What Happens When the Temple Burns

Today I woke up late, and I hated it. A lot of the day passed me by as I slept through the morning hours and into the afternoon. Yesterday I had received a call from a friend back home and I heard some of the most uplifting words that gave me so much comfort, and this morning I am back to self-loathing.

Most would say that is a very female thing to do, loathing who you are. And it is generally tied to your outward appearance. But I disagree with those people on both accounts. First, I believe that self-loathing exists just as much in men as in women, and mine has nothing to do with outward appearance (although I am not denying it in others). It’s all about the inside. I loathe what only I and God can see. From the current thoughts in my head to the memories of previous actions. I loathe the manifestation of me on the inside that dictates what I do on the outside. I can see nothing worth anything of what God has promised us.

And yes, I know that is not the point. I know  that nothing we do is worthy of what God wants for us, and I know that all we have to do is invite him and let him have the reigns. But. I. Can’t. My apprehension is like that of Peter when Jesus stoops to wash his feet. No! How can he, my Saviour, knowing who I am, want to wash my feet? I can’t allow it! Doesn’t he know who I am?

But this early afternoon, when I finally rolled over and let the sun shine into my eyes, I saw my Bible. I was tired of my self-loathing. I wanted to heal. I picked up my Bible and I stared at it. Because honestly, where do you begin? I don’t have a daily devotional on my shelf (although I probably should). And sometimes just letting a Bible fall open works, but I didn’t want anything so random this time. I prayed, and went through different options in my head and landed on Ezra. I ended up reading Ezra, Haggai, Zechariah, some of Nehemiah and Esther. Because the most revolutionary story was finally made clear to me.

The Bible

The Bible refers to your body as a temple for the Holy Spirit to reside, and advises you to treat your body like the temple of God. That always used to make me feel inadequate. Now it gives me hope and this is the story why.

The Lord, back in the glory days of Israel, instructed King Solomon to build his temple. He gave him very specific instructions in the materials that were to be used, the people who were to build it, and how they were to go about building it. If there were such a thing as perfection on this Earth, this temple would come very close. Not just because of the care that went in to building it, but because of who inhabited it. The Israelites had no dead idols to bow to, instead they had the presence of the living God!

And then the Israelites fell. And they fell. And they continued to fall. And then they reached the bottom of that black “bottomless” pit. You see, the King’s of Israel were not always true to their Lord and protector. In fact there are entire chapters in the Bible found at the end of 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles where they just name all the Kings who did evil in the sight the Lord WORSE than their predecessor. There was no repenting despite the pleas of the Lord’s prophets. And then the temple, the Lord’s residence on Earth, burned.

The Destruction of Jersusalem

All that remained was ash and rubble. And as the Israelites were brought into captivity a second time, the temple was officially gone. The temple stayed like this for years while the Jews were scattered around, in captivity in Babylon, and as fugitives in neighbouring and far-flung kingdoms. Even if the Jews had the materials to rebuild the temples themselves, who would let them? Everyone else knew the significance that the temple held and they certainly did not want their enemies returning to how they used to be. How could it ever be expected to be rebuilt?

The answer is faith and fear of God. He orchestrated everything. From the protection of his people from their enemies, to the favourable response they received from the King’s of Persia, to making sure they received the money and resources to do it. He had it rebuilt once more, with the best of materials and the most specific instructions. For it was to be his temple to reside in, no matter what occurred in the past.

Reality

Today we no longer have a building to represent God’s temple. When Jesus died on the cross, the heavy curtain that separated the temple from the inner sanctum of the Lord’s presence was torn, from top to bottom. He no longer resides in a man made temple, but in man himself. I may have burned to the ground the best thing in me, but God has promised that if I let him wash my feet he can make me whole.

Around my neck hangs the sign – under construction.

