By: Tom
We are the church. As we have preached about on Sundays, and as you read throughout the New Testament—we are the church. The community has become the building, and the people have become the stones. We have become the temple. We have become the holy place; we are the Sanctuary.
1 Peter 2:4-6 says:
“As you come to Him, the living stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to Him—you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”
We are the Sanctuary. We are called to live in a certain way to create a sanctuary place. The Levites and the people of Israel were given laws and decrees to follow for the Old Testament sanctuary to remain a place for the LORD, by the grace of God through the sacrifices of animals.
We too have been given laws and decrees, but this time they are written on our hearts (Hebrews 8:10), and the everlasting sacrifice of Jesus going to the cross is our means of grace—not having to repeat animal sacrifices.
Jesus said the two most important laws we have are to love God and to love others in Matthew 22:
“Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
All the other laws come from these two. Such as:
Hebrews 12:14: “Make every effort to live at peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness, no one will see the Lord.”
And then James 3:3-12, which talks about controlling the tongue or it will create a destructive fire that will destroy your life. Also, in John 17, when Jesus talks about how they will know and believe our message if we love one another, and in John 14:15, Jesus says, “Those who love me will keep my commands.”
If we live the way Jesus has called us to, it will bear fruit in our life, and one of these fruits is joy. There is joy in obeying God’s commandments, in choosing to live the way God desires for His sanctuary place to be a reality. It’s for our benefit, as when we do as God asks, we experience deeper joy and freedom.
Hebrews 12:14 tells us that people will see the Lord through us and the culture we carry, and then come into their own relationship with Him. When we are at peace with each other, have that joy and freedom from following God’s teachings, and through grace and faith in Jesus, we can provide a better witness to everyone we come in contact with so they can see the Lord.
Let’s be Sanctuary.