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What Your Local Church Needs

New local churches seem to be popping up everywhere. It is almost the “In Thing” to do. Whoa, don’t miss understand me, I am all behind new church plants … IF they are needed where they are being planted.

There is an important part of a body that every local church should have, and new church plants are more apt not to have this–hence my opening statement about new startups. If this part is not present in the local church body it is most likely not missed, which is sad. You don’t miss what you never had, kinda thing. But when this part is present, it is evident and appreciated.

Clarification needed:  The church body doesn’t need this part to exist; we know that Jesus Christ builds His church. My point is that this part, or piece—as you may call it, is a valuable asset that makes a profound difference in the maturing of the body. It brings stability, longevity, and balance to the body.

So what is it?

I’m not talking about electric praise bands, yard sales, or screaming evangelists. Nor am I talking about coffee shops or the latest church marketing gimmick. Nope, none of that.

Every local church needs what I’ll call in this blog; elder statesmen / stateswomen of the faith. This is not a reference to the church office of an Elder.  We are NOT talking about the pastors, deacons, or any other church office. So I’m clear what it is not, right?

Who am I referring to?

I am referring to men and women within the local body of believers who know God. Who know God. As the Apostle John would put it, ‘They know that they know Him.’ These are men and women who are seasoned by the fire of life and their faith has been tried and found proven. Hence they have true godly character. They are not loud attention seekers. They never follow the latest religious/spiritual fads that American Christianity invents. And like the Apostle Paul, they know in Whom they believe and are fully persuaded that He is able to keep them.

Five traits:

  • When one of them reads the Scriptures you can hear it in his/her voice. The Word of God comes from a soul that has been pierced by the love of Christ. You hear this person and you can feel the depth of his/her relationship with the One who authored the Word. You realize that they aren’t merely reading words on a fancy published Bible, they are communicating on God’s behalf. The scripture that is being read is alive to that person’s soul. It is real to them!
  • When one of these statesmen of the faith (man or woman) prays with you, it is obvious that he/she prays as a proverbial prayer closet. His/her prayer is from an intimate relationship with the living God. It is a prayer that comes from a sincere soul and doesn’t mix words or draw attention to themselves in the prayer, but the prayer draws attention to the High Priest and Mediator between God and man. This prayer exalts in utter dependence in his/her God.
  • This person has fed on the Wisdom of Solomon and others like him. He/she can recognize the shallow so-called wisdom that comes from the unbelieving world and abhors such arrogance and vanity.
  • This person is more interested in doing what’s right rather than what works.

And I have to ask:

Where are these men and women? Or maybe the question should be: Does your pastor know who these statesmen/women are within the church? I ask because these men and women are humble,  going unnoticed, working behind the scenes in the church, and most likely filling a role and need.

Do you have spiritual statesmen/women in your local body?  This isn’t a spiritual gift that few have, like the office of a pastor. Every member of the body should attain to this role, so that we may edify one another to obtain maturity in Christ. How about you?

How Do You Know That You Know?

I John 2:4 says, “Now by this we know that we know Him, if …”

I’ll leave the rest of the scripture for you to look up. Remember to read it in its context.

In the meantime, try this video on for size. This short video has a kick and it’s worth the beating. Whether you’re familiar with Paul Washer or not, check out on Youtube what is referred to has his shocking youth message. But it’s not just for youth.

The Revival that Ushered in Our Nation

awakening2

 

Christian history that you should know about, leading into the 4th of July.

 

 

 

A Timeline would help:

1730’s-1740’s – Our Nation’s First Great Awakening
1775 – Revolutionary War Begins
1776 – We Declare our Independence
1783 – Revolutionary War Ends
1789 – George Washington Sworn in as our 1st President 1790 – A Second Great Awakening

Did you notice the frame around our nation’s independence?

In the 1730’s-1740’s the greatest revival in American history, the Great Awakening, spread like wild fire throughout the colonies. The Gospel of Jesus Christ turns hearts, prepares hearts, and sets hearts free. And in that point and time in history, it also turned a soon-to-be country to seek salvation from the one true God. This revival was so far reaching that the culture of the colonies were radically changed. You could say that after the people declared their DEPENDENCE upon the Lord and Savior–Jesus Christ, they declared their Independence for their own country.

It’s always: first things first–Dependence, then Independence. Isn’t this the way it is for our individual lives regarding eternal life? Proclaim your dependence upon and in Jesus Christ and He will set you free!

After that initial generation in early 1700’s declared their independence, they won their independence, and then they established a government. Then God sovereignly ushered in a second awakening around 1790. George Washington was still our President during this second revival, which lasted into the 1800’s (possibly well into the 1840’s). This is an eternal perspective of the birth of our nation.

From these two great awakenings came the birth of our country, a God fearing nation, but more importantly the Gospel of Jesus Christ reached untold numbers of men, women, and children. Heaven rejoiced with the sinners who repented and put their trust in Jesus for eternal life.

