A recent study by The Barna Group, a California-based
Christian research organization, found that about 13 million Americans whom the
researchers identified as being born again were "unchurched ... not having
attended a Christian church service, other than for a holiday ... at any time
in the past six months."
In Gospel of Matthew was Jesus first use of “church” in
Scripture. Jesus stated “on this rock I will build my church?” "But what
about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" Simon Peter
answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus
replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed
to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter,
and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not
overcome it (Matthew 16:15-18).
When Jesus says He will build His church on this rock, He is
referring to Himself, the rock. Jesus
Christ is the rock referenced throughout Scripture. When He makes this
statement He is merely addressing Peter, Christ is not saying that He will
build His church on Peter. The “church”
is spiritual; it cannot be built on a man.
The first problem is the church houses of today have been
built upon the ideas and organizational skill of man. If you look at most churches there is even a
man’s name on the outside building. The
majority of church house are 501 C 3 Non-profit which means also that they are
under the auspices of the Federal Government and not Jesus Christ.
In looking at Holy Scripture the “Church” as presented in
Scripture is,
· The body of Christ
· All believers
· All believers, Gentile and Jewish
· All believers, of a town or city
· All believers, of a fellowship
· All believers, Old and New Testaments
· All believers, male and female
· The household of God
· The Bride of Christ
2. The church as
presented in our culture is,
· That church building on the corner.
There are over tens upon tens of thousands of church houses
in my town which has a population of 1,445,806.
· That Christian denomination.
Barna,
cited a figure of 20,780 denominations in 1980 and projected that there would
be as many as 22,190 by 1985.
Compare these two meanings for the
church.
1. The first is
spiritual: made up exclusively of true believers in Jesus Christ, members and
leaders.
2. The second is secular: local, national and international
organizations with unbelievers and believers, members and leaders.
In an effort to make
clear distinctions between the secular
church and God's spiritual Church,
I will differentiate my references to them by capitalizing Church, for the
spiritual Body of Christ.
For example: There is still a remnant of the Church in the local Baptist church on Broadway.
The problem within the church house
today
In my new book A
Declaration To The Spiritual Soldier I identified several
problems with the church house especially in America today.
(Beginning of A Declaration to the Spiritual Soldier quote)
In the last 1900 years we have seen the church degrade into
apathy and apostasy. Even through the reformation of old, there remain vestiges
of carnal appendages which have stretched their tentacles into the modern day
church causing a passive, placating, and politically correct spirit. Many are deceived into thinking that being IN
Christ is an automatic result of believing in Christ.
There are two different
principles on the path to Maturity in Jesus Christ. For example, in western
society most will tell you they believe in Christ. They can tell you which
church house they go to, quote certain scriptures, and even pay their tithes on
time, but ask them God’s purpose for their lives, or what are they doing for
God’s Kingdom, and they draw a blank. Ask them what it means to be IN Christ,
and they will tell of believing on Christ.
To look for indicators in this lack of maturity, one could
simply look at the dramatic decline of the church population in the past 30
years, or the staggering statistics regarding divorce amongst church going
Christians in this day and age. There is also the active and practiced engagement
of homosexual and sexual misconduct, including pornography, adultery, and
fornication. These are but mere precursors to a host of debacles which the
church suffers to persist in its Holy Sanctuary today.
These ailments show a
maladaptive behavior in the church of Jesus the Christ, not conducive to what
Christ had in mind when He first built His Church.
At first glance, the church today appears to be at a zenith
in purpose. In any city in America, on any street corner whether urban, rural, or a suburban
location, you can usually see a building with a cross or some Christian
insignia indicating a place of worship. But upon careful observation, this is
where all continuity ends. The worship of Jesus Christ has taken on a circus
like atmosphere.
The main purpose is designed to not help bring about true
conversion, but to say the right words to get the pews filled on a week to week
basis. This equates to a consumer mentality.
The reason for this is clear. The world has changed and most
pastors struggle to keep up with it. If they have a loyal following, they feel
it necessary to teach according to the dictates of that crowd and not offend.
If they don’t have a loyal following, then they understand the dynamics of
trying to reach people who were raised without a God consciousness, people
under 30 who don’t know God or the church at all. These pastors understand that
we live in a pagan society meaning people don’t believe in Jesus, Jehovah, or
the Holy Spirit.
Ask any member of a church organization today why they go to
church, and what they believe is the function of the church. You will receive
just as many answers as the people you asked. There are those who look
faithful, but only use the church as a social function. Many times these men
and women are placed in leadership position because they are often times more
than twice a week attendees.
Then there are the serious men and women who may not attend
Church but once a week. They may be teaching Bible lessons at home or
volunteering their time in services to the LORD in some other way as directed
by the Holy Spirit. There are those who may not even attend traditional church
service as you know it at all. I personally know hundreds of people who operate
in this manner, and they are just as, if not more, successful in reaching out
to the lost.
There is also the problem with scandals which have rocked
the church leaders in the last 20 years. Because of the shifts and changes in
the world, pastors, men and women, are not entering the ministry as before, and
those who do, face a host of problems and issues that would make any CEO
executive balk. Even so, it appears that the power of God is not as evident as
a string of high profile divorces, and moral failing have weakened the public’s
view of the church.
