Jesus and Church are one/Overpopulation

SCRIPTURE OF INTEREST

“Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:19 – 21 KJV).

MY COMMENTARY

The Church and Jesus Christ are one

Ephesians tells us that the church is Christ’s love “. . . even as Christ . . . loved the church, and gave Himself for it” (Ephesians 5:25 KJV). When scripture talks about church it is talking about people. The building houses the church and will carry various names to identify who they are. Scripture identifies the church as solely God’s idea and not man’s, and that Jesus Christ is the head and we are  the body as indicated in Colossians 1:17 18 (KJV) “And He is before all things and by Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things He might have the pre-eminence.”

Now the church is not like any other institution on the face of the earth. The church has its complete existence and connection to Jesus Christ. It cannot exist without Him and if it does then it is structured on human ideals and values with some scripture reference to tell the world that they are a church but in reality it is a religious organization without Jesus. The true church is a living organism dependent on the life source of Jesus Christ and is powered by the Holy Spirit. Let me illustrate by using a human analogy; that of a baby and its mother.

The baby that is conceived in a mother’s womb develops for approximately 9 months before it is born. During those 9 months the developing child is tied to its mother through the umbilical cord through which the baby is supplied everything it needs from its mother. The mother really is its lifeline. The child cannot exist on its own. This is so applicable to our spiritual life. Your wellbeing is totally dependent on the lifeline through Christ which is the church.

When you first get saved you are dependent on the discipleship of the church which by now has mature people who have become mentors, teachers, disciplers and have pastoral capabilities to help you grow. They are in turn depending on Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit to be, in a sense, like a mother and father to nourish and to help you to develop into the person who can then be an instrument or vessel that God can use in the church to help others reach their potential goal. Every new person in Christ cannot succeed without this type of connection and nourishment. The baby without its mother, during pregnancy and afterwards, cannot survive. Every new child of God requires love, teaching, and care to and be taught the basics of Christian living to grow and mature so that they in turn are able to become teachers, disciplers and mentors.

Friends, for us to be in a healthy relationship with God is to understand that Jesus and His church work together. That means we follow what He says. It’s not what we think that matters. There are so many things that are bidding for our attention as to how we can operate in order for our churches to be successful. Sure, there is the human element, but the church will never be the power house if we fail to abide within the direction of the Word and the Holy Spirit. We make decisions but to remain healthy and strong we must look to the one who founded the church in the first place. I want to share with you a thesis that I asked my daughter Melanie to write concerning the relationship that exists between a mother and a child, as an analogy pointing out the heart of God in what God wants concerning His church.

“There’s a very strong connection between a baby and his or her mother during and after pregnancy. Everything that the mother drinks, eats or breathes in has the potential to either harm or strengthen that baby. Her body was created in such a way that it processes everything brought into it and then gives it to the baby. If a woman works in a place in which she breathes in toxic fumes, those fumes have the potential to harm her unborn child. In the same way healthy oxygen breathed in has the potential to give her baby greater health.During pregnancy the baby is fully reliant on their mother. Every single decision she makes can affect her unborn child or children.
From the moment of conception oxygen, blood, food and liquids from the mother are used to nourish the baby. It is many months before a baby can survive outside the womb and even outside the womb that child is reliant on his or her parents to supply what is needed.
It goes beyond food, water, and oxygen that affect the child within the world; it’s more than the drinking of alcohol or smoking or drug usage. Inappropriate sexual activities, stress and anxiety and the words spoken outside the womb also affect the child.
For example, during my pregnancy with my third child I went through a very stressful and anxiety ridden time. I was harassed, bullied, and threatened and it caused some deep anxiety within me. When my baby boy came home from the hospital he was unable to be without me even for short periods of time. He cried all the time and at the age of 10 he was diagnosed with OCD/anxiety disorder. All through those years he cried very easily, could be left with no one but me, and struggled with going to school, play dates, and sleepovers.
Beyond the physical connection, there’s also a deep spiritual connection that is between a mother and her children. When my children hurt, it hurts me. When they are away from me and I don’t know how they are, I long to be with them. My heart is to comfort and protect them. Because when they hurt, I hurt. I lost my son nine years ago to a sickness we didn’t know he had. The deep longing for him from deep within me has not ceased. My arms ache to hold him, and my spirit to be reunited with him. It has made me aware of just how deeply our Father also longs for us. So much more than even I long for my son.”

Your spiritual health is so significant that God has chosen His church to help you be fed with His word, to  learn to love, learn to forgive and learn to overcome the sins in your life. Hebrews 10:25 (KJV) says, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” My cry to you is this Jesus and His church are one. He is the head and we are the body. He loves us with incredible love and when you decide to quit church you are quitting on Him and when you leave the church because of hurt  His cry is for you to come back, be healed and restored. If you feel the church you are attending is not giving the nourishment that you feel you need then find another church. Listen to Jesus cry concerning the nation of Israel in Matthew 23:37 (KJV) “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

 Q AND A

There has been a desire to somehow reduce the population of the world because of the fear that overpopulation will cause climate problems, health care costs to rise and create food shortages. 

QUESTION: What does God have to say about this argument about overpopulation? 

ANSWER: The problem with human beings is that a lot of our decisions are driven by fear and foolishness. God said to Adam and Eve in Genesis 2:28 (KJV) “And God blessed them and God said unto them, be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth and subdue it . . .” Then again in Isaiah 45:18 (NIV) “For this is what the Lord says – He who created the heavens, He is God; He who fashioned and made the earth, He founded it; He did not create it to be empty, but formed it to be inhabited – He says; I am the Lord, and there is no other.” That’s it! 

TIDBITS FOR A HAPPY MARRIAGE

First of a few tidbits: Say good bye to singleness.

Genesis 2:24 says, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.”

On the day of your wedding vows are exchanged to indicate that a commitment has been made to each other before God and witnesses saying that we are leaving singleness and the former way of life behind.

A new identity has now been realized. You are now married.

Choices and decisions now involve two people not one.

It is a team pulling together in the same direction.

Now it is a team united in heart, mind and body.