The Sunday Mail
dr charles jusa —
The church in the community is what Jesus saw when He said, “Let your light shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” Notice Jesus saw the light shinning in the house, and in the world before people.
THE river in Ezekiel 47 is more active in the Temple building. Our message to the World must be the church is coming to you and your community not ‘come to church’.
Here we have a glimpse of the new paradigm church. Ezekiel finds himself once again in the Temple, but this time his eyes are directed away from the building to a river.
The prophet follows the river, and in so doing unfolds for us the important differences between the old and new paradigms. The river endorses the importance of coming together because the river started in the Temple. The river moves beyond the Temple walls to the world outside and gives us our first glimpse of the church without walls. Before the river runs beyond the walls, it passes the altar and the outer court.
These are important places — they remind us of the place of cleansing and of the demarcation lines of our faith. The church has to move from a sentimental understanding of the cross, back to the stark reality of what it cost Christ to save us.
The altar in the temple was a horrific image of God’s hatred for sin and the price of redemption. The sacrifices being offered on the altar carried the sounds, smells, and images that can only be summarised as a bloody mess. The church of the twenty-first century cannot substitute the sacrifice of Christ, but must affirm it. It must build upon this deep and lasting revelation if it is to significantly move forward.
The altar brings not only cleansing, but a demarcation line between the behaviour of the church and that of the world outside. The courtyard was that demarcation line.
The river then flows beyond the Temple building, and here comes the challenge to the church and its lifestyle outside that church building. How far and how deep are we prepared to travel in that river? Whilst the passage in Ezekiel 47 has specific application for the pre-millennialist, I believe we can also find within Ezekiel’s revelation a prophetic blueprint for the re-purposing of the church today. The characteristics of the pictures showing in Ezekiel speak volumes to current thinking within the church.
Before we consider these paradigms let us remind ourselves of some fundamental hermeneutical principles of the interpretation of scripture.
Scripture can be interpreted in at least four different ways: first, the literal historic application for the day when the words were given, second, the Jewish-Prophetic application, if any, third, the prophetic principles for the church, if any; and finally, a personal application, where God brings encouragement or direction to an individual.
The church flowing in the river experienced the Dead Sea, where fish swam and fishing nets hung on the bank of the river, where there were fruit trees growing where the river had flowed, for the healing and sustenance of the people.
Barren area became fertile and hopeless situations were rescued and given meaning. The community was transformed by the river.
This is how the early church operated.
Peter and John were in the river before they got to the Temple. As a result of this they were able to give the lame man more than an invitation to a healing service the following week, they were able to give out of what they had, and were, flowing in.
This is the new paradigm church. It is very interesting that nearly all the miracles in the New Testament took place outside of buildings. In certain parts of the World today, the church is growing more outside of the church walls than within them.
The church in the community is what Jesus saw when He said, “Let your light shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” Notice Jesus saw the light shinning in the house, and in the world before people.
Two big problems to new paradigm living present themselves first, people of the old paradigm like their well-established comfort zone, and second, the leaders of old paradigm churches don’t really know how to lead their congregations through the change process.
Inward thinking: The Old Testament picture of the church reveals that it was very much an ‘in house’ thing. The Gentile World outside of the Temple did not see or understand anything of the inner workings of the Temple.
Today the church has inherited this introverted DNA. The prayers tend to be “bless me” prayers. The finances are allocated to better seating or new decoration or to some other “comfort” for the people of God.
The world outside of the church comes a very poor second in the priorities of most local churches. The place of gathering has become more important than the reason for coming together.
The church, sadly, spends vast sums of money maintaining buildings that have no worth other than housing the people of God for their congregational gathering.
This is illustrated by James Doward’s article that highlights the cost of building maintenance to the financial arm of the church of England. In 2003 it cost some £6 million to maintain the upkeep of their cathedrals. Some of our cathedrals carry inscriptions such as, Built for the glory of God.
This was true of the craftsmen who built them, but this statement hides within the cathedral’s natural beauty a massive theological error, namely that God does not dwell in material buildings. God dwells in the lives of believers.
How sad that through the years so many divisions have arisen in local churches over issues to do with the material building. It must grieve the heart of God. It is also worth pointing out that the act of coming together in congregation was not primarily for the non-Christians, but for believers.
I wonder where we got this idea that non-Christians can only be saved inside the church sanctuary? As long as the church holds the building to be more important than the people, the impact of the church on society will be minimal.
For example, the church — in its rudimentary meaning as a body of believers in Jesus Christ – relates to needs of people because its origin is in God’s purposes for his people. Its historical flow-line is in the special family of God’s people from Eden. Three social institutions share the distinction of special divine commission.
These three, church, family and government, are unique among social institutions. Each is ascribed certain roles.
◆ Dr Jusa is a pastor with REHOBOTH SCHOOL OF MINISTRY
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