A Whole Lotta Talking Going On

Recently I was in a church committee meeting during which a decision needed to be made rather quickly, for we had only a small window of time to render our response.  Well maybe you’re thinking “that’s a no-brainer” and under certain and most circumstances, a consensus probably would solve the problem, but this is not the way we flow in the Body of Christ, for the Church is not some corporation which operates  on numbers and logic, opinions and politics.  After we laid all of our cards on the table and found that we could not in faith move “forward” we came back to our first question, “Is this the will of the Lord for us to do?”  Hmmmm.

While walking home from the train station I had time to reflect on what transpired in our meeting and I heard a lot of babbling going on, which made me laugh out loud in the cool night air.  I recalled a famous story of a bunch of people who all agreed, by popular vote (a consensus) to build a city and a tower to reach heaven.  They did not prefer God’s command to spread out and populate the earth He had created for them.  No, instead they wanted to stay communed together and they voted to build a tower which would become their community center to keep everyone living together in one region.  This was not God’s will and so He decided to help them obey, by confounding their language.  Yes, it’s okay to ask God for help when you find it difficult to obey Him. J

All work on the tower stopped for no one could any longer agree on anything, because no one could understand each other anymore.  What a price to pay for a consensus which left God out of the decision making, and in the presence of His known will.  Talkin’ loud and saying nothing.  Anyhooo, you can read this story in Genesis 11:1-9.

As I continued walking home and talking to the Lord (not too loudly) another story came to my mind in which a consensus was taken which did not please Him.  Why not?  Because God had already told these people what to do too.  A group of 12 guys (not a woman in the bunch mind you) were chosen for a recon mission.  God promised them that the entire land would belong to them and their 12 tribes, so why were they chosen to go throughout the land first?  To do exactly what they did do:  spy on the current inhabitants so they could strategize on how they would begin to take possession of the land.  They were not supposed to give a report to negate God’s word to them to “take the Promised Land”.  When we speak words and take votes against God’s Words, we’re just talkin’ loud and saying a whole lotta blah blah blah.  If we can’t say the right thing, I guess it’s best to say nothing at all.  And exactly what would the right and best thing be?  Whatever God said.  C’est tout.  It would cut down on a whole lotta blah blah blah.  You can read this story in Numbers chapters 13 and 14. 

Finally I asked the Lord was there any group of people who came together and aligned themselves together in agreement with Your Word for the advancement of Your will, purpose and desire for and through them?  In my heart I heard the Lord say “Pentecost”.  Aha!!!  Yes.  Let’s look at that story for a good minute.  Jesus had been crucified, buried and resurrected, but before He ascended back up to heaven He gave instructions to His disciples to wait in Jerusalem until they received His power. 

“. . . The apostles saw Jesus many times during the 40 days after He was raised from death.  He spoke to them about God’s Kingdom.  One time when Jesus was eating with them, He told them not to leave Jerusalem.  He said, ‘Wait here until you receive what the Father promised to send.  Remember, I told you about it before.  John baptized people with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’“ Acts 1:3b-5 [The Healing Bible]

Let’s jump ahead a little bit, “Then the apostles went back to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives.  This mountain is about a half mile from Jerusalem.  When they entered the city, they went to the upstairs room (the Upper Room) where they were staying.  The apostles were all together.  They were constantly praying with the same purpose.  Some women, Mary the mother of Jesus, and His brothers were there with the apostles.”  Acts 1:12-13a, 14.  The verses following describe these people taking a vote to replace Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus and then took his own life.  God honored their method and guided their choice because they committed all things unto Him.  They did not lean to their own understanding and logic, or someone’s political or even religious opinion.

 

God is not against us taking votes and making decisions based on a consensus.  As a matter of fact God loves it when we are united for in another scripture the Bible says “Behold how good and how pleasant it is when brethren dwell together in unity.”  Psalm 84:2.  [KJV]  So it’s not the voting that displeased God, it was the attitude, motive, and purpose behind the voting.  And most of all – in opposition to His will.  Bingo!!  But back to the apostles.   In Acts chapter 2 verse 1 we see the great phenomenon which is called the “Birthday of the Church” – the Day of Pentecost.  “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.”   I like the way the King James Version says it:  “They were all with one accord in one place.”  Verse 4 says, “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

A whole lotta talking going on, but talking loud and saying something.  How do I know?  Well, let’s read on . . . “And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language.  Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, ‘Look, are not all these who speak Galileans?  And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born?  Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs – we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.’”  Acts 2:6-11 [New King James Version]  {Emphasis mine.}

It pays to be united for a good cause that’s for sure, and we know that there is always a price, challenges, sacrifices, commitments, challenges and so on.  But it pays better to be united in, and for God’s cause even more, because God knows the end from the beginning.  He knows what everyone involved needs and how best to make those provisions available.  God has the global view and He’s not surprised about the future.  Because He’s already there, we can trust His Word when He speaks to us in the present concerning events we’ve not yet experienced.  But in order to “get there” we have to be willing to wait “here”, together, in His presence.  It is possible to do this.  “Yes we can”!  And remember, don’t vote without Him.

Peace.