In this sermon, the preacher discusses the story of a sister who came to the Lord and poured a pound of pure love upon him. The disciples, particularly Judah, questioned the act, suggesting that the love could have been sold for money and given to the poor. However, Jesus defended the sister, stating that she had done all she could do with her pound of pure love. The preacher emphasizes the importance of using our abilities and resources to serve the Lord, rather than focusing on worldly possessions. The sermon also highlights the need to prioritize building the house of God and following divine principles, rather than pursuing personal gain.

Will you please turn to 1 Chronicles, chapter 17. 1 Chronicles, chapter 17. The first two verses. And it came to pass, as David dwelt in his house, that David say to Nathan the prophet, Behold, I dwell in the house of Sears, and the ark of the covenant of Jehovah under curtains. And Nathan said to David, Do all that is in thy heart, for God is with thee. Chapter 22. Chapter 22, verse 2. Or verse 5. And David commanded to collect the strangers that were in the land of Israel. And he sent masons to hew rock stones to build the house of God. And David prepared iron in abundance for the nail, for the doors of the gates, and for the joints, and brass in abundance without weight, and cedar trees innumerable. For the Sidonians and they of Tyre brought cedar wood in abundance to David. For David says, Solomon my son is young and tender, and the house that is to be built for Jehovah must be exceeding great in fame and in beauty in all lands. I will therefore make preparation for it. And David prepared abundantly before his death. The same chapter, verse 14. Or verse 16. And behold, in my affliction, I have prepared for the house of Jehovah a hundred thousand talents of gold, and a thousand thousand talents of silver, and of brass and iron without weight, for it is in abundance. And timber and stone have I prepared, and thou shalt add to it. And there are workmen with these in abundance, hewers and workers of stone and timber, and all manner of skillful men for every kind of work. Of the gold and silver and the brass and the iron there is no number. Arise and be doing. And Jehovah be with you. Chapter 29. Verse 1. Or verse 5. And King David said to all the congregation, Solomon my son, the one whom God has chosen, is young and tender, and the work is great. For this palace is not for man to be for man, but for Jehovah Elohim. And I have prepared according to all my power, for the house of my God, gold for things of gold, and silver for things of silver, and brass for things of brass, iron for things of iron, and wood for things of wood, or next stones and stones to be set, blistering stones and of diverse colors, and all manner of precious stones, and white marble in abundance. And moreover, in my affection for the house of my God, I have given of my own property of gold and silver, for the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the house of the sanctuary, three thousand talents of gold, of the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the houses, gold for things of gold, and silver for things of silver, and for all manner of work by the hands of artifice. And who is willing to offer to Jehovah this day? We go back to chapter twenty-eight, verse eleven. And David gave to Solomon his son the pattern of the courts, and of his houses, and of his treasures, and of his upper chambers, and of his inner chambers, and of the house of the mercy seat, and the pattern of all that he had by the Spirit, of the courts of the house of Jehovah, and of all the chambers round about, for the treasuries of the house of God, and for the treasuries of the dedicated things, and so on and so forth. Then we come to verse nineteen. All this said David, in writing, by Jehovah's hand upon me, instructing as to all the works of the pattern. Two months ago, we mentioned that David is a man after God. And this is in a very special way expressed in his preparing a house. We mentioned how David, after he ascended the throne of all Israel, the first thing he did, he went to take Jerusalem. Evidently he must have received a revelation from God that Jerusalem was the place of God's, even before the children of Israel entered into the promised land. In Deuteronomy, God told the children of Israel that after they entered into the promised land, God will choose one place out of all the places in the promised land where he will set his name there. And to this place, all the children of Israel must go to offer sacrifices and to worship. But after hundreds of years, no one knew what that place was until David came to the throne. And the first thing he did, he took Jerusalem. Because Jerusalem was the place where God set his name. And to that place, all Israel went to sacrifice. And Jerusalem, the city of peace, by God's name. And the second thing he did was, he prepared a tent among Zion. And he removed the ark of God from Kirtijerim to the tent he prepared among Zion. Zion is where the royal palace was. Zion always represents the throne. And the ark being removed to Zion in the tent of David speaks of the authority of God being set. And thirdly, we find he did something wrong. He numbered the people. And because of that, a plague came upon the whole nation. But when David saw the age of destruction over Jerusalem, he repented before