The church is not a building!

Sometimes the Lord teaches me a new thing in morning devotions, and sometimes He reminds me of what I already know. Both bless me, and both give instruction for the way He wants me to think, talk and live. This devotional guide of Tozer’s is particularly helpful because his insights are fresh and thought-provoking.

Today, he reminds me of the quality and reality of the Body of Christ and our ability to commune with one another. He says Christians are scattered over the earth, separated yet, “in every true member of the Church is the homing instinct and the longing of the sheep for the fold and the Shepherd.” He adds, “Give a few real Christians half a chance and they will get together and organize and plan regular meetings for prayer and worship.”

I download prayer calendars from various mission organizations. Many of the requests are from countries where Christianity is forbidden, and believers are persecuted. Their churches have been burned, the people are scattered, and they are unable to hear the Scriptures expounded, break bread together, or share the Gospel with others. Yet for most of them, they keep trying to fellowship together and do these things.

We do this because it is built in, a part of the heart of Jesus Christ who lives in us. Paul explains that God does not live in buildings, even though many will call a church building ‘the house of God.’

The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. (Acts 17:24–25)

The Bible says that each believer is a temple of the Living God. We belong to Him and He lives in us!

Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. (1 Corinthians 6:19–20)

Because of this, no matter how many or the locations, when Christians are together they are like a cell in the human body, part of it. That is, any local church is a part of the greater church and in these groups or cells, God lives and does His work on earth.

Tozer says that the presence of the Holy Spirit is better than the physical presence of the Lord Jesus would be had he not ascended to heaven. We have an internal presence of God, making God equally accessible to all His people. We do not serve Him, but He serves us that we might minister to each other and to the world.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Jesus, I sensed Your presence in a strong way while watching and listening to the tributes given to You in the White House because of Billy Graham’s life and message. Every person who spoke said what today’s devotional affirms — Christians serve the world by exalting Christ and sharing the Gospel and the love of God to others. It is not about us nor about the church, but about Jesus Christ. Some reject You and some reject the church for You said we would be treated like You were treated, but we still are strongly compelled to do Your will no matter how it is received because the Holy Spirit lives in us and gives us that desire.

Being nothing or being a blessing?

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. (Ephesians 2:19–21)

While God can speak through whomever or whatever He wishes (such as the remark of a godless leader or even a donkey), He challenges His people to be filled with the Holy Spirit, allowing Him to control what we do and say.

In the early days of the church, there was some confusion about that. On one trip, Paul came to Ephesus where he found some disciples. Apparently they were not doing much, so he asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” (Acts 19:1–2)

This issue was soon rectified and these disciples received and were filled with the Holy Spirit. This was something any Jew should have expected had they been familiar with their Scriptures. Many passages make promises like this one . . .

And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God. (Ezekiel 36:26–28)

That prophet indicates that walking with God in obedience requires newness of life given by His Spirit. Actually, even being in the family of God and possessing eternal life requires having the Holy Spirit . . .

You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. (Romans 8:9–11)

Today’s devotional writer draws attention to those who know the Bible, but do not know the Spirit or are not filled with the Spirit. He says the result of theological training without God’s Spirit is “refined ineffectuality.”

I know about that. I can spout off what I know, but unless the Spirit is filling my life and empowering my words, I am a “noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” (1 Corinthians 13:1) Without the Spirit, I’m without the love of God and the power of God. To those who hear me, I am just noise at best, and pompous pride, arrogance and terribly annoying at worst.

Because I believe in Jesus Christ, I am “God’s temple” and God’s Spirit dwells in me. (1 Corinthians 3:16–17). I am 100% a child of God, but I am also 100% a sinner. Which one rules my choices and my life makes the difference between being nothing and being a blessing.

Christian Unity

The peace of God depends not on circumstances, but on faith. When a person believes that God is in charge of all things, and trusts His choices, then the heart is a rest, no matter the externals.

