Zechariah 6:13

He will rebuild the LORD'S temple and receive royal honor. He will sit and rule from his throne. He will be a priest on his throne.

Christ himself is the builder of his spiritual temple, and he has built it on the mountains of his unchangeable affection, his omnipotent grace, and his infallible truthfulness. But as it was in Solomon's temple, so it is here; the materials need to be ready. There are the "Cedars of Lebanon," but they are not ready for the building; they are not cut down, and shaped, and made into those planks of cedar, whose fragrant beauty shall perfume the courts of the Lord's house in Paradise. There are also the rough stones still in the quarry, they must be chiseled, and squared. All of this is Christ's work in us. Each individual believer is being prepared, polished, and made ready for his place in the temple; but Christ's own hand performs the preparation-work. Afflictions cannot sanctify, unless they are used by him to make us holy. Our prayers and efforts cannot make us ready for heaven, apart from the hand of Jesus, who rebuilds us to correct our hearts.

As in the building of Solomon's temple, "there was neither hammer, nor axe, nor any tool of iron, heard in the house," because all the materials were made perfectly ready before being brought to the exact spot it was to occupy. So is it with the heavenly temple which Jesus builds; the making ready is all done on earth. When we reach heaven, there will be no sanctifying us there, no squaring us with trials, no planing us with suffering. No, we must be made holy here, all that work Christ will do beforehand; and when he has done it, we shall be ferried by a loving hand across the stream of death, and brought to the heavenly Jerusalem, to stay as eternal pillars in the temple of our Lord.

• "Beneath his eye and care,
• The edifice shall rise,
• Majestic, strong, and fair,
• And shine above the skies."