This little church sits nestled under the trees in the beautiful Minter Gardens near Chilliwack, British Columbia.
Recently, while visiting the gardens, we thought we would go into the church for a few moments of peace and solitude. To our great surprise, when we tried to enter, we found that it was just a façade. There was no building at all, but merely a false front.
Some of the top-rated tourist attractions in every country are the beautiful cathedrals, church buildings, synagogues and mosques that have been erected over the years. We might look in awe at the architecture and the workmanship of skilled hands. However, the apostle Paul gave a sermon on Mars Hill, where there was some of the most advanced architecture of the day. In his sermon he said, “God, who made the world and everything in it, ... does not dwell in temples made with hands” (Acts 17:24).
So, where does God dwell? God sent His Son, “as Saviour of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God” (1 John 4:15-15).
Many people are like this little church. From the outside you and I may look wonderful: however, “man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7). Perhaps little or no appreciation is given to a loving God who gave His Son that you might be with Him forever!
“What a Friend We Have in Jesus” and “Safe in the Arms of Jesus” are hymns that are often sung at funerals. Perhaps mourners take it for granted that all is well with the soul of the deceased and that they have an eternal home in Heaven. But do they?
Search your heart to see if you have the real thing, or if you only have the outward appearance of being a Christian.
“If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9).
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