of gold and silver… 5 …Who then is willing to consecrate himself this day to the Lord?” (1Ch 29.1–5).

    1. See the heart of David in this passage.
      1. The work was great, because
        1. the temple was not for man, but
        2. for the Lord God.
      2. David made preparation with all his might.
      3. David set his affection on the house of God, moving him to give generously.
      4. David challenged others to join him.
    2. David used or stored up materials for the temple.
    3. First Chronicles 22 is critical, showing the heart of David,

      5 Now David said, “Solomon my son is young and inexperienced, and the house to be built for the Lord must be exceedingly magnificent, famous and glorious throughout all countries. I will now make preparation for it.” So David made abundant preparations before his death (1Ch 22.5).

      1. David helped the young and inexperienced.
      2. David helped the young and inexperienced
        1. to do something magnificent, famous, and glorious
        2. that would go throughout all nations.
      3. David made preparations for it before his death.
      4. Solomon thought as his father did,

        5 “And the temple which I build will be great, for our God is greater than all gods” (2Ch 2.5).

    4. Let us have the heart of David
      1. to make the church exceedingly magnificent, famous and glorious
      2. throughout all countries.
  3. Make the Temple Famous Today 
    1. It is not the building that we want to be famous, but the people.
    2. How do we make the church famous? What can I do?
      1. Realize that this is for God.
      2. Make preparation with all your might to serve in the church.
      3. Set your affection on the church of God, moving you to give generously.
      4. Challenge others to join you.
      5. Help the young and inexperienced.
      6. Make preparations for the church for after your death.
    3. These six things mean
      1. adorning the bride of Christ with righteous acts (Rev 19.6–9),
      2. remembering that as people saw the stones of the temple, so people see us,
      3. seeking the kingdom of God first (Matt 6.33),
      4. praying relentlessly for the church, even as
        1. David prayed concerning the materials (1Ch 29), and as
        2. Solomon prayed concerning the use of the temple (2Ch 6),
      5. teaching in home Bible studies, or Bible classes, and
        1. if you cannot teach,
          1. attend classes,
          2. support the teacher,
          3. encourage others to attend,
    4. This story of David shows him working for the sake of building the temple,
      1. which was something that would happen after his death, but
      2. since it was going to be magnificent, famous, and glorious,
        1. he wanted to make sure that the succeeding generation
        2. would prosper in making the temple magnificent, famous, and glorious.
      3. Hal Moore was a military leader during the Vietnam war.
        1. A movie was made about one of his greatest victories.
        2. A scene in the movie captured his foresight and grasp of leadership principles when a squad leader, who had been unceremoniously “killed” in a training exercise.
        3. “You are dead,” Moore declared. “Now, who do you have ready to take your place?”
          1. Whatever it is that you do in the church,
          2. are you preparing someone to take your place after you die?
    5. What should move us is our relationship with God and with Jesus.
      1. We are talking about the body of Jesus Christ.
      2. We are talking about the kingdom of heaven.
      3. We are talking about the One we love above all else.
        1. Shall we then do something for Him halfheartedly?
        2. Shall we not give our all, even as Jesus gave His all?

Exhortation: 

  1. Matthew summed up the preaching of John and Jesus like this,

    1 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” (Matt 3.1, 2).

    17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt 4.17).

    1. They preached
      1. the kingdom and
      2. its imminent arrival.
    2. Just a few years later,
      1. the God of heaven set up a kingdom
      2. which shall never be destroyed; and
        1. the kingdom shall not be left to other people;
        2. it shall break in pieces and
          1. consume all other kingdoms, and
          2. it shall stand forever (Dan 2.44).
    3. That kingdom is the church.
      1. That means it is the kingdom of heaven, the kingdom of God.
      2. Can anything exceed the magnificence, fame, and glory of
        1. the kingdom of God,
        2. the kingdom of heaven,
        3. the temple of God?
  2. Now, do you want to take part in something magnificent? 
    1. To have part in the church,
    2. you will participate in something magnificent, famous, and glorious.
      1. Perhaps you think to yourself,
      2. that you are not magnificent, famous, and glorious,
      3. so how could you have part in something like that.
        1. That is why sin is so horrible.
        2. It mars us more than anything else.
          1. God made us in His image,
          2. which means that of all creation,
            1. we should be the most magnificent, famous, and glorious, but
            2. sin has made us as worms.
  3. Yet, the God of heaven did not build the temple of the church 
    1. with the stones of this material creation, but
    2. He intends to build it with living stones, us.
      1. Therefore, He has a way to salvage us,
      2. removing that which mars us, and
        1. restoring us to magnificence, fame, and glory
        2. making us suitable as building materials.
  4. Have your sin removed! 
    1. Let the Lord restore you to an undefiled state!
    2. If you put your entire faith in the Lord,
      1. acting out that faith as He directs,
      2. He will put you into the spiritual temple of the church, and then
        1. you shall participate in something magnificent, famous, and glorious.
        2. Wait until you see the final version of it in heaven.
  5. Act out your faith now 
    1. by repenting, or turning, from your sin, and
    2. let us baptize you,
      1. the Lord will forgive you, and
      2. He will put you into the spiritual temple of the church.
  6. If you make the spiritual temple of the church your priority 
    1. as David did the building of the temple,
    2. if you have his heart,
      1. wanting to make it magnificent, famous, and glorious,
      2. the God of heaven wants to use you in making that temple.
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