LET'S HAVE CHURCH

LET'S HAVE CHURCH!

      Many things test our faith.  The first generation of the church struggled with "Jesus of Nazareth is the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy."  Note in the Book of Acts how much Old Testament Scripture is brought in to prove Who Jesus Is and His Saving Act through His Cross & Resurrection.

      At the time of the Book of Revelation, the challenge was whether to praise Christ or Caesar.  To follow Jesus meant to reject Caesar and there was a severe price to pay.  But Jesus is surely worth it all!!!

      Many have struggled with "Who is Jesus Christ???  Is HE only human, or the Son of God [God The Son]???"  The New Testament bears witness to the fact that Jesus is both Human and Divine.  HE came in the flesh, was baptized by John, died on the cross, and raised to life again!  [Read all of 1 John.]

      When we look back some years, we are impressed by the faith & power of the Gospel of Christ - Crucified, Risen, Coming again!  Some today have pulled the plug on power, on Christian love, holy joy, and the fruit of The Spirit.  Paul warned: "Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away."  (2 Timothy 3:5)

      Look back with me to those days of glory.  A "tent-evangelist" of the past drew on his experience with diverse groups of people who had little or no religious background.  He wrote this formula for producing Christian Revolution, which surely defines the purpose of the Church. 

      Let's have CHURCH –   It is our purpose to praise Him!  Remember: church is people, you and I.  The church comes together to worship as a team.  "Church" should be like the "pre-game rally" in the locker room.

      Unashamed,  Paul had complete confidence in the Gospel of Christ's Doing & Dying & Rising Again.  Our worship and spirit ought to reflect this deep faith and confidence in the power of His Resurrection!

      With Power, If we think of ourselves as "losers," how can we transform people's lives and heal society's deepest ills?  And how can we reach the Next Generation with Christ - if we ourselves appear to have no confidence in Him?

      Jesus-Worshiping, Jesus is God the Son who came in human form.  It is right and proper to worship Him for Who He Is and What He Has Done.  Dying Stephen called on God and directed his words to Jesus [Acts 7:59-60].

      Sin-Busting, The way to "bust sin" is to inspire righteousness and holiness among Christians!  Holy to the Lord!!!  We should be bursting at the seams with Holy Joy!  [Romans 14:17].

      Devil-Chasing, "Resist the devil and he will flee from you" [James 4:7].  Some appear to think God is totally bewildered and confused by the things taking place in our world; that He has turned everything over to the devil by default.  This cannot be!

      Bible-Loving, Timothy had a godly mother and grandmother who taught him the Holy Scriptures from childhood [2 Timothy 1:5; 3:15-17].  We should feel about the Bible as we do a letter from a dear relative.  The Bible is in some sense a love letter from God - to us!  God does love us and He proved it by sending Jesus [Romans 5:6-11].

      Saving, Having Church means reaching out with the message of JESUS - His Doing & Dying & Rising Again!  The message of how people can be saved forever!  It is the mission of Christ and His Church to save as many people as possible from this wicked world.

      Renewing, We make ourselves living sacrifices.  An English writer of the past century wrote: "The whole world is a temple, and we are everywhere worshipers."  The kindness and mercy we show to others we do to Him by proxy.  We praise Him by living life His way.

      Praising, Christianity is essentially a praising and singing  religion.  Praise helps us to tap into God's power.  Praise helps us fight against discouragement and all the wiles of the devil.  Praise helps raise our eyes from the mundane to the sublime!  Our God is in control and He holds the future in His Hand!

      And With All The JOY The Holy Spirit Provides! 

      "For the kingdom of God is not food and drink, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit" [Romans 14:17]. 

      "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit" [Romans 15:13].

      Praise and joy seem to be in short supply today.  We need to make a conscious decision to permit God-The-Holy-Spirit to produce Holy Joy, Christian Love, and all the Fruit of The Spirit in us [Galatians 5:22-23].  And Paul tells us to Rejoice - many times.  Rejoicing is a command, not an option.

      And People Will Come!  As a few come in the front door, many have gone out the back door.   When we "Have Church" and when we raise up The Triune God in praise and devotion, we are doing just what the New Testament Christians did.

      Let us HAVE CHURCH and reproduce all the Enthusiasm, the Joy, and the Love we see in the Church in the Book of Acts.  Let the Church be the Church in Power and Praise and the Gospel of Christ Jesus - Crucified, Risen, Coming Again!!!