Words today have evolved and changed so much so that they bear little or no resemblance to their original meaning. You still spell them the same way but the meaning that was originally attached to it has been replaced by another.
Some words in our christian vocabulary need re-defining too. 'CHURCH' is a good example of a word that got re-invented and eventually took on a life of its own. We say, "I go to church every Sunday" or "Which church do you attend?" as if it refers to a place or activity but it didn't use to be that way.
When Jesus said "I will build my church", he wasn't referring to a building project. He was talking about a living breathing body of Christ believers. He challenged the religious leaders to destroy the temple which He would raise up again in 3 days (John 2: 18-22). They thought he meant the temple that stood in Jerusalem. But He was talking about the death of his physical body and the raising of a body of believers that He would indwell by the Holy Spirit. 'Church' in actual fact refers to you and me. You and I are the living temples that house God's presence and Jesus is the high priest who makes us worthy to come to God.
We do not automatically become His body by simply signing on the dotted line. You can fill in an application to become a member of an institution but to be joined to Christ's body is a different thing altogether.
John 10 makes it clear - please take a moment to read this.
3The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice." 6Jesus used this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was telling them.
7Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. 8All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
11"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. 13The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
14"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— 15just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. 17The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. 18No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father."
[Compare this with how western ranch owners cruelly brand their sheep and employ cowboys and sheep dogs to round up their herds. On the other hand eastern shepherds use a unique call/whistle to get their sheep to follow them]
Some words in our christian vocabulary need re-defining too. 'CHURCH' is a good example of a word that got re-invented and eventually took on a life of its own. We say, "I go to church every Sunday" or "Which church do you attend?" as if it refers to a place or activity but it didn't use to be that way.
When Jesus said "I will build my church", he wasn't referring to a building project. He was talking about a living breathing body of Christ believers. He challenged the religious leaders to destroy the temple which He would raise up again in 3 days (John 2: 18-22). They thought he meant the temple that stood in Jerusalem. But He was talking about the death of his physical body and the raising of a body of believers that He would indwell by the Holy Spirit. 'Church' in actual fact refers to you and me. You and I are the living temples that house God's presence and Jesus is the high priest who makes us worthy to come to God.
We do not automatically become His body by simply signing on the dotted line. You can fill in an application to become a member of an institution but to be joined to Christ's body is a different thing altogether.
John 10 makes it clear - please take a moment to read this.
3The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice." 6Jesus used this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was telling them.
7Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. 8All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
11"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. 13The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
14"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— 15just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. 17The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. 18No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father."
[Compare this with how western ranch owners cruelly brand their sheep and employ cowboys and sheep dogs to round up their herds. On the other hand eastern shepherds use a unique call/whistle to get their sheep to follow them]
Jesus does not recognise us by our doctrinal position or denominational preference. Membership certs mean nothing to him. He knows who belongs to him by their willingness to obey his voice and follow his leading.
So if Jesus is your shepherd, then you are his sheep. And if Jesus is your head, then you are his body. God entrusted only one person for the task. His One and Only Son. One flock with one shepherd. I read somewhere, that the diverse denominations we have in the world today is more a testimony to our division than it is of our unity. I totally agree.
The answer is not calling for ecumenical oneness - trying to find common ground to agree on. Jesus called people to HIMSELF; not a denomination, movement, community, creed or cause. If you reject His headship over your life, you detach yourself from His body. And we know a headless body is a dead body! The Body of Christ has only one Head.
[Trivia: How many heads does the institutional church have? Lets see...pope, cardinals, bishops, elders, deacons, senior pastors, cell/zone/cluster leaders, ministry heads etc. Friends, there is no hierarchy in God's house.]
Sadly, God has been relegated to 52 days on the calendar (with special mention on Easter and Christmas, of course) and a fixed home address. Once discipleship identified us with our Lord and Master Jesus Christ but today evidence of membership is a worthless certificate. Pledges, decision cards and baptismal certs. These are mere tokens, reflecting a decision we made in the past and by no means are they indicative of our standing with God.
There is a test you can do to find out if you are His disciple. It's found in John 15. Read it and tell me in all honesty. Do you qualify?
You may be surprised to find who God actually has on His list.
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