We can no longer ignore the hidden facts. Our whole value system is shifting to suit the needs of individuals. Our entire social structure is reshaping to serve the passions of its participants. On a massive magnitude, the global world is reapportioning power from the “somebodies” to [...]]]> RUN! . . . THE LAITY ARE COMING!

We can no longer ignore the hidden facts. Our whole value system is shifting to suit the needs of individuals. Our entire social structure is reshaping to serve the passions of its participants. On a massive magnitude, the global world is reapportioning power from the “somebodies” to the “nobodies.”

These facts forecast a transfigured “laity,” and Christendom will not escape their transformations.

The Christian “movement” now encompasses more than the “church.” Christ’s mission now embraces more than “religion.” For spiritual leaders are showing up outside the established church, and “unbelievers” are becoming “believers” outside our sacred “systems.”

At the same time, we see an unprecedented transfer of divine power from the ordained to the ordinary, from the educated to the uneducated, from the empowered to the unempowered. God is breaking the constraints, in other words, on who and what a “pastor” is. Spiritual leadership is being redefined, and the implications are enormous.

New Players on The Playing Field

“Cutting edge” churches talk big about each member having a “ministry”–about the importance of the “laity”–about the “priesthood of all believers.” For most churches, though, nothing has changed. The old English word laite (or “laity”) still means the same: It means everybody else–the “un-clergy,” the “un-ordained,” the “un-empowered. Or, we could call them the “Sunday spectators,” the “church-goers,” the “religious crowd”. . . .

. . . in other words, all those one step removed from God.

But behind the scenes, a new laity emerges. They are spiritually yearning–yet institutionally alienated–trailblazers. They are often the unwashed, unwanted, and unrefined. Or, more to the point, they are “not-us.” They are “alien” believers no longer satisfied to be marginalized, to be excluded, or to simply support someone else’s program.

They are leaving their spectator seats, and they are refusing yesterday’s “manna.”

Of course, these believers still need belonging, and they still need redemption. Most of all, though, they need empowerment. They’re tired of old illusions. They want a true “priesthood of every believer.” And, they want a totally new relation between the dispensers and receivers of sacred information.

In short, they want a new way of thinking.

And they won’t wait. Already, they’re finding ministries beyond the religious sector. They’re discovering the power of widespread, creative networking. They’re taking their place as players on the playing field. In other words, they’re becoming inspired participants in the real world.

Though we may refuse the idea, they are Christ’s brothers and sisters. They are ordinary people doing extraordinary things. And, they are leading Christianity into lands where old maps no longer work.

John Wesley is hidden in their DNA. Wesley said if a person’s heart is in the right place and they are obedient to the Lord, he cares

not a straw whether they be clergy or laymen. (For) such alone will shake the gates of hell and set up the Kingdom of Heaven on earth.(1)

The True Story

Today, we’re forced to admit our idea of “laity” was never the intention of the early church. To say “laity” (or laos in the New Testament) was simply to say “Christian.” In other words, the laity were not a subspecies of anything.(2)

Free and spontaneous worship gave central place to all participants. “Spiritual leadership,” in fact, was widely shared. Lydia and Onesimus, for example, did the work of “pastors,” yet they were not “clergy.” Indeed, they may not have been even members of a “church.”

And, though we may not believe it, men and women shared equally in praying and prophesying.(3) And society’s outcasts–rebels (Simon), fanatics (Paul), thieves (Onesimus), corrupt officials (Matthew), and worse–were the leading saints of the early church.

It was only later that Ignatius and Clement argued for the dividing of “clergy” and “laity”–the severing of superiors and subordinates. After the first disciples, however, the power of the church came not from the hierarchy. It came from the monastic movement–ordinary believers who turned their back on an increasingly secular church to seek God above all things.

Let’s face it. The monastic movement saved the church!

But history repeats itself. So, once again, shamed believers like Martin Luther complained,

It is pure invention that pope, bishop, priests, and monks are called the spiritual estate, and all princes, lords, artisans, and farmers are called the temporal estate. This is indeed a piece of deceit and hypocrisy.(4)

What’s-His-Name

Yet, nothing has changed–even in the Prostestant church. Today’s church is still a “Christendom” church–a centuries-old legacy of the Roman Empire. It ignores the signs of the times–the raw truths of a pre-Christendom heritage and the sober warnings of a post-Christendom reality. It has become irrelevant to the Lord of History.

