Many people today understand the church as a building. This is not a biblical understanding of the church. The word “church” comes from the Greek word ekklesia which is defined as “an assembly” or “called-out ones.” The root meaning of “church” is not that of a building, but of people.

The church is the body of Christ, of which He is the head. Ephesians 1:22-23 says, “And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.” The body of Christ is made up of all believers in Jesus Christ from the day of Pentecost (Acts chapter 2) until Christ’s return.

The church is not a building or a denomination. According to the Bible, the church is the body of Christ — all those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ for salvation (John 3:16; 1 Corinthians 12:13).

Early Church

Lifestyle

“They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” (Acts 2:42 NASB)

Participatory meetings

“What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.” (1 Cor. 14:26 NASB; see also Colossians 3:16, Heb. 10:24-25)

Meeting in homes

“Aquila and Prisca greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house.” 1 Cor. 16:19

Romans 16:5 –  Likewise greet the church that is in their house.

Acts 20:20 – how I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house

Colossians 4:15 – Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea, and Nymphas and the church that is in his[a] house.

Philemon 1:2- to the beloved[a] Apphia, Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your house:

Networking through Apostles

“After some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us return and visit the brethren in every city in which we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are.” (Acts 15:36)

Occasional Large Group Meetings

“I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you publicly and from house to house” (Acts 20:20 [NASB])

Jesus model – Christ Our Cornerstone

Ephesians 2:19-22   Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. ” For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.” (Matthew 18:20 [NIV])

Jesus – the author and perfecter of our faith – our role model

Churches need to develop elders and deacons who serve the members as overseers, not a ruling hierarchy by being examples (patterns and models of Christian living) to the flock (the congregation). And then when the Chief Shepherd is revealed, we will win the conqueror’s crown of glory

Churches need to become “an assembly” of “called-out ones” one that is not that of a building, but of people. Church buildings today tend to lock Christians away from meaningful contact with their communities. Far from promoting the faith by being “visible” they mark the places for unbelievers to avoid! (Try inviting one in!)

Jesus’ ministry seems to be about 40% in homes, 40% in informal gatherings in the open country or city courtyards, and maybe 20% in synagogues.

Going through Mark’s Gospel we find Jesus:

• Healing Peter’s mother-in-law at the family residence (Mark 1:29).
• Healing a paralytic via a hole in some poor soul’s roof (Mark 2:10)
• Saving a bunch of crooked tax collectors at Levi’s place (Mark 2:15)
• Getting mobbed and nearly “certified” over a meal (Mark 3:20)
• Healing a 12-year-old girl in her bedroom (Mark 5:42)
• Telling the disciples to do home—based evangelism (Mark 6:10)
• Having his lunch interrupted by accusing Pharisees (Mark 7:2)
• Delivering a Greek girl from demons in a home in Tyre (Mark 7:24).
• Teaching the disciples humility in a Capernaum house (Mark 9:32).
• Giving revolutionary teaching on marriage in a home (Mark 10:10)
• Preparing for his last week at Lazarus’ villa in Bethany (Mark 11:1)
• Being anointed by a sinful woman at Simons dwelling (Mark 14:3)
• Instituting breaking of bread in a Jerusalem home (Mark 14:14).
• Enjoying a post resurrection meal at a disciple’s place (Mark 16:12).
• Reuniting with the eleven in their locked-up home (Mark 16:14).
• Returning at last to his Father’s House (Mark 16:19).

The synagogue should not be seen as the forerunner of church life. Rather than being a model for the early church, synagogues were the hub of corrupt practice where Jesus confronted the religious establishment with true spiritual vitality. In the Gospel according to Mark we find Jesus:

• Upsetting the service expelling demons from a member (Mark 1:26).
• Chasing more demons from the Galilean synagogues (Mark 1:39).
• Having a contract put out on him for a Sabbath healing (Mark 3:1).
• Surviving a death attempt in Nazareth (Mark 6:2, see also Luke).
• Condemning the pride inherent in synagogue worship (Mark 12:39).
• Warning disciples they would be flogged in synagogues (Mark 13:9).

These facts should at least bring into question our love of special buildings, formal seating, organized meetings and even the sacrosanct regular Sunday meetings.

Summary

In Cochin and Ooty, I am making efforts to have a good mixture of both the large group meetings as well as the home meetings. The group meetings consists of disciples.  The disciples  hold weekly meetings at home, asking them to invite those in their circles, to have a meal and to share the Gospel. The home meetings are often people who barely know Jesus, with the majority being those who do not come, or would not come, to the weekly gathering of disciples.

