Unless the Lord Builds the House…

Well, good afternoon, everyone. Good to be with you here in this new place, here in Castle Place Drive in Castleton, Indianapolis. Debbie and I are glad to be able to be here and invited over to be with you as you have your first Sabbath here in this newly purchased building for the United Church of God. Be with the Cubics, and I have a chance to speak with you here this afternoon.

As I was thinking about what to talk about, I was drawn to the psalm that we sang in the first hymn here today, which Andy chose and I think fittingly did. And that is from Psalm 127, Unless the Lord Shall Build the House. I'd like for you to turn over to that psalm and use that as my introduction here today.

We've just sung the words from Psalm 127, but let's read the first verse. And think about this for a minute as we begin your time and tenure here in this building that has opened up for us in the church here in Indianapolis. In Psalm 127 and verse 1, it says, I won't read any more than just that one verse here, but I think it kind of sets the tone for what I would like to say here in the next few minutes here in my part of the service today. It does say that unless God builds the house, they labor in vain who build it. This applies to just about any endeavor that we could ever want to attach the meaning of this verse to. Anything that we undertake as a project, a work, an activity, it is God-focused, that unless God builds the house. Now, we're in a building that is made of materials and carpeting and stone and drywall and conduit and electrical and plumbing fixtures here in an office park in a major United States city here in the Midwest. And we look upon it today as a place where we are gathered here for worship services on God's holy Sabbath. And we recognize that in the church, the building is not actually the church. The church comes to a building. That was one of the first things I remember ever learning as a young man coming to the church of God, that the church is not the building. The church are the people. The scriptures tell us that the church is the body of Christ, a spiritual body. Christ is the head of the church. And there are so many scriptures that speak to that. And if we look at them and take that directly from what this psalm is telling us, that if we are the house that God is building, then we want to always make sure that everything that is done in our midst and among ourselves is of God. And that He indeed is working in our lives and in our collective efforts as a church here in the United Church of God, a part of the body of Christ. Lest we labor in vain as we work. What we do and what we accomplish, we never want to be empty. We don't want to be worthless. We want to accomplish the purpose that God has in His ultimate plan and purpose for salvation, for mankind, and His work with His people.

It goes on again, unless the Lord guards the city. Certainly always asks for God's guidance and certainly His protection upon us as a people, individually and collectively, unless those who are charged as watchmen do their job watching, staying awake, being vigilant, and they do it in vain. Again, God has to be involved in every part of what we do. Verse 2, it says, When we stop and think about this Sabbath here, this building, and the fact that in the Indianapolis congregation, you are here in something that now you own and is yours. Yours by the way I say that as the collective part of the body of the United Church of God and the International Association.

It is rather sobering and I think interesting as I've been thinking about this to reflect back how we got here, how you are here today, and to just remember a few things. For those of us that have lived it, for those of you that haven't, those of you that are younger, and your view of the Church is different from my view of the Church, or some of our older ones here, and especially the Church here in the Indianapolis area, there's a lot of history. There's a lot that has happened through the years in Indianapolis, Central Indiana, and Lafayette congregations that farm what we now have here in Indianapolis.

As I look back, Debbie and I moved to Indianapolis in 1990, but I think that I know the Church had a long history here in Indianapolis even before then. I used to have a history that had been put together by, I believe it was George Delinger, some of you will remember George, and some of you may have a copy of that.

I have long since lost it, but he had put together one of the earlier anniversaries of the Indianapolis Church, a history. So it goes back to the 60s, sometime in the mid to early 1960s when the Church began here. I think it actually began out of Cincinnati, if I'm not mistaken. Somebody can correct me, but I think that someone came out of Cincinnati, Ohio at the time to begin what was then the worldwide Church of God here in Indianapolis. A number of pastors, a number of locations. If you stop and think about the various locations that the Church here in Columbus, Muncie, Lafayette, all the places that you've met, you've got names like Cathedral High School, the Sherwood Club.

Those that are laughing met in the Sherwood Club. I actually spoke there one time, and I'm glad that I never had to speak there again. I heard stories about the Sherwood Club on the south side. Carlsen's were telling me about meeting in a Baptist Church somewhere around Southport or whatever, in another spot.

Then, when 1990 came and we divided the Indianapolis congregation into north and south, we met for a period of time, about six months, in a place called the West End, out on 10th Street, I believe. We had the north and the south meeting in AM and PM in that situation there for a few months until we physically actually separated the Church at that time.

Those of us in the south church, we went to a place called Primo's Banquet and Catering Halls. Some of you will remember that. I think the north church wound up at the Greenbrier Theater that you met in on 82nd Street or 96th Street?

