“And to our beloved Ap’phia and
Archip’pus our fellow
soldier, and to the Church in thy
house …” (Philemon)
USA – A miracle is now taking place all over the world!
Denominational labels
are being dropped and Christians are coming together in homes for fellowship
and worship.
Behind the (now no
longer existent) Iron Curtain, in the Far East, and in Europe, America and
South Africa, a movement is taking place which is not organised by a man or
committee, but is simply taking place by the leading of the Holy Spirit
ministry.
Real Unity is being
achieved as hearts are knit in one, with Ritual giving place to reality!
What a breach needs to
be healed between Churches … but the house meetings are doing it!
A younger generation is
looking for real Christianity – and finding it in the home meeting! This is NOT
a new denomination, but a meeting where a seeking soul can find the Lord Jesus
Christ – in His simplicity and power, as we see in die Book of Acts.
We are going back to the
Bible, and finding, in the process, the true CHURCH of all believers, the real
body of Christ.
Why is this move being
made? First, because it is Scriptural and the Holy Spirit always takes us back to the Word of GOD.
Nowhere in New Testament
times, do we find money being invested in special buildings called churches.
All were sitting “in the
HOUSE” (Acts 2:2) when the Holy Spirit was given – to start the Body of Christ
moving in power – at Pentecost, continuing the miracle ministry of Christ in
houses. (John 2:1-10; Matt. 10:13-14; 17:25).
It was in a house
meeting that the famous Apostle Paul was healed, added then to the Body and
baptised (Acts 9:17) while Pentecost was repeated in an outstanding way in the
house of Cornelius (Acts 11:12-16) as Peter saw it was to become a continuing
experience for all Christians!
Throughout an
examination of Paul’s Epistles, we have nothing but references of houses, as
the main place of fellowship. (Rom. 15:16; Col. 4:15).
It was the house
fellowship in which the Body of Christ was formed and grew so much in the first
Century, that it almost covered the then known world.
Today we have bigger
buildings and bigger crowds, but the driving power of the smaller fellowships
has passed from the church to Communism – capturing a third of the world’s
population in only 40 years. Surely we need to learn a lesson from this and go
back the Bible way.
With the growth of
atheistic power, there has come persecution in which the house church has once
again come into its own.
The Lord too is using
this means to purify His people, and bring in the sincerity and early reality,
which comes with simple forms of Christianity.
In this atmosphere also,
where everyone can have a ministry, the Gifts of the Holy Spirit are beginning
to flourish again, as they did in the Early Church!
“How is it then brethren, when you come together,
every one of you have a psalm, have a doctrine, have a tongue, have a
revelation, have an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.” (1
Cor. 14:26).
With Golgotha the earthly temple
was destroyed. We are now the living stones, the temple, with Christ being our
High Priest. We no longer have to go to an earthly temple. The Body of Christ
is free to meet anywhere.
Modern technology,
e-mail and the Internet is playing a significant role with house churches
reporting and edifying one another. House churches also visit one another to
edify one another.