Doctors

1 Timothy 1:8-11 and Luke 5:31-32 are both parallel verses of scripture. Not only are they parallel but they are also incredible challenging.

What if I were to tell you that possibly, just maybe, what we know as church today isn't necessarily what Christ set it out to be.

See these verses have shaken my theology and way of thinking. After reading these something hit me, and hit me hard... what if what I've known and done for 23 years is just the TIP OF THE ICEBERG? What if, just for fun, church today, as it is seen and portrayed is nothing more than a resting place for everything else?

These verses clearly relay a very important and incredible message: I (being Jesus) didn't come for those of you that know me, I came for those who don't! So, where does that leave the ones that do know Him? IN CHURCH! What about the one's that don't know Him? OUTSIDE OF CHURCH!

We've created a culture that believes that church is where you go when you are saved, sanctified, and filled with the Holy Ghost. If you aren't all 3, don't come in until you are. What would happen if each and every church, would take ownership begin to work within the confines of the original church?

Imagine with me, just for laughs, that the church was this:

- An encouraging, inspirational learning place to come weekly with other believers to be FED.

- A place to come and equip each other to do the REAL work.. OUTSIDE of the church!

- A place that didn't care about HOW we reached people, as long as we did.

- A place of desire and passion that longed for the heart of God in order to touch the heart of people?

Jesus ran after and sought God with angst, and power, and might many times during his short stay on this Earth, all for one purpose, to touch the hearts of the lost, and connect them to the heart of the Father.

I don't believe when the church was established it was to be a holding tank of doctor's or a place for people that are perfectly healthy to come and be "hypocondriacts" who act like something's wrong, when if we would simply grab the POWER and RELEASE of God, those problems wouldn't be there anyway.

Church should be an equipping place, not an acting place. We should come here to equip and help others worship, learn, grown, and move... but at some point, it's time to stop arguing and fighting over petty things and get our butts out of our well-formed seats and DO SOMETHING!

I've grown up in church and been involvled in ministry for 8 years now. I've seen/heard/experienced a lot. But, what if, REALLY, church was just the tip of the iceberg?

I think we do an injustice when we make our members and our fellow people believe that the ministry and connection to God is done INSIDE the church, when in all reality, it should be done OUTSIDE the church, and discussed INSIDE the church.

When the Philistines set up to fight the Israelites, and the Israelites lost, the Philistines stole the Ark of God. 5 tribes later, they FINALLY got some divine revelation...if we aren't HONORING God, there is judgment. The Philistines didn't want the Ark in order to HONOR it, they merely wanted to HOUSE it. Judgment was cast for HOUSING, blessings were REIGNED down for HONORING!

My question is really simple for me and everyone else out there: What am I doing? Am I really seeking to work within the confines of the church AND outside of them? Or am I comfortable simply HOUSING the presence of God (Ark of God)? I believe people that are completely RUINED for God, can't help but think, THERE'S GOT TO BE MORE TO IT!

(by no means am I "slamming" or demeaning the purpose of church, I am simply understanding there is more than JUST church as we know it. I believe church is great and important, when connected with the heart as well)