Fire From the Altar
Connections Pastor Parker Frey tells us about his new blog post Fire From The Altar and how we can learn to bring the presence of God into our lives.
Hello, Church!
Over the last number of days and weeks, many of us have been considering our role as believers in Jesus to see this global pandemic come to an end. In the Vineyard, we frequently use the phrase, “everyone gets to play”. I love that sentiment! This work is not reserved for the experts, the experienced or the confident. It’s a partnership that is available to all of us.
We have a spiritual authority that we need to learn how to access! Something that has been challenging me is this idea of praying “against the virus”. I found myself praying a few times in the past few weeks, “God, bring an end to this virus. Stop this pandemic!” There’s nothing wrong with that, but if I can be honest with you, those prayers sometimes feel a little powerless. I’m here to suggest that there might actually be more powerful, precise prayers that we can pray during this time.
What’s our role supposed to be?
Many of us look up to prominent individuals who have wide-reaching ministries. These folks have a reach that extends across millions of people and many nations. We are supposed to learn from them. The part we sometimes miss is that we aren’t supposed to imitate them, we’re supposed to learn from them and apply their lessons to our own context as we imitate Christ.
In 2 Corinthians 10, Paul introduces an idea that I think we would all do well to consider. He talks about what we sometimes call a “sphere of influence”. He says that in his ministry, he’s sticking to the limits God has set for him. I think when we pray and do life, it’s profoundly important to consider the limits God has set for us. These are the areas God wants us to be most active - it’s where He has placed us!
Go and get some fire from the altar.
There’s a story in Numbers 16 about a plague that breaks out among the rebellious people of Israel. I will not make any bones about it - this is a weird Old Testament story. This is a story where people are dealt with in ways that Jesus no longer deals with his people. Hopefully, we know under the New Covenant, God isn’t sending plagues of judgment. We hold on to the truth that when we find ourselves confused about something in the Old Testament, we remember that Jesus is the measure of God’s character, not a confusing Old Testament story (John 1:18). All this considered, there is an important lesson to be learned.
Near the end of the story, a compelling thing happens. Moses and Aaron, being leaders who cared deeply for the people, threw themselves facedown on the ground and began to pray. They took some fire from the altar in their place of worship. Aaron ran into the middle of the congregation, stood between the living and the dead for the love of his people, and the plague stopped.
Reach out to your “sphere of influence”!
The encouragement I want to leave you with is this. In the face of what’s going on in the world today, take some “fire” from your place of worship, go out among your people (six feet apart), and see the plague stop. Maybe the plague is fear. Maybe it’s apathy or indifference. It could be anger or judgment. It could also be physical sickness! Your people could be in the hospital where you do battle every day. They could be your kids, your parents, your church, your company or your city.
I propose that we start focusing our efforts on the “sphere of influence” God has given us. I’m planning on reaching out to my neighborhood and the neighborhood around the church building this week. Pray and ask God who your people are! Of course, it’s still important to pray big prayers for our country and our world, but when we focus on our “sphere of influence”, we very well could see things change faster, spiritually and physically.
Hope everyone is doing well!
-Parker
Rejoice Always
Hello Church!
These are strange days we find ourselves living in. In light of the current situation, we thought it would be a perfect opportunity to reach out via blog and video, something we’ve wanted to try for some time!
That’s a phrase many of us probably have not heard much in recent weeks; “a perfect opportunity”. However, it’s my hope that’s the way we can allow the Holy Spirit to begin to work in our minds. In Romans 8:28, Paul reminds us that God is working all things together for our good! We talk a lot about the goodness of God, and I want to remind you that in the New Covenant, diseases are a weapon of the enemy! However, we do believe in the face of the situation the accuser has brought about, God is seeking to teach us and grow us up in love.
I’ve been thinking a lot about the wisdom of 1 Thessalonians 5:12-20 over the past few weeks - wisdom we would do well to heed in this time. Read it when you get the chance. The Church in Thessalonica was enduring intense persecution as this letter was written to them. In the first three chapters, Paul celebrated the faithfulness of the Thessalonians and he gave them some instructions about righteous living.
Then Paul’s tone changed. He challenged them to grow up into something new! There are three things I want us to consider as the Church in this unique moment in world history:
#1 Be at peace amongst yourselves.
We can not afford to have division among us! That means in times of panic and fear, the Church cannot have an inward OR outward expression of offense toward those who are afraid. “Respecting those who labor among us and are over us in the Lord” means we cannot have a disparaging attitude toward leaders who make requests of us for our well being or toward churches who make decisions for the betterment of the communities whose feet we wash.
#2 Admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, and do all this with patience.
Pray against loneliness, thoughts of suicide, and fear of financial hardship. If you see believers around you putting their kingdom assignment “on hold” (idle), admonish them to find creative new ways to love the people around them as Jesus would! When you encounter folks who are afraid (fainthearted), encourage them! These times will be short-lived. We’re people of the future, not of the present. Finally, help the weak. Those who are poor, elderly or have weakened immune systems need you! Bring them groceries, pray for them in person or simply give them a phone call. Be creative and ask the Holy Spirit how he would have you respond wisely. Be patient and kind in it all.
#3 Pray without ceasing, rejoice always, and give thanks in all circumstances.
We are filled with the Spirit of God, who enables us to do just this. Review the fruits of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control) and make note that “righteous anger” is not among them (nor is it in the Bible). If you’re feeling angry or grieved by what’s happening around you, ask the Holy Spirit why you’re feeling that way! You might be surprised by how quickly he answers.
My prayer is that we would all lean into the changes that are happening around us and see what God wants to do through our situation! How might he want to stretch you, challenge you, or break you of old habits and fears?