Ordinary
Christians in the Hands of the Extra-Ordinary God.
Part
1:
Ephesians
3:10-12 &; 20 &; 21 ESVUK
10
so that through the Church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known
to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places 11. This was according to the eternal purpose
that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord 12, in whom we have boldness and
access with confidence through our faith in him…………………20 Now to him who is able
to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power
at work within us 21, to him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus
throughout all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.
I
love the Church, I think it’s amazing; I love Jesus more and more each day and
love looking at, reading and studying His written Word the Bible. and I love
being a part of His amazing Church, When you think about it That the Church
belongs to Jesus and His written Word the Bible explains to us how to live our
lives as Christians who are the people who make up the Church, it can
revolutionise your love for the Church and our Saviour.
I
was raised in a Christian Home and both my dad and my late mum, with my late
grandparents give me a love for Scripture, the Church and our Lord and Saviour
Jesus, I was * saved or * born again or * accepted Jesus as my Lord and Saviour
(*depends on your theological viewpoint!) when I was 11 in a Children’s
Meeting, Easter Monday 1981.
I
was raised in a little church in Resolven, which is near Neath, South Wales now
called The Resolven Community Church, which is part of a larger grouping also
called the Apostolic Church which are part of the Pentecostal Movement here in
the UK the others are The Assemblies of God and Elim, both of which are a real
blessing to know. I spent the first 13
years of the Christian Life within The Apostolic Church I thank the Lord for
the privilege of being raised in that denomination and the grounding and
foundation I had there, and the friends I have there today.
Those
who know me know I love reading and one of the things I love reading about is
the Church. I devour books at the best of times, but I’m always drawn to books
about the Church. I’ve been inspired by many godly writers such as Alan
Roxburgh, Neil Cole, Floyd McClung, Bill Johnson and Kris Vallotton amongst
others and have been challenged by what God has said through them. I’ve also been inspired by some great Church
Leaders like Keri Jones, Arnallt Morgan, Mark Davies, Roger Aubrey, Mick
Walford, Mike & John Sutton-Smith, Geoff Grice and Steve Smith who have
through the last 18 years have inspired and challenged me to go on with the
things of God, and go deeper with God. I
would like this opportunity to say thank you and to Arnallt diolch yn fawr.
When
you think about it, there are various models of Church and different
perspectives on what the Church are, and what it should or could be. My
Spiritual grounding and heritage has been and still is the
Pentecostal/Charismatic/ Restoration stream/s which are part of the broader
Evangelical Spectrum although I admire and respect those whose Christian path
has been or is different from mine.
My
background is of someone growing up in the Welsh Valleys, although I now live
in the North West of England, when I think of my younger days that Church more
or often or not was somewhere we went, rather than something we are part
of. I thought of a Physical Building
rather than a Spiritual Building, Yes Physical Buildings are important but they
serve the Spiritual Building, by the way that’s you and me.
There
are countless ways or models of doing and being the Church such as Missional
church, Simple church etc. ,etc. there are large churches, small churches,
medium churches, full churches, half full churches, empty churches, traditional
churches, free churches, Baptist churches, Anglican churches, Pentecostal
churches the list can go on and on If
you look in your Telephone Directory or search online, how many churches are
listed in your City, Town or Village ?, * Note I use the word Church to
describe the Church in general and the word church to describe churches, that
is in the local church or the church grouping You or I are part of, and isn’t
meant to diminish any one church or group of churches *
I
don’t believe that there should only be model or type of church, I believe that
each model or type of church is equally valid and has an important and relevant
part to play in our role to Evangelise those who yet don’t know the Lord, The
Lord has called us to work alongside in a sense of co-operation not to compete
against each other in attracting unbelievers those who yet don’t know the Lord
or have a relationship with Him.
I
believe that different models or ways of doing and being the church can reach
different types of people. For one person may feel comfortable in for example a
more traditional type of church and for another person may feel more
comfortable in a more lively church, then someone else may like a more simple
way of doing church for example in a smaller setting, then someone may feel
more comfortable being amongst a crowd.
Our
Lord, Saviour & Redeemer Jesus Christ says in Matthew 16:18b ESVUK.
“I
will build my church, and the gates of hell[b] shall not prevail against it.”
The
Apostle Paul, says in Ephesians 4:1-7 ESVUK
I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you
to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with
all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3
eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.4 There is one
body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to
your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one
baptism, 6 one God and Father of all,
who is over all and through all and in all. 7 But grace was given to each one
of us according to the measure of Christ's gift
Our
Lord, Saviour and Redeemer give his life for One Church and He’s coming back
for One Church, regardless of what part
of the Church You or I belong to we are One Church.
In
part 2 onwards I will look in more depth into the Book of Ephesians mostly and
other books of the Bible to see what it means to be the Church and how we go
about being The Church, I’m hoping to expand in more depth at a later point
Ordinary Christians in the Hands of the Extra –Ordinary God.
Yours
in His Grace
Blair
Humphreys
Southport,
Merseyside, England
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