Our Heavenly Father, we pray that thou wouldst
speak to our hearts this morning.
May thy word be filled with thy power.
Lord, thy word is alive.
May it create new life in us.
That our lives will be changed into thy
image.
For thy name's sake we ask it.
Amen.
I'd like to read a portion of scripture
out of the book of Ezra.
Chapter four.
I'll read from verse one.
Now, when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin
heard that the descendants of the captivity were
building the temple of the Lord God of
Israel,
they
said, They
came to Zerubbabel and the heads of the
fathers' houses and said to them, Let us
build with you, for we seek your God
as you do, and we have sacrificed to
him since the days of Esahaddon, king of
Assyria, who brought us here.
But Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the rest of
the heads of the fathers' houses of Israel
said to them, You may do nothing with
us to build a house for our God,
but we alone will build to the Lord
God of Israel as King Cyrus, the king
of Persia, has commanded us.
Then the people of the land tried to
discourage the people of Judah.
But
when
they came to
Zerubbabel and the heads of the fathers' houses
of Israel, they said to them, And once
again I realized how important it is to
be watchful, to be on guard, to have
discernment.
Because the moment God starts working, the
enemy starts working as well.
The devil can't stand it if there are
people who are determined to build the temple
of God.
When the devil sees that people come together,
that people stand together, and the people are
united and they want to build the temple
of God, the enemy will do everything in
its power to destroy that.
And it's exactly the same with us when
we dedicate our lives to the Lord, when
we surrender our lives to the Lord, and
say, Lord, I want you to be king
in my life.
The enemy immediately goes over into the offensive.
The enemy will try its best to stop
the Lord attaining his purpose with my life.
And he'll immediately go and start attacking.
And we see here out of this portion
of scripture that when the people who had
come out of captivity, they immediately said, we've
got to rebuild Jerusalem.
We've got to build a temple for him.
That was their desire and that was their
goal.
And the people that were living in that
country, they were a people of their
kind.
But it was strange that immediately when the
people of Israel, of Judah came to build
the temple, immediately the adversaries came as well
and said, can't we help you?
And it's exactly the same today as well.
If I have decided to serve God, to
build that temple of God, immediately
my adversaries will come and they will try
and help me, they will try to show
me how to build.
Or they'll assist me to build.
And that is the danger of each and
every person who has dedicated and consecrated his
life to the Lord.
And anywhere and everywhere where God is starting
to build, we will find that the adversary
will immediately come and try and help.
And it's like that today.
The moment God starts working, immediately we'll go
and we want to be part of it.
Although we haven't had a calling to do
it, but we'll immediately go there and we'll
try and help, assist, we want to build
as well.
And how many people, when the revival started
here with us in 1966, how many people
from all over, they came and they all
wanted to help.
And so many people tried to assist and
said, you've got to build this way, you've
got to build that way.
You've got to do it this way, you've
got to do it that way.
But they never had the calling to do
so.
But because they saw God was doing something,
they wanted to be part of it.
And it is cunningly that the devil is
trying to do that wherever God is working.
And he'll immediately mobilize his people and say,
now you go and you help building.
Although they had a commandment from the king,
the king of Persia, King Cyrus, he had
commanded them to go to Jerusalem and build
the temple.
He had said, you go and you build
the temple.
And when they get to Judah, we find
that these people, the inhabitants of Judah and
the surrounding areas, when they saw, they immediately
said, can't we help, we want to build,
we want to help you build that temple.
And immediately when God starts working in my
life, I will find people coming to me,
trying to help me, to encourage me, to
assist me to build the house.
Although they haven't had the calling to do
so, and yet they are always just too
eager.
They want to help.
And so often we make exactly that same
mistake.
When God is busy dealing with people, when
God is busy building his temple, and God
has called people to build the temple, you
will immediately find people coming and they will
try and help you.
They will tell you what to do, they
will tell you what not to do.
And that is the dreadful sickness of Christians
today.
Instead of leaving things over to the Lord.
It is God that has commissioned them.
It is God that draws people to himself.
It is God who is dealing with people.
