In this sermon, the speaker shares a powerful analogy of a dying bee that was revived by being given sugar water. He relates this to the spiritual hunger and thirst that people have, and how it is our responsibility to provide them with the living water of God's word. The speaker expresses a deep desire for his own life to be a source of strength and nourishment for those who are seeking and dying spiritually. He challenges himself and the listeners to examine whether they are truly able to provide answers and strength to those who come seeking the truth.

Lord Jesus, in everything, we want your will to be done. We'd hate to do something which is contrary to thy will. But we'd like to stay in the center of thy will. And that thou mightest be able to glorify thyself. In these weeks, I have been much exercised by the temple of God. Because we so easily think of that beautiful temple which was built in Jerusalem. The temple which King Solomon built. But the architect of that temple was David. And if it would have gone according to David, he would have built it. But that wasn't the will of the Lord. God wanted his son to build the temple. And we all know out of God's word that the temple of the Old Testament has only been a symbol of that what God intended with the temple. But we can learn so much out of the Old Testament concerning the temple and apply it to your and my life. Because in 2 Corinthians 6 verse 16 we read, for you are the temple of the living God. You and I are the temple of the living God. And God says, I will dwell in them and walk amongst them. What a privilege that you and I can be the temple, the dwelling place of the living God. And he says, I will dwell in them and walk amongst them. That's where he is and that's where he is this morning. That's where he is supposed to be in all the congregations over the whole world. And if we read on, we read, I will be their God and they shall be my people. And that is my desire for all of us, that we might truly be the temple of God, the dwelling place of him. And I think that's what we are busy with, each and every one of us, in building the temple of God. Which exerts much, much time and dedication. If we read in the Old Testament, for how many years David planned the temple of God. That was his wish, that was his longing, to build a place where God could live. And I think that is so important that we are busy with that as well. But before we continue, I'd like to read our text out of Psalm 36 verses 7 and 8. How precious is your loving kindness, O God. Therefore the children of men, put their trust under the shadow of your wings. They are abundantly satisfied with the fullness of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your pleasures. Therefore the children of men, put their trust under the shadow of your wings. We read this fast. They are abundantly satisfied with the fullness of your house. You know when I read this, I had to ask myself the question, is that true in my life? That the children of men may be fully satisfied with the fullness of my life. No wonder that Paul said, not that I've attained it yet, but I run. That is my goal, that I might attain it. And that is my desire, my prayer, that we might attain that fullness of the house of God. That we might reach that place where God may be fully satisfied, that he will dwell in us and have full sufficiency, and not only him, but also the children of men. Therefore the children of men, put their trust under the shadow of your wings. If they see the fullness of Christ in you, If they see the fullness of the house of God in your life, in my life, the children of men will put their trust under the shadow of your wings. And that is so important to us Christians, that the people who watch, who test, who prove our lives, that they might see the fullness of the temple of God in us. When the Queen of Sheba heard about the glory of the temple of God, When she heard about, I think I'll read it to you in 1 Kings chapter 10, we read this, When the Queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, She came to test with hard questions. You see there are many, many people who are seeking the truth. There are many people who know that you and I have surrendered our lives to God. They know that we are Christians, or we profess to be Christians. And there are many people who seek. There are many people who want the truth, and who run to find the truth. And they come to test. They come with questions. And I asked myself, I wonder when people come to me, when people come to you, will their questions be answered? Will you stand the test when they test you? You know it's easy to say I'm following the Lord. It's easy to say I'm a disciple of the Lord Jesus. But it becomes difficult or different when people come to test and to prove you. When they come, they will try everything in their power to make you waver. To make you unsure. And if they ask direct questions to you, then all of a sudden you become unsure of yourself. And they start questioning your personal life. We find so many people becoming unsure. But the Queen of Sheba came, and she tested Solomon with hard questions. And she watched him. She kept a strict eye on him. But all her questions were answered. There