Sunday, July 27, 2003
Cornerstone
Almost 3 years ago, I was praying in my office when God moved me to act out a "prophetic gesture." I walked about in the confines of my study as if I had a shovel in my hand. Prompted by the Spirit, I began to gesture a digging kind of action with the invisible shovel. As I was doing this I asked the Lord, "What is this Lord? Why am I doing this?" He spoke clearly to my heart as if it was an actual voice I could hear except that there was no sound. I don't remember the exact words but this pretty well sums up what He said, "I want you to expose the foundations of the church. The church has not been founded upon apostolic and prophetic foundations with Jesus Christ as the chief cornerstone."
For some time, I thought this word from God was a directive to share this to the Body of Christ in the Philippines. So I began speaking about it. During those days I was doing a lot of conferences and revival meetings. There was a ring of truth to this revelation. I could see how churches and even church networks were missing that apostolic and prophetic flavor. I could see that many churches were founded upon evangelistic foundations. More common were churches that were founded on pastoral foundations. Or even on teacher foundations. Churches with an evangelistic foundation prioritized reaching the lost and proclaiming the gospel. One movement I know influenced thousands to be born again. Yet these churches were characterized by shallowness in their discipleship. Churches built on pastoral foundations tended to exhibit nurture and care but also lacked depth. They also tended to be smaller in size and not so concerned for reaching lost people. Although they never would admit it. Churches founded on the teaching ministry drew a lot of people who learned to love the Word of God. Members would take copious notes. But they tended to be dry emotionally and relationally.
It's been almost 3 years now and I still see few if any churches built on apostolic and prophetic foundations. I'm sure they're there somewhere. Most likely, these churches aren't megachurches or prominent churches. They're probably just quietly doing what God has revealed to them building the kingdom. Recent events have led me down a path of applying this to our own church, NuComm.
As I think about apostolic and prophetic foundations, I can't help but wonder if we missed it. I'm especially considering the chief cornerstone. Do we really have that in place? I think we're mistaken if we think that Christ is the cornerstone of our local church simply because we believe in the gospel or that we subscribe to a sound doctrinal statement or theology. Is that what Paul really meant in Ephesians 2 about Jesus Christ HIMSELF being the chief cornerstone? Is that what the apostle meant when he references the life of the church as "in Him?" I think not.
The chief cornerstone isn't a doctrine or theological position. The chief cornerstone is a Person. The real question then is, "How do we make a Person the chief cornerstone to the foundation of the church?"
This is my preoccupation now. And the Lord has been revealing some awesome things. Picture a cube shaped with 6 sides. This is the cornerstone. On each face is imprinted a revelation truth of Christ: Christ in you, Christ with you, Christ through you. I think the other 3 sides will answer the question of who is Christ? I haven't got anything solidified but I am thinking along the lines of Christ foretold and Christ fulfilled. The final panel is yet to be revealed.
If anyone is reading this out there, I would love any kind of feedback you may have. Ciao!
For some time, I thought this word from God was a directive to share this to the Body of Christ in the Philippines. So I began speaking about it. During those days I was doing a lot of conferences and revival meetings. There was a ring of truth to this revelation. I could see how churches and even church networks were missing that apostolic and prophetic flavor. I could see that many churches were founded upon evangelistic foundations. More common were churches that were founded on pastoral foundations. Or even on teacher foundations. Churches with an evangelistic foundation prioritized reaching the lost and proclaiming the gospel. One movement I know influenced thousands to be born again. Yet these churches were characterized by shallowness in their discipleship. Churches built on pastoral foundations tended to exhibit nurture and care but also lacked depth. They also tended to be smaller in size and not so concerned for reaching lost people. Although they never would admit it. Churches founded on the teaching ministry drew a lot of people who learned to love the Word of God. Members would take copious notes. But they tended to be dry emotionally and relationally.
It's been almost 3 years now and I still see few if any churches built on apostolic and prophetic foundations. I'm sure they're there somewhere. Most likely, these churches aren't megachurches or prominent churches. They're probably just quietly doing what God has revealed to them building the kingdom. Recent events have led me down a path of applying this to our own church, NuComm.
As I think about apostolic and prophetic foundations, I can't help but wonder if we missed it. I'm especially considering the chief cornerstone. Do we really have that in place? I think we're mistaken if we think that Christ is the cornerstone of our local church simply because we believe in the gospel or that we subscribe to a sound doctrinal statement or theology. Is that what Paul really meant in Ephesians 2 about Jesus Christ HIMSELF being the chief cornerstone? Is that what the apostle meant when he references the life of the church as "in Him?" I think not.
The chief cornerstone isn't a doctrine or theological position. The chief cornerstone is a Person. The real question then is, "How do we make a Person the chief cornerstone to the foundation of the church?"
This is my preoccupation now. And the Lord has been revealing some awesome things. Picture a cube shaped with 6 sides. This is the cornerstone. On each face is imprinted a revelation truth of Christ: Christ in you, Christ with you, Christ through you. I think the other 3 sides will answer the question of who is Christ? I haven't got anything solidified but I am thinking along the lines of Christ foretold and Christ fulfilled. The final panel is yet to be revealed.
If anyone is reading this out there, I would love any kind of feedback you may have. Ciao!
