More people continue to come. Julian’s wife and some of the other women have prepared a meal and when everyone has arrived, Julian leads the gathered church in a time of remembering the sacrifice of Jesus and the meaning it has for everyone as a community. The meal continues with great love and joy. Others continue to arrive and there are a few people that you don’t personally know who have come as well. Soon the house is full, both of people and great joy.
The meal ends and those that are gathered sit quietly and listen as those who can read open up the scrolls and read parts of the Scriptures*. Then Julian pulls out a scroll and reads part of a letter that had passed on to him from Paul. You’ve never met Paul, but everyone in the church has great respect for him. Then Julian recounts a story from the life of Jesus that had been passed on to Him.
Quickly the conversation begins to shift from Julian to others. While the earlier those who could read were the primary contributors, now everyone has begun to participate. Simple hymns that the earliest Christians wrote are sung. Not everyone has a great voice, but all are stirred by the words that call for you to stand firm in the face of difficulty. A simple, illiterate brother stands up and begins to speak. He begins to whisper, but his words carry great authority and remind everyone of the need to cleanse their lives.
Finally a sister stands up. She speaks in a language no one in the room understands. There is great silence as everyone waits to see if there is an interpretation. Then a man you don’t recognize stands up, in tears. He says he is from the land you’ve never heard of but the woman has just spoken about a medical condition that his mother back home has been dying from. The words spoken promised healing. No one in the room had known of the situation and now the man wants to serve the same Christ that everyone has been speaking of so passionately.
Joy floods the room as everyone begins to glorify God. Several brothers surround the man and begin to pray for him. Plans are made for a baptism the next day, which interferes very little with everyone’s plans because most had planned to assemble together the next day anyways. The gathering goes late into the night as others share about the greatness of Christ, the worth of following Him despite the cost, and the imminence of His return. You leave late into the evening encouraged by the supernatural work that has obviously taken place.
*Today we would know this as the Old Testament
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The story you’ve just observed is the story of the church of Jesus Christ. While this story obviously took place during the first century in Ephesus, by changing a couple of minor facts, this story could also take place in any city around the world today. In fact, while this story may seem fantastic, it is actually a restructuring of testimonies from Scripture, early church history, and the meetings of many churches around the world today. These meetings are not unique to the first century, but they are abnormal to most Christians in America today.
The story above is actually what I refer to as a Spirit-led meeting. Elements of the story can change. What makes the story we witnessed different from most church gatherings we see is that the people in the story gathered to encourage one another and be lead by the Holy Spirit. It’s my contention that these meetings don’t need to be confined to first century. They can happen again today. My hope is as we delve into the topic of Spirit-led gatherings, you’ll be encouraged not just that they happen, but to actually be a part of these gatherings in wherever you live.
Today, though, tell us about you: Do you think a meeting like this is possible today? Why or why not? Leave a message in the comment section.
Part two of this series is Spirit-Led Gatherings: Part Two- Definition
Part three of this series is Spirit-Led Gatherings: Part Three Fleshing It Out
Photo Credit: dove-object-black2 by knowhimonline
I was part of a spirit led "body ministry" fellowship for almost 2 decades from the mid 70s.
ReplyDeleteIt had started as a house meeting and grew to well over 100 members who met in a community hall.
People came for miles around because of the freedom there. Prophecy, vision, tongues, interpretation, testimony, teaching, etc. were all part of a typical meeting, and all these came from the body rather than a leader.
We met in a large circle of chairs with the musicians at one corner of the room.
Anyone would start singing and others soon joined in. The amazing gifting of the musicians was that they had to catch up with the singers, who may well be quite off key. The musicians would then take the lead and pull it together.
So yes, such a meeting can happen today.
I personally hate going to a church where everything is conducted from the front. Such meetings are a denial of
scripture and seem to be just a professional scripted performance to entertain people.
The Lord clearly called us out of church several years ago so now we meet with a small handful at various homes where we can listen to the spirit and move as HE leads.