The Wealth of the World

As young adults what would, stereotypically, blow all of our minds? Being offered the following for free:

Food galore, whose supply will never end, a fancy house to call your own (if you could call a mansion a house), and your dream car (fill-in-the-blank). Isn’t that why we all enter those contests to win this or that amazing prize? Isn’t that why we buy lottery tickets? Isn’t that why we love it when roll-up-the-rim to win! comes around? (Don’t try to deny it).

We love the idea of having it all. And it’s not necessarily because we want to wow others with our material things, but because we want to wow ourselves with them. I’d be giddy with the first item alone! The best present a student could EVER receive.

Reality Check

Do you know what those things actually are? The food is made of water, probably a lot of chemicals, normal white sugar, plant and animal enzymes. I could break it down further, but it just gets more unappetizing. The mansion is made of trees but probably not many, concrete, lots of plastic chock-full of BPA, stones, mud, chemicals (paint). It doesn’t matter what the quality of the individual products are, break it down they’re all similar. The dream car is made of a lot of plastic, metal, gas, leather if you’re really fancy. Sure, humans have done some pretty cool stuff with these ingredients. We call it innovation. But at the end of  the day, all will return to the way it was. Our manipulation of multiple objects is temporary and it never lasts.

Bible Story Time

Do you remember the story of the time Jesus spent 40 days and nights wondering in the desert? Now if any human being would be desperate for stuff, you would assume it to be the one who has been fasting for 40 days AND nights. And right after Jesus’ mind and body draining fast of 40 days and nights, under harsh elements and emotional stress, the devil came to visit him. (Isn’t that just like the devil? We put ourselves in terrible situations, and I mean mind-blowingly bad situations, and then he comes around. Like whipped soy cream atop maggot pie.)

When the devil comes to visit Jesus, he sees the poor state that Jesus has been reduced to. The Bible says Jesus was hungry. And the devil thinks to himself, you know, I have the perfect way to fool him into doing my will. “Hey, Jesus, unless you’ve forgotten, you think you’re the Son of God. If you’re really hungry turn the stones at your feet to bread. Eat and be full!” Bread would be really good to a hungry person. But Jesus didn’t take the bait. At the end of the day he knew the Bread would not satisfy him, it came from a stone after all.

Not born yesterday, were you Jesus? Alright then, I have a better option for you.

The devil takes them both into the holy city (Jerusalem), and sets him on the pinnacle of the temple. I’m assuming it’s kind of windy up there, not much room. I’d be inclined to think Satan was about to push me off. And the devil says to Jesus, “remember, you are the so-called Son of God, if you throw your self off, your Father will send angels to catch you”. As someone who strongly believed their death was imminent (and I do believe Jesus did), I might risk falling to my death if I had faith my father would be at the bottom holding a safety net. But he saw right through the empty promise Satan was tempting him with. He wouldn’t tempt the Lord into action but if the devil decided to throw him off then so be it.

Shoot, I thought I’d get you there. I don’t know what it is with near-death experiences, it usually has everyone singing hymns. No worries, I saved the best for last Jesus.

At this point the devil removes Jesus from his perilous position atop the temple, to a different perilous position atop an extremely high mountain. Food, life, now riches was the devil’s plan. He turns and says to him,”look, Jesus, look at all that I own. Isn’t it beautiful, isn’t it glorious? I can give it to you, just worship me. Just this once!” Allow me to translate that into 21st century English.  You have a father who is a brilliant man, and he comes up with this amazing invention that revolutionizes the world, like the cure for cancer. You know he made it, his colleagues know he made it, everyone who reads his blog knows he made it. But before he could publish his findings and therefore prove to the world he made it, someone in his close circle comes and steals the idea and publishes it before he does. Then this man stands next to you and says, I’ll give your dad all the credit, I will tell the world who really found the cure for cancer, just say I’m the best chemist you’ve ever known.

You sit there at your computer, and you think, what gall Satan had! I would never accept that. But really, except for a man or woman of exceptionally strong character, you couldn’t refuse that offer. No one else would know you’d said it, and you’d get what you and your Father have been working for ages at getting back, and is the reason why you’re suffering here on earth to begin with. But Jesus, underneath the glamour, saw the temporariness of the world he was standing on. Yes, it was initially his Father’s creation, but it was no longer destined to last. Jesus would be pledging himself to a dying institution.

