Boxes

And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.-Acts 2:42-47

This morning, as I woke up from my sleep, some thoughts entered my mind. I was thinking about how people have fellowship with one another, mostly OUTSIDE of the Church. Think about it: they have fellowship with sports teams, they have fellowship at the bar, they have fellowship through activities and functions in their communities (the senior center in our town comes to mind), but they rarely have fellowship AS the Church. I was praying about this thought when it occurred to me: people put things in boxes (not literal boxes, but they appropriate certain things and activities for certain times and places). The Church Box is Sunday mornings, evenings and (possibly) Wednesdays. Everything else is in separate boxes: work has its own, School, family, hobbies, housework, etc. each have one as well.

As I continued meditating on this thought, it occurred to me: I never stop being Michaelene’s husband at sporting events, at the office, during my hobbies, and more, but the Church, the Bride of Christ, relegates Jesus to a building once or twice a week. Then my study opened up Hosea, where God has Hosea marry Gomer, a promiscuous woman, to speak to His own relationship with Israel. In Hosea, God was lamenting that the people chased after idols, and used Hosea’s unfaithful wife to illustrate the point. My study ended in John 19, where Israel utterly rejected the promised Messiah, with the priests crying out “We have no King but Caesar!”Loved ones, God cannot be relegated to a box, nor does He desire to be only a part of our lives. We are the Bride of Christ whether we meet in a living room, at school, at the office. We never stop being Christ’s because we’re outside of the building. The Early church worshipped in the Temple and Synagogues (until they were kicked out of both), but also worshipped in one another’s homes, in the market place, and everywhere they were at (Acts 2:42-47). They treated every where, and every place, including one another’s homes, as a sacred space, and, with joyful hearts, reveled in being the bride of Christ. In fact, there will be no temple in the New Jerusalem, because God will be present! Everything we do in the New Existence, be it being in the presence of God, work, fellowship, or anything else will be an act of worship(See Revelation 21 and 22)!  

Loved ones, we have to stop relegating God to a building we gather at once or twice a week. YOU are the body of Christ, and individually members of it! YOU are the bride of Christ, and in that heavenly marriage, Christ is the head! Let us, then, with joy, treat everywhere we are as a place of worship, and relegate every thought, word and action as an object of praise to Jesus Christ. Let us meet together, not merely at the Church, but at work, in one another’s homes, at sporting events, and everywhere we go with joyful and glad hearts, worshipping God in all we do!

1 Corinthians 12

Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed. You know that when you were pagans you were led astray to mute idols, however you were led. Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.

For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.

Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? But earnestly desire the higher gifts.

And I will show you a still more excellent way.