Matthew 16:18 “I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

The book of Nehemiah is all about rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem that had been torn down by the armies of Nebacanezar. It was a major miracle of achievement as a bunch of peasants rebuilt the wall in 52 days while being harassed by neighboring tribes of people.

Exodus 25 through 40, 15 chapters was all about building the tabernacle. Much of 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles is all about Solomon building the First Temple. The book of Haggai is all about rebuilding the 2nd Temple after it had been torn down by the army of Nebacanezer, and half of Ezekiel is about building the third temple.

When Jesus said that He would build His church, He obviously wasn’t talking about a building made out of rocks and wood, but a spiritual house made with people. Today the temple of the Holy Spirit is each believer’s body and the church gathered is a spiritual house and each believer is a living stone, and each local church is a temple of God.

1 Corinthians 3:16 Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

The church is the temple of God, the church is the body of Christ, the Church is the Bride of Christ, the church is the champion of the gospel, and the church is the hope of the world.

Jesus is building His church today in spite of all the critical statements made about the church. He is building His church using willing, committed people. Flawed people, but people who love Jesus, and people who love His church like He does. I have spent my entire adult life building on His church, and it has been a very rewarding life. Every Christian ought to be plugged into a local church using their gifts, time, energy, and money to build their church and make her beautiful for the bridegroom, Jesus. At the “Judgment Seat of Christ” the rewards that we receive will be mostly based on what we have done for His Bride, the church, our church.