The Father Seeks Our Worship - October 9, 2011

“The hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall Worship the Father in Spirit and in Truth: for the Father seeketh such to Worship Him.”  − John 4:23

As we continue to meditate upon the Foundation of our Christian Heritage: that of we, being built upon the Prophets, the Apostles, and Jesus Christ being the Chief Corner Stone, let us look at the physical things of the Old Testament and glean some spiritual insight.  The Old Testament is about God’s dealings with His chosen people, the Israelites, Instructing them, guiding them, caring for them, and setting forth a pattern of worship!  We now turn our attention to Haggai and Zechariah, prophets of the rebuilding of the Temple. The time was such: Nebuchadnezzar had captured Jerusalem, and the Temple had been completely destroyed. The Temple was the most important part of Israel’s worship as the Church should be to the Christian. Now the Temple lay in ruins.  It was 50 years before the Jews were allowed to return to their beloved Jerusalem. They came with great joy and in haste begin to clear away the debris of their sacred Temple, but alas the hostility of the Samaritans, [the enemy always causes conflict] and the taxing labor, they soon lost interest and began building their own houses. 16 years pass when Haggai is summoned by God to bring the Prophetic Message for the hour.  Not much is known about Haggai, He has only two chapters in the Bible, he was older, he had a deep conviction regarding the Temple of God that he loved so much … His prophetic Word was blunt and to the point, something like this: “Consider your ways, you have built your homes and the Lord’s house lays in ruin.”  The spiritual concept here is:  They had turned away from spiritual matters and took on the cares of life.  To this moment God sends Zechariah who comes alongside of Haggai.  He is compassionate, full of vision, enthusiastic and is in the project for the long haul.  The Priest of the Temple rebuilding was Ezra and he records the laying of the foundation, Ezra 3:10-11, When the builders laid the foundation of the Temple of the Lord, they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise the Lord, after the ordinance of David king of Israel. And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the Lord; because He is good, for His Mercy endureth forever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the Lord, because the Foundation of the House of the Lord was laid!  I imagine God heart is full of Joy when we perfect our foundation! 
Loving you, Pastor

Open Thou Mine Eyes - October 2, 2011

“Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.” Psalm119:18 
We continue in the Passage of Scripture where we are admonished that we are built upon the Prophets, the Apostles and Jesus our Corner Stone! [Ephesians 2:20 “We are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;] It is my prayer that we will be inspired by the Prophets, and the Apostles as they hear the voice of the Lord and they move to obey His voice.  The Psalmist wrote these Words that have begun this Message, his prayer was “Open my eyes, that I may behold the wonderful things of Thy Law.  This is truly a day in which we should pray such a prayer.  There are things of the spirit that would be revealed if the people of God had a vision to ask, to seek, and to press for a greater revelation of God, of our Saviour, of the precious Holy Ghost. Just has the blind men followed after Jesus and cried out to Him, He opened their eyes.  There is spiritual blindness in Christianity.  Oh that humanity would cry out to Jesus, He would open their spiritual eyes to behold the beauty of His Holy Word.  Elisha’s servant saw only with his physical eyes.  Then Elisha prayed that God would open his eyes, was he blind?  His spiritual eyes were not opened, but once the prayer had gone up from the Prophet Elisha, the servant’s spiritual eyes were opened and he saw that God was present.  It is that way with us sometimes, worry or fear attempts to grip our heart and blind our spiritual eyes, but God is ready to impart spiritual insight in the midst of our trials and disappointment.  He is an ever present God, and we need only to pray that He will open our eyes that we might see the power of His Word revealed in our lives.  We have an everlasting foundation laid by God, and we are built upon the testimonies of the Prophets and the Apostles, with the forever Stationary Corner Stone, Jesus our Saviour! ─ “Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.” 
Oh, that we might see His glory together, loving you, Pastor