5
Theme: BUILDING NEW JERUSALEM
Text: “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” – Psalm 126:5,6.
Comment: Those who, by the grace of God, have been called to the New Jerusalem – the way of truth and life – must be prepared to make sacrifices, by contributing to the building of the work of God. Such ones shall reap in joy. They will be blessed now in this present world and in the end will have eternal life in God’s Kingdom fully established.
King Solomon, who was also a prophet, reminds us of the futility of holding back our God-given resources and not contributing to the building of New Jerusalem, warning that it leads to poverty. “There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.” King Solomon further declared, “the liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself”. – Proverbs 11:24,25.
While it is true that we are living in difficult times, this cannot be an excuse for us not to make the necessary sacrifices to contribute, from the little that we have, to the building of New Jerusalem. God Almighty, speaking through Haggai the prophet, warned of the consequences of giving excuses for not building His house. “Look at the result: You plant much but harvest little. You have scarcely enough to eat or drink, and not enough clothes to keep you warm. Your income disappears, as though you were putting it into pockets filled with holes!” – Haggai 1:5, 6. Living Bible. See Luke 6:38.
Above all, God Almighty speaking through His prophet, Malachi, has placed before us a blessing and a curse. A blessing if we contribute to the building of New Jerusalem in tithes and offerings and a curse if we do not. Malachi 3:8-12. It behoves us as children of light to choose the path that will give us the blessing by contributing to the building of New Jerusalem.