Do you ever get those days when the Lord just presses heavily on to you? I've actually had this happening for over a week now. I keep thinking of all the places where Heaven and Earth were supposed to meet. They were supposed to meet at the Tabernacle of the Lord, but the sons of Eli desecrated it by taking advantage of women there. They were supposed to meet at the Temple, but over and again kings and priests led the nation of Israel astray, and they either neglected the temple, or sacrificed to false gods. When Jesus came, Heaven and Earth literally met together! So now that He sits next to His Father in Heaven, where shall Heaven and Earth meet again until He comes back? The answer comes from the day of Pentecost until now. Heaven and Earth were no longer confined to a tabernacle or temple, nor in the single person of Jesus Christ. When the Holy Spirit Rushed upon the 120 in the Upper Room, tongues of fire appeared over their heads. This is HUGE! The day the Tabernacle was dedicated, a Pillar of Fire appeared over the Altar. The day the Temple was dedicated, a Pillar of Fire. Now the fire was appearing over those who were waiting for the time Jesus had pronounced. Do you know what this means for us? It means that You and I, as the church, are the new tabernacle and the Temple, the place where God's Holy Spirit dwells. The Holy Spirit resides in us, and we are the place where heaven and earth meet.
Like the sons of Eli, we sometimes desecrate this sacred space by our sins, and like the Kings and Priests of Israel, we neglect our temple, or visit false gods. What we need to realize, though, is that when we have been baptized in to Christ Jesus, when we have begun to house the Holy Spirit, as Scripture says, we are now set apart by God for His good purposes. It is time for us to live lives of Righteousness, and just as Abraham believed God (trusted and followed God's leading), we can be righteous if we too trust and obey God. We can be Holy, as Christ was Holy, as we obey God, love Him and love His people. We, then, can be the place where people come to meet God, as we are led by the Holy Spirit, and we can then introduce them to Jesus Christ, not merely in our words, but by how the Holy Spirit uses us as we follow His lead.
1 Corinthians 3
10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled[b] master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. 11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— 13 each 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. 14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
16 Do you not know that you[c] are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? 17 If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.
18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,” 20 and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” 21 So let no one boast in men. For all things are yours, 22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, 23 and you are Christ's, and Christ is God's.
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