The Church In The Father’s Heart: New Testament Or Old

The church that is in the Father’s Heart was born out of the pain and suffering of our Lord Jesus Christ. He died and shed His precious blood for the forgiveness of sin for the whole world. He was raised from the dead to give eternal life to the whole world. Now before the "Christians" get heart palpitations go and read John 3:16. God the Father’s heart was reaching out to a lost world steeped in religious practices.

The church in the Father’s heart was to be birthed out of sinners! Yes that’s right; sinners like you and me. Does everyone qualify; yes! Does everyone receive forgiveness of sin and eternal life; no! Only those who respond according to Romans 10: 8 – 11. Are you "Christians" feeling better? Those who accept what Jesus did for them are the ones who make up the church that is in the Father’s heart.

If anyone of the believers from Paul’s time had to find themselves in a "church service" today they would think that they had arrived on another planet! Yes dear "Christian," there is very little if anything in our services today that resemble the early church.

Picture the scene; anywhere in the world. It is Sunday morning anytime between 7:30am (yes 7:30am early morning eucharist) and 11:00am. The people are seated in rows of wooden benches, plastic chairs or upholstered cinema type seats. The procession files in. The order in which the procession enters, and the kind of music that is played during the processional, depends on the denomination and the occasion. Those in the procession are dressed in attire ranging from medieval to modern.

Now again the variations are endless. In some cases the congregation stands during the processional. In other instances the people remain seated. All wait for the head of the institution to ascend to his high place of authority which could be anything from one or two steps, to one or two meters above the people. Others in the processional file off to take their places in the front row while in other institutions these members take their places on the raised platform in front. They sit behind the pulpit facing all the people. There may also be a choir in the "loft".

At this point in the proceedings most, if not all, do more or less the same thing. The music stops. All members of the congregations are standing. There is a short silence. In this silence our heavenly Father is waiting, wondering if perhaps today they will ask Him what is in His heart for the church. Alas! It is not to be.

Then the leader prays, recites or reads a prayer. This prayer is most often found in a book. This book was printed many years before. In some cases many, many, many years before. Relevant? And, how about this? Those prayers are worked out in such a way that certain prayers are prayed on certain Sundays. Not much room for spontaneity here. Neither is there any relevance to the needs of the people nor the desires of the Father’s heart. From the time of the prayer to the end of the "service" most follow some form of "order of service".

The "order of service" will be made up from a selection of the following:-
1. Welcome. Cold and formal to warm and friendly
2. Announcements. All the happenings: things to do and attend.
3. Singing. Some have one time of singing near the beginning of the service whilst others have a song in between items on the agenda. All usually close with a song/s.
4. Collection/Offering. Fitted in somewhere in the agenda.
5. Scripture Readings.
6. Infant Christening/Baptism. Traditional – usually in the mornings.
7. Adult Baptism. Non Traditional – usually in the evenings.
8. Communion, Breaking of Bread, Eucharist. Various forms.
9. Sermon. Varies from 15 minutes to an hour or more. Always prepared and usually read as notes. Some are worked out well in advance to be delivered on certain Sundays. Like the prayers mentioned above. Many have a socio/political slant.
10. Ministry Time. Could take various forms and involves members of the congregation. This does not happen in the more traditional institutions.
11. Special Events. According to the institution’s calendar.
12. Closing Prayer/Benediction. Mostly prepared in advance or the same one repeated every Sunday; with some variations.

Similar happenings occur on Sunday nights. These meetings are more of a free nature and are usually geared towards younger people. Sunday nights are popular times for "altar calls" to be made. The reason for this is that people, from the more traditional churches, looking for something more often visit the charismatic/Pentecostal type churches in the evening. An altar call is an invitation made by the person leading the meeting for people to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior.

The congregation is then released. They have congregated but not communicated with one another, and most probably will not even see each other until next Sunday. Worst of all, most have not met with their Lord.

Some of these institutions may gather in house churches, home groups, home cells or care groups during the week. These take various forms but most are controlled by a leader and follow some kind of programme during which the previous Sunday’s sermon gets discussed. A mini Sunday service, which sometimes has a bit of time allocated for "controlled ministry." Some home groups share in a meal when they meet; most just have tea and /or light refreshments.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of what takes place in "church buildings" around the world on a Sunday. The variations are also as many as there are denominations; some are a lot more liberal, free and lean a bit to the wild side. There is no problem with this, as the worship of God has no boundaries provided Jesus Christ is being exalted.

I am in no way trying to deride any "church grouping" but rather just trying to illustrate a point. This point is absolutely vital for you, the individual to understand. The point will, however, only become clear after we have looked at the Word of God concerning the church that is in His heart.

The desire of my heart is to provoke people, not to anger, but rather to get back to the basics of the Word of God. There will be those who will become angry but that is simply because they are trying to defend their denominational stand. We need to read the scriptures without denominational glasses.

Many have just accepted the formation of the different denominations as merely the evolution of the church to adapt to their time in history and to various cultures. Nothing could be further from the truth. God does not change and neither does His Word. If you are interested in the history of the real church you should read John Kennedy’s book "The Torch of the Testimony."

In my next article we will look at the church as we find it in the New Testament. Beginning with the teaching of our Lord Jesus and then the other writers we will begin to discover the church in the Father’s heart. We will find a church built on one foundation alone; Jesus Christ. We will find a church that is overflowing with the love that is in the Father’s heart. We will find a church built on relationships and not rituals and religious practice. We will find a church critised by religious institutions but respected by the world.

This church will live by the Truth and will not compromise with the enemy. This church is established in God’s love and will love all men as the Father does. It will not be critical of others and break them down but will always seek to see others through the eyes of the Father.

The church that is in the Father’s heart has been functional in the earth for the almost 2000 years. Quietly doing the will of the Father; not always visible; no banners and billboards; just simply loving God and one another and holding out the Word of Life to a world without hope.

My hope is that many who have read this article will begin to see and understand. What we know as "church" today is very far removed from the real church that is in the Father’s heart.
With much love,

The Church in the Father’s Heart.
jack@tcitfh.co.za
http://www.tcitfh.co.za