41,000 Denominations

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (ESV)

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

Last week I read this scripture in church, It is a simple two verses, but its weight is in it’s profound wisdom and truth.  I began to focus on it and spent the week meditating on it and the circumstances of the modern church, dwelling into the current events.  

  According to the latest count there are approximately 41,000 different Christian denominations world wide that vary in doctrine, apostolic succession, eschatology, papal primacy, and the nature of Christ.  41,000!  Why?  There is only one Holy book.  Why so many different denominations?  Thats an easy question to answer, because we take the orthodoxy of scripture and the Mysterious Holiness and Divineness of God and put him into our Box.  We want God to fit into our perception of who he is, rather than us facing the truth and accepting his Divine nature of who he truly is, each tries to mold God into their image instead of them molding into his Image.  

We cry for revival, but we are judging each others motives, we cry out for presence, but we want presence so we can give him our laundry.  We want to worship with the angels, but we make worship about our needs.  We sing that we want more of his spirit, but we hide him under a lampshade.  We proclaim “send me”, but it conflicts with our schedule.  We are discouraged because he is silent, but did we ever listen?  Revival and presence is happening but blinders are hard to see through.  

Most Blinders are our perception of who we are?  Since mostly all of us lived in sinful nature, we perceive ourselves as unworthy of his calling, and rely on organized religion to steer us, feed us, and try to shape us.  41,000 different opinions of how to behave, how to live, how much to give, and mostly all have the message “Your bad, God is good, Do better”! (thanks Tom for this quote)  This is a lie, it is easier to guilt people into changing their behavior, or fear them into changing their  behavior rather than introducing them to the love of Jesus, and watching his grace change behavior.  

God Factored our stupidity into our creation, he knew the stupid and awful things we were capable of committing but, he still called each and everyone of us to come home.  He calls the broken to be healed, then sends them to heal.  

Today my pastor made this comment, “What you say to yourself about yourself is more important than what others say about you”. - Phill Urena Ministry (from this morning's service 3/8/15)  You can’t walk into your destiny if you harbor the guilt of past sins that god has forgiven you for.  You can't walk into your destiny if you consider yourself un worthy of it.  You can’t walk into your destiny if you compare yourself to others.  You can’t walk into your destiny if you can’t empty your hands and catch the winds of the spirit.  Most of all, You can’t walk into your destiny if you don’t LOVE yourself. 

John Paul Jackson said “What you focus on, you make room for”.  So focus on Jesus, Focus on the divine nature of God, Focus on the freedom and nurturing wisdom of the Spirit.  Focus on developing the gifts that the spirit blessed you with. Then watch as God works through you, with you, and inside of you.

This is a year of change, God isn’t sitting still this year. He is going to pour out new wine, and if we have old wineskins we are going to miss his movement.  His presence is going to grow and as we head into spring and summer, the truth of the spirit will be bringing to light the apostasy of churches and doctrine.  41,000 churches will exposed by the truth of their doctrine exposing the spirit of religion and legalism.   

Galatians 5:1 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. 

The Scripture in it’s wholeness brings you into the heart of God, where it leads you into relationship with God, which adapts you into Gods Family, making you his beloved, making relationship with others genuine, and transforming divides into commonness, bringing family, community and kingdom together, transforming 41,000 into one bride where the bridegroom say’s come!