Ministry Team 2026-08
With the demolition of the old building, the construction of our entire Bethel Hall has entered a new milestone. Beyond giving thanks for the smooth demolition, we want to experience together what God is building in our lives and church. “A time to tear down, and a time to build up” (Ecclesiastes 3:3). God’s tearing down is actually for the purpose of building up—and He is the One who both tears down and builds up.
Much of what people build in this world is for personal needs or for the needs of this present life. But God’s building is for the purpose of making us His dwelling place.When Solomon dedicated the temple, he prayed: “But will God indeed dwell with man on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, how much less this house that I have built!” (2 Chronicles 6:18)The God who created the heavens and the earth was actually willing to dwell in a temple built by human hands. What amazing grace!”For the LORD has chosen Zion; he has desired it for his dwelling place: ‘This is my resting place forever; here I will dwell, for I have desired it.’”(Psalm 132:13–14)“Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? … For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.”(1 Corinthians 3:16–17) God’s temple is not merely an outward building. We are God’s temple. If we truly realize that the almighty God is actually dwelling among us, how could we not worship and fear Him? We should not merely understand this as a matter of knowledge. We need to ask the Holy Spirit to bring us into this reality—to truly respect God as God. When we believe this with our whole heart, we will be filled within by His glory!
In spiritual building, you and I are the building materials. Therefore, both the materials and the process of building must be in Christ, in the new creation, and according to the pattern shown on the mountain. We are filled with the flesh and with self. For us to become a dwelling place filled with God’s glory, displaying His glory, and giving God a place of rest, we must first go through a process of being torn down.
“And I have appointed you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.” (Jeremiah 1:10) Although God’s tearing down of our falsehood, selfishness, lies, and corruption may take a lifetime, the good news is that God’s building can actually happen very quickly. Christ has accomplished salvation so completely. When we are willing to repent and receive Jesus, accepting Christ as our substitute, the Holy Spirit begins to work in us. When God tears things down in us, many times we do not like it, and it can be painful. But He knows the deadly wounds within us—things that could hurt and enslave us for the rest of our lives. Therefore, He must tear them down so that He can build something better within us. ” A time to tear down, and a time to build up … He has made everything beautiful in its time. “(Ecclesiastes 3:3, 11) Although there is tearing down, it will surely lead to building up. Although there is emptying, it will surely lead to His fullness. Although He calls us to deny ourselves, He replaces our self with Christ. Therefore, no matter what kind of suffering our brothers and sisters may be going through, do not lose heart! He has promised to be with us forever, and He has promised to love us with an everlasting love.
Today, many churches face two great challenges: spiritual inheritance and raising the next generation. The generation growing up today is facing unprecedented technological advancement and abundant material comforts, while at the same time confronting unprecedented confusion and moral decline in society. What they need is not simply better things. What they need is to be built up by God and to establish a genuine, firsthand relationship with Him. Yet how many children are continually being corrupted and shaped by the ruler of this world through the internet, rather than being shaped by their parents and the church according to the truth? We need to gain more of Christ, and we also need to pass on more of Christ. This is why we began the Seth Program, and it is also one of the most important purposes of building our new Bethel Hall. However, our current Conditional Use Permit (CUP) does not yet allow children to attend classes on weekdays. This is a spiritual battle that we must face! We need to rise up in prayer, asking God to remove every human restriction on our use of this property, so that this place may be fully returned into God’s hands!
Although building the new Bethel Hall requires us to pay a price, God is simultaneously building us. May this house be filled with the glory of God, so that people may encounter Him here and be saved; may people and our future generations serve God here, continually receiving His grace and blessing. May the latter glory of this house be greater than the former!
(Excerpted from Brother Yu’s sermon on July 12, 2026)