God. And he cried to the Lord and said, It is my fault, not the people's. Stare the people and strike them. And God said, You go up to Mount Moriah where the angel appeared and filled them all and the plague was stopped. So he went to Mount Moriah and there on the prescient floor he filled them all. Call upon the name of the Lord and the plague was stopped. And we know this was the site. So brothers and sisters, here you'll find in these three places Jerusalem, Zion, and Moriah. Jerusalem, where God's name is written. Zion, where God's throne is set. Moriah, where the altar of God. And all these three, you will find are a kind of preparation for the building of the house of God. Because the temple will be built on the site and it will be joined to Zion and it will be in Jerusalem. So brothers and sisters, in preparing for the house of God, first, God's people must come together under the name of the Lord Jesus and no other name. And second, God's people must be under the throne of God. The throne of God must be set in Zion. And third, there must be the altar. That is to say, there must be dedication, consecration unto the Lord with whole hearts. And these are preparations for the building of God's house. Now this evening we would like to continue on with David's preparation for the house. Number one, David was in his palace and one day he talked to his prophet Nick. He said, how can I live in a house of Seder and the ark of God still remains? It is true that David had removed the ark from Kerdigere, the field of the forest, hidden, forgotten by the children of Israel. But David moved the ark of God to Mount Zion. That is to say, God was placed in his rightful place among his people. David did a great deal for God but still David's heart did not give him rest. He said, how can I live in a house of Seder in a permanent palace and the ark of God, which represents God himself, his glory, his presence, was still under Kerdin in a temporary dwelling. And you remember, according to Psalm, he said, I will not allow my eyes to close. I will not allow myself to go to sleep until I will find a place for God, an habitation for God. That is David's heart. Other people may say they have done much for the Lord. The Lord was forgotten, the ark was forgotten, and now it was in its rightful place. What more could I do? But not with David. Because David's service unto the Lord is not a matter of duty. It is a matter of life. You know, brothers and sisters, sometimes we do serve the Lord. But sometimes our service is motivated by duty. We feel there is something that we must do. Being a Christian, being one who belongs to the Lord, there are certain things that we have to do. Now, if we do not do these things, we haven't done our duties. How often our service to the Lord is a matter of duty. So far as duty is concerned, probably David could say, I have done my duty. David's service unto the Lord was motivated by love. And because it was motivated by love, he couldn't rest until he did everything he could to satisfy God. Until he did what God really wanted. But dear brothers and sisters, you know one thing. God had never asked for a house. But David had this desire to build God a house. And he told Nathan about it. And Nathan said, go ahead and build it, because the Lord is with you. You know, when the Lord is with you, you have certain liberty. But the word of the Lord came to Nathan and said, go and tell my servant David, you say you want to build a house for me. I have never asked for it. All these years, I have traveled with the children of Israel through the wilderness and even in the promised land, from one place to another. I have never asked anyone. I have never asked any judge, any leader, to build me a house. I have never said it. I have never required it. And yet you want to build a house for me. Does it mean that God did not want it? If we read behind the words, we know that God really desired for a house. But somehow He never did. As if He was waiting for someone who could understand His heart so perfectly to do it, and offer to do it for Him. And God was wondering if sometimes such thing happens to you. Probably there is someone whom you love very much and who loves you very much. Do you think you will tell that person everything you want? If you tell that person everything you want, and even if he will do everything that you have said, he is only doing what you tell him. But if you really love that person and that person really loves you, oftentimes the thing that you really want, you never say it. You don't need to. You don't want to make it as a matter of duty. You want that person who loves you and knows you so well that he will volunteer to give it to you. And when he does volunteer to give it to you, it touches you. Isn't that something sometimes in our human relationship, you will have such thing like this? Here was something that God wanted above all things. He wanted to dwell among His people permanently. But He never came out. He never came out and asked anybody to build a house for Him. He said He never did. Not even to David. He was waiting and waiting until someone like David, who knew God so well, who knew His heart so well, that would take the initiative as it were and say, now Lord, I'm going to build a house for You. We often say in spiritual things you cannot take the initiative. In spiritual things there is no liberty for man to do what he