If we are the body...

2006-11-01T06:27:13Z

I had the most amazing experience of my life last week when I was worshiping over the road at my local park. A guy walked up to me and told me I had an amazing voice and asked me if he could sit there and listen to me worship for a while (I obliged while quite embarrassed). Now this guy was a Christian, although I had never met him before that day... but he said something to me which -really- blew my mind... he said "It is very rare to see someone worshiping and singing hymns to God in a public place... so rare in fact that in my whole 9 years of being a christian I have never seen it before!"

If this guy had to wait 9 years just to hear someone worshiping God in a public place then where are we? what are we doing? are we ashamed? are we too scared to be singing praises to Jesus when other people might hear us? why are we not freely proclaiming what we have been given? openly talking about the Freedom which has been handed to us through Christ's death and resurection?

Let's take it a step further though... to quote a song by casting crowns

"If we are the Body
Why aren't His arms reaching
Why aren't His hands healing
Why aren't His words teaching
And if we are the Body
Why aren't His feet going
Why is His love not showing them there is a way

...Jesus is the way"

1 Corinthians 12:27 says

27Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it."

Let me make a bold statement... WE ARE THE BODY OF CHRIST! and as the body, we have the responsibility to be reaching out, to be speaking and teaching, to be moving the Gospel forwards IN JESUS NAME!

It's time to let our own insecurities and our own fear of humilliation fly out the window and start to be bold, Influential and Godly in our communities, and not just in our churches... it's the people OUTSIDE of church that need saving not those who are already there... Like Jesus said:

"It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. - Matthew 9:12

it's not the churched who need to be reached but the un-churched... Lets start making bold steps both -within- the body and -as- the body to see this nation saved!

Jesus is mighty to save!! But he needs us to be his feet, arms and tongue on the Earth...

...Lord use me!

bless ya's

just a thought

2006-10-30T04:07:08Z

As Christians, Christ has called us to love all people... The bible says
in John 15:12-13

"12My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."

how often do we walk into a church and find judgment and unforgiveness? there is a song by Casting crowns which says:

"A traveler is far away from home
He sheds his coat
And quietly sinks into the back row
The weight of their judgmental glances tells him that his chances
Are better out on the road"

when someone new walks into a church we look at them and form prejudices based on how they look... the bible tells us not to judge people. (romans 14:4, James 4:11) and that is exactly what a prejudice is... a Pre-Judice or a pre-judgement...

how often do we read the word of God and reply with "I love others... except for him and him and him"?? THAT IS NOT WHAT JESUS SAID TO US! HE SAID... "LOVE OTHERS A I HAVE LOVED YOU"! NOT "LOVE -MOST- OTHERS AS I HAVE LOVED YOU" OR "LOVE -SOME- OTHERS AS I HAVE LOVED YOU"!!

Who do we think we are to be choosing who gets invited to heaven and who doesn't? GOD MAKES THAT DECISION!! so what makes us think that we can pick and choose who can come based on what someone looks like or how we think of them!?

I think it's time to stop being so selfish and keeping the love of Jesus for ourselves and our friends and start giving it out in abundance... Jesus fills you with love, but not just enough for you... he gives it to us in abundance, so that our hearts overflow... The love of Christ should overflow into others from us... so why do we try and put a cap on it and keep it to ourselves?

This week, lets do our best to love -every- person we meet... not just those who are "normal" or those who dress well... but lets show the love of Christ to everyone... Let God write out the invitations for a change and start being more loving and forgiving, letting the holy spirit work through you!

... just a thought

bless ya

Stokes

If we are the body...

just a thought