Meeting in Homes

Where should one meet for worship, community, and discipleship?  One of the places the bible speaks  about - are homes. Just in case you think I am just one of those new church kind of thinkers, I would say to you that I am just making myself in line with the New Testament.  Read the  passages are listed below. 

 Acts 2:46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, Acts 5:42 Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ. Acts 12:12-13 When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying. 13Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer the door. Acts 16: 39-40 They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city. 40After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia's house, where they met with the brothers and encouraged them. Then they left. Acts 20:20 You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. Romans 16: 4 They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them. 5Greet also the church that meets at their house. Greet my dear friend Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia. 6Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you.1 Corinthians 16:19 The churches in the province of Asia send you greetings. Aquila and Priscilla[a] greet you warmly in the Lord, and so does the church that meets at their house. Colossians 4: 14 Our dear friend Luke, the doctor, and Demas send greetings. 15Give my greetings to the brothers at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house. Philemon 1 Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our dear friend and fellow worker, 2to Apphia our sister, to Archippus our fellow soldier and to the church that meets in your home:

 It appears the early church from Jerusalem, Rome, Philippi, Corinth, Ephesus, Colossae, and the letter to Philemon they either utilized a model of public worship as well as gatherings in homes, or simply did church in homes, which naturally because of size, were smaller. Some of these were churches, one was a prayer gathering (Acts 16:39-40), and the Acts 2 ones give the idea of community and worship in the home throughout Jerusalem. Obviously, Christ was the centerpiece of what they did both publicly and in the homes.   

Who are you inviting over this week?  Whose home are you going to where you will experience community and focus on the glory of Christ?  

Gas

Here is some real excitement for the day - I bought gas this morning at Walmart for $3.11 a gallon.  Wow!  Does that knowledge help you today?  I needed to tell someone. Okay, I feel better now.

He Called Her Over

I do not exactly how your relationship with God works, but since you are human like me (you are human right?), you more than likely do some of the things that I do.  I came across a familiar story this morning, but as I read it, it was seen with fresh eyes.  It forms the basis for the devotion this week.  Let’s read the scripture to get the full picture.                                                                                                                                                                                                              Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.  And there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for 18 years.  She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself.  When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability.”  And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God.  Luke 13:10-14                                                                         This day was not unlike other days in Jesus ministry.  He was at church with a bunch of other people worshiping and focusing on God.  One of the things we can forget about, is that when we come to church there are people all around us who, like us, have secret things that no one knows, they have pain and sickness in their bodies, some are disillusioned, and others have been in a certain condition for years without relief.  We sometimes come to a bible study or church and our focus in entirely on us.  Will I like the music?  Will the sermon be good?  What am I doing after church?  Where will go eat later?  Who is playing soccer today?  It is amazing how we come to worship for the sole purpose of honoring God and spend our time focusing on the things that have to do with our lives – all in a place where we have come to focus solely on God and others.  When we focus so much on us, we forget that there are so many other people around us who need a friend, an encouraging word, someone to sit by them, or just a friendly smile or handshake. 

In our story, there was a woman who for 18 years was stricken by something that caused her to be bent over and not be able to straighten herself.  Can you imagine that?  18 years of a body that could not get straight.  Could that describe you and I in some area of our lives?  Most likely all of us have issues that are so heavy they cause to not walk straight emotionally and spiritually, but the weight of them causes us to be “bent”.  No matter how much we try, the issue just seems to remain.  After a long time, it feels defeating and we may even wonder if we can ever find relief. 

            We do not know if she had gone to many doctors for help and we do not even know if she came to church on this day knowing that Jesus would be there.  We simply do not know.  For me personally, here is where the story gets unique.  The text indicates that she was not near Jesus, she was not coming to him,  it simply says that she was there in the synagogue.  Too often I am afraid, I find myself coming seeking out God for what I desire him to do in me, for my family, or in Germany.  Of course we should come to him and say what is on our hearts, we just need to make sure the request lines up with His will.  She may have had no idea that her hope was going to be at church that day.  She most likely did not come expecting God to move in her and bring his healing.  But God, is different than you and I.

What is interesting in the story are these words, “When Jesus saw her, he called her over.”  Jesus sought her out in the worship service.  He saw her need and he called her to come to him.  Think about that for a moment.  She did not come seeking him, but she found that he was seeking after her.  She was not looking at him, but he was looking at her.  We forget that Jesus is a seeking God and deeply desires to bring his healing into our lives in moments when we may least expect it. 

