Continuing Pastor Kyle's message: The second simple and amazing facts about how God builds His Kingdom and His Church is (2) that everyone plays a part in building God’s kingdom in and through Christ’s church. Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw — each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire. All Christians build on the godly foundation of Christ and the Word of God to win soul for the sake of the Gospel. We are all called to use our unique gifts and build the church differently as the body of Christ, but we are all called to build on the Kingdom of Heaven together in community and in prayer. On the Day of Judgment, every one of us are going to stand before their Maker and Lord. First at the Great White Throne judgment, where everyone’s entire lives are revealed and the Book of Life is open, then all unbelievers and pretend believers will be thrown into the Lake of Fire in Hell for eternity apart from God. In Matthew 7:23 Jesus said, “Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!”
But, for those who are truly “Born-again” in repentance and acceptance, confessing Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, are transformed to living their lives for Him in accordance and aligned with the Holy Scriptures, and walked with the received Holy Spirit in their hearts as their guide, Jesus says “Well done my good and faithful servant. Came enter into your heavenly rest for eternity with me. The second judgment in Heaven before the Lord is the Judgment of Believers, where God looks at what Believers did with their lives on earth and rewards those good and faithful servants accordingly. Every work built on the foundation of God and from the perspective of eternity which we’ve thought, said and done will be tested by fire in Heaven. Those things done for the church and the kingdom of Christ get rewarded and everything else gets burned up and is lost. A reward from God is far more valuable and ultimately better than any earthly recognition that we receive. The story is for God’s glory and we all live it out and contribute. Sacrificing for God’s kingdom is praiseworthy. Every Christian is called to sacrifice in three ways in their life: (a) time, (b) talents, and (c) treasures. Take the step in faith and God’s will show you the what, when, where and how.
Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple. The Christian church is the temple of God. Later, 1 Corinthians 6:18-20 tells us to, “Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. 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. The Holy Spirit dwells in Believers individually and in the church collectively. Do not defile the holy temple. The Holy Spirit is always working in the church, in the advancement of the Gospel and the building of the kingdom, so the body of Christ can contribute in unique individual and collective ways. God’s Spirit doesn’t dwell in building structures but in people who love, trust, believe and obey the Lord, and gather as the body of Christ. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are to grow and mature in Christ individually, to spread the Gospel and multiply and strengthen Christ’s church in the world, and advance the kingdom of God – increasing the population of Heaven. Build your life on the firm foundation of Jesus Christ, as a part of His body of Believers.
1 Peter 1:13-23 “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God.”
Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,” and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” So let no one boast in men.” God sees through people who live by secular worldly wisdom and human standards. God sees the heart behind every worldly thought and argument. When a godly person does something great in God’s world or for God’s kingdom, do not praise the person but do praise Almighty God, who is working through that person and gets all the glory.
For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, and you are Christ's, and Christ is God's.” God has given us, literally, everything that we need to succeed. All things belong to God and we belong to Christ, who was sent by God, so all things are yours. Since we all belong to God and everything is in God’s hands, when it comes to building God’s kingdom, whatever you want to do in the work of advancing the Christian faith, go for it, have at it and give it all that you have ... build the kingdom, build the church, because there are no limits of the Believer that sets their mind upon helping God build His kingdom. Say “yes” to God every day. Don’t just get comfortable in a Christian route and coast along on “automatic pilot”. We get comfortable with our lives being a certain way.
In 1 Chronicles 4:10-11, Jabez called upon the God of Israel, saying, “Oh that you would bless me and enlarge my border, and that your hand might be with me, and that you would keep me from harm so that it might not bring me pain!” And God granted what he asked.
We tend to be creatures of habit which seek green pastures and still cool waters, but the Lord called us all to enlarge our borders in the work of evangelic ministry in seeking and saving the lost. We don’t enjoy being pushed to do more, seek more, sacrifice more than our current comfort zone is now. God blesses us with more opportunities to trust Him every day, more opportunities to display our faith in Him, right here no matter wherever “here” is, knowing that His hand is with us, and that He would keep us from harm in “Disciple living”. Yes, I will pray for people who are struggling. Compassionately visit those who are careworn, downtrodden and ill. Engage in Christian ministry and Gospel outreach to others. Be generous in tithes, offerings, missions, charity, philanthropy and benevolence. I will trust the Lord to get me through whatever I am going through. Be a will vessel in the hands of God. As Isaiah 64:8 proclaims, “O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.” Watch as God continuously connects your story to His over-arching story.
Keep your eyes on the prize. We get to be God’s skilled master-builders that build on top of the rock-solid foundation of Jesus Christ and is Gospel of Salvation. God doesn’t really need us because His kingdom is not built any one of us, the church goes on with or without us, yet the Lord desires every one of us to build and experience the rewards of being a part of the process in the good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Do not push the things of the Kingdom of Heaven away. But engage in what God is doing, keeping your eyes on the prize. Together, we can accomplish far great goals than any of us could accomplish individually. When our story connects to His story, lives change, Believers grow and the Gospel advances. Let’s build on this foundation that has been entrusted to us, called Christianity and let’s believe God. In God we Trust.
In Christ, Brian
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