SimpleChurch Journal

Hearing From God: Key to Great Gatherings

I posted this several years ago. But it is a good reminder to myself and, hopefully, all of us regardless of what context we are in.

I have found that the key to our gatherings is to learn to listen to the Holy Spirit-- all of us.

In my past life, as a pastor of a traditional church, I felt the responsibility to hear what God is saying and to pass that word along to "the people."  Of course, God's word is always God's word and it will always bear fruit.  But how much more fruit is available when every Christian discovers his/her gifts and his/her ability to hear the "rhema"-- the living Word through the written word-- and to be able to share those gifts and His word with one another.

The  shifts the responsibility for hearing from God to each person-- to everyone-- and that takes some getting used to. But what an explosion can take place as the church worships and listens. Jack Deere (Suprised by the Voice of God) shares this:

The New Testament church was not only the dwelling place for the presence of God, it was also a learning center for the language of the Holy Spirit. People not only worshipped God in church, but they were equipped to hear him, and after hearing God, they were able to give something to someone that would build them up.

In preparation for this, Jack challenges us to consider why we gather as a church. It's not about tickling our spiritual ears or getting a little spiritual lift (though these may well happen), rather he suggests that we gather for four reasons: 1. To hear Jesus and be healed by Him, 2. To worship God together, 3. To be equipped to do the work of ministry, and 4. To be built up in Christ. He contends that all of this can take place only as every person gest involved-- bringing something edifying to share, learning to hear what the Holy Spirit is saying, and ministering to one another.

If you lived in the New Testament times, you prepared your heart to come to church, you prepared your heart to worship, you came expecting to be equipped for ministry, and you asked God to give you a gift to bring with you so that you might be used to strengthen someone else. This was the New Testament way of going to church.

Multiple Micro Communities

Someone noted that “thinking outside of the box keeps you from suffocating inside of one.” We must continue to allow God to shape us and our expressions of his church (ekklesia). He is an innately creative God. It is in this vein that I offer the following thoughts. This is not a definitive way to think of church community or gatherings. It is simply an alternative to a one-size-fits-all type of thinking that may free some of us to be more creative in our experience of church life and community.

I find that my own experience of ‘church gatherings’ involves, realistically, three or more micro communities. I have a couple of house church fellowships that I regularly connect to you. These provide a sense of God-connection, worship, prayer, Bible focus, and spiritual friendship. In addition, I have a specific support group and small network of friends that I frequent providing me with a place for deep community-life where transparent sharing and transformation is facilitated. Finally, I have a number of groups that I spend time with who share my mission focus and keep me accountable and motivated to use my gifts to make a difference in the world.

Having considered this, I am reflecting on three elements of church community that one does well to be intentional about, though there may be a variety of ways to incorporate these elements into our lives. Sometimes I, and others, refer to these three aspects as Up, In, and Out. They are also clearly outlined in Acts 2:42, 47.

1. Up. This refers to fellowshipping with others in ways that encourage and build our vertical relationship with God: prayer, worship, Bibles discovery, etc. (Apostle’s teaching, prayer).
2. In. This refers to sharing real life with one another. Transparency, ‘confessing of sin,’ and sharing our burdens and real-life concerns with one another. (Breaking of bread, fellowship).
3. Out. This refers to our mission in the world to see others impacted by the power and love of God. (Favor with all the people).

There may or may not be one, specific group of people that provides us with all three elements perfectly, and multiple ‘micro communities’ may best suit us at certain times. I love the house church gatherings that I connect to. But those who gather are involved in very different missions out in the world. Therefore, I find it very powerful to also connect with those who are more specifically focused on the type of mission work that I am involved in. Thus my own need for a different micro community. Furthermore, I also find that the kind of deeper sharing that continues to bring healing to my heart and soul is best facilitated in specific types of groups or with a friend or two whom I can be fully honest with.

Again, I am not trying to prescribe everyone to my current ‘gathering’ scenario. But I have discovered that being intentional about all three elements of church (ekklesia) has given me a foundation for, perhaps, the strongest spiritual life I have had in my life. I believe the principle is that, yes, we need each other and that these three prongs provide us with strong community support for our walk with Jesus. The ‘how to’ of walking that out… well, that’s where there remains much room for creativity and exploration.