She did not come looking for an encounter with Jesus, but she got one because Jesus is a God who seeks encounters with us.  

The bible her says , “He called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability.”  And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God.She comes, Jesus touches, and the crooked part of her life is immediately made straight.  Is it really any wonder that she glorified God.  Jesus can and will come at times when we least expect it, and what a moment that is when we taste and experience his presence.  

New Beginnings

We had a great day yesterday and I wanted to share it with you.  We officially started our new church yesterday - LifePointe Fellowship.  Not only did that happen, but we experienced these things:

• Our largest attendance in my 6 Sundays here - 117.  That is almost double from my first Sunday in September.
• 8 New people joined the church through our new member class.  (15 total in last 2 weeks)
• Baptized 4 people

There is much more that I could share, but wanted to share these things.  God is moving in our church and we are excited about the days ahead.  It is so great to start new and experience all that Christ is doing in our lives, our church, and our new friends that we are walking through life with.  Thanks for all of your prayers and don't stop.  We still have much to do, but we want to enjoy the journey as it unfolds.

Running from God

1 From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the LORD his God. 2 He said: "In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me. From the depths of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry.3 You hurled me into the deep, into the very heart of the seas, and the currents swirled about me; all your waves and breakers swept over me. 4 I said, 'I have been banished from your sight; yet I will look again toward your holy temple.'5 The engulfing waters threatened me, the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head. 6 To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you brought my life up from the pit, O LORD my God. 7 "When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, LORD, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple. 

I highlighted 3 things above and each of these are vitally important when we have run from God and find ourselves broken, lonely, and need of his rescue.  I will write them here and briefly comment on them:

    1.  Call to the Lord – The trouble came because he was running from God and not being connected to him, therefore his hope was in calling out to the one who had the power to help and from whom he had run.                                                      

2.     Restore our focus on God – Jonah knew that the worship of God and his glory would heal him, therefore he knows that he will worship again in the temple and praise his God.  Nothing focuses our life more than seeing and seeking God for who he is.                                                                                                                                                                                     

3.     Remember the LORD – As it had all broken down around him, he finally remembered that God alone can give us life, hope, and love.  Jonah, in that moment, remembers how great and good God is and finds comfort in his thoughts of God.  It is usually in "belly of the whale" places where we remember God's goodness.

 We have much to learn from Jonah when we have run from God and what we should do when we are there.  Where do you find yourself today?  Near him or are you on the run?  If you are on the run, then it is time to stop and come back to him as your hope.  Though you might not find yourself in the darkness of a fish, the darkness of our pain can be enough to help us know, that God alone is our hope.  This is my prayer for those of us who are on a boat for “Tarshish” and thinking we can find hope away from the purposes of God.  Let’s come back to him.

 

Valuing People in the Right Way

How do you define the people you meet or know?  This past Sunday I preached on Zaccheus and I noticed something very interesting about verse 2 and as I thought through it a bit more, there was real truth to see.  Here is Luke 19:2, get ready for a powerful verse.  “And there was a man named Zaccheus.  He was a chief tax collector and was rich”.  3 things are given here in how we define people.

1.     His Name – We see he is called something, Zaccheus, that is the name his parents gave him.  As kids, our name is just our name, but as adults, our name is connected to our character.  When people hear our name, what thoughts do they think?  Are they pleasant or does our name bring up other thoughts?

2.     What he did – We see that by his occupation he was a “chief tax collector”.  One of the first things we do when we meet people is to find out what they do for an occupation.  We get sized up, and we size others up by what they and we do, how well we do it, or what the future that it might provide.

3.     What he owned – This is where we really place value on others.  How much they have or don’t have or once had or will have.  We call people poor, rich, middle class, blue collar, from the wrong side of the tracks, what kind of car, educated or not educated, and on and on.  This one is ridiculous, but we do it.

The world places much value on #2 and #3, but what does God think about it all.  God places value on #1.  The view of our name is built upon the decisions we have made, that build the content of our character into godliness.  His is what the writer in Proverbs 22:1 says, “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold.”  The only thing for us as believers to see our name be one that is noble, is to be passionate God-seekers.  The Holy Spirit transforms us as we look at the glory of Christ and his character becomes the content of our character.   

C.S. Lewis

Here is a quote from C.S. Lewis...

"It is easy to think that the church has a lot of different objects-education, building, missions, holding services...The church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christ.  If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are simply a waste of time.  God became man for no other purpose.  It is even doubtful, you know, whether the whole universe was created for any other purpose."