This is not the same as “cell groups”. Cell groups mainly involve re-gathering of those who gather in the Sunday worship.

I initiated this in January 2010. We have at least two families coming to home meetings who do not feel that they are ready to come to the gathering of disciples. Though I am not present in these meetings, I answer questions that they could not find answers to, I help out in the word of God when needed, and pray. If there are issues that need personal prayer, then I go to their homes and pray, and when the Lord follows through with the miracles, those families then come for the weekly meetings of the disciples. They in turn start home meetings of their own to reach out to their circle of influence when they are ready.

I am learning as I go along. I am hoping to develop and exemplify

1. Sincerity – What you see is what you get, no hype.
2. Friendship – True friendship and brotherly bonds are developed.
3. Discipleship – Paul said “imitate me” 1 Corinthians 4:16 & 1 Corinthians 11:1 He could say this because people really knew him – not by attending his seminars, but because he lived and exercised his ministry in and around people’s homes. Loving attitudes are observed and copied, problems are visible and can be gently taught into. It helps explain why hospitality is a non-negotiable qualification for church leadership in Scriptures.
4. Mission – Gospel is unfettered, Brother Yun, in his astounding account of the Chinese Underground Church contends: “God has not only refined us in the fire of affliction for the past thirty years, He has also refined our methods. For example, we’re totally committed to planting groups of local believers who meet in homes. We have no desire to build a church building anywhere! This allows the gospel to spread rapidly, is harder for the authorities to detect, and allow us to channel resources directly into gospel ministry.”
5. Stewardship – In a related point, we need to question how much of kingdom money is eaten up by church building and maintenance. The physical needs of the worldwide church are immense, as is the need to fund mission to unreached people groups. Yet the scandalous fact is 90 percent of Christian money is spent on the world’s richest 10 percent (USA, Western Europe and Australasia). This money is split between buildings and staff. Many new churches have tired of the inconvenience of setting up in hired halls and spending vast amounts on edifices.
6. Locality - Imagine if we could seek out people in our neighborhoods. Imagine those groups meeting regularly and committing to serve and reach the people they live among. Imagine groups like these meeting with others for a monthly celebration, for envisioning, teaching and encouragement. It is a trend worth encouraging surely, and more reminiscent of New Testament method than the remote central church model we’re stuck with now.
7. An atmosphere where newcomers are welcome: There is a perceived problem here. Some people feel that newcomers would be loath to visit a meeting a house. Our experience has shown that, as long as a person has been befriended beforehand, he will quickly feel relaxed in a home meeting.

Solomon wrote, “The heavens, even the highest heavens cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built.”8 Yet for a time, God chose to set his presence in a physical place. But when Jesus died the temple curtain was violently ripped into two.

The temple is now replaced by groups of believers being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. The Bible could not be clearer, “The Lord of heaven and earth. . . does not live in temples built by hands.  Instead as Peter explains you, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house. One of the most dominant New Testament pictures used to describe the church is that of a “household,” God’s household.

Scriptural language is replete with the language of family, “brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, devotion, love, help, care..eating… .” It figures that the most natural setting for this “household” is—you’ve guessed it—a house! And it was easy to see how the sense of family, and sharing of life and discipleship by example happened naturally in this most informal of environments.

After all, we all meet at  “The Father’s House”.

D. LEARN TO WAIT ON GOD

They that wait upon the Lord will ‘exchange’ strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint” (Isa 40:31).

1. Two Concepts

What does the Bible mean when it says to “.. wait upon the Lord?” There are two concepts involved in “waiting upon the Lord” these are:

a. Waiting For God’s Time.

That is take no major action until God shows you it is time to act.

b. Waiting God’s Time

May I share my personal testimony with you? The Lord called me to His service in 1948, at age 16. I was born again and filled with the Holy Spirit but didn’t understand the need to fully surrender my will and plans to the Lord.

The “deeper life” of Christian commitment had little appeal to me. I had already decided what I was going to do with my life and being a preacher had no part in that plan.

During the summer of 1948 the hand of the Lord came heavily upon my life. Events took place which made me feel as if I were being wrestled to the floor to pray. Many times I lay prostrate on the floor with tears flooding down my face. I was crying out in prayer to God.

In retrospect, I think many of those tears may have been tears of resistance to God’s will. I wanted my way – and God wanted His way. This conflict of wills – my will against God’s will – was creating an internal struggle to the death. The death of my will.

