Assembling Of Ourselves

²⁴ And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, ²⁵ not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. –Hebrews 10:24-25

D.L. Moody visited a woman who had grown cold in her Christian life. She said she had not been able to come to church, but otherwise she could not understand what had happened to make her feel as she did about spiritual things.

Without saying a word, Mr. Moody arose and lifted out a live coal from the grate and placed it on the hearth. In a few moments the glow was gone and the coal was black. “I see it” she said.

You cannot continue to glow in your Christian life alone. You need the warmth of fellowship with other Christians. This is a command to us.

(What The Bible Is All About; Dr. Henrietta C. Mears)   

There are cases where a believer can’t gather in the house of the Lord due to medical, or other physical or mental reasons. God understands this, but does that let you off the hook? No. If you find yourself in this position, or know of someone else in this position, I offer to you that this might be an opportunity for you to get involved in ministry. You can reach out to others via the phone, internet, or some other medium. Maybe you can visit, or arrange a pastor to visit with you and/or others.

If you are in a nursing home, jail, whatever, God can use you there.

Over the last month, my brother who has Down Syndrome, spent a week in the hospital and has been in a rehab/nursing home for the last two weeks. Yesterday,

I had to check my mother into the hospital. As I have walked the halls, I have seen pain and suffering all around.

Are we willing to take the church outside the walls of a building and show the world the hope we have? Are we willing to spread the gospel regardless of our afflictions? The Apostle Paul wrote letter after letter from a prison cell. Praise God he never quit the ministry God gave him. He longed to gather with his brothers and sisters to worship, but that was not an option. He used every means at his disposal to assemble the best way he could.

People need hope. Is God calling you to show it to them regardless of where you are, whatever your circumstances?

Why do people leave the church? Part III

They have been deeply hurt by people they trust.

Many people within the church will get their feelings hurt with other members. It may even be a family member who is well respected in the church body. We are so hurt, we can’t get over it. We may even look at everyone as hypocrites. Anything that is said is taken as a personal attack. We no longer experience the joy of the Lord within the presence of our church family. Many times we may even criticize and attack the body every chance we are given.  

I myself recall many painful experiences from my youth. I won’t divulge the details at this time but I want to make something perfectly clear, there are many ravenous wolves within the church. Just because a person acts like they are devoted to God and hold prominence within the church does not make them a Christian anymore than standing in a garage makes you a car. Jesus himself warned of those who would offend. 

The Pharisee’s and other religious teachers hated Jesus, but where was He each sabbath? He was in the temple or a synagogue. In short, this is what I get from the scriptures; Jesus set the example He wanted us to follow. He went to the temple, synagogue, and the streets. Wherever there were people who needed to hear the gospel, whether they received Him or not, He was there. The apostles followed His lead and did the same. They encouraged every believer to join with other believers to experience cohesion[a] and support as well as to meet the needs of the widow, orphan, and the poor.

I can’t help but think of the Chinese church; under such persecution, yet they are thriving. They risk their very lives to be a part of the body of Christ. I wish we could have more of these Chinese Christians come and share what life is like for them. I wonder how many of us would argue with them that we can’t find a good church. Could we persuade them that being a part of the body is not needed?

Every new visitor could turn them in to the authorities, but yet they thrive. Why?

Because they can’t help but share the gospel and bring lost souls into the body so that they too might be fed the truth of God’s word and find support among fellow believers.    

¹⁹ Again, do you think that we excuse ourselves to you? We speak before God in Christ. But we do all things, beloved, for your edification. ²⁰ For I fear lest, when I come, I shall not find you such as I wish, and that I shall be found by you such as you do not wish; lest there be contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, backbitings, whisperings, conceits, tumults; ²¹ lest, when I come again, my God will humble me among you, and I shall mourn for many who have sinned before and have not repented of the uncleanness, fornication, and lewdness which they have practiced. -II Cor.12:19-21

Paul addressed many times the problems within the early church, but no where in all of scripture does it say we are excused from being a part of the body. Obviously there are those who cannot attend in person, but as stated before, there is a way we can all be connected.

Friend, if it is at all possible, make every effort to join with other believers this Sunday. Pray that the Lord would guide you to the place He wants you. I can assure you He will answer your prayer. May He heal your broken heart, and give you His peace, His joy, His grace, and His love.  

[a]  Cohesion: 1.  joining or working together: the state or condition of joining or working together to form a united whole, or the tendency to do this. 

Encarta ® World English Dictionary © & (P) 1998-2005 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

What Defiles?

⁵ Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?”
⁶ He answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:
      ‘ This people honors Me with their lips,
      But their heart is far from Me.
       ⁷ And in vain they worship Me,
      Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’

 ⁸ For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men—the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do.”
⁹ He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. ¹⁰ For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’ ¹¹ But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban”—’ (that is, a gift to God), ¹² then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, ¹³ making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do.”
¹⁴ When He had called all the multitude to Himself, He said to them, “Hear Me, everyone, and understand: ¹⁵ There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man. ¹⁶ If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!”
¹⁷ When He had entered a house away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him concerning the parable. ¹⁸ So He said to them, “Are you thus without understanding also? Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from outside cannot defile him, ¹⁹ because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods?” ²⁰ And He said, “What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. ²¹ For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, ²² thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. ²³ All these evil things come from within and defile a man.”

