What Are You Building? 2 Chronicles 25-28

2 Chronicles 27:1-5 (ESV)

Jotham was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerushah the daughter of Zadok. And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD according to all that his father Uzziah had done, except he did not enter the temple of the LORD. But the people still followed corrupt practices. He built the upper gate of the house of the LORD and did much building on the wall of Ophel. Moreover, he built cities in the hill country of Judah, and forts and towers on the wooded hills. He fought with the king of the Ammonites and prevailed against them. And the Ammonites gave him that year 100 talents of silver, and 10,000 cors of wheat and 10,000 of barley. The Ammonites paid him the same amount in the second and the third years.

If we study history we must be observant that there are two things we read about mankind:  They build and then fight over what they have built.   Why is that?   In Genesis 11 we read that the people all assembled together and built a tower.   God dispersed them using different languages and they began to fight.    In this book of 2 Chronicles, the Hebrew word for build is used almost 60 times.   That does not count all the synonyms of that word.   Mankind seems to always want to have something and to possess something.    Perhaps, a motivational way to inspire His disciples to continue to live out their faith after He rose from the dead, Jesus said these words:

John 14:1-3 (ESV)

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

Man seems to be built for a place to call home.   He seems to have a desire to have something and fight to have it.  There is nothing wrong with wanting a home and fighting to protect it.  This seems to be an inborn desire of mankind.  The great American dream is, to own your own home.  When the nation of Israel wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, they had no home.   The promise was a home in the land God would give them.   But remember, we are not here for this home.  We should desire another.   Notice what is says about Moses and then later, us, in the book of Hebrews:

Hebrews 11:26-27 (ESV)

He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward. By faith he left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible.

Hebrews 13:12-14 (ESV)

So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.

It is interesting that everything we read about Jesus does not include Him having a home.  He came to build a kingdom, not an earthly possession.  There is nothing wrong with our building a home.  But it is not our lasting home.  That is being built by God.  God, Himself, will build a new heaven and a new earth.   That is our future home.