1000 years before Luther. 1500 years before us. The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem has stood through the assaults of Holy Wars. Today it stands behind a 40 ft wall topped with razor wire and marked by guard towers. Look at the picture. Kind of looks like a ship turned upside down. A vessel. The words of Psalm 27:4 echo in this ancient vessel of God's people. "One thing I have asked of the Lord, that I will seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in His temple." what a beautiful image of the powerful presence of God in a simple old building. But we know friends, the church is so much more than sticks and bricks. Look at the picture again. Kinda looks like bones, like a ribcage viewed from the inside out. Recalling that we have been assumed into the very body of Jesus - the beaten body, the broken body, the body crucified and the body resurrected. In Christ God has placed us inside of Himself as a shelter, a temple of His love. Again, Psalm 27:5, "For He will hide me in His shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of His tent; He will lift me high upon a rock." Friends - you're the body - the church. Live in your call to be in Him and for one another!
1 comment:
It is amazing that such a BIG God would actually be interested in all that I go through and actually help me in my problems! It becomes pretty obvious I should do the same.
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