If You Build It He Will Show Up

       I was listening to two young men argue loudly the other day at a public place. One of them declared that the God of the Bible is a foreign God and should not be worshiped by Africans. According to Him, Africans have surpassed the westerners in worshiping this God, yet their lands and conditions are still impoverished. The other argued that the lands and the conditions of the people are impoverished because they are not following the principles of the said God as they should. Sadly, this deceitful argument that the God of the Bible is not real is gaining ground and producing more unbelieving believers by the day. Those that believe such errors forget that God’s Word is not there to conform to them, but they were created to conform to God’s Word: “For we are His creation – created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). 

       So many have rewritten God’s word to suit their present beliefs, by arguing that the present realities are in conflict with what is written in the Bible. No matter what our doubts are, they do not negate the truth of God’s Word, rather these doubts create barriers between man and God. Those that operate in this manner go through the motions of serving God without any result; they blame everyone but themselves for this. 

       This reminds me of an almost similar situation in Israel under king Ahab when the people were wavering between if Yahweh (the Creator of the Heavens and the earth) was the true God or Baal was (1Kings 18). A contest was organized by Prophet Elijah (the Prophet of Yahweh), between him and the four hundred Baal priests. Elijah challenged them to build an altar and put a bull on it without fire, he will do same: “Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of Yahweh. The God who answers with fire, He is God. All the people answered, that sounds good” (1Kings 18:24). At the end of the contest, Yahweh, the Creator of the Heavens and earth, the God of the Bible, answered by fire when He was called upon. Praise God! Beloved, He is still on the Throne. Maybe you developed the mindset that God is not God anymore because you were dealt a bad hand by the ministers of God or you had a desire that was not met by the God of the Bible. I encourage you not to throw away your confidence in Him, He forever remains God and He has promised that He will not forget you. But there is a position you are required to be: “But as for me, I will look to the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me” (Micah 7:7). Don’t get deceived that only a certain class of people gets their prayers answered by God. Beloved, it is not about the position we hold or how many vigils we may hold or even how long we can pray, rather it is how prepared our hearts is for Him. He said categorically: “Everyone the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me, I will never cast out” (John 6:37). If you build the altar and put a sacrifice (you) on it, He will come: “Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual worship” (Romans 1:1). This means God did not just show up because Elijah is a prophet or that he called on Him. Rather, God answered because Elijah repaired the altar and placed a sacrifice on it! If you build Him an altar He will come. Like Elijah, if you repair your heart and prepare it for Him, He will come in and dwell with you. This is His proven promise: “He (you) shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him” (Psalm 91:15). God bless you!