My daily scripture reading one day last week took me to Ezekiel where in a vision, Ezekiel saw a man “whose appearance was like bronze.” This man took Ezekiel on a tour of the restored temple. As I was reading, a thought crossed my mind of something I needed to check unrelated to the scriptures. I absent mindedly reached for my phone and the next verse I read was about the wall around the temple which was intended “to separate the holy from the common” (Ezekiel 42:20). I slid my hand away from my phone.
I sensed a moment of correction from the Lord. I was about
to bring the common into the holy space of my meeting with the Lord. I
meditated on that scripture for days wondering how in other ways I introduce
the common into places which ought to be kept Holy to the Lord.
It’s a case for putting our phones in a basket as some do at
meals. Because when we meet with the Lord, we feast in such a greater way on
the very bread of life. And I don’t know about you but having that phone out of
sight helps me not to be tempted to reach for it.
I recently heard a teacher say that in the Old Testament,
God built a temple for His presence. In the New Testament, God built a people
for His presence.
We are His temple. Holiness means set apart, and as the
people of God we are set apart for the presence of the Lord. And though we
don’t bring the commonplace into what is holy, we do carry His holy presence
into the common places. We walk around, His presence within, our feet covered
with the dust of the world. But the only way we can do that victoriously is through
the preparation of that time given to Him.
No matter where we are along our journey with the Lord, we
are always seeking to be more like Jesus. A couple of lines in the old hymn,
“Take Time to be Holy” are, “Spend much time in secret, with Jesus alone. By
looking to Jesus, like him thou shalt be…” Aren’t we glad God doesn’t leave us
where we are and is taking us toward our goal—to
be like Him, holy and set apart.