Salvation belongs to a sovereign God.

From an Unexpected Source

Sometimes we come across a morsel of spiritual truth or a reminder of truth, as in this case, when we’re not looking for one. This happened the other night while watching …

… okay, I’m a fan of old westerns …

… The Return of the Seven (1966), with Yul Brynner and Robert Fuller.

Two characters having a conversation:

Chris, played by Yul Brynner—a professional gunfighter who uses his skills to protect and rescue the oppressed (talk about a headache for the politically correct); and

A Catholic priest, played by Fernando Rey, who has realized that his zeal to rebuild a broken down church has resulted in the enslavement of poor, defenseless Mexican farmers from a nearby village.

The priest is ready to give up the priesthood because of what his actions have done to these people. Chris says (as I remember),

“You’re not down, you’ve fallen. It’s time to get up, at least as far as your knees.”

Yul Brynner knocks that line out of the park! I grabbed the remote (you thought all guys white knuckled the remote, right? Not always), and clicked the pause button. Rewind. Whoa!! That is some ‘right-on’ stuff from the man in black. Really, Chris wears all black.

Then it dawns on me that Chris, gun fighter/theologian, is probably quoting an old Puritan (which I can’t remember) who said that we—Christians—because of God’s sustaining and faithful grace, may fall, but we won’t fall completely.

It is possible, that Chris, gun fighter/theologian, was just using his spiritual gift to encourage the priest who was in the depths of despair. Either way, it is obvious from the outcome of the battle that the priest went back to his prayer closet, got up on his knees, and prayed. The Lord revealed His right arm and brought deliverance. The movie ended before we saw the spiritual renewal that spread to the nearby villages. I’m sure something like that would’ve happened, right?

Bottom line: let’s take Chris’ advice.

Reading About Christ on the Cross

Recently I picked up a book that I’ve had on my reading list for a long time. This was my book for vacationing at the beach. It’s a classic work by the late John R.W. Stott:  The Cross of Christ (2006. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Books.).  I am grateful for Logos Bible software for publishing this work. I’m the guy who reads with a highlighter and pen. Ebooks, especially in Logos, allow markups, notes, and easy cross-referencing.

“There is then, it is safe to say, no Christianity without the cross. If the cross is not central to our religion, ours is not the religion of Jesus.”

“Give me a sermon on the cross any day. If it be from the scriptures, it cannot but lift my heart to the One who lived to die as the Lamb of God. When is the last time that you heard a sermon series on the cross of Christ? If it’s been awhile, I encourage you to pick up this book and find the depth of the riches of the work of Christ Jesus on the cross. At the cross we find the death of our old man and new life with God. Most importantly we find Jesus. I think this quote from Stott is what motivates the curious mind:”

“But why? We return to this basic puzzle. What was there about the crucifixion of Jesus which, in spite of its horror, shame and pain, makes it so important that God planned it in advance and Christ came to endure it?”

Stott opens these questions beautifully and leads you into answers. The crucifixion is more than saying, ‘Jesus Christ died for our sins.’ What does that really mean? Why was this absolutely necessary? What was the cause and effect? Stott does not disappoint.

If you have read this book, you know the difficulty of dropping only a few of its quotes. Here are a few more and I encourage you to pick up the book, with a marker and pen–paper or ebook.

“Despite the great importance of his [Jesus] teaching, his example, and his works of compassion and power, none of these was central to his mission. What dominated his mind was not the living but the giving of his life.”

I love reading about Jesus, who He was, is, and is to come. If you’re interested in reading on the subject, here’s a couple of recommendations:

The Cross: God’s Way of Salvation, by Martyn Lloyd-Jones.

In Christ Alone: Living The Gospel Centered Life, by Sinclair Ferguson.

The Crises of the Christ, by G. Campbell Morgan.

Two final quotes from John Stott’s book:

“In conclusion, the cross enforces three truths—about ourselves, about God and about Jesus Christ.”

Stott does a brilliant job with the numerous subjects and issues that come out of Christ’s redemptive work at Calvary. At the risk of causing confusion, I drop this last quote. It is a mere taste of his logic while tackling the subject: The Problem with Forgiveness.

“The Bible takes sin seriously because it takes humanity seriously. As we have seen, Christians do not deny the fact—in some circumstances—of diminished responsibility, but we affirm that diminished responsibility always entails diminished humanity. To say that somebody “is not responsible for his actions” is to demean him or her as a human being. It is part of the glory of being human that we are held responsible for our actions. Then, when we also acknowledge our sin and guilt, we receive God’s forgiveness, enter into the joy of his salvation, and so become yet more completely human and healthy. What is unhealthy is every wallowing in guilt which does not lead to confession, repentance, faith in Jesus Christ and so forgiveness.”