The Twilight of Building

 

The Lord God told David through His Prophet Nathan that he did not want a temple made of cedar (2 Samuel 7:1-53). Then Christ the Lord died on the cross and the veil in the Temple was tore in two (Matthew 27:49-51). The Lord then through his apostles made it clear that we, Christian believers in Jesus Christ are the temples of God. (1 Corinthians 3:16-17). So then why if God never wanted a house of cedar and has now made us Christians the stones making up his Church (Ephesians 2:21-22) do church buildings exist? Why is it so important to have a building if God did not want one in the first place and made it futile after Calvary? 

The answer is always ego, that a man wants to leave behind s legacy not to honor God but himself. Constantine The Great ordered the building of cathedrals like St. Peter’s Basilica and The Hagia Sophia, not to honor God with his piety but  to honor himself, you can still see mosaics of Constantine with Jesus and the Virgin Mary, drawing attention to himself and making him appear on the equal plain with the Lord. 

The Building which was never what God wanted, is now crashing down. Due to Covid-19, believers cannot gather in buildings, temples or cathedrals. Any time they do there is a huge spike in cases. Now at the same time there are revivals in America, particularly on the coasts, and why? No building, no politics, no procedures voted in by stone councils and boards, just plain and simply Jesus Freaks, akin to what the Early Acts Church and Jesus Revolution of the 1970’s was. 

The Twilight of the building is here. It is time to put the final nail in Constantine’s corrupt coffin that sought with success to suffocate the saints in rituals, rules, and caste system. Everyone is a priest of Christ, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light,” (1 Peter 2:19) and “Jesus, the Christ, who is the faithful witness and the first begotten of the dead and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us and washed us from our sins with his own blood

6and has made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever, Amen,” (Revelation 1:5-6) not these elaborately dressed men in golden robes with college degrees! Christ chose humble fisherman, tax collectors, and sinners to be his Twelve Disciples, not the religious graduates of the Pharisees and Sadducees (see Matthew Chapter 23 for how Jesus feels about the religious elite).  So then why would we obey a system that props up a caste system of ecclesia and laity, when we are all the ecclesia! Why would we build houses of cedar, when Christ on the cross of cedar made all of us His houses, carrying him everywhere, “But Christ is faithful as the Son over God's house. And we are His house, if we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope of which we boast,” (Hebrews 3:6), “All who declare that Jesus is the Son of God have God living in them, and they live in God,” (1 John 4:15) and “So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.” (2 Corinthians 5:20–21).  Again its so pastors, Neo-Pharisees can wear their phylacteries and sit in seat of Moses to get praised, “1 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples,

2 "The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat,

3 so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice.

4 They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger.

5 They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long,

6 and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues

7 and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others.

8 But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers.

9 And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.

10 Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ.

11 The greatest among you shall be your servant.

12 Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. - Matthew 23:1-12), the building is really for worship of the Pastor’s ego! It is their Moses seat! 

Its time to let the building of cedar fall and to let the Building of Christ’s people, the Saints, The Bride, rise up in its stead. We, God’s People are the Church, not these houses of cedar! Let those cedar temples burn! Rise up and be Christ’s ambassadors, be His Church and House. Amen.