A
number of years ago, I took a cruise, but not on a cruise ship but on
a U. S. Navy destroyer with a thirteen piece show band. In
preparation for the cruise and the planned concerts, we prepared
music from 30 to 40 years ago from the date of the cruise. The
people in the countries we were to visit, liked the music from the
past generation which the gladly applauded. We once played a new
piece of music and the people just stared and looked at us, with a
questioning look in their eyes almost saying, “What was that.”
It just didn't go over well. Methods sometimes change, depending on
where you are at.
Acts 1:8 says, “But ye shall
receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye
shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and
in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
Methods may
change, but the message is the same message that the Lord Jesus
Christ preached on the Mount of Olives. The Good News of the Gospel
is always the same as it brings forth the proclamation of the death,
burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. We have always had
our own interpretation of what a church building should look like and
for the most part, the would be rectangular in shape with three
levels in the main area of worship. Then, I went to a church that was
round and which had no center aisle, but aisles on both sides. New
churches had chairs and then bought pews. Now, churches are selling
pews and using chairs. Mass meetings have now turned to small
group meetings. One of the largest churches in Asia met entirely in
homes scattered all over South Korea. Some countries are living
almost in a generation of the past while others are up to date with
modern methods and conveniences. Change in worship style is all
around us, but the message must remain the same. It is still the
good news of the gospel; the death, the burial and the resurrection
of the Lord Jesus Christ. My preaching in these most recent days is
not done in a building or a room designed for that purpose, but in a
place called a “conservatory” in a retirement community. The
same room is used for meetings, bingo, dances for seniors, dinners
and special activities designed by the Life Enrichment group. The
message however, is still the same and it is the message that the
Lord Jesus Christ commissioned before His ascension into heaven. “Ye
shall be witnesses unto me...” The message is about God's plan of
salvation for a lost and dying world where people don't know the
Savior and who are still living in their sins with no hope outside of
the gospel message. I use the internet to help spread this message
through email and the social media. God's answer to the most
important question is still the same today as it was to the
Philippian Jailer at the feet of Paul and Silas in Acts 16. The
question was, “What must I do to be saved?” Paul replied,
“...believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved...”
That is still the answer to the same question no matter if you lived
a thousand years ago or today. The point is not where or how you get
the message out, but the message itself. Are we a witness unto Him
in our Jerusalem or Judea, or Samaria or even to the uttermost part
of the earth? Sometimes we get more concerned abut the method rather
than the message itself. May we all be a witness unto Christ today
and in the days to come. Praise God today that He has given us clear
instructions in connection with the propagation of the Gospel to
those who need so desperately to hear it.
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