What Happened?

        Parkersburg, West Virginia has a very large government office. It is the Bureau of Public Debt. It is interesting to observe the outside of the building where a counter records the total amount of money that the government owes. The bureau used to be split between Parkersburg and Washington, D. C., but the Washington office closed and Parkersburg became the home site for this particular office. The end digits of the marquee move faster than you can see as the debt climbs higher and higher. It is a statistic and I enjoy statistics as to what is going on in the world in particular. Some statistics are available for such things as population, death, disease, cars made, chickens killed and even religion. Most groups that provide these statistics agree on the numbers and say that the percentage of Christians in the world today is about 31 percent. That means that about 3 out of ten people are believers and also that 7 out of 10 are not believers. 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.” 

           If a projection for future growth had been made in the days of the Apostles, one might conclude that at the rate things were going, the world would be all believers in a short time. A person might ask one of the most simplest of questions, “What happened?” Peter stood up and preached a short sermon and 3,000 men were converted. He does his second sermon and 5,000 souls were added to the church. Then, they stopped counting and just said many souls were converted. The Apostles were accused of filling the city of Jerusalem with their message. Before, these twelve average men, one of which betrayed Jesus and ended up committing suicide, had normal jobs in the Israeli culture. The fishermen and tax collectors suddenly found themselves proclaiming a message to everyone they met. Philip goes to Samaria and has one of the biggest evangelistic meetings ever recorded. Paul travels out on three missionary journeys and ends up starting churches all over Asia Minor and then tasking the Gospel into Europe. Life was not a bed of Roses for Paul as he often ended up in the local jail, accused of proclaiming the Gospel message. Historians often point the finger at Constantine in around 325 AD or so, for being the culprit responsible for watering down the spread of the Gospel. He made it popular to become a Christian in the Roman Empire. Persecution diminished, things looked good and now it was fashionable to be a believer. And then, as we would say, the rest was history. Sin slowly entered into the church and brings us to the present day when the church doesn't look that much different than social clubs, or football games. It is just in a different type of building. We could spend time pointing the finger at Constantine or anyone else for that matter, when the fact remains that the power that was available to the Apostle Paul is still available to you and to me. Christianity is not a fashion statement but a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. Christianity is not just a statistic, but a relationship between God and each individual. It is between you and God. God has given us His Holy Word, the Bible, to give us guidance on how all of this is possible and the simplest answer is what Paul said to the Philippian Jailer. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ...” It's not a church building or a denomination or a twelve week course, or even a baptism. It is simply a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ and then you go out and tell what God did in your life. That's what Acts 1:8 says. Paul did it and so can you. Praise God today for the fact this He is still changing the lives of His people each and every day. Hang on, God is about to do something wonderful today in your life and in my life.