It is God who is dealing with my
heart.
And then so easily we go and we
spoil the thing by us trying to help
people.
Instead of leaving it over to the Lord.
Instead of prayerfully standing behind the Lord and
saying, God you work it out, you work,
you attain your purpose with that person.
We go and spoil it and say, can't
I help you?
Can't I do this?
No, you've got to do that.
You mustn't do this.
Unless God has called you, has chosen you
as a vessel to go and to help
to rebuild.
It is so often that we try to
help people, we try to push people, we
try to get people to that place where
they will surrender their life to the Lord.
Instead of helping, standing behind the Lord, helping
the Lord, prayerfully and intercede for that person,
we go ahead of the Lord.
And we try to do it.
And here we see the adversaries of Judah
and Benjamin.
They say in verse 2, let us build
with you, for we seek your God as
you do.
Because we have the same mind as what
you have.
Because we are seeking God exactly the same
way as you are seeking.
And we have sacrificed to him since the
days of Esaheddon, where the king of Assyria
brought us here.
And we fear God as well.
But the difference was, they hadn't been called
to build the temple.
And I just told myself, Friedel, never make
that mistake and do something which God hasn't
called you to do.
Unless the Lord has commissioned me to do
it.
But just because I see that God is
busy doing something, that God is busy building
the temple, that I say, Lord, I've got
to help them.
And to me, it was something quite new
again, to tell me, never ever do something
when God hasn't called you to do it.
Because God has called so and so to
build the temple, that I feel obliged that
I've got to do the same thing.
And how wonderful it was that Zerubbabel and
Jeshua and the rest of the heads of
the fathers of Israel said to them, you
may do nothing with us to build a
house for our God.
But we alone will build to the Lord
God of Israel a temple.
They weren't influenced by those people who wanted
to help.
And that is our problem ever so often.
We are so easily influenced by that what
people say.
They mean so well.
They want to do the right thing.
And we can't wait and that's why we
start pushing.
And we like to take people by the
hair and pull them.
We try and push them that they decide
that they've got to do something.
And so easily we try and help people.
We give advice.
We tell them what to do, what not
to do.
Because the people are just waiting for one
thing, to have a revelation and maybe God
has got a revelation through this or that
person.
Instead of leaving people over to the Lord.
Leave him over to the Lord, he can
do it far better than what we can
do it.
Because so often we confuse people.
The one says this, the other one says
that, the other one says that.
And eventually I am totally confused because I
listen to that what people say.
And here Zerubbabel and Jeshua and the rest
of the heads of the fathers house said
no, no.
We don't need assistance.
We don't want to be influenced.
We don't want to have people working or
helping us who haven't been called to do
so.
No matter how sincere they are, they say
they fear the Lord.
And they said oh we want to build
as well.
We have also sacrificed to the God of
Israel.
Then it's our God as well.
So allow us to help.
Allow us to build.
But they said no.
Because we have been commissioned to do so,
not you.
And I cried in my heart and I
said oh may we become a people that
will be so clear minded as these people
were.
That won't be influenced by anything foreign.
No matter how good it seems.
No matter how right it seems.
But that I will have a relationship with
the Lord from on high.
That I will immediately be able to detect
and discern which is of God and which
isn't of God.
And if we'd only be a people like
that.
That we won't listen.
That we won't be influenced by our best
of friends.
And that's why it is so important and
I've said this so often throughout the years.
Especially to the young people.
Don't have friends.
Or special friends.
Let everybody.
Let every Christian.
Let every young people who follows the Lord.
Let them be your friends.
Because it's ever so often and you see
it over and over where two people are
together and they are special friends.
Usually it's an incubator of evil.
And it's always been my prayer.
And may God grant me that grace.
That all of you, everyone who has been
cleansed by the precious blood of my Lord
Jesus Christ.
That you are all my friends.
That there is no difference.
That I will be able to build with
any person and everyone who has been cleansed
by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.
And I honor these people where they said
no no.
You weren't called to do that.
I will build the temple with those the
king has commanded to build.
That I will stand together with those that
God has called and commanded to build the
temple.
