To build or not to build –That is the Question

I am sitting here wondering of what will be less than five months from now when we were told we need to leave this building.

Of course the plan is to seek another place. We have looked far and wide (while staying here in Payatas) yet found nothing, suitable for a Church. The truth is, this little building was the cleanest and sturdiest available.

So the only alternative is to make our own decent building. The process is simple. First we buy the land, then we get a drawing, then we secure the permits and then we build. That sounds simple enough. Oooops! I left out one detail that is crucial in all the above steps. Having the money!

So now I am thinking, whose responsibility is it to supply the money? Is it mine? I have already given all that I had (which wasn’t that much) to this ministry. I have been stretched as much as anyone else who is dedicated to the salvation and preservation of mankind. We have gone without many of the creature comforts that our American counterparts assume as necessary to their survival. God knows if I had the money it would go here.

So who? Who is responsible for the building of the Church. Well, ultimately God. The Bible clearly says: Mat 16:18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
In the preceding verses Jesus was asking the Apostles who people were saying Jesus was and then he specifically asked Peter who he thought Jesus was.

Mat 16:15 He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
Mat 16:16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.

That’s when Jesus replied to Peter based on what Peter said, that Jesus was the Christ, the son of the living God.
That was the rock. His statement. In a further verse Jesus said: Mat 16:17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

He told Peter that the Holy Spirit caused him to say that. He did not hear it from another man but was inspired.

What then is the Church built on? Was it Peter who did not even know what he was saying or was it the fact that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of the living God? The latter is clear.

So Jesus WILL build HIS Church. Hmmmm. At this point did Jesus give Peter money for the building fund? Absolutely not.

God always uses people to do His work. Is it because it is easier for Him? Of course not. God told Gideon to get rid of the thousands of men that he had with him so when he went to fight he only would have 300 men with him. Why? Two reasons. God wants His people involved with the work and to be His tools. The second reason was that God wanted all to know that it wasn’t Gideon winning the war but God Himself.

When Joshua was told by God to go in and kill them all the Bible said that God went before him. God won the war but Joshua got to participate.

So when we are building a Church, the guy with no money is calling on those with money but it will be God who motivates the heart and it will be God who allows or doesn’t allow those who will participate in the building but ultimately it will be God who builds the church.

I once applied to a Christian organization for a grant and they told me that they are only giving grants for those “they found” not those who made applications. I thought at the time it was the stupidest thing I have ever heard but actually it makes more sense. If God is really leading this thing. It will be God to motivate hearts and God to direct the money and God that even gets the permits.

God will build His Church.

With that said will I still be concerned? I hope not but being flesh and blood I wonder when and where and how but isn’t that what faith is all about?

God will do His work and I will post all about it and all will see that it was God who build His Church.