Sat, 02 Sep 2017 10:36:59 +0000
2nd Corinthian 6:16
WELCOME to today’s topic. The Bible in 2nd Corinthians6:16, says “And what union can there be between God’s Temple and idols, for we are a temple of a living God; as God said “I will live in them and walk among them, I will be their God and they will be my people.”
This means that, the church is not where believers go, it is who we are. God is not waiting for believers in a tinted glass building, but he is already inside believer’s hearts. Those who follow God, are not known by the building they enter, they are known as those in whom the Spirit of God lives. Our behaviour is a representative of God. That is the challenge of those who call themselves believers in God Almighty, Jehovah Jireh.
As believers, we are not supposed to cause any person tumble because of our behaviour. We are supposed to live a life that is exemplary whatsoever, in what we do or say. We are supposed to live a life that encourages others to follow in the footsteps of Christ Jesus.
A life that has learnt to speak truth. St. Paul says in 2nd Corinthian 6:6, “we prove ourselves by purity our understanding, our patience, our kindness, by the Holy Spirit with us and by our sincere love.” We have to be pure in heart, meaning that, they should not be mentioned among us, immorality of any kind. That is neither fornication nor adultery.
We should show understanding and patience when confronted with a problem. Always solving problems, with a loving heart. A heart that forgives. We must show at all times that the Holy Spirit lives in us. When solving the pending problem, we should remove the power of Satan from our hearts. Let God be your support in whatever you do. After all, when God is on your side, no person whatsoever can be against you (Romans 8:31).
In the book of 1st Timothy 4:12, the Bible says, “let no man despise your youth, but be an example of the believers in words, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” This is directed at young believers, they too are supposed to live a holy life, that which is demanded by God. We must give chance to the Holy Spirit to get control of the way we live. We should not team up with the non-believers.
Instead we should team up with fellow believers, who will help us to control ourselves, to run away from sin. As believers we must ensure that our faith in Christ Jesus grows by day. We should not show hate, for people we meet in our everyday life, but to love them, the way Joseph loved his brothers.
Despite having sold him to slave traders heading to Egypt, he still showed Great love for them. (Genesis 37:23-27). However, Joseph never hated his brothers for what they did. But when he became an important man in Egypt, he gave them everything they needed. That was charity at its best. Love that must be a shining example to all.
Followers of Christ must have values and a lifestyle that controls the world with accepted morals. True believers should not blend in with the world, but rather remain with its specific morals that are representative of Christ Jesus. Love is one of the attributes of God, it is therefore said that God is love. We should have love as followers of Christ Jesus, and His Father Lord God Almighty. A believer should always search the scriptures. Find out what the Bible says. The wisdom of God is in the Bible.
In the book of Mark 9:23, the bible says “Jesus said unto him, if thou believe all things are possible to that he believes. This is the kind of belief required from the believer in our God our Father the Most High. As a Temple of God, we must wholeheartedly believe in God. To love God, is to do what is right in the presence of our Lord God Almighty. To love God is to love our neighbour whole heartedly. To love our Lord God Almighty is to run away from sin.
In the Book of Galatians 5:16, the Bible says: “So I say, the Holy Spirit guides your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature cares.” What sinful nature wants us to do is evil, we are always tempted to do what is not right before the Lord. But we are assured of the Holy Spirit to guide us to do what is right.
The evil one is up to no good trying to bring us in total disrepute with our Church. We should always aim at doing what is good in the name of our true God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. We must have the capacity of turning what is evil to what is good in the presence of our dear God.
Being active in the church of God. Preaching the world of God, teaching the Word of God, encouraging people to participate in various activities of the church, like church building and various projects which are undertaken locally. If people want us to ignite, they must find us very difficult to ignite, for only a person without wisdom, will quickly answer back, without thinking.
When we shall be expected to be self-centered, we shall be self-giving, where the devil wants us to be oppressive and possessive, we shall become liberating and nurturing, since we know that by being oppressive and possessive, we shall be filled with jealousy, which leads to fighting and indecent living, causing us to be deadly to our spouses, when we are supposed to live a life of abundance or is it abundant life.
As a Temple of God, we should be careful about our sinful nature, which can drive us to sexual immorality, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarrelling and anger, and drunkenness. These and many evils, should not be found among us who are called the Temple of God.
Self-control must be at the centre of every fight against the devil without it, we can easily kill, harm a person when it is not necessary to do so. Self-control is key. We should not take too much to the bottle. A man or woman of God is not supposed to take alcohol.
Remember you are a Temple of God. No drugs that cause problems to the body should be taken into the body. It is sin. You are a Temple of God. We should not be greedy persons. Everything to ourselves. We should learn to share what we have with our brothers, with our children, with our families and above all, with the needy. This is the fasting God loves most. (Isaiah58:6-11). And the benefits for doing such are in Psalms 41:1-3. Charity covers a multitude of sins (1st Peter4:8).
In the book of James1:13-15, the Bible says “And remember, when you are being tempted, don’t say “God is tempting me” God is never tempted to do wrong, and He never tempts anyone else. (14) Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us, and drag us away. (15) These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.
Do not wonder if you live for Christ, and you continue to have temptations.” These temptations come from the evil one, Satan. His aim is to cause embarrassment to you the son of God. The Temple of God. We must show a confident stand when attacked by a multitude of temptations. Giving in to the evil one, is to agree with his intentions to bring upheaval upon ourselves.
It is during our temptations that we shall need the wisdom of God to be upon us, to decide between what is wrong and what is right. In the Book of 1st John 3:2-3 the Bible says that we shall see God in His state, as He is. This is only to be possible because we shall be pure, just as He is pure. If we claim we live in God, then we must learn to believe in His commands.
We are not anymore living in darkness, but in the light of Christ Jesus. Our God wants us to be holy, that is without fault, we must always present ourselves faultless before the Lord. In the Book of 1st Peter1:15-16, the Bible says: “But now you must be holy, in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the scripture says “You must be holy for I am holy”. We must be very careful not to commit a deliberate sin. A sin we know we are committing.
We should always act in holiness, sincerity and straightforwardness in dealing with our fellow human beings. We should speak truthfully and teach the Bible with our friends with integrity. We should stand in truth before our friends in Christ Jesus, blameless as did King Samuel when he addressed the Israelites on the last day of being their king. (1st Samuel 12-1-8).
As we make an effort to remain blameless in all circumstances, we should not at all return evil for evil. Instead bless those who hate you. (1st Peter3:9). For the scripture says: “If you want to enjoy life, and see many happy days, keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies. Search for peace and work to maintain it” (1st Peter 3:10) May the Lord God Almighty bless us all as we live an honest and loving life.
We pray for our Republican President and our nation Zambia, Amen.
