Being on Vacation, I went and visited a local church yesterday and was reminded of this Scripture. The Church was a Southern Baptist Church, yet their style of worship wasn't the same as ours at the Creek. They had really good music and choir, yet the congregation wasn't very expressive like we have grown accustomed to at the Creek! But that's okay. Their service was a lot more some would say orderly, others might say rigid, yet that too is okay! There weren't a lot Amens that you could hear during the message, and certainly not any shouting or running, yet that too is okay! There wasn't any anointing with oil for the sick, yet again, this too is okay!
WHY? Because we're all members of the same body. We have different functions, yet we are all serving the same purpose, which is to hopefully point others to the head of the body, who is Jesus Christ! God is a God who likes diversity! He made diversity in the animal kingdom and in nature. He makes no too human beings exactly the same. We have our own genetic makeup, likes and dislikes! What touches one person might not even register with someone else, AND THIS TOO IS OKAY! As with the human body, looking at one organ or system doesn't give you an accurate picture of the whole person, and the only way to get a glimpse at what the person is like is to look deeply into the person's face; it is the same with us. No one individual can give you an accurate picture of the entire congregation; and no one congregation can give us an accurate picture of the entire body of Christ. But when we look at Christ and look at the body as a whole, we can see what God is like.
WE NEED ONE ANOTHER! We need the extremely organized, liturgical, churches to show us the majesty and order of God; and we need the more Expressive and Charismatic type churches to show us the Excitement and Power of God. We need congregations that focus our attention on the Sovereignty of God; and we need congregations that focus us on the responsibility of man in light of the holiness of God. We need congregations that teach us to have faith in a miracle working God; and we need congregations that remind us that the greatest of all miracles is the Salvation of flawed and depraved Human being!
So, I was touched by the service yesterday! The music brought tears to my eyes as we sang about God being worthy of our worship. I was blessed to see people of all ages from 8 to their 60's being baptized to profess their faith in Christ as Savior. I was blessed by a Southern Gentleman with a Southern Drawl baptize an Hispanic lady after she professed faith in Christ by saying, "Si, Senor!"
The bottom line is this! We ALL need to get off our self-righteous high horses and stop judging one another based on our personal preferences! Thank God 4 &glorify HIm with your uniqueness, but rejoice that others can love God as much as you and express it in a totally different way! You don't have to shout and run around to show how thankful you are and how much you love Jesus, but you're not necessarily weird and out of order if you do! Jesus prayed in John 17:21, "that we might be One...that the world might believe that You sent me." He also told us that "By this will all men know that ye are my disciples, if you have love one for another!" John 13:35
So, if you are wired to like traditional services, glorify God with it! If you like contemporary, Southern Gospel, liturgical, or completely informal services, Glorify God with that also! And let's all love one another and rejoice that Christ is being preached, souls are being saved and lives are being touched and changed all over the world through different manifestations and different types of Congregations and Services every week! Have a blessed week in Jesus! God Bless!
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