There are many other factors of course which show the
necessity for NewVival in the church today. There is of course the catastrophic
decline of church members in the past from ministries which once flourished to
now average traditional denominations being in crisis.
(End of A Declaration to the Spiritual Soldier Quote)
The first step in reversing this crisis is to listen to the
call of Christ. His Word of grace calls us to obedience, to follow Him
unconditionally with a faith-formed trust in His leadership. We trust the word
spoken to His disciples before He ascended into heaven when He promised “You
will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my
witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the
earth.”
It’s time to repent, get honest and take a look at the
spiritual character that is lacking within us all and take a stand to allow God
to move within us.
I have listed 3 principles which should propel us into a dynamic
new area for Christ Church.
Growth
Hebrews 5:11-14 (NLT) "There is much more we
would like to say about this, but it is difficult to explain, especially since
you are spiritually dull and don't seem to listen. You have been believers so
long now that you ought to be teaching others.
Instead, you need someone to
teach you again the basic things about God's word. You are like babies who need
milk and cannot eat solid food. For someone who lives on milk is still an infant
and doesn't know how to do what is right. Solid food is for those who are
mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between
right and wrong".
As believers, we are expected to grow like a child does.
When you are young in your faith, God only expects for you to get the
"milk"; there's more room to make mistakes because you're growing,
learning, just like a child does. Verse 14 tells us that as we grow in life and
in Christ, we have developed the "skills to recognize the difference
between right and wrong" as a result of "maturing".
If you can
say that you've been a believer for x-amount of years and you're still making
the same mistakes, you haven't grown as you should. Just imagine if my 13-year-old Son was still wearing diapers and eating jars of Gerber:
wouldn't that seem strange? How much more, then, should we grow year to year in
our walk with Christ? (1 Peter 2:2, 1 Corinthians 3:2-3 supports this)
Responsibility
In recent months, many Christian leaders have found themselves
in hot water when the lives they lead behind closed doors suddenly were exposed
to the public. From Eddie Long to Pastor Zachery Timms and many other leaders
in the Body of Christ, this year has been a year of exposing -- that age old
adage "what's done in the dark will always come to light" has reigned
true for many in recent months. Some would argue that we are all imperfect,
just fleshly beings that can't be regarded so highly that those who follow
these leaders should fall and stumble because of their imperfections.
I beg to differ!!!
The bible tells us that leaders in the church are held to a
higher standard – 1st and 2nd Timothy both explore the expectations of church
leaders (I Timothy 3:11) noting that their failure to be in right standing with
God can have a greater impact beyond their own personal lives.
We have a responsibility to people. Yes, we are imperfect,
but the charge to live upright even when you think no one is watching is
clearly stated in the Word.
Ephesians 5:10-14 (NLT) says: Carefully determine what pleases the Lord. Take no part in the
worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them. It is shameful even
to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret. But their evil
intentions will be exposed when the light shines on them, for the light makes
everything visible."
We have a responsibility not only to God, but to the people
we lead. If for any reason we are found to be living a life of perpetual sin
behind closed doors, we have the responsibility to shine light for the sake of
repentance, not ridicule and judgment.
In Revelation 3:19 (NLT), it reads, “I correct and discipline everyone I love. So be diligent and turn from
your indifference”.
The great and most important part about reproof and
reprimand is that it should evoke a spirit of love and repentance to God and a
sense of responsibility to the people to make things "right" with
them. We (the body) are charged in James 5:19-20 to love people back into the
fold (which would require us to acknowledge the wrong publicly, right?) and
guide them back to their original standing in God.
We are even told to "confess ours sins to one another"
so we may be able to address our issues and be made whole. How else do we do
that lest we publicly confess them?
Obedience
At the same time, leaders (and yes, even us regular folk)
are supposed to set themselves apart -- be different from the world -- in order
to be used by God. No amount of talent, gifting, or anointing can replace the
power of obedience and holiness.
In a wealthy home some utensils are made of gold and silver,
and some are made of wood and clay. The expensive utensils are used for special
occasions, and the cheap ones are for everyday use. If you keep yourself pure,
you will be a special utensil for honorable use. Your life will be clean, and
you will be ready for the Master to use you for every good work. (2 Timothy
2:20-21)
What sin does is make it harder for us to be used by God.
Had I never had a child out of wedlock, it would have been easier for me to
navigate my purpose; certain hurdles I wouldn't have had to overcome had I been
obedient to what I knew to be true. Thank God for grace, mercy, and second
chances.
What does God want?
God is very concerned about winning souls -- and will win
them at any cost. He will use the broken, beat up, and damaged to reach people
to bring them into the kingdom. He will use singers, ministers, bishops,
pastors, clerks; stay at home moms, firemen, bankers, anyone who is willing to
use their life as a testimony to win souls.
He is also
excessively concerned about our personal lives and wants to see us do and be
better. He expects for us to grow and change in Christ every day. He will
always deal with our personal lives privately before allowing our sins to
consume us and embarrass us publicly.
Even then, He will use people to draw
us back unto Him in order to get ourselves right and be more effective than we
were before -- but we must be willing to grow, take responsibility, and be
obedient to his direction.
Selah
