Good Morning Friends,
Building a purposeful life is what should matter to Christians and living life with eternity in mind helps. I think that today’s passage from Ecclesiastes was related to that reality, at least inasmuch as Solomon knew God. The wise words of Solomon seem relevant today is ways that may have even surprised Solomon. During the time of Solomon, it was a time to build up the place of worship. The Temple needed to be built. It took twenty years and defined his Kingship. A new Temple was needed during the time of Jesus too. The political leaders in charge wanted to feather their own nests instead of honoring God. They cared about power. Such was the like of Herod. Still, he wondered who this Jesus was. And this is the question we face too. For even Solomon knew you could not keep God in a box. So, Do You Have Some Questions About Who Jesus Is And His Purpose For The Temple In Your Life?
Scripture: Now Herod the ruler heard about all that had taken place, and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had been raised from the dead, by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the ancient prophets had arisen. Herod said, “John I beheaded; but who is this about whom I hear such things?” And he tried to see him.
Luke 9:7-9 (NRSV)
Vanity of vanities, says the Teacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity. What do people gain from all the toil at which they toil under the sun? A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun goes down, and hurries to the place where it rises. The wind blows to the south, and goes around to the north; round and round goes the wind, and on its circuits the wind returns. All streams run to the sea, but the sea is not full; to the place where the streams flow, there they continue to flow. All things are wearisome; more than one can express; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, or the ear filled with hearing. What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done; there is nothing new under the sun. Is there a thing of which it is said, “See, this is new”? It has already been, in the ages before us. The people of long ago are not remembered, nor will there be any remembrance of people yet to come by those who come after them.
Ecclesiastes 1:2-11 (NRSV)
Message: There is an argument in the Church that contrasts what we owe to God with what we owe to our neighbor and ourselves. Some say we do not need ornate churches with lots of stone and pipe organs and marble altars and bells and fancy stained-glass windows. It is better to spend that money on the poor and have a simple little chapel that reflects a poverty and concern for the marginalized. The argument pits the two parts of the great commandment against each other–kind of like love God or love your neighbor. But it is not an either-or proposition but an act of balance. So too now that there are many beautiful, but empty places of worship, speaks to the deeper issue we must consider. What really honors and glorifies God? And to respond to this we must answer the question that was on the mind of Herod in today’s text. And how we respond to the rebuilding of the Temple in us that Jesus had in mind perhaps from the beginning of time tells us what we think of Jesus. C. S. Lewis, who was a professor at Cambridge University and once an agnostic, understood this issue clearly. He writes: “I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His claim to be God.’ That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic – on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg – or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the son of God: or else a madman or something worse.” Friends, Christianity presents to the world an ideal character which through all the changes of the centuries has inspired the hearts of men with an impassioned love. Only Jesus as both God and man has given us the incentive to practice the highest pattern of virtue. How we choose to glorify God therefor depends on who we believe Jesus to be. And if we get to know Jesus, we might discover the mysterious balance of the relationship shared in our lives bring us both peace and purpose beyond the moment.
And So, I imagine even now you have some questions about Jesus that you were never comfortable in asking. And honestly, I do not have all the answers, but I do have enough faith to ask Jesus to help me understand what I need to do is to trust that God will reveal what I need to know. Interestingly it is Christ who used questions to communicate salvation to the world for the divine knows what is in everyone’s hearts. And so, even though the questions were originally directed to the disciples over 2,000 years ago, Christ’s questions are also the start of conversations He wants to have with us today. They are questions not about theology as much as gauging and engaging our persistence, commitment, love, and faith. By examining Christ’s own words, we are invited to understand who Christ is and what Christ is asking of Christians today. So, in our asking and answering we receive a balance that helps us to meet the needs of others while also honoring God by building a temple in our hearts. The seeking helps us to discover the truth of what we believe and how we might bring beauty into this world through collective acts of worship but also realize how selfish we really are without the Holy Spirit working in and through us to glorify God and save us. Solomon and the Israelites sought to provide a worthy dwelling place for their God. And the temple they built was indeed magnificent but a bit vain. The Lord made it known that his presence was there, but his presence was conditional. Even Solomon understood that the Lord was not limited to a building. Today the Lord shows His presence in the hearts of believers. The Lord never was limited to a physical building or a box. If we focus our spiritual lives on a beautiful church building, then we have missed the most important part. Friends, life without purpose makes it seem like all we are doing is going around in circles, which is Solomon’s conclusion. And yet God has a purpose for our lives, and that is to have a personal relationship with the Divine and to be a part of the Holy family. We do that by accepting Jesus Christ into our lives as Savior and Lord. And then we need to take time in His word and in prayer to further that relationship and discover our purpose.
Pray we build God’s house within us with our time, talents, and treasures to God’s glory. Pray we realize that we cannot take them with us, but we can send it ahead, and we do so by investing in God’s purposes now. Pray we do not get sidetracked and self-absorbed but stay focused on Jesus. Pray we contemplate the person of Jesus and the mission of God as it relates to how we worship and to how we live. Pray we realize that we cannot separate the person of Jesus from the teachings of Jesus. Pray we realize that someone who lived as Jesus lived, taught as Jesus taught, and died as Jesus died could not have been a liar or a lunatic. Pray we worship in a way that acknowledges the presence of God in our lives and a belief that Jesus was all man and all God at the same time. Pray we see the true Jesus and this miracle of love spill over in our lives so others might believe in and see the beauty of God incarnate. Pray the only question that matters, the question of love, is answered in our lives in affirmation of our relationship with Jesus. Pray we embrace a purposeful life that is not all vanity.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 