After three months of this intense spiritual conflict, I surrendered my life to do what God wanted. He wanted me to go into all the world and preach the gospel.

a. Let’s Go Now!

When I finally gave up to the will of God I said to the Lord, “I’ll go where you want me to go dear Lord. I’ll say what you want me to say, I’ll be what you want me to be.” With this total surrender of my will to God’s will I was ready to GO – RIGHT NOW!

There was no time to lose! (Or so I believed.) “Let’s go God! Right now! I’m ready! The time is short! The nuclear Age is here! The world is coming to an end! I’m ready to evangelize the whole world – by myself if necessary.”

In my youthful enthusiasm, optimism, (and I should add, ignorance). I was expecting to be an instant “wonder world winner.”

You see, my thinking was moulded somewhat by the theology of my church. Our church leaders emphasized the soon return of our Lord from Heaven. The Second Coming of Jesus was preached constantly in the pulpit If not by the local preacher, then by the visiting evangelist. I expected Jesus to come very soon.

I remember a poll taken in the teenagers’ Sunday School class the summer of 1948. We were asked, “How long will it be before the Lord comes again?” No one in that class of 50 teenagers believed the Lord would possibly delay His Coming beyond 1950.

World War II had just ended. The Korean conflict was simmering. The threat of nuclear holocaust seemed imminent. I felt that whatever God was going to do had to be done right now. There was no time to wait. With a commission to evangelize the world, and only two years left in which to do it, I had to start immediately!

What was God’s response to my great sense of urgency?

b. Learn To Wait!

I had to learn that whatever my interpretation of world events, whatever my own sense of urgency – God acts in His own time, not mine. When you are “itching” to get into action, it is the hardest thing in the world to wait.

I was not prepared (trained) to go and preach. True, I had been called. But God’s call and God’s sending are two different things. I didn’t know it at the time but God wasn’t a bit worried over the world situation in 1948. I was, but He wasn’t. He had planned my training and preparation. All my anxiety and impatience didn’t cause Him to speed up His schedule by a single minute.

I did not realize it at the time but I was straining to enter the battle and fight in my own strength. God knew I would have been destroyed if I had gone forth unprepared. So, He made me wait until I gained training and experience. Through those years of waiting on the Lord, I learned that I must never “…go beyond the word of the Lord my God to do less or more” (Num 22:18).

c. God Controls The Time.

The Bible says, “…when the fullness of time was come, God sent forth his Son…” (Gal 4:4). God controls the times and seasons. He had a time to send Jesus into the world. He had a time for all things. Wait for God’s time. don’t get ahead and don’t lag behind. Wait upon the Lord. He will reveal His time to you.

The times and seasons are in the Father’s own power (acts 1:7). Let us learn to wait patiently on Him. He will reveal the times and seasons to us when we need to know them.

3. Waiting In Prayer And Fasting

“Let not them that wait upon thee.. be ashamed… let not those that seek thee be confounded…” (Ps 69:6).

If we are to “exchange” our limited strength for His unlimited power, we must establish a consistent daily devotional habit. Disciplining oneself to times of regular prayer (and fasting) is one of the most difficult things for most church leaders to do. The pressure of daily schedules and activities tend to rob us of these essential devotional times with the Lord.

a. How Do Daily Devotional Times Help?

Try this experiment. Fill a pitcher right to the top brim with water. Fill it so full another drop would make it run over. Then start dropping in stones about the size of your hand. What happens? With every stone that goes in the pitcher, a like amount of water overflows and spills out from the pitcher.

This is the way we exchange our strength for God’s. We are filled with the water of our own strength. As we spend time in prayer, God begins dropping in the stones of His strength and power. These stones of grace displace the water of negative unbelieving attitudes, stones of dependence on the Lord displace the stagnant water of “I can do it without God” attitudes. His divine enablements fill our life, and our powerlessness is replaced with His strength.

How can I cause God’s strength to fill my life? It is a natural-supernatural process. If you spend daily time in prayer it will be like the growing-up process. A child does not grow up and become strong by thinking about it or trying to force himself to grow up. It is a natural process that happens as a result of proper diet and exercise.

In the same way, if a church leader will spend time each day reading the Bible and praying, this spiritual nutrition will promote the growth of God’s strength in his life. The exchange of your strength for His, will take place gradually and consistently.

b. How Should I conduct My devotional Time?

The following outline was adapted from a series of messages on the subject, “Renewing The Devotional Habit.” I have found this most helpful in my devotional times.

1) Confess Sin.