But that I won't be influenced by anybody.
No matter how good that person means it.
How sincere he is.
If he hasn't been called.
I don't want to build with him.
Otherwise I will be influenced by other things.
I'll be influenced by those that haven't been
commanded by the king to build the temple.
And it is strange, amazing.
Or I shouldn't say strange or amazed.
It's the normal thing.
When the people, those who were called, were
said go and build the temple.
And those that wanted to help, that they
immediately went against them.
And they started influencing, fighting people.
Immediately after they were told you can't build.
And
it's
strange.
They want to help.
They want to build.
They want to assist.
They want to build the temple.
But if they are told no, that isn't
your calling.
They turn around and they become your enemies.
And so often you find it.
That people, they eager, they keen, they want
to help.
And they say we want to serve God.
We want to build the temple.
We want to assist, etc, etc.
And if they are told is that your
calling.
Has God called you to that or not.
They become your enemies.
Oh, you know, you've got to belong to
the group.
You've got to belong to the elite.
You've got to belong to that certain group.
If you don't belong to it, you're nothing.
And immediately they go against the people who
are building the temple.
And immediately they go over into the opposition.
And they start discouraging those that are building
the temple.
In verse 4 we read the people of
the land tried to discourage the people of
Judah.
They troubled them in building.
You see, they immediately started finding fault.
They tried to influence.
Oh, you know that it's the greatest danger
to the Christian church today.
That from within, because you don't understand, you're
not in.
You go against it.
And you become the enemy of those that
are building the temple.
That is what the devil is trying to
do and he'll do that all over.
And he's doing it all over to disunite
Christians.
Because the devil doesn't stand unity.
That's what God is building.
He's building his temple.
He's building his church.
That is what he's busy with.
And the devil is trying everything in his
power to thwart that, to stop them not
to build.
And they started troubling the builders.
They started to discourage the builders.
And they wanted to tell them no, not
this way, but that way.
They tried to influence them.
And that is the danger amongst us Christians.
That we constantly find fault with one another.
And we constantly criticize that what God is
doing.
And we read here in verse 5 that
they even hired counselors.
They got people to counsel the people of
Judah.
To tell them what to do and what
not to do.
They counseled the people but let them, tried
to lead them off that which is of
God.
And we still find that today.
That you find counselors that they try to
influence people and tell them what to do
and what not to do.
They take the place of God the Holy
Spirit.
They know better than what God knows.
I always marvel at people, at counselors who
give advice.
To tell people what they've got to do
and what they haven't got to do.
What they've got to wear and what they
haven't got to wear.
What, let's leave it.
But they can always, they always have advice.
These counselors, they always tell people what to
do.
And I always marvel at such counselors.
You know, I believe a counselor should be,
I said it yesterday already, should be the
servant of all.
He should be the least, he should be
nothing.
Who with fear and trembling takes a person
whom he has counseled and in humbleness and
meekness brings him to the cross of Jesus.
And asks Jesus to reveal himself to his
child.
That is what I believe we counselors should
be.
That we should be able to lead the
person to the cross of Jesus.
That he sees and sees herself in the
light of Christ.
Oh, that I might be able to lead
a person to that place where the person
can see himself or herself in the light
of Jesus.
But here we see they hired counselors against
them to frustrate their purpose all the days
of Cyrus king of Persia.
For one purpose, to frustrate them.
To frustrate them, to make them demagogue.
That a person can't see straight anymore.
That a person can't see clear anymore.
Because the one says this, the other one
says that.
And eventually those poor people don't find the
way to the cross anymore.
And that was the trick of the devil.
We will hire counselors, we'll even pay them
for them.
Because a hiring you pay.
We'll pay the counselors that they'll go and
that they'll frustrate, that they will totally confuse
the people of Judah.
We so easily want to help people and
to give advice.
No matter where we go, whether it is
in Europe, whether it is in America, whether
it's in Australia, whether it's in Japan, whether
it's in South Africa.
You'll always find counselors trying to help people
and show them the way.
And people come along and say, but this
counselor sees this, that counselor sees that.
