I’LL MEET YOU IN THE HOUSE
(of the Lord)
I’LL MEET YOU IN THE HOUSE (of the Lord)
January 14, 2018
Sermon in a sentence:It is crucial that we come together as the “body of Christ” in the house of the Lord.
Congregational reading: Luke 4:14-22; Romans 12:4-5; Acts 2:42,46-47a; Matt. 3:13-15; Heb. 10:25; Eph. 4:15-16; Psalm 100 (KJV); Isaiah 56:6-7; Rev. 12:10-11; 1 Pet. 4:11; 1 Cor. 10:16-17; 1 Cor. 11:26; 1 John 1:7
Scriptures:Luke 4:14-22
Luke 4:14-22 NKJV Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region. 15 And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all.16 So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. 17 And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: 18 “The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me,Because He has anointed MeTo preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,to proclaim liberty to the captivesand recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed;19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.” 20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” 22 So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth….
Your heart beats in your chest approximately once per second and has been doing so non-stop since the day you were born. Your heart works all day, every day and doesn’t take coffee breaks, vacations or siestas. It just keeps pumping life-giving blood to all the cells in your body, and will continue to do so until the day you die.
If our heart stops functioning at any moment, for any reason, for any length of time, we say it has attacked us. We call it a “heart attack.” And we take very aggressive steps to get it back on track immediately.
(If your heart happens to attackyou during this service, we have people standing by who are trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to help bring it back into normal rhythm. We even have a defibrillator onsite to shock it back into proper function if the need arises. However, I wouldn’t suggest that you test our skills in this area today. It will be much better if your heart just keeps on ticking as it has done so faithfully for all these years.)
But for all the heart is, and for all it does for us, it is only useful, effective and alive in the context of our body. No heart stands alone, or beats alone, or survives alone outside of the body.
Someone’s body may suffer tremendous trauma and die, with a perfectly good heart inside. In such cases, quick action by skilled surgeons can remove it from the body, but it has to be quickly transplanted into another body if it is to survive. No heart can live on its own for a significant period of time outside of a body.
The same can be said for the liver, kidney, lung, eye or even chunks of skin. These are tremendously important organs, but they are only of use when they are properly functioning within the human body.
The apostle Paul lived in a time long before anything like organ transplantation was possible. If you died, you died, and none of your organs could be used to help anyone else. So, in the context of his world, he wanted the church in Rome to see the clear analogy between the human body and the spiritual body of Christ. In his world, you were either a part of the body or you were dead. He wrote:
Romans 12:4-5 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.
This is one of the key reasons why we meet frequently in the house of God. It is the primary place where the body comes together. It is a place where all the individual members of the Church (Christ’s body on Earth) come to encourage each other, support each other, strengthen each other and feast together on the word of God. We praise God together as we share testimonies of His goodness, which encourages other members of the body to stand strong in the face of tests, trials and adversity.
This is the place where we bear one another’s burdens, rejoice in each other’s triumphs, and have great fellowship with one another. In His house, we have the privilege to minister to each other.
In contemporary North American society, many people have resorted to a brand of individual Christianity that features solitary worship in front of a computer screen, television, tablet or phone. This can only be described as an “out of body” experience! The human body (and certainly the body of Christ) is not designed to function as a far-flung collection of dislocated or disembodied parts. Certainly, technology has its place, and I am very glad when saints who is sick at home, travelling or working can still watch our Sunday morning services online. But this is only intended for rare occasions. We need to take our place in the body!
Cyber Christianity is not God’s plan for His church. Surfing Christian shows and snacking on four or five pastors on a Sunday morning is no substitute for the full four-course meal we receive in church with our brethren: (Prayer, Praise, Giving, Preaching.) In the house of the Lord, we minister to each other, receive ministry from each other, hear what God has to say to our assembly, worship Him and pray together in love, and harmony, and unity.
One of the things that gives me the greatest joy is to see people together, talking, laughing, hugging, sharing and caring for each other after our services. It reminds me of the description of the church in the book of Acts where they
Acts 2:42,46-47a … continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers… 46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people.
What a beautiful picture! This is how the body functions best.
And here is something else to consider. In the human body, there are many systems at work, each critical to the health and well-being of the body.
There is the vascular system (veins and arteries), the endocrine system (utilizing hormones to regulate key chemical reactions in your body), the digestive system and the integumentary system (skin, hair, nails etc.) There is the skeletal system, the muscular system, the immune system, the nervous system and the renal and urinary systems. And let’s not forget our respiratory system and our reproductive system. That’s a lot of systems, but they all need to work together in harmony and unity for the optimal health of the body.
By way of analogy, let me refer to the global church as the one body of Christ and local churches as ‘systems’ within the body. What is the point? Be faithful to your local church and play your part within the system. A toe in the muscular/skeletal system may be transplanted to a hand toreplace a finger, but it doesn’t really fit well or look good. A toe needs to be a toe and a finger needs to be a finger. Everything needs to function in its proper place.
Our text (Luke 4:16b)tells us that “as His custom was, [Jesus] went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day….” Even though He was God incarnate, He still made it His business to be in the synagogue at the appointed time. (This was similar to His approach to baptism.
Matthew 3:13-15 … Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?” 15 But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him.)
So, regarding churchgoing, Jesus exemplified what the writer to the Hebrews told us:
Hebrews 10:25 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.
Let’s continue to make it our priority to meet together in the house of the Lord.
Ephesians 4:15-16 but, speaking the truth in love … grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
The assembly of the saints is one the key placewhere we thank God and worship and praise Him together.
Psalm 100 KJVMake a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. 2 Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing. 3 Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. 5 For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.
As we gather in the house of God, we pray together for our church, our world and each other’s needs. All are welcome.
Isaiah 56:6-7 “Also the sons of the foreigner who join themselves to the LORD, to serve Him, and to love the name of the LORD, to be His servants—everyone who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, and holds fast My covenant—7 even them I will bring to My holy mountain,and make them joyful in My house of prayer.Their burnt offerings and their sacrificesWill be accepted on My altar;for My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations.”
The church is a place where we can testify to each other about the wonderful works of God in our lives.
Revelation 12:10-11 Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. 11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.
We gather in the house of the Lord to hear His anointed word through His servants.
1 Peter 4:11 If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
There is a powerful sense of oneness and unity when the body comes together to remember Jesus at the communion table.
1 Cor. 10:16-17 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? 17 For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread.
1 Cor. 11:26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.
This house is where we gather to have fellowship with each other as the family of God.
1 John 1:7 … if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
Every one of our brothers and sisters who we would love to see return home in this Year of Homecoming is important to the health of the body – Faith Sanctuary. They all have a place. You have a place. God has His place in this body and we honour Him as our head.
None of us can function on our own outside of the body. We will not survive without the body. Christ is the head and we are His body. So, stay put and keep your place.
I’ll meet you in the house of the Lord, with the rest of the body of Christ.
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