Magnifical House Reviewed: full transcript and answers

▶ 0:00 I thank you for joining with us in another session. Today we’re going to look at and go through a review of the magnifical house of the Lord in 1 Chronicles 22:5. God gave David a pattern to build a temple to give to Solomon to build it—we call it Solomon’s temple—just like Moses was given a pattern for Moses’s tabernacle, and they had to do it according to the pattern. Here it says the house that is to be built for the Lord must be exceeding magnifical. Number one, there’s a house. Number two, it’s going to be built. Number three, it’s going to be built for the Lord. And number four, this house that is to be built for the Lord must be top quality, over the top in magnificence, in greatness, enlargedness and

▶ 1:07 strong, like a three-fold cord. A three-fold cord is made of fibers—that’s us, we’re the little fibers. Alone we’re weak, but when we unite with other church members and other fibers and we get into unity we make the church and we become strong. And when we unite with the word of God and with Jesus—a three-fold cord—we become a group that the gates of hell cannot prevail against. And so God wants the church to be strong, He wants it to be great, and He wants it to be large, and it is—it spread throughout all the earth today.

▶ 1:52 But a church that’s sectarian and won’t fellowship with anyone else—they can’t be a strong church either that destroys the gates of hell. We need to unite. We need to come together with other churches, come together around the word, come together around Jesus, to be that magnifical church that God has destined us to be—and not just be people that are a fiber out there and never go to church. They are not contributing and they are weak and the enemy destroys them really easy. He goes on to say that this exceeding magnifical house of the Lord has got to be magnificent of fame and of glory. In both of these tabernacles of Moses and Solomon, God’s presence came down, and the Bible calls it the glory of God came. And so this house of God needs the presence of the Lord, and this house is to go throughout all countries—not just big cities but little towns and out in the suburbs—and we need to make preparation for it. And I asked you today: when you come to church today or when you went to church last week, did you go prepared to add anything to that service, or did you just get up and go? Musicians have to prepare, preachers have to prepare, children’s workers have to

▶ 3:22 prepare, youth workers have to prepare, and the congregation must come prepared if we’re going to have a magnifical church. 1 Peter 2:5: you as living stones are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood. The priests ministered to God and they ministered to the people, and we’re to offer spiritual sacrifices—not secular but spiritual things that God accepts. And we are the stones, we are the house, and our house is for the Lord to live in. And every one of us can minister to Him and we can minister to others, and we’re to come into the house prepared to offer up spiritual sacrifices of prayer, praise, worship,

▶ 4:26 singing—all these things that God asked us to do in church. In 1 Timothy 3:15 Paul said, I write so you may know how to conduct yourself, how to behave in the house of God, which is the church. The house of God and the church are synonymous, and it’s the church of the living God—His presence lives in the midst of His people. Jesus said where two or three are gathered together I will be in the midst. And the church is the pillar and the support of the truth. We back up the truth, not our opinions. We’ve got to get rid of this opinion thing. The church must only support and back up truth. Jesus is truth and His word is truth, and our opinions and our ideas and our philosophies have got to go. And we are destined before Christ comes back to be built into a house, a temple for the Lord,

▶ 5:34 exceeding magnifical, that will be famous throughout the earth and literally have the presence of Jesus, the Holy Ghost, in its midst. So that you know, you don’t have to be perfect to be involved in this house. 2 Chronicles reminds us in chapter 2 verse 17 that Solomon numbered all the strangers in Israel—the illegal aliens—and these labored and hewed and they managed, they cut stone, and they had leaders over these workers. And they were not the people of God. They weren’t the great believers. They were strangers. In fact, 2 Chronicles 2:14, the son of a woman of Dan which was of the tribe of Israel and a father of Tyre which was a pagan nation was skillful to work in gold, silver, brass, iron, etc.,

▶ 6:38 and any gray engravings, and to find out every device which was put to him. This guy could solve any problem that was brought to him, and he worked with Israel’s skillful workers. So if you ever feel like a half-breed, you’re a candidate to be involved. 1 Chronicles 25:1: David separated the sons of Asaph and Heman and Jeduthun who prophesied with the harp—that means they played on their musical instrument by the inspiration of the Spirit of God. They had a choir of 288 and they had an orchestra of 4,000. It wasn’t an electric guitar, electric piano, bass and a drum. The singers were there. It takes many imperfect people working together to build the magnifical house of God.

▶ 7:34 That restrains folks. In the New Testament, Peter cursed and denied God and still was used of God. The rest ran when Jesus was crucified and still were used of God. All went fishing. Paul didn’t marry; he killed innocent blood; he blasphemed the Holy Ghost and persecuted the church. The Bible says he was the world’s chiefest sinner—number uno sinner, number one—and God saved him and he became a part to build the church. Thomas was a discourager. Jesus said I’m going to go and raise Lazarus from the dead, and they said what’s the matter with you, don’t you know they tried to kill you when we were there last time? And He says, well, I’m going. And Thomas turns to the rest of the apostles and says, well, let’s go and die with him.

