Continuing with my newly stated goal of using Mondays to share Sunday's message, well, here it is.
But to share more fully, some of the issues in this message go along with two posts I made several years back. One, a looooong time ago, had to do with the "bait and switch" tactics used in the church. The misunderstanding that some have about what it means to be "fishers of men." We think of modern fishing practices, using the right lure to catch the right kind of fish, etc. Whereas Jesus' call to be fishers of men has much more to do with the idea of casting a net and seeing what mind find its way into that net. In other words, casting the net of the Gospel and trusting God to fill the net as He sees fit.
The other article, almost as looong ago, has to do with the sad practice of "specialty churches." The goal here is to target some sub group of the culture and make a church just to attract that group (i.e. Cowboy Church, Biker Church, etc.). This is an obvious violation of so many biblical principles. Primarily the issue of proclaiming the Gospel to all men, all kinds of men; and the principle of unity in the church that tears down dividing walls.
You can follow the links in those paragraphs above to read those posts, if you're bored, or if you're having trouble sleeping, or whatever. But as we looked at the "Parable of the Net" Jesus gives in Matthew 13, those kinds of issues surface again.
In the end, the basic idea is that the Church is to be about the business of casting the net of the Gospel, knowing that a great "separation" is coming at the Day of Judgment, and that until that day we need to keep casting and trust God to fill the net as He chooses. I pray the message (should you choose to listen) will be a challenge and a blessing.
No comments:
Post a Comment