Christ will not build His church when His people turn His house into a vault, museum, or social club!
Christ is very clear, “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 16:18-19)
No matter when the church ‘started’, the fact is that Jesus must be the authority, foundation, and builder of the church (Isaiah 28:16, 1 Corinthians 3), but He has given to His church the primary responsibility of the Gospel (Matthew 22:9-10, Mark 16:15, Acts 26:8, Matthew 5:13-16). This responsibility is large! That is why He tells us that we need His power (Acts 1:8, Matthew 10:19, Matthew 28:20; John 15:5). But do we claim His power and are we obedient to His command to seek souls?
Sadly, there are few Christians with a heart for the harvest (Ezekiel 22:30, John 4:25) and in turn few churches desperate to see men delivered! Many ‘good’ churches today could easily fit into these three unfortunate categories:
The Vault – “a room or compartment for safekeeping of valuables.”
The Museum – “an institution devoted to the procurement, care, study, and display of objects of lasting interest, or value.”
The Social Club – “a group of people or a place where they meet, generally formed around a common interest, occupation, or an activity.”
The church is NOT a vault – We must stop hoarding our wealth in our barns. There is nothing spiritual or pleasing to God about having a large bank account! Although every church ought to give financially so that others may go (2 Corinthians 8), no church has a license to remove itself from its responsibility to win souls in its backyard (Matthew 23:23-25). We ought also to use our monetary giving to evangelize our mission field in our community. It is wrong to focus on ‘Samaria’ without concern for our ‘Jerusalem’ (Acts 1:8, Acts 8:1)!
The church is NOT a museum – While it is good to occasionally remember and therefore learn from the past, it is wrong to not live in the present! So many churches are ‘dying’ because they live in the past and will not follow the God of the present (Psalm 81, Hebrews 13:8). Our memories ought not to dictate our methods. So quickly we forget that it is only the power of God that changes lives and grows churches – not a man, money, or a method. Christians, and therefore churches, that are not growing in the Word or the work have forsaken their Foundation (1 Samuel 4:21, Revelation 2:4). Let us forsake the ‘museum mentality’ and turn back to the God of growth and give the Gospel.
The church is NOT a social club – One of the blessings of the church is fellowship with God’s people (Acts 2:42), but the blessings of God will be withheld from God’s people when we prioritize fellowship over the souls of men (Ezekiel 22:30). Christ offered Himself freely to all (Mark 8:34, Revelation 22:17, 2 Peter 3:9)! Sadly, so many churches have opened their doors only to those who fit ‘their definition’ of spirituality based on a person’s outward appearance or actions (Mark 2:16-17). The church ought to be a hospital where desperate souls can find help, not a social club that turns away those who do not meet their standards or expectations.
Only a church that follows Jesus can be a church that pleases Jesus, and a church that pleases Jesus will have the heart of Jesus. “And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things.” (Mark 6:34)
“And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it.” (Luke 19:41)
There is so little time and there are so many souls to win. Let us adjust our focus on the God of the present and bring the lost to Jesus! “That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth.” (Psalm 83:18)