I left an international religious organization to meet in a small home
church. The change was dramatic. I was used to a beautifully decorated meeting
place and programmed activity with thousands of well-dressed people. Now, however, we meet in a plain home living
room with people including some rambunctious children of different ages. I said to my self, “Hey, this is something really
different.”
But I’m sure my choice was correct. From the Bible we know the first century Christians
met in people’s homes, not in big well-built buildings or meeting halls, just
ordinary people’s homes. And Jesus
promised to his people that when two or three meet together he will be in
their midst, as will the holy spirit as a helper. So I know that we are not alone. We were not a people who could find solace in
a religious institution, but rather with our Lord himself in our hearts, when
we meet together in the plain living room.
I remember one time going to a church with a friend. The church was clean and quiet with some nice
people. The program was encouraging
and very serious. The Lord’s meal was
prepared such that everybody could drink and eat at the same time the pastor
finished his prayer, much like an army drill. Everything seemed fine, but then came the time
to sing a song. I looked at the song
book and read, “Oh God died for us...” I
couldn’t continue to sing any more and wanted to laugh. My friend asked me: “What’s wrong with you?”
“I just can’t imagine that almighty God could die,” I replied. Who can think about Jesus’ sacrifice seriously,
and then tell me, “God can die and he died.” Jesus is God’s Son, and he definitely died, but
God his Father did not die and never will die--the bible clearly states this.
Another time I went to another Church with some friends. So many people were there--more than 250. We sang lots of songs with very good lyrics and
everybody seemed to enjoy them. During
the pastor’s talk, we didn’t even look at the Bible--all the information was
on a sheet of paper. Afterward, we sang again. During the singing, I saw people passing a small
bag along the row in front of me. The
funny thing was it was my friend’s first time at a church service. When the bag passed her, she put her used cup
from the Lord’s meal into the bag. When
the bag past me, I just saw her cute little cup on top of some envelopes and
cash. My friend later complained that
I should have told her to have some money prepared. She felt a little embarrassed and guilty. I know she just lost her job and was trying to
find a new one in the slow market. Perhaps she was hoping to make some contacts
at the church and was afraid she had made a bad impression.
I remember attending a big international religious convention. I met a dear friendly sister, and wanted to talk
with her. Unfortunately she was too
busy at that time to say anything except “Hi” to me, as well as to many other
people. She is a nice sister--everyone
loves her--but she seems too busy greeting too many people—mostly just “Hi”
and a smile. It’s too bad I wasn’t
able to talk with her during the meeting. It
seems we’re too busy to get to know people better. I love her, but I do not know whether she knows
this. Many people who claim to be Christian
are too busy to show love to the people nearest them. We miss opportunities to learn HOW to show our
love to people NEAREST us: our neighbors, our co-workers, even our families.
I think many of us will feel shame
for our lack of love when our Lord returns.
My home church life has started. I
really enjoy being with new friends and the Lord, together as a small group.
We meet every Sunday when we can. We sing songs. If I feel too tired to sing, I can suggest
we go to the next item on the agenda. We
listen to a brother’s talk, and have a discussion—all participate. Even those rambunctious children can give very
spiritual comments and make good suggestions.
We watch a video about our Lord Jesus—not that we can now see him with
our eyes, but never the less, we can see him by our hearts--that he IS with
us in spirit.
We are few now, but one day we may become bigger, like a growing baby,
if the Lord wills. If we get too large
we may need to split into another small church, because small groups seem
better for intimate spiritual fellowship.
At times, however, we may want to be with larger groups of the Lord’s
sheep, so some home church brothers organize larger meetings and conventions
for this purpose.
I know the Lord’s sheep are everywhere.
He knows his sheep, no matter where they are, and they know him. I know the Lord’s work will be done one day,
not by man, but by God. May we all
endeavor to do God’s will, not our own, and demonstrate Christian love to
all, especially those we are near.