Macedonians Calling

Last Sunday Evening, our study revolved around "The Cost of NOT." Relating the story from Jonah about the cost of NOT doing what God tells us to do. Further to the last post I made, we asked what was it that Jesus sought to build in His "church?" The answer was - a Spiritual place guided by heavenly standards and spiritual values!  The apostles were charged to go into all nations and teach them, make disciples of them (Mt.28:18-20).  This post will look at one of those incidents, where Paul (formerly Saul of Tarsus), now carries the gospel into Macedonia.

The story begins in Acts 16:9, where Paul receives a vision of a man of Macedonia (we call it Greece) beckoning him to come and bring the gospel to them, to "help them."  Paul takes the journey, and from this journey ventures into Philippi (modern Fílippoi), Thessolonica (Modern Thessoloniki), Berea (modern Veria), Corinth (still bears same name), and Athens (still bears same name). The conversions of Lydia and her household, of the Philippian Jailer, the noble Bereans who searched the scriptures, Dionysius and of the church at Corinth all take place within the story of Paul's going to Macedonia. 

But -- what if Paul hadn't?  We sing in the song "Send the Light."  "we have heard the Macedonian call today - send the light!"   But what if Paul hadn't heeded that call?  The obvious answer is that God would have chosen and sent someone else - and that is true. Yet, there is just as likely a chance, that those we mentioned above, may never have heard the gospel if Paul hadn't gone.What a loss that would have been!

Let's now think a moment. We are spoiled. Like it or not - that is a truth!  We now have churches almost every 3 miles in some areas of our country, if not closer. We have every variety and facet flavor of "Christianity" that you wish to see or sample.  If we don't like one church, we just go to another one that fits our flavor.  Yet, there is not much difference in our own country than there was in ancient Greece of Paul's day.  There was still superstition, idolatry, immorality, and teaching of every flavor you could want.  Yet, God sent Paul a vision, of a man in Macedonia that was calling for help!

We sit in our pews on Sunday, and sing "we have heard the Macedonian call today - send the light" and then promptly close our Bibles and song books and go home. This isn't to say that there are not those involved in taking the gospel to other places. But, I am not speaking to them - I am speaking to the 90 percent of us that sing the words of a song and think we're doing the work of God.  We spend 90 per cent of our time going to church, tending to a building, fretting over politics or in some case even devouring one another (see the Corinthian letters) - and all the while there beckons a person out there that says "come help us."  Is this what "Jesus built?"  If it is, then no wonder that the majority of people that we talk to don't want any part of it.

Maybe its time we got back to what Jesus built, and hearing that Macedonian call and then getting off our spoiled backsides and doing the work Jesus has left for us to do -- "make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and Holy Spirit, Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you." (Mt.28:18-20; 2 Tim.2:2).

Jim

"The Church"

I have entered a study that I wish to share, concerning "the church." A number of things pass my mind as I think of this term, that I know a lot of people think.  I remember growing up, there wasn't much emphasis put on "church." It was a place to go to socialize, dress up, hear someone speak (sometimes rant) and watch them always with emphasis among the circles I attended - pass the collection plate. After a while, especially in my teen years, I saw a lot of hypocrisy and branded "the church" at large (the group I was attending or otherwise) as hypocrites.  I quit going.  It wasn't until I met my wife, that I began going again, and this particular little group seemed different.  It was the first "church" I attended that emphasized what the bible actually taught, and the collection wasn't emphasized over everything, especially the teaching.

I am now 33+ years on the other side of that day, and once again questions come up about "the church" and what God intended it to be.  I have seen a lot of what God has not wanted it to be. So, I decided to chuck everything I had learned and start afresh on the subject to see what God says and has in mind when He thought of the church. 

Let's get a couple of preliminary things out of the way.  Paul says in Col.1:13 "He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son..."  In vs.18 in continuation of this thought of being in God's Kingdom, Paul here refers to this Kingdom over which Jesus is the Head as "the church."  God's Kingdom, God's Church are one in the same thing.   The term "church" is an interesting term, because it is not a "biblical" word.  Yes, it occurs in many Bibles, but the term "church" is neither part of the Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek that the Bible is written in.  If you look up the term "church" as it is used in the New Testament, you will discover that it is the greek word "ekklesia."  This term is actually a combination of two words in greek  “ek”  meaning "out of" and “kaleo” meaning "I call."  The intent of the term is to describe God's people as those "called out of" the world as intended by Paul in Col.1:13,18. The term "church" is actually an English term of Middle English derivation,  of the Dutch/German/Slavic terms of the greek “kuriokos” meaning “belonging to the Lord.”  It was a term used to identify those who belonged to the Lord, which is not an incorrect use or identification. "Kuriokos" became shortened to "kurioch" which then later became shortened to  "kurch" which then became our modern English "church."  Still initially with the same original meaning intended, which as we have said, is not an incorrect application.  However,  men will do as men will do, and abuse of this term "church" has occurred where where men have craved power that belonged only to the Lord.  So, over history, men have made God's "church" into things that God never meant for it to be.  Men have made the church a philosophy, a culture, a Civil Government and ultimately a Business.  Confusing -- needless to say. But, this is not God's way (1 Cor.14:33), it is the world's and ultimately evil (1 Jn.2:16). 

Probably with that statement, you wish to shoot me to a wall with arrows. But before you do, I ask you to consider with me the question - What did God mean..what did God have in mind when He first mentioned "the church?"

Would it surprise you to note, that Jesus - who is the head of and author of the "church" only mentions it twice while He is living upon this planet?  Matt.16:18 and Matt 18:17 are the only places that Jesus mentions "the church." In the remainder of this post, we will look at Matt.16:18 and the context of it to see what Jesus meant when He said what began this all, "I will build my church."

1. "I will build" - tells us that He and no one else is the builder of His church. It is not left to men to build, to plant, or to possess. He will build it - period. It is already planted BY Him, all I can do is cultivate what He has given.  It is not mine to possess in any way shape or form. It is His!   
2. "and the gates of Hades (see footnote 1 below) will not overpower it" -  If death or the realm of death (Hades) cannot overpower it, then it is not an "earthly" thing (2 Pet.3:7). It is a Spiritual place subject only to the rule of God and Christ. No earthly realm can rule over it, no earthly influence shall have dominion in it and it still be called Christ's. 
3. "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."  This tells us that Jesus' church is a spiritual place guided by heavenly and spiritual values that were decreed or loosened in Heaven before ever so here in this realm.  The decrees and values of God's Kingdom are God's. If not revealed within the context of His word (Jude vs.3; Heb.1:1-3; Jn

All of this brings us back now to our question, "When Jesus said He would build His church, what was He going to build? How would it be different than anything else that men have seen?" 

 The answer is found in what we have studied above, and in a statement made by Paul in Eph.3:10 "so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places."  Men have looked to government and human institutions of every kind, trying to find solace and peace. They have sought lauded rulers only to be disappointed. They have sought social and political institutions, only to find them as corrupt as everything else. And many have sought to find solace in "churches" - governed by man, and full of the same corruption that they find in every other human institution. 

God's church on the other hand (not men's) is the place where God's wisdom rules, where God's wisdom can be seen, and where the peace and solace that people yearn for can be found in God's Son (Mt.11:28-30). It is the place to which rulers, governments, authorities and other institutions look, when they want to see something of TRUE value!  THAT is what Jesus built!

We will look further into this subject in future posts.

Jim