From The CITY CHURCH To The DESERT CHURCH: The Heavenly Mandate – That’s Only Possible By Humility!
The CITY CHURCH and DESERT CHURCHES are not numbers, but people of God’s CREATION that WORTH every resources of the heavenly. Sometimes in the CAUSE of OBEDIENCE to the heavenly mandate, our absolute dedication and commitment to excellence in Kingdom services are tested to justify our ESSENCE – motives, in the services of God. And you ability to RESPOND and not REACT indicates the assurance and faithfulness TOWARD God’s mandate upon you, in LIFE and GODLY LIVING.
There are people today, who when they are relocated from their CITY CHURCH of glamour and multitudes, to a more less, the DESERT CHURCH of no glamour and multitudes, they will swiftly resign from the services of such creation. They may either kick start theirs as a way of rebel and not of necessity, and or react by complaining and murmuring throughout their time frame away from their CITY CHURCH glamour and multitude, while at the DESERT CHURCH – (Philippians 1:15-18). You see this also in MATTERS of life when there is shift in life position and placement, to a very different places outside our comfort zone. Some people may live through such moment, by cursing and attributing it to witch-hunts; and doing some legislative session gang ups to win support and to authenticate their spirituality in ensuring they stay in a particular spot all through life without being innovative and creative, to help them initiate and explore beyond walls.
God is the only one who determines time and season with His own – Acts 17:24-31. And He’s not subject to any human factors of any sorts. In His intent to process and prune us, so that we become more effectual, productive and result oriented, CHANGE is a NECESSITY, so that we fulfill His PURPOSE and ESSENCE – 1 Corinthians 9:15-17; He may sometimes and most times, shift our place for His Kingdom advancement and to keep the ENEMY and COHORTS at bay – (John 15:1-16). If you don’t know and understand what it means to be obedient in the heavenly mandate, you will be fighting and wrestling with God and man, thinking someone else is undoubtedly undoing you in order to bring you down and rob you of who you’ve claimed you are called of God to be.
But if you want to eat the good of the Kingdom, you must humble yourself in OBEYING THE HEAVENLY MANDATE shift as Evangelist Philip did. He, in OBEDIENCE to God’s PURPOSE and CAUSES, RESPONDED instead of REACTING to the ministerial shift, from a glamour and joyful SAMARIA CITY CHURCH to a lone one member Ethiopian man DESERT CHURCH. Only eternity can and would explain the implications of that mission to the DESERT CHURCH from the CITY CHURCH. Can you do that TODAY? Can you respond and say – YES LORD, to that next shift in your life and or Ministry? Can you afford to change job or allowed to be transferred to a less glamour place to work and do life? Have you ever question while God has PLACED you in certain places that naturally you would not wish or want to be? Have you come to terms with your life with God, that wherever He leads, you are willing to be OBEDIENT and say – YES LORD, and follow? These and such like you need to THINK wisely about, before you can WORTH saying yes to: “OBEYING THE HEAVENLY MANDATE” as Evangelist Philip of Acts 8.
God is raising an ARMY today that will take the GOSPEL beyond walls of denomination and land. He’s not just raising people only into the MINISTERIAL calls but into SECULAR and CIVIC duties. And it may not likely be in the place of your CHOICE sometimes. It’s essence is that through your profession you can MAKE the Gospel to the reach of all – from the CITY to the DESERT. You are that CHURCH, that God is raising. Not the denomination or cathedral architectural building. The DESERT CHURCH is that Local and Community assembly near you, that VILLAGE and DEPRAVED PLACE that your presence is a goldmine missionary to the people there. You don’t have to be Only in Ministerial outfits to OBEY the heavenly mandate. Your skill and talent availability is all God need to pour His ability through to make it become. It’s about becoming the MISSIONARY to meet the MISSION need in you can envision as Apostle Paul forsee – Acts 16:8-10
“And they passing by Mysia came down to Troas. 9 And a VISION appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, COME OVER into Macedonia, and HELP US. 10 And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to PREACH THE GOSPEL unto them”
I pray that you take time to examine your life very closely, in order to ensure you know and understand God’s intent for you in LIFE and GODLY LIVING; this important, gracious and graceful for your well-being, before you start legislating Spirituality in ignorance, through some unwarranted and uninformed PRAYERS.
SELAH – PAUSE AND THINK
SCRIPTURAL THOUGHTS WORTH PONDERING IN CONTEXT:
“Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I WAS NOT DISOBEDIENT UNTO THE HEAVENLY VISION: 20 but shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judæa, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance” Acts 26:19-20
“If they OBEY and SERVE him, they shall SPEND their DAYS in PROSPERITY, and their YEARS in PLEASURES. 12 But if they obey not, they shall perish by the sword, and they shall die without knowledge” Job 36:11-12.
“If ye be WILLING and OBEDIENT, ye shall EAT the GOOD of the land” Isaiah 1:19.
“You will SHOW me the PATH OF LIFE; In Your PRESENCE is FULLNESS of joy; In Your RIGHT HAND (RIGHTEOUSNESS) there are PLEASURES forevermore” Psalms 16:11 (Emphasis Mine).
“HUMBLE yourselves in the SIGHT of the Lord, and he shall LIFT you up” James 4:10.
“Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and BE CLOTHED WITH HUMILITY: for God RESISTETH the proud, and GIVETH grace to the HUMBLE. 6 HUMBLE yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may EXALT you in due time: 7 casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you” 1 Peter 5:5-7.
“By HUMILITY and the FEAR (REVERENTIAL FEAR) of the Lord are riches, and honour, and life” Proverbs 22:4 (Emphasis Mine).
“He that REFUSETH instruction DESPISETH his own soul: but he that HEARETH reproof GETTETH understanding. 33 The FEAR (REVERENTIAL FEAR) of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom; and before HONOUR is HUMILITY” Proverbs 15:32-33 (Emphasis Mine).
“. . .5 Then PHILIP went down to the CITY OF SAMARIA, and PREACHED CHRIST unto them. 6 And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. 7 For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed. 8 AND THERE WAS GREAT JOY IN THAT CITY . . . 26 And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and GO TOWARD THE SOUTH unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is DESERT. 27 And he arose and went: and, behold, A MAN OF ETHIOPIA, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, AND HAD COME TO JERUSALEM FOR TO WORSHIP . . .” Acts 8:1-40.
“They that DWELL in the WILDERNESS shall BOW before him; and his ENEMIES shall lick the dust” Psalms 72:9.
“But I have used none of these things: neither have I written these things, that it should be so done unto me: for it were better for me to die, than that any man should make my glorying void. 16 For though I PREACH THE GOSPEL, I have nothing to glory of: for NECESSITY IS LAID UPON ME; YEA, WOE IS UNTO ME, IF I PREACH NOT THE GOSPEL! 17 For if I do this thing willingly, I have a reward: but if against my will, a DISPENSATION of the GOSPEL is COMMITTED unto me” 1 Corinthians 9:15-17.
REV CHUKIE MORSI