Hello Church Family!
As we are reading through the Old Testament together, I have been focusing on God’s manifestation of His presence throughout history. God has always made a way for His people to experience His presence. Before Adam and Eve’s sin, man had perfect fellowship with God in the Garden of Eden. Sin damaged that relationship and separated us from God. But God still made a way.
The primary way we see God manifesting is presence among the people in the Old Testament is in the tabernacle and later the temple. “Have the people of Israel build me a holy sanctuary so I can live among them” (Exodus 25:8). God gave specific instructions on both the construction of these places as well as what the people had to do to cleanse themselves in order to experience God’s presence. But God still made a way. In both the tabernacle and the temple, God dwelt inside in a place called the “Holy of Holies” above the mercy seat on the Ark of the Covenant. God’s presence was once again among His people.
In the New Testament, we see the manifestation of God’s presence through the incarnation of Christ. God became human. “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14a). Jesus was fully God and fully man. He himself, was the temple. God’s presence was once again among His people. Through Christ’s death and resurrection, He made it possible for man to be reconciled to God and the relationship, which was severed due to sin, can now be restored. When we put our faith in Jesus and receive the gift of salvation, man is once again allowed to experience a relationship with God.
Now, God manifests His presence in the person of the Holy Spirit. “Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself” (1 Corinthians 6:19 NLT). Once a person is saved, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in that individual’s life. However, it’s not just one individual. The Holy Spirit lives in and through all those who have put their faith in trust in Jesus Christ. God’s presence is once again among His people.
With God’s presence comes His power. As we continue in our Equip 23 emphasis at Wall Highway, we are learning more about how the Holy Spirit works through each of us individually and corporately as a church, the body of Christ. God’s desire is that we grow in our relationship with Him, become more like Jesus, build up the body of Christ, and fulfill the great commission by sharing the good news of the gospel to the lost. By manifesting His presence in all Christians, God’s presence is in the World.
He choses to work through us to fulfill his purposes for His Kingdom. He doesn’t need us to fulfill His purposes, but He allows us to be involved in His work. He receives glory, honor, and praise when we live our lives as a sacrifice of praise to Him.
While God’s presence is among His people, we still live in a world that is broken and sinful. But God will make a way for us to experience perfect fellowship with Him again. One day Jesus will return. As we read in the book of Revelation, once sin has been judged and Satan and all of His followers are cast into the lake of fire, Christ will bring forth a new creation. He will bring the New Heaven and the New Earth and God’s people will dwell perfectly in the His presence for all of eternity (Revelation 21-22). Until that day comes, we must devote ourselves completely to knowing Christ, growing in Christ, and fulfilling His Kingdom purposes as He works in and through us to reconcile a lost and dying world to himself!
Let me encourage you to renew your commitment to be involved in our Equip 23 emphasis on Sunday mornings and Sunday nights. If you are participating, thank you for your faithfulness. If not, you can still get involved. Commit to being here Sunday mornings for connection groups at 9:30 am and worship at 10:15 am. Plan to attend a Sunday night Bible study at at 6:15 pm. Together we can look forward to seeing how God is going to build this church and advance His Kingdom!
Sincerely,
Pastor Allen