Aquila
04-24-2012, 09:52 AM
In the book of Malachi we have a very powerful and moving prophesy that reads:
Malachi 4:5-6
English Standard Version (ESV)
5 “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. 6 And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”
What I want to draw your attention to is the statement, “he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers”.
In today’s society broken homes are all around us. A great number of fathers have abandoned their partners and children. Due to this trend several generations of young people have been left fatherless. While this is a very terrible situation, it’s not much different in the church.
In ancient times the church gathered in homes forming smaller close-knit communities of believers. The terms “brother” and “sister” were not formal titles of those in membership, but were rather true terms of endearment that illustrated a spiritual reality. They actually saw each other as spiritual brothers and sisters, a family. The elders of the early church didn’t serve as CEO’s or managers of a religious organization. But rather they served as spiritual fathers in this family of God. The love and tenderness one would expect to see in an earthly father was spiritually manifest in the elders, the spiritual fathers of the church.
We can see this relationship and the depth of its tenderness and intimacy in the words of Paul as he writes about Timothy, his son in the Gospel:
Philippians 2:21-24
English Standard Version (ESV)
21 For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But you know Timothy's proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel. 23 I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, 24 and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also.
You see, Timothy was Paul’s adopted son in the Gospel. Paul didn’t see himself as merely an evangelist that advised and served with Timothy. No. The relationship was deeper in Paul’s heart. It was a relationship wherein Paul accepted the responsibility of spiritual fatherhood and saw Timothy as a dear spiritual son. This is the kind of relationship that should exist between spiritual leaders in the church and those they serve. Paul wrote to the Corinthians:
1 Corinthians 4:14-16
English Standard Version (ESV)
14 I do not write these things to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. 15 For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. 16 I urge you, then, be imitators of me.
Paul recognized that the Corinthians had countless advisors and men of theological understanding. However, they were lacking spiritual fathers. And so the believers were spiritually fatherless. Paul illustrates that he became their spiritual father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. Paul urged them to be imitators of him. In other words, they were to open up and become spiritual fathers to the new believers in the church as he was a spiritual father to them.
With the growth of religious organizations throughout the world the church has become more of a corporate organization than a family. As a result elders serve more like CEO’s and business managers than spiritual fathers. This has stunted the growth of the church and caused spiritual immaturity to set into the body. Most don’t realize that it’s God’s desire that the entire church be active in ministry and service. However, most haven’t progressed beyond being a babe in Christ. They are still “on the milk” sitting on pews. They are not growing. Young people are taught and disciplined in the ways of life until they become young adults. It is here that they begin to spread their wings and find their way with their fathers and mothers at their side. Ultimately they will become adults who will in turn bear their own children. Spiritually speaking, we are not nurturing entire generations of believers to move beyond sitting in a pew and sucking down milk. Spiritually speaking, spiritual fathers must train up young men in the Lord to not only know the Bible (dissemination of facts), but to prepare for spiritual fatherhood themselves. Because if they are healthy, they will give birth to spiritual children. The entire “family structure” of the church has become so corporate the terms “brother”, “sister”, and “elder” are just formalities. They are no longer terms of endearment that speak to a spiritual reality. We’ll call a man “brother” because he attends our church…without even truly knowing him, or caring that we don’t.
Writing to the church the Apostle John stated:
1 John 2:12-14
King James Version (KJV)
12I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake.
13I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father.
14I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.
Children, young men, and fathers. John saw the church as a family, not an organization. Where did this reality go? You’ll find that as congregations grew larger and larger intimacy faded. Now it’s safe to say that half of the average church doesn’t know the other half. Sometimes in even larger congregations any quarter of the church doesn’t know the other three quarters of the church. They come to church, shake hands, smile, maybe serve in a program, listen to the worship concert, hear a sermon, and then maybe go out to eat. After that… they go on their merry way into their individual lives. The church is more like a broken family of orphaned children than a strong, vibrant, and spiritual family.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Malachi 4:5-6
English Standard Version (ESV)
5 “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. 6 And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”
What I want to draw your attention to is the statement, “he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers”.