“Christendom” churches restrict things “religious” to certain times, certain places, certain people–”sacred” programs, “sacred” pews, “sacred” privileges. . . . Their little “kingdoms” are their only community, and their little communities are their only “calling.” So their very existence requires pulling people in and never letting them go.

It’s a survival anxiety, a maintenance mentality.

In Christendom churches, all “religious” energies must be focused toward the church. That means “professional” Christians must get the “amateur” Christians to “fill all the slots.” That means a command-and-control structure must prompt a silent consensus to work all the in-house programs.

It is a closed system, of course, with lockstep procedures, fixed agendas, and authorized leaders. So spirit-led laity and creative self-starters need not apply. And all the others must never stray from official guidelines

God help you if you make a mistake.

Obviously, these churches invest more in programs than in people. And, when necessary, they are ready to sacrifice people on behalf of their “first love.” In other words, if you’ve not chosen your own cross, they are more than happy to choose one for you.

And like most wars, “the soldiers are expendable.”

It’s no surprise that Christian “movers and shakers” outside the church feel totally underutilized–totally out of the loop. They’re told, for example, “Put your dream on hold and come support a real ministry.” That “real” ministry, however, turns out to be a frustrated club of part-time, spiritual dilettantes. And the clergy respond to their inevitable complaints by “getting what’s-his-name to read a prayer.”

And you ask, “Where are the disciples?”

But pity most the multitudes of hand fed sheep–the passive churchgoers blindly following out of habit or duty. Or grieve especially for those lethargic conformers already seduced by the addictive consumer church. Long ago, someone higher up decided these laity were “needy”–that they must be taken care of–that they must be given carbon copies, hand-me-down reports, of someone else’s story.

So they stand in line for their cupful of stale, second-hand spirituality. And, they’re given, instead, this meanspirited paradox: “. . . a Spirit that is much too obvious to see and much too close to reach.”(5) The damage done is incredible.

Each of us is an active, proactive, creative agent. Each of us “kick-starts” our moment in history–no matter how big or how small that moment may be. And, regardless of our ineptness, God still works through each of us to accomplish His purpose.

“There is anger over the hogging of ministry by professionals; anger over not empowering all Christians for ministry; anger over not releasing the spiritual potential in every believer.”(6)

A Team of “Spiritual Entrepreneurs”

But angry believers won’t have to wait long. The old notion of “professional Christians” is now questioned. For today, a new synergy–a horizontal synergy–is emerging between clergy and laity.

Already, authentic leaders are changing from harvesting to cultivating, from manipulating to mentoring, from teaching to modeling. Already, they are changing from programs to people, from “doing” ministry to “equipping” ministry, from managing institutions to making disciples.

Of course, the secular world had already discovered this shift from “hierarchical, competitive, aggression-based criteria of excellence to supportive, collaborative, interactive ones.”(7) And it has rediscovered, as well, the Latin word “authority,” which means “to help others to grow.”

So–better late than never–the church now toys with a shift from vertical style to horizontal style–from rank and status to love and grace–from patron-client roles to (believe it or not!) Christian brotherhood. It is a shared journey, a pilgrim companionship, a common walk. It is a non-coercive connectedness, a mutual mentoring, a paradox of following while leading. And no one rises above advice or critique.

It’s not so much a top-down structure. It’s more like a “solar system” where each planet has its own orbit, its own “gifts.” In other words, it’s more like a team of “spiritual entrepreneurs” where each believer supports and encourages the other’s inspired destiny.

St. Augustine got it right:

“What I am for you terrifies me; what I am with you consoles me. For you I am a bishop; but with you I am a Christian. The former is a duty; the latter a grace. The former is a danger; the latter, salvation”(8)

Spinning Off Totally New Riffs

So tomorrow’s spiritual leaders will build leaders who build leaders. They will make disciples who make disciples. And, they will equip apostles who equip apostles. Over, and over, and over. . . .

Jesus didn’t say, “Go change the city.” He said, “Go make disciples.”(9) In other words, ministry is through us, not about us. Through visioning, modeling, mentoring, equipping, risking, and midwifing, the new clergy will empower others to act. They will release the gifts, talents, passions, and energies of all.

That means anyone, anywhere, anytime, and any way. It means incognito missions of every kind–ministries in any walk of life–inspired creativity wherever it’s found–entrepreneurship in all Christ-like events. It means both within their community and beyond their community–cross-cultural and counter-cultural–local and global.

This new network is the new notion of “team.” It’s the paradox of diversity, yet unity–fluid spirit relationships, yet the same Spirit–distinct ways of witnessing, yet the same Word. It’s like a jazz ensemble intuitively following the leading of an inspired motive, then creatively responding to variations of that motive. All the while, though, each player supports and encourages the band’s unity. Then, suddenly, the band spins off totally new riffs in hot pursuit of the Lord of History.