This is also true of unity. Jesus prayed for it…

I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. (John 17:20–21)

… Yet Jesus was not asking for an outward unity where His children agree on everything or understand Him in the same way. That may happen in heaven, but here on earth the unity He prayed for depends on the one thing we have in common --- His indwelling presence. Because Jesus lives in His people, we are united, regardless of our external differences.

I’ve attended many different churches and found this to be so. If God’s people can get past their points of difference, we feel as if we have known each other forever. That comes from the Holy Spirit who unites us in spirit and gives us a communion with one another that doesn’t happen with everyone else.

Sometimes I ‘click’ with certain people. Most know that experience, yet the unity Christians have in Christ goes beyond that. We don’t have to think alike or have mutual hobbies or interests. We have Jesus living in us and that is enough, almost.

This prayer is more fully answered the more we know, believe and live by the gospel and do it with kindness toward those who differ from our definition of it. Some Christians still look for that outward union rather than the inward coupled with kindness. For them, it seems agreement on all issues is the answer to Jesus’ prayer. No doubt this is why there are so many denominations.

In heaven, there will be none of that; our unity will be complete. While we will not have heaven on earth, it seems to me a good idea to focus on what we do have in common while we are here, rather than all that divides. Our challenge is maintaining devotion to God’s truth and at the same time being kind, even affectionate and cooperative with others who love Jesus but wear a different hat.

When we can do that, we help others believe that God the Father sent God the Son to be our Redeemer, our peace, and our unity.

Honoring the Spirit within

Last week one of the receivers on our city’s national league football team crashed heads with another player in a game down east. He dropped the ball, leaped to cover it, and didn’t move after that. Number 83 broke his neck.

As he was taken by ambulance to the hospital, fans feared the worst. An injury like this usually means paralysis or worse. However, this player was moving his feet, a good sign. We listened to the radio for progress reports of his surgery, but nothing could have prepared us for what we saw last night.

The team had another game, this time at home. Before the game, Number 83, in a huge neck brace, walked (yes, walked) into the locker room. I cannot imagine how his team members felt, but the newscast afterward showed that this player was clearly a leader among them. They were visibly moved, and responded in a remarkable way.

Late in the game (we were losing), one of our receivers intercepted a ball. After the whistle, he pulled up his jersey to show that his undershirt was emblazoned with a big 83. Later in the game, another receiver caught the ball—same thing; he pulled up his shirt to reveal the same number. Every home team receiver had the number 83 sewn to their undershirts! Every catch was followed by arms raised in tribute to their teammate in the neck brace watching the game from a box seat.

In an interview with a local television newscaster, Number 83 said that only the Lord could have kept him from worse injury and that he was thankful to the Lord that he not only survived, but was up and walking only days after breaking his neck.

This morning’s newspaper has a photo of several home team receivers holding up their shirts to show the number 83. This declares how the spirit of this man inspired them to come from behind and win the game. As I think about this photo, a line from a song runs through my head. It says, “His Spirit is within me. . . .”

Today’s reading is about the same thing, only a different Spirit. The verse is Romans 8:2, “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.”

The Spirit of the living God lives in His people. That Spirit conquers both sin and death and gives me life. By the power of God, I live and breathe. My ‘recovery’ from the blows of sin may not be as dramatic as Number 83's recovery from his physical trauma, nevertheless, this is of the Lord. Just as that football player could say that the Lord kept him, I can say that I am kept from the injury of sin and power of death by the same Lord.

What challenges me the most is not just the testimony of Number 83, but the response and support of his teammates. For each play, they gave honor to their injured friend. In the same joyful spirit, I ought to honor my Hero. He was injured and even died for me, not by accident, but with purpose. He gave Himself that I can live free and with power.

I’m not a huge football fan, but last night, Number 83 and team captivated my heart with a great illustration of what it means to give glory to God. Surely, I ought to pull back that which people see on the surface, not considering my own “number” to be important, and reveal to the world which Spirit inspires me to carry on. My Hero is not only a team mate, but the Captain of my soul, the Lord Jesus Christ. He took the fall for me and set me free to live and do my best for our team and for Him.