likes. For instance, in the building of the tabernacle, God did not give Moses any leeway. God told Moses just everything concerning the tabernacle and did not allow him to change a bit. So we often say in spiritual things man could not take initiative. Man could not just do whatever they think is good for God. In spiritual things you need to wait upon the Lord. You need to know what God wants. You need to do everything according to His specification. Brothers and sisters, this is true. Very true. And yet, very subtle. According to God's purpose, surely God desired to have a house, but according to experience. God did not come out and say it, but somehow God will so work in a life until that life understands God perfectly and volunteers. As if He takes the initiative, but actually He is just doing what He knows He is doing. So there is no contradiction. It is still according to His purpose. But this purpose is to be known by a life. And when this purpose is known, you offer to Him. You do not wait until God says. Why? Because behind everything is this matter. Brothers and sisters, He wants to make His people, He wants to rest among His people permanently. Not just as a guest. But this is something that we have to, as it were, guess. Actually there is no guessing. Because you know Him so intimately, you know what His heart is. And when you know it, it is for you to volunteer. It is for you to take the initiative as if you are suggesting to God, but you are suggesting to God only what He has revealed. This is the same principle in prayer. In prayer. How do we pray? Sometimes it is as if we are taking the initiative. We are asking God for something. We are praying for something. But true prayer is you first receive from His heart. You know Him so well. You know that is His will. And you just pray for His desire. But it is you who are praying. So dear brothers and sisters, in our love towards the Lord. This is something that we need to know the Lord's will. This is something that we need to voluntarily and not something that must be told definitely. Here you find it. God did not tell him to build a house for God. But he volunteered to build it. Now, think of the children of Israel. When they came back from Babylon there is captivity as you know. In Assyria. And in Hadea. When the remnant came back to Jerusalem to rebuild a house, there was a command. God commanded through King Cyrus that anyone of his people that were in captivity wanted to go back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple of God may do so. But unfortunately, only a remnant of the Jewish people returned. Most people remained in captivity. There was a command from God but they didn't. But those who did obey, they came back. But when they started to build the temple they met with opposition. So they stopped the work. For about 14 years. And during those 14 years, you know what they did? Instead of building the house of God they were all building their own houses. So finally God said, the prophet Hadea to them and said, you say this is not the time to build the house of God. You do not give up building the house of God but you just say this is not the time to build the house of God. It is time for you. Is it for you to live in your houses with ceilings and the house of God in ruin? Examine yourself. You sow much but you reap a little. You eat a lot but you're still hungry. You drink a lot but you're still thirsty. You close yourself but you don't get the water. You earn your wages but your wages are as if it were put in a bag with holes. Because you put your house first and God's house. With David God did not even need to command him and he would offer to build God a house. But with the remnant that returned from Babylon they were commanded to build the house of God and yet they said it wasn't the time. It wasn't the time. Oh brothers and sisters we need to be exercise. Is this the time that we build our own houses and let the house of God lies in ruin when David offered to build God a house? God said I am deeply touched but you are not going to build it. Wait a minute. Let me build your house first. You cannot overcome God. When David wanted to build God a house God said wait a minute. Let me build your house first and after I have built your house then your house is able to build my house. This is a principle in the Bible. If we put God first he would build us up in order that we may build for God. But if we put ourselves first if we put our house first and the house of God so how we meet as the chorus we sing he first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added. Are we here to build our house? Are we here to put ourselves first and whatever is left are we here living for God? Are we here living to build the house of God, his church that God may find rest, satisfying among his people? Oh brothers and sisters if we seek to satisfy God's house first God's house first we will be satisfied. If we don't no matter how much effort we put for ourselves there is always an emptiness unfulfilled there is always something missing. You will never be fulfilled. Never be fulfilled. His house first and the result was God built it. God gave him a son Solomon. God put his son Solomon on the throne. God established his kingdom and by that after David offered to build God's house and God said wait you are not to do it but your son is to do it. Now probably if we are in that position