Ask the Lord to bring any unconfessed sins to your mind. Acknowledge these sins to God and ask for and receive His forgiveness and cleansing (1 John 1:9,10).

2) Praise God.

Next, take time to give thanks and praise to God for Who He is and for what He has done (Psalm 100).

3) Surrender The Day To God

Tell God how much you need His direction and guidance. Ask for His guidance and obey any instructions you feel God gives you in prayer.

4) Pray For Family, Church All Believers.

Pray for your spouse, children and family members. Pray for your church members and leaders. Pray for believers in other parts of the world. Pray for the orphans and widows (those without family).

5) Pray For Leaders, Missionaries, Evangelism.

Pray for the leaders of your nation. Pray for your spiritual leaders. Pray for the tribes and language groups in your part of the world who still need the gospel. Pray for the missionaries and for the evangelization of other nations.

6) Pray In Other Tongues.

In all this praying – let the Holy Spirit’s action come upon you and pray in other tongues (languages) and pray for the interpretation of your prayers in other tongues (1 Cor 14:13,14).

7) Write Down What The Lord Gives You And Do It!

Write down impressions you feel came to you from the Lord during your prayer time. Take obedient action in response to anything God gives you in prayer.

c. How Do Trials Help Us?

Peter warned us, “.. think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to test you as though some strange things happened unto you” (1 Pet 4:12).

An elderly minister friend of mine told me some years ago, “Brother Ralph, when you try to go on with God, the world will oppose you. When you try to go deeper in God, your fleshly nature will resist you. When you try to go up higher in God, the demonic principalities and powers of the air will fight you.”

Nowhere do we hit resistance like we do when we decide to establish a daily devotional time in which to wait on the Lord. When you get serious about seeking the face of God, expect opposition and trials. They often come.

It is comforting to know that even through trials and tribulation, “God works all things together for good to them that love the Lord, to them who are called according to his purpose” (Rom 8:28 rsv).

As we wait on God, He turns on the fire of trials, tests and temptations, and our lives heat up. When we have reached the “boiling point,” two things result:

1.Sin And Self Are Purged Away.

2.God’s Power Begins Working In Us.

God’s power begins working in us and through us with exciting supernatural consequences.

When you place a cooking pot of water over fire, the water will eventually boil. You cannot hasten or prevent the boiling by watching the water, by stirring it constantly or by ignoring it. Whatever you do, the water will boil when it reaches the boiling temperature. The boiling is the result of the application of heat to the water, not the result of some action of the water upon itself.

In the same way, when we go through the fire of affliction or tribulation, things happen inside us – with no effort on our part. They are the by-product of God’s heat applied to the water of human nature. We experience inner change. Our motives are purified. Our desire to sin is burned away.

“Whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin” (1 Pet 4:1). Yes, it is true, “…they that wait [for His appointed time with prayer and fasting] upon the Lord will exchange their strength for his.”

C. TURN WEAKNESS TO BLESSING

“He gives power to the faint, and to those who have no might … he increases strength” (Isa 40:29).

The story is told of a blind man and a cripple who became inseparable friends. What contributed to their friendship?

The cripple could see perfectly but could not walk. The blind man had strong legs, but could not see. The cripple offered his seeing ability to the blind man in exchange for his mobility.

The blind man would carry the cripple on his back. The cripple would instruct the blind man which way to walk and warn him of objects in the path that would cause him to stumble.

Their mutual weaknesses and need brought them together to take advantage of each other’s strength.

1. Depend More On God

In the same way, our spiritual blindness and lameness should drive us to a prayerful dependent relationship with God, so His strength can take the place of our weakness.

The hymn writer said it beautifully:

His strength is made perfect in weakness.
His power is not for the strong.
He giveth more grace
To the weak in the race.
His strength is made perfect in weakness.

The personal weaknesses which make us aware of our lack of ability or power to be a leader should cause us to turn our heart to God in prayer (sometimes with fasting). If we respond in this way, we will find “He gives power to the faint, and to those who have no might… he increases strength” (Isa 40:29).

The attitude of dependence upon God attracts His attention and draws Him to us, and causes Him to gloriously manifest His power through us.

Our inadequacies are seen as blessings in disguise when they press us to dependence on Christ.

However, if instead, we wallow in self-pity, or self-hatred, looking inside ourselves, searching for understanding of our problems, all we end up with is a feeling of inferiority.

2. Confess The Word

What psychologists call ” an inferiority complex” is usually a carnal preoccupation with ourselves (self-consciousness). It can result in a view of yourself which says,, “I am no good! I am just a useless washout… God can never use me.” This kind of self-view leads to total discouragement.