In today’s society broken homes are all around us. A great number of fathers have abandoned their partners and children. Due to this trend several generations of young people have been left fatherless. While this is a very terrible situation, it’s not much different in the church.
In ancient times the church gathered in homes forming smaller close-knit communities of believers. The terms “brother” and “sister” were not formal titles of those in membership, but were rather true terms of endearment that illustrated a spiritual reality. They actually saw each other as spiritual brothers and sisters, a family. The elders of the early church didn’t serve as CEO’s or managers of a religious organization. But rather they served as spiritual fathers in this family of God. The love and tenderness one would expect to see in an earthly father was spiritually manifest in the elders, the spiritual fathers of the church.
We can see this relationship and the depth of its tenderness and intimacy in the words of Paul as he writes about Timothy, his son in the Gospel:
Philippians 2:21-24
English Standard Version (ESV)
21 For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But you know Timothy's proven worth, how as a son with a father he has served with me in the gospel. 23 I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, 24 and I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also.
You see, Timothy was Paul’s adopted son in the Gospel. Paul didn’t see himself as merely an evangelist that advised and served with Timothy. No. The relationship was deeper in Paul’s heart. It was a relationship wherein Paul accepted the responsibility of spiritual fatherhood and saw Timothy as a dear spiritual son. This is the kind of relationship that should exist between spiritual leaders in the church and those they serve. Paul wrote to the Corinthians:
1 Corinthians 4:14-16
English Standard Version (ESV)
14 I do not write these things to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. 15 For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. 16 I urge you, then, be imitators of me.
Paul recognized that the Corinthians had countless advisors and men of theological understanding. However, they were lacking spiritual fathers. And so the believers were spiritually fatherless. Paul illustrates that he became their spiritual father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. Paul urged them to be imitators of him. In other words, they were to open up and become spiritual fathers to the new believers in the church as he was a spiritual father to them.
With the growth of religious organizations throughout the world the church has become more of a corporate organization than a family. As a result elders serve more like CEO’s and business managers than spiritual fathers. This has stunted the growth of the church and caused spiritual immaturity to set into the body. Most don’t realize that it’s God’s desire that the entire church be active in ministry and service. However, most haven’t progressed beyond being a babe in Christ. They are still “on the milk” sitting on pews. They are not growing. Young people are taught and disciplined in the ways of life until they become young adults. It is here that they begin to spread their wings and find their way with their fathers and mothers at their side. Ultimately they will become adults who will in turn bear their own children. Spiritually speaking, we are not nurturing entire generations of believers to move beyond sitting in a pew and sucking down milk. Spiritually speaking, spiritual fathers must train up young men in the Lord to not only know the Bible (dissemination of facts), but to prepare for spiritual fatherhood themselves. Because if they are healthy, they will give birth to spiritual children. The entire “family structure” of the church has become so corporate the terms “brother”, “sister”, and “elder” are just formalities. They are no longer terms of endearment that speak to a spiritual reality. We’ll call a man “brother” because he attends our church…without even truly knowing him, or caring that we don’t.
Writing to the church the Apostle John stated:
1 John 2:12-14
King James Version (KJV)
12I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake.
13I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father.
14I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.
Children, young men, and fathers. John saw the church as a family, not an organization. Where did this reality go? You’ll find that as congregations grew larger and larger intimacy faded. Now it’s safe to say that half of the average church doesn’t know the other half. Sometimes in even larger congregations any quarter of the church doesn’t know the other three quarters of the church. They come to church, shake hands, smile, maybe serve in a program, listen to the worship concert, hear a sermon, and then maybe go out to eat. After that… they go on their merry way into their individual lives. The church is more like a broken family of orphaned children than a strong, vibrant, and spiritual family.
TO BE CONTINUED...