Born to Build - Part 3

Have you ever seen a beautiful fireplace that was constructed by real stones? Aren’t they gorgeous? I love the way the stone masons carefully fit them together like a beautiful mosaic. Well, that’s the picture God uses to describe the church.

1 Peter 2:5 (NIV), “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.”

God refers to us as spiritual stones because He divinely places us in strategic relationships where we can be blessed by others as well as be a blessing to others.

God is the master stone mason and puts people around us that are different so that we can fill in the empty places in just the right way to become something beautiful.

1 Corinthians 12:18 (NKJV), “But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.”

When we come to church, the Bible tells us that we should all come with something to offer the body. Christians are designed to be in relationships with one another as we serve the Lord together building the church.

1 Corinthians 14:12 (GNT), “Since you are eager to have the gifts of the Spirit, you must try above everything else to make greater use of those which help to build up the church.”

Going to church is not about merely increasing our knowledge about God, but rather it is about actually serving God by strapping on our spiritual tool belts and going to work helping to build the church.

The Old Country Preacher used to say, “Knowing something is not the same as Doing something.”

Ephesians 2:19-22 (NIV), “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.”

I can’t think of any biblical promise that we will ever be rewarded for what we know. A lot of people know “about” God but they don’t live as though the “know” God personally.

Ephesians 4:16 (NLT), “He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.”

God wants you to serve him with enthusiasm rather than out of obligation. The word enthusiasm is derived from two Greek words – en theos. It means “God within.” In other words, when God is within you, your joy for serving him is comes out of you. Because you were born to build!

(You can hear Pastor John’s devotions on The Bridge Radio 88.7 FM or by logging on the www.thebridge.fm or www.newhorizonfamily.com)