Is GOD'S Presence There?

Act 7:48 Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands as saith the prophet

Christianity has become a tremendous buildup of things which were not at the beginning. 

The Christianity which we know today is a very complicated thing. 

The hands of men have come upon the things of God, and men have tried to build this great thing according to their own judgment.

And so we have all the confusion, all the divisions, and all the complications.

It is really hard going in Christianity.

Christianity has become its own great hindrance.

You will go about this country, you will go about this city, and you will see these great religious buildings with a cross at the top. 

And when people enter those buildings, they bow themselves; they look very reverent. 

And they think that this is a sacred building. 

If you interfere with anything there, it is called sacrilege. 

To God that is all nonsense. 

It does not mean anything at all. 

The only thing that matters to God is not the wonderful building and all the wonderful things inside the building, and not even the cross on the top. 

The one thing that matters to God is whether He is there.

Is God Himself present in this place?
 

But what about ourselves, we hear Christians who come into a meeting like this speaking about coming into the house of God. 

Perhaps they say when they are going to this meeting place, "I am going to the house of God."

And when they pray, they say, "We are very glad to be in the house of God this morning; it is a good thing to be in the Lord's house."

What makes any place the house of God?

What makes this place sacred?

If it is sacred at all, what makes it sacred?

It is not the building, this is not a sacred building.

It is not a congregation gathered here.

The only thing that makes it sacred is that the Lord is present.

The Lord is not interested in our places or in our congregations;

He is only concerned that He may find a place for Himself where He may be present in pleasure.

I wonder where the tabernacle in the wilderness is now?

I expect it is buried somewhere deep under the earth.

I wonder where the great temple of Solomon is now?

I think you would be wasting your time to try and find it.

You see, God had buried those things.

Everything that is not of Christ is going to be dissolved.

Make no mistake.

This whole structure of Christianity is going to be tested according to Christ.

Christianity is just going to be tested as to how far it was the work of the Holy Spirit of God according to Christ.

~T. Austin Sparks~

REMEMBER What GOD Has Done

We have a tendency to forget every good thing God has done for us. When we face new challenges we often do not remember our deliverance from old ones.

When David stood before Goliath, he rehearsed his past victories in order to  build up his faith. He recounted, "And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock: And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him. Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God” (1 Samuel 17:34-36).
                                                                               
Moses reminded Israel of all their past deliverances and then he warned them: "Take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons" (Deuteronomy 4:9).

The Bible says of Israel: "They kept not the covenant of God . . . and forgot  his works, and his wonders that he had shewed them" (Psalm 78:10-11). Like the Israelites, we have the same tendency whenever we face a new trial or affliction. We say, "Oh, God, this time it's too much for me to face." But God answers, "Simply look back and remember Me!"

If need be, keep a journal to remind yourself of God's great deliverances in  your life. Jot down a few notes at night before going to bed. Do whatever it takes to remind yourself of all the things He has done for you, all the heartaches you have been through and the deliverance He brought. Then, when your next affliction arises, open your notebook and say to the devil, "You're not going to deceive me this time. My God brought me out before, and He will do it again."

~David Wilkerson~