Have we systematized Christ’s symphony?
Jesus wants to conduct His symphony through an orchestra of ordinary people that the Bible calls, the body of Christ. Church gives the risen Jesus more opportunities to be the Conductor when everybody present is free to speak as prompted by His Spirit.
Systematization is great for human productivity, but when applied to religion, it can easily hinder the Holy Spirit. God wants to revitalize what we’ve systematized. Will we let Him?
Solos are good. However, many people sharing & testifying as Christ’s symphony makes a fuller sound.
No one man can fully present God’s symphony. It takes an orchestra of Christ-followers, obeying the Spirit together, to play it. Every believer is an instrument in Christ’s symphony. Let’s meet together as His orchestra & let Him be the director!
I’ve been to several support groups recently. I love how they go beyond systematization and allow spontaneous, open sharing! To mobilize Christians to be bold for Christ in daily life, train them to speak out boldly in the safe environment of worship.
In the New Testament, there is no “call to conform” to a system. We are called to be transformed by the living, resurrected
Jesus Christ. The best way to learn to follow Jesus is to go beyond systems and just begin to follow Jesus.
In the body of Christ, leaders are called to train ordinary people to minister so the body of Christ can mature. (See Ephesians 4:11-13) To grow into the mature body of Christ, we (believers) need to learn to speak the truth in love. (See Ephesians 4:15) How can the body of Christ mature if the members are
kept passive & dependent on one special person to do all the ministry?
Being sincerely listened to by a group of people who genuinely care about you is life-changing! Sometimes a Christian just needs to talk & have others in the body of Christ listen with love. Support groups do it! Why not churches?
Sermon-centered church is almost universal, however, the Bible also allows open, Spirit-led sharing. (1 Corinthians 14:26) If it was a good thing to reform church 500 years ago, perhaps it is also a good thing to go beyond church as usual nowadays.
If people aren’t being deeply transformed by the way we do church, perhaps we could find more effective ways to do it. “God is decreeing to begin some new & great period in His church, even to the reforming of the Reformation itself.” -John Milton
Reformation searches for more effective ways to demonstrate the living Jesus & make Him known so ordinary people can follow Him. Is the Bible warning of, a form of godliness without power, still relevant? (2 Timothy 3:5)
If church isn’t as powerful in the 21st Century as it was in the 1st Century, perhaps we’re missing something. “What is a man born for but to be a reformer?” -Ralph Waldo Emerson
To truly celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Reformation (Oct. 31, 2017), we need to open up to present-day reform. Shall we?