Share your experiences with this?

Progress?

Sometimes we can look at the church here in the west and wonder if we, as followers of Jesus, are impacting people at all. Is the leaven of our lives working its way into the lump of worldly dough that we are surrounded by? Of course, such a pessimistic view is not warranted. Each of us, as salt and light, is always making a difference in the lives of those around us and we are finding wonderful ways to be used by God wherever we live and serve. God is surely at work and He will continue to use us to bring his kingdom to those who are ready.

But it is also good to step back and look at the global picture and realize that amazing things from a worldwide perspective have been happening, are happening, and will continue to take place.

Progress!

Wolfgang Simson reports:

Our own continuous research has shown that the single largest apostolic initiative in the last 20 years is the house church movement. It has now crossed a historic threshold and milestone of 10 million new house churches planted globally since 1998 and has added at least 100 million new souls to the Body of Christ. This is why it is crucial that this momentum continues until it reaches what we call the “Starfish goal” of 200 million house churches/Kingdom communities (see: The Starfish Vision).

He also reports on this development in his own country of Germany:

Only recently (2018) one house church network, Hope Germany, has grown to more than 1,000 newly planted house churches, and there are about 40 other networks in Europe with typically between 50‐100 house churches.

Our own work, that takes us to many continents, allows us to see beyond our western world and remember that our own home-country is not the only consideration in God’s global plans. As such, clear progress abounds much of which is coming through movements of disciples making disciples resulting in hundreds and thousands of simple/house church gatherings starting in many parts of the world.

This article reports on the impact taking place by “movement ekklesia” which are disciples, as in the first century, multiplying rapidly without the need for dedicated buildings:

• Recently Credible organizations and networks reported approximately 2,500 movement engagements, including nearly 500 movements that had produced millions of new disciples. As 2017 ended, the count was nearly 650 movements with 50 million disciples!
• New disciples in ‘multiplying movements’ among the unreached are ‘increasing many times faster than any other large population on the planet.’

 This report concludes that ‘thousands more movements are still needed, yet there are many reasons to hope expectantly for their continued multiplication.’

So, are you and I part of kingdom progress that is exciting, clear, and on the increase? Most definitely.

Twitter Musings

Some excellent twitter-thoughts from a variety of folk I follow:

Steve Simms @CSteveSimms
When I read the book of Acts & see the passion & joy of early Christianity, I wonder what happened?
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Rob Ross @oikosministries
“The model we have used — a church, a pastor and a commitment by people to support the enterprise — is getting harder and harder to maintain.” We need to think different ( individually together).  #everydayfaith #simplechurch #musingsofamilkman
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Dan White Jr. @danwhitejr
What we learn from Christendom is that it was well constructed to create church-goers but not well suited to cultivate Jesus-followers.
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Brad Brisco @bradleybrisco
We often wrongly assume the primary activity of God is in the church. But the primary activity of God is in the world, and the church is an instrument created by God to be sent into the world to participate in what God is already doing. #kingdom #missiodei #mission
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Traviskolder @traviskolder Courtesy of @CSteveSimms..

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Lesslie Newbigin @LesslieNewbigin
Foreign missions are not an extra; they are the acid test of whether or not the Church believes the Gospel.
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Lesslie Newbigin @LesslieNewbigin
The deepest motive for mission is simply the desire to be with Jesus where he is, on the frontier between the reign of God and the usurped dominion of the devil.
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Scott Sauls @scottsauls
The Kingdom of Jesus does not advance through spin, political maneuvering, manipulation of power, or “taking a stand” for what we believe. Rather, the Kingdom of Jesus advances through subversive acts of love.
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Ann Voskamp @AnnVoskamp 

Clinging to Human Traditions

“You put aside the commandment of God to cling to human traditions (Mark 7:8).

Jesus repeatedly challenged his disciples to avoid the yeast of the Pharisees who placed the traditions of men above the commandments and word of God

“How ingeniously you get round the commandment of God in order to preserve your own tradition.

