“Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your King is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’” Matthew 21:5 (ESV)
Historically the greatest persecution of a movement comes from the previous one. Somehow, when God moves, it doesn’t take long before we tend to ‘routenize’ (put into systems and denominations) what He is doing. Great movements turn into denominations, which soon become filled with rules, legalism and boundaries. But Jesus has a way of going against routinization. He offends it, He disarms it, and He nullifies its effect by offering freedom to those stuck in it!
Jesus always comes in unusual and unexpected ways. He came riding into Jerusalem on a donkey instead of a stallion. The King arrived on an ass instead of a great war horse! Instead of using the wise things of the world and the most intelligent, He chose to use fisherman to lead His movement. He uses the foolish things to confound the wise, the weak things to shame the strong and the lowly things to nullify the things that are esteemed (1 Corinthians 1:27-29).
It is so very surprising how much religion has crept back into the church. So much of what man calls church is not the church at all! Much of this fake church is simply more religion with a label. Whether it is Baptist, Methodist, even Pentecostal and Charismatic churches, they have put God in a box called theology. It is this doctrine that is keeping much of His church separated, segregated and divided. God is going to expose our man-made interpretations of His word. We must hold it before the Lord. Everything must be brought into the light! An example of destructive theology is an eschatology that has the body giving up hope and fixing their eyes on the rescue rapture of the church! Another damaging theology is in regards to the Holy Spirit, whom they say is no longer doing what He did at first. A theology is simply man’s way of interpreting the Bible. Those are two theologies (rapture and Holy Spirit) have brought separation in the body of Christ!
The bottom-line is, how can God come into divided man-made institutions which man might call ‘church?’ God is desiring oneness in His body not unity. Unity involves agreeing to disagree. There is a huge difference between unity and oneness. Words that define oneness include singleness, integrity, wholeness, harmony, sameness and identity. Though similar, words that define unity include agreement, unification, unvaried or uniform character, consensus and solidarity. Nevertheless, God is looking for a Bride who is one like He and the Father are One (John 17:22). He is not simply looking for people who will agree with Him!
Ask the Lord to grant you a grace to see how Jesus is moving today amongst the foolish, the weak and the remnant! Ask Him to disassemble your theology in any and every place that it is simply a man-made attempt to understand the Bible but is actually wrong (even if it has come from someone you have trusted)! Ask Him to show you any place where you have accepted doctrines of demons and/or man, thinking it was true (1 Timothy 4:1, 2 Timothy 4:3-4, Titus 3:9, 2 Corinthians 10:4-6). Ask Him to prepare you and your church (including your pastor) for the things God is about to do that are outside the box of your denomination, church doctrine or theology! Ask Him to ride into Athens on whatever donkey (means) He desires. And ask Him to make us one as He is One!
