"Church" (with a
capital "C") is that which Jesus declared in Matthew 16:18 when He said "I will
build My Church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." It
includes all who are "Born again believers."
"church" (with a lower case "c") is that which man has built. The
multi-thousands of denominational and non-denominational sects so prevalent in
society today.
"born again believers" are those who have accepted Jesus as Savior and
repented of their sins. These are sometimes referred to as "saved". (See 1 Peter
1:1-24)
"Radical Christians" are those who are "totally sold out" to Jesus, daily
dying to self, and seriously in love with the Lord.
"Nominal Christians" are those who attend services but seldom if ever
read the Bible, spend time in prayer or talk with others about the Lord.
"Called out ones" are those who have answered God's call to a closer walk
with Him.
My Vision for the Church
Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like-minded one toward
another according to Christ Jesus: That ye may with one mind and one mouth
glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Rom 15:5)
In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in
the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through
the Spirit.
(Eph 2:21-22)
I see a day coming when the "Kingdom of God" has come to earth. This will be
when the model prayer of Jesus has been fulfilled. Thy will be done in earth,
as it is in heaven. (Mat 6:10)
I also see people regularly gathering together to worship the Lord in unity.
These will be people who are "Radical Christians", madly in love with God and
totally sold out to Jesus. His "Called out ones." They will be from all of the
sects presently in any given area plus many who have no connection to them.
Their only desire will be to see, and have, more of the Holy Spirit and less of
themselves. It is when we gather in unity to worship the Lord that He shows up.
That will be a day when there will be only "The Church" at "my town." I define
that as all of the believers in the "my town" area united as one body of people,
fully joined to one another, without barriers of church background, acting
together in an expression of the life of Christ to the community around them. I
also see that as a time when the presence of God is so powerfully felt that even
those who are just passing through will sense and know He is real. When that day
will be I have no clue, but it is coming.
The church Today as I See It
Man blended pagan ideas into the church which produced a counterfeit. This
counterfeit has been taken farther from the original plan by incorporating into
itself, a worldly business model. The local, and trans-local, church leadership
has become a "CEO" and "board of directors" making it a democratic organization
rather than the theocracy God intended. This has blended the wheat and the tares
into a single unit - the church of today. In most cases it is very difficult to
distinguish the church from the world. Not only has the church adopted the
world's pattern of leadership but also its lifestyle as well. The statistics for
divorce, adultery, juvenile delinquency and many other family problems within
the church are very similar to that of the world.
While there are reports of many people being "saved" in evangelistic crusades we
see very little evidence that lives are actually being "changed" by the
experience. Sure, there are a few reports of individuals who have been radically
transformed from a sinful life into on-fire preachers of the gospel of Jesus
Christ but these seem to be the exception. Based upon the large numbers of
people reported to have been converted in these evangelistic crusades it should
be expected that church growth would be much more than it is. You would also
expect the church to have fewer spots and wrinkles than is presently seen.
The following two diagrams have come from the description of a vision given to a
brother in England, David Antrobus, in December of 1992. I feel these two
drawings accurately represent what I believe has occurred in the church. You may
read more about David's vision by going to the website at this internet address:
http://www.seeking-his-kingdom.com/davida001.htm
The first of the two drawings show the wheat and tares so intermingled that they
appear as a single image.
The second of the two drawings show what I believe 2 Corinthians 6:17 and
Revelation 18:4 is talking about where the "Bride of Christ" (Church) comes out
of (separates) from the "harlot" (church). (Wherefore come out from among
them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I
will receive you [2 Corinthians 6:17] The Message Bible states it this way
(So leave the corruption and compromise; leave it for good," says God. "Don't
link up with those who will pollute you. I want you all for myself.)
