Jesus: The Master Builder of Our Lives

Good news: God doesn’t need our help! He is perfectly capable of accomplishing every good thing without us. In fact, He already has. His cry on the cross of “It is finished” is proof. After all, His works were finished before the foundation of the world. (Hebrews 4:3CloseHebrews 4:3 For only we who believe can enter his rest. As for the others, God said,"In my anger I took an oath:  `They will never enter my place of rest,'"*even though this rest has been ready since he made the world. OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt) )

However, He does require our obedience. Certain things will not manifest on the earth without us cooperating with the Holy Spirit. Yet, human tendency is to learn what He wants us to do and then try to fulfill it in our own strength and understanding.

God’s promises are Yes and Amen through Christ (2 Corinthians 1:20Close2 Corinthians 1:20 For all of God's promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding "Yes!" And through Christ, our "Amen" (which means "Yes") ascends to God for his glory. OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt) ), but we must be led by His Spirit in how He chooses to bring them to pass.

Consider King David and his son Solomon. While David wrote many of the Psalms, Psalm 127 was written by Solomon. He witnessed firsthand as David wanted to be the one to build the temple in Jerusalem for the Lord. However, God spoke to David that Solomon was the one He had chosen to build it. (1 Kings 8:17-19Close1 Kings 8:17-19 Then Solomon said, "My father, David, wanted to build this Temple to honor the name of the LORD, the God of Israel. But the LORD told him, `You wanted to build the Temple to honor my name. Your intention is good, but you are not the one to do it. One of your own sons will build the Temple to honor me.' OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt) ) David accepted God’s choice and spent years laying out plans and collecting the resources to make it easier for Solomon. It would have been foolish for David to disobey and spend countless hours having a temple built. God didn’t need David’s help in building a temple for Him. David and Solomon had to follow God’s orders for the Lord to make it the place of His dwelling.

King Solomon rightly decreed inPsalms 127:1-2ClosePsalms 127:1-2 Unless the LORD builds a house,  the work of the builders is wasted.Unless the LORD protects a city,  guarding it with sentries will do no good. It is useless for you to work so hard  from early morning until late at night,anxiously working for food to eat;  for God gives rest to his loved ones. OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt) (NIV):

Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat—for he grants sleep to those he loves.

Am I the only one who has ever tried to build things that the Lord wasn’t blessing? Or try to carry out His plans in my own strength? There’s a better way, and that is abiding in Him. When we labor outside of His grace, we’re unconsciously saying that we can do a better job building our lives than He can. There’s a reason Jesus was a carpenter while He was on the earth!

May you be renewed today in the knowledge that God is carrying out to completion the work that He has begun in you. (Philippians 1:6ClosePhilippians 1:6 And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. OPEN VERSE IN BIBLE (nlt) ) As His son or daughter, you are very precious to Him and He is the Master Builder. He requires our obedience, but He doesn’t need our help!

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Scripture is quoted from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION^®, NIV^® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.^® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.