86th Street. Greenbrier Theater. You met there. Then the United Church of God began in 1995. For our first meetings, we were down a post-road at some banquet-type facility there. Then, after about four months, we wound up in the Seventh-day Adventist Church down in Greenwood.

We were there for all the time that I was here until Terry Swaggerty and Martin Bornhorse came. Then you had the Kiwanis and Coconut Grove. Was that the name of the place? Terribian Grove or Copacabana. I don't know what to say. I just heard stories about that one.

I'm sure you're glad you're out of there. Then, of course, the Pilgrim Lutheran Church. A very nice facility over there. I think we all know the history in recent months and just being pilgrims all over the place with various locations that you would meet in. Those of you from the Lafayette area, I remember Sunnyside High School, as you do as well, and Tony Piccelli's place during the United period.

We just have a history of locations. That's what it boils down to. We laugh at the memories of it. Now, here we are in Castle Place, a building that we now own.

If I could just mention, the desire to have buildings is something that we've often talked about. I guess in more recent times, Victor Kubik, as president, is wanting to see that we purchase buildings where it's practical, feasible, and do more of that where we can as a part of our caring for the church.

When we came together here in 1995 and began the United Church of God Indianapolis, we established a board. Actually, we started to reinvent ourselves back then. That's to be real blunt about it. Sorry, honey. We began to collect ties and offerings locally, and one of the first things we decided to do was to establish a building fund. I remember Ken Graham, our elder at the time that we had, Ken Graham was very vigorously supportive of having a building fund. The idea that we would buy a building was way out of almost an impossible idea, but we set the fund and were faithful in doing and contributing to it throughout the last 24-plus years.

In recent years, the congregation here has even helped other United congregations purchase their own buildings. Contributions were made from the Lafayette congregation and from here in Indianapolis for the Terre Haute congregation to buy a building about 9 or maybe 10 years ago when they purchased that building.

Cleveland, Ohio was assisted from funding here as well, and now we have this one. To do something like that, to even have done it 24 years ago, looking out, bucking the culture at the time, but saying, this is where we need to go, wasn't always easy.

There were certain levels of opposition, but you maintained that and endured and had the vision. The congregation here, all of you, had that vision, and that's what it takes to get something done. You have to see where you're going and want to be out into the future and then set your course and plan for that. And that has been done. And so here we are.

One of the questions that we should ask, which is a legitimate question, I've heard it, and that is, is this of God? Is this God's will? Anytime you make a sizable commitment of cash or commitment of resources to anything in the church and in our efforts as we seek to be doing the work of God, we always ask, is this where God wants us to be or to do? Or is this God's will? The same could be asked about this, and it's a good question to put out here for all of us to think about. As we think about the answer, because I'm not going to give you the answer today, a decision was made and in collective counsel and efforts, it's gone forward and it's been done. In some cases, as we seek to answer that question, is it God's will? It takes time. It takes time to find that answer and to know exactly. So, let's turn to a scripture that I think can at least give us something all to think about as we and you start down this road with this particular facility.

It's in 1 Corinthians 3. It follows in line with what we just read in Psalm 127.

In 1 Corinthians, the 3rd chapter, the Apostle Paul is talking to, again, a congregation of people in the first century in the city of Corinth, addressing the issues and needs that were part of their time at their point. Let's begin in verse 5. Paul asks the rhetorical question, who then is Paul and who is Apollos? Because the earlier setup for this was that there was a bit of divisions among the church in terms of the personalities, and who was in charge, and different approaches and flavors that can be created within any grouping of God's people in any organization, depending upon personalities. Paul says, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one. I planted Apollos water, but God gave the increase. Apollos had planted, he was the original servant of God, a minister who had gone to the city of Corinth and worked for a year and a half to establish a church. God had appeared to him in division and told him, he said, I have many people in this city. So he stayed for a year and a half, and a church grew as a result of his efforts. That was a sizable congregation in a major metropolitan city of the Roman period. Apollos came later, and Apollos was a very eloquent man, very dynamic from what we gather in scriptures, perhaps even more charismatic than Paul. And some gravitated toward his personality. While others talked about Peter, and then others, they were really super righteous, they were just Christ. We'll just deal with Christ. Men, we don't need men. You and me God, all the way.

So you had all of this within the church. And Paul goes on, so that neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters. But God, who gives the increase. It is God who gives the increase. Again, unless the Lord shall build the house, the weary builders toil in vain. Whatever we do as humans, whatever we do as ministers, deacons, deaconesses, individual members, if it's not of God, if it is not with God's blessing, then it is not done from the heart. Sincere service, humble service before God, then it will come to nothing. God is the one who gives the increase as his spirit works within his people. In verse 8 he goes on, now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.

