Study to show yourself approved.  Present your bodies a living sacrifice.  Walk in the Spirit.  Put on the whole armour of God.  Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit.  Hear the word of the Lord.  Praise the Lord, all nations!  I must ask the Lord for forgiveness for those who do not know what they are doing.  I must not judge or personally interpret the motivations of a man’s heart, for I am incapable of truly knowing anyone’s heart.  Besides some things are God’s prerogative.  However, I will make a simple observation.  Christianity is entirely an active faith and where we see inaction, lethargy, complacency and passivity, we are certain that the Holy Spirit is not in position of priority.

The Bible calls us to action, certainly there are times when we are told to wait upon the Lord, but that is to develop patience, dependence and a faith walked out by His Will, so that His plan guides our actions, not so we can feel comfortable remaining sedentary.  We are not a people who were ever meant to stand still, congregate without purpose or become members of an organization then bask in the benefits.  We are workers for the harvest, and work is an active pursuit.

We were designed to leave the 99 and go search for the one.  That does not mean we spend our time as the Jehovah’s Witness or Mormon’s or any other socially inspired organization, combing the neighborhoods for new recruits.  It is not about my, your or anybody’s church as a functional organization, business or effective membership structure, it is about going to all corners of the Earth, spreading the Good News of Christ, planting seeds that He might germinate, grow, feed, water and harvest.

We have a problem, Houston.  If the church owns millions of dollars of hard assets and does no local mission work, revivals, soup kitchen work, homeless support, hospital/elderly visitation, remains ignorant of widows, orphans or the poor and takes no active participation against social travesties, then we have become a passive facsimile of what Christ intended.  Membership is not Biblical, keeping track of my tithe is not Biblical, staying within the church and never venturing out to find the lost, for the purpose of spreading the Good News of Christ is not Biblical.

Why then have we fallen pray to the predictable script of two songs, several announcements, praise, prayer and 30 minutes of professional pastory on an elevated dais, then one more song, maybe an altar call and dismissal to brief fellowship and socialization?  And this is a nation wide, denomination wide, possibly global phenomena.  Why are all the churches following the same agenda, format and schedule?  Granted, when I say all there are always those who remain outside the mold.  Not wishing to have an Elijah type rebuke by the Lord where He tells me that even this day there are many who never bowed to Baal, I must concede the generalizations.

My dilemma remains. I have the choice between three options, remain silent and suck it up, walk away from the church who is caught up in worldly structure and pursuits or speak out, taking the likely chance that I will be disliked, ostracized, persecuted or ignored.  I do not want to call pastors, elders and deacons out, but isn’t that we are called to do?  Wake up folks, if I am wrong I will gladly apologize and seek silence, but what if I am right?  How have we been caught up in this sham, having been deceived into abdicating our Ambassadorial authority?

We have quenched the Holy Spirit to a point that we no longer recognize His power, authority and voice in the Church.  People are truly astounded when they see His Power, to the point that they do not know what to do, run away or toward His presence.  Where is the healing, where are the massive conversions of conviction, where are the revivals, where are the hearts turning back to the Lord in droves, answering the Spirit’s Call?

People have been forced into membership groups where those who are on the list get the services, honor, respect and care while those who aren’t remain outsiders, typically, eventually and invariably leaving the church body.  Membership segregates, presenting barriers to entry that decrease Church efficacy with the surrounding public.  People are told that Christianity is inclusive, but what they see is no different then worldly club structure.  Certainly, behavior may be a bit better, less slander, cursing, back-biting and wickedness but the worldly structure is consistent with those organizations we see in work, home or play.  People are looking for something different.

The Church does not belong to bank or does it?  The Church does not belong to its largest contributors or does it?  The Holy Spirit indwells every believer, or does it?  We are all equal members of the Body of Christ.  All Christians are saints, princes/princesses and priests.  There is no ruling class as in Catholicism for this is the practice of the professional clergy vs the laity that Christ “hated” in Revelation.

I want to serve Christ in a Church body where we are all preachers, teachers, prophets, healers, administrators and servants of each other for Christ.  Certainly God accounts for the oxen eating from the harvest but we have taken that and superimposed over top the worldly structure of a top down leadership that Christ never intended.  I cannot afford good clothing, so I must sit in a place where I am seldom noticed for my poverty.  I am often filthy for having worked or been in the field spreading love and the Good News to the lost and the lame.  My family, my brothers and my sisters are caught up in drugs, alcohol and sinly pursuits.  Must I fain that this is not the truth, choosing to keep these realities to myself in hopes of being acceptable to a group of elders that never really loved me in the first place?  All I wish to do is love people, all people including the lost as Christ told me to do.  I wish to spread the gift of Grace I was first given, when He found me and set me free from sin and death.   I should be refreshed when coming into the Church body not thrown into greater anxiety caused by an attempt to measure up to rules, membership and monetary regulations I have no hope of meeting.

Please forgive me for working out my salvation with fear and trembling.  Please forgive me for presenting my frustration in a way that may elevate your anxiety.  Please forgive me for saying things that make you feel uncomfortable, unless and I pray this is the case that these words are those placed upon my heart by the Holy Spirit of God.  I must speak out.  I feel compelled to tell this truth, ask these questions, convict even myself regarding my ridiculous action.  I will therefore accept the repercussions of my choice in speaking out.  Lord I pray that I have done Your Work this day and brought people closer to the knowledge of the Truth.  Please forgive me if I have offended You or pushed anyone further away from that moment of acceptance and salvation.  In Your precious name I pray to the Father, Lord Jesus Christ the King.