The day of Pentecost marked the beginning of "The Church Age". It was the beginning of the church of Christ universal. On that very first day in Jerusalem, the Holy Spirit, drew over three thousand people to come believe in Jesus Christ; Acts 2:40. Since the very beginning of "The Church" God has been adding to its number on an daily-hourly basis. All those who receive the truth that Jesus died, he was buried and He came back to life were added to this growing number of souls.
Listen to the words of Revelation 19:6-8: "And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thundering, saying "Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns! Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready." And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints."
What a glorious day that will be! It will however be a "Mega Church". So all of us who have been bashing the mega churches better get use to the idea!. Do you realize this is going to be an extremely large gathering of saints? All the saints from the very beginning of the church for the past two thousand plus years will be there on that day. What a feast that will be. In fact this is the day that Jesus spoke of on the night of the "Last Supper". When He took the cup, full of fermented wine, took a drink and said "This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you." Luke 22:17-20.
But we are not there yet so as Christians here on earth we can get really prideful filling ourselves with self righteousness. I heard somewhere of a couple who had objected to a guest speaker mentioning the name of Joel Osteen during his sermon. This couple who after hearing the name of Joel Osteen from the church's pulpit figured it was an endorsement of the popular Texas Pastor. The young pair,I was told, had a full blown Fukushima melt down. The wife practically threw herself to the ground, fists pounding away, demonstrating a child-like tantrum. They insisted that the guest speaker be reprimanded by the senior pastor. Now ask yourself "What is wrong with this picture?". As Christians we can choose to fill our cups with the fruit of the Spirit or the deeds of the flesh. Many of us fill our cups with self righteousness instead of humility. We wield our swords of correctness like candy, toy Harry Potter wands purchased at the corner drug store. As mature Christians we should be able to agree to disagree on most issues. The gospel being the exception and doctrine we cant budge on.
Another area of concern is in the arena of our own ministries. For many this becomes our hallowed ground. Don't tread on me. I also heard somewhere of a worship leader who felt like the stage where they perform is their own sanctified holy ground ordained by God Himself. This leader actually enforced that by asking people and especially children who wandered carelessly up onto the stage to "Get Off!". I started off as a worship leader and through the years I have witnessed the abuse of power and have seen many a debacle. I think what gets my goat the most is when people sell their music and books in church from the pulpit. When this happens I look for an exit to see if Jesus will come storming in to over turn the tables.
Remember, being holy means being set apart for God's use. A vessel that God can fill with His Spirit. It means that we choose to live in a way that allows our cups to be filled by God and not with our own poisonous concoctions. The sign of a great leader is one who allows room for others to take his job if the Lord requires it.When God closes one door He opens another somewhere else.
Returning to my point about the Mega Church. As Christians some of us complain about everything. We complain about the size of a church, the worship team and the pastor. If a church is too small it cant be popular or healthy. If a church is too large then we say that their is no accountability and we just get lost in the crowd. Do you see a pattern forming here? We complain about everything. So did the Israelites. Read your bible about the exodus and their subsequent desert wanderings. So what ever church God leads you to, whether mega or minuscule, just be content and fill your cups with joy! Fill them to overflowing. One day, really soon, we will all be together with God drinking cups, filled with new wine, at our wedding celebration in heaven.
So we all have a choice to make. We can be jealous and envious about the Smiths and the Jones or just be content with our situations right where God plants us. Just occupy until Jesus returns for us. Being set apart for good works that He prepared in advance that we should walk in them.
Listen to the words of Revelation 19:6-8: "And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thundering, saying "Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns! Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready." And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints."
What a glorious day that will be! It will however be a "Mega Church". So all of us who have been bashing the mega churches better get use to the idea!. Do you realize this is going to be an extremely large gathering of saints? All the saints from the very beginning of the church for the past two thousand plus years will be there on that day. What a feast that will be. In fact this is the day that Jesus spoke of on the night of the "Last Supper". When He took the cup, full of fermented wine, took a drink and said "This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you." Luke 22:17-20.
But we are not there yet so as Christians here on earth we can get really prideful filling ourselves with self righteousness. I heard somewhere of a couple who had objected to a guest speaker mentioning the name of Joel Osteen during his sermon. This couple who after hearing the name of Joel Osteen from the church's pulpit figured it was an endorsement of the popular Texas Pastor. The young pair,I was told, had a full blown Fukushima melt down. The wife practically threw herself to the ground, fists pounding away, demonstrating a child-like tantrum. They insisted that the guest speaker be reprimanded by the senior pastor. Now ask yourself "What is wrong with this picture?". As Christians we can choose to fill our cups with the fruit of the Spirit or the deeds of the flesh. Many of us fill our cups with self righteousness instead of humility. We wield our swords of correctness like candy, toy Harry Potter wands purchased at the corner drug store. As mature Christians we should be able to agree to disagree on most issues. The gospel being the exception and doctrine we cant budge on.
Another area of concern is in the arena of our own ministries. For many this becomes our hallowed ground. Don't tread on me. I also heard somewhere of a worship leader who felt like the stage where they perform is their own sanctified holy ground ordained by God Himself. This leader actually enforced that by asking people and especially children who wandered carelessly up onto the stage to "Get Off!". I started off as a worship leader and through the years I have witnessed the abuse of power and have seen many a debacle. I think what gets my goat the most is when people sell their music and books in church from the pulpit. When this happens I look for an exit to see if Jesus will come storming in to over turn the tables.
Remember, being holy means being set apart for God's use. A vessel that God can fill with His Spirit. It means that we choose to live in a way that allows our cups to be filled by God and not with our own poisonous concoctions. The sign of a great leader is one who allows room for others to take his job if the Lord requires it.When God closes one door He opens another somewhere else.
Returning to my point about the Mega Church. As Christians some of us complain about everything. We complain about the size of a church, the worship team and the pastor. If a church is too small it cant be popular or healthy. If a church is too large then we say that their is no accountability and we just get lost in the crowd. Do you see a pattern forming here? We complain about everything. So did the Israelites. Read your bible about the exodus and their subsequent desert wanderings. So what ever church God leads you to, whether mega or minuscule, just be content and fill your cups with joy! Fill them to overflowing. One day, really soon, we will all be together with God drinking cups, filled with new wine, at our wedding celebration in heaven.
So we all have a choice to make. We can be jealous and envious about the Smiths and the Jones or just be content with our situations right where God plants us. Just occupy until Jesus returns for us. Being set apart for good works that He prepared in advance that we should walk in them.
No comments:
Post a Comment