Heart for the House

Before we dive into our study in Ephesians, I would like to revisit a few passages we have studied to establish a vision and encourage our stewardship in our lives to build our community here in the hospitality house.

Our passage tonight will come from Psalm 127:1 and Acts 1:6-11

I have titled tonight’s message Heart for the House.

The Hoover Dam on Nevada/Arizona border was built in the Black Canyon along the Colorado River in the 1930s. I remember reading an account of people interviewed during the building of this remarkable feat of engineering during The Great Depression.

One of the questions was, can you tell me what you are doing here?

Pouring Cement - What does it look like I am doing?

Earning a living - Sending what I earn back home to support my family.

I am helping build a dam - to help irrigation and provide electric power for people!

We can see a difference in the perspective these men had in what they were doing. I think that we often do not really understand what we are doing as Christians.

Pouring Cement - I am attending a Bible study, going to church, practicing personal disciplines; what does it look like I am doing?

I am trying to earn my place in heaven - to know more about God to follow his rules so I don’t get into trouble.

I am helping expand the kingdom of heaven and being a witness for Jesus Christ.

Christian Standard Bible (Psalm 127)

Unless the LORD builds a house, its builders labor over it in vain;

Psalm 127:1a

-The perspective we hold is evident to our understanding and willingness to submit to the Lord-

Unless we understand that the Lord builds the house, we labor in vain. The Lord has indeed built the house; we must have a heart for the house. We realize when we are in the position of really seeing the power of God in our lives, when we really yield to the Spirit of God, what are we called to do? We are called to witness for the Gospel. I don’t really think that all Christians understand their ministry.

We all have a ministry, it is not specifically the teachers, preachers, and evangelists who have a ministry.

Jesus gave to his disciples in the first Chapter of Acts.

Acts 1:6–11 CSB

So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, are you restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” After he had said this, he was taken up as they were watching, and a cloud took him out of their sight. While he was going, they were gazing into heaven, and suddenly two men in white clothes stood by them. They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen him going into heaven.”

We are looking at the last gathering of Jesus and his Apostles and Jesus’ ascension. The Apostles ask Jesus if He will re-establish the Kingdom to the nation of Israel. The promise of the scriptures they were still looking to be fulfilled.

Jesus tells them, “It is not for you to know times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.”

If we remember Mark 13:32

Mark 13:32 CSB

“Now concerning that day or hour no one knows—neither the angels in heaven nor the Son—but only the Father.

The reminder is that it is the Father that will restore the kingdom in His timeline to which we are unaware of. We cannot work the kingdom into existence.

Instead, Jesus gives his disciples a vision of what they are supposed to do until the father decides to restore the kingdom.

They are to be witnesses, but first, they must receive power from the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit

Christian Standard Bible Chapter 1

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you

The Holy Spirit - Power to accomplish the work we are given. The word for power here is (dunamis, doo´-nam-is). The same word that we get dynamite from.

Just two verses earlier- Jesus tells the Apostles to stay in Jerusalem, for they will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. The same Holy Spirit that Jesus had been teaching them to expect the Holy Spirit.

John 14:16 CSB

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever.

The fact that the Holy Spirit will remain changes everything. In the OT, we see the Holy Spirit coming upon people for a specific time and work. The Holy Spirit is coming to reside upon the Apostles, never to leave. This power is the power by which they are to do the ministry work.

We, too, have this power when we repent of our sins and believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Everyone who believes in Jesus Christ has the spirit; there is no particular time or event at a later time in which we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit. Every believer possesses the Holy Spirit.

Romans 8:9 CSB

You, however, are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to him.

You too have the power of the Holy Spirit within you to do the work that Jesus calls you to.

The power to have a Heart for the House that the Lord built comes from the Holy Spirit!

Now that we see that we have the power for the work we are called to, what is this work?

