It is Time to Rebuild the Temple

Haggai 2:15-19
” ‘Now give careful thought to this from this day on —consider how things were before one stone was laid on another in the LORD’s temple. 16 When anyone came to a heap of twenty measures, there were only ten. When anyone went to a wine vat to draw fifty measures, there were only twenty. 17 I struck all the work of your hands with blight, mildew and hail, yet you did not turn to me,’ declares the LORD. 18 ‘From this day on, from this twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, give careful thought to the day when the foundation of the LORD’s temple was laid. Give careful thought: 19 Is there yet any seed left in the barn? Until now, the vine and the fig tree, the pomegranate and the olive tree have not borne fruit.
“ ‘From this day on I will bless you.’ “

It is Time to Rebuild the Temple

Haggai has a strong message for us in this hour. Then, it concerned a remnant of people that came out of the captivity in Babylon. They have returned to their holy city and temple that has been reduced to ruins. The basic message here is that we have a temple of God that needs to be rebuilt, but we have been too focused on building our own little kingdoms and attending to our own needs that God’s house lies in ruin. God is asking this people through Haggai, “Have you wondered why everything you touched and labored at come up short? Why things don’t ever seem to work out or come together?” God is speaking to them that just as when a person touched a dead body they became unclean and everything they touched became unclean so it is with our spiritual works. They have been defiled because they have been mixed with the flesh, the dead body that was crucified with Christ.
If we wonder why we only see God working in a small measure of His glory and power here is where we may find our answer. If we want to see the glory and power of God and if we want to see the release of His blessing upon our lives then it has to become about Him and not about us. God is giving His people a promise and I believe it is the promise He is speaking to us in this hour. If we will come together, lay aside our agenda and our dead works we will see the blessing of God.
More than ever before I find myself praying, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done.” This is the day and the hour for the temple of God to be restored in the spirit. He is restoring a spiritual house that will worship Him in Spirit and in Truth. In that place He will be Lord and He will move according to His will and purpose and no longer ours. Church will no longer be a place we meet once or twice a week to go through religious motions and exercises. It will become a central part of our lives, because we will all come together, to labor together that the body might be built up into spiritual maturity and wholeness. In that spirit will we see God’s Spirit poured out upon us. It is God’s heart to bless us in ways that we can’t imagine, but He is waiting for us to step into our purpose as the body of Christ and to walk by the Spirit and no longer in the flesh. When His body is in proper alignment and place He will shake heaven and earth. Even now we are beginning to see the shaking taking place. This is not a place for us to fear, but a sign to us to move into the purpose of God for our lives personally and corporately. God has a blessing awaiting us and the increase of His kingdom is upon us, as we will move into the restoration of His house. Those called out ones from Babylon which are represented by Zerrubabel will become His government and the signet ring which represents His divine authority to bring to pass His will in this earth.
It is a day not to look to the economies and systems of this world. They are passing away. We are moving into a divine economy and kingdom whose builder and maker is God. That means our way of thinking and doing must change drastically for many of us. The principles of God’s kingdom are the principles of His Word and Truth. Today we are called to line up with these principles. People aren’t going to be made holy just because they brush up against the holy flesh we are carrying in the skirt of our garment, or the Christ in us. They are going to be made holy, as they personally become partakers of the flesh and blood of Christ. God is looking for the laborers and the priesthood to take this message to the world. Come and let us labor in His house by His Spirit that we might partake of His blessing and be a part of that blessing to others.

Blessings,
#kent

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Unity in Diversity

Unity in Diversity

Romans 12:16
[Be] of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.

Why is it we struggle so much with our human relationships with other people? Wouldn’t it be so much easier if everyone thought just like us, even if they could just see that the way that we think is the best way to do things? Unfortunately and maybe fortunately, we are quite diverse in how we solve our problems and deal with the issues of life. While that is not so much a problem if we are dealing with just us, it becomes quite a challenge when we are in relationships where we need to be in one accord concerning decisions and policies of how things are to be done. We all have different ideas of how something should be. Often it is not a question of one being right and one being wrong, except perhaps in their own eyes, it is more a matter of being in one accord and reaching a common ground where we can share and come into agreement though we differ in opinion and logic. This is the crux of life, whether it is in business and working relationships, marriage, family, the body of Christ, no matter what the relations, it is often a challenge to come into one mind. How do we find unity in the diversity of our personalities and ways of thinking and viewing things? Well, obviously the world has come up with many ways of dealing with these issues, monarchies, dictatorships, socialism, totalitarianism, democracies and even theocracy.
Perhaps you are struggling in a relationship today. We seek to have the mind of Christ in non-Christian relationships and as Romans 12:18 puts it, “If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.” What about our Christian relationships with other Christians, our marriages and our families, these areas that we all struggle with daily? Unfortunately we don’t have a much better record at these relationships than the world does, but we should because we have what they don’t have, Christ. If we have committed ourselves to live our lives under the theocracy of God’s will then what our efforts should be focused on is not what my will or my way is or what yours is, but what is the mind of God concerning our decisions. Do we come to the bargaining table with different agendas and different priorities? How do we arrive at peaceable solutions? First, are all parties willing to lay down their rights and opinions and submit to what God’s will is in a particular area of dissension? Are we willing to approach our differences with respect for one another and our differences of opinion, realizing that we are all made up of strengths and weaknesses? Are we willing to give place to someone else’s gifting or strength in an area? Are we willing to lay these differences at the altar and unselfishly pursue the Lord’s will through praying together and seeking the mind of the Lord? That’s probably not normally our way, but it should be. Are we all honest in our dealings and can we bring our feelings under submission to the Lord? We often want to resolve our differences emotionally which usually only further polarizes us rather than unifying us. Are we willing to come with unselfishness in our hearts and pursue the end that best meets the needs of all concerned? Our God is a God of Peace and He wants us to pursue peaceable means through His love that is within us by being longsuffering, courteous, respectful and giving place to one another.
It comes back to “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: (Philippians 2:5).” He became a servant though He was Lord of all and laid down His life for us. We need this mind to be the servant of one another working, living and giving what is best for the benefit of others and not just ourselves. When we get ourselves out of the picture then resolution to our conflicts and differences becomes much easier. Love is about our desire to give and not just to get. The more this love is working in the hearts of all concerned the easier our differences will be resolved and we will find unity in our diversity.
“For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of [his] good pleasure.
Do all things without murmurings and disputings: That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain. (Philippians 2:13-16).”

Blessings,
kent