“Light from on high”
– Luk 1:78 (AMP)
God’s generational Temple-building plan
To reaffirm last Sunday’s teaching, I would like to underline the main thoughts with some supporting Scriptures from the Bible. The message entailed God’s eternal intention to “live among mankind”. For God to come and live INSIDE His creation, He needed a holy “Temple”. Our talk revolved around three main thoughts:
- We are collectively God’s spiritual Temple on earth:
1 Cor 3:16 Do you not know that you (plural) are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
Eph 2:19-22 Now, therefore, you are… members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
1 Pet 2:5 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
- Because we can only truly be “temple” collectively, God’s dealings are generational. God is called the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob – indicating at least 3 generations in one Divine dealing with man on earth. This means His purpose with each individual must fit into the bigger whole of Him building this spiritual temple on earth. This cannot be accomplished through one person, or in one lifetime. As we saw in the Scriptures in Eph (above), the old and new Testaments (prophets and apostles) initially only saw the laying of the foundations of this Divine Structure:
1 Pet 1:10-12 Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully… searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things… the gospel…—things which angels desire to look into.
Heb 11:40 God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.
- It is therefore critical that we understand and live our lives in the context of God’s bigger plan. We probably will not see our personal visions (purpose and dreams) fulfilled in our own lifetimes, but the encouragement is that our individual roles are vital in completing this eternal vison of God!
Heb 11:13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth
The admonition in these thoughts is that we simply have to “see” the bigger picture by faith, “embrace” God’s Plan and confess the eternal outcome thereof.
Note:
You will find a notice on the Home Page of our Website about many Afrikaans video teachings that will soon be available. We hope to have at least one new teaching available each week. Please do visit the Home Page to keep up with our progress. God bless.
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