Getting the Keys to the Car

Does anything go?

As long as the laity are aligned with the mission, they need a long “leash.” In other words, they need permission to do their own thing, to feel in control of their own destiny, to dream of more than they’ve ever dreamed to be. That means removing all the unnecessary barriers, all the things that stifle growth, all the constraints on new ideas.

Such permission, of course, includes permission to make mistakes. Of course, the apparent anarchy and seeming chaos of these mistakes drive perfectionists and control freaks crazy. But risk is a necessary ingredient of creativity, and novices need plenteous room to put their inspiration into play.

Sooner or later, they must be given the keys to the car.

This permission doesn’t mean laity have total freedom. And it doesn’t mean leaders relinquish total control. For the leader does not ignore his own anointing or sacrifice his own conviction. And, he’s not a pushover or a Casper-milquetoast pastor.

Sometimes, he must step in. He must rescue the participants, hold them accountable, or even throw out the “bad apples.” He may allow mistakes, but he doesn’t allow mistakes to “take over.” He may permit some things, but he doesn’t permit all things.

We confuse permission with permissiveness.

>>

Finally, though, transfigured laity mean transfigured leaders. The success of leaders, for example, is no longer the harvest, but the planting–no longer power, but empowerment–no longer personal gifts, but other’s gifts.

It’s a different success.

And, the sculptor Michelangelo knew this difference. Patiently–but passionately–he chipped away the excess marble while allowing God’s own vision to emerge.

© 2006 Thomas Hohstadt

ENDNOTES

1. John Wesley, http://prayerfoundation.org/books/book_review_heroes_john_wesley.htm.

2. See the following random Scriptures: Matthew 23:8-12; Romans 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 12, 14:26;
Ephesians 4:7-16; 1 Thessalonians 5:19-21; James 3:1,2; 1 Peter 4:9-11.

3. 1 Corinthians 14:14-15, 26; Colossians 3:16; Ephesians 5:19.

4. Martin Luther, http://www.sspxasia.com/Documents/Archbishop-Lefebvre/Luthers-Mass.htm.

5. Ken Wilber, A Theory of Everything: An Integral Vision for Business, Politics, Science, and Spirituality
(Boston: Shambhala, 2000) p 141.

6. Leonard Sweet, SoulTsunami: Sink or Swim in New Millennium Culture
(Grand Rapids, MI, Zondervan, 1999) p.58.

7. Derrick de Kerckhove, The Skin of Culture (Toronto: Somerville House Publishing, 1995) p. 62.

8. St. Augustine, quoted in Dogmatic Constitution of the Church, Vatican II Council, http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents
/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html.

9. Matthew 28:18-20.

If you would like to see an article on a specific topic, please feel free to e-mail Dr. Hohstadt at suggestions@futurechurch.net

A flower blooming in your garden is a unique expression of many different ingredients such as the sun, water and earth. Although it is a beautiful expression of these qualities, the whole ecosystem that made this flower possible is infinitely greater than just this flower. The flower will soon fade and die, [...]]]> Ekklesia and Christ

A flower blooming in your garden is a unique expression of many different ingredients such as the sun, water and earth. Although it is a beautiful expression of these qualities, the whole ecosystem that made this flower possible is infinitely greater than just this flower. The flower will soon fade and die, but creation continues.

When we speak about church, we have to look far beyond the local assembly, limited to time and space, that many refer to as church, before we can truly understand this. The local assembly is spoken of in scripture, but much more is said about the infinitely greater realities of which the local assembly is simply an expression.

We will therefore first look at the realities regarding ekklesia (church), beyond its temporal expression in a local assembly. Once these truths are grasped our expression of them will be much more accurate and beautiful. Trying to emulate the local assemblies we see in the N.T. without appreciating the realities that birthed these assemblies will leave us with lifeless, meaningless yet biblically correct assemblies! By this I mean the form will be there, but not the life. The appearance might be correct but the fruit will be missing as per the fig tree that Jesus cursed.

‘Ekklesia’ is the Greek word most often translated as ‘church’ in the New Testament. In plain usage it meant an assembly. Interestingly it is made up of two root words, the first being:
ek, ex
A primary preposition denoting origin (the point whence motion or action proceeds), from, out
And the second part being:
kal-eh’-o
to “call” (properly aloud, but used in a variety of applications, directly or otherwise): – bid, call (forth), (whose, whose sur-) name (was [called]).

