In this session, we will talk about another spiritual work that co-heirs with Christ need to do, and that is build.

Great buildings are monuments to speaks of the talents, resources and unity in building it. It inspires us.  Similarly, the temple in Jerusalem at that time, represented to the Jews, God's presence. The magnificent temple that Herod the Great built, was magnificent, and must have won him popular approval from the Romans, the Jewish and the other people there.

When we are born again, we start to see God's new work and kingdom that was ushered in in a different manner.  Jesus foretold the destruction of the temple, and in its place, a living temple of the Holy Spirit, which is the body of Christ made up of all the believers.

Let’s go to Matthew 24: 1-2.

Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. “Do you see all these things?” he asked. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; everyone will be thrown down.”

Let us now turn to John 2:19-22.

Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” They replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” But the temple he had spoken of was his body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.

Paul understood this later on and he wrote in Ephesians 4:11-16.

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.  Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

As we move from a self-centred life, and see a bigger picture of the body of Christ, and the part that we play in it, our minds will be renewed, our sight will see further, and we will discover a greater purpose of our lives.

Being a part of this living temple is exciting. We discover our roles and grow in it, building others up, even as they also build us up. In Paul's analogy, this living body is more like our body, and we in our distinct functions, have to work with the other parts of the body, so that the whole body may be built up.

We see later in Ephesians 4:29,

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

Paul brings in talk into this topic of building up.

Dear friends, in this world we have been hurt by words.  Sometimes we think we should just toughen up, and as we receive unpleasant words, we in turn, deliver them as well.

Dear friends, much of the building up in our born again lives, come from the effects of our words. As our mind is changed, we see that in our new identity, we are part of the living body of Christ, the new spiritual temple of God. We must thus, play our part to build fellow believers up, with words of God, and of encouragement.  We should be careful not to be used by the evil one, to tear one another down.
We all know how to take care of our own bodies.  The question now, is if we know how to take care of the larger body of Christ.
We have to detoxify our bodies. In the same way, the body of Christ also needs to be washed, by removing all acidic and toxic thoughts and words, that destroys and divides the various members of it.
We also build up our bodies by eating right, resting well, and building up our muscles.  In the same way, we must ensure the right spiritual intake of the word of God, and ensure sufficient rest and dependence on God, in the body of Christ. Our faith, like muscles, have to be trained, stretched and grown. Let us be like-minded in building up the body of Christ.
In conclusion, I just want to focus on our words. It is a human problem that people tend to be loose with their words.

Dear friends, we are born again, and we know the power of the words we use, and the image of God that we represent. We must put more thought into the words we use, and how we speak them.

We must also be mindful of building up the body of Christ, and must be careful about the words we use to correct and encourage fellow members, co-labourers, and parts of the same body of Christ, and should pursue building up the body in all ways.
Let us check our words consistently, and always ask ourselves, the purpose and the perceived message, that our speech and words carry.
Let me say this again: let us check our words consistently, and always ask ourselves, the purpose and perceived message, that our speech and words carry.
Let us pray: 

Father God, help me to be careful with my words.  I want to be a builder of my family, and not a destroyer of my own home.  Teach me to encourage and to build up, and use me powerfully, as a builder in the body of Christ.  We pray all these in the mighty name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen!

I hope you have been blessed by this session!  See you at the next session, and have a blessed day!

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