Clearly, Jesus never intended that the traditions of the Pharisees would be replaced by the traditions of New Testament era churches that no longer serve the life of the disciple. Yet we all fall into this way of thinking

First, let’s be reminded that the commandments of God, when energized within us by the Spirit of God, are the pathway to immeasurable joy, not some kind of religious, duty-bound, heart-deprived existence. “The commandments of the Lord are right. They make the heart rejoice.” Psalm 19:8. Aligning heart and life with God’s ways, as the Spirit leads and works in us, produces freedom of soul and spirit like nothing else. Jesus called his disciples away from the traditions of religion in order to call them into the experience of life, in the Spirit, wholly devoted to the joy of following Him

Now, let’s consider why the ‘commandments’ of God are not always easily embraced. On the front end, when confronted with Jesus’ challenges, his words can often seem unsettling:

• Love God with your whole heart
• Love your neighbor as yourself
• Give to the poor
• Go and make disciples of all nations
• Take up your cross
• Be mature (embrace growth and transformation)
• Forgive as you have been forgiven
• Pray for your enemies
• Abide in me
• Give up everything you have

Indeed, as we look at such ‘commands’ realistically, I can understand why it seems much easier to simply take on the basic traditions of: going to church, meeting at Bible study, doing a daily devotion, giving a tithe, serving as an usher, etc, etc, etc. The traditions of western, cultural Christianity are actually quite comfort-able and easy to settle into especially considering the alternative of fully surrendering heart and and life to God’s life-transforming call.

But Jesus, in making such strong challenges like I have listed, was not creating rules of religion, rather he was inviting people to do whatever it takes to move out of self into daily, obedient, joyful life with Him! These ‘commandments’ help us confront and shake off the parts of ourselves that keep us bound up in self-willed living so that we can enter into the joy and freedom of God-centered, God-infused living. He does not bind us up afresh with His commands, but as we walk with Him daily, His word transforms us in the most profound and genuinely freeing way.

I meet people every day who, out of frustration or pain from their church traditions, want to leave those traditions but, really, just want to replace them with some newer, more comfortable, traditions. Perhaps we all continue to miss the point. When we stop clinging to our quest for easy traditions, we become more open to the Person who is drawing us into a much deeper, real, and fully-alive life.

No Superstars in the Kingdom

There are two truths championed by simple/organic church paradigms that are vital to the health of the whole church:

1. There are no superstars in the Kingdom of God. Rather, spiritually speaking, we are all superstars equally filled with the Spirit, equipped with gifts of the Spirit, and called to a vocation of serving others.
2. When ministry is recognized by worldly standards (size, scope, media recognition) this has no bearing and is often counter to actual Kingdom impact.

This is on my mind because it seems the news is filled with the misbehavior of political and Hollywood ‘stars.’ And more significantly, the church as we know it, in regards to those who are publicly recognized, is not far behind. Without making comment or judgement on anyone in particular, it is enough to note that super-stardom is a difficult role to handle. It is rare for humans to handle worldly honor well. But, for the church, the point is a simple one: worldly acclaim is not a Kingdom marker.

Now, to be fair, almost all of us are guilty. Either we have allowed worldly acclaim to get to us in some measure personally, or we have looked to certain other people with a measure of veneration because of worldly markers. Or both.

Thus it might be a good idea to re-look at the most influential individual in all of church history who described his ministry this way:

I have worked harder, been put in prison more often, been whipped times without number, and faced death again and again. Five different times the Jewish leaders gave me thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea. I have traveled on many long journeys. I have faced danger from rivers and from robbers. I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the Gentiles. I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be believers but are not. I have worked hard and long, enduring many sleepless nights. I have been hungry and thirsty and have often gone without food. I have shivered in the cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm.

He concludes this self-examination with this statement:

If I must boast, I would rather boast about the things that show how weak I am.  (1 Corinthians 11)

Now, Paul has given us markers to aspire to and to measure others by. Further, I am reminded that the power of the church is found in everyday believers (the only kind there are) stepping by faith into their gifts, their calling, their spiritual vocation and serving others with no expectation of being recognized for anything other than their utter weakness apart from God.

