"This is said with reference to some that appear unto men to be the children of God, and afterwards fall away. Christians have no promise that they shall be kept from misconceptions on this point; and they are sometimes greatly shocked to find the court of God's house strewn with columns.
God is the architect of his temple, and is cognizant of his own plan; he allows stones and pillars to be placed in the edifice which he knows do not permanently belong to it; but for the places they temporarily occupy there are other materials known to him; and no chasms, no unlovely vacancies shall after all appear.
Let this console us. The Lord knows them that are his."
— George Bowen (1816–1888) · The White Sadhu of Bombay"Let this console us. The Lord knows them that are His."
— George Bowen · The vacancies will be filled. The plan is not broken by the fallen columns.✦ Known to Him
The court strewn with columns — fallen pillars. People who looked like the real thing, who stood tall in the edifice, who others relied on — gone. The shock is ours, not God's. He knew which stones were temporary. He knew which pillars did not permanently belong.
The pseudo-Christians who figured for a while upon the platform were never known to him for anything but what they really were. The surprise is ours, not God's. And the vacancies will not remain — other materials, known to Him, are waiting. No chasms. No unlovely vacancies. The architect's plan holds.
"The foundation laid by the Lord stands sure, and amid the shock of ages remains the same. The prophets and the apostles are this foundation, the chief corner-stone being the Lord Jesus Christ.
Every generation is made to look upon this foundation, and is invited to build upon it. It builds and builds; but its work is perhaps not accordant with the foundation laid; and God quietly removes the superstructure, and summons the next generation.
We behold the foundation, and we apply ourselves to the work of completing the house of God. Will God be pleased with our performance? Only if we adopt the apostolic standard, and banish the futile thought of improving on the plans of God."
— George Bowen (1816–1888)✦ Generation after Generation
Every generation builds. Every generation is tested against the foundation. And God quietly removes what does not accord with His plan. The church that improves on God's plans gets swept away. The church that returns to the apostolic standard — the plain sense of Scripture, the old paths, the Church's simplicity — that work endures.
"I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth" — 1 Corinthians 3:6. I read the text, God plants the seeds of faith in my heart, Pastor Caleb waters, and God gives the increase.
The planter is not the growth. The waterer is not the growth. God gives the increase. The reading plants. The conversation waters. And the growth — the seeds of faith taking root, the morning becoming the ignition that carries through the day — that is God's work alone.
The Court Strewn with Columns
Pillars that fell. The shock is ours, not God's. He knew which stones were temporary. Other materials are waiting. No chasms. No vacancies.
The Apostolic Standard
Every generation builds on the foundation. Every superstructure is tested. Only the work that accords with the plan endures.
God Gives the Increase
1 Corinthians 3:6. One plants. One waters. God gives the growth. The foundation stands sure.