(And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people,
that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
[Revelation 18:4])
These verses of Scripture have been interpreted in many different ways by a
large number of people. Quite a few have felt it is a call for God's people to
"come out" of the institutional church because of what they see as gross error
in those organizations. Others have strongly disagreed with that premise. I
sense truth to lie somewhere in between these two extreme views. God has allowed
man to form the many thousands of divisions within the body of Christ whereby
there exists several churches within a community. This is contrary to the plan
set in place during the first century where there was a single Church in each
locality. This separation or "coming out of her" is more spiritual than
physical, however for many it is also an actual physical separation.
Let me be very clear in stating that I don't see the church as all bad or evil.
There is much that is right. Most all involved are operating with honorable
intentions, trying to live by man's interpretations of Scripture. But the fact
remains that today's church is a blend containing both the "clean and unclean"
and is not the Church Paul says in Ephesians 5:27 that Jesus is expecting to
present to Himself. (That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not
having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and
without blemish).
Who Is the Church?
A clarification needs to be made about who is the Church. All who are "born
again believers" are the Church. And it makes no difference where they are or
which local church body they fellowship with. Most people don't realize it
because they think of the Church only in terms of the individual congregation
they attend as "the Church."
Unfortunately, many in the church today are not actually part of the Church.
These are people who believe that because they have joined an organization they
call church, or were raised in the church, or are not of Jewish decent, or they
live in a "Christian nation" automatically makes them Christians.
George Barna, a researcher of church trends, made this statement in his 2000
"State of the Church" report: "In a typical week, 41% of the adults attending
Christian churches are not born again." He also stated: "Like the churches of
Laodicea and Sardis, described in the Bible as distasteful to God because of
their complacency and spiritual deadness, too many Christians and churches in
America have traded in spiritual passion for empty rituals, clever methods and
mindless practices."
Many in the institutional church are a part of the Church but aren't aware of
their position. They don't fully understand what the "body of Christ" really is
and that they are a part of it. They tend to think only in terms of the local
body they associate with.
Often there are Christians who are somewhat radical within a local church
congregation. They often recognize they are different than others in their
congregation. The "empty rituals, clever methods, and mindless practices" just
don't satisfy their hunger for more of the Holy Spirit. They are between the
"called out ones' and the "Radical Christians."
These usually are people very involved in the activities of their church. They
have a sense of doing "good things" but not really that which the Holy Spirit is
asking of them and frequently suffer guilt feelings about it. These are people
who desire to use the ministry gifts God has placed in them. Often however,
their church leadership either forbids or discourages them from using these
ministry gifts.
Nominal Christians in the church will often see these people as a threat to the
good, but non-biblical thinking, of the group. Sometimes this results in their
being asked to leave the group.
I believe God still intends for there to be only one Church in any town or local
area. Paul has much to say about the body of Christ in 1 Corinthians, Chapter
12. He says we are all baptized into one body in verse 13 of that chapter.
Serious division is brought into the body of Christ where there are several
congregations within a town, each having a different interpretation of the
Bible. These are man-made distinctions of separation and are contrary to Paul's
description of the body of Christ. These "sects" or divisions in the body of
Christ ought not to be! Romans 15:5 exhorts the Church to be of "one-mind and
one-mouth" in glorifying God which is contrary to what we see happening. (Now
the God of patience and consolation grant you to be like-minded one toward
another according to Christ Jesus: That ye may with one mind and one mouth
glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.)
There are however, small pockets of "radical Christians," the "called out ones,"
scattered both in and out of the church but few of these individuals are aware
of the others.
Several years ago the Lord showed me there were small groups, of two or three
people, scattered all over the world who were His "called out ones." Most of
these had no idea there were others like them even in the same town or among
those they attended church with. I was shown this was a cloth of these small
groups that were invisibly connected to each other with a thin strong thread.
That thread is Jesus. This cloth has a very lacy appearance at this time but
will eventually become a solid fabric with no gaps between groups. God sees a
"whole cloth" but we see only a very open weave lacy fabric. I have attempted to
crudely re-create the image given me in this drawing.