Real Life Applications

Look around you, and for every item that meets your eye say, “temporary”. It could be sentimental, expensive, still it’s “temporary”. Look at your body in the mirror, “temporary”. I have a ring that always sits on my pinky from my mom, I panic when I loose it and am overjoyed when I find it, “TEMPORARY”.

Food, money, houses, cars. They are all temporary and are unnecessary in the world you are headed to. So when you’re not making as much money as you want to,  or your family does not have the same financial means as other families, or you’re deep in debt and it’s depressing you. Remember it’s all temporary.

The text referred to is found in Matthew 4: 1-11.

Money, God of our hearts

I know money is a strange subject to write about on a youth blog. Either you are a high school student with little to no money, a college/university student struggling with negative dollar signs, or a recently convocated young adult with a low-paying job. However, even though we may not have it ourselves, money still greatly impacts our lives. I do not profess to know a lot about this subject, but curiousity has me researching what the Bible has to say on this subject. Will you take the journey with me?

The Rich Young Ruler

The Rich Young Ruler is a very popular story in the Bible. It’s recorded in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Personally I looked at Mark’s version found in Mark 10:17-27. Most of us know this story, or at least the outline. I’ll recap for those who don’t.

Jesus is walking with his disciples when a young man intercepts him, calling him Teacher, and asks what he must do for eternal life. Jesus points him to the ten commandments. The young man is overjoyed since he has kept those since boyhood, all his problems are solved, he will most assuredly be going to heaven! But not so fast, Jesus looks at his heart and sees something lacking. He advises the young man to go sell all that he has, give it to the poor, and come follow Him. The young man was disheartened, because he knew he could never give up his riches.

Then comes the most poignant verse, the one we will be studying. After the man leaves, Jesus turns to his disciples and says, “Children how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God. It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” (Mark 10:24-25). What does that mean?

As a kid, I don’t mind telling you, the image this verse brought in my head was pretty ridiculous.

  

However, I have since learned the error of my ways. This verse in the literal sense actually references the narrow area around gates going into Jerusalem. For pack animals, such as a camels, they had to unload all of their burdens and be led kneeling to get through.

Makes much more sense now doesn’t it? Not to mention the many parallels we can draw from this example to our relationship with God, but I will not go there today.

First, I would like to point out that Jesus’ advice for this young man was not the same that he gave everyone. He did not tell all he met to drop all their belongings and follow him. But I feel that this was His advice for the Rich Young Ruler because he saw that keeping the young man from Him was money. Money was the ruler’s true God, and that had to change for him to accept the gift of God.

You might be thinking, “what does that have to with me? You’ve already established that I have none!” Well, you don’t have to have money for it to be your obsession. Are you more worried about the money you “need” than spending time with God? How many times do you wish you had more money to live a better life? It’s probably one of the chief things any student will talk about! (I’m including myself here).

There are times when I look at my chequeing account statement and the bills and living expenses I have to pay with it, and I get a bit scared. There are times when I’ve used my debit card to pay for something and I’m standing there, sweating and praying, it will come out approved. There was a time that I went around with only 18 cents in said chequeing account for a week and a half. Money is important, especially if you’re not living at home.

When you don’t have money, it seems to be the logical solution to all your problems. But if you live like that, it won’t matter how much you have, it will never satisfy you. I’ve witnessed the empty lives the Money God produces. Money is not the answer to your problem, that is a lie society tells you repeatedly.

Instead of allowing Money to rule our hearts, I challenge all of us to take a new perspective. Remove Money from the pedestal it holds in your heart and replace it with this promise;

Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? […] Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ […] For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things.                                                                                                           Matthew 6:26, 31-34 (NKJV)

Life will be more full leaning on God, he has promised that to all of us.