was nothing too difficult for the King to answer or to explain to her. And I thought of myself and I thought of you. I wonder when people like the Queen of Sheba come to test, to prove, to receive answers, whether we can fully satisfy them. There was nothing too difficult for the King to answer this Queen. He could even explain things to her. Oh, back to our text where she saw the fullness of God in him. And the end was that she said, your wisdom and prosperity exceeds the fame of which I heard. It was far greater, far more wonderful than what I had expected. The abundance, satisfied with the fullness of your house, satisfied the Queen fully. And he could give her drink from the river of his pleasure. And that is what God expects from you and from me, that we, that our lives are filled with that life, with that godly life. Where there is nothing in our lives which in any way will bring dishonor to the living God. That our whole life will be, the goal of our life will be, oh God, that thou mightest be able to glorify thyself. That I can forget myself and everything that pertains to myself, that there is only one important thing in my life, Oh God, that I might be the temple where you dwell in and where men will come and partake of that living water. And that is so important to me. I don't know whether it's important to you. But oh, this longing which David had in his heart, to build the temple of God. That was his desire. And although God had told him, no David, you won't build it, it will be your son. It didn't stop David to pursue and to be the architect of that temple. If we read in the Old Testament, that was David's goal, that was David's life. He had one longing, one desire, that that temple of God, that the place where God could live, where he could dwell, should be accomplished. That everybody who came into that temple should experience the presence of God. And that is my cry, and that should be your cry, that when we come together, when the temple of God is in action, that those that don't know God, that they will experience the presence of God in your congregation. That they will experience the presence of God in your family, in your marriage. Is that what your children experience when they are together, when you are together as a family, that they will experience the presence of God? And that was the desire of King David. He said, oh, I long to build a place where God can dwell, where he can live. And he even went that far and he said, this work is so great that this young man, my son Solomon, he can't build it on his own. I've got to help him. And in 1 Chronicles 29 we read that David said, my son Solomon, whom alone God has chosen, is young and inexperienced. And the work is great because the temple is not for men, but for the Lord God. And that is something amazing to me. Although David knew that he won't build the temple, we read in verse 2, For the house of the Lord I have prepared with all my might. I have set my affection on the house of my Lord. You know, when I read these words, I just thought, oh David, we who are living in the New Testament, how much more should we do that for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ? That that is our life, with all our might, with all our affection, That our whole life is centered around Jesus Christ. That he might have his throne in his temple. That he may reign as God in our lives. That he may reign as God in our families. That he may reign as God in our congregation, in our church, and amongst all the Christians. This man, he did it fervently with all his might, with all his affection. He willingly offered, he gave silver, gold, and what not all King David gave, that the temple of God should be built. That he had only one desire, that that place, that temple should be built where he lives, and that where people can come, and where they can come to rest under his wings. And friends, I can't be satisfied with anything less than that. That is my cry, that is my longing, that is my desire, that my life may be such. But it will cost something. We'll have to be able to put many, many things onto the altar. There will be many things which will cut across our thinking, our wishes, which we'll have to put onto the altar. And if we look at our lives, how important is what we think, what we want, and what we know. Oh, we've got so many preconceived ideas. We know exactly what to do and what not to do. And nobody is allowed to come and cross our way of thinking and our intentions. But David said, I've only got one longing, one desire, that the temple may be built, that God may be able to find a dwelling place in my life. And that is important, dear friends, when we are able to reach that point in our lives, where it doesn't go according to the way we think, the way we want, but that we have only one desire, oh, that that temple may be built where God can dwell in. And how often must I find that in my life it becomes increasingly difficult to build the temple of God. Because so often it goes against my experiences. It goes against the way I think. It goes against my tradition. It goes against that which I think is right. And to me it seems the closer, the closer we get to the end, the more difficult it gets. Because this