THE CHURCH WHERE GOD REIGNS

Lack of proper understanding of the origin, purpose and owner of the church
makes it one of the misunderstood institutions in the world. The pathetic part of
it is that it is mostly misunderstood and misrepresented by those that are
supposed to be members of this body and in some cases those in positions of
leadership.

The word church was not in existence even when Jesus Christ who is the founder
of the church was physically present. The derivation of the word is said to be from
the Greek kuriakon “belonging to the Lord”. It is probably connected with kirk,
the Latin circus, circulus, the Greek kuklos (kuklos) because the congregations
were gathered in circles.

Ecclesia (ekklesia) the Greek word for church originally meant an assembly called
out by the magistrate, or by legitimate authority. It was in this last sense that the
word was adapted and applied by the writers of the New Testament to the
Christian congregation. In the one Gospel of St. Matthew the church is spoken of
no less than thirty-six times as the kingdom.

The day of Pentecost is the birthday of the Christian church. Before they had been
individual following Jesus; now they became his mystical body, animated by his
spirit. On the evening of the day of Pentecost, the 3140 members of which the
Church consisted were -- (1) Apostles; (2) previous Disciples; (3) Converts.

The following passages of the bible bequeath the ownership of the church to
Jesus Christ. Math 16:18, Col1:18, 24, Heb 12:23, Eph 5:24. The church is an
assembly of the people He had bought with His blood therefore He is the owner
of His church.

Becoming a church where God reigns now is about living our lives individually to
glorify God so that it can collectively be evident that we are a church where Jesus
is Lord.
BECOMING A CHURCH WHERE GOD REIGNS

Since we have established that it is the individual believer that makes up the
church, then we need to understand how to become a church where God can have
His way.

“I am the vine, you are the branches: he who is in me at all times as I

am in him, gives much fruit, because without me you are able to do
nothing”. John 15:5

Many Christians still struggle with the life because they think they can live to
impress God not knowing that this assumption undermine the finished work of
Jesus Christ on the tree. Here Jesus said apart from you can do nothing including
living in a way that God can reign in your life.

Jesus said in John 17 that He was leaving, but He was not going to leave us
without some form of comfort which is the Holy Spirit. He is the promise of the
father to us His children without which God cannot reign in us because by
strength shall no man prevail.

“And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received
not the promise”. Heb 11: 39

If you have ever read the 11th chapter of Hebrews you will know it is the catalogue
of men and women who walked, worked and did exploit with God, but this verse
said they could not experience the fullness of God because they did not receive
the promise even they looked forward to a city whose builder was God.

Who or what is this promise? Was there anything in the Bible about The Promise
for it to be this important? Why did it matter so much to the elders of faith as
accounted for in Hebrews 11?

“And behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you; but stay in
the city, until you are clothed with power from on high." Luke 24:49

“And while staying with them he charged them not to depart from
Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said,
you heard from me”, Acts 1:4

“For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry
ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your descendants, and my blessing
“Isaiah 44:3

"And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit on
all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men
shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions”. Joel 2:28
The promise as seen from all these scripture is the Holy Spirit of God without
whom God cannot reign in a life therefore God cannot reign in a church where
the Spirit has departed and all that is left is the form of Godliness but denying the
power thereof.

It is entirely impossible for God to be in a life or church where the Holy Spirit has
been relegated. If we ever want to see the move of God or the power of God like in
the days of the birth of the church then we must walk and live in and by the
Spirit.

BENEFITS OF THE PROMISE

1. From the scripture in Luke 24:49 it says that the coming of the promise will
cause us to be endued with power. Acts 1:8 also testify of this benefit of the
coming of the promise when it said you shall receive power after that the Holy
Ghost is come upon you.

The power is so that we can begin to live in such a way that we can become
witnesses of Jesus through our conducts and lifestyle. In Acts 4, the power
became evident when Peter stood before the council to defend his faith and the
bible said they took notice that he was uneducated and untrained but because
they had been with Jesus.

Is it possible for people to notice anything different about our lives because of our
association with Jesus? If they cannot see then it is likely that God is not reigning
in such a life.

2. In Isaiah 44:3, the presence of the Spirit is like pouring water on a thirsty land
and streams in a dry land. God says He will pour out His Spirit and His blessing.
Notice God did not say His blessings, He said blessing. The outpouring of the
Spirit of God is also the coming of the blessing. Because of the promise Jesus
Christ became poor so that through His poverty we might become rich.

3. In Joel 2:28, the coming of the promise is also an opportunity for the
manifestation of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Only few Christians experience the
workings of the Spirit in their lives, no wonder Christians are being duped like
any other person because there is no discernment of the spirit which is one of the
manifestations of the Promise.

God will only reign in a church where the gifts of the Holy Spirit are in
operations. Dreams, that is, a clue about the future or even a revelation of knotty
issues are w hallmark of old men in a church where God is reigning supremely
and Visions are also the trade mark of young men and women in the church
where God reigns. The birth of new ministries within the church, new businesses
and strange inventions are all the experiences of a church where God is eminently
represented.

4. In Gal 5: 22-23. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against
such there is no law”.

Another very important benefit of the promise of God is the fruit of the spirit, this
how to know who a Christian is no matter what they profess. This is the
characteristics of an individual member of the church where God reigns. Love,
when Jesus said loves them that persecute you and pray for those who
despitefully use you: this is the hall mark of Christian love.

In conclusion, the church where God can reign is a church that is led of the Spirit
which is the promise of the father. Let us return to our first love, how it was first
delivered to us without the compromises of our age and time. Shalom.