Top Ten Marks of a Great Church

For a new breed of Apostles, Prophets, Pastors, Teachers and Evangelists are going to lead by example this generation of Jesus lovers ~ jh
 

Harvest - Look for a church that is interested in winning souls and building the kingdom of God not their own personal kingdom.  Souls are not a means to profit or to build your own ministry. People know if you are recruiting them for personal gain or because you genuinely care for them. To seek and save that which is lost was Jesus' mission statement and it should be ours.

Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth laborers into his harvest. Luke 10:2

Equipping - Look for a church that is willing to train you to do the work of the ministry or be the one willing to teach others to do it.  The primary focus of the fivefold ministry is to get others busy doing the work of the kingdom not to do everything yourself. Learn to delegate and help people step out of their comfort zones.

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; ¹² For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: ¹³ Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ: Ephesians 4:11-13

Worshipers - Look for a church that is not afraid to be intimate and expressive towards God in their worship! However, if you are in an uptight church break the ice and see how God responds to those who aren't afraid to passionately pursue Him. Stop being a fringe dweller. No one ever gets anything by watching on the outside looking in. No more window shopping or dangling your feet on the side of the pool. It's time to get wet!

But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. John 4:23

Other Oriented - Get away from ego centric living where the main focus of ministry is getting personal words, feel good messages, seeing the latest conference speaker, continually having to be affirmed and prayed for. We need to maintain a strong walk with God on our own personal time. Church should be about equipping others so we can demonstrate His love to this world and being taught the word of God so we can be skillful.

Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: ³⁵ for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; ³⁶ I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ Matthew 25:34-36

Sending - If you are sitting in a church and waiting for an ordination or recognition to be sent then...sit on the pew no longer you have already been commissioned, ordained and empowered by Jesus! Even if no one ever recognizes your ministry just remember that Jesus already sent you.

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. Mark 16:15

How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? ¹⁵ And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written:
“How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace,

Who bring glad tidings of good things!” Romans 10:14-15

Sensitivity to the Holy Spirit - This one is huge! Try to be in a place that is willing to break from the routine of the service to make room for the Holy Spirit to move.  Avoid making what you want to say more important than what God wants to do. We were all created to work as a team not lifting up one gift above the other and allowing for diversity in giftings. Our main job is to make a place for God's presence to dwell; everything else is secondary.



There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. ⁵ There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. ⁶ And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. ⁷ But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: ⁸ for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, ⁹ to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, ¹⁰ to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. ¹¹ But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills. 1 Corinthians 12:4-11

Prayer - Prayer is the ground of preparation, empowerment and demonstration! Things to look for in prayer meetings: Are the prayers being offered for others or it is it more self serving and need oriented? Is it a place of humility and worship or are people making long prayers to be noticed? Are people really praying or sitting around chatting and socializing? More importantly has prayer become a perpetually place of preparation where nothing is being done to walk out the prayers? Is it replacing all other aspects of Christianity such as sharing your faith, worship, preaching the word or ministering to others? Be careful for these pitfalls.

My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer Mark 11:17


“And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward." Matthew 6:5

And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. Matthew 6:7
 
Unaltered Word of God - Look for a place that will not water down the gospel to please the crowds. The end result should always be doctrine that leads to godliness, character and a loving attitude. By nature we will always try to take the easy way out so make sure you are in a place that is challenging you to a higher level and causing you to grow. Also remember that all messages must be seasoned by grace. The method or delivery is just as important as the message. It must be conveyed with the same emotion that God would have in that situation. A messenger that has not been tempered by mercy can do much damage to the hearers and a messenger that has not been tempered by justice can just as damaging.  One will kill by the letter of the law and the other will forget the fear the Lord falling into lawlessness.

If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; 1 Timothy 6:3

Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, ⁴⁷ and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. ⁴⁸ And you are witnesses of these things. Luke 24:46-48

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. Matthew 23:23

Power and Demonstration - Don't be a follower be a leader! Signs and wonders should follow you wherever you go.... Only the power and demonstration of God's spirit will be able to break down spiritual strongholds, release the captives and bring freedom to the oppressed. Power confrontations are necessary in an age where the false prophets of Baal are trying to keep their altars lit by calling on their false deities. Be in a place where you encouraged to walk in the power of God. The resurrected Christ lives in you and you are equipped unto every good work!

