The Restlessness of Homelessness
Written by Ben Dismukes
On November 29 - just one day after we had secured a meeting place for Narrow Way Fellowship - my house caught fire. Thankfully, we were at home when the alarm on the smoke detector went off and were able to get everyone safely outside. We watched in shock as fire fighters extinguished the flames, only to eventually realize that we had not only lost our place of refuge, but most of our belongings, as well.
I knew instantly that this was an act of spiritual warfare. The enemy doesn’t want the testimony of the Lord that the Father intends to offer Clarksville. That’s not a boast in us, in any way. It is, rather, a boast in the goodness of God to make Himself known, and He’s spoken to us in such a clear way of His intent to do so. He is arising to establish His testimony, and the enemy is terrified. The burning house is an underhanded, dirty reaction to the plans of the Lord.
But the Lord allowed it with great purpose. Of that, I am 100% convinced.
In my previous post, I shared with you the heart of God in this hour, which is to rebuild the house which presently lies in ruins – His own. As it was in the days of Haggai the prophet, the message that is coming from the Throne of God in our day is simple:
“Why are you living in luxurious houses while my house lies in ruins? This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Look at what’s happening to you! You have planted much but harvest little. You eat but are not satisfied. You drink but are still thirsty. You put on clothes but cannot keep warm. Your wages disappear as though you were putting them in pockets filled with holes!
This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Look at what’s happening to you! Now go up into the hills, bring down timber, and rebuild my house. Then I will take pleasure in it and be honored, says the Lord,” (Haggai 1:4-9 NLT).
Have you ever thought of God as being homeless? I’m guessing you haven’t, as the thought may seem quite blasphemous to some. But that’s precisely what is being communicated in this passage. We mistakenly think of heaven as His desired dwelling place, but if that were true, He wouldn’t be pointing here to a home that lies in ruins while emphasizing His intense longing for its completion. Now we know from scripture (and from my previous post) that God has no unction to live in a building constructed by man, so why the fuss here? Remember that the Old Testament is filled with types and shadows of spiritual realities that are fulfilled in Christ. This scripture, then, is not ultimately about a temple in Jerusalem, but rather His new covenant home – His people.
In the last blog, I pointed to a scriptural truth that God’s house is supposed to be a house that fully submits to His governmental headship. But that runs counter to the prevailing sentiment in the present-day church. We think one becomes a finished temple of the Holy Spirit at the event we call salvation and put very little emphasis on the need for maturity. We forget the writings of Peter suggesting that the process of becoming His house is ongoing, not instantaneous:
“As you come to Him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood…” (1 Peter 2:4-5 ESV).
At some point over the last several decades, the western church opted for a cheap, easy and unscriptural message of instant sanctification over the work of the cross promised to us in the New Testament. The title “Temple of the Holy Spirit” is tossed around too freely, as we give mental assent to doctrinal statements with very little proof of inward belief in the Person of which the scriptures testify. There’s very little forgetting what lies behind us and straining forward to what lies ahead, and almost no one is pressing on toward the goal – the prize of the upward call of God in Christ – which is to be an eternal dwelling place for His Spirit. We’re meant to undergo a process of being stripped of the self-life, but instead, we’ve chosen self-indulgence and comfort. Rather than being built up into a house for the Living God, we’re in a state of disorder, each stone doing what seems right in his own eyes.
His house is presently in ruins.
Oh, it may look good on the outside. To those with little discernment, it may even show signs of life. The teaching tickles the ears (No matter what flavor of messages appeals to you, you can find a “church” that scratches your itch!), puts people in the sanctuary and keeps money in the offering plates. The worship is cutting-edge, dynamic and sure to pull on your emotions. The outreaches seem sincere, and lives are being touched in some capacity, by something. But why does the church look so much like the world around us and so little like the people who were governed by the Spirit of God within, in the book of Acts? Why has holiness become such a foreign concept and the fear of the Lord absent from our congregations? Where is the testimony of Christ that forces the world to either fall in love with Him or seek to kill those from whom it emanates? Why are we so hell bent on pursuing our ideas for how church should be “done,” and so resistant to His idea for what the church should become? Man has been exalted in the House of God, and God has been forced out. And God has something to say about that. He wants His house back!
Two days after the fire, I awoke in the middle of the night and couldn’t go back to sleep. I lay in bed trying to wrap my brain around all that would be required of us as we seek to rebuild our house and our lives. Suddenly a thought hit me, like a jolt of lightning: “I think I’m homeless!” As I pondered it, tears began to form, then the Lord spoke to my heart and revealed to me the precious cup He has set in front of us.
There is a fellowship in His sufferings, and in sharing it with His people, He offers Himself. He is homeless and greatly desires an eternal resting place of His own. He allowed this hit for the sake of identification and friendship. I now know a tiny fraction of the grief in His heart, and I am undone. How is it that I should live in my luxurious home and enjoy the comforts of this life while His house lies in ruins? How is it that, seeing the state of things in the present-day church, I am not burdened with desire to see it turned upside down, in order to be set right-side up? How is that being called to build on the House of God, I should not taste His longing in some small measure?
I heard the Lord say this, as I watched my house being consumed with fire: “Burn it! Raze it to the ground! And start over on the right foundation!” I believe that to be the heart of God for His people. So many have been built into the institution of the church, on the wrong foundation of doctrine, rather than an inward relationship with a Person. He has no desire to save the institution, but His heart beats with zeal for His people. He longs to baptize us in fire - the fire of His presence – consuming all that’s not of Him. He means to shake all that can be shaken, and it’s mostly shakable! And He plans on rebuilding by His Spirit, not by the wisdom or strength of man, on the unshakable foundation of the Eternal Son!
He did not need my help in orchestrating the events that have led up to the establishment of this work, and He doesn’t need my help in finishing it. If I can just stay out of His way, while steadfastly trusting and obeying Him, He will build what’s on His heart to build in Clarksville.
King David said, "I will not enter my house or get into my bed, I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids, until I find a place for the Lord, a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob," (Psalm 132:3-5). Lord may Your restless state of homelessness weigh heavy upon our hearts until Your house is complete!