▶ 8:28 We have so many people that criticize the church and speak discouragingly that it’s a wonder we can get anything done. But I want to tell you something: Thomas was used of God in spite of his discouraging critical talk. 1 Corinthians 1:26: you see your calling, brethren, your invitation. God chose the foolish, the weak, the inferior, the despised things of this world and the things that are not. I’m not mature yet. I haven’t got my tongue bridled yet. I’m not in control of myself yet. He chose these kind of people to shame the wise and the intellectual of this world—New Testament church.

▶ 9:20 Exodus 25:22: we’re reminded that God dwelt between the cherubims in the holy of holies, and He says there I will—number one—meet with you, I will have an encounter with you, and number two, I will speak with you from above the mercy seat between the two cherubims on the ark of the testimony. 1 Corinthians 10:11 says these things were written for our example and our admonition, our learning, on whom the ends of the ages are come. So the Old Testament temple pattern was really an illustration of the magnifical house made of living stones—the church that God was really going to build. And if He met with them back there in the pattern and He spoke with them in the pattern, then He is going to meet with us and speak with us. And that’s what the church service is about: touching God and hearing His voice. All right. In the New Testament the encounter: they had a mighty wind in Acts chapter 2, they saw cloven tongues as of fire, and they spoke the mighty works of God as the Spirit gave them utterance. The presence of God came and moved on them and they spoke the mighty works of God—not God speaking

▶ 10:48 Himself but through people. In Acts 4 the place was shaken where they were gathered together to pray and they spoke the word of God with boldness. Paul on the road to Damascus saw a light and heard a voice. He had an encounter with God. It blinded him. Then his blinded eyes were opened and he became the chief apostle to build this magnifical church that God had prophesied thousands of years before that He would do. The encounter also convicts us. John 16:8: when the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, has come, He will convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment. That presence of God, when it touches you, will convince you of right and wrong and that there’s a judgment coming.

▶ 11:46 We need the presence of God in our services—top priority, top priority. Then we find also in the Bible that the virtue, the power of God—that power of His presence—did tremendous things. In Luke 6:19 the whole multitude sought to touch Jesus, and there went virtue out of Him and healed them all—physically, mentally, spiritually, their sin. Power went out and healed them. Folks, that’s what people need to touch when they come to church: the power of His presence. That’s what does the job.

▶ 12:30 And so He healed them and He did miracles. Now God is a supernatural God. It’s nothing for Him to do miracles. And people that say that healings and miracles aren’t for today just haven’t read their Bible. Acts 24:25: as Paul reasoned of righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come, Felix the governor, the secular leader, trembled. He’s literally shocked when Jesus backed up the word Paul was preaching and met with Felix and touched him. But Felix wouldn’t give in. He wouldn’t make a commitment to Jesus Christ. But God did His part and Paul did His part—he preached the gospel—and the Holy Ghost came and did His part and backed it up. And so we see in the New Testament that God kept His word. They encountered Him back there and they encountered Him in the New Testament church. And folks, it’s still the same plan today. We can have the power of His presence touching people and can change them and convince them and make them new creatures like He has made many of us who have been following Christ for some time. Secondly, we see that God

▶ 14:00 spoke. But He didn’t speak in an audible voice like He did in the Old Testament. He spoke through His people. In 1 Corinthians 12 the Spirit gives to one a word of wisdom, to another a word of knowledge, to another a prophecy, faith, tongues, teaching, a revelation of psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. When you come together you bring something to the house of God. David said I’ve got to prepare. We need to prepare through the week and we need to get up on Sunday morning and prepare ourselves to come to the house of God. Could that be true? That is very true. We can’t rely on the past. We can’t rely on a song leader. Us, all of us, have got to prepare ourselves to come in and let the power of God move in the church and speak and touch people and change their life. And He’s the only one that can do it—the only one. And He gives us these venues of speaking. In 1 Corinthians 2:4 Paul said my speech and my preaching wasn’t with enticing words of men’s wisdom or intellect,

▶ 15:12 but in power and demonstration of the Spirit, that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. 1 Corinthians 14:26: that all things be done unto edifying—to build, to encourage, to make the house of God strong and magnifical like God prophesied it would be. We’re going to go and take a look at four things that’s got to be done in the house of God. 2 Corinthians 3:18 says we are all changed—how many of us?—all are changed into the same image of Christ from glory to glory by the what? Inspirational preaching?

