“Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, 'Who is on the Lord's side? Let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him” (KJV).
Exodus 32:26
Certainly every Christian wants to hear these words at the end of their lives, “Well done, my good and faithful servant”(Matthew 25:21). God has called His people to do His Kingdom work. It is up to us to heed the call and arrange His churches in the way that He has proscribed. A valuable question to ask is, “What are we doing here?” If the answer is not evangelism and discipleship, then the church ministry is off track. There is an appointed time, we don't know when Jesus will return and it is our responsibility to harvest the fields while the sun is still shining. Ministry doesn't just happen, it must be intelligently and strategically organized so that it may be carried out in His will. There is a crisis in our churches today. The invasion of the enemy is possible because her walls and gates are broken down, not unlike the situation that Nehemiah faced. Our walls and gates are spiritual, but no less in need of repair.
Church as usual is not fulfilling the emptiness that the Postmodern era has loosed on our culture. In order for the church to be relevant, her people must rise up and truly become the hands and heart of Christ. Pastors with integrity, who will not sell out to greed, ego and other lusts are necessary for this to happen. Our churches can't be run by the highest bidder, or tither, as it were. The status-quo driven cliques that tend to sway the tide must not be given in to. A pastor with true integrity must say, “We are going to do this God's way point blank.” It is an obvious fact that the people cannot rule themselves. The golden calf debacle (Exodus 32) is evidence of this fact. Exodus 32:26 is quite profound, “Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, 'Who is on the Lord's side? Let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him” (KJV). That is the question that is necessary to ask of ourselves and our churches. Who is on the Lord's side?
Patti
