"Those people" are coming to our church?
"Did you see what they were wearing?"
"well why can't they pay their bills?"
"Change our worship music?"
"this is the way we've done it for as long as I can remember"
Over 75% of Americans claim to be Christians.
roughly 230 million people
It would seem that if that many people were truly Christ followers, the world would be a much different place
Why, you ask? simple. If 7 out of 10 people made sure that the homeless were housed, the hungry fed and dedicated their lives to glorifying God, there wouldn't be gossip or envy or pride or anger or greed or all of the other traits that make America what it is today.
Pastors would be compelled to lead their congregations to love and care and forgive and to be the hands and feet of Jesus. There wouldn't be time to sit in stale environments wondering about the next pot luck dinner.
they would have dirty hands and well worn boots because all of their time would be spent helping others, leading by example.
When God expressed his unhappiness in Malachi 1, it was very obvious what he thought of the church and it's leaders. check this out.."Why doesn't one of you just shut the Temple doors and lock them? Then none of you can get in and play at religion with this silly, empty-headed worship. I am not pleased. The God-of-the-Angel-Armies is not pleased. And I don't want any more of this so-called worship! Offering God Something Hand-Me-Down, Broken, or Useless
WOW! our churches are becoming valleys of dry bones. afraid to engage the communities around us, afraid to offend the financial supporters of our ministry, When will we recognize that God is bigger than all of that. We build these house of cards and sooner or later, they come tumbling down and another church closes in America. It doesn't have to be that way. Jesus was so different than the religion of his time that they were all offended by his actions, loving and forgiving and shunning the building of wealth. It went against the rest of society. That's where we are today. going against the rest of society. I refuse to change the bible interpretation to accommodate the approval of the religious powers that be. The homeless who sleep on my couch, the hungry who sit at my table, the jail inmates who I sit beside and pray with, is all the approval I need. Jesus led by example and it's time for the church leaders to do the same. I will not go quietly.
"Did you see what they were wearing?"
"well why can't they pay their bills?"
"Change our worship music?"
"this is the way we've done it for as long as I can remember"
Over 75% of Americans claim to be Christians.
roughly 230 million people
It would seem that if that many people were truly Christ followers, the world would be a much different place
Why, you ask? simple. If 7 out of 10 people made sure that the homeless were housed, the hungry fed and dedicated their lives to glorifying God, there wouldn't be gossip or envy or pride or anger or greed or all of the other traits that make America what it is today.
Pastors would be compelled to lead their congregations to love and care and forgive and to be the hands and feet of Jesus. There wouldn't be time to sit in stale environments wondering about the next pot luck dinner.
they would have dirty hands and well worn boots because all of their time would be spent helping others, leading by example.
When God expressed his unhappiness in Malachi 1, it was very obvious what he thought of the church and it's leaders. check this out.."Why doesn't one of you just shut the Temple doors and lock them? Then none of you can get in and play at religion with this silly, empty-headed worship. I am not pleased. The God-of-the-Angel-Armies is not pleased. And I don't want any more of this so-called worship! Offering God Something Hand-Me-Down, Broken, or Useless
WOW! our churches are becoming valleys of dry bones. afraid to engage the communities around us, afraid to offend the financial supporters of our ministry, When will we recognize that God is bigger than all of that. We build these house of cards and sooner or later, they come tumbling down and another church closes in America. It doesn't have to be that way. Jesus was so different than the religion of his time that they were all offended by his actions, loving and forgiving and shunning the building of wealth. It went against the rest of society. That's where we are today. going against the rest of society. I refuse to change the bible interpretation to accommodate the approval of the religious powers that be. The homeless who sleep on my couch, the hungry who sit at my table, the jail inmates who I sit beside and pray with, is all the approval I need. Jesus led by example and it's time for the church leaders to do the same. I will not go quietly.