It implies being named by our origin. From our origin proceeds a call; from our creator comes a claim upon our existence. Our Father names us and what He calls us is more valid than any other name or identity we might have adopted. Eph 3:15 reveals that all families/races/nations of man are named by the Father. The same words are used namely ‘ek’ (from whom) and the word named.
Eph 3:15 “Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named”

Firstly we have to say, based on this and many other scriptures, that The father’s call is for every person; his claim is upon all mankind for He knows their true identity; He is the origin from whom this call proceeds.
It then follows that those who respond to His call, those who acknowledge their true identity in Him become the manifested form of this ekklesia.

Jesus had a few things to say about ekklesia.

Mat 16:13-18 When Jesus arrived in the villages of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “What are people saying about who the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some think he is John the Baptizer, some say Elijah, some Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”
He pressed them, “And how about you? Who do you say I am?”
Simon Peter said, “You’re the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus came back, “God bless you, Simon, son of Jonah! You didn’t get that answer out of books or from teachers. My Father in heaven, God himself, let you in on this secret of who I really am. And now I’m going to tell you who you are, really are. You are Peter, a rock. This is the rock on which I will put together my church, a church so expansive with energy that not even the gates of hell will be able to keep it out.

Can you see how the true identity of Jesus and the true identity of man is the revelation upon which Jesus builds His church. The Father revealed to Simon that the Son of Man is indeed the Son of God. He, however, only saw its significance in relation to Jesus. Jesus does not leave this here, but takes the revelation a step further. This is not only a revelation regarding the identity of Jesus, but also a revelation regarding the identity of man.
Jesus speaks very specifically to Peter regarding his identity. He starts by referring to him as “Simon, son of Jonah” With this Jesus confirms that he too is a son of man. But the he draws him into a deeper understanding of his identity. “You are Peter” ‘Peter’ meaning a piece of a rock. Jesus uses a different word the second time He refers to rock. He does not use the word ‘piece of rock’ but refers to the actual big rock from which the piece came. Isa 51:1 “Listen to me, all you who are serious about right living and committed to seeking GOD. Ponder the rock from which you were cut, the quarry from which you were dug.” Deut 32:3,4 respond to the greatness of our God! The Rock: His works are perfect.
Jesus challenges Peter to consider his own origin beyond his natural birth and come to the same conclusion concerning himself as the conclusion he came to concerning Christ, namely: the son of man (son of Jonah in this case) is also the son of God!

“Upon this rock” – the rock from which you were cut – your origin, I will build my church – the call of man’s origin. Whatever literal place is meant with the word Hades, there is also a very significant meaning beyond this. For the word is made of two words that mean ‘to see’ and the negative form of it. So figuratively it means ‘not to see’ or ignorance!
John 1:4,5 In Him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

Jesus came and lived a life as an open display of who and what man originally was intended to be. This open manifestation of life as it was intended, appeals to every man’s conscience because there remained in man a divine spark despite the fall. This same appeal is extended through those who responded to this call and so Paul writes concerning his life “but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God” (2Cor 4:2).

When Paul writes about this ekklesia in the letter to the Ephesians, he uses the picture of a body of which Christ is the Head. What he describes is not just a local assembly. He does not start with the form or the method through which these truths are expressed, but rather with the bigger picture of what it is really about.
God desires to express Himself! God wants a body! Your body is not some remote controlled object apart from your head. You are one. In this same way the Father planned, and took pleasure in this plan, and He chose man as the ideal container for Himself. Verse 18 reveals that God has an inheritance and that inheritance is in man! He designed us as the ultimate expression of Himself. How big, varied, deep, wide, broad and long is God’s expression of Himself? Can you measure Him? This must bring us to the conclusion that we should never seek to control, limit or define how God is to express Himself through the church, lest we make it an expression of ourselves rather than an expression of Him. The head, Christ, alone directs and inspires each individual part to do whatever He desires. How often have we tried to displace Christ with methods of our own making.

Ekklesia is so much more than the final expression of it in a local body. We will look at the local body later, but first let us see deeper into what ekklesia really is.
1Co 12:12 Even as the body is one, and has many members, but all the members of the one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ.

Christ is no longer an individual! Read 1Cor12:12 again and again until you see it. Christ now consists of many members, making one body. You are a part of what makes Christ, Christ. It is for this reason that we should never dishonour Christ by equating Him with an organisation. Only ‘that’ which is made in His likeness and image is able of expressing His likeness and image. When we speak of church we speak of Christ or at least a part of Christ and Christ is not an event or a program or an organisation made by human hands. He is a person in whom the fullness of the godhead dwells in bodily form.

