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Jesus said, "you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32).

There are two kinds of truth, there is the truth that is perceived through the senses or through the understanding, and there is the truth that comes by revelation, this is the truth that is revealed to us by the Spirit of God and is received by faith. When Peter confessed that Jesus was the Christ the Son of the living God, Jesus replied that flesh and blood had not revealed it to him but rather His Father in heaven. Then He went on to say that it is on this rock, the revelation of Jesus Christ, that He would build His Church, and the gates of hell would not prevail against it. The very foundation of the Church is Jesus Christ and the actual building of the Church is built on the revelation of His word to the Church.

When we become Christians our position or standing before God is changed from what it was before we were saved. However our actual state may have a long way to go before it matches our standing (our standing is what God says we are). The first thing is to believe that by His grace we are what God says we are. Then the question is how do we grow to the place where our experience is lining up with our standing? Many seem to think it is about improving the flesh, it's not. The actual truth that will transform our lives is not taught in many churches so true spiritual growth never happens. When it is taught and the Holy Spirit reveals it to us, and as we meditate on it, believe it and receive it, then it will have an effect on our lives to bring our state up to our standing.

If after many years our state is still far below our standing it is not due to a lack of effort but due to either the lack of a good teaching ministry in the church, or not apprehending what the Holy Spirit is now teaching us.

Apart from change in our own individual lives what about the state of our church meetings, the actual gathering together of the saints? We have had the reformation which brought in justification by faith, then the time of the Wesley’s with the emphasis on sanctification, followed by worldwide missionary endeavours where Christians went out to places like Africa, China and India to spread the gospel. In the early 1900’s there was the Pentecostal outpouring with the gifts of the Spirit. All these were moves of God but what now? Is there anything left for God to do before Jesus returns? Well, I do believe that Jesus could return at any time, but one thing that has not changed too much since the reformation is the structure of the church when it comes together for fellowship. The structure has been carried down from the Roman Catholics and although it has vastly improved it is still nowhere near what it should be.

Jesus said, "I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it". Because He said it He will do it (see also Luke 14:28-30), we haven't seen the finished product yet but when it is finished it will be glorious. Jesus is the Head of the church and when we meet together in His Name, He is there in our midst yet so often He never gets the chance to minister to us. When revival happens the false structures and traditions are cast aside then Jesus once more gets the chance to minister to us but it’s not long before many in leadership want to get back to the traditions and structures which were in place before the revival broke out and then the revival is finished. Thank God for the men of God who made a stand for the real thing, if only the leadership as a whole had stayed with what God was showing them instead of going back to having their own church name and their organised religion.

Finally, how is the Lord building His Church? He has put in the Church men filled with the Holy Spirit with ministering gifts for the equipping of the saints for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (see Ephesians 4:11-13). Many men of God in the past had a vision of what God's church should be but although they may have seen glimpses of the finished product they have died before seeing the whole church come into what God has designed it to be. However their works have been preserved to help us see what God is doing. Some of these can be found in the bibliography below. King David wasn't allowed to build the temple but he did prepare the plans for it (1 Chronicles 28:11-12). The blueprint for the Church is in the Bible, the Holy Spirit will reveal it to those He has prepared beforehand that they may teach it to others who also have their eyes opened by the Spirit. When King Solomon prepared the stone for the temple it was all chiselled and prepared at the quarry (1 Kings 6:7), so also is God preparing the living stones for His house outside the camp (Hebrews 13:12-15), "that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish" (Ephesians 5:27). The last thing for the Lord to do before He returns is to finish building the church which He will present to Himself complete and glorious.

Next: Have You Received The Holy Spirit?

Mark Greenwood. December 2018

Updated July 2019 / January 2020

Location: Grenoside, Sheffield, United Kingdom

email - mgreenwoodctm@gmail.com