Have you heard the Church of Jesus Christ is dead? There are churches in our denomination and in our conference that will not survive Coronavirus. The church has been under attack for years and the research just about proves this is true.
But why? What has happened when we see there are mega churches on the rise competing, if you will, with the none and dones? I remember being told the Church Jesus Christ will never pass away? Then how can any of these statements be true? Well, like scripture says the harvest is plenty but the laborers are few. We forgot – the people lost sight – believers have stopped believing that we are in partnership with God.
Made in the image of the divine we have denied our role in the relationship with God as co-creators and co-workers in the faith. There is power in partnership. So let us rediscover who we are in this work and back to it.
Let us pray.
O Lord, my God. How I love you. How I give you all honor and praise. Thank you for this day, for this moment, where we can stand before you as your humble servants. Lord God clear away all distractions and self motivations at this moment so we may hear what you have for us, today. Decrease me God, and let your will be done. Loosen my tongue and implore my lips so I may be used by you as a vessel of your own making.
Lord, let the meditations of our hearts and the words of my mouth be pleasing unto you. In the name of Jesus who is my rock and my redeemer. Amen.
There have been quite a few partnerships in the Bible that we have learned about throughout our Christian education. Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Abraham and Sarah, Joshua and Caleb, Paul and Barnabus and the disciples that were sent out by Jesus two by two.
But I found that we often forget about the partnerships of those individuals that who were working with God. Moses and God, rescued the people from Egypt. Noah and the God saved the human race. Joseph and God protected the world from famine. Jesus, with any of the disciples changed the story and recreated the dialogue and implemented the Gospel for all people everywhere.
Then after the resurrection and the ascension, the Gospel spread like wildfire with the nudging of the Holy Spirit and the missionary spark of Paul. And then what? What happened to the gospel? Are we too far away from the miracle of Jesus’s redemptive power to continue to believe? Or is it we lost our faith in our role in it? We forgot that we are needed for this gift of the spirit to live on. We are the people of God, are we not? Listen. There’s power in partnership and we have fallen short.
We continue with the letter to Philippi Chapter 4:1-9.
1 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.
2 I urge Euodia (Yo-dia) and I urge Syntyche (Sin-te-key) to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal
companion, help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my coworkers, whose names are in the book of life.
4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.
This is God’s word, for God’s People. Thanks be to God.
Paul is imploring the people Philippi to rally today and remember they are co-laborers in the work of Gospel. Two of Pauls beloved co-workers seems to have had a distribute. And though the scripture does not tell us what happen it must have been significant for the news to get back. They must have caused many people stress for it to be addressed and used as encouragement to push through.
Euodia and Syntyche have helped make great strides in raising the church of Christ along with Paul but now they seem at odds, like they have lost sight of their common goal. They have lost sight of the good work they were doing and why they were doing it. And because of a disagreement.
We are not always going to agree, but that does not mean that one is better than the other or that either one of us is right for that matter. We sometimes have to slow down and let go of the emotion and pride we often can feel and experience so we can be in concert always with the Holy Spirit. We have never been in this by ourself. The church has never rested firm on the shoulders of one human. The church has been built on the foundation of the faith of the people in God as our creator, Jesus as our redeemer and the Holy Spirit as our advocate. Even the Triune God is in partnership why would we ever believe, how could we ever think, we can do any of this work alone. Or that the pastor has to for that matter.
I am not afraid to say that Pastors working alone might be the reason we are in this mess. When the members of the church sit down, or even leave the ministry because the Pastor did or said. When Pastors refuse to listen the legacies of the church and the pay attention or better misinterpret God’s call for the church they are leading, they end up pushing people out, letting people go, letting people lead with their pride instead of their heart. That’s when they loose sight of why they were called to this work in the first place.
But the truth is the church will not be successful if the pastor and the members do not work together in partnership with God for the glory of God. Every morning when we wake up we are to set our sights on the Lord and prepare ourselves for what God will show us and prepare us for and remember we are not in this alone.
There is power in partnership. We all have been called to work with God in bringing the kingdom of heaven to earth. From the moment we were born we have be striving to be witnesses of the Gospel even before we knew it. But now, we are implored to be of the same mind in this work of God with Christ and one another. And everyday we are to be reminded that we are in dire straits.
Prayer is mandatory for the faith. Rest is required for healing. And companionship is necessary for the work to be completed. God needs you now. To be strong in your faith and bold in your movements to live out the gospel. And if we are truly to be living sacrifices then we must be grounded int he word of the Lord.
Beloved there is a shifting in the atmosphere and we are being stirred up in this very moment to be present with what is to come. You can see it on the horizon, if you are looking. The legacy of your faith has brought you to this point. And now it’s your turn to be a part of it. Today.
Deepen your relationship with God so when your number is called you are ready to respond in partnership the call. We often get lost in our self doubt and think we are in this by ourself. But I implore let those days pass away and today let us let our light shine as we accept the role of colaborers, co-workers and co-fighters in the faith with Jesus Christ and with one another. There is power in partnership. Let us be empowered. Thanks be to God.
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