Let us each aspire to be all that we can be in the Kingdom by faith (embracing whatever challenges and persecutions God has for us) while avoiding all trappings of veneration in this world. The church will shine more brightly and the world will be impacted more powerfully.

Choudhrie's Challenges Re-Visited

There is nothing like Victor Chouhrie to keep our compasses pointed true-north and to… well... challenge us.  Victor has one of the most fruitful ministries ever with thousands of churches planted and hundreds of thousands of baptisms in India.

You can read all 21 of his steps in a paper entitled “Mega Church to Meta (Beyond) Church.”

Here is just a taste:

• Rewrite the job description of professional clergy from a pulpit orator, sacrament dispenser and tithe gatherer to a shepherd who feeds his flock to be healthy and reproducing by encouraging them to practice priesthood of all believers with authority to baptize, break bread and equip fishers of men…
• Move from meeting in temples to gathering in ‘houses of peace’. ‘God does not dwell in temples made by human hands’; rather He dwells in human hearts…
• Phase out programmed Sunday ‘services’ while implementing informal, small gatherings. The Bride of Christ must have intimacy with her Lord every day, not only for a couple of hours a week, lest she become unfaithful…
• Replace professional music with believers speaking to each other in psalms and spiritual songs, making melody in their hearts to the Lord...
• Shift from spectator-oriented church to ‘metastasizing’ interactive, participatory, prophetic church...
• Infect barren Bride with the multiplication virus. A healthy mature female (Bride) implies that she is ready to have babies...
• Unglue from the pews all those Christians who sit, soak and stagnate and send them to heal the sick, raise the dead, tread on snakes and scorpions (expel demons), bind the ‘strongman’, plunder his possessions and demolish the gates of Hell...
• Empower every Sunday school, bible school, prayer cell, women’s fellowship, and cottage meeting, by calling them full-fledged, authentic churches. They must make disciples who baptize, break bread, equip laborers and send missionaries…
• Filter out selfish-goat church members who come only for hatching (baby baptism), matching (wedding) and dispatching (funeral), and replace them with sheep who take care of the hungry, thirsty, naked, strangers, sick and prisoners….
• Simplify disciple making. Get a Bible and invite a couple of truth-seekers for a meal where the main dish is - The Lamb. Redefine authentic church as wherever two or three friends meet to eat, gossip the gospel, and to multiply…
• Reorient your own personal paradigm. Your business, workplace or home, wherever you spend most of your time, is your ‘primary nuclear church’. It matters little whether you are the CEO, or the janitor or the kitchen queen, you are a full-time minister there and accountable…
• Re-set your priorities to preach Christ where He has not been named. For this you do not have to go to church from Sunday to Sunday nor work from paycheck to paycheck. You are “ordained” to be fruitful, to multiply, and to fill your home/workplace/neighborhood and the city with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea…

Discovering Your Own Life Message

You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. 2 Corinthians 3:3

The simple/organic church lifestyle opens the door for every believer to step into his unique calling and recognize his unique ‘letter’ written on his heart by the Spirit of God. Every person has the privilege and responsibility of tuning into the process in which God shapes each one for his destiny. Part of that is recognizing the core message—the life message—that He has formed in us.

Tony Stoltzfus says that every Christian has “a special life message that’s a summary of their story—the place where their various life messages join together in one theme… That one-of-a-kind message is the heart of their call.”

There is power in recognizing and affirming our life message so that we are freely sharing this core of who we are with those around us. It fuels our spiritual passion and excitement. Often, it leads us into a clearer understanding of the Kingdom calling in our life.

Recently, as a group exercise, we looked at ways to identify our life message. We used three different methods which I share here. The idea is that you might be able to identify your life message using any one of these three methods.

(Note, that I adapted this from Tony Stoltzfus’ excellent book entitled ‘Leadership Coaching.’)

1. Finding Your Current Life Message by Looking at Your Suffering

Write down a key difficulty you suffered through that has significantly shaped you. Then, write down the core message that this experience built into you for others!

