I just thought I would say the recent events, and prophecy about them in years past, is amazing. To hear prophecies and agree with them is one thing. To see it come to pass is another. Greg and others starting speaking about movement toward house churches, but now how quickly is this coming to pass? I never really thought it would happen, to be honest.
how naive i was
Noah
I heard about it over over 30 years ago. This is not a recent "happening". SI has just recently started talking about it and you just started hearing about it. That does not make it new. What is happening is that the institutional churches are becoming so gross and vulgar in their representation of the Lord that it is prompting even the most "dedicated and sincere" sheep to realize that something is terribly wrong. They only need to see who is "behind the curtain" one time to realize they have been duped. Shutting the curtain will not solve the problem, their eyes have already been opened.
Brethren,
There has a house church movement that happened 30 years ago but it was primarily about the meeting almost without leadership. In many ways it was a reaction to overly religious leadership that was "Lording Over" (1 Peter 5:1-4) the flock of God.
I believe in the last few years the Lord has been clearly speaking to many of His saints to start to gather in meetings that represent the entire body of Christ as One and does not bring separations over names and denominations.
Also the current beginning apostasy is driving many true Christians to seek true fellowship. The Lord has a plan and work to do and it is not according to men's ideas or plans. Sadly many denominations are being led by the idea's of men and trying to do the work of God with clever ideas. This will not suffice for God's end time work of His Church according to His will.
I'm 30 years old myself.
I was just shocked at the realization of a major movement possibly happening where house churches become a reality, like in China/etc.
Thanks
Everything is relative, isn't it. Some people think it is a major movement now. Others, look for greater numbers to quantify a "major" movement.
When 45,000 left Babylon and over a million (maybe 2 million) stayed, those that stayed did not think it was a major movement, but those that left to rebuild Jerusalem may have thought differently. Those of us today, read the account and definitely know it was a major movement of God.
Since the "Jesus People" movement in the late 60's and early 70's, God has been very busy. This movement touched the whole world (not just America), and thus, the house church movement is global in scope (again, not just America).
God is preparing us for something, isn't He? (many things, in fact).
Everything is relative, isn't it. Some people think it is a major movement now. Others, look for greater numbers to quantify a "major" movement.
When 45,000 left Babylon and over a million (maybe 2 million) stayed, those that stayed did not think it was a major movement, but those that left to rebuild Jerusalem may have thought differently. Those of us today, read the account and definitely know it was a major movement of God.
Since the "Jesus People" movement in the late 60's and early 70's, God has been very busy. This movement touched the whole world (not just America), and thus, the house church movement is global in scope (again, not just America).
God is preparing us for something, isn't He? (many things, in fact).
by sermonindex on 2013/8/26 9:14:31Brethren,
There has a house church movement that happened 30 years ago but it was primarily about the meeting almost without leadership. In many ways it was a reaction to overly religious leadership that was "Lording Over" (1 Peter 5:1-4) the flock of God.
In the last 30 years people have gathered in homes for many reasons. You cannot paint a broad brush stroke and characterize all house churches as "reactionary".
Since the Resurrection of Jesus Christ the Church has been meeting in homes, forests, caves, etc. Yes, most recently (30 years) it has accelerated in America and other lands.
There were many back then that actually did not centralize on the "meeting", but rather gathered around "personalities". Thankfully, the Church has grown up and left the House Church Peronsality behind (for the most part). You know, the guy that had all the answers on how to "house church". The very thing they did not like is what they ended up doing, gathering unto men, but not all. As with individual Christians, House Churches are at different levels of maturity, too. So, we cannot say that the movement was all about meetings. That does not characterize it at all.
Some gathered around the idea of community and all things in common, some gathered around a weekly meeting free of liturgy, programs and schedules, some gathered around personalities, some gathered around mutual fellowship and friendship and some gathered around Jesus Christ and ended up having many of these other things. But without Jesus, it did not matter what you gathered around, it eventually fell apart. I see the same thing today. Why? Because we are men and we are all growing at different rates of speed in the Lord and are prone to make the same mistakes that generations before us did.
Many have come up with books on "How to Have House Church, and then they gather around that and try to live that book, perfectly. But there is no life there, and it will only be a matter of time before it all falls apart. Many have written such books on "How to Have House Church". It's not the book or it's principles that bring something down, it is the hearts of the individuals straying from the Lord. But, we all keep writing books thinking that this one is gonna work. This book is really going to show people how to do it. If they just follow this book, everything will be grand.
I believe in the last few years the Lord has been clearly speaking to many of His saints to start to gather in meetings that represent the entire body of Christ as One and does not bring separations over names and denominations.
This is not a new thing. This has also been part of the movement for the last several decades. House Churches 20 and 30 years ago were made up of many people who came out of varying and different expressions of the Babylonish church where they all had a "name".
The Church is not the "Meeting" and the Meeting is not the central part of the Church. Today, "Open" meetings are becoming closed as people think there is safety in returning to one person doing all the talking. There is much talk about "Leadership", but in reality, many just want more control over the "Meeting" (over people) in order to guard it against perceived, yet unmanifested excesses. Leadership has nothing to do with control over people's lives and knows how to deal with excesses when they manifest. Does not a Mother or Father know how to deal with their children when something out of the ordinary happens?
When we start out to raise a family, we can become so fearful about what our children "might" fall into, that we seek to control their every movement (and eventually their thinking). You will surely lose that son or daughter if this is what your "meetings" with them look like.
To get people to fall in line with all the principles of a book, ensures nothing except you were successful in getting people to conform to a set of finite principles. But, it will never ensure LIFE in the Congregation and love amongst the Brethren.
And this is what characterizes a NT Church. LIFE--His LIFE, and love for one another.
Born of the Spirit, propelled by love and sacrifice.
Each generation brings new men, who create new movements because they think they know a better way to DO things.
When in fact, people need to stop DOING and learn how to BE WITH ANOTHER.
Unless the Lord builds the House, they that labor, labor in vain.
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