I heard Billy Graham (most famous evangelist in history) say, “God can never use a discouraged servant.”

This is true! We must overcome such attitudes by the word of our confession (Rev 12:11).

By saying about ourselves what the Bible says about us, we are made over-comers. The Bible says, “I can do all things though Christ who strengthens [empowers, enables] me” (Phil 4:13).

“Behold I give you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing shall by any means hurt you” (Luke 10:19).

Through our God – we shall do valiantly.

It is He – Who shall tread down our enemies.

We will sing – and shout the victory.

Christ is King! Christ is King!

We must not confuse an inferiority complex with the scriptural meekness that God blesses. It is not the same thing.

3. Draw Near In Prayer

The kind of weakness to which God responds is that which produces a sense of dependence on Him. When we pray, “I need you Oh God, and cannot get along without you” – God works on our behalf. We become like King David who prayed …”My soul longs for thee, Oh God” (Ps 63:1; 84:2).

This sense of need contributes to the development of a healthy devotional and prayer life.

That is the way it should work, Isn’t it? In contrast to the above, an all pervasive self-consciousness will paralyze us. It is a barrier which will prevent God’s power from flowing through us. Renounce this kind of carnality and turn from it. Recognize that God is the strength of your life and you need not be afraid (Ps 27:1). He will show Himself strong on behalf of those who reverence, worship and depend on Him.

4. Exchange Your Strength For His Strength

“Even youth shall faint and be weary, young men shall utterly fail; but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew [exchange] their strength” (Isa 40:30, 31).

The key word in this verse is “renew” – which would better be translated “exchange”. As we wait upon the Lord, He will take away our strength and replace it with His Own.

It is not a matter of combining our strength with His, but a complete removal of our strength to put on His. God is saying, “If you are strong in yourself, I cannot use you. If you can do it yourself, you do not need Me.”

What does the Lord ask us to do before He will “exchange” strength with us?

a. Acknowledge Your Need.

King David wrote, “this poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles” (Ps 34:6).

Asaph acknowledged his weakness and need of God in these stirring words: “So foolish was I, and ignorant; I was like a beast before thee” (Ps 73:22).

Both David and Asaph received God’s strength because they were willing to humbly acknowledge their need and weakness. There is a powerful word of promise for all who will do the same thing.

“When the poor and needy seek water and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I, the Lord, will hear them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.

“I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.

“.. That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the Lord hath done this…” (Isa 41:17-20).

1) Paul – An Example.

Paul found that if he would acknowledge areas of need and weakness in his life, it would result in the strength of God coming to him in more powerful measure.

He writes, “Lest I should be exalted above measure, through the abundance of the revelations, there was given unto me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me… for this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me” (2 Cor 12:7,8).

And how did the Lord answer Paul’s petition for relief from this buffeting and weakness? “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect [complete] in [your] weakness” (2 Cor 12: 9).

Now you can understand why Paul says:

“Most gladly therefore, will I rather glory in my infirmities [weaknesses], that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore, I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake. For, when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor 12:9,10).

This is the principle by which the power of the gospel works. when we’re weak, sense our great need of God, this makes us completely dependent on Him. this causes us to spend much time in prayer. The result? We are strong!

Next week:

Learn to wait on God

1. Wait on the Lord
2. Hear God’s Voice
3. Obey God’s Voice
4. Patiently Endure
5. Learn from Joseph’s life
6. Avoid becoming Casuality
7. Flee Fornication
8. Reject Covetousness/Idolatry
9. Receive the anointing.

The material, unless otherwise mentioned, is taken from “Training Leaders to..” by Ralph Mahoney. So please keep this in mind when you read statements like “The Lord called me to His service in 1948, at age 16.”

Where necessary, I’ve revised and updated, but as always, please write me a note if you have any doubts or need clarification.

Wait On The Lord

This section contains the material which has proven most popular and in greatest demand from this author. It is in a sense a “Manifesto for the Christian leader.”

The first chapter outlines the preparations and principles by which an ordinary person can rise to an extraordinary leadership role. it is the author’s own road map – drawn in retrospect of thirty-five years of active world-wide ministry.

The author has tried to carefully mark the detours, dangerous curves and collapsed bridges to prevent the church leader who starts the race from becoming a casualty of his own conquest. Those who follow the road map will keep the faith, and finish the course to receive the crown of life to ast at Jesus’ feet

In Section E4 the author attempts to outline the practical steps a spiritually developed leader must implement to cause God’s will to be done on earth as it is in Heaven.