Each green dot represents an individual or a group of individuals. The black
lines represent Jesus as the the invisible thread connecting the individuals to
one another. The connecting thread is very tiny but extremely strong.
As more individuals become aware of others, the number of green dots will
increase and there will be additional connecting lines between the dots. As
individual groups become aware of others and begin to interact with one another,
the connecting lines will grow wider increasing the strength of that thread.
These are people I believe God is using to bring His Kingdom into being on
earth.
The Difference between a Kingdom and a Democracy.
This requires a drastic change in our thinking. We who have been raised in a
democracy have no real understanding of the huge difference between a kingdom
and a democracy. We have been taught that in our democracy, the people rule
through an elected leader, a president or prime minister. All too often however,
a small minority of the people govern through their money which "buys influence"
to convince the elected leader to establish rules in their favor.
In a kingdom, the ruler is a king who was not elected but born into the
position. A king owns all that is in his kingdom including the people. A
president or prime minister owns very little in the country he supervises.
Our fully understanding this difference is vital to seeing His Kingdom on earth.
God intended that His Kingdom would be established on earth as it is in heaven.
If God had intended "democracy on earth as it is in heaven" He would have stated
it that way in Matthew 6:10. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it
is in heaven.
We are the ones He has chosen to use to accomplish that. God gave Adam dominion
over the earth and all that it contains when He placed him in the Garden of
Eden. We, who have been saved, still have that authority because it was restored
to us by the blood of Jesus. That restoration transferred our citizenship from
the kingdom of darkness to the Kingdom of Heaven. We live on earth but are
Ambassadors for the Kingdom of heaven.
What is our privilege and responsibility as an ambassador of the Kingdom of
heaven? This is spelled out for us in the 20th verse of 2 Corinthians. Now then
we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you
in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. (2 Corinthians 5:20) That duty is
more clearly defined for us in the Message Bible translation which states it
this way: "We're Christ's representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women
to drop their differences and enter into God's work of making things right
between them. We're speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God;
he's already a friend with you."
We are to know His will and speak it into existence here on earth by speaking
His Word. He made us in His image therefore we are like Him. God spoke and it
became (See Chapter One of Genesis). He created every thing by merely speaking
it into existence. As His ambassadors, we also have the ability to speak His
Word and bring it into existence here on earth. Doing so will bring the Kingdom
of God down to earth.
The church in my Locale.
The visible church in my small community currently consists of several separate
congregations. They include names of well known denominations as well as some
groups few have ever hard about. To date I have found nine listed in the local
telephone directory. I suspect there may be more that I am not yet aware of.
While I am not that familiar with any of these individual congregations, I do
believe the church in this area is very similar to that of the rest of the
country. After having attended services at several of these, my sense is they
are not that much different from churches nation-wide. Additionally,
conversations with individuals in the community indicate to me these assumptions
are correct.
The Church in my Locale.
The Church in my small community is not yet visible. It consists of individuals
who have answered God's call to "come out of her" as described in Revelation
18:4 (And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my
people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her
plagues.)
I firmly believe God has placed a number of people in the community where I live
for the purpose of bringing His glory down. I am currently aware of nine people
who have moved here with no earthly reason they can explain. They each felt
drawn here but have no real reason why they should have done so. I feel there
are others that I don't yet know about that were also "moved here" by the spirit
of God. Among this group of nine is one additional individual who has lived here
most of his life making a total of ten individuals.
These ten individuals are now beginning to gather to bring the Kingdom of God
into being in this community. It is only when we individually, and corporately,
clearly understand what a kingdom is and how it functions, that we then can
comprehend the meaning of the Kingdom of God on earth.
The Church in my small community is mostly invisible at this time. There are ten
of us in one group that know about one another. We gather each Saturday evening
for a minimum of one hour, praying in the spirit, seeking God's Kingdom. We are
asking Him only for the expression of His Kingdom to be manifested here.