Look back over the years of your time in the Church of God, for those of you from here in central Indiana, Lafayette, Columbus, Muncie, Indianapolis. We think back over the years and we remember ministers, we remember fellow members. We think about them from time to time, and on a day like this we might think about others a little bit more. Where are they? What happened? Many are deceased. Others have scattered in various ways. But we all will reap what we have done in our own work and in our own efforts and receive that reward according to our labor.

We're here, we're still here. You are. Still doing what you said you would do. Being faithful to God, serving God, worshiping God. Still believe in the same way that you believed when you started out along this road so many years ago for some of us. Let's go on to verse 9. For we are God's fellow workers. We're all in this together, Paul said. Apollos and Peter and Paul were all fellow workers. You are God's field. You are God's building. Paul gives us this very important bit of information that we all know.

The people, the collective people, are the building. This is a very nice facility and it is a blessing for you to have it as any of God's people have. And yet, don't forget, you are the building. You are what God is doing. Individually, in your life, it is a spiritual body. According in verse 10 to the grace of God, which was given to me as a wise master builder, I have laid the foundation and another builds on it. Paul realized that when he started, someone else came along to build on it.

And that he only had a part in the structure of the spiritual building. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Paul will write later in the book of Ephesians that the church is the body of Christ, of which he is the head. And it is a spiritual work. Go back and review the fundamental belief that we state about the church in our booklet, in our Constitution.

When it comes to what we say about the church, it is one of the best written statements that we have among our fundamentals of belief. And it says in the same spirit of this here that the church is a spiritual body.

And Christ is the head. And Paul is saying that the foundation that he laid was in Christ. And everyone who comes along to do whatever they have to contribute must work in the same way in Christ. With Christ's direction. With Christ's lead. Again, the question, is this building God's will? Is this of God?

Well, let's read on. Verse 12. Now, if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw, each one's work will become clear. And there's quite a contrast here between gold and straw. Straw is not going to last very long. It's not going to hold up anything. It can be fashioned. In the fall, we can take hay bales, straw bales, and build something up. You can even do, I guess you might attach this to something called thatch, which is a little bit stronger.

But even thatch has to be redone after a period of time as well. But he says, your work will become clear. It'll be tested through time. For the day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire. And the fire will test each one's work of what sort it is. Trials, tests, experiences of life come upon us. And what we have built, character, the love, the fruits of God's spirit in our own lives, it will all be tested to one degree or the other by events of our own lives and things that we either bring upon ourselves or come without our cooperation necessarily.

It will just happen. If anyone's work in verse 14, which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If it endures the fire, if it survives, the tests that come. If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss. But he himself will be saved, yet as so through fire. Now, you know, we make mistakes and we will be tested, and sometimes we will fail. We will not always live up to our calling. We will not always live up to what we said we would do with our baptism vows. The work that we start out with gets kind of burned up.

But I think the way I take verse 15 is that if God's Spirit is there and we haven't always used it to build silver and gold and precious stones, instead we just let it kind of work on a half way and we just wound up with wood or straw, it might get burned and we might fall by the wayside for a while, but we're not completely out of the game. It says here that we will be saved, yet so as through fire.

I take that that we can learn from our mistakes. Time has a way of healing and reorienting us and the Church.

Time to time we hear someone who comes back to the faith after 20, 25 years of confusion, living apart from God, from the Church. It just happens on a regular basis where we encounter people who realize, I need to keep the Sabbath again. There's something missing in my life. That what they went off into in life and in the world eventually proves to be hollow and empty.

And they want, they recognize that they've got to get back to a relationship with God that is the clear crystal truth that they once knew and believed. So I take verse 15 to say that there's a second chance, there's a third chance in this life of getting back into the game and being able to use God's Spirit to prepare for that role that he has for us in his kingdom.

And then he goes on in verse 16 and he says, Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? Again, the church is the temple. The church is the building. In Acts 7, the deacon Stephen gives us fiery sermon before the Jews that gets him eventually stoned at the end of it. Toward the end of it he comes down and he literally, I always imagine, he's pointing at the temple there in Jerusalem when he's talking to the Jews, the Pharisees, and the Sanhedrin, and he said, God does not dwell in buildings made with hand.

And he probably pointed to the temple because he gave it there in the temple precincts. And that's when they all just came loose. And they rushed on him and stoned him because the temple to them was everything. They worshiped the temple rather than God. And it cost him his life by speaking truth. Well, Paul is saying that you are the temple of God. We are that spiritual temple, spiritual body that is being built up.