Now that we all have given money its proper place in our lives, next week we can learn more about how to deal with it, God’s way.

Also, if you have any time check out this song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DumlIIHSrsQ. It’s on this subject called American Dream by Casting Crowns.

God Bless!

I take thee God…

Oh happy happy day! Today is the best kind of day! None could be happier or more joyful, and that is because MANY dear friends of mine (and even some siblings) were baptised into the church! The only question that remains is, who was blessed more? Was it those being baptised, or the congregation who witnessed it happen?

The six people that were baptised are some of the most amazing people I know. I grew up with them. But for all the time we spent together, at church, church related programs, during the week, Sabbath days and nights, there are some things you will never know. And that is what they think about their relationship with Christ.

Because let’s be honest here, in our daily walk with Christ, we are not all that consistent. There have been so many times in my life that I make it to Sabbath, look back on my week, and I realize how distant I have been. And it’s not him! It’s all me. So, when you yourself are nervous about owning up to the feelings you have inside of you, and the journey you had to take to get where you are to other people, you’re not all that comfortable outright asking how someone else is doing. Or at least I’m not.

Therefore, you can imagine how happy I was the day my sister told me she wanted to be baptised! The creator of the universe that I’ve come to love so much, she wanted to take as her God too. The best part was hearing her testimony. Well, all of their testimonies really. Hence the question, who was more blessed by their decision?

Sitting in the pews, hearing them declare their personal reasons for choosing God refreshes you! And I wanted to pass on some of that refreshment. Each of them gave very unique, individual testimonies, and I really wish I had videos of all of them to share with you, but sadly this is not the case. So instead, I collected the verses they shared with the congregation and asked them to tell me in a few words something about it.

First was Bea. The verse she shared with us was Matthew 28:18-20.

¹⁸ And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. ¹⁹ Go therefore^[a] and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. 

She enjoys this verse for its reassurance that after baptism God will be right there with you to the end. After the ups and downs that we all experience, it’s nice to know that no matter what, there is at least one constant.

Pablo, Bea’s older brother, chose Isaiah 40:31.

But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.

The verse talks about trusting in God even when times are tough. Pablo has had his share of a tough life, grandfather dying from cancer, father leaving his family and country, mother needing to work multiple jobs to make ends meet. And yet his parents always encouraged him to trust in the Lord. I’m so glad he does.

My brother Nigel picked out Acts 1:8.

⁸ But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me^[a] in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

In his testimony Nigel mentioned how if he’d been asked two years earlier if he wanted to follow Christ, his answer would have been no. The change in his attitude has been extreme. Nigel feels that now that he’s getting baptised, he will be taking on the full responsibility of a full follower of Christ, and with that comes God’s promise in this verse to reward his dedication with the power of God through the Holy Spirit.

Elynn, one of my closest friends and room-mate in university, chose Jeremiah 29:11.

¹¹ For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

This is one of the greatest promises in the Bible, and it was this one that specially touched her. As she begins public life of following God, it will be this promise that she holds to. She also shared with us a song which you can check out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdjRmM0Q0qs

Bryan, a really close family friend, did not actually pick a verse. Because like so many of us when we don’t have the words, he sang. The wonders of technology actually allow me to share it with you so, here is his testimony and cover of Maria Long’s Endeavor: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgPwAAwJSd0&feature=youtu.be

The sixth  individual would be my sister Maddie, the catalyst for all these baptisms. She had brought her desire to be baptised to her youth leader, who in turn asked who else was interested. I unfortunately do not have her verse, university time and home time is very different and she was asleep when I called. I can tell you her main reason for choosing God was that God is love. And that love is an action, and that action was him dying on the cross for our sins. Amen.

So let’s all celebrate the new souls for Christ! I know he and the host of angels in heaven will be celebrating in kind!

And if I may end in a question, why did you choose to follow God?

DISCLAIMER: This blog was meant to be posted September 1st, 2012, the day of their baptism.