"But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said...whosoever shall call on the Lord shall be saved. Therefore lest all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ." Acts 2: 14-36
"Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said,...'What shall we do?" v. 37
"Then Peter said unto them, 'Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." v.38
"Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls." v. 41
A recent report on 46,000 Southern Baptist churches indicated only 1.4 % averaged 1,000 plus in worship on Sunday. A recent gathering of 4,000 church planters in Dallas, met to discover how they could start more. In one day the Holy Spirit launched a mega church. Word to the wise. Take a page out of The Spirit's church planting manual.
Wisdom would suggest that man's methods are no match for God's Manifest Presence. The Presence and The Power of The Spirit of Christ is essential, when it comes to the matter of planting churches. Without Him, new plants become hot house plants nurtured in environments conducive to controlled circumstances and hospitable climate. A church plant has only two hopes of surviving and thriving without The Power and The Presence of God. Slim & None.
Churches that survive the church plant experience don't often thrive. After the drama and the trauma of the plant, the settle into some pretty thin soil. They may be death-defying, but are seldom life-giving. Man-made churches must be sustained by superhuman effort. Their compassion fatigue is enormous, trying to sustain life, and entertain people attracted by the parade, but have no interest in pushing the float. After the church planters are tapped out, all that is left is hardly worth getting cleaned up for on Sunday morning.
Don't get me wrong. I believe the local church is the hope of the world. So did Jesus. He launched His church with His Spirit, and those that are marked by His Presence, and His character carry out the message angels love to sing about, "Joy to the World."
Back to the report. Over 900 Southern Baptist churches shut their doors every year. For many, it didn't come too soon. What they did in the name of Jesus was embarrassing to The Body. For years business meetings overshadowed prayer meetings. Pastors were treated as hirelings. Sinners were treated with kid gloves. Fear of man outweighed any fear of God. Finances ruled over faith. Competition with the church down the street fueled their only enthusiasm for gaining new members. Missions was an option. Giving was a token. Converts were few, and church splits passed for church plants. Sad, but true. R.I.P.
Years ago a TV mini-series gripped America. It was called "Roots." It traced a black man's heritage back to the origin of his family in Africa. It was a powerful presentation.
Acts 2 reveals where the roots of the church can be found. They are located at the junction of unction and dysfunction. Look for the sign of the conjunction, "BUT!" This is where God meets man with His Spirit. Peter is the poster boy for the transformation that takes place at the junction of unction and dysfunction.
Before The Spirit, Peter is marked by cowardice. After The Spirit comes, he exudes courage. Before, fear. After, faith. Before, confusion. After, clarity. Before, hiding. After, standing. Before, denying. After, preaching. The list goes on and on. You get the picture.
The Spirit changes people, from the inside out. He leaves them right where they are, and the circumstances around them remain the same. The difference? He creates in them the character of Christ, and plants them right in the middle of people who have no character. The result? The culture cannot hold up against it. It never has, and it never will. Why? Because, the witnesses don't care if they survive the confrontation. They aren't interested in survival, only revival. You can't kill a dead man who believes he will live forever. People with staying power are marked by praying power.
My father was a church planter in New York, from 1960-1977. His work remains, not because he went, but primarily because he stayed. As a boy of ten, I saw many preachers from the south come to The City to start churches. They tried to plant The South, not The Spirit. They didn't last, and neither did their churches.
Today, Facebook reveals a new wave of church planters. From the pics I receive from major cities of this nation, this new breed is in love with The City, just the way it is. Their prayer walks through the cities of this nation, are marked by pics of excursions into their new digs. The ball parks, city parks, concerts, delis, Broadway shows, ferries, and other exotic places far outweigh any pics of a movement of God. Time will tell if I am wrong, but I don't expect much to come of this. From my own family's personal experience, I can say that planting a church is not a walk in the park, it is the fight of your life. But I digress.
"Here's your sign!" A contemporary country-western comedian has turned this phrase into a career. For the church, the sign is "BUT GOD!" Before Pentecost, baptisms were down. The founder of the church had been murdered, and His followers had been scattered. Before Pentecost the culture was gaining ground, and the church was in danger of being forced underground, before it even got off the ground. Pretty dismal picture, right? "BUT, GOD!"
Pray for your church to be transformed by meeting The Spirit at the junction of His unction, and your own dysfunction. Brick and mortar, bold plans and bloated bureaucracy cannot be filled with The Spirit, only people can. Not everyone in your church will be filled with The Spirit, BUT you can be the one who will be filled. God has never needed more than one person to start a movement. Your first step begins with prayer. Take your stand, on your knees, at the junction of unction and dysfunction. You will never be the same.
TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!