Authenticate your Church

 

God is absolutely interested in our well being however, He is still the Father of His house that wants to see His children GROW, MATURE, AND REPRODUCE SPIRITUALLY.

In every country across the globe, people trade in vastly different ways but seldom without currency. Money had been a key building block for civilization for millennia. Ever since people started making use of cash to trade there have been those who look for ways to exploit the use of currency.

Traditionally those who were tasked to protect the integrity of currency have kept devising ways to prove the authenticity of their particular currency. Sadly there will always be those who keep working on new ways to steal the value of a currency just so they can have the perceived liberty that comes from it.

The power that comes from God’s presence is no exception and people have been trying to control or own it since biblical times as we see in Act 8v18.

WHAT THEN IS THE CURRENCY OF GOD’S HOUSE OR KINGDOM?

Faith: Heb 11v6 Now without faith it is impossible to please God, for whoever comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who diligently search for him.

Faith is the currency oh heaven. Now we face the question: “How do we authenticate faith, and how do we tell if it is, in fact fake? Real faith will prove itself with actions that match the claims of the faith. When we believe that a certain action if something we should not be doing and that same thing is present in our lives then our actions do not match our faith. Faith that does not manifest in actions is fake James 2v18.

Jesus was also vocal in saying that the true reflection of a persons faith is in their actions Matt 7v16. The real proof of what someone believes is simply found in the way they live their lives out in front of us. One can only authenticate a banknote by examining it. In the same way, we can only verify true faith when we get up close and personal with a person.

This brings us to the identification of fake church. There are literally hundreds and thousands of churches in communities across the world. How does one know that one is a true church?

In my mind, a church is a place where believers will plant themselves. In a real church, they should be encouraged and fed to grow spiritually. When one looks at churches we may very well see that they take on a host of community projects. One of the absolute essential fruit that any church must produce is mature Christians. One can say that it is meant to be a place where believers feel at home or receive encouragement. As much as these things are important there can not be anything more important than causing believers to grow in their relationship with God.

Do most churches not do this? I would say sure they do. But it is also very important to know that a church is not meant to be a motivational club. It s intended as a growth hub for believers. Churches must make people grow. Grow in understanding of Gods word. Growth in our relationship with God. Growth in our ability to produce visible fruit that changes the world.

Now one can argue that good works can not save me and you would be right. However, once we are saved good works are required. Not for salvation but as an outcome of an obedient life with God and His commandment to love Him above all else and our neighbor as we love ourselves.

Now there is nothing wrong with going to church and being inspired or fired up as a Christian. It has been my experience that churches are full of people that need love and encouragement to grow. Our shortfall may very well be that we have come to expect churches to puff us up. Inspiring and lifting up believers is simply a side effect of a good church.

A Good church with challenge people to grow and mature. It will create an environment where believers will improve their knowledge of God’s word in ways that improve their relationship with God. A good church will encourage people to produce fruit that lines up with scripture.

Second only to love God above all else is the command to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Loving our neighbor is best expressed when we make disciples of them. Disciples and grow, mature, and teach others through their lives.

Churches that do not constantly produce disciple-making disciples, run the real risk of missing the Lord’s mandate. Jesus said we are to seek first the Kingdom of heaven and His righteousness Matt 6v33. I know that there are many challenges for churches in a fallen world. There are many reasons why churches may fall short of the ideal in the Bible.

My question to you is simply this. When the Lord returns and asks you to give an account of your life, who will you blame for your shortfalls. Will you say that the church did not make you grow? Will you try to shift the blame to someone else like Adam did or will you own your life and stand upright before God.

Churches are one of the most important cornerstones of our communities, but they must be functional growth beds for mature and duplicating believers. It is very possible that we can say that disagreements that cause churches to split is a result of the church missing its primary mandate to produce and reproduce mature believers in the interest of the Kingdom of Heaven.

God is absolutely interested in our well being however, He is still the Father of His house that wants to see His children GROW, MATURE, AND REPRODUCE SPIRITUALLY.