Sunday, September 27, 2015

Spiritual Alertness To God’s Activity – Part II (Acts 11:19-21)




Not only did the Antioch church regularly process what God was doing, but also they purposely joined in what God was doing. As the Christians at Antioch looked around their multi-cultural city, they knew the church should reflect this multi-cultural framework, and they were willing to invest in what we today call “social capital.” Antioch was a bustling walled seaport city of approximately a half million people. It had theatres, coliseums, offices, stores, and government buildings found in large cities today. The official language of the region was kione’ Greek, although Syrian, Aramaic, Hebrew, and other languages were also spoken.

These early Christians were determined to reach their city for Jesus and equally determined not to allow language, race, or cultural barriers to prevent the spread of the Gospel. Oh, that today's church would have that same burning zeal to reach others with the Gospel of Jesus! Do you understand that less than five percent of American Christians have ever shared their faith with another person in an attempt to lead them to salvation in Christ? The Antioch Christians knew that God was at work in bringing people from all over the world to Antioch, and they chose to participate in what God was doing. Not only did they make a conscience decision to be evangelistic across racial and cultural lines, they made a conscience decision to cross cultural and racial lines in order to worship with those who were believers.

Friends, it’s “heart-check” time. How important is it to you to reach across racial and cultural lines for Christ? How important is it for you to worship with other races and cultures?

It is important that we realize that the Church at Antioch was an ethnically blended mix of people from all over the world, and which represented God’s heart. Understanding God’s heart in this matter caused the church to desire to reach their city and the world. This ethnically blended church started what we today call the “mission” movement!

God gave John the revelator a glimpse into heaven and he saw a great multitude worshipping God. Revelation 7:9 states, “I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb.” Verse 11 tells us that they all “fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God. Listen my friend; our churches should be a foretaste of heaven.

The Antioch Church was willing to change in order to be involved with God. Laying aside their personal preferences, the Antioch church loved others enough to break with tradition in order to worship God as one. With members from at least three continents in their membership, the church ceased worship in Hebrew. No longer were the language and past traditions their style of worship. Baptist Churches have done a great job at loving others on one level. We have loved others enough, literally to go around the world to ensure that people hear the wonderful message of salvation. However, we have not loved others enough to change our style of worship, so that we might worship with other Christians from other cultures.

Are you willing to place a Latino and an African American on staff to help reach the Hispanic and Blacks in your city? Are you willing to begin mixing Black Gospel with Southern Gospel music? Are you willing to share leadership with these other cultures? The Hispanic population in United States is the largest minority group. There are now more Hispanics in United States than Blacks, and it is projected that within the next thirty years the Hispanics will out number Whites in the United States.

Notice who made up the church staff at Antioch (Acts 13:1). Barnabus was from Cyprus. He was the Levite who sold his property and gave the proceeds to the Jerusalem Church (Acts 4:36f). The Apostle Paul was from Tarsus. Simeon was a Black Jewish Christian. Lucius was from Cyrene in North Africa. Manaen was a politician and close friend with Herod Antipas. The Antioch church was an International, multi-lingual, and multicultural congregation with staff representing three continents. So you see, churches diversifying staff is not a new thing, it is an old truth, going back past the Antioch Church to the heart of Jesus. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is for “whosoever” will come.

A couple years ago, I was preaching at Charlotte Chinese Baptist Church in both their English and the Chinese worship services. Afterwards I talked with then Pastor Steven Wang, and asked him about the English service, thinking it was for second generation Chinese-Americans. I fell in love with Pastor Wang when he gave me his answer. He said God had convicted his heart and that of his church, that they could not be a Great Commission Church if they reached only the Chinese people. Oh, that God would give us more Pastor Wang’s and more churches like the Charlotte Chinese Baptist Church.

God longs for His churches to have multi-cultural, international, and multi-lingual staffs to lead multi-cultural, international, and multi-lingual churches. God has been patient with His people for hundreds of years, but in these last days, he is calling us back to an old truth. The Trinity is the DNA of the Church. Where God’s DNA is, God’s people hear God and obey His teachings. Church staff’s must diversify!

Now we come back to the question I asked in Part I. “Why did the disciples miss the miracle and the working of God?” The disciples missed the miracle and the working of God because they did not take the time to process what God had done in their presence. Dear Reader, Having read this blog, you are now faced with a decision. Are you willing to process that which God is doing and seek to understand God's purpose? Can you agree that God is working a miracle by bringing the people of the world to your City and State? Can you process the why of this social occurrence and understand that this is a God thing? All Christians need to individually and collectively pull aside with God and process this miracle. We need to be concerned about the action of God in moving people around the globe and not focused on bounders and the legality of this dispersion. Are you willing to join in and participate in the mobilization of the masses though helping to care for and share Jesus with those God is relocating? Are you willing to over-ride your personal worship preferences to help others come to know Jesus?

If not, then you heart will grow harder. You will become more distant from Jesus, and you will find it harder to recognize the next miraculous movement of God.

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