If the spirit of God dwells in us, that's the critical determining factor. Receiving of that spirit that combines with our human spirit that we are the sons of God. And that is the good work that God has begun within all of us. And so that's where the real heart of the question resides. Verse 17 then, he says, if anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy. Which temple you are. And other scriptures would augment this and supplement what Paul is writing, but it lays it out pretty direct here. You're the temple. You are the building.

Is God building in you? Are you allowing God to work in you? If the Lord does not build the house, we work in vain. That's always the question before us. And so we come to this time now here for us here in Indianapolis, and you have a permanent home for the foreseeable future, and for God willing, long into the future, you will not be gypsies.

You don't have to carry sound equipment in and out every week and lug things around. You've got a home and a place to come. Each week you know where you will be, with facilities here to have Sabbath school classes, to have Bible studies whenever you choose, and to use it in whatever way you decide to do the work of God here among you, and to edify and to care for one another, to grow in the love of God, and to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ.

And there will be things that will have to be done. I understand that you've already had work parties working all week to clean a place up, and you'll probably change the paint scheme around, and somebody will have to be on the bathroom detail, and there will be a fixture to break, leak somewhere, somebody's got to fix it, somebody's got to open it up and close it up and maintain it.

You'll work all those details out and keep it clean and keep it well-maintained, and then somewhere along the line something big is going to go, and you're going to turn to the Council of Elders. And we'll talk about that. Being back on the Council in recent months, and as it came to this particular decision, I'm glad I was there to be able to raise my hand. I don't know how good it was to raise my hand.

How many times did I raise my hand to get this thing done? The last time, just a little over two weeks ago, up in southern Minnesota, when we had the final meeting of the Council to finally lock this thing down, and I think at least three times I raised my hand to say, let's do it, let's do this thing. And so that was personally very rewarding to be, in a sense, at the beginning of the United Church of God here, the financial aspect that led to this, and then being on the Council here at this time to be able to help get it across the goal line.

And I would be remiss if I did not pay a proper tribute to Mrs. Cubick, Beverly Cubick, for her determination and tenacity to get this thing done and to make it happen. She began calling me early on and lobbying me, and Rick Shaby, who was their treasurer.

Ironically, Rick Shaby winds up being the treasurer after having been the board chairman here for a number of years and involved in those decisions. And as an elder here, and then he's the treasurer that helps to get it through too. And Mrs. Cubick was talking to him, talking to me, talking to Don Ward and others, even talking to her husband about it too, and getting him involved. At first I thought, I don't know.

I don't know. It's a lot of money. I don't know. And then she kept at it. So I'll say this. In recent years, Cubick has asked me to go to Africa and do some training. Everywhere I go, there's a building that the church has put up, or good works or life nets, a combination of funds that makes all these things happen.

And there's plaques on these buildings donated by good works, life nets, United Church of God, Victor Cubick president. And so I've taken pictures of all these places, these buildings, where his name is in Africa. But I think we ought to maybe put his wife's name on this building in some way. I don't know. But I do want to pay tribute to her and thank her for her work. At least get it across the goal line at this point in the game after having something that began so long ago.

One last point I would like to make about this, for us to think about. You're all very grateful, and you will show that. You go forward kind of with a new chapter. You've got a new building here in a couple weeks. You'll have a new pastor coming in to serve your needs and to work with as well. So it's kind of a new chapter that is here. Don't look at this building as an end of itself.

It is not. It is not an end. This is not the conclusion of anything. This is a very nice place and a very nice opportunity and a very nice matter. But it's only a milestone along the road to the kingdom of God. Our ultimate goal is not to have a building here or wherever else the United Church of God may build a building or buy a building for its congregations.

That in itself is not the end. The end result is what we've just read here in 1 Corinthians. That you are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in you.

It is the work that God is doing in us that is the end result that we all are looking toward. The time when we will share in that reward and that inheritance and that glory of sonship, full sonship, in the family of God at the time of the resurrection and entry into the kingdom of God. That's the end. This facility is a means to that end. So use it well. Work very hard to use it. Work very hard as well to keep from letting anything about it become a source of irritation, division, or contention. We all know that buildings can be problematic for religious groups. There's one thing that churches usually divide over besides doctrine, and the number one or two list is buildings, property, and things like that. So work very hard to not let anything like that be a problem in your fellowship and in your time together here. Realize that it's not an end of itself. It's only a means and a tool to use to get to the end, which is ultimately the God's kingdom. Then you will know, then you will know, the answer to that question. Is it God's will?