Personal desires and needs are not thought about nor mentioned during this
prayer time. Several others who have become aware of what we are doing have
expressed an interest in joining us. We have also learned there are groups in
other communities that are doing this same thing.
There is another group of about fifteen individuals who are meeting on Friday
evenings with a similar focus. This then makes upwards of twenty-five that we
know about who are seeking God's Kingdom to be manifested here.
We don't know how many other individuals there are in the area that we have no
knowledge of. We are likely a very small portion of the body of Christ in this
small community who are daily desiring the Kingdom of God to be expressed in
ourselves and in the local area.
Where Do We Go from Here?
Before the Kingdom of God is visibly seen in any place, it must become real to
individual believers in that area. We must learn how the government of God is
structured. Kingdom rule is much different than the democracy we have been
taught to live in. This is especially true in today's society where many seem to
think obeying the law of the land is something you need to do only when you want
to.
In a kingdom the word of the king is law and can not be changed by anyone.
Obeying the word of the king is mandatory. Disobeying the word of the king is
not tolerated. There is a price that must be paid. This applies to the Kingdom
of God as well as to worldly kingdoms.
When we accepted the free offer of salvation it came with a change of
citizenship. Where we had been under satan's rule we are now citizens of the
government of Almighty God. He has bought us with the blood of His Son Jesus. We
are now part of His domain even though we still reside on earth. Our residence
may be earth but our citizenship is in heaven. As a citizen of heaven it is
necessary for us to learn how God's government operates so that we will
understand what is required of us. His commands are set forth in His Word, the
Bible. It is our "owners manual" complete with all the instructions we need to
live in accordance with the laws of our King.
This transfer of citizenship from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of
God brings many blessings. One of those blessings is our appointment as His
Ambassador to earth. We now have the privilege and responsibility to represent
Him and His government here on earth. What we speak and how we act must be in
accordance with His will and not our own. Our only focus now should be to bring
His government into existence in our part of the earth.
As we become better acquainted with our king and learn more about His government
our thoughts will change from those of a democracy to that of a kingdom. This,
combined with prayers for the Kingdom of God to be manifested in our lives, will
begin to bring His kingdom down to earth wherever we are. When others join us in
this endeavor the effect will be magnified and cover a larger geographical area.
What Will Bring God's Kingdom to Earth?
First of all we must seek His Kingdom as Matthew 6:33 instructs us. (But seek ye
first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be
added unto you.)
Becoming "born again" only opens the door to the Kingdom of God. Accepting Jesus
as our savior is just the first step, even though it is an extremely important
one. We must enter into the kingdom by actually having a personal relationship
with the King to know who He is and what His will is.
Once we begin to understand what His will is then Matthew 6:10 should become our
constant prayer. (Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in
heaven.)
Along with these two things we should gather with other like-minded believers
who will join us in this prayer focus. There are two things we must remember.
The first is that we can do nothing of eternal worth by ourselves. The second
thing is that God will work only through our prayers. While He is capable of
establishing His will on earth without our help, He has chosen to do it only
through us.
As we seek His kingdom, develop a personal relationship with Him and enter into
prayer, He will begin to change us into proper citizens of the Kingdom of God.
We will begin to develop a "kingdom mentality," which will make us better
ambassadors for our King. As we become proper ambassadors of the Kingdom of God
it will change the atmosphere around us bringing heaven down to earth.
We are to know His will and speak it into existence here on earth by speaking
His Word. God created the earth and all that is in it by merely speaking it into
existence. As His ambassadors, we also have the ability to speak His Word and
bring it into existence here on earth. Doing so will bring the Kingdom of God
down to earth.
Lord, help us to speak only that which your word declares. Let not our lips
utter the logical thoughts based upon what our natural eyes behold but rather
that which our spiritual eyes and ears have seen and heard.
May the Lord Jesus daily add those whom He will to His Church. And may He also
answer our constant prayer for His Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.