Christian Standard Bible Chapter 1

and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Witness

We are to be witnesses for Jesus. Interestingly, the word here for witness, “martus” (mar-toos), is a legal term, but it is also where we get the word we get martyr.

When we hear the word witness, we often think of the courtroom where witnesses testify. Of course, the expectation is that witnesses are to testify the truth of what they saw, what they heard. But, in addition, they can be asked to describe what they felt and the outcome of the events that they are testifying.

Martyrs are witnesses of their faith in Jesus. Indeed we see that 11 of the 12 apostles (Mathias replaced Judas) martyred for their faith. They were witnesses to the very ends and at the cost of their own lives to ensure that they would testify to the world.

Jesus told them that their testimony was to go all over the world. Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the Earth.

Jesus calls us to be witnesses for Him; this is our ministry. We are each to testify for Jesus. We are to testify not just what we know from the Bible but how Jesus has affected the way that we live our lives.

To be a reliable witness would require a bit of humble introspection. I say humble introspection is because we tend to look at ourselves and our lives, making too little or too much of our sins. We make too little when we make excuses or too much when we celebrate the sinful lives that we led. We look at our lives realize that God is just condemned us for our sins, but he had mercy on us that He sent His Son Jesus to take that condemnation when we repent and place our faith in his saving work through his death, resurrection, and ascension. God's mercy for us is very humbling, and it is becasue of this mercy that we testify of the good news of Jesus death, resurrection, and ascension.

We are to witness this good news that we are no longer condemned by our past, and so we complete the mission that Jesus gave to the Apostles.

In a parallel passage in Matthew 28:19-20 we see another account of this mission and a more clear idea of how we are to witness.

Matthew 28:19–20 CSB

Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

The word here observe and command are unique observe “conform” and command “cause to do.” Because we are witnesses, Jesus causes us to conform to his teaching. We must conform; we must submit to what Jesus causes us to do. Our submission is not just by studying his word and speaking it out, but by living it out, and remember we have the power to live it out in the Holy Spirit. We have the power to live out our obedience in our relationship with Jesus, our spouse, our families, and our community. We are given power by the Holy Spirit to be witnesses to the ends of the earth.

When we have a heart for the house that the Lord built we will be witnesses!

We understand that our mission is to be witnesses for Jesus Christ, we see that we have the power to witness through the Holy Spirit.

Then what happens when we, during our work, begin to lose sight of the hope of this mission? First, we want to remember that we are not laboring in vain! The apostles are not left without hope, and neither are we.

Hope

Back to our passage in Acts. Jesus finishes telling the apostles they were to be witness, he was taken up and out of sight. The apostles are left standing staring up into the heavens. Then, there appeared two men in white telling the apostles.

Christian Standard Bible Chapter 1

This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen him going into heaven.

I want us to think about the apostles and where they were in this moment. Their teacher, Jesus, upended their entire understanding of life, their employment, the way they saw themselves and others. Jesus taught them to love well and stand firm in their faith, teaching and modeling obedience. Having died and resurrected now has ascended into heaven. He is now gone. These men in need of That is what these messengers delivered.

In the parallel passage Matthew 28, Jesus too gave comfort to His apostles, “And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

This was a hope for the Apostles and indeed it is a hope for us today. We hope for the coming of Jesus, but as we started this passage we must end it with the same admonition of the Lord. It is not for us to know the time, it is simply for us to be obedient and be witnesses to all.

We have a great hope that we do not labor in vain, becasue the Lord will return. He will finish the work He began. It is with this hope and promise he is with us and will come again. In the mean while we are to be witnesses for him here and to the ends of the earth. Until the time that Jesus returns to establish his kingdom on earth.

We are able to have a heart for the house that the Lord built because we have an assured hope for his return!

As we close tonight, I want us to see Jesus's mission for us. We have a heart for the house that the Lord built; We are to be witnesses to the Gospel. We have the power to witness from the Holy Spirit. We have hope to persevere until we are called to heaven, or Christ returns.