Ekklesia from God’s point of view is not a temporary arrangement. Eph 3:19-21 reveals that God purposes to manifest Himself through us in ways we have not imagined and that this demonstration of who He is will continue throughout all ages to come.

Eph 3:1921 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end.

Church as a local body is a temporal manifestation of real church which is eternal. Heb 12:23 shows that ekklesia includes the assembly of the spirits of just men. So church as God knows it, is not limited to the here and now. His church is eternal.

By Andre Rabe

http://eclesia.blogspot.com

A flower blooming in your garden is a unique expression of many different ingredients such as the sun, water and earth. Although it is a beautiful expression of these qualities, the whole ecosystem that made this flower possible is infinitely greater than just this flower. The flower will soon fade and die, [...]]]> Ekklesia and Christ

A flower blooming in your garden is a unique expression of many different ingredients such as the sun, water and earth. Although it is a beautiful expression of these qualities, the whole ecosystem that made this flower possible is infinitely greater than just this flower. The flower will soon fade and die, but creation continues.

When we speak about church, we have to look far beyond the local assembly, limited to time and space, that many refer to as church, before we can truly understand this. The local assembly is spoken of in scripture, but much more is said about the infinitely greater realities of which the local assembly is simply an expression.

We will therefore first look at the realities regarding ekklesia (church), beyond its temporal expression in a local assembly. Once these truths are grasped our expression of them will be much more accurate and beautiful. Trying to emulate the local assemblies we see in the N.T. without appreciating the realities that birthed these assemblies will leave us with lifeless, meaningless yet biblically correct assemblies! By this I mean the form will be there, but not the life. The appearance might be correct but the fruit will be missing as per the fig tree that Jesus cursed.

‘Ekklesia’ is the Greek word most often translated as ‘church’ in the New Testament. In plain usage it meant an assembly. Interestingly it is made up of two root words, the first being:
ek, ex
A primary preposition denoting origin (the point whence motion or action proceeds), from, out
And the second part being:
kal-eh’-o
to “call” (properly aloud, but used in a variety of applications, directly or otherwise): – bid, call (forth), (whose, whose sur-) name (was [called]).

It implies being named by our origin. From our origin proceeds a call; from our creator comes a claim upon our existence. Our Father names us and what He calls us is more valid than any other name or identity we might have adopted. Eph 3:15 reveals that all families/races/nations of man are named by the Father. The same words are used namely ‘ek’ (from whom) and the word named.
Eph 3:15 “Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named”

Firstly we have to say, based on this and many other scriptures, that The father’s call is for every person; his claim is upon all mankind for He knows their true identity; He is the origin from whom this call proceeds.
It then follows that those who respond to His call, those who acknowledge their true identity in Him become the manifested form of this ekklesia.

Jesus had a few things to say about ekklesia.

Mat 16:13-18 When Jesus arrived in the villages of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “What are people saying about who the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some think he is John the Baptizer, some say Elijah, some Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”
He pressed them, “And how about you? Who do you say I am?”
Simon Peter said, “You’re the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus came back, “God bless you, Simon, son of Jonah! You didn’t get that answer out of books or from teachers. My Father in heaven, God himself, let you in on this secret of who I really am. And now I’m going to tell you who you are, really are. You are Peter, a rock. This is the rock on which I will put together my church, a church so expansive with energy that not even the gates of hell will be able to keep it out.

Can you see how the true identity of Jesus and the true identity of man is the revelation upon which Jesus builds His church. The Father revealed to Simon that the Son of Man is indeed the Son of God. He, however, only saw its significance in relation to Jesus. Jesus does not leave this here, but takes the revelation a step further. This is not only a revelation regarding the identity of Jesus, but also a revelation regarding the identity of man.
Jesus speaks very specifically to Peter regarding his identity. He starts by referring to him as “Simon, son of Jonah” With this Jesus confirms that he too is a son of man. But the he draws him into a deeper understanding of his identity. “You are Peter” ‘Peter’ meaning a piece of a rock. Jesus uses a different word the second time He refers to rock. He does not use the word ‘piece of rock’ but refers to the actual big rock from which the piece came. Isa 51:1 “Listen to me, all you who are serious about right living and committed to seeking GOD. Ponder the rock from which you were cut, the quarry from which you were dug.” Deut 32:3,4 respond to the greatness of our God! The Rock: His works are perfect.
Jesus challenges Peter to consider his own origin beyond his natural birth and come to the same conclusion concerning himself as the conclusion he came to concerning Christ, namely: the son of man (son of Jonah in this case) is also the son of God!

