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I have not done a sermon summary in several months. I hope to get started back with this ministry. If you would rather not be on my list, just let me know. -Darryl

The Tragedy of the Church

by Darryl Manning            8/26/01

 

The greatest tragedy of mankind is the tragedy of the church. The church, at this point in history, has never accomplished the mission it was given. It has become, in most cases, a social club that has little concern for the world. It has become a place without power. The sick and dying go to the hospitals and when the doctors give up, the people just go on and die. Who would think of putting them in the ambulance and taking them to church? Most don’t even call the pastor or church elders for prayer other than to conduct the funeral.

 

Today we will look at three things regarding the tragedy of the church. First we will look at the mission of Jesus and how He accomplished it. Second, we will look at the early church and how they accomplished the mission at times. Finally, we will look at our church and how we are calling on Jesus to help us become a church of power who can accomplish the mission we are given.

 

Jesus came to show the world that God was a God of love and mercy. As soon as Jesus completed his baptism by John and defeated the devil in the wilderness, he began to preach the Kingdom of God and healing the sick and casting out evil spirits.

 

• Matt 4: ¹⁷From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
• Matt. 4: ²³Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. ²⁴News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed, and he healed them.

 

Early on, Jesus chose people to follow Him and began to train them and send them out preaching the Kingdom of God, heal the sick, and driving out evil spirits. Jesus’ followers returned reporting great success.

 

• Matt 10: ¹He called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil^£ spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.
• Luke 10: ¹After these things the Lord appointed ^£seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go….⁹And heal the sick there, and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’
• Luke 10: ¹⁷Then the ^£seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.”

 

Jesus predicted that following His resurrection, his followers would do greater works that he had done.

 

• John 14: ¹²“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. ¹³And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. ¹⁴If you ^£ask anything in My name, I will do it.

 

Just before His ascension, Jesus told His followers to continue His works of healing, preaching the Kingdom and casting out evil spirits.

• Mark 16: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. ¹⁶He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. ¹⁷And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; ¹⁸they^£ will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
• Acts 1:8 …you shall be ^£witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

 

The early church did the works of Jesus on occasion showing that the healing and miracle ministry of Jesus was meant to continue in the church.

 

·        Acts 3: ⁶Then Peter said, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.” ⁷And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. ⁸So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them—walking, leaping, and praising God.

·        Acts 5: ¹²And through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were done among the people. … ¹⁵so that they brought the sick out into the streets and laid them on beds and couches, that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might fall on some of them. ¹⁶Also a multitude gathered from the surrounding cities to Jerusalem, bringing sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all healed.

·        Acts 8: ⁸And it happened that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever and dysentery. Paul went in to him and prayed, and he laid his hands on him and healed him. ⁹So when this was done, the rest of those on the island who had diseases also came and were healed.

 

Though we read of occasional ministries of power in the early church, by and large the healing and miracle ministry of Jesus was already fading out. Soon the church lost this ministry and never has regained it. Yes we have a person healed from time to time but we do not see the multitudes coming and all being healed. Have you ever seen people rise up out of wheel chairs? Have you ever seen withered arms grow and become healthy? We may have seen a miracle on TV or in person but for every one healed there are multitudes who are left sick.

 

We must not be satisfied with our churches. We must seek Jesus and His anointing for our churches. We must have faith to believe the church can still become what it was meant to be.

 

At House of Joy Church, we are putting up hooks in the sanctuary in anticipation that wheel chairs and crutches that will be hanging there soon. We are not going to be satisfied with our church being a social club. We are asking Jesus to make House of Joy Church an example of what the church of Jesus Christ should be. When this happens we can fulfill our mission of showing the world the love and mercy of God. We can be the instruments of reconciliation that we were meant to be.