Not The Bride Alone

 

"And the Spirit and the bride say, 'come!'

And let him who hears say, 'come!' And let him who thirsts come.

Whoever desires, let him take of the water of life freely"

(Rev. 22:17).

When I was in my early twenties I felt the call of God to be a pastor. It made sense to me that if I was going to be a pastor I would need a church, so I decided to start one. It began with a home fellowship, and I was confident it would explode into a mega-church.

The fellowship went really well, the people were faithful, sweet and seemed blessed, but there was very little growth. I felt called to be a pastor, but a church wasn't happening so I became very frustrated. One night I let my frustration out on the little fellowship rebuking them for the lack of growth. I still cringe when I think about it. I was being led by what I wanted, not by the Lord, and that very night, after the Lord's rebuke, understood that while I was called to pastor a church, I wasn't ready just yet.

Revelation 22:17 is our church verse. Notice that the church does not cry 'come!' by itself, it is the Spirit and the bride together who call out. I learned an important lesson in that attempt to start a church. I had the desire and passion, I was willing to sacrifice and work hard, but I wasn't being led by the Holy Spirit.

When Calvary Chapel Living Word was started, it clearly was by the moving of the Holy Spirit and we have seen confirmation of that over and again.  Please pray for CCLW in this new year, that we will continue to be a church clearly led by the Spirit of God. May His Spirit freely move among us, and may the fruit and power of the Spirit be evident in all we do.