Tools of Man

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                           TOOLS OF MAN

By Mae Shurow

In Daniel 2:34, Jesus is the "STONE CUT WITHOUT HANDS."

Hebrews 9:11 says, "But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, THAT IS TO SAY, not of this building;" [Building means a human institution or social structure as something which has been created—‘institution, structure.’ (Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996, c1989). Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament : Based on semantic domains (LN 42.39). New York: United Bible societies.)]

There is a movement called the "Temple Mount Faithful" that wants to lay the Cornerstone for the Temple of God. They say they have "…a 4.5 ton stone which was not cut or polished by any metal. It is a natural stone which is similar to the stones of which the Second Temple was built.” By this they say, “We fulfilled the godly biblical law in Exodus 20:25 not to profane the stone by hewing it with an iron tool. Also in the building of the Temples no iron was heard on the building site. (1 Kings 6:7)."

It is true that the temple of God is to be built of stones that are not defiled by being formed with any tool of man:

· Exodus 20:25, "And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it."

· Joshua 8:31 "As Moses the servant of the Lord commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of whole stones, over which no man hath lift up any iron..."

· 1 Kings 6:7 "And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building."

But they have missed the spiritual meaning completely!

· Zech. 4:6-9 says, "...This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts. 7Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it. 8Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, 9The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto you." (Zerubbabel was rebuilding the Temple with Nehemiah and Ezra.)

· Psalm 127:1 "Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it:"

· 1 Cor. 3:10-11 "According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. 11For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." ("How" in verse 10 means "by what means"--not by might or by power, but by His Spirit.)

We can’t go, or teach, or
preach unless His presence is with us. God's House can't be built in our own strength, OR WITH OUR OWN TOOLS! Not with "methods and programs." The House of the Lord can't be built with man-made tools, and that was the significance of "neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house..." Isn't that beautiful?

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