I think brother Isman said it best when he used it as an example of our Christian walk. A microphone isn't really a microphone unless it is plugged into an amplifier. It might as well be a glass of water or a rock. An amplifier has to be plugged into a source of power for it to work, otherwise the signal running through it is lost and no one hears it.
How is your Christian walk? Is you mike plugged in? Is your amplifier plugged into a source of power? God wants to use you and me to expand His kingdom and help to bring others to know Christ. If our source of power is weak or nonexistent then how could we be a microphone for God's word?
We need to get plugged in to God's word, it recharges our source of power (Faith). Sundays should not be enough. Fellowship, ministries, church functions and Bible studies are great sources to recharge our spiritual batteries. Brothers and sisters, are you feeling run down? When is the last time you checked your power source? Maybe it's time to get plugged in.
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I love my church family we may not all be perfect but the fact that we belong to Christ and do his will according to His word, then let us not pretend that we love others. But really love them. Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of the good. Let us continue to Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy in our work, but serve the Lord enthusiastically. Be glad for all God is planning for us. Be patient in trouble, and always be prayerful. When God's children are in need, let us be the one to help them out. And get into the habit of inviting guests home for dinner or, if they need lodging, for the night. If people persecute us because we are Christians, don't curse them; pray that God will bless them. When others are happy, let us also be happy with them. If they are sad, share their sorrow. Live in harmony with each other. Don't try to act important, but enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don't think that we know it all! Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Do things in such a way that everyone can see we are honorable. Let do our part to live in peace with everyone, as much as possible. Let’s continue to do what the Scriptures say: "If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink, and they will be ashamed of what they have done to you." Don't let evil get the best of you, but conquer evil by doing good.
Stay in His Love
My Brothers and Sisters
Today and forever!
Why visitors need a church family
The difference between being a church attendee and a church member is commitment.
Attendee’s are spectators from the sidelines; Members get involved in the ministry. Attendee’s are consumers; Members are contributors. Attendee’s want the benefits of a church without sharing the responsibility. They are like couples who want to live together without committing to a marriage.
It is a big hurdle to convince attendee’s they need to commit themselves to the church family and become members.
Today’s culture of independent individualism has created many spiritual orphans -- “bunny believers,” who hop around from one church to another without any identity, accountability or commitment. Many believe it is possible to be a “good Christian” without joining a local church.
How can you convince them otherwise? God is not silent on the issue. The Bible offers many compelling reasons why every
believer needs to be committed and active in a local fellowship.
I can’t claim to be following Christ if I’m not committed to any specific group of disciples. Jesus said, “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples” (John 13:35, NLT).
The local church is the classroom for learning how to get along in God’s family. It is a lab for practicing unselfish, sympathetic love. As a participating member you learn to care about others and share the experiences of others: “If one part of the body suffers, all the other parts suffer with it. Or if one part of our body is honored, all the other parts share its honor” (1 Corinthians 12:26, NCV). Only in regular contact with ordinary, imperfect believers can we learn real fellowship and experience the New Testament truth of being
connected and dependent on each other. Biblical fellowship is being as committed to each other as we are to Jesus Christ. God
expects us to give our lives for each other. Many Christians who know John 3:16 are unaware of 1 John 3:16 (NIV): “Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.” This is the kind of sacrificial love God expects you to
show other believers -- a willingness to love them in the same way Jesus loves you.
No one will ever grow to maturity just by attending worship services and being a passive spectator. Only participation in the full life of a local church builds spiritual muscle. The Bible says, “As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love” (Ephesians 4:16, NLT). Over fifty times in the New Testament the phrases “one another” or “each other” are used. We are commanded to love each other, pray for each other, encourage each other, admonish each other, greet each other, serve each other, teach each other, accept each other, honor each other, bear each ther’s burdens, forgive each other,submit to each other, be devoted to each other and many other mutual tasks. This is biblical membership! These are the “family responsibilities” that God expects every believer to fulfill through a local fellowship. We need to ask those who attend our services, “Who are you doing these with?”
God has a unique role for every believer to play in his family. This is called your “ministry,” and God has gifted you for this assignment: “A spiritual gift is given to each of us as a means of helping the entire church” (1 Corinthians 12:7, NLT). The local fellowship is the place God designed for his children to discover, develop and use their gifts. Even those with a wider ministry need to understand that their first responsibility is to the local Body. Jesus has not promised to build anyone’s ministry; he has promised to build his Church.
When Jesus walked the earth, God worked through the physical body of Christ; today he uses his spiritual body. The church is God’s instrument on earth. We are not just to model God’s love by loving each other; we are to carry it together to the rest of the
world. This is an incredible privilege we have been given together. As members of Christ’s body, we are his hands, his feet, his eyes and his heart. He works through us in the world. We each have a contribution to make. Paul tells us, “He creates each of us by
Christ Jesus to join him in the work he does, the good work he has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing” (Ephesians 2:10, Msg
None of us are immune to temptation. Given the right situation, you and I are capable of
any sin. God knows this, so he has assigned us as individuals the responsibility of keeping each other on track. The Bible says, “Encourage one another daily ... so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness” (Hebrews 3:13, NIV).
“Mind your own business” is not a Christian phrase. We are called and commanded to be involved in each other’s lives. If you know someone who is wavering spiritually right now, it is your responsibility to go after them and bring them back into the fellowship. James tells us, “If you know people who have wandered off from God’s truth, don’t write
them off. Go after them. Get them back” (James 5:19, Msg).
A related benefit of a local church is that it also provides the spiritual protection of godly
leaders. God gives shepherd leaders the responsibility to guard, protect, defend and care for the spiritual welfare of his flock. We are told, “Their work is to watch over your souls, and they know they are accountable to God” (Hebrews 13:17, NLT). Satan loves detached believers -- unplugged from the life of the Body, isolated from God’s family and unaccountable to spiritual leaders -- because he knows they are defenseless and powerless against his tactics.
The Christian life is more than just commitment to Christ; it includes a commitment to other Christians. The Christians in Macedonia understood this. Paul said, “First they gave themselves to the Lord; and then, by God’s will, they gave themselves to us as
well” (2 Corinthians 8:5, TEV).
We must remind those who fill our buildings each Sunday that joining the membership of a local church is the natural next step once they become a child of God. You become a
Christian by committing yourself to Christ, but you become a church member by committing yourself to a specific group of believers. The first decision brings salvation;
the second brings fellowship.
Study taken from Rick Warren’s Ministry ToolBox
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