Are You Making the Connection?

I don’t know if you’ve noticed the landscaping that has been done around the church lately – but it’s looking pretty good. This did not happen by itself. Last Friday Kent Lee, Vic Medlin, and Jake Donofrio mowed grass and edged for several hours to achieve a look exemplifying our care for God and His house. If you see them this Sunday say a simple thank you for their hard work, service and sacrifice. There are many more things that need to be done which reminds me of a passage of Scripture: Haggai 1:4 “Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?” Clearly stated the Prophet Haggai reveals an interesting connection between the physical condition of God’s house and the spiritual condition of the people. A similar connection is made between the messengers of God and Jesus: John 13:20 “I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, he who receives and welcomes and takes into his heart any messenger of Mine receives Me [in just that way]; and he who receives and welcomes and takes Me into his heart receives Him Who sent Me [in that same way].”  Jesus is clearly stating that how people respond to His servants is a direct reflection of how they respond to Him. One more example is stated in 1 John 4:19-20 We love Him because He first loved us. If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? The Apostle John is reiterating Jesus’ words, and I paraphrase their meaning, “How you treat your spouse, family member, brother, sister, neighbor, cashier, or waitress is a direct reflection of how you have been treating Me.” The “Cotton-Patch Version of the New Testament states it like this: “Because He first loved us, we ourselves are practicing love. If someone says, “I love God,” and is hating his brother, he is a phony. For the man who has no love for his visible brother cannot possibly have love for the invisible God.” 

I’ve often wondered what will really happen when I see Jesus face-to-face. Will I see Him as He really is or will I seek to impose on Him the god I made in my own image? The Bible is comparable to a mirror in that if you really look into it you will see yourself as you really are – not as you hope to be. In our narcissistic, self-centered culture, we of all people need to be looking into the mirror of God’s Word seeing clearly how our relationship with God is progressing, or digressing. Over the years I’ve been overwhelmed by the respect, love and generosity of God’s people. All of which I had never earned to receive. God’s people were simply honoring God’s messenger – a response that reflected  their relationship with God. The messenger may not have even deserved the honor, yet their God was more than deserving.

There’s a principle seen throughout Scripture, Physical truth often points to greater spiritual truth. In other words the physical object is actually a symbol of far greater spiritual truths. Mentioned above are several object lessons. Along with these you could add the Bible, prayer, church attendance, worship, etc., etc. Truth is all of these reflect the truth and reality of the relationship. The question is, “What are our interactions stating?” Returning to my introduction, “What does the condition of God’s physical building say about the condition of our spiritual building?”