And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;¹⁸ They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. Mark 15:-17-18

 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. Acts 1:8

Love - Wherever you go BE LOVE. Choose to infuse others with the love of God no matter what is going on. It is risky but don't be afraid to be transparent and forgiving with those who may not catch on to the unconditional love of God.  However, if you find yourself in a place that preaches hate from the pulpit, slanders each other and kills their wounded then run! The Holy Spirit will not stay in place in which He is grieved. Strife, division, gossip and slander is not work of God and it kills revival. It is spiritual cannibalism. If you find yourself in this situation pray for and love them from afar. You don't want to become what is next on the menu.

By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. John 13:35

For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ¹⁵ But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another! Gal.5:14-15

If you can't find these things where you are currently attending then...

BE THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO SEE

Now go be the great church we have talked about!

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Walk In The Power of God!

Now therefore, please be careful not to drink wine or similar drink, and not to eat anything unclean. ⁵ For behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. And no razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb; and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.”
Judges 13:4-5

We have all been taught the story of Samson in Sunday School. As children it was quite impressive to hear of a man with so much strength and power. We also were taught that Delilah through constant pressure and persistence finally caused Samson to tell her the source of his strength. His lack of discernment becomes his downfall and he ends up losing his vision being imprisoned by the enemy. Since this story is told to children we leave out all the gory details and just tell the kids about how Samson finally got victory over his enemies when he pushed over the pillars at their gathering killing them all.  

However, there is a great lesson in the story of Samson that has been overlooked that is key to walking in great power....CONSECRATION! Consecration means to be set apart for God's purposes. Samson was set apart by birth. The other day I was reading a post online and someone made an interesting statement about the powerlessness of the church. I thought about it and it came to me...the reason for the powerlessness in the church is that they been like Samson. They given over to the seduction of Delilah and have not kept their consecration to the Lord. The truth is the church has lost its vision and direction because it has been taken captive by the enemy. All over the world believers have given in to compromise and now have no power to escape their captivity. Yet, the key lies within their very reach. 

In Mark 9 there is a story of a boy who was demonized. The disciples tried to cast the devil out but they could not. Later on, "when He had come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?”²⁹ So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting." Mark 9:28-29 I used think that this meant that demons somehow knew that we were fasting and praying giving us power over them. The fact is demons don't care if you don't eat or pray. What they do care about is when a Christian consecrates themselves through prayer and fasting. See a lot of people use fasting as a means to diet and prayer to tell God about all their problems. However, to be truly effective you need to set time aside to seek God alone, denying yourself in abstinence and staying in a place of intimacy with God.

Until recently when I started going to prayer mountain to fast and pray during our event called "Come Away My Beloved" I had no idea how disconnected from the presence of God I was. You have no idea how the constant demands of our time, attention, and distraction take their toll on our relationship with God until you get away from it all. I didn't quite get the importance of this even though I read that Jesus made a habit to get alone and pray. Even in that wilderness experience he was putting death and overcoming the devil. It was after that Jesus returned in power. (Luke 4:14)

Which leads me to the second key: “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing." John 15:5  This word abide means to stay within, remain and dwell in God's presence. My friends don't expect to walk in great power if you never pick up your bible, pray or spend time in worship. Now a lot of people spend time in devotionals reading other people's material, give God their 5 minute prayers and sing songs to the Lord in their car. Praise God but that is not going to cut it. "Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone." John 6:15  Jesus spent time alone in prayer. He did not go to prayer meetings so everyone can see how spiritual He was. He did take his disciples with him but would still pray alone. I do believe in corporate prayer but not as a substitute for praying alone. "But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly" Matthew 6:6

Spending time alone with God is key to walking in great power! I know it is not easy because we are constantly in place of being able to be contacted by others and distracted. If someone messages us on Facebook it goes to our phone. Our e-mails go to our phones. There is texting, instant messaging, cell phones, IPOD's and all kinds of gadgets that interrupt our time. If you go anywhere there is music in the background and TV's. You almost have to leave the city and find a mountain like Jesus to be alone. I heard this from a Pastor and I believe it to be true, "Get anyone in a place of solitude and silence and they will hear from God!" I am going to add to that. Get anyone alone in a place of solitude, silence, prayer and worship; living their life in consecration...YOU WILL SEE GREAT POWER!

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Jaziz Gutierrez
http://www.loverevivalrevolution.com

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