I address this with much caution as I do not want to be misunderstood. 
Do we in the church ignore some scripture and make our own laws? If I had to guess, I would say most, if not all churches have dealt with this in one way or another.  

The Bible clearly states that we are to love others. There are no exclusions, but do we not pick certain people to distance from ourselves? If an abortion doctor or nurse came into our congregation, would we love them? What about an atheist? The thing to remember here is that to love someone does not condone what they do. If we don't love them, how will we ever win them over?

Many churches will show you the door if you partake of alcoholic beverages. I clearly understand the reasoning, especially if they have lost a loved one due to an alcohol related accident; but what does scripture say?  It says not to drink in excess but no where does it say to abstain completely. I personally do not consume alcohol but neither do I judge, or rebuke those who do.

Gossip is one of the biggest problems I see in just about every church, but it is tolerated. The scriptures clearly instruct us to stop gossip within our ranks but we don’t. Fighting over the color of paint, the color of the carpet, the order of service, etc, split congregations all the time. Is this biblical? I think not.

One of the reasons I hear often why people don’t attend church anymore, is this spirit of hypocrisy. It is hard to defend the church when we are guilty of such behavior. I do not say these things to be critical and mean spirited, but rather to challenge believers to take a step forward in growth. We need to lay aside our whims and focus on what the scriptures actually say, and then put them into practice.   

We live in desperate times and we need to draw closer to our Lord, get “us” right with Him, and reach those lost souls. We are commanded to do this after all. I firmly believe if we truly live our lives wholly for God, people will come to us and ask “What must we do to be saved!”

A Ghastly Fellow And The Road To Damascus

⁵⁴ When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth. ⁵⁵ But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, ⁵⁶ and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”
⁵⁷ Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; ⁵⁸ and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. ⁵⁹ And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” ⁶⁰ Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep. –Acts 7:54-60

Saul Persecutes the Church

 ¹ Now Saul was consenting to his death.
At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. ² And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and made great lamentation over him.
³ As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison. –Acts 8:1-3

 ¹ Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest ² and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. –Acts 9:1-2

Can you imagine this scene? First there was the brutal beating and murder of Jesus and now the assault continues after the followers. No wonder the believers scattered. But, in all of this horror, the believers continued to preach this Jesus.

If I may get off track for a moment;

If Christ did not rise from the dead and appear to the disciples, why would they continue to preach His name?    

The persecution of the newly formed “church” had already begun. I can only imagine what life was like. I imagine something like the Nazi’s all out persecution of the Jews during WWII.  Imagine going to work in fear of being captured, or coming home to find your family gone. I shudder to think about it, but think about it we must. According to the book of Revelation, another day of persecution is coming. In fact, it is here in some parts of the world. In China, North Korea and other places, Christians can be dragged from there homes or off the streets at any time and imprisoned and/or killed. This persecution will eventually be here in the United States and around the globe. Already we see the beginning here as Christmas is replaced with “Holiday” and God is removed from any public place.

Our Constitutional rights of Freedom of Religion and Freedom of Speech are long gone, at least outside our homes. Even a pastor who preaches God’s truth from the pulpit will soon be tried for intolerance and hate speech.    

But where is God in all of this? Let’s read on…

 ³ As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. ⁴ Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” ⁵ And he said, “Who are You, Lord?”
Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”
⁶ So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?”
Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” ⁷ And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. ⁸ Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. ⁹ And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank. –Acts 9:3-9

¹⁷ And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” ¹⁸ Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was baptized.
¹⁹ So when he had received food, he was strengthened. Then Saul spent some days with the disciples at Damascus. –Acts 9:17-19

Saul Preaches Christ

 ²⁰ Immediately he preached the Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God.
²¹ Then all who heard were amazed, and said, “Is this not he who destroyed those who called on this name in Jerusalem, and has come here for that purpose, so that he might bring them bound to the chief priests?”
²² But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who dwelt in Damascus, proving that this Jesus is the Christ. –Acts 9:20-22

What a turn-around. This minister of murder and mayhem is now preaching the very same Jesus he sought to destroy. I believe Saul (Paul) had every good intention. He truly believed that Jesus was not God; but when he met Jesus, he didn’t argue, he didn’t consider what the cost would be. He asked “Lord, what do You want me to do?” This man so greatly feared by the believers would go on to preach throughout the known world, even to the household of the Roman emperor Nero. He would one day give his life for his beliefs.

God knew Paul’s heart. God saw what Paul could and would become. We don’t know who will or won’t come to saving faith, but what we do know, we need to share. Just like the early believers, no matter what threats we face, we can stand firm in our faith knowing that God is still on His throne. What may seem to be our un-doing, may very well be one of God’s biggest asset’s. We need to walk in courage, strength, and faith. Don’t let anyone or anything scare you out of doing what God has laid on your heart.

Paul later stated:

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” –Phil. 4:13

God bless~