SAPPHIRE FAMILY CHURCH

THE CHURCH IS CALLED TO BE A HABITATION OF GOD
BUILT ON A FOUNDATION OF SAPPHIRE

Eph 2:19-22 declares that: “Now therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in Whom the whole building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in Whom you also are being built together for a habitation of God in the Spirit.” A description of the Church, which is destined to be the eternal dwelling place of God, is found in Isaiah 54:11 where speaking of the Church as a building, the word says: “O you afflicted one, tossed with tempest and not comforted, behold I will lay your stones with colorful gems, and lay your foundations with sapphires.”


SAPPHIRE REPRESENTS GOD'S NATURE

The following is reprinted with permission from Rick Joyner’s The Morning Star Journal:
Written by Bob Jones with Keith Davis

“The sapphire represents the Lord's Divine Nature and His Holy Character as seen in Exodus 24:10, Ezekiel 1:26, 10:1 and Revelation 21:19. In both Exodus and Ezekiel we find descriptions of sapphire under the Lord's feet, which signifies that the very foundation of all that the Lord does is built upon His Divine Nature and Holy Character. “It is the heritage of the Saints of God to receive the sure mercies of David (Isaiah 55:3, Acts 13:34), including protection from our enemies (Isaiah 54:17), the potential to become joint heirs (Romans 8:17), and the opportunity to become the habitation of God (Ephesians 2:22). This heritage was confirmed to David by the Spirit of Holiness (Psalm 89:34-36), which was also intended to advance holiness in the hearts of those who would believe. From this we see in Isaiah 54:11 the basic foundation of the house, represented by the sapphire, as the Divine Nature and Holy Character of God. It is only upon this foundation that successful Christian living or ministry can result.”


SAPPHIRE IS RECORDED 12 TIMES IN THE BIBLE

•Exodus 24:10: "And they saw the God of Israel, and there was under His feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone, and it was like the very heavens in its clarity." (Moses and the 70 elders)

•Exodus 28:18: "The second row shall be a turquoise, a sapphire, and a diamond." (On the ephod of Aaron, the High Priest)

•Exodus 39:11: "The second row, a turquoise, a sapphire, and a diamond." (Same as above)

•Job 28:5-7: "As for the earth, from it comes bread, but underneath it is turned up as by fire; its stones are the source of sapphires, and it contains gold dust."

•Job 28:12-16: "But where can wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding? Man does not know its value, nor is it found in the land of the living. 'The deep says it is not in me'; and the sea says, 'it is not with me.' It cannot be purchased for gold, nor can silver be weighed for its price. It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire." (Speaking of wisdom)

•Song Of Solomon 5:14: "His hands are rods of gold set with beryl. His body is carved with ivory inlaid with sapphires." (My Beloved)

•Isaiah 54:11: "O you afflicted one, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold I will lay your stones with colorful gems, and lay our foundations with sapphires." (Speaking of the Church)

•Lamentations 4:7: "Her Nazirites were brighter than snow and whiter than milk; they were more ruddy in body than rubies, like sapphire in their appearance."

•Ezekiel 1:26: "And above the firmament over their heads was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like a sapphire stone; on the likeness of the throne was a likeness with the appearance of a man high above it." (The prophet's heavenly vision)

•Ezekiel 10:1: "And I looked, and there in the firmament that was above the head of the cherubim, there appeared something like a sapphire stone, having the appearance of the likeness of a throne."

•Ezekiel 28:13: "You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering; the sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold. The workmanship of your timbrels and pipes was prepared for you on the day you were created." (Lucifer)

•Revelation 21:19: "And the foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones: the first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald." (New Jerusalem)


SAPPHIRE IN THE NATURAL

The Sapphire is a transparent gem, a variety of the mineral corundum. The best-known variety of sapphires has blue tints but sapphires exist in all the colors of the rainbow. The sapphire is second only to the diamond in hardness. For this reason the stone is often used as an abrasive or polishing agent. As the sapphire stone is used in the natural for polishing, Tom and Phyllis understood that Jesus Christ desires to use this work to polish His Bride into a reflection of His divine nature and holy character, so as to be equipped to give unprecedented witness to the world, and be ready to meet its Bridegroom. An emphasis on Godliness and full participation in the work of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ on earth would be made to fulfill this purpose.