2. Finding Your Current Life Message by Looking at Your Soapbox

What are the themes you come back to over and over when you are helping or serving others? What are you always talking passionately about? What do you most yearn to impart to people? Write down the core message!

3. Finding Your Current Life Message by Looking at What Injustices You Want to Fight

What injustices make you want to rise up and fight for the good of all? What’s the injustice you see, where you have a compelling vision of the better future that could be? Write down the core message that you want others to hear!

I love the way that God shapes us uniquely and then uses that uniqueness for His glory!

On a personal note, it was a challenging season in my own life (which I describe in the first chapter of Simple/House Church Revolution) that led to a re-write of my life message twelve years ago. Out of this came an unexpected re-direction in life and ministry and the formation of Appleseed Ministry. The life message would be something like this: “It’s not structured church or religion that transforms people and nations, rather it’s all about the simple life of Jesus, flowing personally through his irreligious followers, leading to a lifestyle of loving and discipling others.”

Pray and Love

Regardless of how we ‘be and do’ church, our first work is to pray and love. Nothing else will touch others and prepare the way for Jesus to draw them. Nothing else will actually make a difference in the world or in the lives of people. Nothing else can change us or those we love. Nothing else can and will change neighborhoods and nations.

Pray

• Pray and seek Him
• Pray and draw near
• Pray and ask for guidance
• Pray and listen
• Pray and ask for the Holy Spirit
• Pray and ask for the Spirit to draw others
• Pray and ask to be used
• Pray and ask for the grace to love others

Love

A relative told me about meeting Billy Graham many years ago when she was a staff person in a government office. She said that what struck her most, besides his wonderfully blue eyes, was the way he had of talking to you like you were the only person in the room. His love was felt by his focused attention.

But love is a bigger topic than a blog post, or a book, or even a thousand books. The bottom line is that we, the church, need much more of it. It is a fruit that we long and ask for so that, when all else is said and done, God himself is glorified because we have grown in our capacity to express his love.

Perhaps if we can get prayer and love in its right place, the church becomes fully what it is meant to be without, really, any further instruction.

Starting Churches is Not the Mission

“Go into all the world and start churches!” You won’t find that in Scripture. “Go into all the world and plant house churches!” You can’t find that either.

You can find mission statements like “make disciples” or “preach the Gospel” or “the task of reconciling people to God.”

But even those statements must first be grounded in the question of “who?”

Our mission always begins with people. The people whom God has called us to. This must be the starting point. That is where we must begin to walk out an organic, Jesus-following, fruitful lifestyle with a Scriptural mission.

And every one of us have different people that we are called to.

• Some of us are called to encourage and support out-of-church believers. Yes, that can be a calling for a season.
• Some of us are called to work with people in prisons, or people on the streets.
• Some of us are called primarily to care for our own family for a season due to a variety of reasons (though generally God brings us to broader missions in time as well).
• Some of us are called to work with international students or to travel and work internationally—often in specific regions or among a specific people group.
• Some of us are called to work with Muslims in our own country or in another country.
• Some of us are called to work primarily within our own neighborhood, or country club, or hiking club, or…
• Some of us are called to work, and maybe live, within the inner city.

Here is my point. The ministry of reaching people, making disciples, and even gathering people into groups and churches begins with the context of the people that God has called you to. There is no other starting point. The ministry processes will look different depending on the context. The principles will be the same. The mission may be the same. But the methods, and tools, and strategies will all come out of the people that you are called to work among.

Start there! Know who you are called to and then you can focus on your mission to bring the Gospel and make disciples (followers) within that unique context.

Then and only then can you begin to adapt these principles of fruitfulness, as God leads, specifically to those whom you are working among:

1. Prayer
2. Possibly finding like-minded people who share your same mission
3. Building relationships and connections among those you are called to
4. Reaching out and sharing the Gospel (Good News) in a way that is Good
5. Developing discipleship relationships (inviting people into knowing and following Jesus as you guide)
6. Gathering in ways that fit with the developing disciples (followers)
7. Help the developing followers to engage in their Scriptural mission to those they are called to