what we will do so what else can I do? I will just sit back and enjoy myself. Even though he was rejected as it were by God to build the house himself for the building. He was not allowed to build it because he was a man of war. He shed too much blood. But he prepared. He did not just say well since God did not want me to build it all right I will leave it to my son to do it. He prepared all the materials that were needed for the building of the house. He said my son Solomon is young and tender therefore I must prepare. I must make everything ready for the house. And how did he prepare? He said in my affliction in my affliction I have prepared a hundred thousand talons of gold a thousand thousand talons rare than iron innumerable. Think of it. He said in my affliction not in my peaceful days. David was a man of war. He fought many battles. He went through many afflictions. He was opposed by many enemies. But in his many fightings in his many battles in his afflictions oh he prepared such an abundance of every time he was afflicted every time he went to war every time that God was with him and he overcame the enemy he got the spoils. Did he take the spoils for himself? The best of the spoils for we are God. We are not only to build God's house but we are the material for the building. We are as living stones being built up together into a spirit house out of the spoils of our battles. Set apart after we have believed in the Lord. If we have a heart do not think that because you have a heart for the Lord therefore the Lord will give you smooth, easy because you love the Lord you will go through many testings. You will go through many trials. You will go through many temptations. You will go through many conflicts. You will go through many afflictions as it were. A Christian life is not an easy life. It is a life of conflict. How our flesh will be in conflict with the spirit. How the world will be in conflict with us. How the enemy of God will try to tempt us and lead us astray. You find that a Christian life is like a war. Like a warfare. In affliction. Much affliction. And sometimes you wonder why God allows... Why doesn't God give you a very peaceful, restful, smooth, easy life? Why is it that God allows all these circumstances, all these trials, all these conflicts to come to your way? Why? You wonder why. Is it because God does not love you? We will say He loves us. He will protect us. He will shield us from all these things. We are put into much affliction because without affliction there will not be sorrow. And if there is no spoil, there is no material for the building of Christ. It is through these trials and testings and temptations and conflicts that we learn Christ. These are the spoils and with what we have gathered by overcoming our enemies. These are the materials for the building. Some people do not have much material for the building of God's house. This is the cause. In other words, if your life is defeated, you don't have the spoil. Then you have nothing for building the house of God. But every time, by the grace of God, you win a victory. Remember, whatever is left is your spoil. And that is the very thing that David in his affliction gathered. A hundred thousand gold. Tons of gold. You cannot imagine the amount. A thousand thousand tons of silver. Brad's an eye of innumerable. And out of his afflictions he got all these things. Wars after wars, wars after wars, much spoil for the Lord. Brothers and sisters, do not be discouraged. If you are in trial, just look up to the Lord and out of the trials will come for spoil for the Lord. That is the way to gather material, what you learn of the Lord, what you learn of your son, what you learn of the enemy, what experience you have, what you learn of the Word of God. These are the things that really often David said. Not only out of my affliction I prepare these. But he said, out of my affection. There is not only the affliction, but there is the affection too. There is not only the spoil out of battle, but there are the goods that he accumulated during peaceful days. So he said, out of my affection for the house of God I have taken out of my own possessions, my own property, my own possessions, I have taken out of my own possessions three thousand talents of gold of Ophir. That is the best gold. And seven thousand refined silver. Not just silver, but refined silver. Over and above all that I have done. You know, our life is not all battles. If our life is all battles, we will be exhausted. God knows. God knows. You will go through a time of battle and go again. And then a time of fighting, and then a time of peace. So you find God knows how to lead us. And when you are in battle, you gather spoil for the Lord. When you are at rest, you accumulate possessions for the Lord. In your quiet time. In your personal life with the Lord, communion with the Lord. In the quiet and peaceful days, you learn of Him. And what you learn of Him, all of it, gold of Ophir and refined. And this you can offer to the Lord. I have done, I have prepared all things. Now David being a king, he had lots of power. In other words, he could do a lot. And that's the reason why you find such a large amount of materials he prepared. Because he said, according to my power. He was not just doing a little for the Lord. No. He did all at his power. Karmasta. You remember what? When Aurora was sitting at the table, she came