“Upon this rock” – the rock from which you were cut – your origin, I will build my church – the call of man’s origin. Whatever literal place is meant with the word Hades, there is also a very significant meaning beyond this. For the word is made of two words that mean ‘to see’ and the negative form of it. So figuratively it means ‘not to see’ or ignorance!
John 1:4,5 In Him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

Jesus came and lived a life as an open display of who and what man originally was intended to be. This open manifestation of life as it was intended, appeals to every man’s conscience because there remained in man a divine spark despite the fall. This same appeal is extended through those who responded to this call and so Paul writes concerning his life “but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God” (2Cor 4:2).

When Paul writes about this ekklesia in the letter to the Ephesians, he uses the picture of a body of which Christ is the Head. What he describes is not just a local assembly. He does not start with the form or the method through which these truths are expressed, but rather with the bigger picture of what it is really about.
God desires to express Himself! God wants a body! Your body is not some remote controlled object apart from your head. You are one. In this same way the Father planned, and took pleasure in this plan, and He chose man as the ideal container for Himself. Verse 18 reveals that God has an inheritance and that inheritance is in man! He designed us as the ultimate expression of Himself. How big, varied, deep, wide, broad and long is God’s expression of Himself? Can you measure Him? This must bring us to the conclusion that we should never seek to control, limit or define how God is to express Himself through the church, lest we make it an expression of ourselves rather than an expression of Him. The head, Christ, alone directs and inspires each individual part to do whatever He desires. How often have we tried to displace Christ with methods of our own making.

Ekklesia is so much more than the final expression of it in a local body. We will look at the local body later, but first let us see deeper into what ekklesia really is.
1Co 12:12 Even as the body is one, and has many members, but all the members of the one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ.

Christ is no longer an individual! Read 1Cor12:12 again and again until you see it. Christ now consists of many members, making one body. You are a part of what makes Christ, Christ. It is for this reason that we should never dishonour Christ by equating Him with an organisation. Only ‘that’ which is made in His likeness and image is able of expressing His likeness and image. When we speak of church we speak of Christ or at least a part of Christ and Christ is not an event or a program or an organisation made by human hands. He is a person in whom the fullness of the godhead dwells in bodily form.

Ekklesia from God’s point of view is not a temporary arrangement. Eph 3:19-21 reveals that God purposes to manifest Himself through us in ways we have not imagined and that this demonstration of who He is will continue throughout all ages to come.

Eph 3:1921 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fullness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end.

Church as a local body is a temporal manifestation of real church which is eternal. Heb 12:23 shows that ekklesia includes the assembly of the spirits of just men. So church as God knows it, is not limited to the here and now. His church is eternal.

By Andre Rabe

http://eclesia.blogspot.com

God places a very high premium on the individual’s personal freedom, especially in the way we relate to one another. The following piece, written by Paul, shows this attitude very clearly. The setting is a ‘love feast’, that is when Christians and often non-Christians came together and shared a meal together. The Lords [...]]]> Personal freedom.

God places a very high premium on the individual’s personal freedom, especially in the way we relate to one another. The following piece, written by Paul, shows this attitude very clearly. The setting is a ‘love feast’, that is when Christians and often non-Christians came together and shared a meal together. The Lords meal in this context was not a symbolic piece of tasteless wafer and microscopic sips of wine. It was a real meal with symbolic meaning.

Rom 14:2 – 13 (MESSAGE)
For instance, a person who has been around for a while might well be convinced that he can eat anything on the table, while another, with a different background, might assume all Christians should be vegetarians and eat accordingly. But since both are guests at Christ’s table, wouldn’t it be terribly rude if they fell to criticizing what the other ate or didn’t eat? God, after all, invited them both to the table. Do you have any business crossing people off the guest list or interfering with God’s welcome? If there are corrections to be made or manners to be learned, God can handle that without your help. Or, say, one person thinks that some days should be set aside as holy and another thinks that each day is pretty much like any other. There are good reasons either way. So, each person is free to follow the convictions of conscience.
What’s important in all this is that if you keep a holy day, keep it for God’s sake; if you eat meat, eat it to the glory of God and thank God for prime rib; if you’re a vegetarian, eat vegetables to the glory of God and thank God for broccoli.
None of us are permitted to insist on our own way in these matters.
It’s God we are answerable to–all the way from life to death and everything in between–not each other. That’s why Jesus lived and died and then lived again: so that he could be our Master across the entire range of life and death, and free us from the petty tyrannies of each other.
So where does that leave you when you criticize a brother? And where does that leave you when you condescend to a sister? I’d say it leaves you looking pretty silly–or worse. Eventually, we’re all going to end up kneeling side by side in the place of judgment, facing God. Your critical and condescending ways aren’t going to improve your position there one bit.
Read it for yourself in Scripture: “As I live and breathe,” God says, “every knee will bow before me; Every tongue will tell the honest truth that I and only I am God.”
So tend to your knitting. You’ve got your hands full just taking care of your own life before God.
Forget about deciding what’s right for each other. Here’s what you need to be concerned about: that you don’t get in the way of someone else, making life more difficult than it already is.

