Church #6

Changing the Way We Do Church 6

The sixth step in church reformation is

6. Move from fads, copycat programs, and trite and phony rituals, traditions and doctrines to creative initiatives in the Spirit of (but exceeding the results of) the early church we have to do what we hear The Spirit saying.

I am 67 years old and I have known the Lord for 54 years. I have seen a lot of movements come and go and have studied many others who came and went before I came and studied. I have lived through discipleship, seeker-sensitive, charismatic, cells church, signs and wonders, and house church movements. I have seen spiritual "stars" and "celebrities" come and go with their followers willing to follow them off a spiritual cliff.

Today we have "Emerging-Missional" or G12, reformed seeker-sensitive and a few more that I am not even aware of. I have studied the Reformers, the Quakers, the Shakers, the Salvation Army, the Christian Missionary Alliance and the Baptist as well as the Methodists; they have been launched, matured and taught by sincere men and women whose heart was to create an expression of the body of Christ that was consistent with biblical principles and their interpretations of the same.

The problem I see is that as soon as one of these emphases or movements is started, people flock to read and study them so that they can copy, emulate or assimilate their "best" traits, which are the ones that "work" best. Others flock to attack the new movements, and the writings of people devoted to one thought or another.

My only recommendation is that we keep on seeking, listening and innovating where church growth and evangelism are concerned. Don't just do something because someone else is doing it and they are having success. For example, I have seen so many churches with the attitude, "We pray or worship a lot in our church and God is blessing it. If you prayed or worshiped like we prayed and worshiped, God would bless you and you would grow, too." Suddenly spiritual prayer becomes a technique and it loses its spirituality. Then books and conferences on prayer-growth or worship-growth appear and people buy or attend them to learn how prayer or worship can "work" for them, too. People then become part of the prayer-growth-worship movement to the exclusion of everyone or anyone else.

Then the prayer-growth emphasis becomes a movement and maybe even a denomination, which then regulates how you pray for effective church growth (or even non-growth -- some churches don't want to grow). Finally, I have heard many churches state that they want a New Testament church. I understand what they are saying, but I don't want a New Testament church. I want a church that exceeds those results. I don't believe that the early church met in homes because we should only meet in homes. I think they adapted to what they had and they were successful. Now we must adapt to our culture and do what they did: prove that we can present a relevant gospel to our generation.

Whatever church emphasis you adopt or follow, please make sure it's a spiritual exercise and not some shortcut that exempts you from seeking the Lord for yourself. And when you adopt it, don't try to make it an iron-clad, no exceptions philosophy that condemns or criticizes those who don't do it like you do. If it is Spirit-led, then follow the Spirit and keep your eyes on Him. If it isn't, well I've seen enough of those in my lifetime and I'm not interested in feeding any more of them with my enthusiasms or loyalty. And I've had my expectations shattered again and again by men (and women) who had the "word" for the day, only to crash and burn when their initial insights could not stand up to the test of time or human limitations.

We as a Community of Jesus Followers must seek Him and what He desires us to do and act out that. Right now Esther and I are following something new for us and are looking for a people that believe in the Calling of God on our life’s and friend this is not easy you think you have some that believe in you however they don’t want to go through all it takes or trouble to establish a work. Not to be in a place to let this discourage us but say we will support you in what you are doing but we will go to an established place. Let us not look for excuses or an explanation for what we are doing with our Christian life. Our Growth in the Lord and ability to do His Perfect Will is just putting down the flesh and picking up the very promises of God to us. The call on our lives needs to be in who we believe God has set aside to place something from the Holy Ghost in us. The work is the same but the call of God is so important. All His promises are ours and it is time for us to do the works He has instructed us to do. Heal the sick, Save the lost and Set the captives free.

Pastor Frank