For some time, I have wondered why the Lord has placed an emphasis on small groups meeting in homes. (According to a survey by the Pew Forum in 2009, nine percent of Protestants in the USA “hold services” in homes.)
In other nations, the rise of house churches is often in response to persecution. But here? In Christian America?
Esther was married to King Ahasuerus (probably King Xerxes I) “for such a time as this.” She saved her people.
As I survey the Christian landscape, and look at what is going on politically, I wonder if the Lord has been behind the simple/organic/housechurch movement “for such a time as this.” It would only take one act of Congress, for example, removing the tax exempt status of churches, for some building-based churches to find themselves fighting for survival. Or what would be the impact of a couple of terrorist attacks in church buildings? Or some strategically planned law-suits aimed against Evangelical convictions?
Thankfully, God knows the end from the beginning.
5 replies on “For such a time as this”
I think that many of us, who grew up in institutional church, have been fed a history of the “church” that leads us to believe that people not being part of the institution is a new and recent thing. I think there is reason to suspect that God has had followers separate from (and not just coming out of) the institutions since institutions were established using his name. Similarly, I don’t think God was sitting around waiting for Mr. Luther before building his true church “again.” That version of history is used to validate “Protestant” institutions. An out of print book called Noble Army of Heretics is one discussion of this. I’m trying to contact the author to get permission to type it out for free on kindle.
I agree. Another fascinating book on this topic is “The Pilgrim Church” by Broadbent.
[…] For such a time as this […]
Torch of the Testimony and The Reformers and Their Stepchildren are also good books on the same subject.
A recent dream: I was with an older couple (I’m 78). I was hungry and saw a cafeteria. I told the couple I was going to get something to eat and I lined up with the others in the food line. In about 2 minutes I called back to the couple: “It is only 12:10 and they have already run out of food!’ Interestingly, that afternoon I received the package of survival food which I had ordered!
This, plus another dream about being in a plane crash, has prodded my thinking that God is saying that neither the ready “spiritual food” which we always have at hand, nor the “vehicle” (plane/church) in which we are carried about may not be available in the future! In the latter dream there was much rolling and thrashing before the crash. It was quite chaotic as all the belongings etc were tossed about in the plane. No one was injured nor died. Immediately after the crash we were all standing outside with our backs to the plane and facing acres and acres of green rolling hills–no harvest in them, just waiting for the Seed. Overhead were powerful electric lines. Perhaps, like the folks in Jerusalem, persecution may thrust us out into the fields. If so, according to this dream, there will be plenty of “Power” available to get the job done!!