Morning “He shall build the temple of the Lord; and he shall bear the glory.”

 Zechariah 6:13

 Christ himself is the builder of his spiritual temple, and he has built it on

the mountains of his unchangeable affection, his omnipotent grace, and his

infallible truthfulness. But as it was in Solomon’s temple, so in this; the

materials need making ready. There are the “Cedars of Lebanon,” but they are not

framed for the building; they are not cut down, and shaped, and made into those

planks of cedar, whose odoriferous beauty shall make glad the courts of the

Lord’s house in Paradise. There are also the rough stones still in the quarry,

they must be hewn thence, and squared. All this is Christ’s own work. Each

individual believer is being prepared, and polished, and made ready for his

 place in the temple; but Christ’s own hand performs the preparation-work.

Afflictions cannot sanctify, excepting as they are used by him to this end. Our

prayers and efforts cannot make us ready for heaven, apart from the hand of

Jesus, who fashioneth our hearts aright.

 As in the building of Solomon’s temple, “there was neither hammer, nor axe, nor

any tool of iron, heard in the house,” because all was brought perfectly ready

for the exact spot it was to occupy–so is it with the temple which Jesus

builds; the making ready is all done on earth. When we reach heaven, there will

be no sanctifying us there, no squaring us with affliction, no planing us with

suffering. No, we must be made meet here–all that Christ will do beforehand;

and when he has done it, we shall be ferried by a loving hand across the stream

of death, and brought to the heavenly Jerusalem, to abide as eternal pillars in

the temple of our Lord.

  “Beneath his eye and care,

 The edifice shall rise,

 Majestic, strong, and fair,

 And shine above the skies.”

 

Evening “That those things which cannot be shaken may remain.” Hebrews 12:27

 We have many things in our possession at the present moment which can be shaken,

and it ill becomes a Christian man to set much store by them, for there is

nothing stable beneath these rolling skies; change is written upon all things.

Yet, we have certain “things which cannot be shaken,” and I invite you this

evening to think of them, that if the things which can be shaken should all be

taken away, you may derive real comfort from the things that cannot be shaken,

which will remain. Whatever your losses have been, or may be, you enjoy present

salvation. You are standing at the foot of his cross, trusting alone in the

merit of Jesus’ precious blood, and no rise or fall of the markets can

 interfere with your salvation in him; no breaking of banks, no failures and

bankruptcies can touch that. Then you are a child of God this evening. God is

your Father. No change of circumstances can ever rob you of that. Although by

losses brought to poverty, and stripped bare, you can say, “He is my Father

still. In my Father’s house are many mansions; therefore will I not be

troubled.” You have another permanent blessing, namely, the love of Jesus

Christ. He who is God and Man loves you with all the strength of his

affectionate nature–nothing can affect that. The fig tree may not blossom, and

the flocks may cease from the field, it matters not to the man who can sing, “My

Beloved is  mine, and I am his.” Our best portion and richest heritage we cannot lose.

Whatever troubles come, let us play the man; let us show that we are not such

little children as to be cast down by what may happen in this poor fleeting

state of time. Our country is Immanuel’s land, our hope is above the sky, and

therefore, calm as the summer’s ocean; we will see the wreck of everything

earthborn, and yet rejoice in the God of our salvation.