Becoming A Live Church

Becoming a Live Church Revelation 2:1-2:7
I read about a preacher who wanted to impact South Korea for Jesus Christ. And so he started a church in his friend’s living room. One of the parishioners was paralyzed. And so one Sunday, the pastor went over to her. Laid hands on her. And prayed fervently. And she was healed! This got people in the community excited. And they started flocking to the new church in droves. Pretty soon, they outgrew the living room. So they put up a tent in the front lawn. And had services out there. But soon enough, that got too crowded. And they built a church. By the mid 1960s, they had 3000 people.

But one day, as the pastor was baptizing several hundred people, he collapsed to the ground in exhaustion. He was rushed to the hospital. Where he had major surgery. And while he was sitting in bed reading the Bible, he came across a verse in Exodus 18:18 that moved his heart: It said this: "The work is too heavy for you. You cannot handle it alone. You will only wear yourself out."The next day, the pastor called the elders and deacons. And put each one in charge of a certain number of people. After the pastor did this, the church exploded with growth!
Thousands of people gave their lives to Christ. By 1972, there were 10,000 members. By 1979, there were 100,000. By 1984, 400,000. And today, there are almost 800,000 members of the Yoido Full Gospel Church. Making it the largest congregation on planet earth. They support 85 missionaries from their own church. And they have planted new churches in 39 countries.
This is truly one of the most incredible stories in church history.Something equally incredible happened 2000 years ago. On the day of Pentecost. A small group gathered for prayer. The power of the Holy Spirit was present. They praised the Lord. Peter preached the word. Thousands got saved. And the church was born.

You ever wonder why some churches are so vibrant? And get larger almost every week? While other churches are barely able to keep going? In Revelation 3:1, Jesus tells the church in Sardis, "you have a reputation for being alive, but I know for a fact that you’re dead! You’re not preaching the word! You’re compromising your moral standards. You’re playing with fire! Now cut it out! Or I’ll come when you least expect it and shut your church down forever!"I’d hate to be the pastor of that church! So let me ask you this: "Are we as devoted to Christ as we ought to be? Do you think we can experience the power of Pentecost here at F.C.W.C.?”I believe that we can.

The first thing our church needs is a proper purpose. In Acts 2:1, we’re told that on the day of Pentecost, all the Christians were together in one place. To wait for the blessing of God. The promised arrival of the Holy Spirit.
I was reading about a Christian speaker. Who was giving a message on Saturday night. And he said to the crowd, "On Thursday, I met with the President of the United States in the oval office. On Friday, I met with the Vice President. But that’s nothing. Because tomorrow morning at 9am at Church, I’m going to meet with the Lord Almighty!"
That’s why we go to church. Not to check out the preacher. Or to see what sister Mildred is wearing. But to meet face to face with Almighty God.
There’s a famous story about Henry Ward Beecher. He was one of the great preachers of the 19th Century. He was sick one Sunday, so a substitute preacher walked up to the pulpit as the worship service began. Seeing that Dr. Beecher would not be speaking that day, a number of people got up and headed for the door. The substitute preacher said, "All those who came to worship Dr. Beecher this morning may leave. All those who came to worship the Lord, may stay in their seats." You can guess what happened next. Everyone sat back down. The congregation learned a valuable lesson that morning:
We’re here to worship God. Matthew 4:10 says "Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only!" That’s the proper purpose of the church.

In addition to a proper purpose, the second thing we need is powerful praise and worship. I love how everyone in Acts 2 was filled with the Spirit. And they spoke in tongues. And they praised the Lord.I don’t want to go to church. And hear some long, windy, repetitive, theological discourse that has no bearing on life today. I want to connect with God. I want to feel God. I want to experience God. I want to worship God. And then when I leave, I want to go out and serve God.

One of my favorite images from the Old Testament is in 2 Samuel chapter 6. An image of David. Dancing before the Lord. Worshiping God. Celebrating his goodness. With unbridled enthusiasm. That’s what I want for my life. I want to worship the Lord. With all of my love. With all of my might. No matter what anyone else might think of the way I do it.

A live church needs a proper purpose. Powerful praise and worship. But it also needs a powerful message. If you look closely at Acts 2, notice that the reason why 3000 people got saved wasn’t because of the speaking in tongues. It was because of the preaching! Peter delivered a heck of a sermon! "Jesus Christ is Lord! You’re lost without Him! Turn from your sin! Get baptized! Get right with God! Before it’s too late! Save yourselves from this corrupt generation!"

There was this article in a recent magazine, someone wrote the following letter to the editor: "It seems ministers feel their sermons are very important and spend a great deal of time preparing them. I have been attending church quite regularly for 30 years. I have probably heard 3,000 sermons. To my dismay, I discovered I cannot remember a single message. I wonder if a minister’s time might be better spent on something else?"For weeks a storm of editorial responses ensued. finally ended by this letter: "I have been married for 30 years. During that time I have eaten 32,850 meals-mostly my wife’s cooking. Suddenly I have discovered I cannot remember the menu of a single meal. And yet, I realize that without those meals, I would have starved to death long ago." A sermon is like a spiritual meal. And a vibrant church is like a cafeteria for the soul. A place where you can be fed and nourished by the Word of God. The sermons in a live church should be that same way. Meaty. Tasty. And satisfying. Psalm 34:8 says "Taste and see that the Lord is good. Jeremiah 15:16 says "When your words came, I ate them! They were my joy and my heart’s delight!" And in John 6:53, Jesus talks about eating the flesh of the Son of Man. Feasting on the Lord and his word.

Why do I quote so many verses in my messages? And the best answer I can come up with is that I need meat in my diet. I need substance in my life. Something to chew on.

Being a live church means having a powerful purpose. Powerful praise and worship. And a powerful message. But we also need the power of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38 says "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Our plans may be noble. Our intentions may be good. But there will be no blessing and no success without a fresh anointing of the Holy Spirit on our lives. The Holy Spirit is not just for Pentecostals and holy rollers. The Bible says that the Holy Spirit is given to everyone who turns to Christ.