My Journey of Faith
The Church Maze and Fellowship Sought
Throughout all my activities in "Church," I have felt sad, as though something was still missing. Twice, I shared with pastors my fear of facing the Judgment Seat of Christ, not the Great White Throne, for sins that were forgiven at the cross but for a life lived less than full measure having been born again by the Spirit of Christ. Neither of them took me seriously. One became outraged and tried to oust me from ministry. I fear that I touched a nerve.
What have I been looking for? Not a school that never leads me to practice what I learn, not a place where I can lift my voice in song one minute and become aggravated the next, not an organization that leaves the actual work to the professionals while I feel guilty for not being used to plant an Ekklesia.
An Ekklesia is a family where honesty, humility, transparency, and a longing for more of God are met with empathy, compassion, and a cooperative spirit whose prayers help tap into the life of God who hears, forgives, restores, and empowers.
The Church Maze and Fellowship Lost
By the end of the 2nd Century, mysticism and spiritualizing the Bible had replaced the leading of the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ as the head of the body, and humility in leadership as an absolute necessity.
By the 4th Century, Rome integrated Christianity and used it to control the people. It was not until 600 years ago that God began to raise prophets to reveal church corruption. Unfortunately, even though good came out of The Reformation a hundred years later, much corruption continues today. Consider the following quotes from E. H. Broadbent in The Pilgrim Church, and as he quoted Martin Luther.
"With unprecedented power and courage Luther had brought to light the Scripture truths as to the individual salvation of the sinner by faith, but failed when he might have shown the way to a return to Scripture in all things, including its teaching as to the Church." The Gospel was recovered, but within three Centuries, it would be partially lost, and little was ever done to restore holy living and dependency upon Christ.
Quoting Martin Luther, "The right kind of evangelical order cannot be exhibited among all sorts of people, but those who are seriously determined to be Christians and confess the Gospel with hand and mouth, must enrol themselves by name and meet apart, in one house, for prayer, for reading, to baptize, to take the Sacrament, and exercise other Christian works. With such order it would be possible for those who did not behave in a Christian manner to be known, reproved, restored, or excluded, according to the rule of Christ (Matt. 18. 15). Here it would not be necessary to have much or fine singing." The correct manner of behavior, leadership, and submission to Christ was known to Luther, but it was never implemented in the Church.
"After much hesitation he came at last to oppose any attempt to put into practice what he had so excellently portrayed." Here is where more than preaching in and of itself is needed to exact necessary change. "He did not, however, look upon the Lutheran Church as being the best possible form of religion that could be; he described it as "provisional," as the "outer court," and not the "Sanctuary," and he did not cease to exhort and warn the people."
"Luther condemned the people as not part of the Church, though they professed Christ. "He said: "If we look correctly at what people now do who reckon themselves as Evangelical and know how to talk much about Christ, there is nothing behind it. Most of them deceive themselves. The number of those who began with us and had pleasure in our teaching was ten times greater, now not a tenth part of them remains steadfast. They learn indeed to speak words, as a parrot repeats what people say, but their hearts do not experience them; they remain just as they are, they neither taste nor feel how true and faithful God is. They boast much of the Gospel and at first seek it earnestly, yet afterwards nothing remains; for they do what they like, follow their lusts, become worse than they were before, and are much more undisciplined and presumptuous ... than other people, for peasants, citizens, nobles, all are more covetous and undisciplined than they were under the Papacy."
"Ah, Lord God, if we only practised this doctrine correctly ...then at last we should come to be a Christian assembly, where now we are almost utter heathen with the name of Christian; then we could separate from ourselves those of whom we know by their works that they never believed and never had life, a thing that now is impossible to us."
The Church Maze and Fellowship Promised
"Now, if your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that ON THE TESTIMONY OF TWO OR THREE WITNESSES EVERY MATTER MAY BE CONFIRMED. And if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the Church; and if he refuses to listen even to the Church, he is to be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.
"Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven. For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst." (Matthew 18:15-18).
The Church Maze can only be discerned accurately from above, through the scriptures and much prayer.
(Isaiah 55:6)
"Seek the LORD while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near."
If you understand what Luther was saying to be true in large measure of the church today, please pass this on.
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