andre.rabe@gmail.com

http://eclesia.blogspot.com

· Focussed

Let’s consider the following scenario. The city of Galatia never even heard of Jesus Christ before Paul and Barnabas arrived there. (Acts13:14-) From the time that Paul first preached till the time they left was about four months.

They leave these new, fresh, ‘baby’ Christians with nothing but the message [...]]]> Revolution Part 2

· Focussed

Let’s consider the following scenario. The city of Galatia never even heard of Jesus Christ before Paul and Barnabas arrived there. (Acts13:14-) From the time that Paul first preached till the time they left was about four months.

They leave these new, fresh, ‘baby’ Christians with nothing but the message they heard. They leave them without an institution or organisation to support them. They leave them without any professional clergy to keep them on track. They leave them without any leadership! (Leadership within churches only developed many years later, but always remained very low-key. These believers had to learn how to be brothers before they learned how to be elders. This is also why Paul’s letters are never written to the leaders at churches, but to the whole church. Leaders weren’t really an issue – they were simply brothers who served more than others). They leave them without a Bible! They leave them without any training material. But what do they leave?

They left them with the sobering reality that the message they heard is either true and contains within itself all the sustenance they need, or it’s just another man-made religion that will fall flat in the absence of all the support structures needed to keep man-made systems from falling. All they had was Christ in them and brothers around them. They found out that’s all they need. It is all we need also and once we take away all these artificial support structures we will once again discover the sustaining power of the original message.

In the absence of all the things we thought were essential to our Christianity they discovered that a clear focus on Christ was the essence of their faith. This message-focussed quality was a vital part of what made first century Christianity revolutionary.

· Lack of control

We have a few records of people informing the apostles in Jerusalem of what God has done in other places. We have no record of people coming to ask permission to take this message to another region. There was no way to stop it! It was, and is, a way of life.

This total lack of control caused wonderful and unexpected results. This message transformed ordinary people into God’s own personal ambassadors. This absence of official control was undoubtedly one of the key elements that made this church so dynamic and revolutionary.

The good news of Jesus Christ – the revelation of who God really is and the revelation of who man really is – still has those revolutionary qualities in it today. But we are required not to mix it, and dilute it with teachings that deny the very essence of it. When Paul eventually wrote to the Galatian Christians, He did not start with an apology for leaving so soon. Neither did He try to check up on the program or use it as an occasion to introduce some new rules, or ordain that pastor they never got. No, thank God no. His message was to assure them regarding the freedom they found and warn them not to submit to any regulations, even religious regulations that would try and undermine this freedom.

I read a delightful account of the history of the Celtic Christian communities in Britain. When the Roman Catholic Church arrived they were a bit disgusted that Christianity was already present and they did not introduce it! Although the Catholic ‘church’ was successful in assimilating just about every Christian community into its system, they found the Celts just impossible. They just wouldn’t conform to the system. (It took hundreds of years to make them forget the message and fit into the system) I had to smile when they mentioned that the Galatians were originally Celts and that the Christian faith was brought to them through their family contacts with Galatia. Paul would have been proud. The first letter Paul wrote was to warn these Christians to not submit themselves to religious traditions and regulation. They obviously learned this lesson well. May we learn it anew.

· Lack of building!

Another unique feature of these early Christians is that they did not have a building of their own. All other religions of the time had their own sacred meeting places, but these Christians just met in homes! This was not just a coincidence, its strategically part of God’s plan. There are no religious buildings numerous or big enough to contain the intended audience of the gospel. But there are enough houses! It is also in the setting of a house that the previously discussed values, flourish naturally.

