The Church of God

Those whom God has appointed to serve in the church of God must do so, as we read in Ephesians 4:11: “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some shepherds and teachers.” A gathering of the church should be charac­terized by the knowledge and power of all these servants.

Everybody in the church should take part if this goal is to be at­tained. The one who leads the meetings must keep in mind that the purpose of the meeting is to help all those who are present, so that they can grow up to the place in the body which God has ordained for each of them. The sisters can encourage their husbands to be servants in the church. The brothers must live so wholeheartedly for God, that He can use them when He takes some of them and appoints them in the church as His servants.

The sheep and lambs will feel at home; they will rejoice and re­ceive nourishment as the perfect ministry in the church is made mani­fest. When brothers grow up to be servants of the Word in the church, they provide the necessary “breath of fresh air” at the meeting and all—around spiritual food. Then there will be an end to meetings “standing or falling” on account of one brother, so that when he is absent the meeting “doesn’t get off the ground.” Every brother needs to come into a holy need in order to become a useful brother in spirit and in truth, to be a scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven—to bring forth things new and old. It is easy to sin on this point by quenching the Spirit instead of encouraging in the Spirit. Having a desire to speak is not sufficient reason to do so! One must be driven by the Spirit. It is dull and uninspiring when brothers get up and make long speeches because they think they have to fill out the time at the meeting. Such things must not occur in the church of God. Everything that is brought should be fresh and anointed—then it will be a blessing. A servant of God must be inspired and speak with zeal and enthusiasm, whether he is speaking to one or to many, so that it will not be tiring, but blessed, if he brings something old.

It is good when an assembly meets on biblical ground. It does not take much effort to bring the outer framework in order. However, everybody must see to it that the Spirit is leading and guiding within this framework.

God’s church is far too exalted and holy in which to serve with uncircumcised heart and ear. We must have a holy fear and reverence for God and for those whom we shall serve.