This material is thus dedicated to every church leader who wants to “…always abound in the work of the Lord.” anyone with any less aspiration than this will waste his time in reading it. For those sincere leaders willing to glorify Christ by life or by death – it will provide the encouragement, enlightenment and instruction needed to succeed.

Introduction

Are you called to be a church leader but fear your inadequacies will keep you from being successful? Do you believe you are too weak to be a strong leader? Perhaps you have already been thrust into a position of leadership and are facing frustration of even failure. If so, take heart. God has good news for you.

A. GOD USES THE WEAK

“He giveth power to the faint, and to those that have no might … He increaseth strength” (Isa 40:29).

When God calls a person to become a leader, He doesn’t choose him on the basis of how clever, talented or educated he may be. In fact, these are things which God may have to modify (or sometimes destroy) before He can use us. The Bible says, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent” (1 Cor 1:19).

The Apostle Paul says, “The foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.

“But God hath chosen the foolish things of this world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and… things which are despised hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are” (1 Cor 1:25-28.).

This is what the Apostle Paul is teaching us: Through our weakness, our faltering, our failings, God reveals His wisdom. Through our helplessness, God displays His power. His strength is made perfect in our weakness.

A preacher friend of mine (Jack) shared a recent experience with me. While he ministered in Japan, the Lord was impressing him with this scripture:

“Out of the mouth of babes and suckling’s hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightiest still [defeat/silence] the enemy and the avenger” (Ps 8:2).

1. Enemies Defeated

He was teaching the church leaders of Japan that the Lord uses the praises of babes and sucklings to defeat His enemies (see Matthew 21:16).

It is as if God takes delight in humiliating Satan by using the weakest members of His creation (you and me – His babes, His children) to still (defeat) the enemy and the avenger.

As Jack was flying home from Japan the Lord gave him a vision. He saw a group of children leading a bunch of bleating, helpless sheep. the children were praising God and rejoicing in Him.

As Jack mediated on this, the Lord spoke to him and said, “I have chosen the symbol of lambs and sheep to represent my people because they are symbols of weakness and have nobility to lead or save themselves. But I am going to take a bunch of praising children who are leading a flock of bleating sheep and use them to utterly vanquish Satan, to defeat him at every turn of events.”

I believe Jack is right. God uses the weak to destroy His enemies. That means He can use you and me.

B. THE PEOPLE GOD CHOOSE

I am often astonished by the people God chooses to do particular jobs.

1. Paul

For example. He sent Paul to the uncultured pagan Gentiles. Paul had studied the Scriptures under Gamaliel (who was a great master teacher of the Pharisees). As a candidate for the Sanhedrin (a prestigious Jewish men’s group who interpreted the religious laws in Israel) Paul had to memorize and quote (without error) the first five books of the Old Testament (called the Pentateuch). He was a Jew of notable background and achievement.

From a human viewpoint, no one could have been more suited to the task of evangelizing Jews than Paul. But to whom did God send Paul to minister? Not to the cultured Jews but to the ignorant and outcast peoples called Gentiles. The Gentiles had little appreciation for Paul’s great learning and his master of Jewish law.

All of Paul’s natural strength, all his education, cleverness and talent had to be set aside. God had to strip it all away by taking him to the desert of Arabia (like his forefather Moses) and there divest him of all those things he could have boasted in (see Galatians 1:17; Philippians 3:4-8.

In that “… howling waste wilderness, that land of deserts, pits, drought and the shadow of death where no man traveled or lived…” (Jer 2:6), Paul learned his success as a minister of Christ would only be through laying down “all that was gain – to count it loss – to gain christ” (see Philippians 3:7,8).

He learned to proclaim the gospel “… not in plausible words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power” (1 Cor 2:4).

To convince people that Jesus was their Savior. Paul counted more on the Spirit working miracles through him than he did on his ability as an orator or preacher (1 Cor 10:4; 2 Cor 10:10). We should do the same.

2. Peter

Though Peter opened the door of faith to the Gentiles (Acts 10), he remained in Jerusalem among the most elite Jews of the Roman empire as “the apostle to the Jews” (see Galatians 2:8). What qualified Peter for this task? Certainly not great academic achievement or education. The Bible describes him as “…unlearned and ignorant” (Acts 4:13). He was but a simple fisherman, yet God qualified him for the job by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Next week

Turn weakness into blessing