Now what must I believe?
And I can always say, what does the
Lord say?
Because the Lord is a counselor of counselors.
And if God hasn't anointed you, if God
hasn't commanded you, if God hasn't called you
to be one, then leave your hands off
it.
But those that are called, they've got to
be at the feet of Jesus day and
night.
And say, oh God, help me that I
might be a person who will be able
to lead those that are in need, those
that seek help, or that I might be
able to lead them to the feet of
Jesus Christ.
Otherwise, I'll be a highling as well.
And I will counsel people.
And I will tell people my mind, my
thoughts, my way of building.
Oh, but that I might be able to
lead them to Christ.
And that doesn't pertain to counselors only.
And that concerns every Christian.
Every Christian should be called by God to
build the temple.
And that I will be united with those
that have been called, those which God called
out of Egypt, that I'll be one in
spirit and in truth, and be able to
build the temple.
And that is something which we should never
forget.
And that I will be able to lead
my children.
I will be able to lead them to
the feet of Jesus.
It's easy to tell my child, don't do
this, do that.
And unfortunately, that's what we all do.
Don't do this, do that.
Instead of taking that child and leading it
into the presence of Christ.
That that child might see itself, and see
the awfulness of sin, and see the beauty
of Jesus.
And they didn't stop at that.
Then they started writing accusations against those that
were building the temple.
And they tried to influence Judah and Benjamin,
the tribe of Judah and Benjamin, by writing
leaflets, pamphlets, and dishing them out to the
people, and telling them what is right and
what is wrong.
But oh, how wonderful that they weren't influenced
by it.
They continued building the temple because they had
been commissioned to do so.
And that is important.
If we haven't been commissioned, if we haven't
been called, we'll be easily influenced by people.
But if we have been called, if we've
had an experience, if we've had a meeting
with the living God, we won't be moved.
And people can write, they can say what
they like, they can try and influence people,
but it will fall off our back like
water from a duck's back.
And that is where we Christians ought to
be.
That nothing, nothing will separate us from God
and separate us from one another.
And that we will be of one mind,
one soul.
And that is important, friends.
So important.
And when they didn't succeed in doing that,
they started writing letters to the authorities.
And they wrote letters to the authorities and
accused these people.
So much like Jesus.
When Jesus walked on this earth, where people
were influenced, those that hadn't had a meeting
with Christ.
Yes, they sang praises to him, they followed
him, they wanted to crown him King of
Jerusalem, King of Israel.
But the following day, they cried, crucify, crucify
him.
Yes.
Oh may we be a people that can
pray, that can move God's arm.
That God will meet with our people, that
God will meet with our young people, that
God will meet with our children and change
their hearts.
He can do it, but we can't.
And they wrote letters to the authorities.
They wrote letters to Zerubbabel and the heads
of the fathers' houses.
They wrote letters to the common people, the
men in the street.
And they continued writing, fighting and talking evil
about them.
Well, and they did that with the Lord
Jesus as well.
And the Lord said, that's going to happen
to us as well.
And he said, when those things happen.
We've got to lift up our heads, we've
got to rejoice.
And say, oh, we've been counted worthy that
people talk lies about us.
They couldn't frustrate them.
And then they started writing accusations against Judah
and Jerusalem.
And they wrote letters to the authorities and
to the king.
And they wrote lies, they wrote accusations which
weren't true.
You see, that is what's going to happen
to you and to me.
The moment we mean business with the Lord.
The moment we want to build the temple
of God.
The moment we want to consecrate and dedicate
our lives to a full surrender.
When we sang this song, I surrender all.
I just thought how easily, how glibly we
sing it.
But do we really mean it?
And the tragic thing is, when we read
this, when we read the letters they sent
to the king.
The king was influenced by it.
The king was influenced.
And he lent an ear to those lies
and those accusations.
Oh, be careful brothers and sisters, sons and
daughters.
Don't be influenced by something which is evil.
Don't be influenced if there are accusations against
the people who want to build the temple.
Don't believe what has been said about those
that truly want to serve the Lord.
But the king was influenced.
