Scripture: Revelation 14:12 (NLT)
“This means that God’s holy people must endure persecution patiently, obeying his commands and maintaining their faith in Jesus.”
Observation
Sometimes we have to go to the end to get to the answer. The true church embodied so many things but, in the future, only two things matter: that they obey the Lord’s command and keep their faith in Christ Jesus. We could have a church that does all the work and has many services to do community work but does not keep the Lord’s command or faith in Christ Jesus; instead, they do the work for the work’s sake. God’s commands can be summed up in three phrases, Love Him, Love your neighbor and love yourself. So, where does the church fall into this? Well, first, we must remember the church is not a building; it’s a group of people who gather with the same beliefs and traditions. So when the central view of any gathering of people is to bring the result to obey the Lord’s command and keep their faith in Christ Jesus, that makes them the real church. The real church loves the Lord their God lives a life that shows their love for Him and each other and uses their faith to live as His children in the world.
Application
How can you say that you are a part of a real church? You look at you! What are you learning about your faith community? How are you showing the love of God in your life? And finally, how does your faith drive your action? Yes, to be the church, go first, not the other members. If each person examines their lives and what they do before looking at the other members of their faith community, we would have big, fundamental churches worldwide. The solution is simple for you to be a part of a real church. You must be real with yourself.
Reflection
What other characteristics do you think to make up the real church?
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank you for the sacrifice they made for me so that we can have eternal life. Thank you for my earthly (spiritual) family, who is a part of our faith. Please help me do all you require me to do to get the most out of my faith community? Please help me be a part of the solution instead of the problem. In Jesus’ mighty name, I pray. Amen.
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