▶ 16:05 By a 12-step program? No—by the Spirit of the Lord. Folks, that’s why we need Him. That’s why worship and praise is so necessary. These people that say what kind of God’s up there wanting everybody to praise Him and thank Him—it’s a principle that releases the power. He’s not up there with an ego. It’s a principle that works. And so when we do our part He will come by His Holy Spirit and do His part. But if we’re not looking for the Holy Ghost and we’re not looking for the presence of God, we’re just going to have a social gathering. There’s not going to be any power. We’ll have a meeting with music, we’ll have a meeting with people, we’ll fellowship with our friends, we’re going to go home unchanged, because it’s the Spirit that changes us into His image, and it’s His image that we’re after—not the popular author of the day. Matthew 21:13: My house shall be called the house of prayer, but you made it a den of thieves. We are in a 30th year after the last spiritual awakening in America, and we destroyed that awakening—the Jesus movement and the charismatic movement before that and the healing movement before that. We destroyed that by turning to music groups, making a god out of faith, making a god out of prosperity, and then bringing in psychology and psychiatry into the church to

▶ 17:35 do what only the Spirit and the word can do. And we brought this on ourselves. But we’re trusting God will move again. How many people will come to church if all you do is pray for an hour? But you get a music group or a mime or a drama or something and they’ll come—“oh we got a thousand people out there”—but did they get changed when they were there into His image? That’s the bottom line. Psalm 100 says serve the Lord with gladness and come before His presence. After prayer we need His presence. We don’t need the presence of the song leader and a preacher and the ushers and so forth. The main ingredient in a church service, a New Testament, is He’s there. And He tells us how to come into His presence with praise and worship and singing and clapping and so forth. Psalm 100 verse 4: enter His gates—number three—with thanksgiving, His courts with praise; be thankful unto Him and bless His name. Speak good of His name, exalt His name, exalt Jesus, thank Jesus, glorify Jesus, build up Jesus, brag about Jesus. That’s how we’re supposed to come to the house of God—not “oh I wonder who the server is going to pick me up today.” I wonder—how we’re supposed to come: on fire, prepared.

▶ 19:03 And when we do, His presence will come, because Psalm 22:3 says He inhabits the praises of His people. It’s a principle of praise. It’s not an egotistical God that the atheists try to say—what kind of God wants to be—but it is a principle He’s ordained that works, and when we operate it He will back it up. Luke 24:47: repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among the nations. So the fourth thing is we’ve got to have the word of God—the rhema word of God, the living word of God—and repentance and forgiveness and cleansing and freedom of sin should be preached. And it’s not being preached very much in America today because the church in America don’t want to hear they’re wrong. But they’re wrong whether they like to hear it or not. And we’ve got to get back to letting people know what sin is and they can repent from it and they can be forgiven, set free and cleansed from it. And that makes a magnifical church.

▶ 20:11 And it should be done to all nations. No one is eliminated from this. They need to hear that message. Still on number four, the second part: Matthew 28:19, go and make disciples of all nations, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you—what He’s commanded, not what psychologists commanded, what theologians command. It’s what He commands, what He told us to teach. And every expression of speech—whether it’s songs, prophecy, revelation, tongues, interpretation, wisdom, knowledge, teaching, prayer—is to build and change the people that are in that service unto His image. Our songs have got to be songs that build, construct and strengthen people. Our messages, our prophecies, everything is to build and make people a strong magnifical person for Jesus Christ so we can be changed into His image. Now Isaiah prophesied this years before, hundreds of years before. Isaiah 2:3: many shall go and say, come, let us go up to the house of the God of Jacob.

▶ 21:28 He will teach us His ways and we will walk in His paths. There’s that word again: He will teach us. The Holy Ghost would teach us. The presence of Jesus would teach us. And we will walk in His paths. Why? Because the Holy Ghost would convict us. The Holy Ghost will empower us to obey the word, not just hear it. For out of Zion—and Hebrews 12 tells us Zion is the church, and Zion is the new city of Jerusalem, the church—out of the church will go forth the law—[unclear] law, [unclear] law, and spiritual law—and the word of the Lord, what He commanded us to teach, from Jerusalem, from the church. So the word is supposed to go from the church, is supposed to be in the church—a living word, a powerful word from the Holy Spirit. And then look at the results when we do these things: He will judge among the nations, He will correct many people, they will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. And I submit to you: has this ever been fulfilled? No. Well, why do you think the rapture is some kind of magical answer when this is just one of the things in the Bible that has not been fulfilled? But when we get our act together and become

▶ 22:59 a magnifical church that He’s building in these last days, He will have no problem bringing this to pass. He is Jesus and He is powerful. Hallelujah. And so it pays us to let the Holy Spirit come, the presence of God come, and teach us His ways so that we also have that presence of God motivating us to walk in His paths. These four things are necessary. And we don’t have a church service without any of them. But the most important part of these four things of prayer, praise and worship and thanksgiving and blessing and teaching the word—the most important part is His presence. The Bible says without Him we can do nothing, and the American church on the most part is trying to do this thing without Him.