SING AS YOU GO!

“Yet even now, be free from your captivity! Leave Babylon, singing as you go; shout to the ends of the earth that the Lord has redeemed his servants, the Jews (Isaiah 48:20, TLB).”

As I was reading God’s Word today, I felt encouraged to share with someone, to SING AS YOU GO! Most times when God delivers us from some form of captivity, we wait until it is completely over before we begin to sing. I know from experience that after you have lived in something for so long, even when you get out of it, you have become so used to the dysfunction of it, that you continue in its action. God’s people had been in captivity in Babylon for 70 years, and God was saying to them, I have delivered you from your oppression, now SING AS YOU GO! In other words, don’t wait until you are out completely, sing while you are leaving. There’s an old song we used to sing in my church, it was called: “Don’t Wait until the Battle Is Over, Shout Now.”

Many of us, when we are traveling to our various destinations, often times turn on the radio. And when we know it’s going to be a long trip, we sing songs along the way. Well, God is saying two things to us in this text. First, He is saying your deliverance is sure, Sing Now! Don’t be afraid to trust that deliverance is actually happening. When you see the signs of God’s deliverance, claim it and start singing. Secondly, He is letting us know that we have a long journey ahead of us. Deliverance is only the beginning. To come out of is just the transition to being brought into. I don’t want to just shout over being brought out of, I want to sing all the way to being brought into. How about you?

I know many of you have experienced some sort of captivity to an old habit, bad relationship, etc. But know this, when you finally leave that job, sing as you go; when you leave that relationship, sing as you go; when you leave that sin, sing as you go. Whatever captivity you are in, God can get you out of it; and when He does, SING AS YOU GO! It is not as much a mockery to the enemy, as it is a certainty to the redeemed. The text said to shout to the ends of the earth that God has redeemed; it is the redeemed of the Lord that ought to say so. Remember, if God has allowed you to get in it, He has the power to get you out of it. Just remember to SING AS YOU GO!

COMMUNITY THINKING

Paul’s Idea of Community…
The Apostle Paul’s idea of a church meeting seemed to be one with an emphasis on those gathered, as opposed to the church building in which they gathered.

When I first envisioned Community of Believers Ministries, its original design was to have no functional church as we know it today. It was only to have a sanctuary, used for corporate worship only. No meetings, committees, classes, etc. The ministry was designed to create a network of Believers, who connected with one another daily, weekly, monthly (more like the Lucan account expresses in Acts chs. 2 & 4). This design was emphasized to encourage personal development with like Believers; producing a more rapid and more efficient growth in each disciple. In relationships of trust, there is less to contend about, and more time to encourage growth. Note these excerpts taken from Paul’s Idea of Community, by Robert Banks; p.41:

“Paul’s rather vague way of referring to meetings of the whole church suggest that its meetings were less frequent. Since voluntary and cult associations met on a monthly basis, these larger Christian gatherings may well have followed suit.”

“…the term ekklesia consistently refers to actual gatherings of Christians as such, or to Christians in a local area conceived or defined as a regularly-assembling community….And never during this period is the term applied to the building in which Christians meet.”

“It was not until the third century do we have evidence of special buildings being constructed for Christian gatherings and, even then, they were modelled on the room into which guests were received in the typical Roman and Greek household.”

My point of emphasis is that I believe growth happens in communities, not necessarily in churches. (When I use the term church I use it as we know it today, the more structured and systematic version with a building and usually associated with a denomination or some form of hierarchy.) I see a lot of church gathering today, but often very little growth in the production of mature disciples. There is a whole new generation of children, youth and teens who know very little Bible, but they know praise and worship. Effective praise and worship has, in my experience, always been precipitated by a good foundation in the Word. Community is needed for growth, just as church is needed for worship. However, every community must have a connection to mature and healthy believers who have proven to produce fruit that lasts over time. Am I saying that Mega Churches are invalid? Not at all, I just think we need the Mega Church along with the community of Believers to help make Mega Disciples.

WHAT IF:

What if people were grey with no variation in shade, and there was no color in our land. I bet we’d appreciate the different shades of color without prejudice then.

What if time stood still every time we made a mistake, so we could correct it?

What if all your lines in life were given to someone else, and you now have a non speaking role, what would you say?

What if you could spend one day on death row?

What if the stars cast no light, would the spirits be able to see?

What if tomorrow never came, would we be content to repeat the past?

What if the whole world was affected by a famine, would we all love one another then?

What if crime did pay? Would you become a criminal or remain moral because it’s right?

What if you were falling from a 30 story building verses a 3 story building, would your thoughts be different on the way down?

What if while trying to lose weight, you gained weight instead, would you still be positive?

What if you couldn’t walk, would you still treat people the same?

What if you got an urgent phone call from the coroner about your dad you never phoned? Would there be remorse?