knowledge of ours, these experiences out of the past are constantly in the way of the ways of the living God. And may God grant that in everything, whatever we do, that the first question is, Lord, what do you say? What do you want me to do? That is important. And that is my cry, that I might be there all the time, that Christ's will may be done in my life. And that I may feel at home and seek the fellowship of the godly people of the saints. There is nothing more precious than to be in the presence of God's children. I don't know how people can stay away from the gathering of his people. I know many Christians that have no desire to be with other Christians. They live their own lives. They do according to the way God leads them. They don't need the fellowship of his people. They don't need the fellowship of the church. That should be the most precious thing for each and every one of us, to be in the assembly of his children. To be in the assembly of God. To be there where God dwells. To be there where God reveals himself. There where God glorifies himself. And that was the desire of David. He said, oh we need a temple where God dwells. We need a congregation where God dwells. That when I come to that congregation or to that church, I will enter the presence of God. And I will see and I will hear things which I don't hear anywhere else. Where God will be able to reveal himself to me. Where God will be able to speak to me. Where God is going to attain his purpose with you and me. And friends, that is so important. I can't do without the fellowship of his people. And wherever God's people meet, I am in the presence of the living God. Wherever the saints meet, I feel at home. I can be blessed. I can be enriched. I can gain new strength. What does it say, what did we read? That's where we will drink from the river of his pleasures. And that is my desire. That not only in the congregation, but that in my home. And that my children and children's children will be able to drink from that river. And all those that come and visit may drink of that river. That will be strengthened. I heard something very interesting from Gerhard Rudeth this morning. He said he was at home in his apartment. And then he saw a bee. And this bee was dying. It couldn't move properly anymore. And then he said, well, I'm going to feed this bee. And then he went and he took sugar. Took a bit of water. And he gave this bee sugar water to drink. And he said this bee was virtually dead. And he explained to me and he said this little bee started licking, lapping the water. And it didn't take long, life came back into this bee. And all of a sudden that bee started flying around. And he opened the window and the bee flew out. As if nothing had happened. This little bee was dying because it didn't have anything to eat. And most probably a few more minutes this bee would have died. And I just said to myself, I said, oh God, may my life be that. May the dying people, those that are seeking, those that are dying of spiritual hunger, when they come and they drink of that which I give them, they may be strengthened with new strength, with new vigor. And this bee flew out and flew to the next flower to gain and to get nectar again. And this bee could produce honey again. Is that your life? Tell me, is that what happens when people who are dying, when people who have lost all hope, when they come and they drink of that water, they receive new strength. I can't be satisfied with anything less. And I cried and I said, oh God, how many people have died already. How many bees have died already because of lack of water. How many bees have come to me. I'm talking about the two-legged ones. How many have I been able to give of that living water. That that bee can fly out, go to the next flower and receive and eat nectar and produce honey again. Let us pray. Lord, thou dost see our hearts right now. Thou seest all those that have a longing, that have a desire to build their temple. To be the dwelling place of the Most High. That all those that have contact with me may enjoy that living water. That they might receive new strength. New vigor. To go out and produce honey again. That others might benefit by it. Lord, when I look at myself, is that my life? Is that the fruit which I bear? Is that what people receive from me? New life. New vigor. New determination. To go through and be faithful to thee right to the end. As I just say, oh I long to dwell in the place of the Lord forevermore. That's where I want to stay. That's where I want to be. There where thou art Lord and God. Where thou hast the say in our lives. We worship thee Lord Jesus. That thou hast made that possible for us. And that can be our portion. That that can be our life. Thou hast accomplished that for each and every one of us. Oh wouldest thou accomplish that as well in our lives. That we might be thy dwelling place. Where thou art Lord and King. Where thou hast the say. Where we obey thy command. And do thy will. Oh we thank thee for it Lord Jesus. Grant us an obedient heart. A willing heart. To submit to thee. And allow thee to glorify thyself. And as we part may thy blessing rest upon us. May thy grace never stop working in our lives. Until thou hast glorified thyself.