to the Lord. She broke the alabaster glass. And Judah, who loved money very much, he became displeased. And he said, why this waste? This pound of lard could be sold for thirty pieces of silver. Why not sell it? And if you really want to do something, you sell it and give to the poor. Why waste it upon the Lord? And you remember what? She had done all she could. She had only a pound of pure lard. That's all she had. That's all she could do. And she did it all. It is not in the land. It is the Lord. One day, you remember, our Lord was standing by the offering boxes in the court of the women. And people came in to offer, you know. And probably because the Lord was standing there, some people would lift their money high up so it would drop down and make a bigger noise. And probably wanted the Lord to see how much they had offered. The Lord said, Until a widow. She was so ashamed of herself because she had so little. It's more than all. Nothing. Brothers and sisters, have we done? The Lord does not require that. And then, not just for that. But in our lives. Why? Because. So brothers and sisters, hear the second thing. Prepare. Let's prepare the material for the building of God's house. In time of peace. And in time of peace. When we are in communion with the Lord, in quiet. Or when we are in battle with the enemy. Let's prepare the materials. Lots of them. Then, third thing. David not only had the desire to build God's house. He had not only prepared such an abundance of material for the building of God's house. He also gave the pattern. If he had the desire. If he prepared the material. And he did not have the pattern. Everything problems. His desire may be, might be misplaced. His material will be misused. And when something is built, it was not God's pattern. And God did not by rest it. So everything will end up in waste. But thank God. David said, God showed me the pattern. And all the things that are connected with the house. And God showed me by His Spirit. Now I don't know how did David receive all this. I wonder if in this particular case, David was more addressed. Then, you know an architect has the design, has thus, has the thought, the concept. But probably a draftsman is to put the architect's concept into drawing. The concept is God, not David. Then God showed David and David just as a draftsman draw it. Put it down. Put it down. All the specifications. And with that, Solomon was able to build a coin. Brothers and sisters, we need to have a design. We need to prepare materials for the building. Where can we find the pattern of the house of God today? It is all. In the Word of God, we have them. And by His Spirit, we will be led. I want to emphasize, number one, we find all the divine principles concerning the house of God. We are not to invent any principles by which the church of God is to be built. Unfortunately, there are many who think they are clever enough to invent all the principles governing the house of God. But how do you apply? You know, there is a problem. Some people, they do not read the Word. They do not keep the Word of God. They do not try to go to the Word to find out the principles, divine principles. They just say, we love the Lord. We are guided by the Spirit. As our spirit moves, we will just go and do it. But remember, the Holy Spirit cannot be wrong, but you may be wrong. The Holy Spirit cannot be wrong, but your spirit may be wrong. And what if you are wrong? You misunderstand this one extreme. And there is another extreme. Some people say, Go to the law and to the testimony. Give me the verse, and I'll do it. All right? You get the verse. But that's the letter. The letter kills. The letter kills. You got the letter, and you're trying to do it. Remember, the Word of God is the sword of God. If you take the Word of God and you use it as your sword, you'll cut people into pieces. The Word of God must be handled by the Spirit of God. Therefore, all the divine principles in the Bible must be applied by the Spirit of God. We have these principles, but how are these principles to be applied? Let the Spirit of God apply it. And then you will find everything is living and real. It is not just that letter. You may be very orthodox, you may be very scriptural, but it's there. It kills. Not in any sense despite the principles, divine principles. And brothers and sisters, if we are careful, if we wait upon, if we are given an understanding of these principles, and if we learn to be led by the Spirit of God, He will apply it. So dear brothers and sisters, and may the Lord, if you really love Him, is it not, this is the law, there is no compulsion, no force, not just that letter. If you really love God, you want to know Him, then you will say, Lord, oh, how necessary it is that every day we are prepared for the building by His Spirit, that when it is built, it may be according to Him. And that's the way they do constrain us, field us, with our love. That we may not be removed from the first love. Lord, we do not want our relationship with Him on the basis of duty. We want our relationship with Him. Oh Lord, give us understanding so stern as that we may desire to give to Him. Lord, do not allow us to do this just with emptiness. But teach us how to prepare out of affliction. Do reveal to us, my brethren, by my Spirit. Deliver us from just the letters. May we have the letter that everything may be done to thy heart's satisfaction.