Since I first received Jesus, my outlook has changed from one of striving to do works and looking for God’s approval after the fact to one of resting in Christ and trusting the Holy Spirit to direct me in concert with God’s work. It is not unlike Peter who fished all day and caught nothing, who at the end of the day followed Jesus’ instructions and hauled in a huge catch. The former was Peter’s effort without Christ’s direction, the latter was Christ’s doing through Peter’s obedience. The lesson in that? Action without direction is fruitless.

One way I see things differently now, is through the gardening metaphor so often used in scripture. Working in my vegetable garden those scriptures come to life as I clean up a garbage pile behind the garage, kill the weeds, till the soil, fertilize, plant, water, prune, cultivate, deal with pests and finally bring in the harvest. It’s hard work, but a great way to get perspective on God’s work with us.

For nearly 18 months I applied myself to various church jobs, hoping to spark something, anything, that resembled revival. But the harder I worked, the worse it became. Finally the Lord said to me:

Get out of the way and let it fail.

His words left me stunned. In fact, I questioned whether or not it was the Lord speaking since I felt it was blasphemous to suggest the church should fail. But the Lord went on to show me the church was not a building, nor the religious institution with all its programs most people identify as the church, but simply the children of God coming together as family to live in community with God and one another. The Lord went on to speak to me about building on sand and that He is doing what He has always done: sending wind, rain and waves to test our houses for whether or not we’ve built on the Rock.

Past episodes have looked at the ways jealousy and ambition can grieve and quench the ministry of the Spirit. Likewise man’s church system which sustains itself through systemically suppressing the witness of the Spirit. I’d like to share a vision from the Lord that showed me what’s behind it all, and a dream that contrasts a ministry of compassion and healing with the ministry of selfish men. Both have helped to show me the nature of man’s church system and what the Lord wants ministry to be.

It was while meditating on the saying “the ground is level at the foot of the cross” that the Lord prompted me to consider His perspective through a vision.

I was making my way on foot down the side of a mountain with another man who seemed to be a mixture of my earthly and spiritual fathers. The mountain we were descending was desert like, covered with rock, cactus and stumps. Not a single tree remained on the mountain, while the valley below was lush and inviting with green forest and clear streams. Though I couldn’t see from the rocky trail, I knew the valley to be filled with people, shelter, food, fellowship, etc. Conversely, I knew the mountain to be “snake country”. If I’ve never mentioned, I hate snakes!

One day Jacob was cooking a stew. Esau came in from the field and said to Jacob, “Give me some of that red stew–I’m starved!” Jacob said, “Make me a trade: my stew for your rights as the firstborn.” On oath Esau traded away his rights. Jacob gave him bread and the stew of lentils. Esau ate and drank, got up and left. (Genesis 25:29-34, The Message Bible)

We have a wonderful birthright from God in Christ. We are God’s children and heirs, temples in which His Spirit dwells, priests and kings who reign with Christ. Sadly, we are more like Esau than many of us care to admit because we’ve traded our birthright for even less than a bowl of stew.

When Christians meet for the first time, the question most often asked is “where do you go to church?” I dread that question more than any other because the people who ask are usually shocked by my uncommon answer.

Since the time of Christ, the question has been asked in many ways. There was the woman at the well who asked Jesus about worship on Jacob’s mountain or in Jerusalem. His reply made it clear that where we worship is no longer relevant, but who and how we worship (John 4:21-23). On another occasion, the disciples stopped a man from working miracles because he was not a member of their church. Clearly angered, Jesus said “don’t stop him – if he’s not an enemy, he’s an ally” (Mark 9:38-40).

My mother went to be with Jesus in 2003. Following her stroke in 1999, dad devoted his life to mom’s full time care. House and yard work they once did together and the projects they’d started, went undone as Dad saw to all of Mom’s care needs. Daily he washed, clothed and fed her, lifting her several dozen times each day and night, from bedroom to bathroom, wheelchair to recliner, in and out of the car.

Rather than accept isolation, dad began taking mom out to an early supper several times a week, which was no small effort on his part. Restaurants provided them with fellowship, which was a healing balm for mom’s spirit and helped to keep her vital. However many times the wait staff came to the table, she greeted them with a cheerful “oh, Hi!” and one-armed hug. They remained with mom as long as it took for her to order, which in itself was an act of love and patience since the stroke left mom unable to speak but for a few nonsensical words. The kitchen staff even helped to care for mom, by cutting up her food, customizing meals and even came out to greet her, where more hugs were given and received.

Among the things that grieve me as a believer is how seldom people question whether church practices are Biblical. For example, most churches refer to Sunday service as a “worship service” and teach that “worship means singing” hymns and choruses. Rarely have I seen the idea challenged; believers simply accept the modern worship model as handed down from our forefathers as Biblical and correct.

For the sake of examining “worship services” I’d like to lay a Biblical foundation for discussion.

• In the Old Testament, the temple was a stone building in Jerusalem. In the New Testament, the temple is us (1 Cor. 3:16, 6:19, 1 Pet. 2:5).
• In the old, the priests were the sons of Levi and Aaron. In the new, the priesthood is us (1 Pet. 2:5, :9, Rev. 1:6, 5:10, 20:6).
• In the old, the Spirit did not indwell the people, He abode in the Holy of Holies in the Temple in Jerusalem. In the new, the Holy Spirit abides in us (Jo. 20:22, Ac. 2:4)

Thus from the old to the new, the temple, the priesthood, and dwelling place of God all changed. Accordingly, worship changed, too.

Jesus said to the woman at the well: “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.”

Water was drawn not only for drinking, but for the ritual washings of those who kept the law of Moses. Washing with water prepared the priests for temple duties and to enter the tent of meeting. It was a symbolic act that provided temporary cleansing only.

With the coming of the Holy Spirit to indwell all believers, there is no longer a need to wash with water. Instead, the Holy Spirit is a fount of “living water” flowing from within every believer to satisfy spiritual thirst and cleanse us from within. Thus the external act of washing with water, which was never able to clean the hearts of men is replaced by the internal act of washing by the Spirit.

In fact, the 6 stone water jars Jesus turned into wine at the wedding in Cana of Galilee, were for washing and purification. By turning the water into wine, Jesus first miracle symbolically marked the end of externalized rituals and the advent of being cleansed from within by the new wine of the Spirit.

Leaving religious Babylon, or man’s church if you will, was difficult on many levels. The stories I share may give the impression that I left because I was hurt or bitter, but the truth is, I was deeply devoted to “the church” because that’s where I was when Jesus revealed himself to me. Admittedly leaving was more difficult for me because I was a performing song-writer and the church was my defacto concert venue. A weekend concert ministry once took me into churches all over the Puget Sound region. My home church on the other hand had no interest in me except as an occasional guitar player in the praise band. Like the prophets, performing musicians are also without honor in their home town (John 4:44). That’s what I concluded anyway. There is one funny experience that stands out in my memory as the epitome of my musical frustrations with my old home church.

The pastor was planning to deliver a sermon about the difference between Jesus, King of Heaven and Elvis, King of the World. It was a funny message, contrasting Jesus humility and truth with Elvis glitz and commercialism. To introduce the sermon, the pastor asked the praise band to play a few bars of an Elvis tune. We chose “Can’t Help Falling In Love” and one by one each of us sang a few lines to audition for the part of Elvis.