It was about 300 years after Jesus’ resurrection that the first Christian buildings were built by the emperor Constantine. I remember when I first learned this as a child. I thought that it was great that such an important person accepted Jesus and built buildings for the Christians. Today I have come to know that it was probably one of the greatest curses introduced to Christianity. What used to be a ‘lay’ led movement, focussed on a glorious message, free from institutional control, living in the reality of brotherhood, was reduced for the most part to just another man-made institution. What Satan failed to achieve through persecution, he almost succeeded at, through the introduction of church buildings and the reduction of our understanding of church, to a man-made institution. No matter how much lip-service we pay to the truth that people are the church, if a building and professional clergy remains at the centre of our Christian fellowship, we have exchanged the values of true church for something less.

As our focus returns to the treasure within us, may we remove everything that distract from the simplicity of knowing and living Christ.

By Andre Rabe
andre.rabe@gmail.com
http://hearhim.net/

In this series we’ll be looking at what made the first century Christians (church) so revolutionary. This was a revolution that turned their world upside down and our desire is to see the core values and message that made this so.

- Brotherhood

Never before was there a religion or philosophy that so [...]]]> Revolution Part 1

In this series we’ll be looking at what made the first century Christians (church) so revolutionary. This was a revolution that turned their world upside down and our desire is to see the core values and message that made this so.

- Brotherhood

Never before was there a religion or philosophy that so completely removed the barriers of class and status as the message that was embraced by these early believers. Neither was this an intellectual or philosophical equality, but it produced a community in which the slave and his master, the Jew and the Greek sat next to one another as equals, acknowledging the image of God in one another.
Gal 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek: there is neither bond nor free: there is neither male nor female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.

In a society, much more class conscious than our own, this new-found truth of man’s identity in Christ, caused people who previously would not even look at each other, to sit and eat and converse around the same table. They ate a real meal with a symbolic meaning – as they all partook of the same wine and bread they were reminded that they were all equally included in the work of Christ when His body was broken (as the bread) and His blood flowed (the wine). The meal was real and the meaning symbolic not the other way round.

This total absence of class distinction, race distinction and any other barrier between men, was one of the most revolutionary characteristics of this new way of life. It was not politically correct or socially acceptable, nevertheless it was the undeniable result of believing that we all have the same Father, who values and esteems us all the same.
The word ‘brethren’ or ‘brothers’ is one of the most popular words in the New Testament, used more than 340 times! So are the words ‘among’ and ‘one another’.

In that time, just as now, subtle deception, that brought awareness of position, levels of importance etc, tried to creep in unnoticed. James spoke very sternly about this in chapter two of his letter to a church. He said that if we reserve a better seat for a person that obviously has greater importance than another, then we violate the very essence of this gospel.

This revelation of the brotherhood of all men, our equality in His eyes, displayed in our esteem of one another, is an essential key to the revolutionary results of the first century Christians. Let’s grasp firmly this revelation again. Let’s bring back some of the revolutionary elements of our faith.

- No professional Clergy.

Christianity was the first ‘religion’ in the history of humanity that did not have its own religious buildings or own professional clergy. Even ‘eldership’ was secondary to ‘brotherhood’ In Paul’s letters he speaks of brothers 134 times, elders 5 times, overseers 4 times and pastors 1 time. He spoke of these concepts in proportion to their importance. It was the revelation of brotherhood that was much more essential to the faith than the eventual emergence of elders, or those mature in faith, to describe it differently.

These communities learned brotherhood long before (many years) they learned ‘elderhood.’ Even the word ‘leadership’ is deceptive in speaking about those who stood out. They stood out because of their servanthood.
Mat 23:11,12 “Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant. If you puff yourself up, you’ll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you’re content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty.

Because this movement was led by ‘lay’, unprofessional, uneducated people, it became the most revolutionary movement ever. This is an essential quality of these radical new communities called church. The time of restoration has come!

This is the very quality that made duplication of this faith so easy! You did not need a qualification, a certificate or any other training to minister Christ to others. All you needed was the relationship you enjoyed with Him, displayed in the way you valued others.

Those with religious titles and positions were particularly disturbed that uneducated men were able to manifest God in a more real way than what they ever knew was possible.
Act 4:13 They couldn’t take their eyes off them–Peter and John standing there so confident, so sure of themselves! Their fascination deepened when they realized these two were laymen with no training in Scripture or formal education. They recognized them as companions of Jesus,

Let’s take a firm grip on this essential quality that made ‘the way’ the most revolutionary movement of its day. A new revolution is brewing, or more like an old one, coming to its grand finale.

By Andre Rabe
andre.rabe@gmail.com
www.hearhim.net