And he was influenced to such an extent
that he stopped the people from building.
So, so easily we can be influenced as
well.
And we stop the building of the temple.
And we become an enemy of those God
has called.
And he said, no, no, no, then rather
stop, stop building if it is like that.
And it didn't take long.
The building of the temple was stopped.
It was only years and years later that
the king of Persia allowed the temple to
be built.
Just because of things they listened to and
were influenced or the king was influenced by
that what people said.
And exactly the same way Pilate was influenced
by the people.
Pilate was influenced by that what the Pharisees,
the Sadducees, the scribes and the Christians of
that time said.
They as well said, we fear God.
They as well said, we sacrifice to the
same God.
But it was them that crucified, that influenced
Pilate to say crucify him.
And that's why it's so dangerous to be
influenced by that what people say.
But one wonderful thing is we read that
Judah and Benjamin they stood together and they
weren't moved.
And that is my prayer that we as
Christians aren't moved.
And I want to tell you a secret.
Our greatest enemy in building the temple
is ourselves, is
our mind, our heart.
That we allow things to accumulate in our
mind.
That we start seeing things which are wrong.
That we start seeing that we find fault
with one another.
Instead of being on guard that nothing will
destroy our unity.
And that's why it's so important that your
thought life must stay clean.
Is your thought life clean?
Pure?
Is there nothing that separates you from the
Lord?
Whether it is in thought or whether it
is in deed.
And the thoughts, in God's sight a thought
is a deed.
And woe to us if we neglect to
expose our thought life.
It is the greatest danger in a Christian
life if his thoughts aren't clean.
And that doesn't only pertain to sexual thoughts.
It can be a thought towards your brother.
That you differ on certain things.
That you don't agree with this or that.
And you keep it to yourself.
And these are the things, the letters, the
pamphlets which your thoughts are writing to your
heart.
Oh let our thought life be clean and
pure to be read by everybody that there
is not a hidden thing in our lives.
That my thought life towards my brother, towards
my sister, towards no matter who will be
such for everyone to read.
That there will be nothing which I am
ashamed of.
That there are no critical thoughts in my
life towards my brother, my sister.
That my love to that person will be
exactly the same as what it is to
them.
That the Lord may be well pleased with
my thought life.
That those thoughts which I think during the
day will be in the light.
That they will be transparent and that the
Lord will be well pleased.
And if it isn't like that then come
to the cross and be cleansed by the
precious blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Yesterday we had a wedding here.
And we were told by the person who
conducted that service.
That our lives should stay clear, clean and
pure.
And he said even if your past has
been ruined and ravished by the enemy.
That when you come to Jesus and confess
that.
And be cleansed by the precious blood of
Jesus.
You can wear a veil again.
Because the Lord looks at you as if
you are a virgin.
Because if he forgives, he forgets.
And you as well with your thought life.
Because to God a thought is a deed.
When last did you come with your thoughts
and confess your thoughts.
That God can cleanse you and sanctify and
purify you.
Maybe that is the reason why you don't
grow spiritually.
Maybe right now the devil will say you
needn't confess your thought life.
Nobody knows about it.
But God knows.
He knows.
And that is why come to him.
Be cleansed by his blood.
And that we might be able to build
the temple again.
Let us pray.
Our heavenly father.
May these words which we heard today.
Have a deep impression.
And make a deep impression to our spiritual
lives.
That we will never be the same again.
That we will be on guard.
That we will have discernment.
That we will be able to build the
temple.
And that I as an individual will grow
spiritually.
That I will be able to allow thee
to build that temple according to thy pattern
and thy plan.
Thou hast pointed on so many things.
So many points.
And we want to take them.
We want to exercise them in our mind.
That we might be a different people from
today onwards.
Oh our thought life.
Oh that what we don't utter what we
think.
May it be cleansed and purified.
May the blood of Christ be cleansed.
May that anger vanish.
May that all vanish.
Everything that hinders the building of thy temple.
Wouldst thou be able to start building that
temple again Lord?
In my life.
In the life of my family.
In the life of the church.
In the life amongst the Christians.
Amen.